"You’re back?" Luke asked with a frown. He noticed that her coat was wet from the snow.He knew exactly what she had been doing outside.He frowned because Luca did not brush the snow off her shoulders, which made her clothes wet. ‘What if her coat isn’t waterproof and the clothes inside are wet? What if she catches a cold?’"Yes, Mr. Crawford." Luca glanced at him, then looked away.Luke's tone was cold as he reminded her, "Your clothes are wet. Change out of them."Luca looked at her clothes."Shoulders," Luke reminded her.Luca glanced at them and found that they were indeed wet. It did not matter since her jacket was waterproof."Mr. Crawford, it's dinner time. Do you want to order something?" she asked.Seeing that she was not in a hurry to change, Luke understood that her clothes were waterproof. Even if the outer layer was soaked, the clothes inside would not be affected.As such, he did not mention it anymore. The temperature in the room was high, and the moisture on
“Sure.” Vivian’s eyes glazed over outside the window. The decision had been made. Perhaps God was unable to put up with it any longer either. She had been at Gordan’s beck and call the entire time. That was why she was unable to bring herself to make the decision. The call was answered, and Misha's voice came from the other end of the line.“Ms. Vivian, is it you?” the person asked respectfully. Misha was Ray’s lawyer. Many of the legal affairs of his company were managed by her. Hence, she respected Vivian very much.Vivian replied, “Yes, it’s me.”Misha found it strange after making sure that it was Vivian who called. Vivian had Misha’s phone number, and she could call that number to contact her. Why would she call the front desk’s number? Thus, she asked, “Why are you calling the front desk to look for me?”"There are some legal affairs I'd like you to help with. Ms. Misha, are you available now?" Vivian took a deep breath. Vivian had to tell her about the decision that sh
Vivian came to the first floor. The maid stepped forward and asked her before Vivian left, “Ms. Vivian, we’re preparing for dinner now. Is there anything you’d like to have for dinner tonight?”Vivian was startled for a moment. Yes, it was time for dinner. She would usually ask the maid to ask her what to prepare for meals so that she could get them to make some of Gordan’s favorite dishes. “I’m going out. Go upstairs and ask Mr. Norton about it. There’s no need to prepare my portion.” Vivian looked down so that the maid would not notice her mood. “Ah… Okay.” The maid did not expect Vivian to say something like this. She would usually plan the dishes for each meal. Vivian put on her coat, turned around, and left. The maid watched Vivian leave. She had no choice but to turn around and head upstairs. Then, she knocked on Gordan’s bedroom door.“I’m busy.” Gordan thought Vivian was knocking on the door, so he yelled impatiently. “Mr. Norton, I’m the maid. I’d like to ask wha
Someone knocked on the door when she had just laid down on her bed. “Have you slept?” Luke asked.Luca sat up on the bed. She turned to face in the direction of the door and said, “Not yet, Mr. Crawford. Is there anything I can help you with?”Luke fell silent for a few seconds. Luca did not open the door as though she was guarding against him. Luke shook his head helplessly. He was a man sitting in a wheelchair now, and there was nothing he could do to her. Even so, she was still not letting her guard down.It seemed like the days they had spent together were all for nothing.“I came to tell you that you don’t have to wake up early tomorrow,” said Luke. He did not insist on asking her to open the door. Luca was surprised. She got out of her bed and went to open the door. Luke was outside the door, and the distance between them was less than an arm’s length. “Mr. Crawford, don’t we have an important meeting to attend tomorrow?” Luca asked with confusion.Luke told her that s
It was Vivian’s full name too.Besides, Gordan could recognize that it was Vivian’s signature with just a glance. Her handwriting was beautiful. There were few people who could control their strength so well to write down such beautiful words. …Gordan suddenly realized that apart from Vivian’s ugly looks, she seemed to be a nice woman. It was just that the appearance of a woman was important for Gordan. Ray looked at Gordan, who was lost in thoughts. Gordan was expressionless and did not say a word. Ray finally lost his temper and said, “Are you happy now?”Gordan looked at the divorce papers and quickly read them through. He was surprised that the ugly woman would give up all her entitlements. Did she think that he would care about this villa?If it were not for her and Ray restricting him, he did not care where he would stay. He only chose a villa that he liked to make him feel more comfortable when he spent his days being deprived of his freedom. Hence, he did not nee
Not to mention that Gordan had enough money even if he did not have the villa. Even though he had been kept by Vivian’s side in the past few years, he still took up jobs. Many underworld organizations in Russia needed foreign aid to help them to handle some troublesome matters. Gordan had skills, and he did things efficiently. He was able to complete the missions he was assigned to. However, he did not have many resources when it came to searching for someone. He was too lazy to look for Vivian, that ugly woman, himself. That was why he asked someone to look for her."Mr. Norton, that's very straightforward of you. I'll arrange it now." The man on the other end of the line was not even concerned that it was in the middle of the night. He did not think about waiting for tomorrow. As long as the money was in place, they would be ready to work anytime.“As quickly as possible,” Gordan urged them. Since Vivian was asking for a divorce, he had to seize the chance so that she would n
“I’ll call him later. Gordan is still in bed at this time,” Luke glanced at the time and said. Ray was trying his best to look for Vivian, but Gordan would not do so. Luke was pretty sure that Gordan was still lying on his bed, snoring loudly in his sleep.There was a reason why Luke would ask Gordan instead of asking Ray directly. Luke was closer to Gordan. It was much easier to open up to a closer friend. Luca understood why Luke made such arrangements. She nodded and did not say anything more.Luke looked at Jason and said, “Follow me.” “Alright, Boss.” Jason followed behind Luke and left the dining room.Luca watched the two of them head to Luke’s room. After she placed the plates in the kitchen sink, she returned to her room too. There would be professional hotel cleaners who would come to clean the place up. Luca sat on the sofa and glanced at the time. It was still early…The private clinics nearby would still be closed if she went out now.There was no place fo
"I love Gordan very much. I fell in love with him at first sight." Vivian clasped the cup in her hand tightly and took a deep breath.Luca nodded without interrupting her.“I never thought that the man I fell in love with at first sight would be interested in me. Gordan came up to me and struck up a conversation with me. He has a fine sense of humor, and he didn’t despise me for my ugly looks. Even though it was unbelievable, I fell even deeper in love with him when I met him for the second time. But later I learned that Gordan was only teasing me when he said he liked me. Still, I didn’t mind. I’ve never asked for anything in my whole life. I’m ugly, so I don’t have the right to speak. But when Gordan told me that he didn’t like me and he was just fooling around, I came up with an idea.” Vivian did not know Luca was actually Bianca. That was why she summarized it and explained her past as well as how she met Gordan.“You kept him by your side?” Luca asked. She had heard about their
“You don’t need to remind me. I was going to check anyway.” Abel shot Luca a chilling look.She took a step back and stayed silent.Abel turned to the pale-faced Hera and said, “If you’ve got low blood sugar, get up and eat something.”“I’ll eat now,” Hera replied, sitting up.Luca handed her the takeout.Abel glanced at the food and then frowned at Luca. “Why didn’t you make breakfast this morning?”“I was busy,” Luca explained with a calm indifference, her expression unwavering. She showed no fear, even under Abel’s questioning.Hera suddenly found herself admiring Luca. Everyone feared this man, yet Luca remained composed even when facing potential punishment. Not just anyone could pull that off.At the thought of this, Hera opened the takeout and kept quiet.Abel narrowed his eyes, glancing between Hera and Luca. His gaze was not exactly gentle as he muttered, “Stop eating this junk. It’s bad for you.”“I know, babe. Just this once. After this, I’ll have what Luca cooks f
Hera panicked the moment she heard that. “I trust her!”Luca and Shanks were both watching her.Hera repeated herself, saying, “I trust her, okay? What kind of treatment does she need? I’ll cooperate with anything. But what about Abel…”“I’ll tell him it’s just to help improve your overall health,” replied Shanks. Then, he turned around, opened the medicine cabinet, and started preparing the prescription.Hera let out a sigh of relief. As long as Abel did not find out about her health condition, that was all that mattered.If he knew she was unwell, he would send her back to A City. Without free medical help and no way to make extra money, she would be in serious trouble.“Thank you,” said Hera.“Wait outside,” instructed Shanks.“Okay.” Hera carefully stepped out.Luca, however, remained where she was, waiting.While preparing the medicine, Shanks asked, “Do you know which acupoints to target for her?”“Yes,” Luca replied confidently. As long as she checked Hera’s pulse, sh
“There are a lot of issues.” Luca did not hide anything and handed Hera the phone.Hera looked at it and frowned.“I can't understand any of this.” Hera felt dizzy just looking at the text, let alone the long list of medical terms. It was giving her a headache.“Look at these summaries and indicators. Compare the values on top with the normal values at the bottom, and you'll see what I mean,” explained Luca.Hera did not trust her. Therefore, Luca decided to let her see for herself. Seeing it with her own eyes would prevent any doubts later.Luca pointed out how to read the test results, and after a moment, Hera managed to understand the report. Her face turned pale. “How can there be so many problems?”She looked at Luca and questioned, “Did you fake this?”“I don’t have the power to make the medical center fake anything. Besides, the report has the medical center’s official stamp. If you don’t believe me, you can go directly to the medical center and ask for the official cop
“I heard from the boss that he's coming because of Vivian.” Gale paused for a moment before adding, “But never mind, you don't seem interested in her affairs anyway. I'm just letting you know he's on his way.”Gordan frowned. Ray was coming for Vivian?What could that ugly woman possibly need?“What do you mean by that?” asked Gordan.Gale smirked. “If you and Ray meet, that’s bound to end in a fight. And since you can't win against him, you might want to mentally prepare yourself, or better yet, find somewhere else to stay. It’d be safer that way.”Gordan's expression darkened. “If you have nothing nice to say, just zip it.”Gale grinned, clearly pleased with himself like he had just hit a sore spot.Gordan exhaled sharply. “Of all times, why is he coming to A City now? He’s just making things worse.”“It can't be helped. Vivian's situation is urgent.” Gale covered his mouth mockingly after he said that. “Oh, right. I forgot you don’t like hearing about her.”Ray wanted to br
Luke sat in the villa, staring at Luca’s message.He was worried.For a moment, he considered calling her, but then he remembered that there were surveillance cameras everywhere on her side. He dismissed the idea immediately.Her safety came first.Luke reminded her: [Take care of yourself. Don’t worry, I’ll handle everything. Just focus on keeping yourself safe.] The worry in his heart refused to subside, but at this moment, there was no better solution.“Boss, you’re worried about your wife, huh? If you really can’t stand it, we can sneak you in again during the next shift change, just like last time,” said Gale.It had been his idea last time.Now, the real Lucius was still locked up in the basement of the villa.It had been nearly a month. Luke had forced him to take the antidote Luca had recreated. The man was still alive, proving the antidote worked perfectly.“That plan is too risky.” Luke put his phone away. His gaze was dark and thoughtful.“Risky, sure. But at lea
Luca had not expected Abel and Shanks’ relationship to be like this.It seemed Abel still did not trust Shanks.Shanks continued, “Abel isn’t someone who trusts people easily. He doesn’t trust anyone. You think he’s devoted to Kassy now, right? That’s just his obsession. He's allowing Kassy to receive my treatment, but if it were him… No matter if he were blind or crippled, his safety would always come first. If he were seriously injured, maybe he’d accept treatment, but he definitely wouldn’t do it right away.”Luca stayed silent. Shanks really understood Abel well.Abel did not trust anyone—not even Kassy.Calling him paranoid would not be an exaggeration.Luca felt like they were getting off-topic, but she had never seen this side of Shanks before.In her mind, he was always buried in his work at the lab, only leaving for meals and sleep. Other than that, he was practically never outside.The lab was like his home…“Are you troubled by Hera’s situation?” Luca asked directly
Hera was startled by Luca's words.The refusal that had been on the tip of her tongue suddenly got stuck in her throat.“I…” Hera hesitated, feeling conflicted. Leaving Abel might not be such a bad idea. At least she would not have to live in constant fear.She was finally realizing how unpredictable his moods were. At first, she thought it did not matter as she could still look at other men. She just had to ensure there was no physical contact. In reality, even if she so much as glanced at someone, Abel's expression would darken with anger.It was frustrating. Now, the only person she was allowed to look at was Gerald. Still, what was the point of just looking at Gerald?At that thought, she lifted her gaze to Luca.Luca added, “I’ll give you five minutes. If you refuse treatment after that, I’ll take the medicine back to Mr. Shanks and won’t try to convince you again.”Hera's heart tightened. She did not even need five minutes. She had made her decision within 30 seconds.“I’
“If Abel finds out that Hera's body isn't suitable for organ donation to Kassy, what do you think he'll do?” asked Shanks.He already knew the answer, but he still wanted to hear Luca’s thoughts.“He has invested a lot of time and money in Hera. If he gets nothing out of it, he won’t let her off easily,” Luca said bluntly.Luca and Shanks were on the same page.They did not have a good relationship with Hera, but they had no intention of ruining her either.Hera’s personality was unpleasant, but that was not enough for them to hate her so much that they wanted to see her suffer.“What methods do you think he’ll use?” Shanks asked again.Luca was silent for a long moment.Shanks already knew the answer, yet he still wanted her to say it out loud.After thinking it over, she finally said, “There are plenty of ways he could go about it, but no matter what he chooses, Hera’s fate is sealed. She’s as good as dead…”She lowered her gaze, her tone firm and certain.Shanks nodded.
Hera heard that Luca had returned and immediately went to find Shanks. She narrowed her eyes.That woman went to see Shanks. Could she be talking about her?The thought made Hera uneasy. She had a nagging feeling that something was wrong with her medical report.However, when they left the medical center earlier, Abel asked Luca when the report would be ready, and she said it would be available tomorrow.Hera turned to Gerald and said, “Take these back for me first.”“Alright.” Gerald carried the bags as he walked away. He could not help but wonder what exactly Hera bought. These bags were really heavy!Only after Gerald went upstairs did Hera slowly make her way up as well. Her room was on the third floor, but she stopped when she reached the second floor. She glanced around to make sure no one was watching before heading toward the laboratory.The door was closed.Instead of knocking, Hera pressed her ear against it, trying to eavesdrop.However, the laboratory was special