The Unwanted Wife and Her Secret Twins (Mia and Kyle) novel Chapter 357

Chapter 357 How sick he is

Mia’s POV

The fluorescent lighting in this section of the hospital corridor cast everything in harsh relief–the worn vinyl chairs, Thomas’s rumpled suit, the exhaustion etched into the lines around his eyes. His hands kept opening and closing in his lap, fingers spreading wide then forming loose fists, like he was trying to hold onto something that kept slipping away.

“Thomas,” I said again, settling into the chair beside him. The plastic was cold through my jeans, and I could smell the particular mix of antiseptic and industrial coffee that lived in hospital walls. ” What do you mean this is your fault?”

He didn’t look at me immediately. Instead, his gaze fixed on a point somewhere past my shoulder, toward the nurses‘ station where the night shift moved with quiet efficiency between patient rooms. A soft chime echoed from someone’s monitoring equipment, followed by the whisper of sneakers on linoleum.

“Victoria called me yesterday morning,” he said finally, his voice so low I had to lean closer to hear him. “Around ten–thirty. She said she was having chest pains, that she thought she might be having a heart attack.”

My stomach dropped. “What?”

“She was crying, Mia. Sobbing on the phone about how scared she was, how she didn’t want to die in jail, how Madison would grow up without any parents at all.” Thomas’s jaw worked silently for a moment. “She begged me to call her lawyer, to arrange for emergency medical transport to the hospital.”

“You believed her.”

“I believed her.” Thomas’s hands clenched again. “I called her attorney, Kevin Morrison. ”

I felt heat building in my chest, spreading upward toward my throat. “Thomas.‘

“I know.” He finally looked at me, and I could see the weight of his guilt. “I know I should have questioned it.”

“Yes, you should have. But Thomas. Stop.”

He looked at me with surprise.

“You made a mistake,” I said. “A big one. You trusted someone you shouldn’t have trusted, and children got hurt because of it.” The words tasted bitter, but they needed to be said. “But beating yourself up about it won’t change what happened.”

1/3

Chapter 357 How sick he is

+25 BONUS

“Mia, those children could have-”

“But they didn’t.” I stood up, suddenly unable to sit still with all the angry energy coursing through me. “They’re safe. They’re alive. Kyle found them, Kyle brought them home, and Victoria is back in custody where she belongs.”

Thomas watched me pace the small space between chairs, his expression cautious. “You’re angry.”

“Of course I’m angry.” I stopped moving and faced him directly. “I’m furious. But not at you, not primarily. I’m angry at Victoria for being a manipulative psychopath who uses children as weapons. I’m angry at a system that allowed her to fake a medical emergency and walk out of prison. I’m angry at whoever trained that woman to look enough like me to fool the people who are supposed to protect my children.”

“I should have seen through it.‘

“Maybe. Probably. But Thomas, Victoria has been manipulating people her entire adult life. It’s what she does. It’s what she’s good at.” I sat back down, close enough that our knees almost touched. “The important thing now is making sure she never gets another chance.”

Thomas’s eyebrows drew together.

“I mean I’m not letting her off the hook this time. No plea bargains, no reduced sentences, no early release for good behavior.” The words felt solid and final as I spoke them, like concrete setting. “She kidnapped three children, Thomas. She terrorized them, locked them in a basement, cut Madison’s arm when they tried to escape. I don’t care how good her lawyers are or how much money she has left. I want her in prison for the rest of her life.”

Thomas was quiet for a moment, studying my face with an expression I couldn’t quite read. “You sound like Kyle.”

The comparison caught me off guard, though I couldn’t say why. “What?”

Thomas was quiet again.

“Thomas, what is it?”

He took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “Mia, Kyle doesn’t have much time left.”

“I know that.” The words came out more defensive than I intended. “I can see how sick he is. Anyone could see that.”

“No, I mean—” Thomas stopped, seeming to choose his words carefully. “I was at the hospital with him two nights ago. He nearly died, Mia. Right there in front of me.”

The fluorescent lights seemed to flicker, “What?”

Chapter 357 How sick he is

+25 BONUS

“The children don’t know,” he said. “About how sick he is.”

“No. Kyle doesn’t want them to know.”

“I’m saying that Kyle is dying, and those children deserve to know their father before that happens.”

The words hung between us in the antiseptic air.

“I don’t know how to do this,” I admitted.

“Nobody does. There’s no handbook for this situation.” Thomas reached over and took my hand, his fingers warm and familiar. “But maybe that’s okay. Maybe we just take it one day at a time and see what happens.”

A soft knock at the window behind us made us both turn. Kyle stood in the hallway, still wearing the same clothes from earlier but looking somehow more fragile in the morning light. His face was pale, and I could see the careful way he held himself, as if sudden movements might cause everything to fall apart.

“The children are asking for you,” he said quietly when Thomas opened the door to our small seating area.

“All of them?” I asked, standing quickly.

“Alexander’s awake and feeling much better. His fever’s completely gone, and he’s demanding pancakes. Ethan’s been awake for a while, just watching everything. And Madison is sitting in the chair by the window, drawing in her sketchbook.”

“I should go check on them.”

“Mia,” Kyle said as I moved past him toward the children’s room. “Thanks.”