Chapter 4 Ch 4
Later that night, the penthouse suite of the Lucian’s Mansion hummed with the sound of clinking crystal and bass-heavy music.
Lucian stood at the center of the room, a glass of vintage scotch in one hand, looking every bit the man who had just shed a heavy skin.
"To freedom!" one of his business associates toasted, slapping Lucian on the back. "And to finally getting rid of that drab shadow of a wife. Seriously, Lucian, how did you survive five years of Nancy’s 'organic' soups and depressing silence?"
“I’m wondering what in the hell did you see in her to agree for such an arrangement to your marriage?”
“Yes, even if you could not go against your grandfather’s decision that time but waiting for five whole years to divorce her, that's just too much.” Another one chimed in.
“You should have dumped her the day your grandpa died!” Another one commented, “I mean what qualifications did she have to be the wife of a famous business tycoon like you?”
“She was damn lucky to get in your grandpa’s good books and yet had the audacity of talking nonsense at the time of leaving. What treatment did she say?”
Lucian laughed, though the sound was tighter than he intended. For a split second, the phantom sting of Nancy’s final words flickered in his mind—something about toxins and a three-month deadline. He pushed it down. "She was a phase, Mark. A necessary one, perhaps, but one I’ve outgrown."
Leslie, draped in a crimson silk dress that cost more than his ex-wife’s whole necessities he had provided in the past five years, leaned into his side.
She was basking in the attention, her eyes darting around the room to ensure every socialite present saw the way Lucian’s hand rested on her waist.
Suddenly, her phone vibrated. She glanced at the screen, and her jaw literally dropped.
"Lucian..." she whispered, her voice trembling with a mix of shock and pure, unadulterated ego. "Oh my god. Lucian, look!"
She turned the screen toward him. It was an official email from the Aetheria Medical Group, signed by a woman named Mia.
Re: Urgent Consult. Dr. Aris has reviewed your persistent requests. She has an opening this weekend and is willing to meet for an initial assessment.
The room went silent as the news rippled through the circle.
"You did it, Leslie!" Lucian roared, his face flushing with triumph. He hoisted his glass high.
"Do you hear that, everyone? The 'Star of the Medical World,' the woman who hasn't seen a patient in person for years, is coming for me."
He felt invincible. Nancy had told him he was going to die by Christmas? Nancy had called herself his savior? Look at this. Within hours of divorcing her, the greatest doctor on the planet had agreed to see him.
"I told you I had connections," Leslie purred, her eyes shining with a lie she was now starting to believe herself. "I told you Nancy was a nobody who couldn't understand my world."
"She needs to see this," Lucian muttered, his ego surging to a dangerous peak. "She needs to see that while she’s probably rotting in some cheap motel, I’m being personally attended to by royalty."
He pulled out his phone and tapped out a text to the number he had nearly deleted an hour ago.
To: Nancy
[Hope you’re enjoying your two-hundred-dollar life. Just thought you should know, Leslie just secured me a private appointment with Dr. Aris. You told me I’d need a miracle? Well, I found the miracle worker. Don’t bother replying, I doubt you can even afford the data roaming.]
He hit send with a smirk, imagining Nancy’s face when she realized how utterly replaceable she truly was.
"Attention everyone!" Lucian shouted, drowning out the music. "Next Friday, we’re throwing a gala. The 'White Phoenix' party. It’s not just a celebration of my health—it's a welcome party for Dr. Aris herself. Spare no expense! I want her to know that when she treats a man like me, she’s treating a king."
As the crowd cheered, Lucian felt a strange, sharp twinge in his chest. He ignored it, blaming the excitement. He didn't realize that deep in his marrow, the biological clock Nancy had set was already starting to tick.
I was taking a sip of tea with Mia when my phone beeped with notification.
It was Lucian’s text. A smile spread on my lips as
I saw my prey finally sliding in my trap by themselves.
