Hanging up, Clara forced herself to stand, her eyes fixed on the closed ICU doors.

She pressed her palms together against her chest, praying that her grandmother would pull through.

When the time came, she would take her grandmother and leave forever.

After guarding the door all night, the operating room doors finally opened slowly.

The doctor removed his mask with an exhausted expression.

"Mrs. Miller, you can rest easy. The elderly lady is out of immediate danger for now. She just needs quiet rest for a while before she can be discharged."

The weight on Clara’s heart finally lifted.

She hurried forward to accompany her grandmother to a room, but a nurse stopped her and redirected the gurney.

"Mrs. Miller, the room you reserved is already occupied. We’ll have to trouble your grandmother to stay elsewhere."

With that, they moved her grandmother into an eight-person ward.

Clara was frustrated, but since the doctor said her grandmother needed rest, she didn't argue.

She bought a folding cot and stayed by the bedside, refusing to leave for even a second, fearing that if she stepped away, her grandmother might be gone forever.

Just as she was waiting for her grandmother to wake up, the ward door was slammed open.

Ethan grabbed her wrist without a word, his grip so tight she winced in pain.

"What are you doing?"

Clara struggled to shake him off, but he only held on tighter.

"Come with me." Ethan dragged her quickly out of the ward.

They went through the corridor to the door of a luxury VIP suite.

Looking at the room number, she realized it was the very room she had originally reserved.

Meeting her gaze, Ethan looked away awkwardly.

He pushed the door open. Scarlett was lying on the large hospital bed, a small piece of gauze on her forehead making her face look even paler.

Before Clara could speak, Scarlett seemed to be suddenly triggered. She threw back the covers and rushed over barefoot.

With a look of pure malice, she raised her hand and slapped Clara across the face.

"Who sent you to catch me? I’m telling you, I’m the daughter of the Miller family!"

"Get out! Don't touch me!"

The sound of the slap was incredibly sharp in the quiet room.

Caught off guard, Clara felt her cheek burn with stinging pain, and her ears began to ring.

She instinctively tried to move away.

But Scarlett grabbed her arm like a madwoman, her nails digging deep into Clara's skin, instantly gouging out several bloody marks.

"Scarlett, stop it!"

Ethan immediately stepped forward, pulling her into his arms and gently patting her back. "Don't be afraid. I’m here. No one dares touch a hair on your head."

Scarlett snuggled into his chest, the frenzy in her eyes fading, replaced by a flicker of smugness that went unnoticed by Ethan.

Feeling the woman in his arms relax, Ethan turned a cold gaze toward Clara.

"This is all your doing. If you hadn't kicked her out back then, she would never have gone through that trauma!"

"And now you had her arrested. She was terrified, had an episode, and hurt herself. Apologize to her, and from now on, try to get along. We'll consider the matter settled."

Clara leaned against the wall to keep herself steady.

The wounds on her body throbbed with pain, but none of it compared to the agony of her heart being torn apart.

It was Scarlett who had intentionally pushed Grandmother down the stairs.

Clara had only wanted to bring the culprit to justice. How had she ended up being the one forced to apologize?

She stood there, silent.

Ethan’s expression darkened instantly, and he reached out to grab her arm.

In the next second, Scarlett’s innocent, doe-like eyes filled with terror, and she shrank into his embrace.

"Ethan, why did you bring Sister here?"

"You know she... she hates me."

As she spoke, her eyes welled with tears, as if she were the one suffering a great injustice.

Ethan had dominated the business world for years; even Clara could see through Scarlett’s clumsy acting. How could he not?

He simply chose not to call her out.

Just then, the door opened.

A nurse walked in with several forms, speaking cautiously.

"Mr. Miller, Ms. Miller’s test results are out. The doctor said he’ll be over shortly to explain the situation."

"No need."

Ethan snatched the report from her hand, his voice laced with urgency. "Every minute of delay is another minute of danger. Why waste time on formalities? I’ll go find him myself."

With that, he pushed Scarlett’s wheelchair out of the room.

Clara stood frozen, a chill running from the soles of her feet to the top of her head.

Scarlett only had some slight swelling on her forehead, yet the ever-arrogant Ethan was so impatient that he was willing to humble himself to find the doctor for answers.

Yet just a short while ago, when Grandmother was clinging to life in the ICU, he had been so calm while holding that settlement, forcing her to sign, showing absolutely no regard for a human life.

How ironic.

Clara stumbled out of the room.

All those years of his kindness, all those promises she thought would last a lifetime, had ultimately failed to outweigh one Scarlett.

Chapter 3

Stepping out of the ward, Clara hired an experienced caregiver for her grandmother before rushing back home.

Opening the master bedroom door, she went straight to the safe and pulled a folder from the very bottom. Inside was a divorce agreement already signed by Ethan.

It had been signed three years ago, with red-rimmed eyes, when the Miller Group was being framed by a rival and teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. Back then, she had cried and torn the paper up three times, but he had placed it back in her hands every time.

"Keep it," he had said. "If the day ever comes when I can no longer protect you, at least you’ll be able to walk away unscathed."

This was the final escape route Ethan had left for her. She never imagined that today, it would actually serve its purpose.

She immediately contacted the top divorce lawyer in the industry. "Process this as an expedited case. I want that divorce certificate in my hands within two weeks."

After making the arrangements, she prepared to cook a meal to take to the hospital, only to see Ethan walk in with Scarlett on his back. Seeing Clara, Scarlett immediately slid down from the man's back, her fingers twisting the hem of her shirt nervously.

"Sister, you're home."

Ethan straightened his sleeves, his tone carrying a sense of entitlement. "Clara, Scarlett said the hospital food wasn't to her taste and she wasn't comfortable staying there, so I brought her home. You’ll be responsible for taking care of her during this time."

Clara felt as though she were hearing a cosmic joke. "Ethan, have you forgotten why my grandmother is in the hospital in the first place?"

"You're asking me to serve the person who almost killed my grandmother? Don't you think that’s going too far?"

Ethan’s brow furrowed instantly. "Clara, why must you speak so harshly?"

"After all, Scarlett is your sister. It’s not like she did it on purpose. It’s all in the past now—why must you keep clinging to it? Wouldn't it be better for us to just live together peacefully as a family?"

"A family?" Clara repeated the words under her breath.

She had once been naive enough to believe they were a family. On the day she was brought back to the estate, wearing her faded clothes and standing before the luxury villa with sweaty palms, her biological parents had held her hands and wept. Scarlett had smiled and handed her an imported chocolate.

"You're two minutes older than me," she had said. "From now on, you're my big sister."

Having grown up in a house of constant abuse, Clara cherished this hard-won happiness above all else. She was cautious in everything she did, treating Scarlett like her own flesh and blood. She even felt grateful to Scarlett for staying by their parents' side for those twenty years, and for accepting her so quickly.

But that beauty was soon shattered by Scarlett’s own hands. Her clothes would be mysteriously shredded, only for Scarlett to claim Clara had done it herself. Every time she received a new gift, the remains would appear in the trash the next day.

It wasn't until she mentioned that her boyfriend was Ethan that the jealousy in Scarlett’s eyes could no longer be hidden, and the targeting intensified. The death of their parents broke the facade of peace entirely. And now, Ethan was still protecting the person who had destroyed everything.

She looked directly at Scarlett, emphasizing every word. "She and I have never been family, and we never will be."

Refusing to argue further, she turned toward the kitchen. The next second, Ethan chased after her in a rage, grabbing her arm.