Nina stared at the message for a while before laughing drily. She eventually chose to ignore it. She was like a pet, subject to her owner's beck and call. That was such a horrible feeling! Nina got into her car, fastened her seatbelt, and drove away from her parent's house. She sped all the way back to A City. It would usually take three hours to make that journey, but she reduced it by half. Soon, she found herself in the most happening part of A City. She looked through the car window at the scenery outside. Street lamps like stars adorned the tree-lined avenue, giving off a dreamy atmosphere. She did not like nights like these. The neon signboard read "Queen's Pub" and gave off an alluring glow. Nina parked her car, took a deep breath, and stepped out. The moment she opened the door, she was hit by a wave of body heat. She looks coldly at the depraved crowd on the dance floor. The speakers in the nightclub blasted loud music, causing the bodies and limbs of tho
Nina lifted her head in surprise and realized that she was in an awkward position. While panicking, she grabbed Pierre Mallory's... Boom! Nina's face turned tomato red as her brain froze. In that instant, she felt ashamed and annoyed. She wanted nothing more than to bury her face in the ground. Why was luck not on her side? Pierre laughed, grabbed her chin with his long fingers, and forced her to look at him. "Why? You can't wait to get closer to me?" Everyone around them laughed, while some of the men even wolf-whistled to cheer Pierre on. One of the frivolous voices rang the loudest. "Young Master Pierre is too irresistible!" Nina's cheeks were burning hot, and her hateful eyes shot daggers at Pierre, startling him. "Oh, it's you." After a long time, Pierre's sexy thin lips were raised into a sneer as he said, "What happened to the good girl who was top of her class? How did you end up as a bottle girl? Do you need money? Come be my woman and you’ll
After all that had happened, Old Master Crawford now understood Luke's love for Bianca. He would ruin his relationship with Luke If he insisted that he go along with his wishes. Old Master Crawford was well aware of his grandson's abilities through how he handled the incident involving The Galleria. He was confident that T Corporation would thrive under his management. He was happy to go with the flow when it came to Luke and Bianca. After all these years, Old Master Crawford knew that Bianca was a wonderful wife to Luke and a great granddaughter-in-law. Her capabilities at work and personality were perfect. He would not stand in their way since the two of them truly loved each other. Once upon a time, Old Master Crawford had forced his son, Zachary, to marry and interfered in his private life. His actions had caused his son to renounce himself for many years. Since then, Zachary had acted rebelliously. Zachary’s married life did not bring him joy, and he
The drama at the dining table ended abruptly. Study. Old Master Crawford looked at his handsome grandson who was sitting on the sofa and sighed at how fast time passed. Unknowingly, Zachary had already left for so many years and the baby who was wailing in the swaddle had grown into one of the most influential and highly praised business leaders in the world. Old Master Crawford talked to Luke about T Corporation and then the topic shifted to his personal affairs. "Luke, are you firm on having a wedding with Bianca on the 16th? To be honest, Bianca is a wonderful woman and it’s your luck to be able to spend your life with her. It’s just that… the timing of your wedding is a little rushed. After all, the collapse of The Galleria happened not long ago. I’m afraid that a grand wedding at this timing will lead to strong dissatisfaction from the families of those victims." Luke ashed his cigarette and replied nonchalantly, "I had set the date long ago. I wanted to g
Leia immediately went for a color doppler ultrasound examination. When the image came out, she immediately brought it to Dr. Luis’ office and asked her to take a look at it. The image showed that it was a mid-term pregnancy, single live birth (15W+6D), and posterior placenta. Dr. Luis carefully read the report. She pushed the big-rimmed glasses on the bridge of her nose and said, "Ms. Norman, you’re pregnant. The baby is 15 weeks and 6 days old." Leia's face turned pale in an instant. She took off her sunglasses and screamed, "That’s impossible! When I was more than 30 days pregnant, I took abortion pills. I was bleeding for a few days after that. How could the child be alive?" Dr. Luis frowned and asked Leia, "When did you take the abortion pill? How did you take it? Which doctor prescribed the abortion pill for you?" Leia sighed and answered truthfully, "Dr. Hoover was the one who prescribed the medicine. She gave me three days worth of medicine and not
Leia was not bothered that there was a faint pain coming from her stomach. In the mirror, her face was pale as a ghost but there was a cruel smile on her face. However, her stomach cramped for only a while before Leia could no longer stand the pain. She lay on her bed, her expression looking dull and absent. Her eyes suddenly widened and she began to scan through her room. Leia's room was well designed. The main colors were pink and white, while her curtains and sofas were all high-end imports. The colors and style were the careful work of well-known designers. It had a dreamy look and feel. When she was a child in the orphanage, she had been forced to loot for food. She had always imagined becoming a princess and getting adopted by well-meaning people in expensive clothes so that she could live in a gorgeous house. After a long wait, she finally saw hope when Mr. and Mrs. Norman visited the orphanage. She plotted to replace Scarlett Quincy and wiggled her
On the other side of town. When Leia woke up in the private room, she realized that she was naked and her body was in pain. She was alone in the private room. After a brief period of confusion, Leia knew what had happened to her.It was because there were countless bruises on her body. A bag containing white powder was placed on the sofa and there was a note under it. Leia took it and saw Cree's messy handwriting. [Ms. Norman, you’re not bad. We’re in business. This is what you need. Would be happy to work with you again.] Leia was so furious that she crumpled the note. She shuddered with disgust at the thought of having slept with such a good-for-nothing the night before. However, she needed this drug. She knew that Cree had slept with her. It happened only once, but what came to her mind was the scene of her doing it with Cree countless times... When she ran to the bathroom, Leia vomited everything that was in her stomach and cursed
Dawn. A high-end hotel. Leia’s high heels, skirt, top, and stockings were scattered on the floor. Brody’s shirt and trousers... Brody woke up in a panic, feeling completely drained. What he saw when he opened his eyes was a magnified pretty face. There was a woman in his arms, and it was Leia. Leia was sleeping sweetly and looked content in his arms. Brody was taken back. He looked at the mess on the floor and smelled the musky scent in the air. As an adult, he knew what had happened between them. The scene of their intense and passionate night came to mind. He felt greatly satisfied. He did not expect that the gentle and polite-looking Leia was so wild in bed. Mm, it seemed that it was not the first time they had spent the night together... "Hmm..." Leia woke up from her sleep. When she saw Brody staring at her, she got up calmly and was not at all bothered that she was naked in front of him. Her body was full of scr
“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