Chapter 4

Sterling took the signed settlement, briefly scanning the signature at the bottom.

Without giving me a second glance, he reached out and tucked Chloe protectively under his arm.

The two of them walked out of the ward side by side. Their footsteps faded down the hall, and they didn't even bother to shut the door behind them.

Deathly silence fell over the room once again.

A few minutes later, the sound of rushed, heavy footsteps echoed from the corridor.

The door flew open, and my father walked in, panting heavily.

His face was pale, his forehead and temples beaded with sweat. His coat was unbuttoned, and his chest heaved violently from running so fast.

He had just come from the ICU, where he had seen my mother through the glass.

Now, he was looking at me lying in the hospital bed.

Seeing my father’s sweat-drenched face, my severely taut nerves finally snapped. The tears I had been holding back violently spilled over.

"I'm so sorry, Dad..." I looked at him, choking on my sobs as I apologized over and over.

"I just signed the settlement. Sterling threatened me with your company's cash flow as leverage... I'm so useless..."

My father hurried to the bedside, his eyes instantly turning bloodshot.

He gripped my ice-cold fingers tightly.

"Diana," his voice trembled with heartache, yet his tone was incredibly firm. "Listen to me. I am a businessman. I believe many things in this world can be bought and sold, but some things cannot—like your dignity. The company can be sold, it can go bankrupt, but I will never support you selling yourself out for us."

My father's words were the force that finally shattered the chains binding me.

The next morning, I rejected the nurse’s advice to stay in the hospital for a few more days. Forcing my battered body up, I returned to that familiar mansion.

I didn't rest. With my father supporting me, I made my way to the second floor and dragged a lightweight black suitcase out of the walk-in closet.

I packed up everything that truly belonged to me.

As for the designer bags and expensive couture suits Sterling had bought to dress me up as his trophy wife, I didn't lay a single finger on them.

I went downstairs and placed the signed divorce papers dead center on the living room coffee table.

When it was all done, I grabbed my suitcase, pushed open the front door, and never looked back.

That night.

Sterling pushed open the mansion door, his arm tightly wrapped around Chloe.

The two had just returned from a party, both reeking strongly of alcohol. The house was pitch-black and completely dead silent.

Sterling flicked on the ceiling lights and drunkenly yelled toward the second floor, "Diana?"

No one answered in the empty house.

Chloe leaned against his shoulder, curling her lips as she casually remarked, "Isn't she in the hospital? She's probably still stuck in that bed right now."

"Right." Sterling rubbed his temples. "I totally forgot."

He guided Chloe to the sofa and sat down.

Just as he leaned back against the cushions, he caught sight of the pages resting dead center on the coffee table.

The bold letters on the front page read: Divorce Agreement.

Sterling immediately frowned. His drunkenness dissipated a fraction, replaced by a sudden jolt of inexplicable rage.

"She actually ran back here herself? Came back without saying a word just to shove this trash in my face?"

In a fit of extreme irritation, he snatched up the papers. Without even flipping to the first page, he ripped them to shreds and violently hurled them onto the rug.

He was convinced this was just another one of Diana's pathetic ploys to grab his attention.

Fueled by his anger, he suddenly stood up, shook off Chloe's hand, and stormed up the stairs to the second floor. He yanked open the master bedroom door, fully intending to interrogate her.

"Diana!" Sterling shouted.

The bedroom was completely empty.

Sterling was just about to continue his tirade when his gaze suddenly landed on the vanity near the window.

It was usually filled with Diana's everyday skincare and makeup bottles, but right now, it was wiped completely clean.

Sterling's footsteps abruptly halted; he froze on the spot.

As if realizing something, he whipped around and rushed into the adjacent walk-in closet.

Diana’s entire row of drawers was pulled open. All the clothes she usually wore were completely gone.

All that was left hanging on the racks were the expensive dresses he had bought her.

Staring at that row of empty wooden hangers, Sterling stood completely paralyzed.

Was Diana actually done with him?