The moment Daniel walked away to collect the prenatal test results, the gentle expression on Emily's face vanished instantly. "I saw you a long time ago," she said coldly. "You can come out now."
Claire stepped out slowly, her expression calm and distant.
Seeing Claire remain silent, Emily stopped pretending altogether. "Are you curious why I chose this public hospital when there are so many high-end private clinics in Riverton? I wanted you to see it with your own eyes. I wanted you to see how much Daniel loves me and protects me. You've been pregnant for eight months, yet he's never accompanied you once. I'm only a little over three months along, and he personally comes with me every single time. He never leaves my side."
So from beginning to end, every bit of this had been deliberate. Emily had staged the entire encounter purely to provoke her.
Claire said nothing. She merely watched Emily's ridiculous performance with quiet indifference.
But the calmer Claire appeared, the more irritated Emily became. All the humiliation she had carefully prepared felt like punches landing in empty air.
Emily finally sneered impatiently, "So what if you have the title of Mrs. Carter? Daniel never loved you. Once I give birth to this baby, he'll divorce you immediately."
Claire finally spoke, her voice icy calm. "What's there to be proud of about stealing someone else's husband? Everything you're showing off right now is trash I already threw away."
Emily's expression stiffened instantly. "You're just jealous of me!"
As she spoke, her eyes suddenly landed on the report clenched in Claire's hand. Without hesitation, she snatched it away.
Emily skimmed through the diagnosis. The moment she saw the word "cancer," she burst into shrill laughter. "Hahaha... Claire, you're pathetic."
Clutching the report, she laughed so hard her shoulders trembled. "You have terminal cancer? God is really helping me this time. You won't live much longer anyway, so why don't you and that baby in your stomach just die together and make room for me and my child?"
That sentence completely shattered Claire's restraint.
She could endure betrayal directed at herself. But she would never tolerate anyone cursing her unborn child.
Claire raised her hand and slapped Emily across the face without hesitation.
The sharp crack echoed clearly through the hallway.
Emily's head snapped to the side from the force. A red slap mark instantly bloomed across her cheek. She froze for two seconds before her eyes quickly turned red, her body swaying weakly as if she might collapse at any moment.
At that exact moment, Daniel returned with the prenatal results. The second he saw the scene, he rushed forward immediately, shielding Emily behind him before violently yanking Claire backward.
Claire was already eight months pregnant. The force of the pull nearly sent her crashing to the floor, and a painful tightness instantly spread across her stomach.
Yet Daniel did not notice her discomfort at all. He glared at her furiously. "Claire, have you lost your mind? Emily is pregnant, and you actually hit her? How can you be this vicious?"
Emily leaned weakly against his chest, looking utterly wronged. "Daniel, it's all my fault. If Claire feels upset and wants to hit me to vent her anger, then just let her..."
Hearing that only made Daniel ache for Emily even more. He looked at Claire with icy disgust. "Did you hear her? Emily is being understanding enough already, yet you keep pushing her. Apologize to Emily right now."
Daniel's blatant favoritism and coldness finally pushed Claire past her limit. Every grievance she had suppressed for years erupted all at once.
She hurled the diagnosis report directly at him. "Daniel, open your damn eyes and look carefully! Do you really think I still have the energy to waste on you people?"
She had thought that this terminal diagnosis would at least make him look at her properly for once. She had thought it might stir even the slightest bit of concern in him.
But Daniel only looked annoyed. Without even reading it properly, he tore the report into pieces. "Claire, can you stop pulling these childish stunts? Waving around some fake medical report for sympathy? I'm sick of these tricks."
The instant the report was torn apart, Claire's eyes turned completely red. A crushing pain spread through her chest, sharp and endless.
For a brief second, guilt flickered through Daniel's heart as he looked at Claire's reddened eyes and pale, miserable state.
But the moment Emily sniffled softly in his arms, that tiny trace of sympathy disappeared instantly.
Daniel reached out and shoved Claire forward again. His voice was cold and merciless. "I'll say this one last time. Apologize to Emily."
Claire steadied herself and forced back her tears. "I won't apologize. From beginning to end, the ones who betrayed me were the two of you. I did nothing wrong."
