Goodbye, Mr. Regret

So Vince ended up accompanying Jessica to the hospital.

On the drive over, guilt gnawed at him.

He'd known exactly what Timothy was after from the start-anything to do with his kid sister always set him on edge. He also understood that, even if he hadn't reacted the way he did, Timothy would have just found some other way to get under his skin.

But what really infuriated him was that Timothy had the nerve to blackmail him by keeping secrets about his sister.

Tomorrow...

"Jessy, I'm sorry."

Jessica wanted to reply. She guessed Vince was apologizing for injuring Timothy, probably thinking it might prevent Timothy from appearing in court. But after her sudden attempt at speaking earlier, her throat still ached, and she didn't dare try a long sentence.

She needed to check with Dr. Herbert Wheeler about what she could say.

So, she motioned for Vince to pull over.

She typed a message on her phone and showed it to him: "Vince, don't blame yourself. You wouldn't have hit him for no reason. Did something happen?"

She added a brief note about her throat.

She explained that after she'd startled everyone by making a sound, Dr. Wheeler had told her about a colleague overseas who'd spent seven years researching aphasia, and that there was hope for a cure. She'd agreed to treatment and had recently undergone a minor surgery.

Vince had visited her at the hospital the day after she arrived abroad, right after her operation. Since there was no guarantee the treatment would work, she hadn't told anyone. Now, with her throat still sore and still in the early stages of rehab—practicing basic sounds, not full sentences—she needed Herbert's advice before speaking much.

Vince nodded. "Alright. For now, just rest your voice."

He felt even more remorseful, remembering the last incident at The Gilded Whisper Estates. He'd known Timothy was scheming to get rid of him, but concern for his grandfather's health and the company had made him leave Jessica behind.

Now Timothy was playing the same trick again, using his sister as leverage.

Conflicted, Vince drove on while Jessica held up her phone, waiting for his

answer.noveldrama

He finally replied, "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

They continued on to the hospital.

When they arrived, they found Secretary Allen at the front desk, paying bills and picking up medication.

Vince caught up to him. "How is he?"

"He's in room 303, third floor," Secretary Allen replied. "You should see for yourself."

Vince and Jessica took the elevator up. Timothy was awake, his clothes streaked with blood. The doctor was resetting his cast.

Jessica felt a wave of relief when she realized he hadn't needed surgery.

The doctor finished up and spoke sternly to Timothy, "You're lucky the metal plate wasn't damaged, or we'd be looking at another operation. Are you trying to lose this leg? If you keep this up, you're going to end up crippled. You need to take your recovery seriously, understand?"

Aside from that, his injuries were all external.

Though the blood looked dramatic, the doctor explained that most of it was from a cut inside Timothy's mouth-he'd taken a hard blow, but it wasn't life-threatening.

In the end, Vince hadn't been as rough as he could've been.

Given that Timothy had baited Vince with news about his sister, Vince's restraint was almost surprising.

Timothy, meanwhile, couldn't take his eyes off Jessica. The greedy longing in his gaze only intensified after the doctor left.

He'd missed her-desperately. But it went beyond mere days; their entire relationship had been unraveling for a long time. She didn't come home anymore, and when she did, it was only because he forced her to. Before long, she'd leave again.

Their marriage of seven years had crumbled long ago.

"You still care about me, don't you?" he asked, voice low.

Jessica signed back, "You're overthinking it. I just came to see if you'd be able to

appear in court tomorrow. If you're fine, I can stop worrying."

She was ready to leave.

"Jessy," Timothy called after her, "I know where Vince's sister is."

Jessica froze and glanced at Vince.

A muscle twitched in Vince's jaw.

Now Jessica understood why Vince had hit Timothy. He must have used this as blackmail.

She turned around, glaring at Timothy with undisguised loathing.

Of course Timothy understood what she felt. But he had no other way—if she

hated him, so be it. He'd do whatever it took to keep her close.

"Let's talk," he said, feigning nonchalance.

Jessica's fists clenched tight.

If her marriage had failed, it was because of the choice she made seven years ago, chasing after love, reckless and unafraid of getting burned. She'd endured every

hardship on that path.

She was just exercising her legal right as a citizen: the right to divorce. She didn't

want to drag anyone else down with her.

But Timothy's repeated sabotage, always targeting the people who tried to help her, had kindled a deep and bitter hatred.

Now, the resentment boiled over.

A marriage should be ended by either party when it's no longer working. She didn't want to involve others, but Timothy wouldn't hesitate to use anyone to force her hand.

"Jessy." Vince grabbed her arm. "Let's go. There's nothing to discuss with him. As for my sister... there are no secrets that stay buried forever. If

he can find her, so can I. We don't

need anything from him."

This time, Vince had made up his mind he would never let Timothy threaten him

again.