The Cold Surgeon's Contract Bride novel Chapter 276

I pulled up the digital document on my phone.

Lucille scrutinized The Prenuptial Agreement carefully, her entire body going rigidly still. "The contract ends in... in exactly eighteen days?" she muttered.

I nodded firmly, prompting her next question. "So when it expires, the divorce is automatic?"

"We still have to go to the courthouse to sign the final papers."

"Selena Hayes!" Lucille shrieked, stomping her foot in despair. "Have you lost your mind?! How could you hide something this monumental from me until now?!"

Overcome with frustration and panic, she collapsed into a crouch, burying her face in her knees. "How could you be so foolish?" she sobbed. "If you do this, what's going to happen to the Hayes family? What are we going to do..."

Her crying grew more heartbroken, spiraling into total hysteria. I knew that any attempts to comfort her right now would fall on deaf ears, so I simply let her cry it out.

After a long while, Lucille finally managed to rein in her emotions. She lifted her head, her normally pristine face streaked with tears and looking dreadfully pale. It was as if she had aged ten years in a matter of minutes.

She took a shaky breath, her voice low and utterly drained. "What's done is done. Since the agreement explicitly states that this must remain a secret between you two, I'll pretend I never saw it. But I refuse to let us be trampled on any longer."

Hearing the sudden, icy resolve in her tone, a wave of apprehension washed over me. "What are you going to do?" I asked nervously.

"What can I do?" Lucille replied, instantly reverting to her usual flippant demeanor. She glanced toward the ICU and sighed. "I'm going to check on Maxwell. With him being suddenly downgraded from the VIP suite to a standard ward, I need to make sure the staff are still treating him properly."

I agreed that it was necessary.

"Keep an eye on Silas," Lucille murmured softly. To my complete surprise, she reached out and gently cupped my cheek, offering a tender smile. "You've endured this for so long. It must have been exhausting for you, hasn't it?"

I knew that shattering her delusions face-to-face had been a massive blow.

But it was the cold reality that I—and everyone in the Hayes family—had to face.

Over two hours passed without a single call from Lucille. I waited and waited, only to unexpectedly receive a call from Ferris instead.

"Selena, is your family completely obsessed with money?" Ferris's voice cracked like a whip, dripping with palpable anger.

I was utterly bewildered. "What are you talking about?"

"Lucille is at the Sterling estate right now," Ferris hissed, lowering his voice dangerously. "Get to the garage and wait for me. We're going to the estate to get her out of there!"