Chapter 105

The red light above the operating room glared ominously.

Margaret Hill paced the corridor, her knuckles white from gripping her purse strap.

Brandon Lowell slumped on the bench, staring blankly at the floor.

"Mom!" Sophia Lowell's heels clicked rapidly as she approached. "How's Dad?"

Margaret seized her daughter's wrist. "He never came home last night. This morning someone dumped him at our doorstep and ran..."

Her nails dug into Sophia's flesh.

Sophia frowned and pulled away. "Did you call the police?"

"The cameras caught nothing." Margaret's voice trembled. "They knew all the blind spots..."

Brandon suddenly looked up. "Sis, is Dad gonna die?"

Dried blood still streaked his face.

Sophia's stomach clenched.

She studied her mother and brother with calculated detachment.

Margaret's makeup had smeared, her expensive fur coat stained. Brandon's limited-edition sneakers were scuffed beyond recognition.

"Mom, calm down." Sophia handed her a tissue. "Did Dad make any enemies recently?"

Margaret grabbed her shoulders. "Did you cause trouble somewhere?"

Sophia's pupils contracted.

The operating room doors swung open.

"The patient is stable for now." The doctor removed his mask. "But we need to monitor him for 48 hours."

When Vincent Lowell was wheeled out, his face was swollen beyond recognition.

Sophia covered her mouth, summoning perfectly timed tears.

She assessed her adoptive father's battered form with cold efficiency.

Her true identity as the Langley heiress remained undisclosed.

There was still time to cut ties.

"I have class." She wiped her tears. "Call me if anything changes."

Outside the hospital, Sophia dialed a number.

"Find out who's targeting the Lowells."

Hanging up, she gazed at the bustling street.

Ethan Sullivan preferred gentle, kindhearted girls.

An ICU-bound father simply wouldn't do.