The next day, Luca opened her eyes as she woke up. She rubbed them.Indeed, there were tears in them.After the video call last night, she took some pills and fell asleep. She had nightmares all night. In her dreams, she was locked in a cage. When she looked out, she saw her youngest daughter, Nyla, getting tortured by Abel. She screamed and yelled in her dream, calling Luke’s name and hoping that he could save their child.However, no matter how many times she called out, Luke never showed up in her dreams. There was only the sound of her miserable shouts and Nyla’s cries. Luca clenched her fists and covered her chest with her hands. Her heart was still aching after a night of torture. “Nyla…” she called out in a soft voice. Then, she opened her phone gallery and found her child’s photos.Nyla was smiling innocently in the photos. Luca felt a sharp pain in her heart. Luca stared at the photos for a while before she kept her phone away. Today was her official first day back
“I was waiting for you.” Pierre was smoking a cigarette and sitting in the car with one of his legs on the ground. He looked lazy. The smile on Jean’s smile disappeared. Pierre was waiting for him.Jean would take different paths every day. However, Pierre had easily found him and stopped him at the junction. It clearly showed that he was capable enough to find his whereabouts.Otherwise, he would not have blocked him at this junction.“Mr. Mallory, what’s the matter?” Jean moved his motorcycle beside. He dared not to run away. Even though it was an alley and he could just turn around and escape on his motorcycle, Pierre would be able to block him again if he had already done it once. There was no way for him to escape, so he had no choice but to face Pierre.Pierre gave Jean a malicious look. Jean was trembling with fear. “Are you shaking? Am I that scary?”“No. I just feel a little cold.” Jean refused to admit that he was scared of him. "Cold?" Pierre sneered and invited
“Good.” Pierre nodded his head with satisfaction while Jean got out of the car with a depressed expression on his face. Jean was beaten up so badly that his face was all swollen up like a pig.“Mr. Mallory, your subordinate went too far.” Jean covered half of his face with his hand and cried out, “Ouch!” Pierre looked at the state Jean was in now and nodded, feeling pleased. He said, “This is good. Show Nina your face and she won’t turn you away.”Jean understood why Pierre did that. He was furious at getting beaten up, but he dared not say anything else. He had no choice but to go along with the arrangements. “Mr. Mallory, I understand what you mean now. It’s indeed a good idea.”Pierre grinned while he looked at Jean’s swollen face. “You must be feeling wronged now. Give it to him.”The subordinate heard him and threw an envelope to Jean.Jean took it and glanced inside the envelope. Money!There was lots and lots of money. It was a fat stack of cash!“Mr. Mallory, thank y
“Okay, I’ll play along with you.” Anna bucked up and agreed without a second thought. The woman beside their ward bed shook her head helplessly when she saw this. She had been in the hospital all this while and knew what their situation was.She thought the daughter of the patient beside was unfilial. After all, her daughter seldom came to the hospital to visit her mother. She finally knew the reason now. Anyone would have done the same thing. They would not want anything to do with this kind of mother and brother.Jean knew he had successfully convinced his mother. A gleam flashed across his eyes. He picked up his phone and began to put on a show. After Nina returned to her office, her phone rang. She glanced at it and saw Jean calling her. She thought for a moment. Jean must be up to no good if he was calling her. Hence, she hung up the call without a second thought.After a while, Anna called. Nina was annoyed. After Jean, it was Anna now. They must be up to something,
Anna was worried that Nina would get killed if she refused to listen to Pierre. What would happen to them if she was gone? Anna only felt assured after Jean guaranteed that Pierre would not do anything to Nina. After Nina left the ward, she did not leave the hospital immediately. Instead, she sat in the hospital’s garden, looking depressed. When Johann passed by the garden after sending off a patient who just got discharged from the hospital, he happened to run into Nina who was sitting there. He walked toward her curiously and greeted her, “Ms. Nina, what a coincidence. What brings you here?”"Oh, Dr. Park. What a coincidence," Nina greeted him gloomily. Johann noticed that something was wrong and asked, “What’s wrong? Why do you look down?” “Nothing. Do I look down? It’s probably because I didn’t sleep well last night,” replied Nina as she touched her face. “It doesn’t look like you didn’t get enough rest. You seem preoccupied. Is it because of your mother’s illness…” J
The meeting ended two hours later.Every senior manager walked out of the meeting room with a depressed look. They were keenly aware of the problems in their department after the meeting.They almost got fired because of it…Luca looked at them, feeling indifferent. Luke was serious about his work and the project. Many people intended to harm him during all these years. However, he would always pull through, and it was probably because of his serious attitude at work. “Are you tired?” Luke suddenly asked her after everyone in the meeting room had left.Luca snapped back to her senses. She quickly tidied up the recording pen and meeting papers, saying, “No.”“You’ve been typing on the keyboard all this time. Aren’t your hands sore?” Luke asked.“No. I’m used to it.” Luca finished packing everything and stood up.“Let’s go eat.” Luke invited her.Luca was startled. Was he inviting her for lunch?Where? “Mr. Crawford, I’m sorry but I brought some light food with me today,”
Luca returned to the office and placed her laptop down. As she was afraid of making Luke wait any longer, she hurried over to the elevator. Luke was standing there. Luca walked over and said, “I’m done, Mr. Crawford.” “Alright,” Luke said as he nodded and pressed the elevator button. The elevator had already arrived at that floor beforehand, so the doors immediately opened when he pressed the button. Luke walked in first, and Luca went in after him with her head lowered. When she noticed that Luke had been pressing on the door open button, she felt her heart flutter once more at how considerate he was. He only let go after she walked in. The elevator doors closed slowly, and Luca watched Luke press on the button for the first floor. She asked, “Mr. Crawford, don’t we need to go to the parking lot first?” “We’ll be eating at a place nearby, so there’s no need to drive,” Luke explained. Eating at a place nearby… In that case, it meant that not did Tina know but the enti
Zoey had no idea what to say in response when she heard that. Sure enough, jealous women were the scariest. In a comforting tone, she said, “Alright, alright. You can’t just say things like that. If anyone hears you, you’ll be done for!” “Why should I be scared? Why would I be done for? Luca is a mistress but I can’t say that?! Disgusting!” Jenni was so overcome with jealousy. If it had not been for her job, she would have gone to Luca and mocked her a long time ago. Zoey had no idea what to say in response. If Luca was a mistress, did that not mean that Jenni was trying to be a mistress as well? There did not seem to be much of a difference between them. The elevator arrived at the floor where the laboratories were. Zoey hurriedly left the elevator, terrified that Jenni would continue pestering her and someone else would catch them. She said, “I’ll be returning to my work now, Ms. Lynn.” “Wait,” Jenni said as she pressed on the button to keep the doors open.Zoey smiled r
“Don’t worry, it won’t affect you in the slightest,” said Abel.The villa was bought under Shanks’ name.So while it appeared to be the Island of Despair’s property, it was, in fact, Shanks’ personal asset.Abel shot a glance at his subordinates, who stood beside him. Without hesitation, they grabbed the doctor and hauled him away.As Hera watched the scene unfold, she felt a sudden pang of unease. She was well aware of Abel's methods. Punishment was never off the table. However, seeing the way things were unfolding, Hera could not shake the feeling that Abel might actually take the doctor’s life.Still, they were in A City, a country with strict laws. Would Abel really go that far?As Abel turned to leave, Hera said almost nervously, “Darling…”“I have some matters to take care of. Be good and stay here. Don’t wander around, okay?” Abel’s mood was apparently lifted by the successful surgery. His voice was unexpectedly gentle.Hera’s unease only deepened. She grabbed the slee
All three of them stepped out of the vehicle.Hera realized that the surgery might already be over and could not wait to hear the results.Abel, equally eager, immediately asked as soon as he saw them, “Is the surgery finished?”“Yes, the surgery was successful. The transplant was completed, and all the nerves we could connect have been repaired. Now, it’s up to the follow-up treatment,” answered Shanks.The doctor who had been kicked out earlier stared in disbelief.They actually succeeded in the transplant? How was that even possible?“Great, fantastic!” Abel let out a sigh of relief before bursting into laughter.What had seemed impossible in modern medicine had achieved a different outcome in Shanks’ hands.Unlike others who might celebrate the medical breakthrough, Abel’s joy came from a more personal place—Kassy would soon return to his side. His delight was unmistakable.“T-This can’t be!” muttered the dismissed doctor, who was still in shock. “A surgery this revoluti
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