There was a small white bottle, a switchblade, and a lighter.None of them were particularly deadly, but with a little work, it could still inflict damage to the human body.Quincy therefore had to act calm. "We're in a police station."Stan chuckled. "We know that, so we won't do anything stupid. That said, I'm quite close with that officer just now, so he's willing to give us some space."Quinc'ys face paled, even as Stan took off his tie and stuffed it into her mouth.Isaac rose to his feet as well, picking up the switchblade and ejecting the blade—it was not particularly huge, but very sharp."I can do it, sir," Stan said, walking up to him. Isaac, however, stayed silent as he walked around the table toward Quincy and pressed the blade against Quincy's face. He just needed to apply little pressure, and the blade would cut through Quincy's skin.Quincy could only whimper, her pupils dilating as her whole body stiffened.She felt like she was meat on the butcher's table,
Quincy was grunting in pain."Mmph!!! Mmph!!!"She fainted from the pain in minutes, but Stan simply splashed her with the drinking water on the table to wake her and repeated the process.The same cycle continued for a while until Quincy was half-dead, and Stan finally put away his tools, saying, "No one will care about her in there."In other words, people would not ask questions about her injuries, let alone tend to it. Beside them, Isaac was not reacting at all—his heart's anguish could not be placated no matter how much Quincy suffered. The memories of his parents' deaths was the most terrible memory he had, more so than the memory of almost dying from drowning.Eventually, he stepped out of the visitor's room and saw Henry. Once again he was not reacting at all, and there was no warmth to be found in his eyes."Shall we talk?" Henry asked. Isaac stayed silent but did not refuse, while Henry traded glances with Moneypenny and breathed sighs of relief.If Isaac was
Mrs. Watson arrived just then and asked, "What's going on here?"Tommy was asleep, and if this went on, the baby would wake up.Even so, Stan put his finger on his lips and shushed her! As Mrs. Watson quickly turned silent, he explained softly to her, "Don't disturb him."He knew why Isaac was seething, and that Isaac was just venting at the moment.After all, Henry had raised him, but tried to use that as leverage against him.Though Isaac never did anything to Quincy because of Henry, how did his grandfather repay him?He was probably hurting because the one who hurt him was family."Should we ask Mrs. Jefferson to come home?" Mrs. Watsons quietly asked. Stan agreed that it was a great idea, since Isaac needed company right now."Yeah, do it."However, no one answered when Mrs. Watson called Irene's number, and she sighed, shaking her head. "I couldn't reach her."Stan sighed as well.…Meanwhile, Isaac stood with his hands clasped behind his back in his study. What r
While Irene stared blankly at the woman who resembled Whitney Cox, the woman saw her as well. She initially appeared surprised to see Irene, but soon spite showed in her eyes.Irene had already noticed that the other woman had been looking at her funny before, and could not help frowning when she clearly saw that this time as well.Why the hostility? They were not even acquainted.Chad spotted Irene as well just then, and quickly pulled her away, and whispered once they were out of earshot, "You're pregnant. Payback can wait.""Yeah," she replied, but she clearly was not giving up.Even so, she was now reliant on Chad and would never dare to go against him excessively. In fact, she never wanted a child, and always used protection—but she got pregnant anyway. Since Chad loved the child, she had to keep it, but was also determined to lose it if it became an obstacle to her revenge.…Meanwhile, after Irene helped another patient to get an ultrasound, she looked through the m
Ricky had dropped right in front of her!As Irene worriedly went up to check him, Lulu asked, "Did we scare him that badly?"Irene checked Ricky's breathing while replying, "He's an adult. There's no way he'd get spooked that easy."If he were, he would be everyone's laughing stock once word of it gets out!And unsurprisingly, Ricky was playing dead—which was a little insulting to Irene and Lulu, considering that they were both doctors.Knowing that he was fine, Irene said, "What girl would marry you if something like that would leave you passed out? All girls love brave men and having a sense of security—I guess you're going to be alone forever."Ricky opened his eyes right then and leaped off the floor, dusting himself although he was not actually dirty. "Killjoy."Lulu giggled. "Playing dead around doctors doesn't even make sense."Ricky pouted and shot back, "There are no men who would fall for women like you."Irene shrugged. "Sorry to disappoint you, then—we're both ta
After eating a few more mouthfuls, Irene took a shower before returning to their room.It was pitch-black inside—none of the lights were on, and she had to use the dull glow of the moon to see.Isaac was lying on his side, and she could not tell if he was asleep.He was not reacting at all when she came in, and as she sat on the bed, she asked softly, "Are you asleep?"There was no response, so Irene slid underneath the blanket, lying down as she wrapped her hands around his waist from behind. "I know you're awake."His breathing was even, but she had a feeling that he was not asleep."I've been busy—"Isaac suddenly turned around before she could finish, staring fixedly at her with his hawkish eyes in the darkness. "Why didn't you answer me if you're awake?" Irene asked. He still would not answer, but in the next instant, he had moved on top of her.Irene was too tired and appeared lethargic, so he asked, "No?"Irene shook her head and explained, "No, I'm just…""Just wh
Then, she felt herself fall into a firm, warm embrace!She curled up by instinct, and turned to look at Isaac, asking softly, "What are you doing? You scared me."Isaac watched her and growled, "You're the one who stayed naked to seduce me."Irene was speechless. She did not even want to be naked, and he was the one she was for!She whispered pleadingly, "Look, I'm tired, and I'm really late.""Yeah," he said softly and carried her into the shower… and then did nothing.She had been losing weight, which made him restrain himself. Suddenly, Mrs. Watson was knocking on the door. "Mr. Jefferson? Stan Hill is here. He says it's urgent."Irene heard her and shoved him. "Go."Isaac kept staring at her. "You don't want me to leave at all, do you?"Irene was speechless—she did think so but would never say it. Smiling, she reached out from the bathtub, wrapping her hands around his neck and splashing him with crystalline drops of water. "Stay here, then."Thud, thud.Mrs. Watson kn
However, Irene was all too willing to receive her punishment because she admired Stephen for his exceptional ability.Still, she only managed to clean up the storeroom around 4 p.m. She was exhausted and did not have lunch, but she did not stop to catch her breath—she wanted to head home before midnight, and so quickly left to sort the patients' files.Still, Stephen suddenly showed up at the door. "Come with me. Leave that to someone else.""Chief." Irene quickly put down everything and followed. Stephen may be uptight and demanding, but he was really trying to teach her. He would always bring her along during his surgeries, and he had her come along this time as well since the patient had an atypical medical history. As they entered a patient's ward, Stephen handed Irene an MRI scan. "What do you see?" Irene started studying it when someone called out to her."Irene Spencer?"She turned to find Harvey Gooding standing by the patient's bed, and asked in surprise, "Why are
Soon after the wedding, Mr. Fowler proposed for Stan to work at his company to get used to the work over there.He was worried as he did not have much time left, and it would not do if he was gone before the proper arrangements were made.Still, Stan returned to Franconia with Isaac and his family, sorting out things at work and finishing every task he had on hand.While Isaac used to have a lot of free time with Stan around, he was just slightly busier after Stan left. After all, no company should operate in a way that losing a single person would stall all their operations.And after a week, Stan sorted out all the remaining tasks he had in Franconia and returned to Zidonia to start work at the Fowlers' family business.While Stan had property in Zidonia too, he moved into the Fowlers' mansion, but not as a live-in son-in-law. He was simply aware of Mr. Fowler's illness, and Rea wanted to spend more time with her parents.And as the son-in-law, he was obliged to do that much.
Despite feeling wistful, Mr. Fowler eventually passed Rea's hand to Stan. "I hope you will both cherish each other from now on."Rea told him, "We will."Thereafter, it was the usual proceedings of a wedding, with exchange of rings and vows, the wedding speech, and the luncheon!Though everything went smoothly, Mrs. Fowler could not help shedding tears.She was pleased that her daughter was finally getting married, especially since she was looking forward to this.But now that Rea really did marry, she was worried that her life might get difficult and unhappy.Such was the worrisome nature of mothers.-Later, Stan led Rea to Isaac's table.They were all acquainted, but Stan introduced everyone once again to reacquaint them with Rea.After all, she was no longer Zachary's friend's cousin now, but Stan's wife.Erin was grinning from ear to ear. "Congratulations.""Thank you." Rea smiled in return."Congrats," Baby said, imitating the adults.Rea reached out to stroke his c
Zachary said, "I heard you sealed the deal with Rea Fowler, and her family is preparing for your wedding."Stan smiled. "I'm the look of success—getting a girl couldn't be simpler. See? I'm getting married already.""Well, I guess we're all taken now," Erin said.Tommy poked his head up just then. "Congratulations, Uncle Stan.""Thank you." Stan chuckled, patting his head."Also, I heard that you're marrying into the Fowler family?" Zachary asked.Everyone turned to stare at Stan in shock, but it was understandable.Stan was not that modest that he would have to go that far—he had money and was successful enough to afford a wife.Still, Zachary—who knew the Fowlers—suggested, "To be fair, they do need someone to take care of the family business…"-Either way, it meant that Irene's family would be delaying their return trip to Franconia.After all, none of them had expected to attend Stan's wedding so soon after Zachary's.Stan himself did not expect that either, as he had
"What's the problem? We've already slept together," Rea said as she put her clothes on.She frowned as Stan was still on the bed and not moving. "What, are you going to stay in my bed forever?""What am I supposed to wear?" Stan shrugged. "You haven't brought my clothes here.""I'll get it for you."Rea remembered his suitcase then and hurried downstairs to bring it up."Wear whatever you like. I'll be waiting downstairs," she said and hurried away.Stan got out of bed and put on a suit—it was only right to dress formally when it came to discussing marriage.After cleaning up and heading downstairs, he found Rea sandwiched by her parents.Stan had no idea if she had already mentioned it, but both Mr. and Mrs. Fowler were both staring at him, leaving him further tense.Clearing his throat, Stan began, "Excuse me, but—""Yes, we agree to you marrying our daughter.""You mean marrying into our family," Rea corrected them.Everyone else was staring at her before asking all at o
If Rea asked her parents now, they would only get sad, and life would become difficult for everyoneWhat should she do to make them happy?Right, she could get married! Her parents would definitely be pleased. As for the choice of bridegroom, did she not have one readily available here?If Stan could pretend to be her boyfriend, he could definitely be her husband too.They could fake their marriage if they had to!Putting the medical file back where she found it, she wobbled up to her feet and left the room.Stan had yet to step out of the bathroom when she returned, so she sat on the bed and waited.After a while, Stan stepped out with a towel around his waist and paused when he saw Rea sitting there. "Where are my clothes?" He asked, presuming that Rea had forgotten since there was nothing on the bed or the table. "My suitcase is still in your car trunk."Rea turned toward him. "Let's get married."Stan was left speechless for a moment and soon chuckled, "Did you forge
Mrs. Fowler smacked her daughter, but while Rea thought she was angry, she said instead, "Just do your best."Rea's mind was blown—were her parents bewitched? They were completely different from before! A long time ago, her parents had used to tell her that she did not have to marry as long as she was happy.But later on, they had persistently sent her on blind dates… and now, they were telling her to seduce a man?Touching her mother's forehead, Rea asked, "Are you sick?"Mrs. Fowler slapped her hand off. "Your dad and I are leaving now.""Yeah." Mr. Fowler nodded. "The chauffeur is waiting."Rea walked them to the door and watched as their car left before returning inside.She did not go upstairs since Stan was asleep, and she would be bored—she was the type who just could not sit still.However, it was inappropriate if she left since that would leave nobody home.In her boredom, she thought of pranking Stan. She headed upstairs to find him asleep, and soundly at that.Ca
Unable to argue against her parents, Rea said, "Fine, fine. Whatever you say."Mrs. Fowler smiled. "Then help Stan upstairs to get some rest.""Which room?" Rea asked.Mrs. Fowler realized with a start and quickly said, "Oh, there's no bedding in the guest room… So let him stay in your room."Rea was left staring at her in shock. "When did you get so open-minded? Letting a man stay in your daughter's room?"Mrs. Fowler shrugged. "What can he do when he's drunk?""Haven't you heard of drunken fumbles?" Rea asked.Both Mr. and Mrs. Fowler shook their heads at the same time. "Nope."Rea was left totally speechless—this was just outrageous!She would think that Stan was actually their son, if it was not for the fact that they were not acquainted before.They were not like this before either—even if they were urging her to get married, they were not throwing her at a man like this!Mr. Fowler then said, "If anything happens, we'll demand that he takes responsibility and marries y
"I get it," Stan replied quietly. "I wouldn't have been upset even if you didn't explain yourself. But since you did, I forgive you."Rea's brow creased as she pursed her lips. "See? I knew it. We really shouldn't be too nice to you."While Stan was speechless, Mrs. Fowler was enthusiastically putting food on Stan's plate. "This is our family's favorite dish. Try it."Stan nodded after a bite. "It's good."Mrs. Fowler smiled, while Mr. Fowler poured him a glass of wine. "Can you hold your liquor?"Stan smiled. "More or less.""You're being humble now." Mr. Fowler smiled at him. "You're definitely a good drinker.""A little."Rea had enough right then. "Dad, Stan has work to do, and he has to return to Franconia tomorrow. You're going to make things difficult for him."Mr. Fowler smiled awkwardly. "Right…" "You think?" Rea huffed, snatching his wine away. "Everyone only gets to have one glass."Mr. Fowler glared at Rea. "Party pooper."Rea shrugged. "I'm doing this for your
Rea turned her head aside. "Then what's your hobby?"Stan did a double take and remembered his life… which was work and more work.It had been years since he took leave, and he would not get to goof off the last few days if it had not been for Zachary's wedding.Hobby? He certainly did not have anything like that.Now that he thought about it, his life was boring and monotonous, and he did not have anyone very close.That was why he wanted a kind, understanding wife to care and offer him company while he took care of her needs.When he looked up at Rea, he clearly felt that she was not for him—he needed someone to take care of him, but with her, he would be busy taking care of her instead."You're looking at me weirdly," Rea suddenly said."How so?" Stan asked.Rea moved closer, looking him in the eyes and asking solemnly, "Don't tell me—you've fallen for me?""You don't just suffer from a flawed personality—you're narcissistic too."Stan pursed his lips and checked the tim