Crawford Manor. Luke and the family had spent the night in Crawford Manor as requested by Old Master Crawford. Early in the morning, the table was full of people once again. Old Master Crawford was delighted to see the happy family. Louis went downstairs with his wife and daughter. He saw Luke and said with a smile, "Big Brother, Sister-in-law, you’re all here." "Yeah." Luke was calm as always. "Good morning." Bianca was holding Tommy in her arms. He drooled as he looked at the breakfast on the table. If she were not holding him, he would already have a donut in his hand. Yuri Dunn sat down with Thea in her arms, feeling unhappy. She thought that Louis treated an outsider more eagerly more than he treated her and Thea. "Uncle Louis, Aunt Yuri, Thea, good morning," Blanche and Rainie greeted them.Tommy's attention finally shifted from the food. He greeted, "Good morning! Nice to see you, Uncle Louis, Aunt Yuri, and Thea." Louis smiled when
Allison's pale face was flushed as she glared at Susan. "What does this have to do with you?" Susan covered her mouth and smiled. Her gaze was full of disdain and mockery. ‘You’re nothing but a mistress! Your family offended T Corporation and is being backed to a corner, causing you to struggle now. How ridiculous!’ Luke furrowed his brows. He did not want to see this kind of farce. He had felt helpless when he was a kid but as he grew up, he learned how to ignore it. Bianca carefully wiped Tommy's mouth, stood up, and interrupted the farce by saying, "Grandpa, Luke and I need to leave first. We need to send Rainie and Blanche to school." Old Master Crawford nodded. He was getting a headache from Allison and Susan quarreling. His sharp gaze swept over them. Susan noticed how infuriated Allison already was so she said nothing. Instead, she yawned and stood up with a smug expression. She said, "I'm tired too. Life is interesting, there are always ridiculous thing
Self-defense? Bianca was well aware of how weak she was. Sometimes when something happened, even the bodyguards that Luke hired could not protect her. In the end, he had to put himself in harm's way to save her. Bianca raised her gaze and agreed with him, "Tomorrow is Saturday. I’ll sign up for a class and do my best." She was going to learn self-defense not only to make herself stronger and not hold him back anymore but also for the sake of her health. Bianca intended to spend the rest of her life with Luke, but after giving birth to Tommy, her health deteriorated. She was afraid that her dream would not come true because of that. Therefore, her intention of learning self-defense was to protect herself and strengthen her body. "You don't need to sign up for classes. I'll get someone to teach you." Luke freed his right hand and held Bianca's hand. She smiled slightly and nodded in agreement.They soon arrived at the Tanner family’s villa. T
Luke's cold gaze lingered on Riley's face for one second before turning away to look at Bianca once more while placing the back of her hand in his cheek. "To me, Bianca is a unique presence. No one in the world is like her, and no other woman is worthy of being her substitute." It was rare that Luke spoke so much about her, which warmed Bianca's heart as she listened to it. She did in fact think that Riley looked somewhat similar to her, and she was quite appalled that Xavier could do such a thing. However, Luke's words had made Bianca think that Xavier was doing all that in vain. She was irreplaceable after all. The love that they gave Xavier could not be compared to the love that she gave Luke. Riley seemed surprised. She had suspected Bianca's identity when she met her at the mall, but she did not expect that Bianca would be Luke Crawford's wife! Her face turned red with embarrassment. Xavier seemed to have set her up for humiliation, while Luke had expressed his revulsi
Xavier entered the study without knocking at the door. Daniel was furious. He threw the objects on the table at his son. "You wretch! Must you do this to your father?" Xavier's expression sank, though he was not going to lose his temper at his father. He glanced disdainfully at the things that had fallen on the floor. "Why are you acting all crazy? Your guests are waiting for you outside!" He said unhappily. Daniel's chest was heaving from anger. He pointed at the document on the floor and said, "Pick it up." Xavier bent over and picked up the few pieces of paper. He glanced at it and wondered why his father would be so angry. "Where did you get this?" His expression darkened, and the hands that were holding the document began to tremble. "That's the present from Luke Crawford!" Daniel stood up abruptly and, in a fit of rage, threw the burning cigarette at Xavier's face. Xavier managed to dodge it in time. He would be hurt if he did not. "How dare he!" Xavier's expressi
Lacey was beginning to waver. Melissa was not done yet. She shook Lacey's arm and said, "Aunt Lacey, if you like children, I'll give you one once Xavier comes to his senses and marries me. You don't need Riley's baby. Who knows if you're only raising a child for someone else?" Lacey became wholly convinced. "Alright, but that b*tch is already a few months into her pregnancy. We can't afford to wait if we want to get rid of it." Melissa hurriedly added, "I've asked the doctor that examined her. He said that the baby isn't firmly embedded in the placenta, and she'll have to be careful. Otherwise…" She pretended to hesitate. "Go on, Melissa! Otherwise what?" Lacey was anxious when she considered that the child in Riley's womb might not be Xavier's. "Otherwise, if she bumps into something, she might easily lose it." Melissa let go of her hand. Now that she had gotten Lacey on her side, it was time that the little b*tch left Xavier. 'Do you think that you're special just becau
Luke's objective was for Xavier to stay away from Bianca. If Xavier did not want to leave the country, Luke had other options for him. "Would you like him to spend some time inside then, Uncle Daniel?" His voice was cold, clearly not in the mood for negotiation. "Please, no!" Daniel cried out in shock. Xavier was indignant when he saw his father begging and groveling. He did not believe that Luke did not have any dirt. Luke got lucky in the corruption case; someone had taken the fall for him. Perhaps he could find another one… Luke folded his arms together. His diamond wedding ring shone brilliantly under the lamplight, which stung Xavier's eyes. Daniel tugged Xavier's shirt sleeve in case his son acted rashly. "Xavier is almost going to be a father, Luke. After that girl gives birth to his child, he'll have to marry a daughter of the Lerches. Why would he harass your wife then?" "He can marry outside of the country." Luke stood up and headed toward the door. If Xavier
The servant did not move. She was caught between Lacey and Luke and did not know what to do. The ambulance arrived shortly. Before Xavier carried Riley downstairs, he said, "Bianca isn't like that, Mom. The truth will be revealed once Riley wakes up." Lacey was disappointed in her son. Why would he still be speaking up for Bianca when he was about to lose his child? Her chest heaved with anger. Seeing that the servant did not act, she took out her phone. "If you're not going to call the police, I will!" Luke grasped her hand tightly and said sinisterly, "Think twice before you act, Mrs. Tanner." Lacey was at the height of her anger. She wanted to pull her hand away, but she realized that she could not move her hand at all. The pain from her wrist caused her to tremble. "What are you doing? Are you threatening me?" Bianca put her hands on Luke. "The truth will prevail. If you'd like to call the police, Mrs. Tanner, then please go ahead. However, if Ms. Riley wakes up and
“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