Chapter 764

Chapter 764:
Now it felt as though anyone had the right to strike him.
“So, William’s beating wasn’t enough? You had to finish the job yourself today?” he sneered.
His broken state only fueled Stella’s disgust. Her tone cut like ice, every syllable heavy with scorn. “Marc, don’t pretend to be the victim. Every bit of this is the consequence of your own actions!”
She pressed forward and drove her finger into his chest, her anger sharp and deliberate. “You schemed to destroy me. You pushed your grandfather into that operating room. And after all that, you dare to lay the blame on me?”
A harsh snort escaped her as her eyes hardened with pure contempt. “If he truly doesn’t pull through this time, you will be the prime culprit responsible for his death. You can forget about living a peaceful life for the rest of your days!”
The phrase responsible for his death struck Marc harder than any blow William had delivered the night before. His complexion drained of color, and his lips quivered beyond his control.
Marc wanted to lash back, yet his throat locked tight, for every word Stella hurled at him rang true.
His recklessness had paved the path to ruin, and no matter how he tried, he couldn’t keep the truth from Truett.
When his eyes lifted to Stella towering before him, the bitter truth sank in—he would never again measure up to her.
A hollow smile tugged at his lips. “Then tell me, why are you even here? If I disgust you so much, did you come only to strike me?”
Stella’s gaze remained like ice as she stepped away with guarded composure. “What you did won’t be forgotten, Marc. You’ll pay for all of it.”
Drawing in a steadying breath, she pressed her fury down and spoke with chilling detachment. “I’m here for Truett, not for you. Don’t mistake yourself for someone worth my concern.”
To her, even witnessing him broken and miserable felt like a needless waste of time.
How could he still be so blind as to believe she came to revel in his downfall?
Stella refused to glance again at Marc’s hollow expression. She walked straight to the doors of the operating room and tried to see inside, but nothing was visible. In the end, she chose a seat across from him, with only a corridor between them.
To Marc, that narrow stretch of space felt like a gulf so wide it could never be crossed in this lifetime.
Stella remained still in the chair, waiting for word on Truett’s surgery.
Her chest tightened with unease, yet she wore an outward calm. Opposite her, Marc, stung by the slap she had given him, sat motionless with his head bowed like a carved figure.
Far away on the top floor of the Briggs Group, the department heads gathered before a giant projection screen, presenting the latest project reports.
At the head of the table, William tapped his fingers restlessly on the polished surface. His eyes appeared to follow the shifting figures on the screen, but his thoughts were elsewhere.
The memory of Stella curled up in his bedroom the night before lingered in his mind. She had looked so fragile, and this morning, when she left, the calmness on her face had felt painfully forced.
Even though she seemed composed, he knew the hurt inside her had not faded. Due to the Briggs Group meeting, he had missed his morning visit to the research institute.
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