"Father-in-law." Luke nodded at him.Luca also greeted Jack, "Hello, Uncle Jack. Long time no see.""It's been a long time, Luca. If you're free, come visit me and your Aunt Queenie more often," Jack said. He knew there was a reason why Luca did not visit often.Luke had told him about what happened to her in Russia.As such, Jack knew that Luca was in danger all the time and could not acknowledge him and Queenie as her biological parents for some reason."Okay." Luca finished writing and handed the paper to the maid. "There you go.""What's that?" When he saw that, Jack put down his briefcase and sat down near Luca."It's a few recipes for your diet and a prescription for Aunt Queenie to condition her body," Luca replied."Condition her body? What's wrong?" Jack became nervous. He and Luke asked Luca to come over to check on Queenie's pulse as an excuse. He did not expect that something would be wrong with Queenie’s body."It's nothing. I’ve been having a lot of dreams when I
Queenie did not know what was going on. She just felt that Luca’s words brought her comfort and melted all her anxiety."Bea isn't by my side anymore. I just hope Leia can get better soon." She could not help but sigh. Queenie got a headache thinking that Leia might be hospitalized.What Leia hated most was the hospital. She would not stay even if she was in a luxurious single ward.There were a lot of people in the hospital, and Leia was a famous star. She was worried that if someone saw Leia in the hospital and told Luke...Luca listened to Queenie's sigh and felt even guiltier.‘I'm sorry, Mom…’All she could do was apologize to Queenie in her heart...Upstairs, in Jack's study.Luke followed him in and closed the door."The government does intend to develop the abandoned amusement park in the western suburbs, but there are no specifics for now," Jack said."After so many years of the rumor going around, the government is finally taking action." Luke could not help but sig
Queenie sat at the dinner table and looked at Jack suspiciously. "Why are you so happy? Did something good happen?""I’m just happy to see my son-in-law," Jack mentioned Luke deliberately.Queenie smiled helplessly as she shook her head."What? Aren't you happy?" Jack asked."I'm happy, but the kids aren’t here. I miss them," Queenie said. She had not mentioned the children, but she missed them a lot."Sorry, Mother-in-law." Luke apologized when he heard what she said. "I didn't bring the kids here because I needed to talk to Jack. I'll bring them over when they’re on holiday."Queenie nodded with a smile and replied, "Okay.""Where are the kids now?" Jack asked, concerned."They're at Crawford Manor," Luke replied. He saw the maid walk over with a bottle of wine, it was high in alcohol content."It's nice that Old Master Crawford is watching them," Jack nodded.Queenie sighed and said, "How is it nice? Old Master Crawford needs to rest, and the children would be making a lot
After the car was parked, Luke opened his eyes slightly and muttered, "Are we there yet?""We’re here, Mr. Crawford. Can you get out of the car by yourself?" Luca asked. He had been drinking, so she was not sure if he would be able to walk on his own."If I can't, will you let me sleep in the car for the night?" Luke sat there and did not move. He was half-squinting looking at Luca's side profile."No." Luca unbuckled his seat belt. "I'll help you get in.""No need." Luke sat up straight, unbuckled his seatbelt, opened the door, and got out of the car.Luca frowned slightly. She was worried that he would fall, so she followed closely behind him as he walked into the living room.Aunt Neile was off work, so the villa did not have a single light on.When Luke was about to walk forward, Luca stepped over the threshold and whispered, "Mr. Crawford, I'll turn on the lights first."Luke stopped and propped himself against the wall.Luca stood at the entrance and found the switch. Af
Luca secretly let out a sigh.Luke was obviously drunk. How could a tough person like him bring up his embarrassing past if he was not drunk? When she was still Bianca back then, she had never seen the other side of him when he showed his weaknesses. "I always wondered what kind of person I would be today if Louis were born earlier," Luke said in a low voice.Previously, Susan was unable to get pregnant, and that was when Allison brought Luke back from the orphanage. She brought him to meet Old Master Crawford to acknowledge him as his grandfather.Luke would never have returned to the Crawford family if Louis had already been born.Luke would have grown up in the orphanage without knowing who his parents were and why he was abandoned and left at the orphanage. Perhaps he would have been adopted by someone else and grown up in an unfamiliar family. He would not have known anything about his family. "You would’ve become a successful man even if you weren’t in the Crawford fa
Luca’s body was burning as though she was having a fever. However, she knew it was not a fever. The truth was, she was feeling shy…Although he was the man she used to see every day, and they were so close that nothing could get in between them, it had been three years since she was this close to him. Even though Luca missed him, she was having a hard time adapting to the intimacy between them now.What Luca was most worried about was if Luke found out her identity and her purpose, how would she face him? How was she going to explain it…Luca carefully lifted her head and looked at Luke.Luke was still asleep. It was probably because he was drunk last night. That was why he woke up later than usual today.Luca carefully moved his hand away from her waist. She let out a sigh of relief when she finally climbed out of the bed.Fortunately, Luke did not cling to her arm as tightly as last night. Otherwise, she would have woken the man up if he was clenching her arm tightly. Luc
Aunt Neile walked out of the kitchen and cleaned the dishes on the table. She noticed that Luca did not follow Luke to work, so she asked, “Mr. Craw, don’t you have to go to work today?”“Yes. I’m going later,” replied Luca as she gave Amur a call.The phone stated that the call was unreachable, and no one was answering the phone.No one had been answering the phone for the past two days, and the phone was turned off today. Luca reckoned that Amur had left his phone on standby, and that was why his phone ran out of battery. However, Amur would normally pick up her call instead of ignoring her calls. That was why Luca needed to head over to the apartment and check on him. Amur had promised Luca before that he would leave markings in the apartment if he was out on a mission and he did not have the chance to inform her about it or if he was not allowed to.There were different markings, and each marking represented how dangerous the mission was. Aunt Neile noticed the solemn e
“Yes. They’ve finished their work in Russia. Of course, Dr. Craw is back.” Zoey took a step backward and said, “Ms. Lynn, you may go for lunch first. I have to order takeouts for Dr. Craw and the others.”Jenni was not planning to let her go. She grabbed Zoey’s hand and asked, “Haven’t you heard?”“About what?” Zoey was dumbfounded. She pulled her hand back, pretending she did not know that Jenni wanted to gossip about Luca.“I wonder if you really don’t know about it or you’re just pretending that you don’t know about it. Luca slept in the same suite as Boss when she was in Russia. Now you know why she was able to become the professor of the department and why she was able to come to T Corporation. She did it by sleeping with the boss.” There was a trace of resentment hidden in Jenni’s tone. Zoey looked at the jealous woman in front of her helplessly. Although Jenni claimed that she hated women who could get everything easily after sleeping with the boss, she was willing to off
“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