The Loving Mom Won't Live to See It Chapter 6

At 10:30 AM, Robert and Margaret rushed to Audrey's studio. Several cars were parked outside—Donald's black sedan and lawyer Marcus's silver vehicle.

Donald stood by the entrance, his shoulders trembling slightly. The lawyer was speaking to him in hushed tones.

"Donald!" Margaret rushed forward. "Where's Audrey? How is she?"

Donald turned around, his face ashen. "Mrs. Hartwell, I'm so sorry..."

"Is she inside?" Robert asked urgently.

Donald nodded slowly. "But... you need to prepare yourselves..."

Marcus stepped forward, introducing himself. "I'm Marcus, the attorney. I'm sorry we have to meet under these circumstances. Mr. Donald discovered the... scene an hour ago and immediately contacted medical personnel."

Margaret pushed past Donald toward the door, but Robert caught her arm. "Margaret, wait."

"I need to see my daughter!" Margaret broke free from her husband's grip and shoved open the studio door.

Instantly, she froze.

Audrey was slumped over her work table, her body frighteningly thin. Her hand still pressed against completed design sketches. Scattered across the floor were needles, thread, and empty bottles of painkillers.

"She... why is she so thin?" Margaret's voice trembled.

Robert saw the scene and fury erupted within him. "Donald, how long has it been since you really looked at her?"

"She said she was just dieting... I thought..." Donald stammered defensively.

Marcus pointed to the syringes on the work table. "These are high-strength pain medications, typically only used for late-stage cancer patients."

Everyone fell into stunned silence as this brutal reality hit them. Donald collapsed into a nearby chair, burying his face in his hands.

The sound of hurried footsteps and slamming car doors echoed from outside.

Hailey burst through the door and immediately broke down upon seeing the scene.

"Oh God! Audrey!" She knelt beside Audrey, grasping the cold hands. "This is all my fault... if I hadn't gotten involved with Donald..."

Donald quickly tried to comfort her. "It's not your fault, Hailey."

Marcus quietly observed the scene, then pulled out a file folder. "I think everyone needs to understand some facts. These are medical records that Audrey entrusted to me."

Hailey looked up, tears still streaming. "What records?"

Marcus opened to the first page. "Stomach cancer diagnosis... three months ago."

Donald was shocked. "Impossible! She never said anything!"

Margaret heard this and swayed unsteadily. Robert quickly caught her.

"Chemotherapy records show that half of her 'business trips' were actually for treatment," Marcus continued reading.

Donald slumped further into his chair. "She said it was work..."

Only then did Margaret truly see her daughter's gaunt face, and she immediately fainted.

Robert hurried to support his wife, helping her to a chair, his voice shaking. "Is this really our Audrey? How did she become so thin?"

Marcus continued organizing evidence, his gaze turning to Hailey. "There are also these billing records, showing supplements purchased for the Hartwells were all transferred from Audrey's personal account."

Hailey's face went pale, her body swaying slightly. "What... what? That's impossible! I never knew..."

Donald looked at Hailey's reaction and frowned. "You really didn't know? You didn't buy those supplements?"

Hailey frantically waved her hands. "No! I... I thought you all bought them! Audrey never told me she was paying..." Her voice grew quieter. "I really didn't know..."

Marcus calmly flipped through the records. "According to bank statements, this pattern continued for two full years."

After about ten minutes, Margaret slowly regained consciousness. She looked around at everyone, then her gaze fell on her daughter, tears instantly started flowing. "My daughter... why didn't she tell us? Why did she endure all this alone?"

Robert gently patted his wife's shoulder. "Margaret, take it easy..."

Marcus said heavily, "Doctors said it was late-stage, only a week left to live. She didn't want to worry you, and she didn't want to ruin your good impression of Hailey."

He looked at everyone. "This case is more complex than we imagined. Audrey clearly anticipated something, which is why she made these arrangements."

Several hours passed as police completed their scene investigation and the coroner took Audrey's body away. The studio gradually grew quiet.

Just then, a child's voice echoed from downstairs. The nanny appeared at the door with Flora.

"Hailey, are you here?"

When she saw the chaos of the scene, she asked innocently, "What happened?"

She saw Audrey covered with a white sheet. "What's wrong with Mommy? Why isn't she moving?"

When told that Mommy had died, Flora asked in confusion, "What does dead mean? Will she come back?"

Hailey tried to comfort her. "Baby, Mommy went to a place far away..."

Flora said innocently, "Can we video chat next time? Like when Mommy went on business trips?"

Margaret broke down crying. "The child doesn't know what she's lost..."

Marcus discovered more anomalies while organizing evidence.

"There's something wrong here... the timing of these property transfer documents was exactly the day after she learned she only had a week to live." Marcus frowned.

Donald asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

Marcus said gravely, "It means she actively transferred everything to Hailey knowing she was about to die. This is strange... normally, people in their final moments would want to say goodbye to family, but she was arranging property transfers."

Robert looked at Hailey angrily. "What do you know about all this?"

By evening, everyone gradually left the studio.

Donald drove Hailey and Flora home, the car unusually quiet. Flora asked softly from the back seat, "Daddy, will Mommy really never come back?"

Hailey answered gently, "No, sweetie, but Hailey will always be here with you."

Donald watched Hailey through the rearview mirror and suddenly noticed her expression didn't show real grief, but rather... relief?

He began recalling Marcus's words: "This isn't generosity, this is premeditation."

That night, Donald lay in bed, replaying everything that had happened that day. Too many questions kept him awake: Why would Audrey give everything to an assistant? Why would she choose to suffer through cancer alone?

A terrible thought began forming in his mind: perhaps he had never truly known Audrey.