Chapter <b>499 </b>


    “And <b>then </b>what?”


    <b>Lucas </b>didn’t want anyone cuttingn off.


    Ian had finally started exining things properly..


    Lucas just wanted the truth.


    Ian shot Leonard a frustrated look, then continued, “Honestly, everything that followed was predictable.


    “Miss Aurora waspletely worn out. Her schedule’s been a mess for days. That night, when I got there, she’d copsed in her chair and couldn’t even move.”


    Hearing that, Lucas felt a pain in his chest so sharp it nearly took his breath away.


    Everything had been fine when he left.


    How had she ended up like this–utterly broken?


    His mind shed back to that night.


    Wendy had taken his phone, and Aurora had called twice.


    So those calls were cries for help, weren’t they?


    Lucas took a deep breath, his gaze turning cold and razor–sharp as itnded


    <b>on </b>


    Wendy.


    She froze, fear shing in her eyes.


    Clearly, she’d realized it too.


    She had taken his phone that night, and Aurora had definitely been calling him.


    So, she was the reason he never picked up.


    Wendy felt both ted and terrified.


    She wanted tough, but didn’t dare.


    “Lucas, I…” she stammered.


    “Get out,” he said coldly, pointing to the door.


    His voice was so sharp, so full of fury, it chilled the room.


    Even Leonard and Ian flinched. Neither of them had expected him to explode like that.


    Wendy’s eyes filled with tears instantly. “Lucas, don’t forget my brother! You used to like me too. Why are you pretending now, just for her?”


    The desperation and sorrow on her face said everything.


    It was painfully obvious that Lucas felt nothing for her.


    Even he had to admit it now: Wendy had done all of this on purpose.


    “Are you still half–asleep or something?”


    Lucas‘ abrupt, cutting remark left Wendy stunned.


    The sting of his words hit her hard–more hurt than anger.


    All she wanted <b>was </b>to love someone wholeheartedly. Why did it have to be so difficult?


    Loving someone shouldn’t feel like this—awkward, humiliating, exposed in front of <b>an </b>audience.


    If everything was dragged into the open like this, how were they supposed to face the gossipter? Leonard, meanwhile, was focused on something entirely different


    <b>He </b>didn’t care what happened to Wendy.


    The only thing on his mind was Aurora–still unconscious, lying there like a broken doll.


    The sight of her like that made his heart ache as if it were being torn apart.


    Wendy didn’t say another word.


    She finally understood that there was no ce for her in this room


    Nothing she said would matter.


    For every word she tried to speak, there’d be a thousand more thrown back at her.


    A wise person knew when to back down.


    And right now, she was on someone else’s turf, surrounded by people who didn’t care whether she stayed or left.


    Lucas‘ voice trembled slightly as he spoke again, the emotion breaking through his usualposure for the first time in front of


    others.


    “So… it’s just gastroenteritis, right?”


    Looking at him, Ian hesitated, torn about what to say.


    He nced around the room, then sighed and finally answered, “I don’t know what’s going on anymore.”


    His voice grew quieter, troubled. “The doctors were certain she’d wake up today.”