Chapter 243

Sophia Lowell barely dodged the crystal ashtray hurled at her head the moment she pushed open the hospital room door.

The projectile shattered against the wall behind her, scattering shards across the floor.

"Sophia!" Vincent Lowell's roar made the room vibrate. "You blew through ten million in one fucking day?"

Brandon Lowell leaped from the couch, jabbing a finger at her. "You're bankrupting this family!"

Margaret Hill stood by the hospital bed with conflicted eyes. "This spending is excessive, darling."

Sophia slowly removed her sunglasses.

Her fingers trembled as she surveyed the wreckage. Half a second slower, and that would've been her blood splattered on the tiles.

"Since when do I need permission to spend my own money?" Her laugh was ice. "Nobody batted an eye when Evelyn got a three-million-dollar dress."

Silence swallowed the room.

Vincent's face purpled. "That was different! Evelyn—"

"Evelyn this, Evelyn that!" Sophia's voice cracked like a whip. "Where were you when she stole seventeen years of my life?"

The heart monitor screeched an alarm.

Margaret lunged for the nurse call button, but Sophia blocked her.

"Save the act." Sophia eyed her mother's shaking hands. "All you care about is money. Now that Lowell Group's failing, even my breath is a crime, isn't it?"

Brandon grabbed an IV pole. "You ungrateful—"

"Do it!" Sophia tilted her chin up. "Let the world see how the Lowells treat their real daughter."

The pole froze mid-swing.

Outside, clouds swallowed the sunlight, plunging the room into gloom.

Sophia pulled up her phone screen—a bank transfer confirmation. "That ten million bought a guaranteed admission to Juilliard." Her lips curled. "Too bad I don't want it anymore."

Vincent's pupils contracted.

Their last chance at salvation.

"Sophia..." Margaret's voice wavered. "I didn't know—"

"You never do." Sophia yanked the door open. "Just like you don't know Evelyn's buying up Lowell shares right now."

The door slammed shut behind her as glass exploded inside the room.

Down the hall, the nurses' station TV blared entertainment news:

"Rising starlet Evelyn Lowell spotted at NYSE today, signaling business ambitions..."

The elevator doors reflected Sophia's bloodshot eyes as she pressed the button.

Her phone buzzed.

An unknown number sent a photo—Evelyn shaking hands with a bank executive, a "Lowell Group Stock Transfer Agreement" placard in the background.

The elevator chimed open.

Sophia deleted the image and stepped into the blinding white light.