[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":10},["ShallowReactive",2],{"viewer-data-26032200D266-472":3},{"id":4,"number":5,"name":6,"content":7,"isLocked":8,"price":9,"hasRead":8},472,5,"Chapter 5: The Terminal Secret Left On The Table","\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Diego’s assistant intercepted him just as his hand touched the car door.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Sir, wait!\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The assistant shoved his phone into Diego’s hand. The screen was still playing the final seconds of a livestream. \"Look, Mr. Cox. Mrs. Cox... she really jumped. I heard the splash myself.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Diego stared at the screen, his world freezing.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He didn't think twice. He bolted toward the riverbank.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The water was terrifyingly still.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Kya!\" he roared, his voice cracking. \"Have you lost your mind? Where the hell are you?\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He lunged for the edge, his boots skidding on the mud, ready to dive in. Aliza Cook caught his arm, yanking him back.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Mr. Cox, think!\" she hissed. \"It’s a stunt. She’s too proud, too spiteful. She wouldn’t kill herself; she wants you alive so she can haunt you.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Diego went rigid.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">It made sense. Kya didn't take losses; she took revenge. If she were truly angry, she would have been standing here, screaming in his face, not making a dramatic show of her own death.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He stepped back, his chest heaving, his heart hammering against his ribs.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"But the recording...\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Edited,\" Aliza said, her eyes glinting with a cold, sharp light. \"She’s playing you, Diego. Don’t fall for it.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Half-convinced and desperate to believe her, Diego let her pull him back toward the car.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Once the door clicked shut, the air grew thick. Aliza didn't wait. She leaned in, her hand tracing a slow, suggestive line up his forearm.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"We haven't had a second to ourselves all day,\" she purred.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The touch burned, but Diego saw a flash of Kya’s torn clothing from earlier. He felt a wave of revulsion, yet a dark, stubborn part of him whispered that maybe some distance would force Kya to be more reasonable.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Still, the unease was a claw in his stomach.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He grabbed Aliza’s wrist, pinning her hand. \"Not now. I’m not in the mood.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He pulled out his phone. Kya’s voicemail hit him like a brick wall.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Panic flared in his throat. *The hospital.* Her mother.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He shoved Aliza aside, the gesture sharp enough to make her gasp, and raced for the hospital wing. He burst into the private suite.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">It was empty. The silence was deafening.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Where is the patient?\" he demanded, wheeling on the nurse at the station.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The head nurse didn't flinch. Her expression was cold, clinical. \"Mr. Cox? You weren't notified? The patient passed away minutes ago.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The room spun.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Passed away? That’s impossible.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"The treatment authorization was revoked,\" the nurse said, her voice devoid of empathy. \"The medication stopped. She suffered a cardiac event.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">She turned on her heel and walked away.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Diego stood frozen. A high-pitched ringing drowned out everything else. If he hadn't cut those funds, she would still be here.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The realization hit him like a physical blow. He wasn't breathing. He paced the small, sterile room, his hands tangling in his hair, his mind fracturing.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He barely remembered walking back to the car.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Stop at the bakery,\" he barked at the driver, his voice hollow. \"Get a box of macarons.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">The driver caught his eye in the rearview mirror, cautious. \"Sir, I’m sure Mrs. Cox is just lashing out. She’ll turn up.\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"I hope so,\" Diego muttered. His confidence was in ashes.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He sprinted through the front door of their estate.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">It felt like a tomb. The house wasn't just quiet; it was hollow. As if someone had reached in and wiped every trace of Kya’s existence from the walls.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">\"Kya!\" he shouted, his voice desperate. \"Stop this! I’m apologizing, okay? Just come out!\"\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He tore through the rooms, his movements frantic, breathless.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">He stopped at the entry table. A single piece of paper lay there, stark against the polished wood. He reached for it, his hands trembling.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">It was a medical report.\u003C/p>\u003Cp class=\"chapter-paragraph\">Terminal. Leukemia.\u003C/p>",false,0,1774272929111]