Chapter 7

The doctor said Sophia would be fine as long as she rested well, but Walter was still worried and insisted she get a complete physical examination.

The examination room door closed and opened again. The doctor walked in with a furrowed brow, holding a report.

"Ms. Brown, your external injuries just need proper rest, but..." The doctor paused and pushed the report in front of Sophia.

"During the abdominal CT scan, we found a space-occupying lesion in your liver."

"What?" Sophia froze.

"Simply put, it's a tumor. We're not sure yet if it's benign or malignant. We need to do a biopsy to confirm. I suggest you arrange to be admitted as soon as possible, and we..."

Sophia couldn't hear the rest clearly.

A tumor?

She was only twenty-seven years old.

"Can it be treated?" Walter's face was even paler than Sophia's as he asked urgently.

"It's too early to draw conclusions." The doctor pushed up his glasses.

"But whether it's benign or malignant, early detection and treatment are always the right approach. Ms. Brown, you're still young. With active cooperation in treatment, the prognosis is usually good."

When they left the hospital, Sophia was still in a daze.

"Sophia, don't worry too much." Walter drove her home, comforting her the whole way. "Medicine is so advanced now that it can definitely be cured. I know some excellent oncology specialists. I'll help you contact them."

Sophia remained stunned and didn't really listen. Walter had to stop talking.

The car pulled up to the villa as dusk was falling.

Sophia pushed open the car door. Because of her injuries, her movements were clumsy. Walter quickly got out to help her.

"I can manage," Sophia said quietly, but Walter had already taken her arm.

"Don't push yourself. I'll help you inside."

Just as they reached the courtyard gate, a black Maybach came speeding up and screeched to a halt a few meters away.

The door opened, and Nicholas stepped out from the driver's seat with a dark expression.

He strode up to Sophia, his eyes falling on Walter's hand supporting her arm.

"You're getting cozy with another man right at your doorstep?"

He had seen her car accident with his own eyes. He hadn't asked her once about her condition until now, and the first thing he said was an accusation?

Sophia looked up at the face that once captivated her heart, but now it felt completely unfamiliar.

"Mr. Jackson, we're getting divorced. Who I'm with has nothing to do with you."

"I haven't signed the divorce papers yet, so you're still my wife." Nicholas stepped forward and reached to grab Sophia. "Come home with me."

Walter blocked Sophia: "Mr. Jackson, Sophia needs rest now. And she's injured. Please watch your behavior."

Nicholas shot him a sharp look: "My wife and I's business is none of an outsider's concern."

"Outsider?" Sophia suddenly laughed.

"Nicholas, in your heart, I'm probably not even as important as an outsider, am I?"

She pushed Walter aside and stumbled forward a step, looking up at Nicholas.

"Since you only care about your dear sister, what right do you have to stand here and judge my behavior?"

Nicholas frowned: "Cecilia had a heart attack. I had to take her to the hospital. And you're fine, aren't you?"

Fine?

Didn't he have eyes? Couldn't he see that she was just one step away from death?

But then again, even if she had miraculously survived, her fate now seemed beyond her control.

"Nicholas, let me go." Sophia closed her eyes wearily, a tear sliding from the corner of her eye.

"The doctor said I have a tumor in my liver. They need to do more tests to determine if it's benign or malignant. A woman with a serious illness has no value to you or the Jackson family anymore."

She was truly exhausted.

Nicholas needed a presentable wife, not a seriously ill patient. She just hoped that once Nicholas knew about her condition, he would divorce her quickly.

Nicholas froze. After a few seconds, he looked up at Sophia with a complicated expression.

"Sophia, I know you're upset, but using this method to make me jealous is too childish."

Sophia's hands began to tremble. Walter looked up in disbelief.

"A racing accident, and then you find out you have a tumor. That's too much of a coincidence." Nicholas continued.

"I know you're jealous of Cecilia, but it's really not necessary. She's my sister. She's not in good health. Today, when she saw your accident, she was so scared her heart condition acted up. You only have minor injuries, and now you're telling me you have a tumor. Sophia, this is ridiculous. Do you think I'm a three-year-old?"

Sophia stared at him blankly.

She had imagined Nicholas's reaction. When she spoke just now, she had even fantasized that Nicholas might worry about her, but she never expected that he wouldn't believe her. She never expected he would still think she was just jealous.

But even if he believed her, so what?

Even at the racetrack, in that life-or-death moment, he only cared about Cecilia and didn't turn to look at her once.

Even if she had a tumor, even if it was malignant, even if she didn't have long to live, why would he care?

"Nicholas!" Walter couldn't stand it anymore and stepped forward.

"Walter." Sophia grabbed Walter, stopping him.

"You think my tumor is fake? You think I'm lying to you about this?" Sophia asked softly.

"Sophia, really, stop this. I'm already tired today."

Nicholas didn't answer Sophia's question. He reached out to touch her face, but Sophia turned her head away.

His hand froze in mid-air. After a moment, he withdrew it, his expression turning cold again.

"Come upstairs with me. Let's talk properly. I can explain about Cecilia, but you need to understand her too. Her heart isn't good. She can't handle stress."

"Enough." Sophia cut him off.

She stopped looking at Nicholas and turned to Walter: "Walter, could you help me upstairs? I need to get some things."

She didn't want to live in this house anymore.

She didn't want to see this man anymore.

"Sophia!" Nicholas grabbed her wrist. "You're letting an outsider into our home?"

"Let go." Sophia's voice was cold as ice.

"Sophia, don't push me..."

"Push you?" Sophia spun around, shook off Nicholas's hand, pulled out her phone from her bag, and threw it hard at Nicholas's chest.

"Look at this, Nicholas."

Sophia's voice trembled as she pointed at the phone Nicholas caught.

"This is surveillance footage my private investigator found. Nicholas, open your damn eyes and look carefully at whose people went into the maintenance area!"

"That's not a reason for you to let other men into our home." Nicholas didn't care, answering casually.

But as his eyes inadvertently swept across the screen, he froze instantly.