Silent Dreams Never Die — Author: John Miller 401
Chapter 401 Unanswered Calls
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Halfway through dinner, Xavier laid down his fork. He looked across the table at Vincent, who was eating slowly, and asked, “What’s your take on what Scarlett did?”
Vincent kept his eyes on his plate, pushing the food around with his fork, but at Xavier’s words, his hand stilled almost imperceptibly. After a moment, he replied, “It’s in the past now.”
Xavier frowned and pressed further, “What about going forward? Are you still considering trying for another child?”
Vincent set his own fork down and met Xavier’s gaze. “I haven’t made any plans. Even if we did, we’d need to wait until she’s fully recovered.”
He didn’t mention to Xavier that the incomplete procedure had left Scarlett with significant difficulties when it came to conceiving again.
Hearing Vincent’s response, Xavier let out a long sigh. “If I’d known it would come to this, I never would have pushed the two of you together in the first place.”
Vincent didn’t want to hear any more. He grabbed a napkin, wiped his mouth, and stood up. “I’m finished, Grandpa. I’ll be upstairs.”
Upstairs, Vincent flipped on the bedroom light.
The room had long since changed from how it looked when Scarlett lived there. When she was around, the bedding was always bright and colorful–floral patterns, bold prints. Now, his sheets and duvet covers were only ever black, white, or gray.
Some of Sabrina’s belongings were scattered around the room, looking completely out of place.
Vincent walked to the dresser, opened a drawer, and pulled out the signed divorce agreement inside.
Even though he had dictated the terms himself, he found his eyes skimming over the pages
once more,
Apart from the financial settlement–two billion dollars–Scarlett hadn’t asked for anything else.
Not custody of their child, not the house, not any of the cars…
After all those years of marriage, all she walked away with was money.
Truth be told, the settlement he’d offered Scarlett wasn’t especially generous.
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Chapter 401 Unanswered Calls
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What Vincent hadn’t expected was that the woman who once put him above everything else was actually going through with the divorce.
For him, she had turned her back on her own family. But now, she was the one who had filed, and they were almost through the waiting period.
The thought brought a sharp, unexpected ache to his chest.
Just then, his phone rang.
Glancing at the screen, he saw it was Sabrina.
He answered, and her anxious voice came through immediately. “Vincent, Vanessa’s running a fever.”
Any lingering sadness was pushed aside. Vincent stood and strode out of the room.
When he arrived at the neighboring villa, Sabrina was cradling Vanessa on the couch, while Maria paced nervously nearby.
Vincent rushed over and scooped Vanessa into his arms without a word.
Sabrina stood and followed as Vincent headed for the door.
Maria instinctively moved to join them, but Sabrina noticed and stopped her quickly. “Mom,
don’t need to come. Vincent and I can handle it.”
you
As she spoke, Sabrina gave Maria a meaningful look.
Maria understood and lowered her voice to remind her, “Just make sure that child doesn’t say anything she shouldn’t.”
Sabrina patted Maria’s hand reassuringly. “Don’t worry; it’ll be fine.”
Hearing that, Maria finally seemed to relax.
At the hospital, Vincent handed Vanessa over to the triage nurse.
After a series of checks, the diagnosis came back–a bacterial infection, likely the flu.
The doctor ordered IV fluids and medication. Sabrina stayed with Vanessa while she received the IV, and Vincent handled the paperwork–filling out forms, paying the fees, picking up
the prescriptions.
He wasn’t familiar with the hospital’s layout and process. At the payment window, a staff member snapped at him when he presented the
presented the wrong form.
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Vincent wasn’t known for his patience. When the woman behind the glass raised her voice, he fixed her with a cold, penetrating stare.
He didn’t say a word, just stood there at the window, his entire demeanor icy and intimidating. Sensing she’d overstepped, the woman quickly lowered her voice and mumbled, “Sorry, I’m just… It’s been a hectic shift.”
Vincent narrowed his eyes. After a long pause, he replied coolly, “In ten minutes, someone else will be at this window.”
Then he turned and walked away.
The woman sat frozen in her seat, completely stunned.
If it had been anyone else, she might have thought it was an empty threat. But something about Vincent’s presence–especially his eyes–made her feel like she’d been thrown into a freezer.
After picking up the medication and settling the bills, Vincent made his way back to the treatment area where Vanessa was receiving her IV.
But as he walked, his thoughts drifted back to Scarlett.
Kids often ran fevers–on and off, sometimes for no obvious reason. Vanessa had always had a weaker constitution, so she got sick more often than most.
Since she was little, she’d had one minor health issue after another, and Scarlett had taken her to urgent care or the pediatrician more than twenty times.
In the beginning, Scarlett would text or call him, asking him to come home, to help out, to be there for their daughter.
But as time went on, the messages gradually stopped. She handled everything alone, taking Vanessa to appointments, waiting in exam rooms; managing it all by herself.
The memory made it hard for Vincent to keep his composure.
He pulled out his phone and called Scarlett.
The line rang through, but no one picked up.
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