Chapter 127

Vincent stood outside the hospital room door, his fingers hovering midair.

The memory of that rainy night four years ago flashed through his mind—Candy drenched, standing before him with starlight shimmering in her eyes.

He pushed the door open. The sharp scent of disinfectant assaulted his senses.

Candy leaned against the headboard, tear tracks staining her pale face. Her slender fingers clutched the blanket, knuckles turning white.

"Vincent!" Nicole rushed forward. "Candy just woke up from a nightmare. She's been crying nonstop."

His gaze settled on Candy's face.

Her lashes trembled as tears rolled down. He knew this look too well—the same fragile expression she wore whenever she felt wronged.

"Vincent..." Her voice shook. "I dreamed about our baby..."

His Adam's apple bobbed.

"He kept crying, asking why we abandoned him..." She covered her face, shoulders heaving violently. "It was Susan! She killed our child!"

The room fell into suffocating silence.

Vincent slowly walked to the window. Sunlight filtered through the blinds, casting fragmented shadows across his face.

"Candy." His voice was soft. "The security footage from Elysium has been restored."

Her sobs cut off abruptly.

Nicole's water glass slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor.

"Impossible!" Candy jerked her head up. "The cameras were—"

She bit her lip hard, cutting herself off.

Vincent turned. Ice filled his eyes. "Were what? Destroyed?"

All color drained from her face.

"I saw the video." He enunciated each word. "Susan never even touched you."

"You're lying!" she shrieked. "She pushed me!"

She threw off the blankets, only to trip over the IV line and crash onto the floor. The needle tore from her hand, blood welling instantly.

"Candy!" Nicole scrambled to help.

Vincent didn't move.

Candy lifted her face to him from the ground. Tears mixed with blood, streaking down her cheeks.

"Why..." Her voice was raw. "Why do you always believe her over me?"

He bent to pick up the fallen medical chart.

"Uterine perforation. Permanent infertility." He read the diagnosis quietly. "Was framing Susan worth it?"

Her pupils contracted violently.

"I didn't!" she screamed hysterically. "Susan did this to me!"

Vincent tossed his phone onto the bed.

The screen played a video: Candy standing at the top of a staircase, glancing around before deliberately throwing herself down.

Her breathing turned ragged.

"Fake... That's fake footage..." She shook her head wildly. "Susan doctored it!"

His expression frosted over completely.

"Candy Wilson." For the first time, he used her full name. "We're done."

She went eerily still.

Slowly, she sat upright and wiped her face clean. When she looked up again, all traces of vulnerability had vanished.

"Vincent King." She smiled coldly. "You think this is over?"

Outside the window, dark clouds swallowed the sun.