Chapter 222

No.1

The air in the hospital corridor felt like thick, freezing mud.

Elisa stared at August's silent, calculating face. A short, incredibly dark laugh ripped from her throat. It was a sound completely devoid of humor.It was the sound of absolute,freezing contempt.

She didn't waste another second looking at Rosalind or Arthur.

Elisa closed the distance between herself and August in three rapid, aggressive strides. Before his massive bodyguards could even flinch, she reached out. Her fingers clamped brutally around the thick silk of his expensive black tie.

She yanked downward and forward with all her body weight.

August's eyes widened in sheer shock. He stumbled forward, his heavy leather shoes scraping against the polished tiles. The sudden torsion sent a blinding

flash.of agony through Elisa's shattered L4 disc, but pure adrenaline masked the scream rising in her throat. She didn't flinch or retreat. Using his own forward momentum, she shoved him backward until his broad shoulders slammed hard against the cinderblock wall of the stairwell alcove.

She pinned him there, her face inches from his.Her dark eyes were completely dead, radiating pure,homicidal intent.

No.2

"I am giving you exactly thirty seconds," Elisa whispered. Her voice was a razor blade slicing through the cold air. "Throw those two pieces of trash out of this hospital."

August looked down at her. His jaw locked tight. The muscles in his neck strained against his collar. He hated being manhandled. He hated losing control.

"Are you giving me an order?" August asked,his voice a low, dangerous rumble of arrogant power.

Elisa didn't blink. She didn't back down a single millimeter. She pulled her ultimate weapon.

"If you do not walk out that door and remove them right now," Elisa said, her words dripping with lethal

precision, "I will call my contact at the New York Times. I will leak the unredacted copy of our secret divorce agreement. And then, I will attach the digital evidence of your precious Allena attempting to murder her own brother."

August's breath physically stopped in his lungs.

"I will make sure Allena Sinclair is not just facing criminal charges," Elisa continued, her voice dropping to absolute zero. "I will make her the biggest, most humiliating joke in the entire country.And your name will be dragged through the mud right next to hers."

No.3

August's eyes turned into violent, black slits. The threat hit him like a sledgehammer to the ribs.He stared at the woman pinning him against the wall.He knew she wasn't bluffing. The old Elisa was dead.The woman standing in front of him was a ruthless,calculating machine who would gladly burn his world to the ground.

His brain spun, calculating the massive, catastrophic damage a leak like that would cause to Aethel's stock and his own ego.

August ground his teeth together so hard his jaw ached.

"Fine," August hissed. The word was ripped from his throat.

He pushed off the concrete wall, shoved the heavy metal fire door open, and stepped back out into the brightly lit corridor.

The aura radiating off his body was pure, unfiltered violence.

Rosalind saw him emerge. She immediately opened her mouth, ready to launch into another pathetic,crying performance.

She made eye contact with August. The words died in her throat. His eyes were completely black, filled with a murderous rage that made her physically shrink back into the wheelchair.

No.4

August didn't even look at her. He turned his head slightly toward his Chief of Staff.

"Simon," August commanded. His voice was a freezing, absolute decree. "Remove them from the premises. Permanently revoke the Sinclair family's

visitation clearance for the entire Presbyterian Hospital network."

Rosalind and Arthur froze. The color instantly drained from their faces. Their eyes widened in absolute,terrified disbelief.

"August, wait, you can't-" Arthur stammered, raising his hands in a pathetic gesture of surrender.

Simon didn't wait. He flicked his wrist.

The two massive bodyguards stepped forward.One grabbed the handles of Rosalind's wheelchair. The other grabbed Arthur by the bicep. They physically shoved them down the hallway toward the elevators,ignoring Rosalind's sudden, hysterical shrieks.

Arthur Sinclair, the great Wall Street predator, didn't say another word. He tucked his head down and scurried away, completely terrified of the Chambers family power.

No.5

The hallway fell into a dead, heavy silence. The nurses behind the desk immediately dropped their heads, staring at their keyboards, terrified to even breathe.

Elisa walked out of the stairwell. She calmly adjusted the cuffs of her jacket. She felt no triumph. This was just taking out the trash.

Click.

The sound of a heavy door latch opening echoed loudly in the quiet hall.

Elisa's head snapped to the right.

The door to Phineas's VIP suite was slowly pulling open.

Phineas stood in the doorway.He was leaning heavily on his aluminum walker. His hands were shaking,and his face was pale, but he had managed to get out of bed.

Because of his severe macular degeneration, his vision was incredibly blurry. He couldn't see the murderous tension in the air. He couldn't see the cold hatred in Elisa's eyes.

No.6

All he saw were two blurry figures standing very close together in the middle of the hallway.

A wide, incredibly warm and relieved smile spread across Phineas's wrinkled face.

"August," Phineas called out, his voice weak and raspy. "Good boy. You came to see me."

Elisa's heart violently slammed against her ribs. The cold, ruthless armor she had just worn shattered into a million pieces. Panic flooded her veins. She looked at her grandfather,completely paralyzed, having no idea how to explain the situation without giving him a fatal heart attack.

August reacted with terrifying speed.

The homicidal rage vanished from his face in a fraction of a second. He transformed instantly. He stepped forward, his posture relaxing into that of a warm,devoted family man.

He walked right up to Phineas and gently placed his large hand over the old man's shaking fingers on the walker.

"Yes, Grandpa," August said. His voice was smooth,rich, and perfectly affectionate. "I came with Elisa.We wanted to check on you together."

No.7

Elisa stood frozen in the hallway. She watched the billionaire flawlessly execute the lie. A massive wave of nausea rolled through her stomach. Her plan to tell

the truth tonight was completely, hopelessly destroyed.