"Aunt Bea..."Bianca heard a voice and looked up.It was Lanie.The Tanner family even invited the Crawford family…The interior design of the private hall was luxurious. The round table was seated fully around. She knew some of them while the others were strangers. The table was also full of expensive dishes and famous wines.Rainie's little pink chubby face emerged from the desserts.Her eyes inevitably swept over to the man’s suddenly darkened face. Bianca immediately felt as if dark clouds were pressing down on her. She lowered her head and tried to pull her hand out of Xavier's big hand.Not only did Xavier not let go of her, but he also pulled a chair out while still having his arms around her. He said, "Sit next to my mom."The colors of the two marriage certificates were dazzling. They were as red as two big pools of mosquito blood."From now on, we’re a family, Bea. Don't be scared. No matter what, I’ll always be there as your mother.”Grandaunt said those words spec
When Luke's eyes fell on her, there were no obvious reactions.Just when she was at a loss and did not know whether to exit or stay, he frowned and put out the cigarette butt in the ashtray. He took his phone, got up, and left the huge conference room.The meeting room had two doors.He walked through the other door.Bianca stood there for a long, long time before she remembered what she was there for.She turned on the machine and turned down the volume. After putting on the headset, she then looked at the meeting content displayed on the projection screen. She jotted down the key points while she watched the recording, her fingers typing away on her laptop’s keyboard in front of her.After recording down the content of the previous meeting, it was already past three in the afternoon when Bianca went back down.Sue had been waiting for her for a long time.When she saw Bianca, Sue thoughtfully placed a cup of coffee on her table. "I heard from Jason that you’ve found your gran
The Tanner family’s manor.Daniel stood on the balcony on the second floor, currently in a bad mood.Mrs. Tanner went upstairs and took a long time before she found her husband."So what are you going to do?” Mrs. Tanner knew her husband's temper. Usually, he was calm, but his son always managed to push him to the edge.After all, she was the one who gave birth to her son. No matter how much of a jerk he was, she still wanted to protect him as his mother.Mr. Tanner snorted. "When your son comes back, let's see what reasonable explanation he’ll give Old Master Crawford.”Mrs. Tanner was anxious. "Isn't this obvious? What explanation do we still need? Don't you understand your son? The most important thing right now isn’t to listen to our son’s explanation but to think of a countermeasure to calm Old Master Crawford down from his anger!"As his parents, they knew their son’s thoughts and ways best.They thought it was strange that their son had suddenly announced his marriage an
Luke stood at the door.She was not sure if the man was standing there intentionally, but her way out was blocked. There was just a door, but his body was firmly blocking the way…Allison sat on the sofa and remained silent. She let the Tanner family speak first. Her brother had the first say, then her sister-in-law could add on. On the Crawfords’ side, she had Old Master Crawford.She did not have the place to speak at all.That moment, her son, who was the head of their household, came over.Everyone who was human in the living room did not speak.Allison wanted to move things on faster. No one wanted to get rid of Bianca more than she did.In the end, she could not help it anymore. Allison got up from the sofa and walked to the door to take Blanche over. At the same time, she said to the two people who were blocking the doorway. "Sit down. Xavier should be back soon.""Grandpa called me over. What's the matter?" Luke's calm voice sounded. He heeded his mother’s words, went t
Bianca looked up and saw Xavier."How’s Grandpa doing?" Xavier did not disturb Bianca and the little guy. He walked straight toward the front of the bed.No one answered his question.Bianca instinctively put her guard up. The little guy at her feet held her thigh and raised his head. He mouthed without making any noise, “Don’t be scared, Aunt Bea. Daddy will be back soon.”Xavier sat in front of the bed and looked at the old man with the scabs on his face. He could not help but feel resentful. How could those people hurt the old man like that?However, if he had not been hurt, Xavier would not have been able to force Bianca to obey him.After thinking about it, he started to have an internal struggle. ‘Is it wrong to do whatever it takes to achieve my goal? Or is it human nature to do so? If you’re not ruthless, you’ll miss out a lot.’Grandpa woke up.He weakly asked, "Xavier, you’re here?""Grandpa." Bianca came over and hurriedly put a pillow behind Grandpa's head.Xavier
Luke’s brows furrowed slightly, his dignified expression still a little upset. She knew why he was feeling upset."Can you show some respect?" Bianca pulled out her hand to avoid any more unnecessary touching.Out of her expectation, the man gripped her wrist even tighter the very next moment.Luke's deep and piercingly cold gaze was chilling as he looked at her flickering eyes. "How do I show my respect to you? Should I address you as my cousin-in-law?”His tone was sarcastic and cold.Bianca was once again annoyed by his words. "If that’s what you want to call me, I don't mind."Just when the man was on the verge of breaking her wrist, Grandpa said, “Bea, have you packed the kid’s school bag?”Bianca could not say anything from the pain she was feeling. Her wrist would have broken if he had not loosened his grip.Luke's cannibalistic appearance was reflected in her misty eyes. She lowered her head, gritted her teeth silently, and broke away from his grip..."Say goodbye to G
Faye crossed the road.Bianca stared at Faye who was more than ten meters away. The woman then crossed the road from another crosswalk...Bianca did not cross the crosswalk to get to work, but she was sneakily following Faye…Her work, her project, and everything else became unimportant at that moment.‘Bianca, why are you doing this?’As she walked, she interrogated herself.In the end, however, she could not get a real answer.She refused to admit to herself that she actually wanted to see the kid that she gave birth to last time, even if it was only one look. That was why she subconsciously followed Faye and tried to find more information about the kid from last time.Faye crossed the road and walked straight to the T Corporation building.Bianca looked up at the company logo and frowned.‘What was Faye doing here?’In such a short time, she could not think of an exact answer.Bianca followed Faye into the company. When she passed through the revolving doors, she deliber
"The department head of the design team told me that there’s a newcomer in their department called Bianca Rayne. I heard that Bianca’s hometown is located in the town where our project is going to be developed. I wanted to learn more about the customs of the town from her at the meeting, but her team leader said that she didn't come to work..." After the senior officer finished speaking, the officer looked up at the boss.After observing the boss, he found that his boss did not look annoyed. On the contrary, there was a faint smile on his face.A fleeting smile.After working at T Corporation for many years, it was the first time he saw the boss smile… Furthermore, it was because a subordinate was absent from work for no reason.Luke's sharp eyes rested on the town's design drawings.He was not surprised that Bianca did not come to work.…At the subway station.Bianca bought a ticket and went in.Not far ahead, Faye led the two little kids and they stood together while they w
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
“I’m still a bit worried. Let me take a look in your room and change the dressing while I’m at it.” Luca knew Luke would not want her to worry. Therefore, she needed to see for herself that everything was fine before she could feel at ease.“Alright.” Luke knew she was worried about him, so the two of them headed into the room.He took off his shirt, revealing the bandage wrapped around his torso.Luca could not help but chuckle at the sight. The wrapping was done by Gerald, and it was hilariously sloppy. It was haphazardly bound—overly tight in some places and entirely uneven. It looked like it was just meant to cover the wounds, with no thought for neatness.“Stop laughing.” Luke was clearly rendered speechless by Gerald’s lackluster bandaging skills as well.If it were not for the fact that it was difficult to bandage himself, he would never have let Gerald do it.“With it wrapped like this, how are you supposed to sleep at night?” Luca asked as she began unwrapping the ba
Abel chuckled. His voice was low and gravelly.“Hera, let’s agree on something. Don’t use threats of leaving to manipulate me anymore, or I won’t be happy,” said Abel in a low voice.What might have sounded like a plea or a compromise came across to Hera as a veiled threat.The cool sensation of his fingers brushed against her eyelids, and she could not help but shiver. His touch felt as cold as death itself. She could not feel a trace of warmth.Her hands clenched tightly together. The tension in her grip was the only thing keeping her from trembling further.“Alright,” Hera murmured obediently.Abel withdrew his hand. Hera opened her eyes. A strange unease stirred within her. For reasons she could not quite explain, Abel’s behavior filled her with an unsettling dread…“Will you stay at the hospital with me tonight?” Hera could not help but crave some semblance of comfort.Abel frowned slightly. “Stay here with you? And what about Luca?”“You could just send her home. I onl
Luca's expression was serious, and Hera realized she was not just trying to scare her. Ignoring her warnings had already caused her to suffer once.Unwillingly, Hera sipped on the cereal. Her resentment was evident in every movement.Luca noticed it was not difficult for her to handle. She quietly sat down and ate her own bowl of cereal.Hera did not have much of an appetite.Hera took a couple of bites before growing bored. She glanced at Luca and asked, “How did you end up working for Abel?”Luca did not respond. She calmly blew on her cereal and ate in silence, showing no intention of engaging in conversation.“I’m talking to you. Are you deaf?” snapped Hera.Luca lifted her gaze briefly and replied, “You should finish your cereal before it gets cold.”“I’m not even hungry.” Hera really had no appetite and was not planning to eat the cereal.“It’s still better if you eat something. Otherwise, when hunger strikes later, don’t expect me to help you,” said Luca, “I’m only he
Luke had never taken the medicine that could speed up healing, so his recovery was nowhere near as fast as the others from the Island of Despair.Luca did not respond to Gerald’s comment. Her gaze fixed on him with intensity.“No stitches,” said Luke, “I trust you.”Luca bit her lower lip.“But if you don’t stitch it, it might tear open,” insisted Gerald, staring at Luke’s wounds.Luke glanced at his injuries and shrugged, seemingly unconcerned, as though the wounds had nothing to do with Luca.“Stitches will leave scars.”“Are you afraid of scars? What kind of man doesn’t have a few scars on him? Scars are a symbol of manhood,” teased Gerald with a playful tone, “Scars show you’re reliable, that you can protect a woman.”Luke gave him a look as though he were an idiot, then his gaze shifted to Luca. “I don’t want too many scars. I’m worried my future wife might dislike them.”Luca’s heart sank at his words, but his lighthearted remark eased her sadness. Despite the severity
Luca could not help but tremble with heartache. She fought hard to resist the urge to rush forward.Everyone in the room had survived brutal training to make it out of the Island of Despair, and they could not help but shudder when they saw the scene. The sound of the whip felt like it was landing on their own bodies.Gerald closed his eyes, unable to watch any longer. It was too cruel for him to watch.The ten lashes felt like an eternity, stretching on for what seemed like a century.Luca looked at the drenched clothes on Luke. His eyes were red, and his shirt was so soaked that you could wring out the blood from it. Her hands were clenched so tightly into fists that the veins were bulging.Abel tossed the whip aside, looking at Luke’s disheveled state with satisfaction. He enjoyed the thrill of this bloody scene.He turned to Luca, noticing her reddened eyes, and smiled even more devilishly. “Hera is in the hospital now. You’ll go take care of her for the next few da
Luca instantly understood the situation. It was about Hera.Hera was someone Abel valued, possibly as a future corneal donor for Kassy. While Abel might not love Hera now, he certainly took her health seriously.In a calm tone, Luca explained, “She was hospitalized due to inflammation that caused a fever.”Abel furiously flung his half-smoked cigar at her. The glowing embers singed her clothes, leaving a small burn mark.She instinctively stepped aside.Abel roared, “What kind of care is this?! I told you to look after her! Is this how you handle things?”Luca was perplexed. When did he ever tell her to look after Hera?Besides, she did take care of her.”When Ms. Sanchez fainted last night, she already had a low-grade fever. I diagnosed her condition as inflammation and prescribed anti-inflammatory and fever-reducing medication. I also emphasized that she needed to take oral anti-inflammatory drugs. She didn’t trust me and threw out Mr. Shanks’ medication, which led to her con
Luca placed her hand on Hera’s other wrist, checking her pulse. “Her condition is worsening. The inflammation in her body has intensified.“I prescribed her medication. Those are Mr. Shanks’ formulations, and they're highly effective for reducing inflammation. It shouldn’t be getting worse.” Gerald pursed his lips before finally speaking up. “Luca, when I was cleaning yesterday, I saw that Ms. Sanchez had thrown all the medication you prescribed into the trash. She didn’t take any of it.”Luca was speechless.She had been questioning whether the medicine was ineffective or if she had made an error in diagnosis. It turned out that it was Hera herself who had sabotaged her treatment.“What should we do now?” asked Gerald.“There’s no other option. She needs to go to a hospital,” Luca decided firmly. “Her condition is serious, and since she doesn’t trust my treatment, the hospital is her best choice.”“Can’t you help her just this once?” pleaded Gerald, “I mean, she looks really b