The Hidden Empress Stripping Her Secrets After Divorce novel Chapter 506

Outside Sacred Heart Women's Hospital.

The sunlight bouncing off the glass facade was blinding enough to make eyes water. Lyra stood on the steps, gripping the strap of her bag as she watched Evelyn's car disappear around the corner. She lingered for a moment before taking a deep breath, walking down the steps, and preparing to hail a cab.

Her phone vibrated. Glancing down, she saw a message from Evelyn. She opened it, and the words on the screen stung her eyes: "Which part? The part where I told you to worry about yourself? Or the part about me getting bitten by rats?" Her fingers tightened around the device. She typed a few words, then deleted them. Finally, she settled on a single response: "Forget all of it." Send. She tucked the phone away and stood by the curb, raising her hand to hail a car.

A black sedan suddenly shot out from around the corner, its tires screeching against the asphalt as it slammed to a halt right in front of her. Startled, Lyra stumbled back, her bag slipping from her shoulder and hitting the ground. She looked up, a curse on the tip of her tongue—

The car door swung open.

Leon Astor stepped out. He wore a dark trench coat, his face as somber as a gathering storm. Those icy blue eyes held zero warmth. He stared at her, the corner of his mouth turning up in a terrifyingly cold smirk that sent a chill straight down her spine.

Lyra's face instantly drained of color. She turned and bolted.

Her heels clattered frantically against the pavement. She barely made it two steps before a hand clamped around her arm like a steel vice. Leon's strength was brutal, his fingers digging into her flesh so painfully that she gasped.

"Let me go!" Her voice trembled.

"Let go?" Leon's voice was deathly low. "Why are you running?"

"I... I wasn't running." Lyra's lips quivered. "You just scared me."

Leon ignored her excuse. He yanked the back door open and shoved her inside. Lyra bounced against the leather seat, scrambling frantically to escape through the opposite door, but the locks had already engaged. She pounded her fists against the glass, screaming, "Help! Somebody help me—"

Near the hospital entrance, a young doctor in a white coat had just walked out. Hearing her screams, he rushed over. "Ma'am, is everything alright?"

Lyra treated him like a lifeline, slapping the window desperately. "Doctor! I don't know him! He's forcing me into this car—"

Leon leaned down, placing himself right in the window's frame, and offered the doctor a perfectly polite smile that completely contrasted his previous hostility. "It's fine. She's my partner. She's pregnant and her emotions are a little unstable right now. I'm just taking her home."

The doctor glanced between Leon and Lyra, his eyes full of skepticism. "Ma'am, do you need assistance?"

Lyra opened her mouth to speak, but Leon reached his hand through the open crack of the window and clamped it down on her shoulder. His grip tightened, applying just enough agonizing pressure to paralyze her vocal cords. He leaned in close to her ear, his voice barely a whisper forced through gritted teeth.

"You'd better come quietly. Otherwise, if someone saves you this time, I'll make sure you regret it forever."