As Luca heaved a sigh, Lliam had already parked the car at the entrance of Blue Coast Restaurant. After Luke and Luca got out of the car, they were led into a private room by the waitress at the entrance, where Percy and Nina were already waiting for them."Sorry for being late," Luke said to Percy. When they returned, they encountered some traffic, so they were ten minutes later than the agreed time."Mr. Crawford is a busy man. I’m used to it." A hint of mischief flashed across Percy’s eyes as he teased Luke.Nina wore a helpless smile and replied, "It's okay. Actually, we just arrived.""I didn't expect traffic on the way back, sorry," apologized Luca. They all valued punctuality. That was why being late required an apology."Dr. Craw, it's okay," replied Percy. He could joke with Luke but not with Luca. After all, Luca was now arguably the most capable among them. Most importantly, Luca was Nina's good friend.There was a saying, a man should never offend his girlfriend
Fortunately, she did not expose herself in front of Percy.The waitress let out a sigh of relief and stood to the side of the private room. Even though she did not reveal any flaws, her focus today was solely on serving this private room. Therefore, she had to stand by the door. She had to be ready to provide service to the guests while also keeping an eye on things.The waitress remained stationed by the door, watching as the kitchen staff brought out the dishes. She knocked on the door again, "Sir, may I serve the dishes now?""Sure." Percy's voice came from inside.The waitress pushed the door open, signaling the kitchen staff to bring in the exquisite dishes.As plate after plate of food was placed on the table, the sight left Luca astonished. There were only four of them, yet they had ordered so many dishes. Could they finish it all?Luke shared the same thought with Luca. He teased Percy, "That's quite a spread. With so many dishes, do you think we'll be able to finish th
"Madam Mallory, this isn't Mallory Manor. If you've got something to say, just spit it out. I'm not interested in hearing you beat about the bush," replied Luca in a cold voice.A wave of anger roused within Karen. What kind of attitude was this?Did she think she was all that just because she had Luke supporting her?The thought of Luke made Karen even more enraged. Why was it that people and things associated with this name always seemed to be exceptionally difficult to deal with?"I have something to discuss with you!" When Karen saw that Luca was about to leave the restroom, she thought if she did not sort things out here, she would not have the chance to do so later.She did not want anyone to see her begging Luca. Even if Percy might help her if he knew about it, she did not want him to witness this scene. It was too embarrassing.Luca paused for a moment, unable to imagine what Karen wanted to talk to her about.Could it be about what happened with Nina before? However,
"Since you think it’s nice too, I'll buy it," replied Nina, proceeding to place the order.After placing the order, Nina rose to her feet."Where are you going?" asked Luca."I’d like to use the restroom," answered Nina with a smile on her face.At the thought that Karen was also dining in this restaurant, Luca stood up and said, "I'll go with you.""You're going too?" Nina asked in surprise, wondering why Luca was going again when she had just come back."Just keeping you company," said Luca. She took Nina's hand as they walked out of the private room together.Luke and Percy, who were behind them, did not say anything. Luca closed the private room door behind her and then walked toward the restroom with Nina.When Nina saw this, she could not help but say, "Why do I feel like you're acting strangely?""Am I?” Luca shook her head. "I just want to be with you.""You were gone for so long just now. Did you meet someone?" asked Nina, feeling that Luca's behavior was odd. She wo
"When I first went to the restroom, I ran into Madam Mallory." Luca had no choice but to confess.Luke frowned. "Karen?"His gaze immediately fell on Percy."I didn't say anything." Percy knew what Luke wanted to know. Now, he only wanted to live peacefully with Nina. If Karen did not agree to their marriage, then she should not be involved in their lives. Therefore, there was no way he would tell Karen he would be hosting a dinner here."She's investigating you," said Luke.Percy shook his head, indicating there was nothing he could do about it. Karen wanted to investigate him and have his whereabouts tracked, but he could not do anything about it.The key was, Percy did not expect Karen to follow him here just because he organized a dinner party. What was she up to?Percy turned to look at Luca again, figuring she might know the answer.Luca let go of Nina's hand, sat back in her seat, and said, "I don't know how she found out that I had previously used dry needling to tr
Percy noticed that the manager looked anxious and dared not to take the credit card from him. He frowned and repeated again, "The bill, please!""Yes, sir!" The manager had no choice but to take Percy's credit card. "A moment, please."After taking Percy's card, the manager walked out of the private room, signaled to the waitress, and instructed her in a low voice, "Go check the women's restroom and see what happened to the mirrors!""The mirrors?" The waitress was puzzled. What could be wrong with the mirrors?"Just go and check," the manager instructed firmly."Yes." The waitress dared not to delay any longer. She practically jogged over, heading to the women's restroom.As she pushed the door open, she looked at the sink area. When she saw the mirrors, she could not help but be surprised.The perfectly fine mirrors had been smashed to pieces!The waitress quickly glanced around. There were no tools around that could have smashed the mirrors, and there was no bloodstain aroun
After leaving the restaurant, Luke and Luca got into the car together and left. Lliam was driving in front, stealing glances at his boss. After a moment's pause, he spoke up, "Boss, I just saw Madam Mallory."Worried that Luke might misunderstand, he added, "Karen Ruiz.""Mhm, I know." Luke nodded and turned to look at Luca. "Are you really okay?"“Why did you suddenly lose faith in me? Not just anyone can harm me. Madam Mallory doesn't have what it takes,” replied Luca. Even the man who was with Karen might not be able to lay his hands on her."Well, as long as you're not hurt… But since she has this idea, she won't give up easily. You still need to be careful," reminded Luke, sensing that Karen might resort to force to coerce Luca.Luca nodded. Karen knew she might be able to help Pierre with his recovery, so she would not give up easily, which meant she might have other plans. Still, whatever her plans were, she could not harm Luca.Thus, Luca was not too worried. "Usually
"I love them!" Tommy immediately shook his head. He enjoyed everything Luca made!He did not expect their father to suggest something so ordinary to eat."As long as she makes it, I'll love it," said Luke.Tommy nodded and then heard his brother remind him, "Daddy is just worried about Ms. Luca. He doesn't want her to be too tired."Luke threw him a glance of appreciation.It made sense that the eldest son was the smartest. Luke had not said anything, but Lanie could understand his intentions. Whether it was barbecue or tacos, even if Aunt Neile were to help, Luca would be busy. Hence, Luca suggested having a simple meal, which would make it much easier for Luca."Are we doing something wrong, then..." Tommy thought to himself. There were three meals, and their mother would probably have to prepare for a long time...He did not want to make his mother tired either. The kids began to reflect on whether they should not have been so noisy just now and whether they should not have
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
“This cup of coffee is from that gentleman for this lady.” The waiter smiled as he explained, placing the cup in front of Luca.Hera followed the waiter’s gaze and immediately recognized the man Luca had been looking at earlier.Her eyes darkened. She had noticed the man glancing in their direction. However, she had assumed he was looking at her.After all, she was dressed seductively, had put on makeup, and was undeniably beautiful. Any man who saw her would be attracted. If a man’s eyes lingered on her, it was not surprising at all.Realizing that the man had been watching Luca the whole time instead of her, Hera suddenly felt annoyed.Luca noticed her displeasure, glanced at Gordan, then smiled and said to the waiter, “Please thank the gentleman for me.”“Of course, miss. Enjoy your coffee.” The waiter, sensing the tension between the two women, quickly grabbed his tray and left before Hera’s sour mood could affect him too.“Hmph, feeling proud of yourself?” asked Hera.Luca