The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 52

CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO CLAIRE’S POV

I didn’t sleep.

It’s not like I didn’t try to.

But every time I closed my eyes, Lucian’s voice replayed in my head.

“Nathaniel stepped down from the case.”

The words had sounded almost casual when he said them in the hallway. As if they were simply another fact in a long list of upcoming developments.

But the implication behind them refused to leave me alone.

Nathaniel had never warned me or even hinted that he would step away from the case.

Not when we spoke privately. Not during the hearing. Not even afterward.

Which meant something had happened after court.

Something between him and Lucian.

I turned onto my side and stared out the window, at the sunlight filtering through the curtains.

Lucian’s next question echoed in my mind.

Did you know he would?

The way he had asked it hadn’t sounded curious.

It had sounded… suspicious.

As if he believed Nathaniel stepping away from the case had something to do with me.

And if Lucian believed that, things could become far more complicated than they already were.

Eventually, when my mind couldn’t fight the sleep anymore, my body gave in.

The mansion felt different when I woke up in the morning.

Not dramatically- nothing was ever dramatic or obvious here.

When I stepped into the hallway, one of the housemaids looked up and smiled politely.

“Good morning, Mrs. Dhark.” She greeted.

The words made me pause for a moment.

Mrs. Dhark.

It had been a while since anyone in this house had addressed me that way.

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I returned the greeting and continued walking toward the stairs.

In the dining room, another maid approached quietly.

“Would you like breakfast prepared, ma’am?” She asked, whilst smiling.

I hesitated, slightly taken aback by the warmth. “That won’t be necessary. Thank you.” ↑

She nodded and disappeared toward the kitchen.

A few minutes later, a tray of tea appeared beside the chair I had taken near the window.

I hadn’t asked for it, but one of the maids has dropped it there.

The gesture was small, but it said more than any conversation could.

Camilla’s testimony had changed something inside this house.

The truth had been spoken out loud for once in court, and suddenly the atmosphere inside the mansion

had taken a turn.

Not completely. But enough.

I had just lifted the teacup when a familiar voice cut through the quiet.

“Would you look at that.”

I looked up to see Eva, standing akimbo in the doorway.

Her expression was tight with anger.

“You really did it.” 1

“Did what?” I asked as I set the cup down calmly.

Eva let out a sharp laugh. “You think you can sit in this house and sip tea like all is well, after dragging Camilla to court?” She questioned, her eyes flashing dangerously.

“Camilla made her own decision.”

“Oh please.” Eva crossed her arms. “You manipulated her.”

I met her gaze evenly. “Camilla chose to tell the truth.”

“Your version of the truth.” Eva replied sharply.

She stepped further into the room. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done to Lucian’s reputation?”

I didn’t answer immediately.

No, I simply let her continue, her frustration growing. 1

“The press is circling like vultures! The entire Dhark name is being dragged through court because of

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you.”

.” Eva accused, pointing a finger at me.

I leaned back slightly in my chair. “You mean because of what happened.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You’ve even managed to turn the staff against me, you witch!”

I glanced toward the hallway where the maid had disappeared earlier.

“They seem to be doing their jobs.” I said with a shrug.

Eva scoffed. “This is exactly what you wanted.”

“What I wanted?” I repeated quietly.

“Yes.” Eva’s voice sharpened. You wanted to humiliate him.”

I held her gaze.

“Camilla told the truth.”

Eva laughed again- a dry, humorless laugh. Then her hand moved instinctively to her stomach.

“You know what your real problem is?” she said.

I didn’t respond, so she continued.

“You never understood what Lucian needed.” She said, then glanced down at her abdomen.

“At least I can give him something you never could.”

For a moment, my chest tightened painfully.

Eva noticed my reaction. Seeing that her words had gotten to me seemed to encourage her.

“You had years,” she continued, her voice cold and precise. “Years to give him a child.”

A pause followed before she delivered the final blow.

“And you couldn’t.”

The words hung heavily in the room.

They were more heavy than cruelty.

They carried judgment.

The kind society placed on women so easily. The kind I was used to.

I steadied my breathing before answering.

“A child doesn’t justify betrayal.”

My voice remained calm. Even.

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I told myself I had heard worse. I told myself it wasn’t my fault my body couldn’t carry a child.

Eva’s eyes flashed with irritation.

“You’re unbelievable.”

Her hand returned to her stomach again.

“This baby is Lucian’s future.”

She took another step closer to me, trying to appear menacing.

“You couldn’t give him a family.”

The accusation was deliberate now. Very much calculated.

Then she added bitterly,

“So why should you take half of everything he built?” She spat.

I didn’t answer. Not because I didn’t have a response, but because something inside me had already

moved past this argument.

Eva studied my silence for a moment.

Then she scoffed and turned toward the door.

“Lucian will handle this,” she said over her shoulder.

The statement sounded less like confidence and more like reassurance to herself.

Her footsteps echoed down the hallway a moment later and I found myself alone in the quiet of the room.

I sat there for a while without moving.

Then Eva’s words began to echo in my mind.

“You had years.”

And suddenly memories surfaced.

The doctor’s office- and his polite voice explaining the test results.

Lucian’s reactions- or lack of it.

The loneliness I felt afterwards.

Investors wives asking invasive questions.

The articles that circulated when my test results were leaked.

Lucian had never blamed me, but he had never said anything comforting either.

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Eventually the subject had simply… disappeared.

Buried under the weight of everything else in our marriage. And soon, he found solace in Eva.

I closed my eyes briefly, trying to push the memories aside.

That part of the past wasn’t useful anymore.

My phone rang shortly afterward. Margot’s name appeared on the screen.

I answered immediately.

“Claire.” Her tone was serious. “I have an update.”

I sat up straight at once. “What happened?”

“Nathaniel’s withdrawal is official.”

I frowned slightly.

“He really stepped down?”

“Yes.” Even Margot sounded surprised. “Top lawyers don’t walk away from cases like this.”

My thoughts drifted briefly to Lucian’s question the night before.

Did you know he would?

“What about Lucian’s team?” I asked.

Margot exhaled softly. 1

“He already hired someone else.”

“That was fast.” But not surprising. Lucian never key losses visibly affect him… except the loss of his

mother.

“It was.” Margot paused shortly, then heaved a tired sigh.

“You’re not going to like this one.”

I waited.

“This attorney has a reputation,” Margot continued.

“She is aggressive. Brutal cross-examinations. Specializes in tearing witnesses apart.”

I felt a knot forminv in my stomach.

“Nathaniel dismantled people quietly,” she added. “This one does it loudly.”

I leaned back in the chair.

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“So the next hearing will be worse.”

“Yes.” She admitted.

Then tone softened slightly. “But we’ll be ready.”

Later that afternoon I found Camilla in the kitchen garden, trimming a small row of herbs and leaves.

When she saw me, she set the scissors aside.

“Mrs. Dhark.”

Her expression carried a hint of worry.

“Are you alright?” I asked.

Camilla hesitated before answering.

“I’m not sure what will happen now.”

“What do you mean?”

She glanced toward the house.

“I don’t know if Mr. Dhark will keep me here after this.”

My chest tightened slightly.

“You told the truth.”

Camilla nodded slowly.

“Yes.” Then she added quietly, “And I can live with that.”

Her words stayed with me for the rest of the evening. They comforted me.

Night fell slowly over the mansion.

The house grew quieter as the staff finished their duties.

I was sitting near the window in the sitting room when my phone buzzed again.

A message notification appeared. It was from Nathaniel.

My fingers hesitated for a moment before opening it. I wasn’t scared… I was nervous.

The message was short and very direct.

“Claire, we need to talk.”

I stared at the screen for several moments, trying to understand what the message truly meant. What his motive was.

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Nathaniel no longer represented Lucian.

And that meant he was no longer bound by the same professional distance.

But one question kept forming in my mind.

Why does Nathaniel want to see me now?

And somehow, I had the unsettling feeling that whatever the answer was-

It would change everything.

Claire Ree

Author

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Why do you think Nathaniel stepped down from the case? And why do you think he wants to speak with Claire?

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