A Seven-Year Obedience Test Chapter 08
Ethan raced to the hospital. The emergency room light was still on.
He’d run red lights the whole way, lost his suit jacket somewhere. Hair a mess, face pale—there wasn’t a trace of the polished banking heir left.
His assistant panted behind him, never having seen his boss this frantic.
“How is she?” Ethan grabbed a nurse’s arm, his voice shaking.
“Leg fracture, mild concussion. She’s stable—no life-threatening injuries. They’re closing the wounds now.”
No life-threatening injuries. Those six words hit him like a sedative. His whole body went slack, and he leaned against the wall, needing a long moment to compose himself.
“Investigate.” He lifted his head, eyes dark with fury. “Find the driver, find whoever’s behind this. They’ll pay.”
The investigation moved fast. Traffic cameras caught the vehicle, rental records traced through a shell company, and they quickly zeroed in on the man who’d rented it. Under pressure, he confessed: Vivian had paid him.
Ethan held the written statement, his knuckles cracking.
He’d always thought of Vivian as a sister. Even knowing her scheming side, he’d never truly been harsh with her. But he never imagined she’d go this far against Claire.
“Brother… her family…” Liam ventured carefully from the side.
“Her family?” Ethan laughed, cold and empty. “As of today, there’s no ‘her family’ in New York. Terminate all business ties with them. Vivian—let the law handle it. I want the maximum.”
He did exactly that. By that afternoon, Vivian’s family company was hit with multiple violations. Partners pulled out. Stock prices crashed. Her father scrambled to pull strings, but couldn’t even get past Ethan’s front gate.
Before they took her in, Vivian begged to see Ethan one last time.
In the interrogation room, her hair wild, she screamed hysterically:
“What does she have that I don’t? I’ve known you for over twenty years! She only had seven!”
Ethan sat across from her, his eyes cold as ice.
“You’re not even worth a strand of her hair. She was honest—she loved honestly, she left honestly. You? You’re nothing but petty schemes and cheap tricks. You’d even run someone down with a car. You’re never getting out of here.”
He stood and walked away. Behind him, Vivian’s sobs broke out, but he didn’t look back.
After dealing with all of it, he returned to the hospital. He walked in quietly, sat by the bed, and looked at my pale face—his chest aching like needles.
He reached out to touch my cheek, then stopped his hand midair, pulling it back. Afraid to wake me. Afraid I’d be angry if I saw him.
My backpack lay on the nightstand, the zipper slightly open, design sketches peeking out. He hesitated, then gently took them out.
One page after another. Seven years of designs.
Revised versions of the dress I’d worn on our first date. Buildings I’d said I liked in passing. Sunsets we’d watched together. Every corner of every page hid little pockets of tenderness.
Ethan held those pages, and his eyes went red.
He stayed by my side all night.
As dawn approached, he held my hand and whispered:
“Claire… I’m sorry. I was an idiot. Just wake up—I’ll take any punishment you want.”