Queen of Wild Cards novel Chapter 410

Stella made the call. Jason was already speeding toward the hospital himself.

The three of them managed to pull into the parking lot at the exact same time.

"Julius, what the hell is happening? He was totally fine! How did he suddenly go critical?" Jason demanded, frantic.

"I have no idea. Let's get up there and find out," Julius replied, grabbing Stella's hand and practically dragging her toward the inpatient wing.

By the time they reached the floor, the entire family had already gathered outside the room, including the notoriously busy Vincent.

Inside the room, Wilfred lay motionless on the bed. His skin was ashen, his breathing shallow—he looked every bit a man at the end of his life.

Fidelia sat slumped in a chair, her eyes red and swollen as Yvette desperately tried to comfort her.

"Uncle Vincent, what happened? He was completely fine. How could this happen out of nowhere?" Julius demanded softly.

Vincent sat silently, staring at the floor, his usually immaculate hair disheveled and wild.

Frustrated, Julius turned to his other uncle. "Uncle Timothy, tell me. What is going on?"

Timothy looked hollowed out. "Three months ago, he started having severe abdominal pains. The doctor diagnosed him with appendicitis. They removed it, and he was fine for a while. But right after his birthday party, the pain came back. The doctor claimed it was bowel adhesions from the first surgery, so they did a laparoscopic procedure to clear it. But he never got better. It just kept getting worse. They ran another scan... and found a terminal nerve sheath tumor in his thoracic spinal canal. It's malignant. Stage four. That's why he deteriorated so fast. The doctor said the tumor is incredibly aggressive. He doesn't have twenty-four hours left. They told us to just stay close to him."

Timothy rubbed his hands brutally down his face, his eyes welling with tears.

Vincent's wife stood off to the side, sobbing quietly into her hands.

Tears brimmed in Julius's eyes. "I promise, Grandpa. I know."

Wilfred was delivering his final words, and it was the absolute last thing Julius wanted to hear.

Stella couldn't hold back her own tears. Even on his deathbed, the old man was using his final breaths to ensure her husband treated her right.

Not everyone in the world was as vile as Frederick Hawthorne and his clan. By marrying Julius, she had finally found a real family—one that genuinely loved her.

Both the Blackwoods and the Vaughns treated her with absolute kindness, free of malice, never once looking down on her.

Despite his agonizing pain, Wilfred gave her a weak, comforting smile. "Don't cry, Little Star. I'll be watching over you from up there."