Chapter Two

Lila’s POV

I stood in the quiet hospital waiting room, still trying to accept what had happened. My father had been shot. The words kept repeating in my head but they still didn’t feel real, like some nightmare I couldn’t wake up from. Only hours ago I had walked out of my marriage with fresh divorce papers in my bag, and now this.

Damien had driven me here after I called him. He stayed mostly silent the whole ride, gripping the wheel tight without looking at me once. Now he stood a few steps away with his arms crossed and his face cold, like he was simply doing his duty and nothing more.

My mother sat hunched in the corner, her eyes red and swollen from crying. Victoria stood right beside her, looking calm and perfectly dressed even at this hour, as if the chaos didn’t touch her.

“What did they tell you exactly?” Damien asked in a flat voice.

“Mom only said to come quickly… that he had been shot.” My voice sounded small and tired.

He nodded once. “I’ll find the doctor. You should sit down.”

I dropped into a hard plastic chair. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking as the weight of the night pressed down on me. I was really divorced now. After nine years of pain, I had finally ended it, yet instead of feeling free I only felt empty and scared. And now my father was fighting for his life. Everything had changed in a single evening.

Victoria walked over and sat in the chair beside me, she leaned in close so only I could hear. “You finally left him,” she whispered with a sharp smile. “After everything you stole from me, you really think it’s over? You took nine years of his life. I won’t let you take anything else.”

I didn’t answer. I had no strength left for her games tonight.

She didn’t stop. “Damien may have driven you here, but we both know he doesn’t want you anymore. He never did. The moment you’re gone, he’ll come back to me like he always planned. You were just a mistake he was forced to live with.”

Her words dug into the fresh wound of the divorce. I looked away, trying to focus on the white hospital walls instead of the tears burning behind my eyes. Everything felt too heavy. The divorce papers in my bag, my father lying somewhere in this building with a bullet wound, and Victoria sitting here like a predator waiting for me to break.

A doctor finally came out after twenty long minutes. We all stood up together.

“The surgery went well,” he said. “The bullet missed the major organs, but he lost a lot of blood. He’s stable for now. You can see him one at a time.”

I went in first. Dad looked so pale and weak in the hospital bed with tubes connected everywhere. When he heard my footsteps his eyes opened slowly.

“Lila,” he whispered, voice rough.

“I’m here, Dad.”

He stared at me for a long moment. “The divorce… is it done?”

“Yes. It’s done.”

He closed his eyes and breathed out slowly. “Good. I pushed you into that marriage… I thought it would fix things between the families, but I was wrong.”

His admission surprised me. My father rarely admitted mistakes. I gently squeezed his hand. “Rest now. We can talk later.”

Before I left the room he held my hand tighter. “Be careful with Victoria. She still wants him. Don’t let her win again.”

When I walked back to the waiting area, Damien was standing by the window staring outside, his back turned to me. He didn’t ask how my father was. He didn’t say anything at all. My mother and Victoria had gone to get coffee, leaving us in heavy silence.

I sat down alone and tried to breathe through the storm inside my chest. The divorce still felt raw, like an open cut. I had finally chosen myself, but now my family was breaking apart and Victoria was already sharpening her knives. Part of me wondered if I had made everything worse by walking away tonight.

Victoria returned first. She stopped in front of me, satisfied. “You look broken already,” she said softly. “Good. This is only the beginning. I’ll make sure you lose everything you tried to take from me.”

I didn’t reply. I simply looked down at my shaking hands and felt the full weight of the night settle on my shoulders. My father was hurt, my marriage was over, and Victoria was ready to fight me every step of the way.

Damien still stood by the window, distant and silent, like none of this truly touched him.

And deep down, that hurt more than I wanted to admit.