Chapter 445 What Does He Want?

Chapter 445: Chapter 445 What Does He Want?

Derick slowly pushed himself out of the chair.

His eyes were bloodshot, but his expression had become strangely calm.

It was the kind of calm that came after something inside a person had been shattered beyond repair.

The truth had destroyed him.

It had been his fault.

He had loved Sophia with all his heart, yet he had been the one to push her toward the edge.

He hated Victoria.

But more than that, he hated the man he’d once been.

“Derick, please...”

Victoria’s voice trembled with fear.

“Don’t do this to me. Please don’t be so cruel.”

She knew him.

He had always been courteous and composed in public.

But beneath that polished exterior was a man capable of being ruthless when he finally made up his mind.

Alicia was even more desperate.

Ignoring the pain radiating through her body, she dragged herself toward Derick.

“Dad...”

She reached for him.

“I really don’t know anything. Dad, I’m your daughter. Your biological daughter.”

The room descended into chaos again.

James stood to one side, watching coldly.

He was waiting.

If Derick showed even the slightest hesitation, James had already decided he would cut him off completely and handle Victoria and Alicia himself.

But Derick didn’t look at either of them.

Instead, he turned toward Rose.

“Rose.”

His face was exhausted, every year of regret etched into it.

“I know it’s too late.”

Rose’s expression remained cold.

“Your mother and I... I’ll explain everything to both of you. I know nothing I say can undo what happened.”

He swallowed.

“If you never forgive me, I understand.”

Rose said nothing.

Her pale lips pressed into a thin line.

There was no trust left in her eyes.

No warmth.

Only disappointment, disbelief, and something close to contempt.

Derick finally turned toward Victoria and Alicia.

His voice was quiet.

But the hatred beneath it was unmistakable.

“Sending you both to prison would be too easy.”

Victoria’s face went white.

“Far too easy.”

His eyes were terrifyingly calm.

“You should know what it feels like to wish you were dead.”

“You should experience pain.”

“Because no matter what you suffer now, it will never come close to what Sophia endured.”

No one spoke.

Derick had made his decision.

He would not simply hand them over and walk away.

Whatever happened next, Victoria and Alicia would have to face the consequences of what they had done.

Alicia understood immediately.

There would be no second chance.

Her entire world had collapsed.

Then something inside her snapped.

She turned on Victoria.

“It’s all your fault!”

She lunged toward her mother, her face twisted with fury.

“Why didn’t you just die back then?”

“You ruined everything!”

“You ruined my life!”

“Die!”

“Die!”

Derick ordered his people to secure the area.

No one stopped him.

Victoria’s cries and Alicia’s frantic shouting soon faded as the two women were taken away.

Alicia was still recovering from major surgery.

Victoria was terrified.

But Derick no longer seemed capable of caring.

Rose watched the entire scene unfold.

Yet the weight pressing against her chest didn’t ease.

She had already lost too much in her life.

Too many people.

Too many years.

Too much of herself.

Even the strongest person could be left emotionally hollow after discovering something like this.

She didn’t want to imagine what Derick would ultimately do.

She only knew one thing.

It was too late.

Life didn’t come with a reset button.

There was no going back and doing things differently.

James closed his eyes.

“There’s one more person we need to deal with.”

Rose looked at him.

“Alicia’s uncle.”

James’s expression darkened.

“He’s been living overseas all these years, enjoying the life Victoria funded for him. We can’t leave him untouched.”

He slowly recalled the events of those years.

“It couldn’t have been a coincidence that Alicia ended up at the temple my grandmother used to visit.”

“She was probably taken there after being raised by her uncle.”

James’s jaw tightened.

“He deliberately kept her looking underfed and vulnerable so people would feel sorry for her.”

“He even helped create a new identity for her and brought her back into the Taylor family’s orbit with a different name, age, birthday—everything.”

Ryan nodded.

“We need to find him too.”

His gaze shifted toward Rose.

“We can’t leave any loose ends.”

Rose had already calmed down considerably.

She slowly stood.

She wanted to go to Morgan.

She managed two steps.

Then her knees gave out.

Ryan moved instantly.

He caught her before she hit the floor.

“Rose!”

Her eyes closed.

She had fainted.

The doctor examined her and eventually gave a simple explanation.

Her blood sugar had dropped, and the extreme emotional stress had pushed her body past its limit.

She was also still recovering physically from childbirth.

She hadn’t regained all her strength yet, and the combination of exhaustion, lack of food, and emotional shock had taken its toll.

She needed fluids and rest.

Rose slept for several hours.

By the time she opened her eyes again, evening had settled outside.

Snow was falling once more.

The hospital room was softly lit, the lights dim enough not to hurt her eyes.

Rose blinked.

Then she turned her head.

Ryan was sitting in a chair beside the bed, one leg crossed over the other, a laptop resting on his knees.

He was working.

The moment he noticed her awake, he closed the laptop.

His eyes moved to the IV bag.

“Are you uncomfortable anywhere?”

Rose shook her head.

“Hungry?”

Another shake.

“Do you want some water?”

“No.”

Ryan studied her for a moment.

Rose stared at the ceiling.

Her voice was hoarse.

“What time is it?”

“Not even seven.”

She blinked.

“Where’s my mom?”

“She stayed with you most of the afternoon.”

Ryan paused.

“She needed to take her medication, though, so Diana drove her home.”

Rose nodded.

“Oh.”

That was enough.

She knew Morgan was safe.

She closed her eyes again.

Neither of them spoke.

Ryan didn’t press her.

Rose felt something tighten in her chest.

She wanted to cry.

More than anything, she wanted to cry.

But no tears came.

She turned onto her side, facing away from him.

She had known for a long time.

Ryan had helped her.

He had been helping her quietly, without demanding anything in return.

There were things neither of them needed to say anymore.

Rose closed her eyes.

They were damp at the corners.

For Sophia.

For Morgan.

And for herself.

She didn’t know how much time passed.

Ryan remained where he was.

When she continued ignoring him, he didn’t leave.

Eventually, he moved his chair closer to the bed.

“There’s a dessert shop nearby.”

Rose opened her eyes.

“They have that blueberry cake you like.”

He paused.

“And some milk wafers. The kind you used to like.”

“They’ll be here soon.”

Rose stared at him.

Something about the scene felt strangely familiar.

A memory surfaced.

More than a decade ago, whenever Ryan refused to take his medicine or cooperate with treatment, he would turn his back on her.

And she would follow him around with a little stool, dragging it across the floor as she chased him from room to room.

No matter how many times he moved, she followed.

Rose almost smiled.

Almost.

But the expression disappeared before it could fully form.

She remained silent.

Ryan looked at her.

His voice was calm.

“Some things can’t be changed.”

Rose said nothing.

“There’s no point spending the rest of your life trapped in yesterday.”

His eyes remained on her.

“Your life has only just begun.”

“You still have a future.”

“You need to keep moving forward, no matter where life takes you.”

Rose finally looked at him.

After a long silence, she said, “Ryan, I think you’re strange.”

His eyebrow lifted slightly.

“Go on.”

“This is my business.”

Rose’s voice was quiet.

“The Taylor family’s business.”

She watched him carefully.

“On the surface, you’ve handed everything over to my family and let us deal with it ourselves.”

“But that’s not what you’re really doing.”

“You’ve been pushing everyone toward certain decisions.”

“You exposed Alicia.”

“You’ve been investigating Victoria.”

“You even made arrangements with my mother that helped bring all of this to light.”

Rose frowned.

“You’ve gone to all this trouble.”

Her eyes narrowed.

“What exactly are you after?”

Ryan didn’t answer immediately.

Rose continued.

“If this had happened years ago, I might have thought you were doing all this because you still cared about me.”

“But you’ve already told me that’s not what you want.”

“You said we can’t go back.”

“And I believe you.”

She looked at him.

“That’s exactly why none of this makes sense.”

People didn’t do things without a reason.

Especially not someone like Ryan.

He was a businessman.

Every investment had a purpose.

Every decision had a cost.

Every effort was supposed to lead somewhere.

Yet he had spent so much time helping her while simultaneously making it clear that he wasn’t asking for anything from her.

Rose couldn’t understand it.

“Is it guilt?”

The question came quietly.

Ryan’s gaze didn’t change.

Rose lowered her eyes.

“If it’s guilt...”

She paused.

“The problem between us has never been that you owed me something.”

“I loved you.”

“You made it clear from the beginning that you couldn’t give me the same thing.”

“That difference is what hurt me.”

She swallowed.

“After the divorce, you gave me enough financial compensation that I never had to worry about money.”

“You didn’t fight me over Ariel.”

“If this were about repaying some emotional debt, then you already did that.”

Rose looked back at him.

“So why?”

Her eyes searched his face.

“Why are you still doing all of this?”

For the first time, Ryan was silent for a long while.

Rose couldn’t figure him out.

And that, more than anything, was what unsettled her.