The Hidden Empress Stripping Her Secrets After Divorce novel Chapter 180

St. Jude's Medical Center, outside the ICU corridor.

Christian Lancaster stood near the corner, holding a bouquet of white lilies. He wore a dark gray suit without a tie, looking less like the ruthless corporate heir and more subdued than usual.

He had been standing there for ten minutes.

At the end of the hall was Arthur Sullivan’s room. Through the observation glass, he could make out the frantic movements of the medical staff and the unmistakable silhouette of a woman standing by the bed.

Evelyn.

She was dressed in pale blue surgical scrubs, a mask covering her face, revealing only those intensely focused, tranquil eyes. She was studying the monitor data, the harsh overhead lights softening the determined lines of her profile.

Something struck Christian right in the chest, sharp and heavy.

He had heard the news of Arthur’s critical condition and learned that Evelyn had flown back from Africa overnight to personally lead the surgery. He had shown up under the guise of paying his respects as a "former grandson-in-law" and a "family friend"—an excuse even he found laughably pathetic.

The real reason was that he just wanted to see her.

Since his father's birthday banquet, he hadn't seen her in person. Everything he knew came from media reports, viral clips, and that earth-shattering global broadcast from Savannah Hub.

He had seen the statue erected in her honor, hailed as "The Rose Angel." He had witnessed the unadulterated reverence from foreign politicians and tribal leaders. He had seen how radiantly she commanded the international stage.

What tangled his emotions into a worse knot was the video that had gone viral two days ago—Evelyn saving a child with a congenital heart defect at The Gilded Lily. Seeing her back to the camera, radiating absolute authority and clinical precision in a life-or-death crisis, had left the entire internet in awe.

And he was left on the outside, watching through a screen like a total stranger.

Now, she was right in front of him.

Christian took a deep breath and walked forward.

Evelyn had just stepped out of the ICU, pulling down her surgical mask. The moment she saw Christian, she paused slightly, then immediately reverted to her usual indifference.

"Wouldn't have what?" Evelyn cut him off, her tone so matter-of-fact it was brutal. "Wouldn't have treated me like a ghost? Wouldn't have moved Lyra into the Lancaster estate? Or do you mean your mother would have finally deemed me worthy of the Lancaster name?"

Christian choked on his words.

"Christian." Evelyn stared at him, enunciating every syllable. "If the Lancaster family requires a prestigious title to respect their daughter-in-law, you never should have agreed to the marriage in the first place. I had my reasons for marrying you, but I wasn't desperate enough that it had to be you. If you had truly opposed it, do you honestly think your father could have forced your hand?"

The words twisted like a serrated knife in his chest. He remembered his father saying almost the exact same thing years ago—"Christian, if you really despise this, I won't force you."

He was the one who had agreed to the marriage.

"I..." Christian’s throat felt lined with sandpaper. Without realizing it, he squeezed harder, causing Evelyn to wince in pain.

"Right now, the entire world is mocking me for being blind." Christian's voice was tight with humiliated rage. "Lydia Maxwell's media empire is tearing me apart daily. The board of directors is breathing down my neck. In my twenty-eight years of life, I have never been subjected to this level of public humiliation!"