Too Late to Regret: The Dead Wife Who Owns His Empire Now

Damien Hayes was a workaholic, and as an illegitimate son who had clawed his way to the top, he seemed to care about nothing but Hayes Realty. For three years of marriage, Lydia Carter had always been waiting for him. She waited during dates, waited on anniversaries, waited for prenatal checkups, and even waited for the surgical abortion. What she finally received was a livestream of Damien throwing an extravagant birthday celebration for another woman. Devastated, she was caught in a chain car accident, convincing Damien that she had died with the wreck. Yet Lydia survived against all odds and unexpectedly became the sole heir of the world's richest man. The moment she set foot back on her homeland, she swore she would make Damien taste a pain sharp enough to pierce the heart. ...... After the surgical abortion, Lydia insisted on being discharged despite repeated objections from the medical staff. Suppressing the chills brought on by the fading anesthesia, she started the car and dialed Damien's number again and again. "The number you have dialed is currently unavailable." The mechanical female voice echoed from noon until dusk, and each time it played, Lydia's heart sank further. She couldn't stop worrying that something had happened to Damien. Three years into the marriage, she had finally become pregnant. She made it through the early stage without incident, only to be struck by the devastating news of fetal demise at the very moment she was filled with joy. Damien appeared even more shattered than she was, yet he forced himself to hold it together and turned to comfort her. "Lydia, let's have the abortion first. I don't want your body to suffer any more damage," he said. Knowing she was terrified of sharp objects, he spoke gently, coaxing her with patience. "I'll stay with you through the entire procedure. Don't worry. This time, I won't let you down." Lydia stared at the hands tightly clasped by her husband, and her turbulent emotions finally settled, just a little. But Damien broke his promise. He had said that once he finished handling a difficult business negotiation that morning, he would rush straight to the private hospital. Even when she had no choice but to lie on the operating table, Lydia was still anxiously asking the nurse, "Has my husband arrived? Did he call? Did he say where he is now?" The nurse tried to soothe her emotions while making the final preparations before surgery. "Mr. Hayes called. He said he'll be a bit late and asked that you proceed with the abortion first." Lydia bit down on her lower lip, wanting to delay it just a little longer, but the solemn expressions on the doctors' faces left her unable to say another word. Curled up as the anesthesia was administered, Lydia clenched her teeth, one hand wrapped tightly around the wedding ring on her ring finger. Tears slid down uncontrollably, and under the effect of the drugs, her body soon began to tremble beyond her control. Wave after wave of nausea surged through her. She struggled desperately to regain command over her body, but it was futile. Just like these three years of marriage, she had tried with all her strength to keep up with Damien. Yet it felt as though she was always chasing him, and never able to catch up. The hand gripping the steering wheel was slender, its skin almost translucent, faint pink veins visible beneath. Her arm was far too thin. Lydia remembered that in the three years after her marriage, she seemed to have been losing weight nonstop, thinning in a way she could neither explain nor control. In the last power struggle within the Hayes family, Damien's late surge decided the outcome. As the defeated side, the other children of the late Gordon Hayes packed up and moved out in disgrace. In the vast, hollow mansion, aside from Lydia, only the elderly butler, the driver, and the servants moved in and out each day. She ate alone at a twelve-seat dining table. When she looked up, there was loneliness. When she looked down, there was silence. Damien's business empire expanded by the day, and every time he came home, it was always in a rush. On the rare days he stayed home, he spent them either reading in his study or attending video conferences. Lydia would leave the door slightly ajar, watching her husband with careful restraint. Not yet thirty, he had already become a celebrated rising star in the business world of the capital. People used to praise Hayes Realty for its vast foundation; now, they looked at Damien with open envy, because he alone held absolute control over Hayes Realty. Nearly six-foot-two, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, his bespoke suit fit him flawlessly. His long legs rested casually, crossed atop a desk. Only Lydia knew how unforgettable the face partially hidden behind the screen truly was. Sharp brows, bright eyes, and a clean-lined jaw gave him an icy air whenever his expression fell still. Back then, nineteen-year-old Lydia had fallen for him at first sight, a feeling that had never truly faded. Even when their marriage lacked the intimacy it once had, Lydia kept reassuring herself that he was fiercely driven by ambition. Having taken control of the Hayes Group under such difficult circumstances, he had no choice but to work harder to secure his footing. But as the days repeated themselves, Lydia could no longer remember the last time she and Damien had held hands while watching a movie together. Her phone kept dialing the number over and over again. Lydia didn't even know when she had drifted off the navigation route and onto the ring expressway. A call from her best friend, Chloe Bennett, suddenly broke through the screen. Her voice was urgent. "Lydia, how dare Damien treat you like this?" Stunned and confused, Lydia tapped into the livestream Chloe had shared. On the screen, artificial snowflakes drifted down in thick flurries. Cheers and gasps filled the air, accompanied by a flowing organ melody in the background. Her gaze was locked onto the two faces framed by the camera, while Chloe's furious voice continued ringing in her ears. "I told you something was off the moment Damien hired a girl in her twenties as a housekeeper for no reason! Ava Quinn said she liked snow, and he actually went all out to create artificial snowfall just for her! Lydia, look closely. Is this man you've loved for all these years really worth you waiting for him every single day? Today is Ava's birthday. Your husband is celebrating it for her, right in front of everyone. Ask him if he even remembers that you're the one who's supposed to be Mrs. Hayes." Lydia's breathing grew rapid. There wasn't a single question her best friend had thrown at her that she could answer. Her entire body felt cold. Tremors spread from her teeth through her limbs, and tears streamed down uncontrollably, blurring her vision. When the out-of-control truck, headlights blazing, crossed the median from the opposite lane and barreled straight toward her, Lydia had no time to react. For a single, fleeting moment—Lydia closed her eyes in despair. The hollow emptiness inside her kept expanding, and she even thought that dying like this might not be so bad. But a deep, seething unwillingness surged violently through every vein in her body. She couldn't understand how Damien could possibly fall for Ava. That careless housekeeper would have been fired by Damien months ago if Lydia hadn't repeatedly spoken up for her.