However, when Luke heard Tommy's suggestion, he was suddenly interested in trying Luca's cooking. He looked at Luca and asked her, "Would it trouble you?" Luca was about to say that it would trouble her very much, but Tommy spoke before she could. "Ms. Luca says that it's okay as long as you agree." "…" Luca was speechless. The child was always faster than her. "Alright, sorry to impose on you then," Luke said. "…" She felt as though the two were ganging up on her. Cooking was not something hard for her, especially after Tommy stayed over in her house. She had regained her confidence in her cooking skills. However, she hoped that Tommy and Luke would not come into contact with the other people from the Island of Despair. She was afraid that Amur might give away something if he knew who Luke was, even though Amur might be worried about her. She did not want to put Nyla in danger just to satisfy her selfish needs. "Yay!" Tommy clapped his hands and cheered. "I h
Luca shook her head helplessly and said, "Didn't you promise me that you won't run away from home anymore?" Tommy stuck his tongue out. He could be a little reckless whenever he was anxious. "I was just saying it for fun, Ms. Luca." He took her hand and rubbed it against his cheek. Luca could not help but smile when she saw how Tommy was acting. She patted the boy's head. Luke sat in the car and observed their interactions. There was a motherly glow in Luca's gaze. That expression could not be faked. Luke could sense that Luca's feelings were genuine. Tommy looked to his right, and his eyes sparkled. "Daddy's car is here, Ms. Luca." Luca looked at the car that was slowly approaching them and nodded. "Mm." Tommy moved to the back while Luca helped him open the door. After Tommy went inside, Luca prepared to sit beside him when he said, "You should sit next to Daddy, Ms. Luca." "Huh?" Luca glanced at the side passenger seat. She felt a little awkward. The side passeng
Tommy looked at Luke, who seemed to be lost in thought. "What are you thinking, Daddy?" he asked. "Nothing." Luke did not tell him about his confused feelings. He had only met Luca for only a few days, but why did she seem so familiar? Tommy did not ask him any further questions. He returned to his seat and waited for Luca to come back. Wagging his legs, he mumbled to himself, "I wonder what would Ms. Luca cook for us today?" That made Luke think of the same question too. Meanwhile, Luca went into the supermarket and quickly placed fresh food ingredients into her basket. She knew that Tommy and Luke were both picky eaters, so she had to be meticulous. She devised a recipe as she picked up the food ingredients. After that, she realized that there should be no seasonings or spaghetti in the apartment, so she added those to the shopping basket. Luca approached the checkout counter with a full shopping basket. It was the evening rush hour, so the queue was very long. By t
Luca was surprised. She had not put too much thought into how she arranged her items, and she had done what she always did. Three years ago, Luke would occasionally step into the kitchen to watch her cook. He had even asked her about how she arranged the items, and she had patiently explained it to him… "Also?" Luca was flustered for a second, but she soon composed herself. She turned her head to look at him. "Have you seen someone else arrange her items like this?" "My wife," Luke said. "She used to arrange her items like this." Luca nodded. That was how she had arranged her items since she was young. Even though she had not stepped into the kitchen for three years, she could remember how to do it when faced with a variety of items. "I learned this method from the Internet. This way, I can efficiently find the things I want, and that'll help me cook faster. Not only that, but I also arrange my apparatus like this when I'm in the lab. I won't have to waste time looking for th
"Your food is amazing, Ms. Luca!" Tommy said cheerfully as he picked up a pork chop. Luca smiled and stole a glance at Luke. He was eating a fish fillet, and she could not discern his expression. She could tell if Luke was enjoying the food or not. Luke ate silently without saying a word. Not speaking while eating had been a good habit of his. Luca silently nibbled on a piece of broccoli. The only sounds around the dining table were from Tommy eating loudly. When the father and son fought over the last fish fillet, Luca could feel the rivalry between them. "There's more in the kitchen," she said, not expecting that the dish would be so popular. Luke was not going to fight his son for a fish fillet. He pulled his hand back, and Tommy gleefully took the fish fillet away. Luca hastily picked up the plate. "I'll go and get some more for you, Mr. Crawford." Luke shot a glance at her bowl and said. "Don't worry about it. You've been eating only vegetables." "Huh?" Luca re
Tommy skipped into the living room, and Bianca walked toward him and said gently. "You're back home so late, Tommy. Are you hungry?" Tommy could sense the reluctance in his mother's voice. He shook his head and said, "I'm not hungry." Bianca smiled. She was already used to Tommy's coldness toward her. She then turned to Luke and said, "I've saved some chowder for you, Luke. I'll heat it up for you." "Don't worry about it, Bea. I had a big dinner," Luke said. He had eaten a lot in the meal earlier, but he did not tell Luca or Tommy. "Ah…" Bianca glanced at Tommy, who was already heading up the stairs. She continued, "Alright then. You must be tired. I'll go and prepare the bathwater for you, then you can take a bath and sleep." Luke was not really convinced by the concern Bianca showed him. "It's fine, Bea. I still have some work to do. If you're tired, you should go to bed first." Bianca maintained the smile on her face even though Luke had refused her offer. She had alread
Rainie nodded as she listened to what her brother said. Soon, they heard a knock on the door and their butler's voice. "Master Blanche, Miss Rainie, are you two inside?" "We're here!" Lanie and Rainie said at the same time. "It's time to go downstairs for breakfast. Otherwise, you'll be late for school," the butler said. The two children were usually punctual at the dining table, but the butler did not see them, so he went upstairs to remind them. "It's Founder's Day at our school today, Mr. Griffin. We don't have to go to school," Rainie said. The butler thought for a while and realized that it was the case; he had forgotten about it because he had been too busy. "I see. However, your Great-Grandpa is waiting for the two of you downstairs." Old Master Crawford might dote on them, but he was also strict toward them. The children were not supposed to sleep in, they had to eat three meals a day, and they had to exercise three times a week. Those were the rules that Old Master
Everyone in the Crawford household knew that Lanie considered the Holston boy his rival. That was why Old Master Crawford nagged him a little. "Yes, Great-Grandpa. I'll make sure that Lanie won't fight with Simon," Rainie said. "Yes, you should." Old Master Crawford waved his hand. He was not worried when the twins looked out for each other. After they left the living room, Lanie protested, "What nonsense were you on earlier?" "Great-Grandpa was worried that you'd pick a fight with Simon. I was only reassuring him that you won't," Rainie said with a smile. "Nonsense. I can't be bothered to pick a fight with Simon." Lanie said coolly. His hands were in his pockets, and he looked like a mini version of Luke. He only fought with Simon to protect his sister. Lanie looked at his sister, who was skipping out of the house, and thought that she would not understand what her brother did for her. Sean was already waiting for them in the garage. After the twins got into the car,
“No.” Shanks’ tone was cold and firm with no trace of hesitation.Abel still looked doubtful.Shanks added, “Would you like to see her medical report?”Abel was startled for a moment. How did Shanks know he had been thinking about that report?Now that Shanks brought it up, the idea lost its appeal.Abel shook his head. “Even if you showed it to me, I wouldn’t understand it. Shanks, Kassy’s life is in your hands. If you can give her a second chance, I’ll provide as much research funding as you need."Shanks remained silent. He could save Kassy. In fact, his research had always been for Kassy.However, he did not expect Abel to be so ruthless as to insist on using a living person as a donor for Kassy. That was something he could not accept.Kassy’s condition could be treated with organs from a brain-dead patient. Why destroy a perfectly healthy life?Shanks was not acting out of mercy. He simply refused to go against his medical ethics.He was not someone who had to save lives
“You don’t need to remind me. I was going to check anyway.” Abel shot Luca a chilling look.She took a step back and stayed silent.Abel turned to the pale-faced Hera and said, “If you’ve got low blood sugar, get up and eat something.”“I’ll eat now,” Hera replied, sitting up.Luca handed her the takeout.Abel glanced at the food and then frowned at Luca. “Why didn’t you make breakfast this morning?”“I was busy,” Luca explained with a calm indifference, her expression unwavering. She showed no fear, even under Abel’s questioning.Hera suddenly found herself admiring Luca. Everyone feared this man, yet Luca remained composed even when facing potential punishment. Not just anyone could pull that off.At the thought of this, Hera opened the takeout and kept quiet.Abel narrowed his eyes, glancing between Hera and Luca. His gaze was not exactly gentle as he muttered, “Stop eating this junk. It’s bad for you.”“I know, babe. Just this once. After this, I’ll have what Luca cooks f
Hera panicked the moment she heard that. “I trust her!”Luca and Shanks were both watching her.Hera repeated herself, saying, “I trust her, okay? What kind of treatment does she need? I’ll cooperate with anything. But what about Abel…”“I’ll tell him it’s just to help improve your overall health,” replied Shanks. Then, he turned around, opened the medicine cabinet, and started preparing the prescription.Hera let out a sigh of relief. As long as Abel did not find out about her health condition, that was all that mattered.If he knew she was unwell, he would send her back to A City. Without free medical help and no way to make extra money, she would be in serious trouble.“Thank you,” said Hera.“Wait outside,” instructed Shanks.“Okay.” Hera carefully stepped out.Luca, however, remained where she was, waiting.While preparing the medicine, Shanks asked, “Do you know which acupoints to target for her?”“Yes,” Luca replied confidently. As long as she checked Hera’s pulse, sh
“There are a lot of issues.” Luca did not hide anything and handed Hera the phone.Hera looked at it and frowned.“I can't understand any of this.” Hera felt dizzy just looking at the text, let alone the long list of medical terms. It was giving her a headache.“Look at these summaries and indicators. Compare the values on top with the normal values at the bottom, and you'll see what I mean,” explained Luca.Hera did not trust her. Therefore, Luca decided to let her see for herself. Seeing it with her own eyes would prevent any doubts later.Luca pointed out how to read the test results, and after a moment, Hera managed to understand the report. Her face turned pale. “How can there be so many problems?”She looked at Luca and questioned, “Did you fake this?”“I don’t have the power to make the medical center fake anything. Besides, the report has the medical center’s official stamp. If you don’t believe me, you can go directly to the medical center and ask for the official cop
“I heard from the boss that he's coming because of Vivian.” Gale paused for a moment before adding, “But never mind, you don't seem interested in her affairs anyway. I'm just letting you know he's on his way.”Gordan frowned. Ray was coming for Vivian?What could that ugly woman possibly need?“What do you mean by that?” asked Gordan.Gale smirked. “If you and Ray meet, that’s bound to end in a fight. And since you can't win against him, you might want to mentally prepare yourself, or better yet, find somewhere else to stay. It’d be safer that way.”Gordan's expression darkened. “If you have nothing nice to say, just zip it.”Gale grinned, clearly pleased with himself like he had just hit a sore spot.Gordan exhaled sharply. “Of all times, why is he coming to A City now? He’s just making things worse.”“It can't be helped. Vivian's situation is urgent.” Gale covered his mouth mockingly after he said that. “Oh, right. I forgot you don’t like hearing about her.”Ray wanted to br
Luke sat in the villa, staring at Luca’s message.He was worried.For a moment, he considered calling her, but then he remembered that there were surveillance cameras everywhere on her side. He dismissed the idea immediately.Her safety came first.Luke reminded her: [Take care of yourself. Don’t worry, I’ll handle everything. Just focus on keeping yourself safe.] The worry in his heart refused to subside, but at this moment, there was no better solution.“Boss, you’re worried about your wife, huh? If you really can’t stand it, we can sneak you in again during the next shift change, just like last time,” said Gale.It had been his idea last time.Now, the real Lucius was still locked up in the basement of the villa.It had been nearly a month. Luke had forced him to take the antidote Luca had recreated. The man was still alive, proving the antidote worked perfectly.“That plan is too risky.” Luke put his phone away. His gaze was dark and thoughtful.“Risky, sure. But at lea
Luca had not expected Abel and Shanks’ relationship to be like this.It seemed Abel still did not trust Shanks.Shanks continued, “Abel isn’t someone who trusts people easily. He doesn’t trust anyone. You think he’s devoted to Kassy now, right? That’s just his obsession. He's allowing Kassy to receive my treatment, but if it were him… No matter if he were blind or crippled, his safety would always come first. If he were seriously injured, maybe he’d accept treatment, but he definitely wouldn’t do it right away.”Luca stayed silent. Shanks really understood Abel well.Abel did not trust anyone—not even Kassy.Calling him paranoid would not be an exaggeration.Luca felt like they were getting off-topic, but she had never seen this side of Shanks before.In her mind, he was always buried in his work at the lab, only leaving for meals and sleep. Other than that, he was practically never outside.The lab was like his home…“Are you troubled by Hera’s situation?” Luca asked directly
Hera was startled by Luca's words.The refusal that had been on the tip of her tongue suddenly got stuck in her throat.“I…” Hera hesitated, feeling conflicted. Leaving Abel might not be such a bad idea. At least she would not have to live in constant fear.She was finally realizing how unpredictable his moods were. At first, she thought it did not matter as she could still look at other men. She just had to ensure there was no physical contact. In reality, even if she so much as glanced at someone, Abel's expression would darken with anger.It was frustrating. Now, the only person she was allowed to look at was Gerald. Still, what was the point of just looking at Gerald?At that thought, she lifted her gaze to Luca.Luca added, “I’ll give you five minutes. If you refuse treatment after that, I’ll take the medicine back to Mr. Shanks and won’t try to convince you again.”Hera's heart tightened. She did not even need five minutes. She had made her decision within 30 seconds.“I’
“If Abel finds out that Hera's body isn't suitable for organ donation to Kassy, what do you think he'll do?” asked Shanks.He already knew the answer, but he still wanted to hear Luca’s thoughts.“He has invested a lot of time and money in Hera. If he gets nothing out of it, he won’t let her off easily,” Luca said bluntly.Luca and Shanks were on the same page.They did not have a good relationship with Hera, but they had no intention of ruining her either.Hera’s personality was unpleasant, but that was not enough for them to hate her so much that they wanted to see her suffer.“What methods do you think he’ll use?” Shanks asked again.Luca was silent for a long moment.Shanks already knew the answer, yet he still wanted her to say it out loud.After thinking it over, she finally said, “There are plenty of ways he could go about it, but no matter what he chooses, Hera’s fate is sealed. She’s as good as dead…”She lowered her gaze, her tone firm and certain.Shanks nodded.