Chapter 0007

At the hospital.

The moment Dylan stepped through the door, Anne threw herself into his arms. She clung to him like a rag doll, trembling against him. "Dylan, I feel awful... I feel so terrible..."

“Where does it hurt?”

Dylan tried to push her away, but instead of letting go, she only clung tighter.

"Everywhere..." Anne moaned, placing his hand on her chest. "Especially here, it feels like bugs crawling under my skin—itching, unbearable. Mr. Dylan, please help me!"

Her behavior was clearly not normal. “I’ll call the doctor.”

“No, I don’t want a doctor. I want you.” Anne clung to him like a vine, her hands restlessly undoing his shirt buttons. “Please, Mr. Dylan, help me, I feel like I’m dying. If you don’t help me, I really will die...”

As her fingers worked to undo the buttons, Dylan grabbed her wrists. “Anne, calm down...”

“I can’t calm down...” She leaned in, trying to kiss him, whispering his name over and over, “Mr. Dylan, Mr. Dylan...”

Just as she was about to succeed, Dylan forcefully pushed her away, sending her sprawling to the floor.

His resistance spoke volumes, even if he hadn’t said a word.

A flicker of coldness flashed in Anne’s eyes, but when she looked up again, only sadness remained.

“Mr. Dylan, do you hate me?”

Dylan didn’t respond, nor did he help her up.

Instead, he turned away. “I’m calling a doctor.”

Anne wasn’t about to let him leave.

She scrambled to her feet and wrapped herself around him from behind. “I told you, I don’t want a doctor. I want you! Please, Mr. Dylan, take me...”

“Anne, something is clearly wrong with you,” Dylan said, his lips pressed into a thin line. “You need to see a doctor.”

“No doctor can help me. Only you can save me.”

As she spoke, Anne began stripping off her own clothes. “Please, save me. I’m begging you.”

Just when Anne thought she had succeeded, a sharp pain shot through the back of her head, and everything went black as she crumpled to the floor.

Watching Anne fall unconscious, Suzy, who had been hiding in the wardrobe, retracted the silver needle that she had prepared to throw.

It wasn’t about helping Dylan—it was simply that she couldn’t bear to watch the scene unfold. It was the kind of thing that could make her eyes bleed.

What she didn’t expect was that Dylan would actually...

Anne was supposed to be the woman he loved most. Suzy couldn’t quite understand why he knocked her out.

Dylan scooped Anne up in his arms and laid her back on the hospital bed before pressing the call button for the doctor.

When the doctor arrived, Dylan briefly explained what had just happened. “Is this related to the poison in her system?”

After a quick examination, the doctor nodded.

“Yes, you’re right. The poison in Miss Anne’s body is highly unusual. The last time the poison flared up, nothing like this happened. Now, it’s suddenly escalated, and who knows what could happen next. We need to detox her as soon as possible.”

Dylan frowned and thought about what the doctor said.

There had been no word from Red Falcon.

Forget about tracking her down—she hadn’t even answered a single phone call. Desmond had been trying for days, but every attempt had gone unanswered.

Detoxing Anne was proving to be no simple task.

For the first time, he found himself played by a woman who had him in the palm of her hand.

With his jaw tight, Dylan commanded, “For now, find a way to alleviate her symptoms.”

“That’s going to be difficult...” the doctor began. “This poison is something I’ve never encountered before, and I know nothing about it. I’m concerned that if we administer the wrong medication, it could worsen her condition instead of easing it. So...”

The doctor pressed his lips together before continuing, “At this point, the safest way to relieve her symptoms might be for you, Mr. Wright, to help Miss Anne personally.”

“Absolutely not!” Dylan didn’t hesitate. “If it comes to that, we’ll use sedatives.”

“But that might not be safe either…”

“At least that way, she’ll maintain her dignity,” Dylan muttered, his voice low as he looked at Anne lying unconscious. “I can’t let her lose her honor.”

So, it wasn’t that he wouldn’t touch her—he just didn’t want her to be ridiculed.

Suzy’s mind flashed back to a day when she had gone to his office to deliver some documents he had left behind at home. His employees had mistaken her for the maid, and from start to finish, he hadn’t said a single word to correct them.

They had been married for three years, and not once had he shown her the respect a wife deserved.

Yet, when it came to Anne, he shielded her at every turn...

Suzy didn’t want to compare, but moments like this always brought it to the surface, no matter how hard she tried.

Why was she even watching this pathetic drama?

She really should find a way to slip out of here.

And as luck would have it, the opportunity presented itself.

The doctor left, and moments later, Dylan’s phone rang.

Probably to avoid waking Anne, he stepped out of the room with his phone.

Seizing her chance, Suzy quietly slipped out of the wardrobe. But just as she thought she’d made her escape, Dylan walked back in.

Their eyes locked.

The air between them went dead silent.

Suzy reacted quickly, darting toward the balcony.

Dylan was just as fast, his long strides closing the distance.

Just as she was about to leap off the balcony, his hand caught her shoulder, yanking her back.

"Speak. Who sent you?"

Suzy let out a cold laugh. "The hospital is a public place. I’m allowed to come and go as I please. Do I need your permission now?"

She wasn’t worried at all about Dylan recognizing her voice.

Before going out, she always used a voice-altering agent—not to hide from him specifically, but out of long-standing habit.

Keeping her true identity hidden was a necessity.

Though she hadn’t gone so far as to disguise herself today, just a simple mask, there was no way Dylan would figure it out.

She wouldn’t give him the chance.

"So, you think you can just come and go as you please, huh..." Dylan's grip on her shoulder tightened, his voice growing colder. "Since you're here, why don't you stay for a while?"

"The wind’s pretty strong tonight—careful you don’t bite your tongue!" Suzy swiftly dodged his grip, twisting out of his hold, and in one fluid motion, threw a sharp punch directly at him.

But Dylan wasn’t easy prey either, effortlessly dodging her attack.

The two were locked in a fierce exchange, trading blow after blow, kick after kick.

After dozens of moves, neither had the upper hand.

Dylan chuckled, "Not bad."

Suzy smirked. "You're not too shabby yourself, Mr. Wright."

But then, his eyes flashed dangerously, and he switched tactics, aiming a series of strikes at her abdomen.

Realizing his intent, Suzy shifted her defenses to protect her midsection, but in an unexpected move, Dylan suddenly diverted his hand, reaching for her mask instead.