Chapter 138: Chapter 138: All Men Must Die

Yvonne made a sharp turn and ducked into the elevator bay, her hand on her chest as she watched Wyatt Shaw walk past.

His brows were slightly furrowed and he looked exhausted, but it couldn’t hide his cold, stern aura.

Just then, a woman entered the lobby. She was wearing a blue knit dress, a baseball cap, and sunglasses, and she was holding a large bouquet of lilies. When she saw Wyatt Shaw, she hurried over to him.

"Fourth Brother!"

’Fourth Brother?’ 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Yvonne looked closer at the woman. It was Candice Yates.

’She really looks like a big star now, so fashionable and self-assured.’ Candice ran up to Wyatt Shaw and clung to his arm coquettishly. "You left without a word last night. You made me wait for you at the hotel for so long."

Wyatt Shaw scoffed. "Didn’t I tell you to go to sleep first?"

"But I can’t sleep without you."

As she spoke, Candice tried to snuggle into his arms.

Wyatt pushed her away. "I’m not in the mood right now."

Seeing the grim look on his face, Candice quickly composed herself. "I heard your mother is sick, so I came to see her."

"There’s no need." With that, Wyatt started to walk toward the exit.

"She’s on the twelfth floor, right? Since I’m already here, I should at least go see her..."

"She doesn’t like you!" Wyatt’s voice grew colder.

Candice froze for a moment before it dawned on her. "Right, you told me your mother doesn’t like Hannah Abbott, so of course she wouldn’t like me, since I look like her. It’s just a shame about these beautiful lilies. I bought them for nothing."

Wyatt chuckled humorlessly. He plucked a lily from the bouquet and tucked it behind Candice’s ear. "Tsk, it’s actually quite pretty. You look like you’re in an opera."

Candice pouted and gave him a light shove. "You’re awful!"

The two of them walked out, laughing and talking. Yvonne waited until they were long gone before stepping out from the elevator bay. She clutched her chest. A year had passed, and she had rarely thought about Wyatt Shaw during that time, so why did it still hurt to see him?

Yvonne walked into the lobby. She thought about how Mrs. Rhodes had kept in frequent contact with her over the past year, only to suddenly go silent a month ago. ’Could it be because she’s sick?’

Unsettled, she turned back and headed for the VIP ward on the twelfth floor.

Unauthorized personnel were normally not allowed in, but the guard on duty recognized her and let her pass without any trouble.

She found Daisy Shaw’s room and peeked through the small glass window on the door. Daisy was lying in bed, reading a book. Yvonne hadn’t seen her in a month, and she had lost a lot of weight.

A nurse came over and recognized Yvonne.

"Dr. Sutton, what are you doing here?"

Yvonne nodded at her and said she was visiting a patient.

"Are you here to see Mrs. Rhodes?"

"Yes."

Yvonne hesitated for a moment before asking, "What’s wrong with her?"

The young nurse’s eyes widened. "You don’t know, Dr. Sutton? Mrs. Rhodes has stomach cancer. It’s already stage four."

Yvonne’s brow furrowed. Stage four was terminal; it meant the cancer had already metastasized.

She found it hard to accept. Just a month ago, they had gone out for dinner, gone shopping together, and even made plans to take a trip to Khara Nor after the new year.

Before pushing the door open, Yvonne mentally prepared herself and forced a smile onto her face. But after she opened it and saw the woman looking at her, tears immediately started to fall.

Daisy Shaw smiled at her, the way one would smile at a naive child, her eyes full of affection and forgiveness. She beckoned Yvonne to come closer.

Yvonne walked over, each step feeling impossibly heavy.

"It’s alright. Everyone has to die someday, and I’ve already gotten my money’s worth out of life."

Yvonne shook her head. "Don’t say that. As long as you actively cooperate with the treatment, you’ll definitely..."

"Silly child, you’re a doctor. Do you even believe those words yourself?"

"It’s possible. Modern medicine is very advanced. It’s not like there are no options at all."

Daisy Shaw shook her head. "What’s the point? To suffer through endless torment and wither away? I’d rather face death calmly, without tubes or chemotherapy, without pain."

Crying, Yvonne stepped forward and bent down to hug Daisy Shaw.

She and Wyatt Shaw had only been married for half a year, but Daisy Shaw and Mr. Rhodes had given her the purest, most selfless love. Even after the divorce, the two of them often visited her at the clinic and took her out to eat, just like family.

Daisy patted her shoulder. "I was originally planning to tell you in a few more days."

"You should have told me sooner."

"If I told you a day sooner, you would have suffered for an extra day. How could I bear that? But I still had to tell you. I need you to see me off on my final journey. Only then will I have no regrets."

Yvonne wanted to tell Daisy not to be so pessimistic, but with her own eyes red and swollen from crying, she was hardly in a position to comfort anyone.

Daisy patted her shoulder again and told her to go wash her face in the restroom.

The hospital suite had two restrooms: one inside the main room and one out on the terrace. Afraid she would lose control and start crying again, upsetting Daisy even more, Yvonne went to the one on the terrace.

She had just stepped inside when she heard the door to the hospital room open.

"Mom, were you crying?"

"I was moved to tears by a scene in my book, don’t overthink it. Hey, weren’t you going to the office? Why are you back?"

"I forgot my briefcase."

"Oh, you. You’re always so careless."

The terrace door opened. Seeing Wyatt Shaw approaching in his black overcoat, Yvonne quickly backed away.

The restroom had a sliding door that was only half-closed. She could see Wyatt walk to the round table on the terrace. She thought he would just grab his briefcase and leave, but instead, he walked over to the window and stood still.

He took out a cigarette, lit it, and took a long drag.

Yvonne’s heart pounded. She gazed at his silhouette, and memories of the past inevitably flooded her mind. They had once been so close, so in love, but in the end, it was all just a fleeting illusion.

A year wasn’t a long time, but it wasn’t short, either. She still hadn’t completely moved on from their relationship, while he had already started a new one.

He quickly finished the cigarette. Just as Yvonne thought he would leave, he actually took out another one. But as he put it to his lips, he laughed at himself.

He took the cigarette from his mouth, casually snapped it in two, and tossed it into the ashtray. Then, with a long sigh, he turned and left.

"Mom, I’m heading to the office."

"Alright. Don’t come back tonight. Go home and get a good night’s sleep."

"Okay."

Hearing the door to the room close, Yvonne finally splashed some water on her face and came out of the restroom.

She walked back inside and saw Daisy Shaw looking at her with an expression of regret.

’What a shame.’ There was no need to say it out loud.

"Wyatt doesn’t love that Candice Yates. He’s just unable to escape from Hannah Abbott’s shadow. But one day, he..." At this, Daisy Shaw sighed. "But even if that day does come, you won’t still be waiting for him."

Yvonne shook her head. "What’s between us is in the past. The most important thing right now is your health. You have to actively cooperate with the hospital’s treatment."

Daisy covered her ears. "I won’t listen! You sound just like Wyatt, nagging me with those same words day after day. I want to live and die with dignity! Why don’t you two understand!"

Yvonne felt helpless. For the moment, there was truly nothing she could do about Daisy’s stubbornness.