Chapter 382

Chapter 382
Charlie crouched down beside Josh, ignoring the man's moans. With expert hands, he felt his ribs and checked his bloody mouth. Seconds later, he stood up.
“Ma'am, he'll survive,” Charlie reported in a clinical, professional tone. "He has a fracture in his lower ribs, possible spleen damage, and he lost two teeth in the fall. If we take him to the hospital now, with state-of-the-art treatment, he'll be recovered in two or three months."
Josh, still on the ground, felt a momentary relief amid the pain. Hospital. Recovery. He would be fine. But the hatred for Lilian burned in his eyes, promising future revenge.
Lilian caught that look. She saw that, even spitting blood, he felt no remorse. He was still the same arrogant narcissist.
“Two or three months?” Lilian repeated, frowning.
Charlie, misinterpreting her expression, hastened to correct himself:
“Maybe less, ma'am! If we use the Legrand Group's specialists, we can reduce that to a month. He'll be as good as new in no time.”
Lilian let out a cold, dry laugh that sent a shiver down Charlie's spine.
“Charlie, you don't understand,” she said, looking at her fallen brother with utter contempt. “My concern is not his health. I don't need him to recover quickly.”
She took a step forward, her gray eyes shining with justified cruelty.
“On the contrary. I want it to hurt. I want it to take time. If he recovers in a month, he'll forget the lesson. Make sure he suffers long enough to remember never to raise a hand to me again.”
Josh stood open-mouthed, shock vying with hatred in his eyes. He had never imagined his little sister could be so ruthless. The physical pain was excruciating, but the humiliation burned even more, fueling his thirst for blood.
Carlos and Nick exchanged tense glances, paralyzed by the severity of Lilian's sentence.
A cynical smile curved Lilian's lips as she watched her miserable brother on the floor.
“Charlie... break his leg too.”
The order was given with terrifying casualness.
“He needs to stay home for a year,” she continued coldly. “Make sure he doesn't go anywhere. My brother's evil mind attracts trouble whenever he goes out in public. I'm just being kind, preventing him from causing more harm to the world.”
Josh's eyes widened in pure horror.
Charlie hesitated for a second, staring at his boss. The seriousness on her face was absolute. He felt a pang of pity for the idiot on the floor, but loyalty spoke louder.
“Ma'am... are you serious? Break his leg?”
“Yes. Go ahead.” Lilian smiled, a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
“But do it without blood. Don't worry about his anger. Consider it gentle retribution for what he tried to do to me.”
“Y-Yes, ma'am.”
Charlie took a step forward. The memory of Josh's attempted assault on Lilian was enough to dispel his hesitation. That coward deserved it.
Carlos, seeing that the security guard was about to crush his grandson's knee, finally snapped out of his trance.
“Lilian, no! Charlie, stop!”
The patriarch's cry echoed through the room, interrupting Charlie's movement inches from Josh's leg.
The security guard looked at Lilian, waiting for the final word. Lilian sighed and gave a slight nod, authorizing him to back off. Charlie obeyed immediately, retreating into the shadows.
“Don't stain your heart and hands with the blood of a despicable man, my dear,” said Carlos, approaching her with a look full of sadness and love. “You are much better than him. Don't become cruel because of him.”
Lilian felt the anger that had consumed her dissipate under her grandfather's gaze.
“I'm sorry, Grandpa.” She forced a tired smile. “Thank you for stopping me.”
“It's all right. I did it because I love you, my granddaughter.” Carlos returned to the sofa, exhausted. “He's already had the pain he deserved today.”
Lilian exhaled the air she had been holding in her lungs, relaxing her clenched fists. She turned to the butler.
“Uncle Nick, please call my mother and ask her to come here. And tell Ana to take Theo straight to my house. I don't want my son anywhere near this place right now.”
“Yes, miss.” Nick hurried out.
Lilian turned her attention to Josh. He was still cowering on the floor, moaning, a pitiful puddle of broken arrogance.
She walked over to him and stopped two steps away, looking down at him.
“Wh-what do you want?” Josh's voice came out in a trembling whisper, laden with fear.
“Are you going to hit me again? You're a monster, Lilian...”
Lilian frowned, feeling an instant headache coming on. His stupidity was incurable.
“Brother, I never wanted to hit you. But you provoked me. How could I stand by and watch you try to attack me? I saw the murderous intent in your eyes.”
Josh fell silent. He knew it was true.
Lilian crouched slightly, lowering her voice to a dangerous whisper:
“Be thankful it was me. If you had hit me... if I hadn't defended myself... believe me, you would have felt my husband's wrath. And Ethan wouldn't just break your leg. He would send you straight to the coffin.”
Josh shuddered. He didn't doubt it.
Seeing the terror in his eyes, Lilian straightened up, brushing invisible dust from her clothes.
“You know what, Josh? I was going to take you to my mother's house. I was going to welcome you with a hot dinner at my house, introduce you to my family. But once again, you ruined everything with your rotten temper.”
Josh gritted his teeth, the pain in his ribs preventing him from responding.
“I suggest you work on your emotional control,” she concluded dismissively. “Or you'll end up just like our father. Or worse.”
The mention of his father made Josh freeze, momentarily ignoring the physical pain. Confusion overwhelmed him.
What did she know about his father that he didn't?