"Narrow-minded?"
I laughed.
"You see all his hard work, but what about me? When I was drinking myself into a stomach ulcer trying to land investors and clients—where were you then?"
I kicked over a chair. It barely grazed Lionel.
Mom and Dad stared at me in shock. This was the first time I'd ever defied them like this.
But then Lionel suddenly collapsed to the floor, crying out in pain.
"Ah, my leg!"
"It's okay, Luke. You're right to hit me. I know I'm just the adopted son—I shouldn't be competing for your position as heir. I don't want it anymore. Just please, stop hurting me."
Dad's face darkened with rage.
"You've been bullying Lionel since you were kids. Now I see we made the right choice. If we'd made you the heir, you probably would've beaten him to death!"
Mom rushed to pull up Lionel's pant leg. Just a scrape.
But she shot me a furious glare. "If anything happens to Lionel, you're out of this family! And don't even think about being heir!"
Watching them rally around him, I felt ice spread through my chest. I let out a bitter laugh.
"Fine. Then let's just cut ties."
"Forget being heir—I don't want any part of the Dickersons."
I strode out of the private room.
But the moment I slammed the door, I heard Stewart's voice from inside:
"Look, Cecil, this wasn't my idea. You're the ones who wanted to use this opportunity to keep Luke down so Lionel could secure his position as heir. You asked me to say those things."
Dad replied, "If I'd known he'd react this badly, I wouldn't have gone through with it."
I froze, thinking he might actually feel bad.
But his next words were: "What if he holds a grudge and tries to get back at Lionel?"
Mom scoffed. "Have you forgotten? We bought off his investors and clients specifically so he'd never get back on his feet."
"He's just putting on a brave face. Once he hits rock bottom, he'll come crawling back."
Hearing that, I couldn't hold back my tears any longer.
So that was it.
All those times I couldn't land investors, couldn't close deals—they'd arranged it all from the start.
If I hadn't turned my attention overseas, I'd probably be drowning in debt by now.
At that moment, the stomach I'd ruined drinking with clients decided to flare up. The pain hit hard.
Outside, an ambulance wailed.
Paramedics rushed past with a stretcher, heading inside.
Cold sweat beaded on my forehead. I reached out. "Excuse me—"
"Coming through. Someone's badly injured in there. We need to get them to the hospital immediately."
They brushed past me and into Lionel's private room.
Moments later, Lionel was wheeled out on the stretcher.
As they passed, one of the paramedics noticed me clutching my stomach, face pale. "Hey, this guy doesn't look good either—"
But Mom cut him off. "Ignore him. Get my son to the hospital now. If you delay his treatment, I'll file a complaint."
Dad chimed in. "That one's technically my son too. He just couldn't handle losing the heir position to his brother, so he attacked him."
"This is all an act. He's been pulling stunts like this since he was a kid."
The paramedic shot me a disgusted look and hurried Lionel into the ambulance.
Just before the doors closed, Lionel flashed me a smug little smile.
The pain in my stomach kept getting worse.
In the end, a stranger called an ambulance for me.
By the time I reached the hospital, the doctor said if I'd arrived even a few minutes later, I could have ruptured my stomach lining again.
After checking in and taking my medication, the pain finally began to ease.
