Substitute Wife, Genius CEO novel Chapter 399

Startled by the violent intrusion, the maternity nurse's hand slipped, jabbing the swab slightly into the infant's mouth. The baby instantly burst into piercing wails.

Xavier charged across the room, aggressively shoving the nurse aside. He scooped Landon into his arms, rocking him with desperate gentleness, his voice dropping into a soft, soothing hum. "It's okay, Landon, daddy's here. Don't cry, I've got you."

Once Landon's cries quieted to soft sniffles, Xavier cast a chilling glare down at the nurse, who was still paralyzed with fear on the floor.

His gaze was pitch-black and unreadable, yet it carried a suffocating dread that crushed the air from her lungs, making it impossible for her to even sit up straight.

Terrified out of her mind, her limbs turned to jelly. She begged profusely, collapsing to the floor in terror. "Mr. Sterling, I am so sorry! I was just following Mrs. Sterling's strict orders! Please, I beg you, let me go!"

The nurse wasn't just fired on the spot; Xavier had the police drag her out in handcuffs on charges of intentional child endangerment.

By the time Xavier tracked Zelda down, she was in the middle of a luxurious spa treatment.

"Xavier, what brings you here?"

Xavier shot the spa attendant a sharp look. Taking the hint, the attendant quickly slipped out and pulled the door shut behind her.

Zelda sat up, casually adjusting the edges of her facial mask. "Is something wrong?"

Xavier exploded. "Mom, I explicitly told you no DNA tests! Are you completely incapable of listening to a single word I say?"

Zelda's temper ignited instantly. "Did that little bitch Lilith go crying to you again?"

Xavier shouted back, "Do you have any idea that your hired nurse practically stabbed Landon in the mouth with that swab?!"

"What?!" Zelda's face drained of color. "Is Landon okay? Is it serious? That useless idiot of a nurse!"

"Mom, I am talking about the fact that you ordered a DNA test!" Xavier felt completely drained of patience, caught between exhaustion and absolute fury. "I love Lilith, and I respect her. I expect this family to show my wife—the mother of your grandsons—the exact same respect!"

Zelda ripped the mask off her face, practically vibrating with indignation. "I am simply doing exactly what the matriarch of an elite family is supposed to do! How is that disrespectful?"

"If she ever becomes the matriarch of the Sterling family, it will be her duty to do the exact same thing for the next generation. This is standard protocol!"

"Does she really need to be so dramatic and paranoid about it? Or is she just terrified because she knows she's guilty and she's projecting?"

Realizing there was absolutely no reasoning with her, Xavier issued a freezing warning. "Mom, if you ever go behind my back and pull a stunt like this again, don't blame me when I stop treating you like my mother."

With that, Xavier spun on his heel and marched out, slamming the spa room door so hard it rattled the hinges.

The moment he stepped out, he ran straight into Summer.

Vivian West had dragged Summer out for a spa day, and Leo Vance was sitting quietly beside them.

Two chic designer handbags were hung over the handles of Leo's wheelchair, and he sat patiently holding his own little backpack in his lap.

Seeing Leo instantly reminded Xavier of what Zelda had said earlier—about Summer suffering a massive hemorrhage during labor and ending up in the ICU...

Xavier knew Leo was undergoing physical therapy. He paused in his tracks and asked Summer, "How is Leo's rehab coming along?"

Summer was genuinely caught off guard. Considering Xavier had just gained two brand-new sons, she highly doubted he had the emotional bandwidth to even remember Leo existed.

It was even more bizarre that he was showing unsolicited concern, considering that in all their previous run-ins, he hadn't asked about Leo a single time.

She had no idea what kind of mental break he was having today.

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