*****Until this moment, Susan had only half believed that Xavier was bluffing about the estate owning a constantly standby medical team.But seeing a real doctor with a white coat, stethoscope, standing before her… it was enough to make her shoulders loosen and become even more amazed.‘So, he wasn’t lying after all,’ she thought to herself, biting back an embarrassed chuckle.And just at that moment;“You were sent by Victoria, right?” Xavier asked, stepping forward with quiet authority and politeness.“Yes,” the elderly doctor replied quickly, nodding his head. “I was informed that someone lost consciousness.” His eyes flicked toward Williams in Xavier’s arms, and his brow tightened in understanding. “I presume that’s the patient, no?”“Hm.” Xavier gave a curt nod of his head. “Please, follow me.”He said, and without even the slightest hint of hesitation, turned smoothly, leading everyone through one of the mansion’s long, marbled corridors.Susan trailed behind, her heel

*****“Is… is my husband’s situation that bad?” Susan’s voice cracked and her lips trembled as she tried to hold herself together, but her pale face gave her away.Everyone’s eyes darted toward the doctor, waiting.The doctor, on the other hand, blinked, realizing what she had just said.In the following second…“Huh? Oh!” He chuckled softly, a little sheepish. “No, no, Mrs…?”“Sky,” Susan whispered automatically, still fidgeting.“Mrs. Sky,” the doctor repeated with polite respect. “Your husband’s condition, while slightly grim, isn’t that dire.”That should’ve been comforting, but instead, the words only made the hallway heavier, every brow furrowing, and all confusion deepening.“Grim, but isn’t that dire?” Susan asked quickly. “Doctor, what does that even mean?” Her voice wavered again, half pleading and half demanding.Realizing he had spoken like a textbook, the doctor cleared his throat and softened his tone. “I mean,” he began carefully, “it seems your husband experi

*****After the elderly doctor finished giving his thorough, jargon-filled, and eventually simplified report about Williams’ condition, he finally excused himself.He promised to check in regularly and left his contact number in case of any emergency, or in the hopeful event that Williams woke up soon before he returned, so he could come check in on him and examine him again.And with that, the door clicked softly behind him, leaving the mansion silent and suffocated for a moment, no one moving or speaking.Then, finally, as if the silence itself had released something inside them, they all exhaled the breath they had no idea they had been holding… all in near-perfect unison.And just like that, the air seemed to grow lighter, like the whole mansion had been holding its breath along with them.Laura pressed a trembling hand to her chest and shut her eyes, whispering a quiet prayer of gratitude to the heavens. “Thank God,” she murmured, her voice cracking slightly, the tension th

*****“It’s okay, Mother,” came a voice, warm, polite, soft, and soothing, breaking through her spiraling thoughts.Susan’s head snapped up, startled. The tone was gentle, calm… almost too calm for the storm still raging in her chest.Without hesitation, her eyes darted toward the source.It was Xavier.At this moment, stood there with that same quiet composure he always carried, his hands loosely in his pockets, his gaze warm and understanding.There was no trace of resentment or arrogance… just empathy.“She’s… overwhelmed right now,” he said gently, his voice filled with patience and an almost brotherly calm. “She’s processing a lot… guilt, fear, pain, and confusion. You shouldn’t blame yourself.”Susan blinked rapidly, her lips trembling.The boy she had nearly screamed at earlier in the car now spoke to her like a son comforting his mother.Xavier exhaled slowly, then added with a small, polite smile, “I will comfort her, Mother. You should rest first. You haven’t clo

*****Grace hadn’t left the gathering to cry… no, that had never been her intention. In fact, crying had been the last thing on her mind.She had walked out of the mansion because she wasn’t able to breathe in there anymore.A wave of relief had washed over her after the doctor confirmed her father’s condition wasn’t life-threatening … but it hadn’t lasted long.The real reason, the one that made her leave, was none other than… her mother.Watching Susan crumble like that, crying helplessly, tore something deep inside her… something that had made her feel her chest tighten with each sob her mother released.It had hurt to look at her, yet she hadn’t been able to look away.And the more she watched, the more she recalled… all the harsh accusations, every bitter word, and each of the emotional daggers her mother had thrown at her in that heated moment earlier.Her mother’s tears were supposed to soften her… but all they did was reopen the wounds she had been desperately trying t