I Was Sent to the Casino Tycoon as Debt Repayment Chapter 05

I Was Sent to the Casino Tycoon as Debt Repayment Chapter 05

Stella’s hand clamped over my mouth, but the scream was already out. The color drained from her face.

The door exploded inward.

He stood in the doorway — black coat, ice-cold eyes — and looked straight past everyone in the room to me.

He crossed the room — his steps measured, then fast, then a dead run. By the time he reached me, my eyes were already closing.

Arms gathered me up — carefully, so carefully, as if I might shatter.

“Elena — hey, look at me. Open your eyes. Look at me.”

His voice cracked, the words tumbling over each other. “Don’t close your eyes. Elena, don’t you dare.”

Stella’s voice came from behind, too bright, too fast. “Victor, wait — that’s not her. She looks like your wife, but she’s not. It’s a mistake.”

I forced my eyes open. His face was a blur above me, but I didn’t need to see it. I knew.

The words barely made it past my lips. “What took you so long?”

I felt him go rigid against me. “I’m sorry. This is my fault. All of it — my fault.”

“The baby… save the baby, Victor. Save her.”

The world folded in on itself, and I was gone.

The blackness wasn’t quiet. It was full of noise — voices shouting

—

over each other, pressing in from every direction.

“Elena, stay with me — don’t sleep. Whatever you do, don’t sleep.”

Then a different voice, older, meaner — a landlord’s bark from another life. “Pay your rent or get out.”

“Can’t even feed yourself and you’re taking in strays. What happens when he turns around and sells you?”

A sharp, high wail sliced through the noise and dragged me toward the surface. Something warm pressed against my cheek.

“Baby’s out. It’s a girl — six pounds, four ounces.”

Another voice filtered through, farther away. “Mr. Thorne, everyone in the room has been secured.”

“Every wound on Ms. Vance was Stella’s doing. Per your orders, we’ve repaid every single one. To the letter.”

“The other two are Ms. Vance’s biological mother and half-sister.”

Victor’s voice, low and lethal. “Find out how Elena ended up in this room. Every link in the chain.”

“Lock down every person who saw Elena tonight. Stella doesn’t eat until my wife opens her eyes. Water only — just enough to keep her breathing.”

“Yes, Mr. Thorne.”

The rest dissolved into nothing, and I sank under.

I surfaced in a hospital bed. Bandages everywhere. Everything hurt.

—

I tried to speak, and my throat lit up like I’d swallowed broken glass.
Victor was through the door before I could get a word out.

“You’re awake,” he breathed, the words heavy with a relief that looked like it hurt.

“Where’s the baby?” My voice was gravel.

“She’s okay. Her oxygen was a little low, so they’ve got her in an incubator for now.” He poured me a cup of water, holding it steady.

I pushed myself upright, biting back the pain. “I need to see her.”

He set the cup down and steadied me. “Okay. I’ll have them bring a chair. Don’t move.”

The second I saw her — so small, so impossibly small inside that glass box — the tears came and I couldn’t stop them. This was on me. If I hadn’t gone back to the Sterlings, she’d be safe.

She’d barely drawn her first breath and she was already alone in there, separated from me by glass. Beside me, Victor’s jaw tightened, and I caught the shine in his eyes before he looked away.

“Hey. She’s strong — look at her. She’s a fighter.” He wiped my cheek with his thumb. “You need to rest.”

I dragged the back of my hand across my eyes. “When can she come out?”

Victor tucked a blanket around my shoulders. “Two more days. Then she’s all yours.”

“I’m here now. I’m not going anywhere,” he said, his hand finding mine. “But you need to heal, Elena. Let’s get you back to the room.”

—

The doctors are waiting.”

Victor wheeled me back to the room, where the medical team was already lined up and waiting.

“Mr. Thorne, the blade missed her vital organs by fractions of an inch. We’ve repaired the lacerations, and she’s healing well — no signs of complication.”

“Postpartum recovery is on track. We’ll monitor her closely for the next few days. Once her stitches hold up, she can go home.”