Betrayed In The ICU: The Wife's Awakening

She didn't know how long she sat there before the sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the hall. Chloe looked up. It was Kurtis.

He was still in his expensive party suit, a fleck of confetti clinging to his perfectly styled hair. His face was a mask of irritation, as if he'd been dragged away from something far more important.

Trailing behind him was Mia, dressed in a frilly princess gown, her expression sullen and resentful.

Kurtis stopped in front of Chloe, looking down at her with a frown. "What did the doctor say? It was just a marble. Was it really worth dozens of calls to pull me away?"

Chloe didn't answer. She just stared at him with an expression he'd never seen before-cold, empty, and vast. Kurtis shifted his weight, his jaw tightening slightly.

Mia tugged on his sleeve. "Daddy, when can we go back?" she whined. "Genesis Mommy is waiting for us to cut the cake."

The words were a needle, precise and sharp, plunging straight into Chloe's heart. She closed her eyes, took a deep, shuddering breath, and when she opened them again, there was only indifference.

Just then, the operating room door opened. The surgeon, pulling off his mask, walked towards them. "The procedure was a success. We've removed the object. But he was deprived of oxygen for a little too long. We need to keep him in the ICU for observation for the next 48 hours."

Chloe's knees buckled. She steadied herself against the wall, thanking the doctor in a voice so hoarse it was barely a whisper.

Kurtis, however, looked relieved. He clapped his hands together. "See? I told you it was nothing. Well, since the surgery's over, we can go, right?"

He turned to lead Mia away.

"Kurtis." Chloe's voice was chillingly calm. "Aren't you curious what kind of marble Leo swallowed?"

He glanced back, annoyed. "What difference does it make?"

Chloe's gaze shifted to Mia. Her voice was quiet, but it seemed to suck all the sound out of the hallway. "Mia, tell your father where you got that pretty, blue glass marble with the star pattern."

Mia's face went white. She instinctively hid behind Kurtis, her eyes wide with fear.

Chloe knew the answer. It was a limited-edition collector's item Kurtis had brought back from Europe last year. He had warned everyone, especially little Leo, never to touch it.

Kurtis's expression changed. He looked down at Mia, his voice sharp. "Did you take my marble?"

Mia looked like she was about to cry. She clutched his pants leg. "I didn't mean to... I just wanted him to be quiet. He kept crying for Mommy..."

Another stab of pain, sharp with guilt and self-blame, pierced Chloe. Leo had been crying for her.

Mia continued in a small, broken whisper, trying to minimize her guilt. "I... I just told him that if he ate the 'candy,' Mommy would come back right away..."

She thought she was whispering, but in the silent corridor, every word was a hammer blow against Chloe's eardrums.

A chill washed over Chloe. She stared at her daughter, the child she had raised, who had just tried to poison her own brother with such casual malice.

She looked at Kurtis, expecting to see shock, or anger.

There was none.

After hearing Mia's "confession," Kurtis just paused for a second. Then he knelt, stroking Mia's hair, his tone soothing. "It's okay, don't be scared. You didn't mean it. Just don't be so naughty next time, understand?"

Her malice, Leo's brush with death, all dismissed with a soft, meaningless reprimand.

Chloe felt a hot rush of blood to her head, making her ears ring. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. He knew the truth, and he chose to ignore it.

Kurtis stood up, not even glancing at Chloe again. He turned to Mia. "Alright, let's go back. We shouldn't keep Genesis waiting."

As if Leo's life, as if Mia's viciousness, were less important than his mistress's party.

Chloe stood frozen, watching the father and daughter walk away. One tall, one small, both equally selfish and cold-blooded.

In that moment, Chloe finally understood. This family was rotten to the core.

She didn't cry. She didn't scream.

She simply took out her phone and sent a text to her lawyer.

"Prepare the divorce papers. I want nothing but full and sole custody of Leo."