Chapter 689 Awake

The hospital room door creaked open. A doctor wearing a mask stepped out into the hall. The children rushed at once. "Doctor, how is our mom?"

"Mrs. Jenson is stable. For her to wake up this soon is nothing less than a miracle. Her own will to live pulled her back. I do not suggest much conversation yet, but she insists on seeing you. Go in, but do not stay long. She must not wear herself out." "Thank you, doctor!"

With his permission, the six Jenson children hurried inside. The tubes and wires that once covered Blair were mostly gone, leaving only the essentials. Her eyelids were heavy but open, her breaths shallow. Dominic’s chest thudded so hard he thought his ribs might break. He darted forward, unable to hold himself back. "Mom, are you okay?"

Blair turned her eyes toward him with effort. Her voice scraped weakly against her throat. "I... I am fine... Where is Kyla? Tell me where she is…" Her first words were of Kyla, and even in her fragile tone there was bitterness. "Mom, Kyla… she…" Her voice was too faint for them to catch the anger laced within it. Dominic could not bring himself to reveal that Kyla had vanished two days ago. He feared it would crush Blair’s strength the moment she heard it. He steadied himself and said, "I already took care of Kyla’s papers. Mom, we need to hold on a little longer. We are leaving for Motrar to stay with Uncle Blaise. I will stay behind to manage what comes next for Jenson Group."

"No! Dominic, that is not the truth. The reason I am lying here… is because of Kyla!" Blair forced every ounce of strength into the words. Her children froze in shock. It took a long breath for them to understand. Howard, always the most fiery, erupted first. "Kyla… did this? Mom, what exactly are you talking about?" Blair gasped for air. "I don’t know why… I treated her with kindness. So why would she want me gone?"

Dominic’s body stiffened as he rose to his feet. His eyes shook as the pieces came together. Crown Group had been buying up Jenson shares in secret for years. Kyla had struck Blair down, leaving the family in chaos. Russell’s focus had been torn away, and Crown Group stormed in, gutting Jenson Group from the inside. They had taken most of the stock from the shareholders' hands. All of it was only possible if one thing had been true. It was not just Blair falling into a coma. Crown Group had already known that Russell would be dragged into the bribery scandal. The only person who could have fed them that truth was Kyla, the one they had once trusted without question. She must have uncovered something back then and kept the evidence hidden. It was Kyla who betrayed the Jensons. It was Kyla who pushed them into ruin. Dominic’s chest swelled with fury until he thought he would rip apart. The rage was so sharp that he wanted to wrap his hands around her throat and end her himself. His brothers reached the same dreadful thought. Their faces turned pale as chalk. They had kept Kyla close for Blair’s sake, hiding what she truly was from the world. That mercy had bred disaster. They never imagined she held proof powerful enough to doom them, proof she used to conspire with Crown Group and sell the family out. Dominic dropped to his knees beside Blair’s bed, clutching her hand with a grip so tight it shook. His voice was heavy with desperation. "Mom, I know you are tired, but I need the truth. Tell me how Dad was connected to the bribery case. I cannot believe he ever would do anything like that."

Blair’s breaths rasped as she forced the words out. "It started with one of the founders of the company. He was your father’s college classmate, my classmate, and a friend to the co-founders. To win a project bid, he bribed officials to push Jenson Group forward. By the time your father and I learned of it, the contract was already signed. If it collapsed, the company would have fallen apart.

"I begged your father to tell the truth, but he could not let years of sweat and sacrifice be erased. He cast that man out, saying he left for a better job. Even the co-founders never knew. Your father destroyed every record of the bribes. But the truth has a way of clawing its way out. "This haunted him every day. Your father loved this country, and corruption made him sick. Yet betrayal forced the guilt onto him, and he was branded as a criminal. That year you were still studying abroad. You knew nothing." Dominic’s breath hitched. "It was five years ago?"