Chapter 199
"Of course it is, and it's very serious. She doesn't have much time left. I estimate she won't even make it past New Year's Day."
New Year's Day was only ten days away.
Terry's throat tightened. Even if Victoria survived this disaster, she would die along with the baby in her belly in ten days.
Pressing his lips together, Terry said respectfully, "Mr. Collins, I don't know why you think Mrs. Collins has a terminal illness, but the test results on my end show there's nothing wrong with her body."
Martin's expression was complicated as he breathed a sigh of relief.
Nothing wrong with her body.
"Mr. Collins, did you hear some kind of rumor?" Terry probed.
Martin looked up, narrowed his eyes, and continued questioning, "Then what about her coughing up blood?"
"Mr. Collins, the Gonzalez family went through such a huge crisis. She's been depressed, plus she just had a miscarriage not long ago, so her body is too weak. She was also exposed to a lot of cold wind, and her body couldn't take it, that's why she coughed up blood. It's not because of a terminal illness," Terry said calmly.
Right, the Gonzalez family had one problem after another, and she was most worried about Hayden.
She even got vitamin pills and pretended they were painkillers for treating a terminal illness.
Victoria never told the truth. Why did he even start to suspect her?
"If Mr. Collins doesn't believe me, you can check at several other hospitals," Terry deliberately suggested.
He was taking a risky move.
If Martin checked at other hospitals, everything would be exposed. He was betting on Martin's trust in him.
For a long while, Martin didn't say anything.
Instead, through his thick glasses, he stared expressionlessly at Terry.
Terry's palms started sweating under that gaze, feeling guilty inside, "Mr. Collins, do you want to take Mrs. Collins to another hospital for a checkup? I've followed you for three years. You've shown me great kindness. I could never do anything to betray you. If I'm hiding Mrs. Collins's condition, may I be struck by lightning and die a terrible death."
Martin remembered that when Terry met him, he wasn't in his current high position.
He was being pushed out, couldn't find work to support his family of three, and Terry's wife was about to divorce him.
It was truly his darkest moment.
Martin had pulled him up and hired him at his own hospital.
Terry was very capable and quickly stood out. Martin believed Terry was loyal to him and wouldn't have the guts to deceive him.
Between Victoria and Terry, the latter was clearly more trustworthy.
Because Terry had always said he would repay his kindness, and over the years, he had done very well.
Thinking of this, Martin's cold gaze softened. He patted Terry's shoulder once through his white coat, his tone cold, "No need. You'll continue to do Victoria's checkups."
Martin was considering that Terry was his own man.
If he moved to another hospital, Victoria might very likely bribe other doctors to deceive him together.
Besides, transferring hospitals was very troublesome. Victoria was now pregnant, and moving her around might cause complications.
Terry watched Martin leave, looking at his back and breathing a sigh of relief, nervously swallowing.
His phone rang in his white coat pocket.
He took it out and saw it was a call from Mia.
There were also several missed calls on his phone, all from the same person.
Terry answered the phone.
Mia complained on the other end that he took too long to answer. Probably immersed in the fantasy that Victoria was already dead, Mia cheerfully told him she had bought several uniforms he liked to see.
She would wait for him at his place tonight.
Terry's feelings were mixed, but seeing that the woman he liked was willing to put in effort for him, his furrowed brow gradually relaxed, "We'll talk when we meet tonight."
Afraid Mia would ask too many questions, he quickly hung up.
Martin walked toward Victoria's hospital room.
He heard Aria's voice, "Victoria, can you not go on with Martin anymore? If you really can't continue, you can get divorced. Don't have any concerns."
Martin's fingers on the door handle suddenly froze.
No wonder Victoria had wanted to divorce him before, had gone to register for divorce.
So Aria was backing her up.
Martin was very annoyed. Why was there no one supporting him and Victoria staying together?
He didn't believe Aria didn't know that Victoria was pregnant with his child.
In that instant, he really wanted to push open the door and kick Aria out.
But he held back in the end. He didn't want Victoria to get angry.
Martin turned and left the hospital corridor to buy Victoria's favorite fruits.
Some words were better left unheard.
He wasn't that generous. If he heard them, he would pretend he hadn't.
Call him self-deceiving or heartless, it didn't matter anymore.
Even if it meant restricting Victoria's freedom and trapping her by his side for life, he was willing to do it.
If pushed to a dead end, he really would do this, but he hoped that day would never come.
In the hospital room.
Victoria felt somewhat uncomfortable hearing Aria's words.
She and Martin had registered for divorce half a month ago.
The cooling-off period was one month.
Martin had agreed with her that after the cooling-off period ended and they got the divorce certificate, she would completely disappear from this world and never appear in his world again.
Victoria sighed. She didn't know if she could hold on until the day they got the divorce certificate.
Probably not. Her body was so weak, she didn't even dare to think about it.
She had been hiding the divorce from Aria because she knew Aria too well. Aria wouldn't agree. Right now, the Gonzalez family needed Martin, and Hayden also needed Martin's support.
Victoria didn't say anything.
"You've wanted to divorce him for a long time, haven't you? Don't hide it from me anymore. I have eyes, I can see it. When something happened to you, you weren't willing to look for him. It's clear you two can't go on anymore." Aria pulled over a chair and sat by her bedside.
Victoria didn't want her to worry, so she lied, "That's not true."
"Victoria, tell Mom, why did you end up like this? How did you almost die and nearly get sent to the funeral home?"
"Mom, it's all in the past. It's all in the past." Victoria murmured. She opened her mouth but found she could only say this.
She couldn't say anything else because she knew that if she did, it would just be one more person to worry.
Aria cried and wiped her tears, "I just feel sorry for my precious daughter being treated and trampled on like this. Victoria, why don't you divorce Martin? We won't live this kind of miserable life anymore."
Hearing this, Victoria's nose tingled and tears streamed down her face. Aria used to always advise her to keep going, to wait until Hayden woke up. How did she suddenly change her mind?
"What about Dad? He needs money," Victoria cried and murmured.
Aria helped her wipe her tears, her eyes red, "Victoria, before, Mom always hoped to use your suffering to pay for your father's treatment. But now I realize this is too selfish, too wrong. If your father wakes up and sees you're gone, how sad would he be? You know how much your father cherishes you, how much he treasures you. Supporting the Gonzalez family isn't just your responsibility alone, child. Let Mom be with you and share the burden. Let's get divorced. Listen to Mom."