Never Again Yours (Isadora and Magnus)

Isadora let out a cold laugh. "The one who gets to bask in your affection and the Vaughan family fortune is Pearl, not me! Why should I be the one to marry for the sake of the family?"

"You... you ungrateful girl!" Richard's face darkened. "This isn't your decision to make! Unless you can find someone better than Magnus, you'll marry him whether you like it or not."

Eleanor quickly tried to calm him, smoothing his chest. "Please, Richard, don't get so worked up—it's not worth risking your health. Isadora's been impossible lately; she talks to me the same way."

After a long silence, Isadora finally looked up. "So as long as I find someone more impressive than Magnus, I don't have to marry him?"noveldrama

Richard snorted. "If you can manage that, I won't force you to marry Magnus!"

But in Capitolion, only Victor-the crown prince-outranked Magnus, with a wealth and power that dwarfed even the Vaughans. Yet the Fitzgeralds were the pinnacle of high society; there was no way they'd ever even look twice at the Vaughans.

In other words, Isadora didn't stand a chance.

Hospital.

Gideon finished setting Elise's IV, then pulled Magnus out of the hospital room, unable to hide his frustration.

"Magnus, you know how fragile Elise is. Why would you let her go into the water? She nearly drowned tonight-she could have died at any moment!"

Magnus's mind was still replaying Isadora's words "We're even now." A heavy, dark shadow clouded his face.

Being confronted now only soured his mood further. "And where were you, then? You're supposed to be her doctor. I pay you a fortune to look after her, yet you let this happen?"

Gideon looked guilty. "You know as well as I do, Magnus-*you're* the medicine Elise really needs."

Magnus snorted in disdain. "Gideon, know your place. If you can't stay professional, if you're too emotionally involved, you're welcome to go back to Argentia.”

With that, Magnus strode back into the room.

Elise lay in bed, pale and fragile. When Magnus entered, she opened her eyes and whispered weakly, "Magnus, did I cause you trouble tonight?"

Magnus stared at her, his gaze unreadable. "You shouldn't have been there."

"I just wanted to apologize, I—"

He cut her off. "Elise, I'm going to marry Isadora."

For a moment, tears shimmered in Elise's eyes.

"Magnus... does that mean you're leaving me?"

Magnus, for the first time, felt a headache coming on, but he forced himself to be patient.

"I'm responsible for your condition. I'll still look after you. But Elise, when I promised to grant your last wish, it was so you could finally move on with your life."

Elise seemed to shrink at his words, her body wracked with sudden coughing. Gasping for breath, she clutched her chest.

Gideon, waiting outside, heard the commotion and rushed in with a nurse.

Half an hour later.

Gideon, now in his white coat, stepped out into the corridor and found Magnus smoking, staring blankly at the floor.

He sent the nurse away and approached. "Magnus, we've finally found a matching donor for Elise. If all goes well, she'll have a heart transplant next month. Until then, she can't take any more shocks."

He hesitated, then added, "I probably shouldn't say this, but Isadora was out to hurt Elise tonight-deliberately. Are you really going to let her get away with it? Are you going to stand by and watch Elise get destroyed?"

Magnus stubbed out his cigarette, his face still ice-cold and unreadable.

"Take good care of her. If anything happens, text me."

Once Magnus was gone, Gideon went back into the room.

"All right, he's left, so you can stop pretending. Really, Elise? Isadora tells you to

jump in and you actually do it? Are you trying to kill yourself?"

Elise opened her eyes, her complexion still ghostly pale. Her voice was faint. "Gideon, I just didn't want Magnus to leave me."

Gideon frowned. "You're hopeless. Magnus and Isadora are engaged-they're going to get married sooner or later. Why do this to yourself?"

"No. I love Magnus. Isadora's loved him for five years, but I've loved him for seven. I love him more than she ever could! Why should I step aside for her?"

Her eyes filled with tears, her jaw clenched. "As long as I'm still here, I will never let Magnus marry that bitch Isadora!"