The Bargaining Chip

"Serena Sterling, what makes you think I'd get into a fight with the Vance family because of an insignificant assistant?" Damian sneered.

An insignificant assistant?

Tessa, insignificant?

The words echoed in the tense confines of the luxury car, stinging like salt on a fresh wound. Serena knew the bitter truth. In Damian's eyes, she was the insignificant one. Tessa was merely collateral damage.

She gazed at Damian's side profile. The dim streetlights caught his perfect jawline, highlighting the rigid, unyielding tension in his features. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she spoke in a low, trembling voice. "Damian, please. I beg you. Please, help me just this one time… Please."

Damian said nothing. His silent refusal was loud, clear, and suffocating. The sheer weight of his indifference pressed heavily onto her chest, acting like a giant rock crushing the air from her lungs. Serena balled her hands into tight fists, her fingernails digging deep into her palms, yet she registered no pain. The emotional agony far outweighed anything physical.

Defeated, Serena fell quiet and stared blankly out the dark window. The fleeting city lights blurred into streaks of pale yellow. At that exact moment, with agonizing clarity, she knew Damian would never help her. Not even if she threw herself onto the cold ground at his feet and begged until her throat bled. He had made his choice.

The next day, Serena carried a fresh fruit basket through the pristine, quiet corridors of the VIP hospital wing. The sterile scent of antiseptic hung in the air. As she neared Vivian's ward, the door stood slightly ajar. Chloe's shrill, gloating voice drifted out into the hallway, forcing Serena to halt her steps.

"Vivian, you can't imagine how humiliating it was for Serena when she waited in the lobby yesterday," Chloe bragged loudly. "The two women manning the front desk didn't even recognize her. They thought she was just some cheap tramp trying to seduce Damian! Haha! Honestly, even Damian's dog enjoys better treatment than her!"

Through the gap in the door, Serena could see Vivian leaning against the raised headboard of her hospital bed. Her long hair cascaded softly around her pale, delicate face. She sat quietly, methodically peeling a fresh apple with a small paring knife, her expression serene.

"I heard Tessa offended the Vance family," Chloe continued, pacing the floor. "Serena begged Damian to help her bail Tessa out, but Damian ignored her. He didn't care at all! Meanwhile, the director who harassed you yesterday is supposed to be very famous, right? Damian didn't even think twice about canceling him. He ruined the man's career in an instant! Now, everyone in the industry knows you're his woman. Those people will never dare to bully you ever again!"

Chloe basked in the reflected glory, her voice swelling with self-gratification as though Damian had done it for her.

"My guess is Damian will divorce Serena very soon."

Vivian's hand froze in mid-air. The sudden, jerky movement caused the long, winding apple peel to snap and fall onto the white sheets.

Serena did not wait to hear more. She pushed the door open and stepped into the ward, the fruit basket gripped firmly in her hand.

"Miss Mercer, are you feeling better today?" Serena asked, her voice steady and calm.

Chloe's smug expression vanished the second she saw Serena. Her face contorted with instant anger. Pointing a manicured finger at the doorway, she shouted arrogantly, "Serena Sterling! What are you doing here?"

Serena ignored the outburst. She did not spare Chloe a single glance, her eyes locking directly onto the woman in the bed. "Miss Mercer, may I have a private word with you?"

Before Vivian could process the request, Chloe's shrill voice interjected. "Vivian, don't listen to her! She knew you were in trouble yesterday and purposely tried to stop Damian from leaving! She intentionally delayed him from rescuing you. She's definitely up to no good coming here today. You shouldn't be alone with this cruel woman. She's probably here to hurt you!"

Vivian's brow furrowed, a faint look of displeasure crossing her pale features. She set the knife and the half-peeled apple aside on the bedside table. "Ms. Sterling, what is it that you can't say right now?"

"It's about Damian," Serena replied plainly.

The moment Damian's name hung in the air, Vivian's pupils flashed with a sudden, sharp intensity. She lifted her chin, her demeanor shifting. "Chloe, can you please leave the room for a while?"

Chloe gasped, her face flushing with indignation. "No! What if this woman tries to do something bad to you—"

"Chloe," Vivian interjected, her voice lowering into a firm, undeniable command. "Go out, please."

Chloe shrank back, seemingly fearful of Vivian's sudden sternness. She bit her lip, threw a furious, venomous glare at Serena, and stomped out of the ward in a huff, her heels clicking aggressively against the floor tiles.

Once out in the quiet hallway, Chloe did not leave. She stood near the door, staring coldly through the glass panel at the two figures inside. Pulling out her phone, she swiftly dialed a private number.

After a few tense seconds, a deep, familiar voice came through the receiver.

Chloe immediately squeezed her eyes shut, forcing her voice to waver with fake, desperate tears. "Damian? It's Chloe. Serena is here. She pushed her way into the ward! Vivian still hasn't recovered from yesterday's fright and she is in no condition to deal with Serena's torment. Damian, please come here quickly. I don't know what she's going to do to her!"

Inside the VIP ward, the atmosphere settled into a thick, suffocating quiet.

Vivian looked at Serena, her expression puzzled yet guarded. "Ms. Sterling, what brings you here today?"

Serena had no time for pleasantries. Every second wasted was another second Tessa spent rotting in a cell. "I think you've heard about what happened during Senior Sinclair's birthday party. Tessa is now in jail because she was charged with intentional harming. The Vances locked her up, and I can't bail her out."

"I did hear about this before," Vivian replied smoothly, leaning back against her pillows. "But the Vance family is very powerful. I'm afraid there's nothing I can do to help Miss Blair either." Vivian tilted her head, observing Serena carefully. "You should ask Damian to help you out instead. He has a good relationship with the Vance family. It'll be much easier if he's the one intervening."

"He refused to help me." Serena kept her face stoic, masking the lingering pain. "He thinks it's not worth crossing the Vance family because of me."

Vivian’s eyes narrowed slightly. "So you want me to ask him instead?"

Serena nodded. "That's right."

A faint, skeptical smile touched Vivian's lips. She smoothed the blanket over her lap. "Even if I'm willing… there's no guarantee he'll do as I ask."

Serena stepped closer to the bed, closing the distance between them. She looked dead into Vivian's eyes, preparing her ultimate bargaining chip.

"I'll divorce Damian if you're willing to help me."

The words dropped into the quiet room like a bombshell. Sheer disbelief washed over Vivian's delicate face. Her calm facade shattered, her eyes widening as she stared at the woman standing before her.

"You'll… divorce Damian?" Vivian breathed out, the shock evident in her trembling tone.

The reaction made perfect sense. After all, the old Serena Sterling had done everything in her power, using every despicable and desperate method imaginable, just to cling to the Sinclair marriage. She had been the madwoman guarding her territory. The sudden surrender was unfathomable.

"Yes," Serena replied simply, her voice unwavering.

"And Damian agreed to it?"

Serena found the question slightly odd, but she did not dwell on it. "Yes. We have already discussed it."

Vivian slowly lowered her head. Her long, dark hair fell forward, casting dark shadows over her cheeks and effectively hiding her expression from view. The silence stretched again, thick with unspoken calculations.

"I was the one who broke up your relationship with Damian in the past," Serena continued, her tone rational and detached. "My guess is you couldn't forget about him, since you never once got into another relationship after so many years had passed. Now, both of you have the chance to be together again. It would be a massive pity if you let this golden chance slip away."

Serena paused, letting the reality of her offer sink in before delivering her warning.

"I've temporarily lost my memory, so I'm not going to make it difficult for him to get a divorce right now. I am willing to step aside. But who knows? One day, I might get my memory back. I'll turn back into the old me—the obsessive woman willing to do anything to maintain my marriage and stop you two from being together. When that time comes, it won't be so easy for you to reclaim Damian. Miss Mercer, you're a smart woman. Surely you know opportunity waits for no one."

The room fell dead silent. The offer was flawless. A guaranteed, immediate removal of the only obstacle standing between Vivian and the man she loved, all for the simple price of a few words spoken to Damian.

Finally, Vivian lifted her head. She eyed Serena thoroughly, her gaze stripping away the surface, reading the desperation underneath. Her face bore a complex, unreadable expression.

"Seems like you've really lost your memory," Vivian murmured softly.

The sudden, cryptic change of topic stunned Serena. She frowned, unsure of how to navigate the bizarre response. A few seconds later, she regained her focus. "Miss Mercer, about my proposition…"

"I'm sorry," Vivian interjected curtly, her tone suddenly turning cold and decisive. "But I can't agree to your proposition."

Serena froze, staring at the woman in the bed.

Unlike Chloe, Vivian was highly intelligent. She knew how to play the game, when to press forward, and when to retreat. Serena had always known Damian possessed good taste in women. But this made zero sense.

Why would Vivian reject the deal? Why would she pass up the easiest, most guaranteed path to reclaiming Damian, especially when the task required so little effort on her part?

Just as Serena opened her mouth to demand a reason for the illogical refusal, the heavy ward door swung open with a brutal crash.

Damian strode into the room. His tall frame seemed to suck all the air out of the space. His designer suit clung to his broad shoulders, but it was his face that commanded attention—his handsome features were twisted in raw fury, his entire demeanor dripping with ice.

His dark, lethal gaze locked onto her instantly.

"Serena, what the hell are you doing to Vivian?"