Steven sat in the exam room, sweat trickling down his face from the pain. The harsh scent of antiseptic stung his nose, and the doctor’s endless chatter only made his headache worse.
Just then, there was a sudden commotion outside.
The door burst open and Shannon rushed in, breathless. “Steven, you need to hear this!”
A wave of panic hit him. He tried to get up, but pain shot through his hips and he collapsed back into the chair. “What is it?”
Shannon’s eyes were red and brimming with tears. “Mrs. Heath fell down the stairs!”
“She lost a tooth, broke her leg—they’re working on her in the ER right now!”
Steven’s face went pale. “How did that happen?”
“She… she’s been so upset about you marrying Bria. She was crying her eyes out in her room—”
“Just tell me what happened,” Steven interrupted, his patience gone.
Shannon sniffed, wiping her face. “She was really sad, then she heard you’d gotten hurt. She rushed out to see you and… I don’t know, she must’ve slipped on the stairs.”
She’d never admit that she tripped Miranda on purpose. There were too many people on the stairs, too much chaos. Even if someone checked the security footage, they’d never figure out it was her.
Mrs. Heath had always treated her well, but right now, this was the only way. With Miranda badly hurt, Steven wouldn’t be thinking about marrying Bria anytime soon. Plus, maybe they could even blame the whole thing on Bria.
Steven’s heart raced. “Take me to see her.”
He pushed himself to his feet, ignoring the pain.
“Get a wheelchair!” someone called out.
“I’m good,” Steven gritted out, limping toward the ER.
—
In the emergency room, specialists from different departments had already gathered. No one dared relax; everyone did their best to help Miranda.
“Doctor, how’s my mother?” Steven demanded.
“Mr. Heath, please stay calm. She’s being treated right now. Please wait outside,” a nurse said gently.
Steven let out a shaky breath and sank into a chair by the door.
After what felt like forever, the doors finally opened and two surgeons came out.
Steven jumped up. “How is she? Is it serious?”
The lead doctor took off his mask, wiping sweat from his brow. “Mr. Heath, your mother has a fractured right leg that needs immediate surgery. She also fractured her jaw, which is why she lost a tooth. She’ll probably need a dental implant later.”
“So it’s all just physical injuries? She’s not in real danger?” Steven pressed.
“Alright.”
“We’ll move her to a private room now.”
“Make sure it’s the best one, with the best staff.”
“Of course, Mr. Heath.”
The nurses wheeled Miranda to the VIP wing. Her room ended up right next to Mr. Anderson’s.
Steven paused outside Anderson’s door, his jaw clenching as he remembered Lucie’s outburst earlier. So what if he’d lied to her? He’d spent a fortune on her. After the divorce, he’d handed over nearly ten billion in alimony and compensation.
She was born rich, but even she had to understand what ten billion meant. That was a staggering amount, even for the richest families. The fact that he’d been willing to give it up proved he wasn’t some heartless jerk.
So what if he’d tricked her into having his child? With ten billion, he could have paid any number of women to do the same.
—
Half an hour later, Miranda slowly woke up, groggy and confused.
“Ugh…”
There was gauze packed in her mouth to stop the bleeding.

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