Lying there, breath shallow, cold spreading along his spine, a reckless thought crossed his mind. What if he didn’t move? What if he let them think he was unconscious? It was twisted, but curiosity won. For a man who had always pulled every string, surrendering to stillness felt like a final test.
So he closed his eyes and waited.
Footsteps thundered down the stairs. A sharp gasp followed.
“Mr. Victor!”
It was Amelia. Her voice shook as she rushed to him, the twins crying in her arms. She dropped to her knees, checking his pulse with trembling fingers.
“Please wake up,” she whispered. “Don’t leave these babies. Don’t leave us.”
That word—us—cut deeper than the fall.
The twins cried harder, terrified. Amelia rocked them, trying to soothe them while her own breath came uneven. She didn’t put them down, not even for a second. Victor lay frozen, listening, as a realization crept in painfully slow.
None of his money had ever made someone beg for his life. Except her.
And she wasn’t acting out of duty. She was acting out of love—raw, unguarded love for the children, and impossibly, for him.
For the first time, Victor felt truly seen. And deeply unworthy.