Chapter 7

"Mr. Larson!"

Melody and the other Ludwigs immediately reacted when they spotted Zachary. Shoving Elijah aside, they rushed up to Zachary and said in excitement, "Mr. Larson, we're from the Ludwig family, and we came here today to discuss a deal with you!"

Dripping with sweat, Zachary didn't even bother to look at the Ludwigs.

"Get out of my way!" he snapped, leaving the Ludwigs feeling rather dumbstruck.

"Ms. Lynette's life is in grave danger!" Zachary cried out impatiently. "Please come with me at once, Mr. Ludwig!"

"Why should I come with you?" Elijah responded coolly. "That's your business. I told you not to administer that treatment, but you insisted on doing it anyway. What gives you the gall to demand that I come back with you now? I don't owe you people anything."

"You…" Zachary didn't know what to say, but he panicked to find that Elijah was walking off. If he couldn't get Elijah to come back with him, he was doomed.

"Just what do you want?" Zachary yelled after Elijah.

"Is that the attitude you're going to take when you need me? Do you call this a plea for help?" Elijah remarked with a laugh.

Zachary took a deep breath. His cheeks were hot with indignation and humiliation as he bowed deeply to Elijah and said, "I was wrong, sir. Please hurry back to the house!"

The Ludwigs, who witnessed everything, were even more dumbfounded now.

…

Back inside the Gray residence, Elijah pressed a few spots along Lynette's abdomen. Before the others could even get a good look at what he was doing, she started regaining consciousness.

Zachary was stupefied.

"All done," Elijah said with a clap of his hands. He immensely enjoyed the way Lynette's skin felt under his touch.

Once Lynette woke up, she solemnly declared, "Dad, I want him to be my personal doctor. I'll give him a monthly salary of 30 thousand dollars."

"That won't do!" Thomas refused with a frown. "Have you lost your mind, Lyn? We have no idea who he is or where he comes from. Why do you trust him after just one treatment? I think it's better if you keep Dr. Larson around instead."

"Dad, I trust my judgment," Lynette said. Though she seemed weak, her voice was unusually firm.

Thomas hesitated briefly, but he stopped protesting. "Nevertheless, he can only have minimum contact with you to avoid stirring up any rumors. You can keep him around to tend to you, but he mustn't be allowed to enter your room, understand? I'll find you a better doctor as soon as possible."

"Wait a minute," Elijah called out. "Did I agree to be your doctor?"

Lynette turned to Elijah and smiled, though her eyes seemed to gleam with a hint of cunning. "I heard you're looking for your fiancée, Lynette Gray, right? What a coincidence! I'm her younger cousin. My name is also Lynette—Lynette Perry.

"Think about it. My cousin is one of the most powerful businesswomen in Ashford. Maintaining hundreds of millions of dollars in assets keeps her extremely busy. How could she make the time to see you?

"Plus, considering what you look like, do you think she'll accept you if you claim to be her fiancé?

"Why don't you work with me first? Once the opportunity comes along, I'll introduce you to her. This gives you a better shot of getting to her. In any case, you just returned to Ashford. Don't you want to find a place to stay first?"

Elijah's eyes brightened slightly. "You have a point there!"

Lynette ranked at the top of society. He would need to slowly climb up the social ladder to get to her. Otherwise, things wouldn't work out well if he popped up out of the blue.

"Excellent! That's settled, then. I'll prepare you a room in the house, and I'll pay you a monthly salary of 30 thousand dollars. I'll also cover your room and board. There is only one rule—you are not allowed to go up to the second floor and enter my room."

"Got it."

…

The Greers of Bertham were immensely influential, far beyond what the people of Ashford could compare to.

In the last few years, in a bid to expand their reach, the Greers had gobbled up many of the less prominent families in neighboring cities. All of the families who had been taken down were wiped from existence.

The Greer family's ambition extended to Summiton, the state capital. However, that city was filled with powerful and dangerous figures. Even the Greer family dared not challenge the people there quite just yet.

Instead, their next goal was to take over Ashford!

Over at the Greer residence, Danielle Greer, the oldest daughter of the Greer family, was scowling darkly.

"Lynette Gray, the beautiful and talented heiress of Ashford?" Danielle chewed on the words with a look of venomous hatred in her eyes. "Damn it! How can an insignificant place like Ashford be home to someone like her?

"Tell Dom and Hank to get the job done. I want them to disfigure that bitch!

Nate Boone, a man with tattooed arms, hesitated as he said, "Ms. Greer, I don't think it's wise to act so openly. Moreover, she might have bodyguards with her at all times."

"Why are you even talking?" Danielle raised her hand and slapped Nate in the face. "There's nothing that we, the Greers, can't smooth over. Hurry up and do as I say!"

…

Elijah spent the night at the Gray residence. He was well-rested after a good night's sleep, and following breakfast, Lynette gave him a ride to the office.

Wendy was furious to see Elijah hogging the front passenger seat. "Where am I supposed to sit, then?"

"As a doctor, I should be seated beside my patient at all times so that I can keep an eye on her. Isn't that an entirely reasonable thing to do?" Elijah said with a grin.

Wendy couldn't disagree with that, but she still got the feeling that something was amiss. Lynette got into the driver's seat and glanced at Elijah but said nothing.

The scent of both women's perfumes mingled in the car, and from his seat, Elijah could even see Lynette's stockinged legs. He thoroughly enjoyed the view.

Meanwhile, sitting in the back seat, Wendy stuck her head forward and commented anxiously, "Lyn, I heard that the Greers of Bertham are utterly insane. Their recent attempts to sabotage us have failed, but I heard that Ms. Greer is a lunatic.

"Do you think she'll resort to some kind of outrageous method to get even with us? You don't have your bodyguards with you, either."

After a brief hesitation, Lynette replied, "We're living in a civilized society. I doubt she'll do anything in broad daylight."

"If you're running a business, you should never hesitate to assume the worst of others," Elijah chimed in.

"Hah! What do you know? You're just a country bumpkin. What makes you think you can make observations about the business world?" Wendy retorted.

Alas, while she was speaking, they had just arrived at a quiet area near the foot of the hill. There was no one else around, save for a strange convoy of black vans that came rushing over to surround Lynette's car, forcing her to stop.

Following that, over a dozen men with menacing expressions came out from the vans and crowded around the car. Some of them were already brandishing their bats and machetes.

All the color drained out of Wendy's face as she cowered in fear.

Nate sauntered up to the car and rapped on the window on Lynette's side of the car before commanding harshly, "Get out!"