Luca stopped moving when she sensed Tommy's reaction. She continued to pat Tommy's back. The caretaker yawned and went to take her position on the other bed. Luke turned off the lights. The only source of illumination in the room was a small table lamp next to the couch. Luca slowly dozed off as she listened to the child's even breathing. She let her guard down, even though Luke was still observing her. A while later, she sensed that the child's body temperature was beginning to rise. She placed Tommy on the bed and sat up straight. The table lamp near the couch cast a long shadow from behind her, and she could not see Tommy clearly, so she turned on the bedside lamp. Tommy's face was a much redder color. His fever had returned. Luke noticed her movements and asked her, "What's wrong?" "Tommy's fever is back." Luca rang the bell. Dr. Blake and the nurse quickly came into the room. "Is Tommy having a fever again?" Dr. Blake asked and inserted a thermometer in the child
After breakfast, the hospital corridors began to fill up with people. Luca guessed that the results of the bacteria culture test should be out by any time now. As expected, Johann came to the room half an hour later with the report in his hands. "I've read the report. Indeed, Tommy's fever is caused by a bacterial infection," he said. Luke frowned when he heard that. That must be Bianca's going. The child did not have any external injuries, and he only ate the food from Crawford Manor. There was no other way he could have gotten a bacterial infection. Thinking of what Bianca told him earlier, he realized that it was not a lie for him to free her. He had always believed what Bianca said. That was why he had asked Johann to treat Tommy's illness to be something more than a regular fever. There was no other reason why Bianca could so accurately predict Tommy's fever even though she was confined in the mansion… "I have to say that this is a rare bacteria in this region becaus
"How could she do that…" Amur said while clenching his fists. Even though he did not want Luca interacting with the children too often, he could not help but be angry at what Bianca had done to Tommy. That reminded him of what Abel did many years ago. To quickly expand his influence, Abel attacked several nearby villages and abducted their inhabitants. Anyone who was not fit enough to be a mercenary would become an experimental subject, and no one cared if they lived or died. Abel was physically weak, and he nearly became one of those experimental subjects. Fortunately, he was still very young, and the mercenaries in charge of training them thought he still had room to grow. That was why he was spared of that fate. After he met Luca, he trained hard so that he could become stronger. Luca was angrier than he was, but she managed to control her fury. She analyzed the situation for Amur, "I'm guessing that the impostor Bianca is now held captive in Luke's mansion, and Gale and
All the researchers were in their respective laboratories performing their research to secure the next stage of funding. That was why Rhett thought that Cole would be in his laboratory rather than in his office. Seeing that Luca was so insistent, he did not say anything. Luca walked in front of the manager's office and knocked on the door. "Come in." A voice was heard from within, which made Rhett surprised. Luca opened the door and went inside, and Rhett quickly followed behind. Cole was sitting on his chair, dressed in his white lab coat. He smiled and greeted the woman in front of him, pretending that he was oblivious to what happened in Luca's laboratory. "It's you, Dr. Craw. How can I help you? Are you taking the day off again?" Luca shook her head and told him about the situation in her laboratory. Cole acted as though he was shocked after hearing what Luca had to say. "How is that possible? I hope that you're not joking, Dr. Craw. Your research is far ahead compared to
Dr. Cole waved his hand and asked Talia to leave after he heard her repeated assurance.After Talia left his office, he picked up his phone and called Jason to report on the situation. He took the opportunity to wash the problem off his hands as well. Jason did not comment after he listened to what Dr. Cole had to say. All he did was acknowledge the situation.After Dr. Cole put down the call, he touched his chin and thought about it. He could not sense anything from Jason's tone and wondered whether Luke would take Luca’s side once again.He was not entirely confident.After Luca left Dr. Cole's office, she went straight to the laboratory. The staff had already cleaned up the mess, including the broken experiment instruments."Is everything sorted out?" she asked.One of the researchers handed her a few sheets of paper and said, "Dr. Craw, we just checked and these are the data that have been wiped clean. The computer archive has been completely deleted as well and we don’t k
"Are you sure that the computer's backup data can't be repaired?" Luke asked. His tone was still calm after such a serious incident.The research progress of the new drug was disrupted, and the expected profits would be affected as well. However, he seemed to be indifferent."I’m not certain. We have to wait until the relevant technicians check on it to know for sure," Luca said. She returned to her seat and quietly moved her chair farther away. She thought that it was best she kept a distance from Luke. The farther, the better."The company is going to go through a comprehensive upgrade of the system and the team will have their hands full with that. If you know some talents who are skilled with computers, feel free to make a recommendation." Luke flipped through the data, his expression still flat.Luca smiled upon hearing his words, and she replied, "Mr. Crawford, I don't know anyone like that. Maybe you can ask the other staff and Dr. Cole."Luke was turning the page and pause
Luca's expression was calm. She moved her lips in response. Her heart was beating like a drum and she was overthinking. ‘What does he mean?’Knock, knock. When his shut office door was knocked on, Luke looked away from her face and said, "Come in."Mo came in holding a cup of coffee. She delivered the coffee following Dr. Cole's orders. The moment she opened the door, she saw Luca.She froze but quickly returned to normal. She brought the coffee to Luke, put it down, and said, "Mr. Crawford, this is your coffee."Luke glanced at the coffee and nodded. "Close the door when you leave."Mo nodded and slipped out of the office. She closed the door on her way out.The thick wooden door acted as a barrier, so she could no longer see what was happening inside.Mo fiddled with her hair in annoyance. She did not expect Luca to be in Luke's office. Dr. Cole had set her up.After Mo left, Luca changed the subject and said, "Mr. Crawford, is there anything else that you’d like to discuss
After Mo returned to the office, she notified Talia that Dr. Cole was looking for her.When she heard that, Talia walked out of her office immediately.She knew that Luca had organized a meeting but the only people who participated in the meeting were those in Luca’s research group and Dr. Cole. However, Dr. Cole did not reach out to her even after the meeting ended.Talia was very anxious and worried about what would happen, so she had been waiting for his call.She quickened her pace and ran into Luca at the elevator entrance. She was startled and greeted her with her eyes cast down. "Dr. Craw, good morning.""Good morning." Luca looked at Talia and could not help wondering if she was involved in the incident.Talia listened to her calm tone as if she was not at all anxious about what had happened. Her emotions were a little unbalanced. She asked, "Dr. Craw, I heard about what happened. If you need help, just let me know and I’ll do all that I can to help you.""Thank you for
After returning to her room, Luca told Luke about the surgery that day.She explained that she had not been able to participate in the operation and was uncertain if Abel would prevent her from being involved in the future. If she was not allowed to take part, she might lose her excuse to stay here. Also, she would not be able to help with what was to come.Luke replied to her message quickly, assuring her that everything was already planned out and she did not need to worry.Luca frowned slightly as she read his message. She wanted to ask about his plan but hesitated for a moment and decided against it. Knowing too much about Luke's men might backfire.Luca deleted their chat history but soon received another message from him.He told her that T Corporation had successfully won the bid and that he had already found someone to replace Lucius’ role.Luca let out a sigh of relief. Finding a replacement for Lucius meant that he was out of danger for now. The worry that had been we
However, Abel was not fooled by her words.He asked again, “Who are you looking for?”“Oh, I'm looking for Gerald. I've noticed that most people are here, but Gerald is missing, so I was just curious,” Hera replied honestly, knowing that Abel was naturally suspicious.“I’m starting to feel like you’ve become quite close with Gerald recently,” Abel asked suspiciously.Hera froze for a moment, then laughed and explained, “I often ask him to help with little things. He might not have many qualities, but he’s pretty diligent.”Abel did not respond right away, as though he was considering her words carefully.Hera lowered her voice and teased, “What's the matter? Are you jealous?”Before he could answer, she quickly added, “You’re so outstanding. How could I ever be interested in some ordinary man?”As soon as she said that, a flicker of unease crossed her mind.Abel was far superior to Lucius in looks and wealth. However, she seemed to be more drawn to Lucius.Despite her actions
For Shanks, no matter how skilled the two ophthalmologists were, they could not compare to Luca. The key was their smooth coordination. They were used to working together. If it were other doctors, they would probably start asking questions once they entered the operating room, making it impossible for Shanks to focus and perform the surgery calmly.Shanks believed this was a groundbreaking procedure, not just another teaching surgery for ophthalmologists.Abel understood Shanks’ concerns, but he still insisted, “They’re not just any doctors. They’ve signed agreements, and they won’t interrupt you with questions during the surgery. They’ll cooperate fully.”As Luca listened to Abel, she realized what he was really worried about. Besides the risk of the surgery failing, he was not confident in her.This surgery was important, and Abel was worried she might sabotage it in the operating room.Shanks furrowed his brows and looked at Luca.Luca gave him a faint smile. Whether or not
As Gerald shook his head furiously, it was not difficult for Luca to figure out what was going on.She glanced at Hera's irritation and figured it all stemmed from Luke being reassigned. Not being able to see him was clearly driving her to act like this.Luca secretly let out a sigh. They said women were the cause of trouble, but honestly, men could just be the same.Even with Luke disguised as an ordinary man, his cold and commanding air still captivated Hera.She glanced at the bowl nearby. The food Gerald brought Hera was barely touched.It seemed like she was so consumed with thoughts of Luke that she had lost her appetite...Luca’s expression remained unchanged. She was long accustomed to keeping her emotions in check around others.“Ms. Sanchez, you’ve misunderstood. I’m not close with Mr. Lucius, so I don’t have his contact information.” Luca kept her face impassive.“You’re lying!” Hera narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “You’re so close to him. How could you not have it?”
As soon as Luca returned to her bedroom after dinner, she received a video call request from the kids.It had been a long time since she last saw them. When she saw the call request, she locked the door, put on her headphones, and immediately answered.“Ms. Luca!” As soon as the call connected, the faces of all three kids appeared on the phone screen.“Sweethearts!” Luca blew them a kiss.“Ms. Luca, we miss you so much!” Tommy was the first to express how much they missed Luca.Luca's heart stirred with waves of longing when she heard them. She had been so busy recently, hoping to finish everything here quickly so that she and Luke could reunite with the kids. That was why she had not contacted them much.Plus, with Old Master Crawford taking care of them, she felt at ease.Now that Luca saw the faces of the three kids, her longing for them instantly surged and overwhelmed her.Her eyes reddened. “I miss you all so much too.”Rainie, always the thoughtful one, noticed her em
The men in the room were wincing in pain, but when they heard Gerald’s words, they were so furious they almost wanted to lash out at him. However, all their strength had been sapped by the excruciating pain, so they could only groan helplessly.As Shanks made his way upstairs, he paused halfway up the staircase and asked, “Is Luca cooking?”Gerald glanced at the kitchen and replied, “Yes, Mr. Shanks. It’s their fault. Ms. Craw was delayed in making dinner because of them.”Shanks' expression remained unchanged as he simply said, “Let me know when it's ready.”“Yes,” answered Gerald.After Shanks went upstairs, Gerald hesitated for a moment but decided to help the men to their feet, placing them one by one on the couch or chairs. As they slouched, groaning in pain, Gerald shook his head. “Do you guys now understand what happens when you mess with the wrong woman, especially Ms. Craw?”One of the men winced and asked, “Why did she have to be so brutal when throwing down?”“She
Lucius was different.He did not care about getting close to anyone, whether man or woman. Even when Hera’s attempts to seduce him were blatantly obvious, he still remained unmoved and even showed signs of rejection.Gerald could not help but marvel at Luca’s sharp observations and incisive remarks. He could not help but clap his hands lightly, genuinely impressed.“Lucius truly is exceptional,” said Gerald.Luca came downstairs.When she took the last step off the stairs, the men in the living room immediately fell silent.They held their breath as they watched the woman in front of them. Her hair was straight, not like their boss' companion.The men's gazes grew intense.Luca’s expression darkened.Gerald stood beside her and said, “See, I told you—you’re like a piece of meat dropped into a pack of wolves. Be careful.”One of the men heard Gerald and asked unhappily, “Hey, kid, what are you saying? What wolves? We’re gentlemen. We’d never dream of doing anything inappropr
When Gerald heard this, his face fell. “Huh? Ms. Craw, you're not cooking anymore?”Luca said nothing. Luke had already left with the others. She turned her gaze back before walking inside.Gerald realized that Luca had only been cooking breakfast because of Lucius. The thought puzzled him. Had they taken a liking to each other from the very start? That did not seem right.In this fast-paced modern world, even if they had, using something as old-fashioned as cooking to win someone over did not add up.Still, the timing was too coincidental to ignore. Luca started cooking for everyone when Lucius arrived, and she stopped as soon as he left. That realization gave Gerald an eerie feeling.Thinking they might have known each other back on the island, it all suddenly made sense. Of course! They must have met before. How else could this all line up so perfectly?With that thought, Gerald quickly caught up with Luca. “Ms. Craw, my cooking is terrible. Why don’t you keep doing it?”
Kassy’s eye donor was Hera, the one Abel had brought over.Even though Hera’s eyes resembled Kassy’s, they did not meet the criteria for a transplant. However, Hera’s blood type matched Kassy’s exactly.Hence, Abel decided to use Hera’s eyes. His belief was that her eyes were specifically meant for Kassy.Shanks knew he would not be able to change Abel’s mind, so he did not try. Abel’s stubbornness was something even Kassy herself could not sway.Luca remained silent for a while, not saying anything further. She understood that using a cadaver was the best option as it would not harm anyone.However, the eyes Abel wanted for Kassy were not from a cadaver. He intended to take them from Hera.Luca certainly would not participate in such a surgery. It was too cruel.“What are you thinking?” Shanks suddenly asked.Luca shook her head. “I’m just thinking about the volunteer’s situation.”“You’re wondering if this solution will be marketed, aren’t you?” Shanks suddenly asked.L