The setting sun was like a burning flame, shrouding the lake surface with color and lighting up the mansion like the scene of a dream. Bianca sat peacefully next to the artificial lake, resting her cheek on her hands. She felt bored as she looked at the fish swimming in the lake. The nurse quietly stood by her side. A string of footsteps walking toward Bianca broke the silence. Bianca saw Luke walking toward her while facing away from the sun. She smiled happily, but her tone was doubtful. "Why are you back so early?" Bianca knew that Luke had been very busy lately. He would usually come home almost close to midnight, and sometimes he would reek of alcohol because of the business dinners he had to attend. She felt sorry for him. The nurse nodded politely when she saw her employer approach. Then, she discreetly went away and gave the space to the lovers. Luke walked in front of Bianca's rattan chair and sat down. He loved to hug her in his arms. He thought that it was an
They were in utter disbelief when they found out that the man in the conference room was not Luke Crawford, the CEO of T Corporation, but Luke Crowford, the general manager of a medium-scale company. 'How uncanny! 'How could two people look and sound so alike, and how could their names be so suspiciously similar?' With the facts laid in front of them, they had no choice but to believe it. Half an hour later, a group of police officers entered the conference room, bringing with them the disgraced Mr. Schmidt in handcuffs. Peyton Schmidt was a man in his fifties. He still carried the demeanor of someone in a position of power for a long time, but his face was haggard, his eyes were lifeless, and his body was shriveled. It seemed that prison life took a toll on his physical and mental health. "Look at that man, Peyton Schmidt. Is he the Luke Crawford whom you have dealings with?" The male officer asked sternly. Peyton lifted his head weakly and started to carefully examine t
The major case involved Luke Crawford, A City's business mogul, and Peyton had provided conflicting statements. The higher-ups of the Public Integrity Committee paid a lot of attention to the case. However, they could not find anything that pointed to Luke Crawford. The man in the incriminating video matched Luke Crowford's appearance. Also, Peyton insisted multiple times that the name on the contract was Luke Crowford with an "o." Of course, Luke Crowford's identity was genuine. He was an orphan without any relations, and his background and work experience were plain for all to see. GC Corporation, the implicated company, had existed for ten years. The legally appointed representative for the company was indeed Luke Crowford. Gordan produced the contracts that proved the transfer of ownership of those plots of land from Luke Crowford of GC Corporation to Luke Crawford of T Corporation. Gordan spoke eloquently in front of the judge and jury, describing the details of the tr
There was a reason why Peyton Schmidt changed his statement abruptly. Even though he was in prison, a large portion of his property had disappeared, and no one had been able to find its whereabouts. However, Luke managed to find out that Peyton had a mistress and an illegitimate child. Before he was arrested, Peyton had secretly moved the mother and child to Switzerland and had transferred his property under the child's name. That was how Luke threatened Peyton, saying that if Peyton did not follow his instructions, he would expose the whereabouts of his property, and the mother and child's lives would be put in danger. Peyton was resentful toward the threat, but he had no choice. Luke had taken extreme care in ensuring that there were no flaws in every step of his plan. Any flaw would result in his plan's failure. After Bianca listened to the concise but comprehensive narration, she could not help but be impressed by the man's attention to detail. Ten years ago, Bianca
The next day, in the presidential suite. The big bed was shaking violently. As the man grunted and the woman moaned, a thick smell of decadence wafted in the air. After a beastly low growl, the room slowly resumed its calm. Leia leaned on Wayne's solid chest and hugged his neck. "Are you happy with my performance today, mmm?" "It's so rare that you take the initiative. What do you want? Just say it." Wayne laid in bed and hugged Leia, though he kept his hands busy. "Naughty you! I've missed you. What else could I want?" Leia suddenly flipped onto his body and performed several bold maneuvers. Wayne laughed. "You seemed so reluctant only a few days ago. Don't tell me that you've changed so fast! Have you begun to enjoy it?" Leia cast a seductive glance at him. "How can you say that about me, Wayne? Haven't you heard the saying, 'If you can't fight it, you might as well lie down and enjoy it.'? Your skills are so amazing. No wonder so many women fall for your charms…" Way
Luke's heart was in his throat when he heard Bianca shrieking in fear. "What's wrong, Bianca?" Bianca could not speak when she saw the scene in front of her. Snakes! So many snakes! She was sitting on the swing, and her first instinct was to get off it. However, in her panic, she could not control her injured leg very well and nearly fell to the ground. Fortunately, her hand managed to grab onto a thick branch so that she did not have to fall face-first on the ground. "What's going on, Bianca?" Luke sounded extremely worried. Bianca pointed the camera of her phone at the fearful creatures on the ground. She dared not move a muscle. Through the voice call, Luke could see tens of black snakes surging toward Bianca… His heart skipped a beat, and his eyes instantly widened in anger! Those snakes were black mambas, the most dangerous and venomous snake in the world. They were feared for their speed and ferocity; two drops of their venom was enough to kill. However, those
In the nick of time, Bianca managed to scramble several steps forward to higher ground, and the snake did not spot her momentarily. That was a close call! How could such scary animals appear in the mansion? Bianca's stomach hurt intensely, and her body was limp. She did not have the strength to run. In front of the front door of the house was a flight of stairs. Every step was a struggle, but she could only force herself to move. The snakes behind her continued to swarm at her. The biggest snake was almost going to reach her when Uncle Vald suddenly turned back and shouted, "Madam!" He noticed a children's wooden spade at the side. That was what Lanie and Rainie often used when they played in the garden. He summoned his courage, took the spade, and slammed it on the snake's head! The spade was light, but Uncle Vald was strong. The snake was incensed by the pain and moved faster. It stuck out its tongue, bared its fang, and bit Uncle Vald! The gardener disregarded his st
"Bianca!" Outside the house, Luke roared hysterically. At that moment, Luke was worried and furious. He fired at the snakes with his hunting rifle as though he had lost his mind. As he pulled the trigger, he called out Bianca's name. When Bianca heard Luke's voice, she scrambled over to the window and thumped at the glass. "I'm fine, Luke. There are many venomous snakes outside. Please be careful…" She tried to suppress her fear when she saw Luke's bloodshot eyes and his almost maniacal demeanor. He seemed to be more scared of the snakes than her. She felt relieved when she saw him. Luke also felt relieved when he saw that Bianca was safe inside the house. An unknown amount of time passed before the electronic door opened and Luke rushed in. He hugged Bianca with trembling arms. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" He had almost lost her again. "It's not your fault. You don't have to blame yourself." Bianca slumped in his embrace, grateful that she had survived the ordeal. Luk
“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