Chapter 258

The hospital room door clicked shut behind us, sealing us in suffocating silence. Richard Hayes and Margaret Hayes both turned their furious gazes on Vanessa Hart, their expressions dripping with contempt.

"Vanessa, what in God's name were you thinking?" Richard's voice was a low, dangerous growl. "You and Evelyn are sisters. Do you realize the humiliation you've brought upon our family today? This is unforgivable."

The irony burned. Richard had once defended Vanessa with blind loyalty, shielding her from every consequence. Now, his words felt like a blade twisting in her back.

We had just been unceremoniously ejected from Alexander Whitmore’s private ward.

Vanessa’s expulsion was expected—she had orchestrated this disaster.

But for Alexander to dismiss Richard as well? That was a blow to his pride he hadn’t seen coming.

Richard’s jaw clenched, his face flushed with barely contained rage. Horizon Enterprises had been counting on Alexander’s influence. Now, that hope was ashes.

Vanessa’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears, her lower lip trembling.

"Dad, I—I don’t know what came over me," she whispered, pressing a hand to her chest. "It was like something took control of me. I swear, I never meant for any of this to happen."

Her voice cracked, the perfect picture of remorse.

But the damage was done.

Margaret's brows knitted together in frustration. "Excuse me? You were still arguing your case in front of everyone moments ago! If you had just owned up to it from the start, we wouldn’t be in this humiliating situation."

Vanessa chewed her lower lip, her carefully constructed lies crumbling around her. "I… I don’t know what came over me…"

Margaret’s eyes darkened with disillusionment. She had raised Vanessa for years, only to watch her deceit grow bolder with time.

Richard’s voice cut through the tension. "That’s enough. Vanessa is injured—let’s not make this worse. She needs rest, and we shouldn’t keep her here any longer. Let’s go."

A sharp pang of unease twisted in Margaret’s chest.

"Why is it that every time Vanessa makes a mistake, you’re the first to shield her?" Her voice trembled with suppressed emotion. "Do I not have the right to hold her accountable?"

Richard’s blatant favoritism had always lingered beneath the surface, but now, it was impossible to ignore.

His patience snapped. "I’m not shielding anyone! Are you trying to start a fight with me now?"

The air between them crackled with hostility. Sensing the storm brewing, Vanessa quickly interjected. "Mom, Dad, please—"

But the damage was already done. The cracks in their family had deepened, and this time, they might not be so easily repaired.

Ethan stood outside, cigarette smoke curling around his tense frame. The nicotine did little to calm his racing thoughts.

Inside, Richard and Margaret exchanged venomous looks before reluctantly retreating down the sterile hospital corridor. Their footsteps echoed like distant thunder.

Meanwhile, Ethan remained slumped against the cold concrete wall of the stairwell. The glow of his third cigarette cast flickering shadows across his hollowed cheeks.

The hospital's nighttime hush amplified every sound. Through the partially open fire door, Lucas and Claire's heated argument carried clearly.

Ethan hadn't meant to overhear. He'd been there first, seeking solitude in the stairwell's dim isolation. Their arrival had been unexpected.

The raw emotion in Lucas's voice startled Ethan. This wasn't the arrogant, untouchable businessman he knew. This was a man stripped bare by love and regret.

Fifteen agonizing minutes passed before the tension finally broke. The silence that followed felt heavier than the shouting.

Ethan exhaled sharply, watching the smoke dissipate. He'd never imagined witnessing Lucas Bennett - of all people - begging for forgiveness.

A strange ache settled in Ethan's chest. Not sympathy exactly, but recognition. The kind that comes from seeing your own reflection in another's pain.

The cigarette burned down to his fingers. He barely noticed.

Somewhere beyond the fire door, a single, broken sob echoed through the empty hallway. Ethan wasn't sure which of them it came from.

He lit another cigarette with trembling hands.

The smoke tasted like ashes.