My Cold-Hearted Husband Wants Me Back
Chapter 103: Her Fault

Chapter 103: Her Fault

The sterile light of the emergency ward cast long shadows on the tiled floor, flickering faintly with every shift of the overhead fluorescents.

Eryx sat across from Lunara, both of them locked in silence, as if words would make the guilt more unbearable.

He hadn’t said much since they arrived. Not because he didn’t care but because he did, and far too much. Every second he’d spent tearing Matilda’s empire apart had cost him something greater. He should’ve been there. He should’ve known.

Lunara sat still, barely noticing the hospital blanket someone had gently draped over her shoulders. Her eyes were fixed on the floor, unfocused, while her hands stayed tightly clenched in her lap.

If she had just listened. If she hadn’t insisted on going out. If she didn’t sulk and asked him to pull out all the security around her. If she hadn’t let her pride drown out his warning to stay home.

Mila wouldn’t be lying in that operating room right now.

The weight of all those ’if only’ twisted inside her, sharp and unforgiving.

The nurse returned, hesitant. "Miss Lunara... the woman who...you brought along. She’s asking for you."

Lunara stood on instinct, her legs almost giving out from how long she had been sitting still.

She rushed to the woman’s bedside and saw her breathing was ragged, her body broken beneath a mess of wires and bandages. But her eyes clung to Lunara with startling clarity, as if holding on to the last thread of life.

"I... I’m sorry," the woman rasped, wincing. "I didn’t mean for her to get hurt. I just... I needed the money."

Lunara stepped closer, her voice shaking. "Who told you to take her?" she demanded, her hands trembling at her sides. "Who said they’d pay you to take Mila?"

The woman’s eyes fluttered. Her lips parted, struggling to form the words. "She... she said it was just a scare. That no one would get hurt. That it’d be quick..."

Lunara leaned in, desperate now, gripping the edge of the bed. "Who? Who is she?"

The woman’s chest heaved with effort. Her gaze grew glassy, unfocused. "She..."

And then, nothing. Her breath hitched. Her body stilled. The line on the monitor went flat.

Lunara froze. "No, no—no, you don’t get to die now!" she cried, shaking her head, voice breaking. "You tell me who she is! You can’t die without telling me who she is! I need to know who did this to my daughter!"

Her voice echoed down the sterile hallway, but the only answer was the wail of the flatline and the sudden rush of nurses into the room.

Eryx burst into the room the moment he heard the commotion, his eyes locking on Lunara’s wild-eyed, shaking, standing beside the now-still body of the woman on the hospital bed.

"You can’t die!" Lunara shouted, voice ragged, almost hoarse. "You didn’t tell me who...who she is! You can’t just leave like this!"

She grabbed the bed rail and shook it, her whole body trembling with fury and disbelief. "I want her to pay for what she’s done to my daughter! Do you hear me?! She has to pay!"

Eryx was at her side in an instant. He wrapped his arms around her tightly from behind, holding her still, as if she might fall apart if he let go.

"Lunara... enough. Stop." His voice was low, pained. "I’ve got you."

She struggled in his arms at first, her breath frantic. "Don’t! Let me go!" she snapped, trying to push him away. "Enough?! You weren’t there! You don’t know anything! You don’t get to—"

But then her hands stopped moving. Her strength gave out.

Silence fell.

She didn’t say another word. Her fists remained pressed weakly against his chest, no longer resisting.

Because in that stillness, it hit her.

It wasn’t him.

It was her.

If she had listened. If she hadn’t been so caught up in herself.

If she hadn’t insisted on going out that day.

The anger drained from her limbs like water slipping through her fingers.

She slowly pulled back from him, her eyes unfocused, like she was looking straight through him. "I should’ve listened," she whispered. "This is my fault."

Eryx stiffened. "Lunara, no. Don’t do that. You didn’t—"

"I did," she cut him off, her voice cracking. "You told me not to go out. You said it wasn’t safe. And I—" Her breath hitched. "I didn’t want to listen. I was so angry at you. I thought you were just being controlling. But now... now Mila’s in there because of me."

She clutched the fabric of her shirt as if holding it could stop her from falling apart. Her face was pale, and her lips trembled as guilt pooled in her eyes. She looked like she was trying to breathe underwater.

Eryx reached out slowly, wrapping his arms around her shoulders, pulling her tightly into him. "Stop," he said softly, pressing his cheek to her hair. "Please don’t do this to yourself."

But she barely reacted to his touch. Her hands hung loosely by her sides now, her fingers twitching like they didn’t know what to hold on to anymore.

"I kept thinking about how miserable I was the whole time. About what you said," she mumbled against his chest. "If I had just swallowed my pride... If I had just—" Her voice broke.

He held her tighter. "Lunara, it’s not your fault. The one who did this... she made that choice. Not you."

But Lunara wasn’t listening to him anymore. Her eyes fluttered, unfocused, her breathing shallow.

"Lunara?" Eryx started feeling anxious, Lunara did not respond anymore.

Her body swayed.

"Lunara." He called again but then Lunara’s knees gave way.

Eryx caught her instantly, panic flashing through his features. He dropped to his knees with her, holding her up.

"Hey—hey, stay with me. Look at me." His voice trembled now. "Lunara, please."

He shouted over his shoulder. "Get a doctor! Now!"

He cradled her gently in his arms, brushing the hair from her face as if that might wake her.

He said her name again, softer this time.

But no more response.

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