Where Petals of Vengeance Bloom

Chapter 258

He pushed his wheelchair forward with frantic urgency, desperate to catch up to Claire. The wheels traced sharp arcs across the floor, screeching with every turn.

"Claire, stop! Don't walk away-tell me what you meant—" His voice cracked as he shouted after her, but Claire either couldn't hear him or simply didn't care.

Within moments, Claire and Jeffry climbed into the car. Jeffry started the engine, and the car sped off from the hospital parking lot.

Vincent watched the car disappear down the road, his body slumping helplessly in the chair, eyes hollow and lost.

He kept whispering, "No, it can't be," but deep down, he already knew the cruel truth.

He'd come to the hospital for a follow-up on his leg injury, but now, all he could think about were Claire's words. Any concern for his own condition was gone without a trace.

Right now, there was only one thing on his mind: he had to see Vanessa-he needed to get to the bottom of this.

Vanessa, the heiress of the Linwood family from Cresthaven, had recently stunned high society at a gala in Aberdeen. She'd been caught red-handed stealing an embroidered masterpiece worth two million dollars, and was taken away by police in front of the entire gathering.

Everyone at the gala saw it happen, and by that night, the scandal was splashed across every major news outlet.

he

the lighting was dim and

sat face to face, separated by a cold steel barrier. He could hardly reconcile the woman before him with the proud, swan-like

scabs and scars that would never heal, stark against the patchy stubble growing back. The

once radiated from her was gone. Now, she

when Vanessa saw Vincent, her eyes lit up. Hope flickered surely, this renowned lawyer would help her

his wheelchair-her hope died as quickly as it had come. Still, after all these days, he was the first person to visit her. Even realizing how hard things must be for him, she

pristine as a daffodil, her

cut, sallow skin, and haggard face, she was a shell of her former self. Her pitiful act rang

felt nothing-not a flicker

"Vanessa, tell me the truth. Who really

expecting that question. Her eyes darted away, but she quickly regained composure and lied smoothly,

"Claire told me she was the one who helped me. Did you lie to me? Why

gaze was so fierce, it seemed to burn

finally figured

raw anger on Vincent's face, realizing she couldn't keep up the act any