Chapter 134

Grandma Grace couldn’t hold back any longer. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she called after his retreating figure.
“Be good to her.”
“Don’t let anyone hurt her again.”
Daniel stopped in his tracks, giving a gentle nod in response.
…
He left the hospital room, stepping into the thick darkness of night.
His phone buzzed. It was a call from one of the house staff.
“Ma’am has a fever.”
Ignoring his own injuries, Daniel rushed home without a second thought.
The moment he entered the house, a maid hurried over. “Ma’am’s in the bedroom.”
Daniel went straight to the master suite.
He pushed open the door and saw Aurora propped up against the headboard. Her
face, pale and delicate, was flushed an unnatural red.
He approached quietly and sat beside her, gently brushing her shoulder.
Suddenly, his fingers curled slightly.
Aurora was holding her phone, replaying a video from today’s family gathering.
He heard his own voice, clear as day.
“From now on, Eleanor is the Chambers family’s daughter-my sister. No one is allowed to bully her.”
A wave of protective warmth surged from the phone’s tinny speakers.
“Aurora.” Her name tumbled from Daniel’s lips, thick with emotion.
Aurora looked up at her husband. She gave a brittle laugh, though her eyes were rimmed with red. “So, you locked me up for her.”
Her voice was so calm it was unnerving.
“If you wanted to give her this opportunity, you could’ve just told me. Why pretend to be so devoted?”
She’d watched the video over and over-first in disbelief, then in anger and heartbreak, and finally settling into a numb calm, as if she’d aged a century in a single afternoon.
Now, every word she spoke was the sound of a heart breaking.
She couldn’t understand how he could plead for reconciliation with one breath, yet stand so firmly by Eleanor’s side with the next.
He had given everything that was hers to Eleanor.
Daniel dropped to one knee, taking her burning hands carefully in his. “Aurora, please—let me explain.”
Aurora turned her face away. Tears spilled silently down her cheeks, far more devastating than any outburst.
“You’re my wife. I don’t want that to change.” He tried to gather her into his arms, his voice gentle, almost reverent. “Eleanor is only my sister. That’s all she’ll ever be. Can’t you see I’m just trying to do the right thing?”
But to Aurora, it was all just an excuse.
A pitiful excuse.
If Eleanor didn’t matter most, then why would Daniel rush in to protect her the moment Samuel left? Why keep Aurora locked away, out of sight?
“I don’t understand your so-called good intentions. All I know is you’ve turned my life upside down.”
Her dark eyes, usually so lively, were now dry, holding nothing but hatred for the man in front of her.
Daniel paid her words no mind.
He’d braced himself for this the moment he made his choice.
He wouldn’t back down.
He reached out to touch her feverish forehead, murmuring softly, “Just lie down and get some rest. The family doctor is on his way.”
He took her phone, switched it off, and set it on the nightstand. He fluffed her pillow, speaking as if they were having a simple, everyday conversation.
“I went to see Grandma. She’s doing well now.” ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by
“When you’re better, I’ll take you to visit her.”
Finished, he swayed unsteadily, then forced himself to stand tall.
The room was warm, but sweat beaded on his forehead.
His steps faltered toward the door.
Aurora stared blankly at the ceiling, her voice hoarse. “So now I’m not even allowed to visit the hospital?”
Daniel stumbled, gripping the doorframe for support. He didn’t dare look back. “The doctor will take good care of you,” he said quietly.
Then, almost fleeing, he disappeared down the hall.
Aurora’s eyes were wide and dry. She couldn’t even summon a single tear.
Outside, Daniel leaned against the wall, nearly doubled over by pain. He could barely stand, and had to brace himself against the wall as he made his slow, agonizing way to the study.
Faint pink smudges stained the stark white wall behind him.