Chapter 460 No More Debts
Ryan had been refusing to go to the hospital.
Robert had been frustrated by it for a long time.
After everything he’d tried, the only person Charlotte could think of who might actually get through to Ryan was Rose.
Maybe, just maybe, she could convince him.
Rose lowered her eyes to the broken porcelain scattered across the floor.
Her eyelashes trembled.
“Rose?”
Charlotte was genuinely worried.
Whatever Ryan’s feelings toward Rose were, this was still a human life.
Charlotte didn’t deny that she was worried, either. She didn’t want a man like Ryan to simply let himself deteriorate until there was nothing anyone could do.
Diana opened her mouth, but no argument came.
She could only look at Rose.
After a long silence, Rose finally raised her head.
Her face was almost completely expressionless.
“I’ll contact him and see.”
She reached for her phone.
Her mind was chaotic, yet strangely clear at the same time.
She hadn’t seen Ryan’s medical records. She didn’t know his diagnosis, his test results, or how advanced his condition was.
But if Robert was this concerned, then it definitely wasn’t something minor.
Rose had never been the kind of person who couldn’t distinguish between right and wrong.
Ryan had saved her life.
Whether he’d told her about it or not didn’t change that fact.
He hadn’t stood by and watched her die.
So she couldn’t do the same to him.
Rose called.
No answer.
She stared at the screen without saying anything and called again.
Still nothing.
She tried a third time.
Then a fourth.
Nothing.
By the fifth unanswered call, the emotions she’d been suppressing began to surface.
Her face became colder.
Whether it was anger, fear, or something else, even Rose herself couldn’t tell.
“I’m going to find him.”
“Rose, I’ll come with you.”
Diana immediately untied her apron.
Rose didn’t even turn around.
“No. Stay here.”
Charlotte reached out and stopped Diana.
“Let her go alone.”
Diana frowned.
“Why?”
“Because this isn’t something the rest of us can interfere with.”
Charlotte glanced toward Rose.
“He’s seriously ill, and he’s kept it from everyone—including her. There’s no way Rose isn’t angry. Whatever happens next, they need to deal with it themselves.”
Diana gritted her teeth but finally stopped.
Then she looked suspiciously at Charlotte.
“And what makes you think Rose can convince him?”
Charlotte stared at her as though she’d asked the most ridiculous question imaginable.
“It’s called intuition. You wouldn’t understand.”
*****
Rose drove straight to Kingswell Group.
She didn’t speak during the entire journey.
Her face remained calm, almost unnaturally so.
But beneath that calm, her thoughts were racing.
When she arrived, she parked and walked straight into the lobby.
The receptionist immediately recognised her.
One of the younger employees moved to stop her, but a more senior receptionist who had seen Rose before quickly caught her arm.
“Don’t.”
The younger woman looked confused.
“Why? Who is she?”
The senior employee lowered her voice.
“The boss’s wife.”
The younger woman looked stunned.
Rose ignored them completely and headed for the elevators.
She went straight upstairs.
She happened to run into Owen in the hallway.
The moment Owen saw her expression, his heart skipped.
“Miss Bennett... President Knight is busy.”
“Where is he?”
Owen pointed toward the conference rooms.
“I meant to say he’s in a—”
Rose had already walked away.
She reached the door and pushed it open without even looking at the sign.
The entire room went silent.
A large group of executives sat around a long conference table, and every single person turned toward the unexpected interruption.
Rose froze for half a second.
She’d walked into a boardroom.
And at the head of the table sat Ryan.
He was leaning back in his chair, one leg crossed over the other.
His eyes shifted toward her.
Then he stood.
Rose pursed her lips.
“I need to talk to you.”
Her tone was cold and direct.
There was none of the usual courtesy people showed toward someone in Ryan’s position.
The executives exchanged stunned glances.
Who was this woman?
And who gave her the confidence to walk into a board meeting and order Ryan Knight around?
Ryan simply looked at Rose for several seconds.
They had spent years together.
He knew better than most that Rose wasn’t cold-hearted.
She was patient almost to a fault.
She rarely lost her temper.
And yet here she was.
Her eyes were cold enough to freeze the room.
“Can we talk in my office?”
Ryan walked toward her.
His calm response caused another round of silent exchanges among the executives.
Rose looked at him for a moment.
Then she turned and walked away without answering.
Ryan glanced back at the conference table.
“That’s all for today.”
The executives immediately understood.
The meeting was over.
Ryan followed Rose out.
The moment the door closed behind him, the conference room erupted into whispers.
No one had ever seen anything quite like it.
Ryan was famously reserved at work.
He didn’t joke.
He didn’t waste words.
And when it came to business, he was ruthless about getting results.
Yet he’d abandoned an important meeting without hesitation simply because Rose had walked in.
The executives exchanged looks.
Today had certainly broadened their horizons.
*****
The moment they entered Ryan’s office, he closed the door.
He turned toward Rose.
“What is it?”
“What illness do you have?”
Rose didn’t waste a second.
“Go get treatment.”
Ryan stared at her.
For a moment, something flickered in his eyes.
Then he walked over and sat down.
“Who told you?”
“That’s not the point.”
Rose’s voice was restrained, but barely.
“Robert said you’re refusing treatment. Do you treat your own life like it’s disposable?”
Ryan looked at her.
“Did Charlotte find you?”
Rose frowned.
She had no reason to know Robert personally, so Ryan immediately guessed that Charlotte must have heard something from her uncle.
“Ryan.”
Rose took a breath.
“I’m talking to you about your health.”
“I’m fine.”
“Stop lying to me.”
Her patience finally snapped.
Rose walked toward him, grabbed his arm, and stared directly into his eyes.
“Do you think I don’t know what Robert specialises in?”
Ryan didn’t pull away.
He simply let her hold onto him.
For a long moment, neither spoke.
Then he asked quietly,
“Are you worried about me?”
Rose’s lips twitched with unmistakable sarcasm.
“Don’t flatter yourself.”
She released his arm.
“A life for a life. I told you I’d repay you for saving mine, and I meant it.”
Her expression hardened.
“Give me your medical records. I’ll review them with Robert and work out what treatment options you have.”
At this point, she could only assume it was some kind of brain tumour.
She didn’t know the exact diagnosis.
She didn’t know the stage.
She didn’t know the prognosis.
And she certainly didn’t know how serious the situation had become.
But she was a doctor.
She couldn’t simply stand by.
Ryan watched her.
He understood exactly what she was doing.
Her willingness to help already showed how much she was putting aside.
“I’ll get treatment,” he said. “You don’t need to involve yourself.”
“Ryan, I wasn’t asking for your permission.”
Rose’s voice was flat.
“If I can treat you, then we’ll be even.”
She looked him straight in the eye.
“That way, you won’t have to worry that I’m using the fact that you saved me as an excuse to get back into your life.”
Her expression didn’t change.
“I’m telling you now—I mean what I say.”
She wanted everything settled.
Once his illness was treated, neither of them would owe the other anything.
Ryan’s eyelashes lowered slightly.
His Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed.
He looked at her for a long moment.
“Fine.”
Rose waited.
“I’ll go to Germany to see Robert.”
Rose nodded.
“Medical records.”
She deliberately avoided his gaze as she released his arm.
Ryan looked down at the wrinkles her fingers had left in the sleeve of his shirt.
His fingers curled slightly.
“I’ll give them to you once we’re there.”
“I’ll go home and pack.”
Rose stood.
She was about to leave.
Ryan’s voice stopped her.
“I never asked you to repay me.”
Rose paused.
Ryan looked at her.
“I saved you because I wanted to—”
“What you wanted doesn’t matter.”
Rose didn’t turn around.
Her voice was quiet but firm.
“Once you’re well, we won’t need to see each other again.”
The door closed behind her.
Rose left without looking back.
Ryan stared at the closed door for a long time.
Eventually, he picked up his phone and made a call.
*****
Rose returned home and immediately began packing.
Part of her wanted to be angry.
Ryan had hidden everything from her.
He hadn’t told her he’d saved her.
𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮
He hadn’t told her he was sick.
He hadn’t told her anything.
She could have chosen to walk away.
But she couldn’t.
These past few months, Ryan had helped her more than once.
He had helped her deal with Ariel’s situation.
He had quietly stepped in when problems involving her family became complicated.
And now she knew he’d saved her life.
Rose couldn’t accept all of that and pretend she owed him nothing.
If they were going to separate, then they would do it cleanly.
No debts.
No unfinished business.
No reasons to come back to each other.
She had nothing she could give him in return except what she knew as a doctor.
And right now, he needed that.
Diana watched her pack.
“Is it serious?”
Rose shook her head.
“I don’t know.”
She zipped her suitcase.
“I need to see the records first.”
“When are you leaving?”
“Tomorrow.”
Rose made arrangements for Ariel before she left.
She didn’t tell anyone else about Ryan’s illness.
Morgan and Gabriel were now being looked after by the Taylor family, so she didn’t have to worry about them.
She booked her flight.
Before they left, Charlotte sent her a message.
Charlotte: [I’m going to see Robert too. I’ll go with you.]
Rose stared at the message for a moment.
Then she replied.
She didn’t refuse.
*****
The following morning, Rose’s phone suddenly rang.
It was Charlotte.
The moment Rose answered, Charlotte’s exasperated voice came through.
“That man has disappeared.”
Rose’s expression changed.
“What?”
“Ryan Knight.”
Charlotte sounded like she was at the end of her patience.
“He’s gone.”