Chapter 269

Haunted by her broken engagement, Victoria Sinclair tossed and turned in bed, her mind burning with fury.

Everything had been perfect—until that disastrous day, when unforeseen circumstances tore her future apart.

Raising a brow, Julian Montgomery asked coolly, "Because of me?"

"According to Nathaniel, your decision to operate on Grandma Eleanor had nothing to do with me!" Victoria snapped.

Clearing his throat, Julian nodded. "You're right. It wasn't because of you."

Victoria's eyes widened in shock. "Julian, what are you saying?"

"If it's not me, then who? Nathaniel? Since when do you care about him? I thought you despised him!"

"I do."

"Then who?"

She had dug relentlessly for answers, yet the truth remained frustratingly out of reach.

Julian remained composed. "Victoria, some things aren't worth obsessing over."

"But lies can't last forever. Your broken engagement is the consequence of your own deception."

"Julian, fine, I lied. But you still haven’t explained why you agreed to operate on Grandma Eleanor. Who are you doing this for?"

"That’s none of your concern. You should leave."

Tears pricked Victoria’s eyes. "Julian, are you and Alexander hiding something from me? He’s even pressuring me to sign adoption termination papers."

"After all these years as family, why is he suddenly pushing me away?"

Julian hesitated.

Originally, he had planned to tell her after the engagement, but now, with everything falling apart, the truth would have to wait.

Glancing at her, he said, "I don’t want to discuss this now."

With that, he walked out, leaving Victoria standing alone, her mind racing.

Something was wrong—terribly wrong—but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t piece it together.

Just then, Isabelle Laurent approached, offering an ice pack. "This might help."

"Thanks," Victoria muttered, pressing it to her face as she wiped away her smudged tears.

"You're Dr. Montgomery’s sister, aren’t you?" Isabelle asked gently.

Victoria sighed dramatically. "Yes. Lately, he’s been acting like a stranger."

"Ms. Sinclair… I think it might be because he’s seeing someone," Isabelle whispered.

Victoria stiffened. "Julian is in a relationship? Why wasn’t I told?"

Lowering her voice, Isabelle continued, "There’s a woman staying in the ward downstairs. She’s been coming in for treatments—Dr. Montgomery personally oversees her care."

"Yesterday, she was brought back by helicopter. Rumor has it she was kidnapped."

Kidnapped.

A name flashed in Victoria’s mind. "Evelyn Carter?"

Isabelle nodded. "That’s her."

Victoria’s thoughts screeched to a halt.

Then, slowly, she turned to Isabelle. "You’re saying Evelyn visits Julian often?"

"Not just visits. He treats her like she’s special."

"Dr. Montgomery is respected here, but I’ve never seen him show this kind of attention to anyone before. Evelyn is different."

The realization hit Victoria like a punch to the gut.

Without another word, she stormed toward the stairs, determined to uncover the truth.

Silently, she crept to Evelyn’s ward, the door slightly ajar.

Peering inside, she saw Julian standing beside Evelyn’s bed, speaking softly as he peeled an apple for her.

Victoria didn’t need further proof.

Now she understood why Evelyn had grown so bold—why threats about demolishing her old neighborhood hadn’t fazed her.

At last, the truth was clear.