THE DIVORCE GAMBIT From Dumped Wife to CEO's Forever novel Chapter 489

Katrina’s voice, sharp and demanding, cut through the air. Without hesitation, Xavier answered, “That’s right. Yes, I want to break up with you!”

Katrina had once saved his life. She was his savior, and nothing would ever change that fact. He hadn’t chosen her to take that risk for him—fate had made that decision. But what he could choose, Xavier told himself, was whom he allowed into his heart.

He simply couldn’t accept someone with Katrina’s character as his partner.

And it wasn’t just him. The entire Richards family would never accept someone like her as their future daughter-in-law.

He had no choice. The break had to be clean—a complete and final separation.

“Fine,” Katrina’s laugh drifted coldly from the other end of the line. “Break up it is! Just don’t come crawling back.”

With those words, she hung up.

For a moment, Xavier just stared at his phone, stunned. He hadn’t expected Katrina to end the call so abruptly. What did she mean by “don’t come crawling back”?

Meanwhile, Katrina lowered her phone and hurled the wineglass in her hand to the floor.

Smash!

The glass shattered into a mess of glittering shards.

She stalked to the door, locked it, and turned the deadbolt. Then, bending down, she picked up one of the largest, sharpest pieces. With a determined, almost feral glint in her eyes, Katrina pressed the jagged edge to her forearm and dragged it across her skin.

A bright red bead of blood welled up instantly.

It hurt. God, it hurt. But Katrina just grinned, wide and wild.

This was the oldest trick in the book: the martyr’s ploy. It might not work on everyone, but when it came to Xavier, she knew it would hit him where it hurt.

She snapped a photo of her bleeding arm and sent it to Xavier with a message: *Xavier, I love you. Maybe we’ll meet again in another life.*

Without waiting for his reply, she powered off her phone.

Fifteen minutes later, Xavier finally saw the WhatsApp message.

His hands trembled as he stared at the photo. He never imagined Katrina would actually go so far as to slit her wrist.

No. This couldn’t happen. Katrina couldn’t die—certainly not because of him. He already owed her his life. If she died because of him, he’d never forgive himself.

He dialed her number in a panic.

But all he got was a cold, robotic voice: “Sorry, the number you have dialed is not available.”

She’d switched off her phone.

Xavier’s heart hammered in his chest. He went pale and dashed out the door without even grabbing a coat.

He had to stop Katrina before it was too late.

Downstairs, Caitlin and Hannah were chatting in the living room. When Caitlin saw Xavier sprinting out, she stood up. “Xavier, what’s going on?”

He caught a nurse just outside the emergency room. “Excuse me, miss—can you tell me how Katrina is doing? She was just brought in.”

The nurse looked him over, then asked, “Are you talking about the woman who tried to slit her wrist?”

“Yes, yes—that’s her.”

The nurse’s expression softened slightly, but her words were grim. “From what I’ve heard, she was brought in pretty late. Her condition is serious.”

The color drained from Xavier’s face.

How could this be happening?

Katrina had saved his life once. If she died because of him, he’d never be able to live with himself.

Seeing the look on his face, and guessing at the relationship between the two, the nurse added gently, “But don’t lose hope. Your girlfriend’s very lucky today—Dr. Barrett, our top surgeon, is on call. With Dr. Barrett in charge, I believe she’ll pull through.”

Despite her reassurance, Xavier’s anxiety wouldn’t let him rest.

Ten agonizing minutes later, the doors to the emergency room finally opened.

A doctor in white emerged, pulling down his mask as he approached.

Xavier rushed forward. “Doctor, how is Katrina?”

The doctor fixed Xavier with a stern look, his eyes full of reproach. “You’re Katrina’s boyfriend, right? You have got to do better. Do you realize that if you’d brought her in just a little later, she would have died?”