Madeline Anthony Fitzgerald Novel The Real Heiress's Flash Marriage

One last time, are you marrying him or not? a man's cold, ruthless voice snapped through the living room.

Madeline Crawford's feathery lashes trembled as she glanced up at him.

The speaker was her second brother, Daniel Crawford, CEO of Crawford Group.

He wore a silver-gray suit that made him look sharp and businesslike.

But his face was twisted up with anger and hatred, making his whole expression look warped.

Madeline's heart clenched with sadness and frustration. "I..."

"Cut the crap," Daniel snapped. "You and Jennie got switched at birth. You grew up in the mountains for 22 years. After knowing this, Jennie didn't hold grudges against you. She even helped us bring you home. And what did you do after that?"

His tone got even harsher. "Jennie was nothing but kind to you, and yet you shoved her out of the car. If we'd been going any faster, she'd be dead right now.

"You're so vicious. It just serves you right to take Jennie's place and marry that good-for-nothing Fitzgerald."

Madeline's chest tightened with dull pain. "You call me vicious?"

''So this is what my brother thinks of me?' Madeline thought bitterly, her heart sinking.

She turned to look at Daniel, her gaze fixed and unyielding.

The white silk ruffled collar around her neck shifted slightly as she moved.

A glimpse of pale skin peeked out beneath her collar, making her red-rimmed eyes look even more striking.

Madeline really had spent more than twenty years living in the mountains, raised by the person who took her in.

Her mentor treated her like his own child, teaching her everything he knewskills and wisdom she could never repay.

She was thankful for it all, and honestly, she never once hated anyone for how her life turned out.

But just three days agoright when Jennie's wedding to Anthony Fitzgerald was only a month awayeverything got turned upside down.

Out of nowhere, the Crawfords came looking for Madeline in the mountains.

They revealed she was actually the true heiress of the Crawford family.

Her mentor told her it was time for her to head down the mountain to face whatever life had planned for her. She really didn't want to go, but in the end, she had no choice.

When they were headed back to Crawford Villa, Jennie purposely chose to ride in the same car as Madeline.

Then, out of nowhere, Jennie threw the door open while the car was moving and hurled herself out.

Then, her brothers blocked the car and shouted at Madeline, accusing her of trying to murder Jennie.

If Jennie hadn't blacked out and desperately needed to get to the hospital, Madeline probably would've been hauled straight to the police station and branded a criminal.

For three whole days, Madeline kept trying to explain what really happened.

But none of her brothers would believe a wordif anything, they just accused her of making up lies about Jennie.

Recently, the Crawford family had run into some serious cash flow problems.

The only solution was to accept the engagement with the Fitzgerald familysince they'd agreed to pay 15 million dollars as a wedding payment.

Madeline only realized it then that they never brought her back out of love at all. It was just because Jennie refused to be the one to marry that vegetable from the Fitzgerald family.

Yet it was no point arguing with them.

"Are you going to marry him or not?" Daniel snapped, his voice cold and biting.

When Madeline stayed silent, Daniel completely lost his temper. He grabbed a cup and smashed it hard against the floor.

Porcelain shards sprayed out, one cutting into Madeline's ankle. Blood trickled down, dripping onto the floor beneath her.

"Fine," Madeline said with a cold smile, boxing up every last hope she'd ever had for family. "But I have one condition."

"Greedy as always, huh?" Daniel scoffed. "Noel and I will talk about the money you get."

"Not money," Madeline said, her voice emotionless.

Her heart was so numb that she barely reactedhis words didn't even faze her anymore.

"I want to visit Jennie at the hospital," Madeline said, her voice flat and distant.

Daniel paused, suspicion flickering in his eyes as his anger faded. "What, are you still thinking of hurting Jennie?"

"Sure. You got the guts to let me?" Madeline retorted.

She didn't bother to explain herself, just stared back at Daniel, her eyes icy and unreadable.

Daniel hesitated for a moment, thinking, 'We've plenty of bodyguards watching over Jennie. Madeline is just a worthless bumpkin dragged out of the mountains. Not a chance she can even lay a finger on Jennie.'

"Half an hour, that's all you get," Daniel barked. "The Fitzgeralds's car is almost here. See Jennie, and then straight to the car. Don't try anything funny."

Madeline snorted, then turned upstairs to pack her things.

She didn't have much to packjust a handful of essentials, and makeup wasn't even on her mind. She really wasn't the type to fuss about her looks.

Yet her beauty needed no help from cosmetics.

Her lips were naturally rosy, her brows perfectly shaped without any effort, and her eyes gleamed like gemstonesradiant, captivating, simply unrivaled.

She picked up her suitcase, went downstairs, and left for the hospital with Daniel.

Jennie was staying in a private VIP ward.

All her brothers were there, each wearing a look of utter disgust as soon as they saw Madeline.

Madeline didn't care in the slightest. She just sat by the bed and exchanged a few meaningless words with them. Soon, someone reported that the Fitzgeralds's car was waiting outside.

She stood up, looking each of her five brothers in the eye.

Madeline said, her voice cold and unyielding, "From this moment on, we're not family anymore. I don't owe you guys anything."

"You're not the one to say it. We never saw you as family to begin with," Daniel snapped.

Daniel's face was like ice. Anthony Fitzgerald had been comatose for three years, and now his health was failing fast. He might not even make it through the next few days.

To the Crawfords, Madeline was just an unwanted widow-to-be, whom the Fitzgeralds could easily cast aside, so they couldn't care less.

Madeline turned and walked out, her gaze frosty, never once looking back.

Daniel watched Madeline leave before striding over to stand beside Noel Crawford, their eldest brother, and at Jennie's bedside.

He said, "Noel, the Fitzgeralds just wired the money they promised. Jennie can drop the act and wake up."

Noel finally cracked a relieved smile. "Must've been tough pretending all this time. Go ahead and wake her up."

Daniel called the doctor in, and the doctor wasted no time giving Jennie an injection.

After a long, agonizing pause, the doctor's face drained of all color.

"Ms. Crawford... S-She's not responding. It looks like she's fallen into a coma," the doctor stammered, voice shaky.

Daniel's face went pale with shock, his chest tightening. "What do you mean by 'looks like'?"

"She..." the doctor stammered, completely losing his composure.

He scrambled to check Jennie, his face going deathly pale in terror.

"S-She's in a vegetative state," the doctor blurted out, his voice trembling with shock.

Jennie's five brothers were all terrified, and they rushed to the bedside in a panic.

"Get your specialists here now," one of them shouted frantically.

*****

Frank Fitzgerald, Anthony's younger brother, was the one sent to pick Madeline up for the wedding.

Frank couldn't care less about her, treating the luxury car like a race car the whole way.

He figured Madeline would be puking her guts out, but to his surprise, she didn't even bat an eyejust sat there, totally unfazed.

When she stepped out of the car, Madeline gave him a subtle, almost teasing smile.

"You're seriously lacking manners. I'm your brother's wife. Next time you see me, you gotta greet me first," she quipped.

Frank's face was dark as thunder, his voice cold as ice. "No telling if you'll even survive till tomorrow."

Anthony was barely holding onthis wedding was just a last-ditch hope to counteract bad luck and save him.

If Anthony died tonight, the bride wouldn't be bringing any luckshe'd be tagged the curse, and she might not survive the night either.

Madeline didn't look scared. She gave an indifferent smile. "I really can't stand people with no manners."

With that, she strode toward the living room.

Because Anthony was in such a bad way, they'd turned one room of the mansion into a hospital suite, loaded up with all sorts of medical gear.

A couple of servants guided Madeline upstairs.

As soon as they reached the door, they simply shoved her in.

Just to be safelike they were afraid she might boltthey locked the door right after her.

Madeline scoped out the place. Every bit of cutting-edge medical gear filled the room, all the latest and greatest tech.

Anthony lay quietly on the bed, his skin almost ghostly pale, but it didn't take a thing away from the forceful charisma he gave off.

Even from several feet away, Madeline could sense the intimidating vibe rolling off him.

She walked over, sank down on the edge of the bed, and reached out to feel Anthony's breath and heartbeat.

After a while, she suddenly reached over and pulled his shirt open.

With a deft flick, a silver needle slid from her sleeve to her fingertip, and she wasted no time jabbing it straight into his chest.

One after another, thirteen needles went in quickly. Just then, Anthony gave a rough cough, hacking up a mouthful of black blood before his eyes slowly fluttered open.