Chapter4

After hanging up, I stared at my reflection in the dressing table mirror, fingertips lightly brushing my freshly applied red lips. Lucia's distress call was suspicious—with Eric's medical resources, he shouldn't need an ex's blood donation. "I heard Eric is injured?" I called his assistant, deliberately mixing just the right amount of concern into my voice. "Yes, Ms. Brown. How can I help you?" The young assistant sounded surprised. "We were once mates. I should visit." The assistant seemed relieved hearing this. "Alright, Mr. Davis is in the VIP ward. Should I inform him you're coming?" "No need." I hung up. I wanted to see what Miller was really up to. Pushing open the VIP ward door, the smell of disinfectant mixed with a familiar cologne. Eric lay alone in the hospital bed, a faint red stain seeping through the bandage on his forehead. "Mila?" He turned his head, a flicker of light in his blue eyes that quickly died. "How did you…" I gave him a gentle smile. "Miss Miller called me earlier, saying you were injured and needed a blood transfusion, so I came to check on you." A brief spark flashed in his eyes, then vanished. "Thanks for your concern. I'm fine." "Where's Miss Miller?" "Probably handling other matters." "I see. If you're fine, I'll head out then." As I turned to leave, he suddenly spoke. "Where did you and Gianna… move to?" "Why?" Eric's Adam's apple bobbed. "I… I'd like to see the child." My earlier offer for him to visit was just a tactic to fuel his guilt and expedite the divorce. Now he wants to see the child? I didn't respond, walking out of the room without looking back. Outside the room, Lucia Miller stood by the door. I didn't know how long she'd been there. In the corridor, Lucia Miller stood like a startled fawn. This was my first time seeing her in person—more exquisite and captivating than in the private investigator's photos. When I saw her amber eyes, so similar to mine, a wave of nausea hit me. So, in Eric's eyes, I was always just a poor substitute. "Ms. Mila?" Her voice was sweet as honey. "I didn't think you'd actually come." I walked straight past her, but she suddenly blocked my path. Her slender fingers gripped my sleeve with surprising strength. "I truly didn't expect you to come. Thank you. I don't know many people here yet. I was just so panicked earlier that I called you. I hope I didn't disturb you?" I couldn't be bothered to play along. "I'm glad he's okay. I'm leaving." But Lucia Miller rushed in front of me, stopping me again. "Ms. Mila, there's actually something I wanted to discuss. Could you spare a few minutes?" Hah, I knew Lucia Miller had an agenda for calling me here. "What is it?" I forced a fake smile. "The hospital is having cash flow problems…" She bit her lower lip. "When you severed the mate bond, Eric left everything to you. But this hospital is what he cares about most… Could you help him? For the sake of Lucia's Sanctuary, which was also your shared effort." Looking at Lucia's expression, I found it laughable. So she coveted my assets. Of course. Eric left all the family assets to me, only keeping the pack hospital. In his eyes, the hospital was a perpetual gold mine, far more valuable than the other assets. Previously, Eric and I had clear roles: he handled administration and decisions at the hospital, while I managed finances. So he didn't know the hospital was a money pit. All these years, it only stayed afloat thanks to my family's cash flow. Without that liquidity, the pack hospital would inevitably struggle. With the hospital in trouble, Eric naturally found it hard to maintain Lucia's lavish spending. I glimpsed Eric's expectant gaze through the crack in the door. How ironic. He abandoned me for this woman, and now he expects his ex to save his legacy.