Louis was still worried even though Luke said so. He felt guilty looking at how relieved Luke was. Although the Crawford family had been training Luke to become the successor of the company since he was young, things were a lot easier for Louis. Luke was always studying when Louis was having fun or busy studying. Things were a lot easier for Louis, only because Luke had taken the wheel in front of him. That was why his childhood was a lot happier than Luke’s.Even though there was only one successor, they were in the same family. Hence, other siblings in the family would have to help their family business in times of need even if they did not take over the company. There were barely any exceptions.However, he was the exception.Louis was able to live an easy life because of Luke. Luke even supported him when he decided to venture out.If it had not been for Luke, Louis would have continued to work in T Corporation, doing something he was not interested in. Luke was surro
The maid left work after waiting for him to finish his bath.Luke continued to sit in front of the office table and was settling his documents. The maid’s room was not closed because he wanted to hear even the smallest sound from outside. However, Luca never came back…Only when it was one in the morning did he hear some noises from outside. It was the sound of a door opening and closing…Even though it was intentionally done so that there would not be much noise, Luke still heard it. ‘Luca only came back now…’Luke had a dark expression but did not go out. 'Is she that busy?'Hearing the sound in the living room made Luke place his documents down. He sat there, not moving an inch.Luca switched on the lights in the living room and noticed that the lights in the maid’s room were still on…She frowned. She could see that the lights were on because he did not close the door. However, Luke usually closed the door.Luca changed her shoes and thought for a moment but did not c
The needles Luca used were all specially made on the Island of Despair.She did not bring too many needles with her, and the effects of the needles were not significant. Hence, she had Dr. Wood use the needles from the hospital instead.Dr. Wood sanitized his hands, then put on sterile gloves.Tyrone knew that this time, it would be Dr. Wood who would take over the treatment. From the previous treatment, he also got to know through their conversation that Luca's method of dry needling was different from the standard. Hence, it would be Dr. Wood's first time adopting the method.He was a little scared."Doctor, Please take it slow. I'm scared of pain…" said Tyrone while closing his eyes."Don't worry. I've practiced the method many times, so it won’t go wrong. Besides, Dr. Craw is here to supervise. Don't worry." Dr. Wood comforted him. He had watched the video many times and even tried it hands-on as well. He had some confidence."Let's get started." Luca did not speak much to
Amur did not know of any doctors. He would not be able to help out regarding this issue.“Alright. Then, please be careful along the way,” he said.Luca wore her coat and reminded, “Oh right, keep the research lab for now. I’ll inform the owner that I won’t be renting it anymore after one month.” “You still want to continue researching?” Amur asked.“Yes.” Luca nodded. The composition of the antidote had yet to be fully analyzed.It had been quite some time and she had yet to fully analyze it. Apart from the reason being that the equipment she had was not advanced enough, there was another reason. The composition of the antidote was very complicated.She would need the help of advanced equipment.“Alright. You can hold on to the access card. I’ll get it from you on the last day,” said Amur. One month later when they decided to stop renting the lab, the access card would have to be returned to the owner of the research lab.“Alright.” Luca carried her bag and left the scene.S
Nina? Sue? He had not heard that either one of them was sick. Was it Amur? However, that was impossible as well. If it were Armur, she would have said it was her younger brother and not a friend. Perhaps it was Luca herself… Johann pouted and negotiated with Luke, saying, "I helped you by asking questions. Even though I didn’t get valuable information, at least we know that she wants this antibiotic for her friend. Look, I don't wish for an entire rack of wine. Half a rack will do. You’ll give it to me, right?” "What if she was lying to you? Do you think that statement of hers is worth half a rack of alcohol?" Luke said. He suspected that Luca had just come up with an excuse to keep Johann quiet.Johann was speechless at what Luke said. He said helplessly, "You don't have to be this snarky…""Then do me a favor and get some valuable information," Luke said before hanging up.He looked at the time. It would take about half an hour to reach the hospital from where he was. 'I thi
Luca placed the pajamas down.When she was about to sleep, there was a video call request. Luca picked it up and saw a bunch of numbers. 'Abel?'She immediately got rid of that thought. Whenever Abel had some issues, he would either message her or call her. He would not send a request for a video call. That was because he did not wish for Luke to know that they knew each other.Luca thought of someone and immediately answered the call.Indeed, Nyla's cute face appeared on her phone screen."Mommy!" The moment she saw Luca, Nyla immediately got closer to the screen. "Mommy, Mommy, is it really you?""It's me." The instant Luca saw her daughter, her eyes were filled with tears.Nyla missed Luca a lot and inched her face closer to the screen. Luca was almost unable to see Nyla's cute face. Hence, she reminded, "Dear, go back a little. Let Mommy have a better view of you."Nyla agreed and backed away obediently. "Can you see me clearly now, Mommy?""Yes. Oh, my Nyla, you must ha
Daughters tended to look like their fathers, while sons tended to look like their mothers. This statement proved to be true for Lanie and Rainie. It was the same for both Tommy and Nyla.The more Tommy grew up, the more he looked like Luca’s past self. As for Nyla, she was starting to look like Luke.Fortunately, she did not have a family on the Island of Despair.Hence, since young, Nyla never had an impression of her father and never questioned who her father was.Luca turned around. The issue about her wound had been settled. Initially, she could sleep well, but because she missed her daughter so much, she was unable to sleep…She kept thinking and finally sat up. She took out the sleeping pills from the drawer, and after taking one pill, she went to sleep.The effect of the medication kicked in fast. Despite feeling depressed, she still fell asleep.When she woke up, it was already daytime.Luca looked at the time. She was used to waking up early even without an alarm. Afte
Luca took out all of the luggage from the boot.Zander saw there were so many things, and Luke was sitting in a wheelchair. With so many things, Luca would not be able to carry them all by herself. He said, "Sir, Ms. Luca, I'm not allowed to park the car here. You guys can wait for me here. Wait till I've parked the car, then I’ll come over to help carry your luggage.""No thanks." Luke rejected. "You may go back as there’ll be someone coming over to help us out.""Oh, alright. Then I shall return for now, sir. Old Master has already invited Old Man Rayne for a game of chess. I have to return to fetch him," Zander said and got into the car.'Old Man Rayne?'Luca looked at Luke.He was able to see through her puzzled expression. "He's Wanda's father."'He’s also your grandfather.' He added deep in his heart."Oh." Luca did not expect Old Master Crawford to go over to have a game of chess with her grandfather. The last time she headed over, he even said that it had been quite som
“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