Chapter 81

Brinley stared back into Austin's deep eyes, a lump forming in her throat.

The secrets she carried felt like storm clouds crowding her chest, making it hard even to breathe.

She wanted to explain, but where could she begin?

How could she possibly tell him she was Rosara? How could she reveal that her so-called daring self-rescue moves weren't improvisation at all, but instincts etched into her bones long ago?

"I..." Brinley's voice broke as she fiddled nervously with the hem of her racing suit, her fingertips twisting at the fabric. "There are things I can't say yet."

Austin studied her face for several seconds, and in the end,he chose not to push.

Rubbing his brow, he put the emergency kit back in the trunk, then slid into the driver's seat. Starting the car, he said softly, "Let's get your arm properly treated first at the hospital. We'll talk about the rest later."

The car drove straight to a private hospital that belonged to the Moore Group.

The moment the medical staff spotted Austin's Maybach,they hurried forward with a wheelchair ready.

Brinley had stayed here once before when Austin had been admitted with stomach bleeding.

As she stepped inside again, the tang of disinfectant hit her, bringing with it a strange, almost familiar feeling.

The nurse guided them into the exam room, where the doctor cleaned and dressed her wound again. Austin stood by the window, upright as always, but his body was tense, coiled with unease.

"It's a surface wound, nothing serious, no damage to the bone. You're lucky," the doctor said,a lingering concern in his voice as he pulled off his gloves. "If it had gone just a bit deeper, your arm would have needed dozens of stitches."

"Thank you," Brinley muttered faintly, her eyes inevitably drifting toward Austin.

His profile was sharp under the sterile hospital lights.He was typing into his phone, his jaw clenched,and even without words she could sense the anger surging inside of him.

When the treatment was over, Austin didn't let her go home. He led her straight to a ward.

Unlike a typical hospital room, it felt more like a refined hotel suite.

The balcony was arranged with the same greenery and fresh flowers she had seen during her last visit,and even the lamp on the bedside table was the same design she remembered from the last time.

"Stay here tonight," Austin told her as he pulled a chair to sit by her bed. "I've already asked the butler to bring over your clothes."

"That's too much trouble already," Brinley protested,trying to sit up, but Austin gently pressed her shoulder back against the bed.

He said in a firm but tender voice, "Please stay here.We haven't figured out what happened this afternoon.I can't relax until we do."

The memory of the accident made Brinley hold back any further arguments.

Her eyes fell to the bandage around her arm,then snapped up suddenly as a thought struck her. "What about Jensen? Will he be blamed?"

"I've already had MMiguel take him to the police to give his statement," Austin said, passing her a glass of warm water from the bedside table. "Bowman, on the other hand,ran. But surveillance caught him meeting with Milly."

He paused for a moment, and when he spoke again,his voice was colder. "Focus on recovering. Leave everything else to me."

Brinley accepted the glass, feeling the warmth seep into her palms and spread quietly into her chest.

She knew exactly what Austin meant by "leave everything else to me." He was a man who never spoke empty words.

Yet the weariness shadowing his eyes made her heart twist with guilt.

"Actually..." She hesitated. "Milly's after me. You don't have to..."

"Brinley." Austin cut her off, a faint, mocking smirk on his lips. "She laid a trap for someone under my protection and thinks she can walk away without consequence? You're my wife. I will always care for you and protect you."

The bluntness of his words made Brinley's heart jolt

Just then, a knock sounded at the door

Miguel entered, a folder in hand. "Mr. Moore,we've uncovered something." He passed the documents over and explained,"Yesterday, Bowman's account received a transfer of fifty thousand from a shell company tied to Milly. We also discovered she's been approaching several pit crew members, repeatedly asking about Mrs. Moore's training schedule."

Austin frowned as he flipped through the folder.

Reaching the final page, he let out a cold laugh."She really pulled out all the stops."

Brinley leaned over to take a look and saw a detailed account of Milly's recent activities.

Not only had Milly bribed Bowman, but she'd also been plotting to smear Brinley on race day with fabricated claims of rule violations.

Brinley was visibly furious. "Damn it! She's trying to orchestrate my downfall all because of that scumbag Colin."

Brinley's jab at Colin seemed to amuse Austin; his lips twitched with a faint smile before he quickly masked it.

Snapping the folder shut, he handed it back to Miguel and instructed casually. "Sort this out and send it anonymously to Kashton." Miguel hesitated, then nodded when he finally understood.At once, he left the room with the file.

Brinley scowled, puzzled. "Why send it to him?"

Kashton Palmer, Colin's grandfather, had always indulged him. Even if he found out what Milly had done, at most he'd probably just give her a token reprimand.

Austin chuckled, pouring more warm water into her glass. "He cares about reputation more than anything -especially the Palmer family's. Milly pulling shady tricks exploiting Colin's connections won't sit wvell with him."

He set the glass back on the table and added,"Besides, the Palmer family is bidding for land in the east of the city. Kashton is eager to establish his authority at the board meeting. With Milly stirring up trouble,tell me-how do you think he'll deal with her?"