The CEO’s Regret: Begging Her Firefighter Ex-husband

Chapter 5

Two days later, the port safety committee held the formal hearing on the survey ship crash.

Lucas arrived at the maritime administration building in his uniform, walking slowly with a cane.

Outside the hearing room doors, Claire stepped out to block his path.

"Lucas, wait," Claire said, keeping her voice down. "We need to talk before you go inside."

Lucas looked at her quietly. "We have nothing to talk about, Claire. The hearing starts in five minutes."

"This is about the hearing," Claire said, stepping closer. "When they ask what happened, don't put so much focus on Julian staying out in the storm."

Lucas stopped, his eyes fixed on hers. "You want me to step back and cover for him again?"

"I am thinking about his little boy and the entire port project," Claire said, sounding defensive. "You have to consider the bigger picture."

"Does the bigger picture mean I should take the blame for what he did?" Lucas asked.

"Nobody is asking you to take the blame!" Claire frowned. "I'm not asking you to lie. I just don't want your personal feelings against Julian to ruin a man's career."

Lucas didn't want to waste words. "I will tell them the exact facts."

He pushed past her and walked through the heavy wooden doors.

Inside, five senior committee directors sat behind a long desk. Julian sat at the partner firm's table with his hands in his lap, keeping his head down.

"Team Leader Cole," the lead investigator said, pointing to the chair in the center. "Please tell us what happened the night of the crash."

Lucas sat down, opened his folder, and spoke calmly.

He laid out the simple truth: the exact time the storm warning was sent, the radio alerts his team broadcasted, and where the ship crashed into the rocks.

The investigator turned to Julian. "Mr. Miller, our records show you received the storm warning at five in the afternoon, yet you kept working until seven. Why didn't you turn the ship back to the port?"

Julian swallowed hard, his voice shaking. "We... we were trying to finish the survey work for the company, sir."

"That decision destroyed an expensive ship and put twelve lives in danger," the investigator said in a stern voice. "You carry the main responsibility for this crash."

Julian slumped back in his chair, looking pale and completely helpless.

Seeing that Julian was about to take all the blame, Claire stood up from her seat behind him.

"Excuse me, Director," Claire spoke up, her voice steady and clear.

The committee looked up at her. "Go ahead, Ms. Hayes."

"Team Leader Cole is a respected officer, but the board needs to hear the whole story," Claire said smoothly. "Team Leader Cole and Mr. Miller have had serious personal conflict recently over problems in our marriage. I ask the committee to consider if his judgment is affected by his personal anger."

The entire room went completely dead silent.

The board members looked at each other in surprise, while Julian kept his eyes glued to the desk.

Sitting in the witness chair, Lucas felt a sudden rush of cold fury.

When she left him to drown, she had broken his heart. When she moved Julian into his home, she had killed his feelings.

Now, in front of the entire port board, she was ready to destroy his professional name just to protect Julian.

Lucas looked straight at the lead director, his voice cold and steady.

"If this board doubts my honesty, you don't have to take my word for it," Lucas said. "Pull the radio recordings, the weather reports, and the ship's tracking data. Everything was recorded as it happened. Check every second and see if I lied about a single thing."

The director nodded right away. "That won't be necessary, Team Leader Cole. The ship's black box data has already confirmed your report. The committee will make its decision now."

The hearing ended, and people began walking out into the hallway.

Claire rushed over and caught up with Lucas near the elevators. "Lucas, stop. Listen to me for a second."

Lucas turned around, his eyes as cold as stone.

"I know that sounded harsh," Claire said, trying to soften her voice. "I didn't mean to attack you. I just wanted the investigation to be fair so Julian wouldn't lose everything."

Lucas looked at her quietly. "If I were the one sitting in that chair, would you ever stand up in public and attack Julian's name to protect me?"

Claire froze. Her mouth parted, but not a single sound came out.

She stood frozen on the floor, completely unable to answer him.

Lucas didn't wait for her. He reached inside his jacket, took out a folded white document, and put it directly into her hand.

"Sign it," Lucas said calmly. "We have nothing left between us."

He turned on his cane and walked away without looking back.

Claire looked down at the paper: Divorce Settlement Agreement.

Her eyes dropped to the bottom, where Lucas had already signed his name in dark ink. Then she saw the date written next to it.

Her hands began to shake violently.

The date was the morning after the crash, signed while he was still lying alone in that hospital bed.

A cold wave of panic rushed through her chest.

She had spent days telling herself he was only throwing a tantrum to make her back down. She had believed he packed his bags just to make her feel bad, and that he would return home once he calmed down.

Looking at the date on the paper, she realized the truth for the very first time.

He was never acting out. From the moment he woke up in that hospital, he had already cut her out of his life.