Chapter 75
"Alright, I'll think about it."
Victoria went quiet for a moment. "I'll give you an answer after I sort things out. Thank you for everything you've handled lately."
Her emotions were all over the place.
Sure, finding out her hand could still be saved should've been good news.
But given her current situation, how on earth was she supposed to reach a world‑famous surgeon from Zephyria?
Was she supposed to ask Edward for help again?
She had just made up her mind to put distance between them.
And now this mess showed up at her doorstep.
Her head felt like a hopelessly tangled ball of yarn—no matter which thread she pulled, it only made the knots worse.
She let out a long breath and pushed the thoughts aside.
Whatever it was, she’d go home first and figure it out there.
Veda had lived abroad for a while. Maybe she would have connections or a workaround—something that could help.
Clinging to that tiny bit of comfort, Victoria stepped forward and headed out of the building.
"Ms. Spencer, wait a second!" a familiar voice called from behind her, accompanied by hurried footsteps.
"What is it?" Victoria turned around.
The attending physician from earlier jogged up to her.
He stopped in front of her, catching his breath. "I reached out to the upper administration just now. It turns out that the doctor has an opening and is planning a professional exchange trip to Novaria. Our hospital was granted a slot. When the time comes, you won't have to worry about a thing—we'll contact him directly. All you need to do is focus on getting ready for surgery."
He rushed through the explanation so fast that the breath he'd just steadied became uneven again.
For a second, Victoria didn't even process the words. She blinked, frozen.
"You're saying that surgeon from Zephyria is really coming to operate on me?"
She repeated slowly, her eyes widening. "Are you serious? My hand… it can really be saved?"
The words scraped out of her throat, heavy with disbelief.
She forced out the words with great difficulty, every syllable heavy with disbelief.
Originally, Victoria had thought that if there was no other way, she would go to Edward and beg him.
Even if she had to trade something in return, she would be willing.
"Yes, you heard correctly," the doctor said with a gentle smile. "If your hand recovers to the condition required for surgery, I'll inform you right away. Just keep an eye on the messages I send you."
Victoria barely heard anything after that.
Her mind drifted far away. Even after leaving the hospital, everything still felt unreal.
This wasn't a dream. It was actually happening.
But the hospital's sudden eagerness to help her made no sense. She was just an ordinary person. She had nothing to offer them.
So why go out of their way for her?
Unless someone else had intervened.
While she spiraled through her theories, Paxton was getting the news as well.
"Didn't expect Mr. Windsor to be the type who does good deeds without signing his name," he said, his tone dripping with playful sarcasm. "Funny, because that's definitely not how you handle anyone else. Why are you putting so much effort into her? Don't tell me you—"
He didn't get to finish the sentence.
Edward's icy stare sliced across the room.
Paxton, with an impeccable sense of timing, snapped his mouth shut, though his eyes were full of meaning.
It looked like his childhood best friend understood his own heart even less than Paxton did.
"I had an agreement with her," Edward replied, unaware of Paxton's inner commentary. "She brings Yara to charm my parents, and I fix her hand. It's a good deal."
His mother's obsession with marrying him off was no secret among his circle.
Paxton included.
With one simple arrangement, Edward could buy himself a few years of peace. Even Paxton—who clearly thought something was off—couldn't really argue with the logic.
"Yeah, definitely not a bad deal," Paxton agreed. "When your mom gets going, even I get stressed. So honestly? Makes sense."
But as he glanced at Edward's sharp profile, amusement curled at the corner of his lips.
He genuinely couldn't wait for the moment Edward realized he had changed.
That would be priceless.
Meanwhile, Victoria had been floating on a rare streak of a good mood.
Her biggest problem—her injured hand—was finally about to be solved.
Soon, she'd be able to return to the peak she once stood on. No more hesitating every time she picked up a pen, no more relying on tools to get a clean line in her designs.
"I can't believe Victoria's family background is actually like that. I thought she was just some regular girl."
"Honestly, I kind of feel bad for her. That was her dad's mess, not hers. She probably didn't even know."
"No wonder her designs are so good—turns out she had elite training. People really win or lose based on their upbringing, huh? But her hand, though…"
The moment Victoria stepped into the office, whispers pricked at her from every direction.
She sensed something was off immediately, but she didn't say a word. She simply lowered her gaze, quickened her pace, and passed through the gossiping cluster as if she hadn't heard a thing.
Only after she reached her office did she pull out her phone and open the trending topics.
Silently, she scanned the headlines. Each word jabbed at her eyes like needles.
It had to be Aiden.
No one else would be bored enough—and petty enough—to dredge up old scandals and throw them back into the spotlight.
And considering the truth she had only recently uncovered, this was clearly a calculated move.
Aiden was trying to crush her. Ruin the career she had built with her own hands.
Victoria clenched her jaw so tightly her teeth ached. Her eyes stung red with fury.
But right on the heels of the anger came something heavier.
Sadness and guilt.
If she had discovered his intentions earlier, would things have turned out differently?
But now? It was too late.
There were no do-overs. No rewinding the clock.
She shut her eyes briefly, steadied her breathing, gathered her things, and walked toward the conference room.
It was the weekly team meeting.
Of course, everyone was gossiping. The trending topic had only been up for a few hours, but half the company probably knew the whole story by then.
Victoria ignored the curious gazes around her, pretending she didn't care, and slipped into her seat.
Thankfully, most people had basic decency.
At least no one openly treated her like she was contaminated.
But there were always a few who lacked tact.
"Xanthe, I've got something to say," someone suddenly announced midway through the meeting—right when half the room was already nodding off. He lifted a hand and pointed directly at Victoria. "The Spencer family drama made the trending list today. I've always despised people like that. Since Victoria comes from that family, how do we know she's not the same? I'm just worried we'll end up with someone less than trustworthy in the company."
He sounded righteous enough.
If one ignored the flicker of spite in his eyes.
Victoria recognized him.
He was the one she'd beaten in a past design competition—a sore loser who had never gotten over it.