?Chapter 973:


    “You couldn’t bring yourselves to deny his request, especially if he was badly wounded and begging.”


    Alissa’s eyes welled with tears, herposure faltering as she turned away, her breathing shaky.


    Bart’s expression wavered, but he shot back, “That’s enough!”


    Rising to his feet, he red at Linsey. “You’ve got two minutes. If you still refuse to go to the hospital, I’ll have my men take you there by force.”


    With that, he threw a cold nce at Collin, whose face showed clear displeasure.


    Bart addressed Collin, his voice devoid of warmth. “Collin, you’re staying here for the time being.”


    At those words, Collin shot to his feet, his demeanor as cold as a winter storm. He fixed Bart with a piercing stare and dered sharply, “I’ve made it clear—don’t even consider it. I’ll never let you take Linsey away.”


    Linsey swiftly moved to Collin’s side, her hand finding his, her fingers curling tightly around his sturdy grip. His firm hold reassured her, anchoring her resolve. In moments like these, she never felt like a liability to Collin. They were partners, united in purpose. They had arrived together, and they would leave together, unharmed.


    Still, she wouldn’t allow Collin to recklessly confront the horde of henchmen waiting outside—that would be a dangerous mistake. “Alissa, Bart, surely you realize how absurd this is, don’t you?” Linsey’s tone was resolute, her voice steady and low. “If I were single, perhaps this conversation would be different. But I have my fiancé and our children. Forcing me to carry Gorman’s child is nothing short of an outrageous vition of personal rights.”


    Alissa’s face flushed with a mix of fury and embarrassment. “You agreed to cooperate with a hospital visit! Gorman… he died saving your life—you owe us for that loss!”


    Linsey couldn’t be bothered to argue further aboutpensation with Alissa. She pressed on, her words measured. “You both know Gorman’s nature. If I bore his child, he would never let me go. He would use the child to bind me to him forever. And what about the child? Growing up knowing their mother has another family—wouldn’t that leave them feeling abandoned and betrayed? As their grandparents, don’t you care about the pain that child would endure?”


    Linsey hadn’t intended to entertain the idea of this hypothetical child. But Bart and Alissa’s relentless stubbornness forced her to counter their reasoning with their own wed logic. She could vaguely discern Gorman’s underlying motives. He staged his own death to manipte her into guilt, with Alissa and Bart’s theatrics intensifying the scheme.


    The tales you love are at g?lnσν???s?c?m


    Had Alissa and Bart executed their roles wlessly, Linsey might have fallen for their deception.


    Regardless, she could never consent to such an outrageous request. For one, her connection with Gorman was strictly tonic, devoid of any romantic attachment. Moreover, creating a child was not a matter of mere words—it demanded profound responsibility. To Linsey, giving birth and then shirking all duties afterward would disqualify her from the title of mother.


    Alissa, gripping her hands tightly, spoke in a sharp tone. “Once the baby arrives, you’ll be free of any obligations. We’ll secure a perfect stepmother for the child.”


    Linsey found this proposition absurd and retorted with biting sarcasm, “If you’ve already lined up a recement mother, why not have her go through IVF instead?”


    With a scornful edge, she continued, “Does the Green family only know how to wield wealth or deception to coerce innocent women into bearing your heirs?”


    “You!” Bart’s eyes red, his face twisting with rage. Most might have cowered under Bart’s intimidating presence, but Linsey stood her ground, meeting his stare withposure.


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