Genius Kids' Scheme Claiming Daddy's Billionaire Empire novel Chapter 124

Chapter 124

Nathan pushed open the hospital room door, Brandon’s accusations still bouncing around his skull. The room was quieter now, bathed in the soft yellow glow of a single bedside lamp. Mike and Jenny had passed out in chairs by the window, heads lolling at angles guaranteed to give them hell come morning.

The bustling crowd from earlier had vanished–no hovering doctors, no uncomfortable Sterling family members, and most tellingly, no Richard.

“Where is everyone?” Nathan asked, eyeing the empty chairs.

Anna lay against the stark white sheets, her usual glow replaced by an unsettling pallor. She’d been watching him since he walked in, eyes tracking his movements like a wounded animal.

“Gone home to change,” she whispered, her lips barely moving. A bitter smile flickered across her face. “Not like hanging around here helps anyway. Just more drama nobody needs.”

Nathan’s jaw tightened. His parents had bailed? And Richard had disappeared after supposedly being so devastated? Something felt off.

Anna shifted slightly, wincing as tubes pulled against her skin. Her makeup–free face looked younger, more vulnerable, her hair a limp frame around hollow cheeks.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have survived,” she murmured, voice cracking on the last word. “Nobody really wants me around. I spent my whole life stealing Irene’s place.” She gave a humorless laugh. “Karma’s a bitch, right?”

Tears spilled over then, creating dark splotches on the thin hospital blanket.

me

“But I didn’t know,” she continued, words tumbling out faster. “I never asked to be switched at birth. Why is everyone punishing m for it?”

Nathan felt that strange protective surge he’d always had around Anna–the little sister who’d followed him around with wide, admiring eyes. Brandon’s harsh words suddenly seemed cruel in the face of her raw pain.

He grabbed tissues from the nightstand and pressed them into her trembling hand.

“Hey, cut that out,” he said, voice gentler than usual. “This isn’t your fault.”

He perched awkwardly on the edge of the mattress. “Everyone cares about you. Even when we found out the truth, none of us–not Mom, not Dad, not me–ever thought about walking away. You’re family, Anna. Period.”

A memory flashed–Anna at six, crying over a skinned knee, him awkwardly patting her head and promising it would stop hurting soon. He found himself making the same gesture now, hand hovering uncertainly before landing on her shoulder.

“Focus on getting better. The rest is just noise.”

Anna nodded obediently, dabbing at tears with the crumpled tissue.

Something nagged at him–a loose thread he couldn’t help pulling. Anna… did Richard really message Irene saying he’d only marry

her?”

Anna’s hand froze mid–wipe, the tissue pressed against her cheek. Her mind raced.

Shit. Red flag. Why’s he digging into this now?

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Chapter 124

She carefully lowered her hand, keeping her expression neutral while panic bubbled underneath.

“I’m not totally sure,” she hedged, voice deliberately vague. “Richard never let me touch his phone. Maybe I… misunderstood what I

saw.”

She rushed ahead before he could process this backpedaling. “But he lid break off our engagement. That’s definitely real. Her voice dropped to a brave whisper. “If Irene actually wants him back, I… I guess I could step aside.”

The sacrifice hung in the air between them, Anna’s face a masterclass in reluctant nobility. Inside, she was seething at the mere thought of Richard with Irene, but outwardly, she was the picture of selfless grace.

That’s right, she thought behind tear–swollen eyes. Poor, selfless Anna willing to give up even the love of her life for family harmony.

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