The Wife He Dumped, The Queen She Returned As novel Chapter 115

"Mrs. Hayes, I apologize, but Mr. Hayes likely won't see you. He's dealing with an extremely critical matter right now. I suggest you head back for now."

"Then I'll go up and find him myself."

"You can't do that. Mr. Hayes was very clear—absolutely no one is allowed inside..."

"You think 'anyone' includes me?"

Chloe had never used her status as Mrs. Hayes to throw her weight around, and doing it now felt ridiculously ironic.

"Get out of my way."

The bodyguard was trapped. He didn't dare offend her, but he certainly couldn't let her pass. "But... if the Boss blames me..."

"I'll take full responsibility for any consequences."

Her tone was glacial and resolute. Although the others stepped up to block her path, no one actually dared to lay a hand on her.

In a panic, the bodyguard dialed Ken's number. After a frantic explanation of the situation, Ken immediately barked, "Why the hell are you blocking Mrs. Hayes? Let her through right now!"

The three of them swept into St. Ives Medical Center, hurried into the elevator, and split up to search the floors.

Chloe headed straight for the top-floor examination center. Ken was standing guard by the doors. The moment he saw her, he rushed over.

"Mrs. Hayes, are you looking for Mr. Hayes? He's..."

Chloe blew right past him and marched straight into the facility.

"Bang—"

She shoved the double doors open.

But the massive examination center was completely empty. There wasn't a single soul in sight.

"Mr. Hayes had to take a sudden trip abroad for an emergency. He'll be back in a few days," Ken hastily explained as he jogged up behind her.

Right at that moment, the deafening roar of a helicopter engine erupted overhead.

Chloe's face drained of color. She spun around, sprinting for the stairwell and rushing up to the roof.

By the time she burst onto the rooftop, gasping for air, the violent wind from the rotors was whipping her hair into a frenzy and stinging her cheeks.

The helicopter was already hovering mid-air, lifting away from the helipad.

"Preston! Preston!"

Missing this chance meant she had no idea when, or if, she would ever find him again. And even if she did, he might not be willing to help.

Noticing how ghastly she looked, Ken assumed she was misunderstanding Preston's motives. Terrified of a new rift forming between them, he frantically tried to smooth things over.

"Mrs. Hayes, please don't overthink this! Mr. Hayes is only accompanying Miss Cameron because her accident happened at Cloudrest Manor. Morally and logically, the Hayes family has to take responsibility for her care. There's absolutely nothing else going on between them."

Chloe didn't say a single word. She just turned around and walked away.

As she made her way down the stairs, she ran into Quentin.

He was in the middle of a phone call, his brow furrowed into a tight knot as he listened to whoever was on the other end.

Seeing her, he immediately hung up and hurried over.

The words of comfort died on his lips. He had no idea what to say. Finally, he just murmured,

"I'm sorry."

Chloe forced down the crushing weight of her disappointment. "Why apologize? You've already done so much for me. I should be thanking you. None of this is your fault."

She managed a bitter smile. "Maybe I just have terrible luck. It's fine. I've survived this long anyway. A few more days won't kill me."