Chapter 4

 

Before reaching the taxi pickup point, a black Bentley sedan passed silently and stopped before her. Hailey recognized the black-clad man in the passenger seat as Travis’s bodyguard. The night before, he had grabbed her in the elevator and taken her to Travis.

 

The man opened the backseat door and respectfully said to Hailey, “Young madam, please get in the car.”

Hailey hesitated as her eyes met Travis’s once more. Despite the bustling hospital entrance, she didn’t want to attract attention or be part of the gossip. She crouched and lowered her head as she got into the car.

 

Travis’s face remained stiff as he looked ahead in silence, but neither spoke.

In her heart, Hailey silently cursed him for making her get into the car without explanation. She didn’t understand why he wanted her there.

 

“I’m sorry. Could you please stop at the bus stop ahead?” Hailey finally spoke, extending her hand.

 

Hailey recognized the black-clad man in the passenger seat as Travis’s bodyguard, the same individual who had grabbed her in the elevator and taken her to Travis last night.

 

The man opened the backseat door and respectfully said to Hailey, “Young madam, please get in the car.”

Hailey’s eyes met Travis’s once more. Despite the hustle and bustle of people coming and going at the hospital entrance, Hailey didn’t want to attract attention or be part of the gossip. She hesitated momentarily, then crouched and lowered her head as she entered the car.

 

Travis’s face vanished as he gazed ahead in silence. Neither spoke, and Hailey silently cursed him for making her get into the car without explanation.

“I’m sorry. Could you please stop at the bus stop ahead?” Hailey extended her hand toward the driver, Samuel, who was driving today. When Samuel heard this, he couldn’t help but glance at Hailey through the rearview mirror. He thought to himself.

 

The young lady found it intriguing. If the boss didn’t want the car to stop, who would dare to stop it?

 

Travis’s tone turned icy as he pointed out, “There is no bus stop within 1.2 miles of the Blake mansion. Do you plan to walk back once you get off the bus?” Hailey responded calmly, “Since Calvin is no longer here, I don’t see the need for him to return to Blake Manor.”

She had been at the Blake mansion for less than fifteen minutes, and her room wasn’t hers. Another day, she could handle the previously moved luggage. Travis, with a hint of malice in his voice, questioned her decision to live outside the mansion on her terms, reminding her she was still the young lady of the Blake family.

Observing Hailey’s surprised and uncertain expression, Travis continued, emphasizing the commitment she made by marrying into the Blake family. He warned her about the consequences of entertaining thoughts of leaving the family. Hailey, recalling her mother’s humiliation, suppressed her emotions and fought back tears.

 

Travis noticed a subtle movement and initially found it unbearable but dismissed it as an illusion. He questioned Hailey’s actions, asking why she believed her behavior from the previous night could save the Stewart family when she was not affiliated with their hotel.

 

This made Travis reflect on Hailey’s deception and audacity in mocking him and sleeping with him despite not being part of the hotel. He wondered where she found the courage to act in such a way.

Feeling angry, Travis grabbed Hailey by the neck and demanded to know if she deliberately targeted him because she knew who he was. Hailey wanted to retort that she would never have engaged with him if she had known he was Travis Blake, but she refrained from speaking out of fear. Denver had warned her about Travis’s reputation as a formidable figure who had seized power within the Blake family at a young age, portraying him as a ruthless individual.

 

Denver had repeatedly warned Hailey that when she entered the Blake family, she needed to be submissive, smile, and endure whatever happened, incredibly not provoking Travis. If he got angry, it wouldn’t benefit anyone. Despite Hailey’s desire to ignore the Stewarts, her sick and bedridden uncle, she still needed to use the Blake resources to find a suitable heart donor.

 

“I didn’t realize it was you,” Hailey said, trying to guess Travis’s thoughts and enduring the discomfort in her heart.

 

“I have seen no photos of you before, so I didn’t know you were Travis Blake.”

Upon hearing this, an unknown rage pierced Travis’s heart. He slammed his fist against the car window. The thick bulletproof glass emitted a loud, muffled sound but remained undamaged. However, Travis’s hand suffered a serious injury, breaking the skin.

 

His intense expression and violent behavior shocked Hailey. Had she misjudged Travis’s thoughts? Should she acknowledge she knew it was Travis, and that she did it on purpose? But she had already spoken, and it was too late to change the events.

Samuel and Travis’s bodyguard, seated in front, dared not look. They sat upright, exchanging glances from the corner of their eyes, trying to discern their boss’s thoughts.

Upon returning to Blake Manor, Hailey noticed the absence of the red lanterns and characters on the walls. The butler, upon seeing Travis’s hand-wound, promptly called for the servants to bring a first aid kit.

 

Hailey silently watched as a crowd surrounded Travis, disregarding her presence, making her feel invisible and prompting a frown.

Travis yelled at the crowd to disperse and coldly motioned for Hailey to approach. As all eyes turned to her, she sensed contempt, sympathy, and indifference from the onlookers. She awkwardly admitted her lack of experience dressing wounds and showed her injured hand.

Travis’s distant gaze suggested a desire to harm her, a sentiment that the others in attendance also shared. Despite being her first day with the Blake family, Hailey’s beauty had already led to Calvin Blake’s death and offended the patriarch. Her future at the mansion seemed grim, possibly worse than the servants. In such a dire situation, what value did beauty hold for her?