"The hotel covers a wide range of services. It’s humanized. I don't want to trouble Mr. Crawford." Step by step, Luca felt like she was falling into Abel's plan. What made her want to cry was that Abel and Johann were both contributing to it.Johann’s intentions were kind but they were bad news for her...Johann saw that she was unwilling to budge, and Luke did not speak. Hence, he continued talking, "Where’s the trouble? Right, Mr. Crawford?"Luke stared at him coldly and asked, "Can she be discharged?"Johann cursed at Luke in his heart for ignoring his goodwill when Luke did not answer his question and asked about something else instead. Johann smiled and said, "Okay, I'll issue a receipt and she can leave after settling the bill."After he said that, he turned around and left. At this point, the two sides were unwilling to make a move and he could not do much as a bystander.Luca heard that she had to make a payment. She looked up at Luke and asked, "Mr. Crawford, have you se
Luca wondered if she could go to a smaller hotel and check in with Luke's ID.After all, the management of small hotels was not as strict. She could get a room even if she did not have her ID card.Luca lowered her head and wanted to find a small hotel nearby but suddenly felt dizzy.Her concussion symptoms were not completely gone.Luke noticed her actions and said in a breezy tone, "Stop moving around."The feeling of dizziness made her uncomfortable, so Luca did not dare to move. She obediently leaned on the passenger’s seat and looked ahead. She was afraid that she might faint in the car so she did not even dare to look out of the car window.Luke drove the car to a community near T Corporation.Luca knew that this community was developed by T Corporation and Luke had an apartment there.She had no choice but to go along with Luke's arrangement.The car entered the apartment building and Luke drove to the parking lot downstairs. After he parked the car, he took out the whe
Luke was never short of money but Luca was being so serious about keeping track of everything he spent on her. The maid knew that the relationship they had was anything but romantic. She agreed to Luca’s request. "Okay, Ms. Luca. Is there anything else you want me to buy?""That’s it, thank you," Luca replied politely without any tone of ordering the maid around.The maid felt comfortable to be treated as such. There were many things to buy and she thought of helping Luca settle in, so she asked, "Ms. Luca, do you want to go to the mall together?""No, I want to rest." Luca turned her down.The maid said, "Okay, is there anything I can help with now? I don't think it’s very convenient for you to move around..."She saw that Luca had no other wounds except for the gauze on her forehead, so she thought that Luca was paralyzed..."It's okay, I have a concussion and can’t move around too much. I’ll just sit in the wheelchair," Luca said.Upon hearing it was a concussion, the maid no
That was an important discovery. The shopping bags on the table were solid proof that Luca's statement did not reflect the reality of the situation. Gale was concerned about Luke's safety. He asked, "Should I continue to investigate this, Boss?" They had been investigating Luca for a long time. However, they had shifted their focus onto Tia recently, and they had not been paying much attention to Luca. Now that something so serious had happened, Gale considered shifting his focus back to Luca because he could not shake off his suspicion toward Luca. "Yes. Split up with Rain. Let her continue to investigate Tia," Luke said. After this incident, Luke could sense that Luca was planning something. More importantly, it was a plan to get closer to him. Gale nodded and said, "We don't know Luca's plan yet, Boss. Why don't you stay away from her for now?" He made the suggestion because he was worried about Luke's safety. However, Luke said, "No. I'll have to play into her pla
Luca smirked as a response to the maid. After the news report ended, the maid said, "What has the world come to? I don't think the security guard expected to lose his life while doing his job. I think the owner of the apartment is unlucky too. Now, no one would want to stay there." Luca felt uneasy as she listened to the maid's words. It was not because she was currently living in that apartment, but because she felt guilty about what happened to the security guard. She was not the one who killed the security guard, but he died because of her. Luca tried to stand up from the couch. The maid immediately went over to support her. "Ms. Craw, do you want to return to your room?" "Mm. I'm feeling a little tired. I want to take a rest," Luca said. The maid brought her back to the bedroom. As Luca lay on the bed, the news report earlier replayed in her head. The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. She picked up her phone and searched for any news regarding t
Luca sighed, picked up her phone, and unlocked it. She felt a tightness in her chest when she saw that news article again. When Luca woke up the next day, she gently wagged her head and found that she did not feel dizzy anymore. Even though Abel had knocked her out, he did not leave her with an internal injury, and she was able to recover quickly. She faced the mirror and began to remove the bandages around her head. The bandages were quite a bother, so she only put a band-aid over the wound. "You're awake, Ms. Craw!" The maid was about to call Luca for breakfast, but when she went into the bedroom, she found that Luca was already awake. Luca nodded as she placed the band-aid on the cotton gauze. "Are you dressing your wound? Do you need any help?" The maid asked. "Don't worry. I've already changed it," Luca carefully ensured that the band-aid was stuck firmly to her forehead. She looked at her face in the mirror and realized that her complexion was terrible. "Are you f
"Why do you want to stay in a hotel? Isn't it better to stay in the apartment? Mr. Crawford has specially made arrangements for you. I can also take care of you while you're recuperating," the maid said after hearing that Luca wanted to move to a hotel. Luke had told the maid to prepare Luca's daily supplements with the ingredients in the kitchen cabinet. Luca smiled and said, "I don't think it's very appropriate. I'm feeling a lot better now, and I don't need anyone to take care of me." The maid smiled and said nothing. If Luca stayed there, the maid would be slightly busier. If she did not, Luke would not blame the maid either. After all, Luke did not have time to care for petty matters. A while later, the police officer came back and said, "Pardon me. Your briefcase has been sent to the forensics department, and the investigation is still ongoing, so I can't return the documents to you yet. We'll call you in two days so that you can pick up the documents." Luca felt a li
Tommy shook his head and said insistently, "You should stay here, Ms. Luca. Daddy said that you can stay here for as long as you want. It's okay." Luke owned many properties, and many people could stay there for as long as they wanted, but she did not want to stay there. Luca could only try to appease the child for now. "By the way, you must be hungry, right? Let's have dinner." Tommy's eyes sparkled when Luca mentioned food, and he forgot that he was halfway convincing Luca. He rubbed his stomach and said, "Yes, Ms. Luca, I'm hungry. What's for dinner tonight?" Luke stood some distance away and watched the exchange between Luca and Tommy. He was a little disappointed that Tommy had forgotten about the important matter. It seemed that Luca knew exactly what Tommy liked. The boy would forget about everything else once someone mentioned food. However, Luke did not reprimand the boy. After all, he was still only a child. Luca was secretly glad that she managed to shift the c
“As long as he stays out of your sight, I won’t make a move,” said Ray.If Gordan were not one of Luke’s pals, he would have been long gone.Anyone who dared to mess with someone Ray cherished would not be let off easily. The only reason Gordan was still breathing was thanks to Luke.“Alright, Ray. Just let it go. I’ve moved on and started a new life. Plus, I’m studying at Capital University. We have mutual friends, so running into him is inevitable. If that happens, we’ll just be strangers. There’s no need to step in for me or act impulsively.” Just as Vivian finished speaking, the doorbell rang.“Is it the clothes delivery?” asked Ray.“No, while you were talking with Mr. Crawford, I asked someone to buy some medicinal cream. The ones here work better than the ones in Russia. A little massage with it should help you heal faster,” Vivian said, grabbing a mask and hat before heading to the door.“Miss, is the boss alright?” asked one of Ray’s subordinates.“He’s fine. Did you ge
When Ray heard that there was a 90% chance of success, he could not help but ask, “Can you walk me through your plan?”“The prison where Kassy is being held actually has an underground passage. I’ve already spoken with the prison officials, and we can use that passage to transport her out. It connects to the sewage system, which leads directly to another detention facility. "The only catch is that this facility’s underground pipes don’t connect to the outside world, so the remaining 10% risk lies in moving Kassy onto the main road and securing her at the new location.“This whole operation can be done without anyone noticing, which is why I’m confident it’ll work.” As Luke explained, he pulled out a detailed map of the sewer system. “Here’s the layout I had someone retrieve. This is the starting point, and this is the destination. If we take this route, we can move Kassy without alerting Abel’s people.”Abel’s men were keeping a constant watch outside the prison now. That was prec
Luke had no idea what kind of mindset the person who poisoned Vivian had. However, he found Gordan’s current behavior quite intriguing.“Luke, what’s with that look?” Gordan felt uneasy under his gaze.“You seem pretty concerned about Vivian,” Luke leaned back on the couch and said thoughtfully.Gordan froze for a moment before laughing it off. “What? No way! Why would I care about her? Come on, Luke, don’t say stuff like that. If she hears it, she might start getting ideas.”Luke could not be bothered to expose his act and got straight to the point. “Why are you here?”“Speaking of that, I almost got sidetracked by that woman.” Gordan quickly pulled out his phone, grimacing. “Man, Ray really didn’t hold back. I need to get some treatment for these bruises later.”Luke took the phone and tried to unlock it. It needed a passcode. He handed it back. “Unlock it.”“All set, boss.” Gordan unlocked the phone and went back to pressing an ice pack against his face.Luke scanned the scr
It was the sound of a body slamming onto the ground.Gordan’s furious curses rang out. “Damn it! You're really going all out, huh? Do you think I'm scared of you?”Another loud thud followed.Vivian frowned. What the hell were they doing? Were they really going to fight until one of them won?Both of them were skilled fighters. If they kept this up, neither would walk away unscathed.“Enough!” shouted Vivian.The two men locked in the fight froze for a moment.“Vivian, stay out of this. I’m beating him to a pulp today,” growled Ray, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. He was not in great shape, but neither was Gordan.“Ray, I don’t want to see him,” said Vivian. She did not want Ray fighting him. It was not to protect Gordan but because she did not want Ray getting hurt.Also, she definitely did not want Gordan to see her like this. She could already picture his smug face, his sarcastic remarks and his gloating.“Fine. If you don’t want to see him, I’ll just beat
After returning to the hotel from the hospital, Vivian felt much better.To her, the fact that Ray had taken her to the hospital meant there was hope for the future, which lifted her spirits. She picked up an apple from the fruit platter the hotel had provided and took a bite.“Ray, this apple is really good. Want to try one?” asked Vivian.Ray shook his head. “You go ahead. By the way, can I take a look at the luggage you brought from Russia?”Vivian nodded. “I only hung up my clothes. Everything else is still in the suitcase. You can just take the things out.”Ray walked into the bedroom, pulled out her suitcase, and opened it. Inside were just books and a few other small items, nothing unusual.“You didn't bring any food with you?” asked Ray.“I haven’t really been in the mood, but the food here is way better than Russian food, so I didn't feel the need to bring anything.” Vivian’s tone was lighthearted now that she was in a better mood.“That's true.” Ray agreed, then asked
Ray's tone turned serious. “Alright, I'll make the arrangements immediately. Dr. Craw, once the toxicology report is out, we’ll still need your help.”“For toxicology cases like this, I recommend combining both modern medicine and traditional herbal medicine. Don’t worry, if I can help, I definitely will,” Luca assured him.“Alright, thank you.” Ray expressed his gratitude and ended the call before updating Luke on the situation.Luke reassured him, saying, “If Vivian was really poisoned, don’t worry. Previously, Luca discovered that her biological mother had been poisoned with a slow-acting toxin. She prescribed herbal medicine and used purely traditional herbal medicine to detoxify her. It didn’t take long for all the toxins to be expelled, and her health fully recovered. So, rest assured. If it’s something she can fix, she’ll do everything she can.“Besides, once we identify the exact problem, the doctors will be able to step in and help, right?”“Yes. Thank you both in advance
Gerald walked over. “Ms. Sanchez, what's wrong?”He was eager to get back upstairs and stash his cigarettes before someone noticed and took them.Hera yanked open his bag, glanced at the cigarette brand, and scoffed. “I thought it was some expensive brand. But it's just this? And you’re acting all deferential to her over this?”Gerald was rendered speechless. “I knew Ms. Craw was going out, so I asked her to bring these back for me. This is the brand I’m used to. Maybe it’s not expensive to you, but for me, it’s what I can afford.”Realizing she had misspoken, Hera felt a bit awkward. She quickly changed the topic. “Still, is a pack of cigarettes really worth you being so grateful to Luca? How much could it have cost?”“It’s not about the money,” replied Gerald. “It's just a nice surprise. I never expected to get anything out of helping Ms. Craw, and this kind of unexpected gift has nothing to do with the price. Besides, I'm not being overly grateful. I'm just happy.”He was ba
Luca’s lips were already swollen and flushed from Luke's kisses.That deep shade of red, reflected in Luke’s eyes, was utterly captivating. It tugged at his nerves, stirring an uncontrollable desire within him.At that moment, he had only one thought, and it was to completely lose himself in her.…The two of them stepped out of the bedroom.Vivian quickly turned her back and greeted Luke when he saw him coming out, “Hello, Mr. Crawford.”“Vivian, don’t worry. Everything will get better,” replied Luke.Vivian simply hummed in response.Ray gave them a grateful nod as Luke took Luca’s hand and led her away.It was only after hearing the door close that Vivian finally turned back around.Ray glanced at her and said, “Vivian, they’re your friends. You don’t have to act this way around them. They won’t judge you.”“I know they won’t…” Vivian let out a soft sigh. “I just feel like I look terrifying right now. I didn’t want to scare them, so I avoided facing them directly. But it’
“I once treated someone who had been slowly poisoned over a long period of time. Their pulse was similar to Vivian’s. Given that your family has good genetics, yet Vivian is different from the rest of you, and her skin improved after leaving her original environment, all of this confirms my suspicion.“Could it be that someone in your family has been poisoning Vivian? That would explain why her skin ended up like this.”“If she really has been poisoned, then would staying away from that environment or identifying the person responsible help her get better?” asked Ray.Luca shook her head.“The poison I’ve encountered before was a slow-acting toxin that kept the victim’s skin dark. I don’t know exactly what it was, but long-term exposure to any poison has an effect on the body. It's just a suspicion now. I need to consult someone I know. And honestly, I can’t be sure what’s really causing Vivian’s condition.“Is her skin deteriorating so quickly because she was poisoned once more a