The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 160

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY LUCIAN’S POV

I barely got to sleep.

At some point during the night, exhaustion had dragged me into unconsciousness for an hour or two at most, but every time I closed my eyes properly-

I saw him again.

The man in the hospital room.

The precision in the way he moved, in the way he fought.

The way he adapted instantly.

Not amateur- he had to be military.

And worst of all-

the blade.

I adjusted my cufflinks slowly in the mirror as I dressed, feeling jaw clench slightly at the memory.

AMTAC.

Compact. Black.

Designed for close-quarter kills.

He had pulled it, but for some reason, he never used it on me.

That detail had been circling my mind since last night.

Because if he had wanted me dead-

I would have been dead.

Which meant something else entirely: Margot Sinclair had been the target.

Not me.

Behind me, the bedroom television started showing the morning financial coverage.

“… Langford versus Virex continues drawing national attention after Sinclair & Co successfully pushed back against several procedural motions filed late yesterday by KVEK…”

My eyes lifted automatically toward the screen.

Claire stood outside the courthouse in a dark suit, composed as always, beneath flashing cameras.

Exactly like she was meant to be.

“…the court has now reinstated a definitive date for the verdict hearing-”

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A strange sense of pride bloomed in me, above everything else.

Even now, even after everything-

watching her rise still felt natural to me somehow.

And maybe that was the cruelest part.

Because while Claire continued climbing, my entire life was collapsing publicly

I looked away from the screen and for a second, another memory surfaced instead.

Fourteen years old.

Bruised, bleeding knuckles.

Cold rain.

“Again.”

Leonard Dhark’s voice had never needed volume to sound cruel.

The retired naval officers he had dumped me with after my mother’s death had been merciless.

Not because they enjoyed it, particularly. But Leonard Dhark paid them not to care.

“You’re too weak,” Leonard had said afterward while staring down at my bruised hands. “Your mother made you soft.”

Even now, I hated him for that sentence more than almost anything else.

The door opened quietly behind me, pulling me back to reality.

“Breakfast is ready, sir,” Camilla announced gently.

I nodded once before reaching for my jacket.

By the time I arrived at Dhark Holdings, the headache had already returned.

Security remained doubled outside the building, and barricades still lined the entrance.

Several protestors lingered outside the building, holding signs with Eva’s face printed across cardboards

The empire my family had built for generations looked less like a corporation now and more like a

target.

Tessa followed beside me quickly as we entered the elevator.

“The Tokyo investors delayed negotiations again,” she informed me. “And media requests have doubled overnight.”

I barely even heard half of what she said.

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My mind remained fixed on the hospital- on the assassin

On Eva

The elevator doors opened and I walked directly into my office before pulling out my phone

Eva answered on the third ring.

“Lucian.” Her voice was soft. Very much relaxed.

“I know you’re recording this,” she continued. “So whatever this is, I’d appreciate-”

“Did you try to kill Margot Sinclair?”

The words left her mouth immediately.

Silence.

Then she let out a small breath.

I recognized it immediately for what it was: carefully performed hurt.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me.”

“Lucian…” Her voice cracked as she said my name. “How could you even ask me something like that?”

I leaned back slowly against my desk, thinking about how daft I had been, to have believed her every

word.

Because now, I could hear it very clearly-

The calculation beneath every word.

Before, I would have believed her instantly.

But now?

Now every sentence sounded rehearsed.

“I loved you,” Eva whispered, her voice dripping with emotion. “And after everything happening to me right now, you think I would hurt someone?”

“You’ve already hurt plenty of people.” I stated.

Eva paused then.

“I think you’re angry,” she said carefully, after some time. “And I understand that. But accusing me of attempted murder?”

She almost laughed. “That’s rather cruel. Even for you.”

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I said nothing in return.

Because there was nothing else to say. Nothing to get Eva Sterling to confess the truth.

The call ended minutes later without anything useful accomplished.

Nathaniel Vale arrived shortly afterward.

He walked into my office carrying several files before dropping them onto the table.

“We’re not strong enough yet,” he said immediately. “Not for court.”

I silently took my seat opposite him.

“Our evidence is circumstantial.” He said. “The pregnancy lies help damage credibility, but it’s still not enough to prove defamation or attempted extortion cleanly.”

“Margot Sinclair was working on something,” I blurted out

. Nathaniel was my lawyer after all; anything I thought could be useful to my case, I had to run by him first. “Her husband confirmed it.”

Nathaniel’s eyes lifted immediately.

“She pushed for the investigation at my mansion after Claire’s accident,” I continued. “And now someone

tried to kill her.”

Nathaniel leaned back slightly, his brows furrowing as he reasoned.

“You think Eva sent the assassin.”

“I know she did.” I replied immediately.

He studied me briefly before speaking again.

“I’ll contact Claire.”

Something inside me tightened immediately at the mention of her name.

“Margot may have told her something before the crash,” Nathaniel continued. “Or left something behind

at Sinclair & Co.”

“She needs security.” I suggested.

Nathaniel frowned slightly. “What?”

“Claire,” I said flatly. “If Eva is truly behind this, and she realizes Margot shared anything with Claire-”

“That’s excessive.” Nathaniel said, cutting me short.

“It’s practical.” I countered.

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Nathaniel shut the file in front of him slowly. “Security arranged and paid for by you isn’t protection,” he said calmly, then held my gaze. “It’s overstepping.”

I almost laughed at that.

“It’s everything but.” I stated. “Because I’ve known Claire longer than you probably ever will.”

That probably hit harder I intended it to.

Nathaniel’s expression hardened immediately. “That doesn’t mean you deserved her.”

The silence that settled between us after he said that… it was dangerous.

I leaned back slowly in my chair, staring at Nathaniel, an amused expression forming on my face.

“You’re attached to Claire right now because she’s rebuilding herself,” I said evenly. “But Claire’s finally becoming her own person again. She doesn’t need someone attached to her hip constantly.”