"Third Uncle, you don’t need to tell these things. I’m well aware of the situation."
Alice York tilted her chin slightly, pulling away from his fingertips. But this ti, she didn’t avoid his gaze, eting it head-on.
"What are you so well aware of?"
The eyes before her were deep and inscrutable, filled with emotions Alice couldn’t decipher. The only thing she could be certain of was that he wasn’t angry.
Alice originally hadn’t wanted to bring it up, but since Wyatt Sterling insisted on laying it all out, she spoke frankly. "lody Lancaster feels threatened by my presence. She thinks I’m going to steal you away from her, and that makes her insecure, so she’s been trying every way she can think of to set up with a boyfriend."
"You used my phone to delete those two n, Third Uncle, so lody Lancaster imdiately arranged for to go on a dating show. She said the director was a friend of hers and that I had nothing to worry about, but she knew exactly what kind of person he was. She dug a pit of fire for and tried to force into it. And when I refused, she threatened with Grandfather."
As she finished speaking, the rims of Alice’s eyes began to redden.
She took a deep breath, tilting her head back to force back the tears.
When she looked at Wyatt Sterling again, her almond-shaped eyes were bright and clear, utterly pure.
"And what happened backstage at the show today... that was your handiwork, wasn’t it, Third Uncle?" Alice composed herself, her tone softening considerably. "You took care of the situation with the show, then put in a good word for lody Lancaster with Grandfather, and just like that, the whole thing was swept under the rug."
She had said so much.
Her words were filled with grievance and accusation, but she knew it was pointless. All it did was remind her, yet again, that nobody cared about her.
The only person Wyatt Sterling had ever wanted to protect was lody Lancaster. She had to understand that and accept it.
"Are you finished?"
He had waited until she was completely done before asking this one calm question.
Alice turned her face away, lying down on her side. "I’m finished. It’s late. You should go ho and get so rest, Third Uncle. I’ll head back on my own once this IV is done."
Wyatt Sterling stared at her back, remaining silent for several seconds before he spoke. "You’re so convinced I’m protecting lody Lancaster. Why don’t you try thinking a little deeper?"
Alice’s lips tightened, but she said nothing.
Wyatt continued, "Do you have any idea that if this incident isn’t put to rest, the consequences for you will be far more severe than for lody?"
Alice gave a short, bleak laugh. "You don’t need to remind , Third Uncle. I’ve always known you have to face the consequences of your actions. I was prepared for them the mont I agreed to what lody wanted."
Her tone was utterly defiant.
His heart softened at her words. He tucked the blanket around her. "It’s a Pyrrhic victory. To wound the enemy, you have to wound yourself. Why push things this far?"
"Because I can’t just accept it."
Alice turned back over. She had a fiery temper, and with no one else around, she didn’t have to worry about his pride. She slapped his hand away.
Wyatt’s hand froze for a mont. He looked at her. "So you won’t be satisfied until you’ve had your say?"
"I wouldn’t dare. It’s just an unrealistic fantasy. If I can’t get it out, I’ll just have to swallow it down, won’t I?"
After saying that, Alice looked up at the IV bag. Only half the fluid was gone. ’This is taking forever.’
’For a mont, she considered just pulling out the needle,’ but the thought was fleeting. ’Best to just see it through.’
Wyatt didn’t leave. He sat quietly by the bed, watching over her. They didn’t speak again until the IV bag was empty. The nurse on duty ca in, removed the needle, and left without a word.
「It was after eleven o’clock by the ti they left the hospital.」
Alice had been too on edge to sleep in the hospital room. The mont she got into the car, a fierce wave of drowsiness washed over her, and she couldn’t keep her eyes open.
Wyatt glanced at her, then reached out and pulled her closer.
The contact with him startled her awake a little. "Are we going back to the main residence?"
Wyatt Sterling: "Shorecrest."
At this hour, it didn’t matter to Alice where they went. Drowsiness washed over her again, and this ti she didn’t fight it, snuggling against his arm and falling asleep.
As she slept, she slumped into Wyatt’s arms, her head coming to rest on his lap as her hand slid downwards.
Just as it was about to slip off completely, Wyatt caught it. The dical tape on the back of her hand was conspicuous. She must not have applied pressure for long enough after the nurse removed the needle, as a bit of blood had seeped out, forming a small red dot on the adhesive.
Lost in a drowsy sleep, Alice vaguely felt a touch of warmth on the back of her hand, like a kiss...
「The next morning.」
Alice woke up in Wyatt Sterling’s arms. She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, dazed for a long mont before she rembered: Wyatt had brought her back to Shorecrest last night.
’I fell asleep in the car, so he must have carried upstairs to the bedroom.’ As she thought about it, she reached up and touched her clothes. ’Pajamas... He even changed my clothes...’
"I called in sick for you. Go back to sleep."
Wyatt’s voice ca from beside her. Alice turned over just in ti to see him push back the covers, get out of bed, and head into the bathroom.
A mont later, the sound of running water ca from the bathroom. He was taking a shower.
Alice sat up and grabbed her phone. It was almost ten in the morning. She opened her alarm app and saw that her alarm hadn’t just been snoozed—it had been turned off completely.
She didn’t need to guess who had done it.
She had several unread ssages on WeChat, and a few news headlines and social dia notifications had popped up one after another. The keywords imdiately caught her attention—
#Appliance Magnate Quincy Lancaster Critically Ill, Lancaster Corp. in Chaos#
#Lancaster Heir Returns Overnight, Family Descendants May Be Embroiled in Inheritance Battle#
"Lancaster..."
"Quincy Lancaster..."
The na wasn’t unfamiliar, especially since the headline had specified the title "Appliance Magnate." In Silvanus, there was only one person with that moniker: lody Lancaster’s grandfather, the current head of the Lancaster Family.
’If Quincy Lancaster really falls, then the Lancaster family’s battle for the inheritance will soon be over.’
Alice shook herself from her thoughts and opened WeChat. There were five or six voice ssages, all from Zoe Jenson.
"Alice, are you awake? Are you at West River or the main residence?"
"Did you see the news alerts?"
"Old Master Lancaster is critically ill, and the heir, the Eldest Young Master, has returned to the country. Everyone in the Lancaster family is in a panic, just waiting to hear what’s in the Old Master’s will."
"But I’m not sure if he’s *really* critically ill. The hospital has everything on lockdown, no information is getting out."
"Also, I heard..."
The voice ssage paused there.
There was one more ssage.
Alice played the next one and heard Zoe’s gleeful voice. "Also, I heard that lody Lancaster and her mother have been locked up by the Eldest Young Master who just got back! It’s pretty serious. HAHA, so much drama in the Lancaster family today. This is killing ."
After hearing the last ssage, Alice imdiately called Zoe.
It rang a few tis before she picked up.
"Alice! I was waiting for you to call," Zoe said, sounding like she’d been expecting it.
Alice pushed back the covers, got out of bed, and walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window. "How do you know so much about what’s going on with the Lancaster family?"
Zoe chuckled. "It’s all over the news alerts."
Alice: "The news didn’t say anything about lody Lancaster."
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