Chapter 4

Truth was, Lucas had already met the requirements for discharge. He just did not want to leave. In my past life, he dragged it out and made me pay for two additional months in a private room. It cost a steep seven grand a week.

Back then, he claimed he just wanted a quieter place to recover. I wanted him to have the best care possible, so I nearly worked myself to death funding it.

Only later did I discover the real reason: the hospital was right next to Lily's college campus, making it convenient for him to sneak around with her.

When the doctor brought up the bill, Lucas and Lily traded a quick, nervous glance.

Lucas let out a dramatic, long-suffering sigh. "Scarlett, I don't know why you've turned so ridiculously stingy. But my medical care isn't something we can compromise on. Just transfer the funds for the private room to my debit card, and I'll settle the bill myself."

Asking for my money with that much shameless entitlement?

A cold laugh bubbled up in my chest. I turned straight to the doctor. "I'm pretty sure he's stable enough to be discharged. Please cancel this private room. We’re checking him out today."

Lucas' eyes popped wide open. "Scarlett! Are you trying to kill me? What if my legs get worse the second I step foot out of this hospital?"

Before I could answer, the doctor cut in flatly. "That won't happen. The critical window has passed. Resting at home is no different than staying here."

Lucas’ face went pale, then dark with anger.

Lily looked like she was scrambling to fabricate another excuse, but I cut her off, glaring straight at Lucas. "I don't have a single dime to throw away on your hospital stay. If you're so set on staying in a luxury room, either pay for it out of your own pocket or borrow the cash from her."

I gestured toward Lily. "Didn't she just brag about how loaded she is?"

Their expressions curdled into absolute disgust, looking like they had just swallowed a whole toad. I didn't bother wasting another second on them. I turned on my heel and walked straight out the door.

I didn't have time to play their petty games. Right now, I urgently needed rock-solid evidence that Lucas' car crash had nothing to do with me, and proof that those two had been cheating long before the accident. That was the only way I could safeguard every single cent of my assets when we inevitably ended up in court.

I spent my entire past life working myself to the bone for him. That was then.

Now, the thought of letting Lucas take a single penny of my hard-earned money made me physically sick.

The second I left the hospital grounds, I dialed my lawyer, Mason Fletcher, instructing him to track down the vehicle involved in the crash immediately.

In my previous life, I caught a few suspicious clues, but because I was so consumed with taking care of Lucas, it took months before I hired anyone to look into it. By then, the crash site had been tampered with, and the dashcam footage had mysteriously vanished.

When an accident happened, stuff like that usually got swept under the rug.

After that, I was so drowned in financial stress, grinding through three jobs just to cover his massive medical debt, that I completely lacked the mental bandwidth to dig any deeper.

This time, Lily was still bedridden in the hospital, meaning she hadn't had the time to destroy the paper trail.

Sure enough, Mr. Fletcher called back within the hour. The primary crash site remained untouched. He managed to collect fingerprints, loose hair samples, and blood trace evidence.

To wrap it up, he sent the recovered dashcam footage straight to my phone.

Right before the impact, Lucas was sitting in the passenger seat, gushing to Lily with sickening excitement. "I finally got the divorce finalized with Scarlett! Should we just get married tonight?"

Lily froze for a second, forcing an awkward laugh. "What's the rush? Let's wait until you've legally transferred all her assets into your name first. If your wife catches on before then, things could get really messy."

Lucas stared at her, his brows pulling tight. "You say that every single time. I bought you a brand-new car, and I let you invest all the savings Scarlett gave me, only for you to lose every single penny in the market.

“Every time, you promise we'll get married to make it up to me. You aren't... Playing me, are you? You actually want to marry me, right?"

"Of course I do! How could you even think that?" Lily purred. She leaned over the center console and planted a hard kiss straight on his lips to prove her point.

Just like that, with one fake gesture of affection, every single one of Lucas' doubts melted away.