Charmine’s phone was bombarded with calls early in the morning. Luckily, she had it on a no-disturb mode, thus they only sent her texts. [Leon: Charmine, the idea you had last night was spectacular! It’s now coming along with great feedback!] [Uncle Pop: The Association invited me to attend this competition to get a ranking for our country!] [Senior Jordan: Don’t worry, Charmine, I won’t let the trophies end up in the hands of others!] [Kay: Boss Jordan, I’m observing those with Guy’s blood type. Currently, more than ten of them are coming over to Burlington to attend this event.] When Charmine woke up and saw the messages, she smiled. Everything went as planned. Grandma Granger should probably stop pulling her tricks already. As expected, Grandma Granger also texted her, [Charmine, the Association has briefed me, and I can see the goal of your plan. Although it’s good to have some backup blood, if anything truly happens, Guy will be in pain. My intention isn’t to hear so
Dior turned around and saw McKenzie walking toward her. A genial smile broke out on Dior’s face as she walked up to her and hooked her arm around McKenzie. “McKenzie, long time no see! Fancy meeting you here!” “Yeah, what a coincidence! What are you doing here?” asked McKenzie, face looking concerned. They merely had a small age gap, but they both came from reputable families in Burlington. They went to the same school from a young age, so they knew each other well. Dior did not keep anything from McKenzie. “I’m sending some gifts over to my future sister-in-law. I’m helping my brother court a woman. I want my brother to get married soon!” “Chase a woman? Isn’t your brother with Charmine?” McKenzie frowned, suspicious at what she was hearing. Dior sighed. “I don’t even want to talk about it. Don’t tell anyone else about this; I’m only telling you. They’re both putting on an act. My brother likes Charmine, but she doesn’t feel the same way. He’s given up on Charmine, but I h
Max dialed his assistant and instructed, “Identify Leon Lennon’s enemies. I want their information.” It was not long then that he received the name list that stated the names of many highly reputable figures in the construction industry. Max scanned through the list intently for a long time before his gaze locked onto the cruelest among them. With a highly encrypted messaging system, he texted, [Leon Lennon signed a military order.] He only wrote a few words, but they were enough. Knowing this person’s efficiency, he would be able to find out everything regarding Leon signing a contract to guarantee Guy’s safety with his own life. … Meanwhile, Guy had his breakfast in Violet Residence. Just like yesterday, Yvonne personally prepared his blood-replenishing diet, and Guy finished his meal to replenish and sustain enough blood. Yvonne watched on with delight. “Is my meal so delicious? But I have to say, you’re the first person that I ever cooked for.” “Thank you.” Gu
Guy thought of how Charmine might have a migraine anytime, thus he took good care of his body and was very cooperative when Nial examined him. Inside the medical laboratory on the third floor... As Nial examined Guy, Charmine contacted Uncle Sam to inquire about the blood-replenishing medication. Uncle Sam replied, [Dear me, I forgot to tell you. Even though it’s effective, it takes at least ten days to be effective. It doesn’t work right away. Within these ten days, he must take good care of his body and living environment.] Charmine’s heart sank. Ten days? Guy would suffer from severe anemia for the next ten days? If the medication would work in ten days, he should get better. Anyone would not be able to feel well after having 60 milliliters of blood extracted from them every day. She prayed inwardly that things went well on Anthony’s end. Hopefully, he could convince many people to donate blood. She prayed that Guy’s situation was not severe. Unfortunately…
Charmine saw how well taken care of Guy was, and she was less worried. She turned and walked out of the laboratory. Anthony followed after her. “Don’t worry,” he coaxed, “I’ve arranged for them to convince the others.” “Yeah, but we can’t sit and do nothing. I’ll contact Kay to find out more and try to get more connections,” spoke Charmine before she phoned Kay. Kay’s voice was heard, “Boss Jordan, I was just about to call you. There are thirty others with this blood type, but they’re not planning to come to Burlington. Two years ago, they joined the M35 Medical Research Association.” Charmine frowned. “M35 Medical Research Association? What is that?” “This is a research association targeting special blood types all over the world. They’re trying to research all kinds of advanced technology concerning hematology. They even attempted to create Blood Cloning Technology in the past five years.” Since embryos and many others could be cloned, the M35 thought that the blood type
Anthony’s voice was too seductive! Was he trying to make her pregnant?! Charmine was about to push Anthony away by instinct when he trapped her and reminded her, “Your turn.” Charmine was baffled at this. Her turn… “Can you not play such a childish game?” “What do you think?” asked Anthony as he gazed at her with a half-smile. His tone was a reply in itself. Of course not. Charmine still had a pile of work to sort out and she had always been an independent woman, yet she—feeling like an elementary student at that moment—became flustered. This was too unlike her character! She made a decision then, and with the goal of sorting this out as soon as possible, she forced out, stuttering, “Husband…” Her voice sounded naturally cold, yet it sounded so endearing as she muttered. Anthony’s body jolted. He felt as if an electric current coursed through him as his heart went numb. “Screw it. I’ve changed the condition.” He had his arm around Charmine’s waist and walk
Her fingers worked on the keyboard quickly as she typed to reply, [Tell William that he doesn’t have to work on my illness anymore. There’s no use. I only need Guy’s blood for another fifty days or so, and I’ll recover.] In other words, 50 days would have passed and all efforts would be futile, even if William worked very hard and succeeded. When Uncle Sam saw her reply, he phoned her right away. “Charmine, why don’t you say this to William yourself? I can’t talk him out of it. Oh, Charmine wants to speak with you…” said Uncle Sam to William in the end.Charmine grew taut. She was still inside the Villa and just gotten out of the bedroom, yet Uncle Sam asked her to talk to William? Anthony was already jealous of Guy, and if he overheard this… She looked back and saw that Anthony was not out yet. She quickly walked to the balcony by the end of the hallway and put the phone by her ear. William’s voice was instantly heard on the other end. “Don’t listen to Uncle Sam, Char
Why did William do it? A sudden gust of cold air tingled down her spine just as she had the thought. It felt as if someone was staring at her from the back, incredibly forbidding. Charmine instinctively turned to look and finally noticed that Anthony had somehow walked to the balcony. His cloudy gaze observed her keenly with an ominous temperament. She was so terrified that her hands jolted, and her phone nearly fell. “An…Anthony…why are you here?” “If I’m not here, how would I know that my wife is secretly talking to another man behind my back?” spoke Anthony, his glare aimed at her before it landed on her phone. His gaze felt sharp and thorny; it was as if her phone was a rival of his. Charmine felt somewhat guilty. She was just talking regularly on the phone, yet he treated her as if she was cheating on him… Unfortunately, Uncle Sam did not have a good hearing and thus did not overhear Charmine talking to Anthony as he continued, “Oh, Charmine, look at how much W
There was an unnoticeable glint in Sonia's eyes. She nestled herself further into Harry's arms as she added, "Let’s go to Pares. We'll come back after I give birth to the baby.""Alright."Harry stayed by Sonia's side as he watched over her, cared for her, and talked to her until she finally slept in his care.He stood up tiredly and walked out of the room to sit in the living room.Thuck!Something fell out of his pocket.He narrowed his eyes to the source of sound and spotted a USB.Since when did he have a USB in his pocket?With a small frown on his face, Harry curiously picked it up and noticed the front side of the USB glowing. Something was carved onto its surface, too.[Granger].Was it Dior’s USB? Why was her USB inside his pocket?Harry’s clear fingers held on the USB tightly. He thought for a moment before he took out a laptop, turned it on, and plugged in the USB.A moment later, the screen showed what seemed to be peculiar surveillance footage with a descriptio
Dior was still lost in her storm of thoughts when a shadowy figure zipped past her and ran toward Harry.When she spotted this familiar figure, she reacted quickly and held onto him."Let go of me!" growled Guy. "How dare he slap you and misunderstood you? I have to beat some sense into him!"Harry broke free and chased after Harry.Dior, despite having lost all hope and life in her, mustered the last strand of her will to chase after Guy and reeled him back. "Brother, don't," she muttered, "spare your energy…" Her sorrow clouded her eyes as she mumbled, "He’s the man I love. Even though he hates me, I won’t allow you to hurt him. As for the explanation…"Dior smiled ironically. "Whatever. That slap decimated every beautiful daydream I have about him, anyway."She no longer expected anything from him.He had no trust in her, so what would it matter if she finally got him? He did not even love her, and he did not trust her either.Dior smiled elegantly, but her eyes were fille
Dior looked forward to that new shift.She watched as Harry made his way into the restaurant silently, unable to deter her mind from the daydreams she had of him, of the new chapter of their story they would have.He would apologize to her, trying to redeem himself, and kiss her dearly as he embraced her. Later down the line, they would have a child of their own, too.Harry's long legs walked in strides, his dark gaze trained on Dior.The bright light shone on Dior’s delicately stunning face, and she also wore a red dress.He remembered her wearing this back in Mount Village.He could remember how alluring she looked back then, how they stayed in the same room, how she put down her ego to treat him with so much gentleness.Harry’s cold face mellowed down, but recalling a certain memory, the vague wistfulness in him vanished and he sat in front of her.Dior looked at him fondly, like she always would. "Long time no see."Her eyes burned brightly as if she wanted to drink in his
Dior examined the footage the moment she received it.True enough, it showed Sonia and George talking about their little deal. It also showed how Dior was telling the truth while they both ganged up on her.Dior’s frail heart felt as though it was rejuvenated once more, feeling as though blood was once more pumped into her heart. Her dull eyes devoid of hope regained their lost luster once more.Not thinking twice, she dialed Harry's number with this evidence, though he had to be busy, seeing as he did not pick up even after the phone rang for a long while.Just as she was about to hang up, Harry picked up the phone."What do you want?"On the other end of the call was the voice that she had missed for so long. His low, hoarse voice sounded so cold and emotionless.Hearing his voice brought Dior back to the image of his handsome face, and her heart skipped a beat.She tried her best to restrain her fluttering emotions as she tried to speak calmly, "Do you have time? I’d like to
At Mount Village…Inside the elegant bamboo house was Dior, dressed in a beige dress. She sat in the front yard as she took sips of her wine.The sunlight shone past the leaves and illuminated her, yet she exuded an air of loneliness.She swirled the glass and could not help recalling the moments she spent with Harry.In the beginning, she was attracted by his looks; he looked so gentle and elegant.She gave him money, kept him company, and continuously showed up around him in hopes of conquering him.Alas, she ended up in this state.The time she spent with him in Mount Village was the happiest time she had ever had. They had lived inside the bamboo house together, where he took care of her and claimed her to be his woman.They even laid inside the same room.Everything was so beautiful.Cursed was her luck, however, that it was just an illusion. He had been using her from the start, while he chose to stay with the woman who lied to him and even hurt him!No matter how mu
"Although Susan was unhappy, she should've voiced out her displeasure instead of bottling things. Cheating is wrong, regardless. Furthermore, if she wanted a career, she didn't have to stay home and depend on her husband."Grandma Bailey halted.Was that what Charmine truly thought of?Grandma Bailey thought Charmine would find Susan too aggressive unto herself.Charmine glanced at Susan again and apathetically commented, "She doesn't want to make money on her own, but she wants to be rich while complaining about her man not making time for her and taking care of her? If a woman has no ability of her own and also blames others for her miseries, all she's worth is to sit quietly at home and wait for her husband to come home. She also has no right to cheat! This is how the world works."Charmine patted Grandma Bailey’s shoulder and held Anthony’s hand, her words met with everyone's evidently surprised gazes and their silence.Grandma Bailey was shocked. Sure, Charmine sounded rathe
The colossal cruise started to drift away from the pier.Eric stood on the cruise and let the wind blow at him, loneliness and hatred still oozing from his being.He stared at the blue ocean ahead of him as Charmine's words rang in his mind unceasingly.'Will you really feel good after you've killed them?''You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?'"Forgive them and yourself.'Deliberating everything carefully, his lips curled into a bitter smile.It was true, after all, that Charmine understood him the most.Eric poured himself another drink and downed it with loneliness as he allowed the cruise to bring him wherever it would take him.…Susan was still inside the operating room when Charmine and the rest of the Baileys rushed into the hospital.Darryl stood before the room, his expression blank, his figure lonely and helpless.So many things had happened in half a day.He found out about his wife's inf
"No one's stopping you now. Eat!"Anthony clenched his hands tightly and took another glance at Charmine. He was more determined than before, and he was close to eating the pills in the bottle.Charmine, who was held hostage, gradually opened her eyes at that moment. Her gaze drifted toward Eric before she asked, her tone challenging, "Will you really feel good after you've killed them? You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?"Eric halted, and his eyes darkened.Charmine had just woken up, yet what she said…He cast a cold glance at Charmine. "It's my business, and it has nothing to do with you!"They were his family, and he did not want a family like this!Charmine looked squarely at him. "Eric, I don’t care if you used me or plotted against me all these years; I've treated you like a true friend, nothing more nor less. You were the only person who stayed by my side in the past five years, so I hope that you
Anthony's breath hitched when he saw Charmine.He clenched his fists and, without doubting himself, relented "I can agree to your terms, so let her go right away. This has nothing to do with her; you only hate me after all. As long as you let her go, I'll take the pill. Everything will end right away."Susan shook her head. "We'll die after eating the pill. I’m not taking that!"She had just reunited with Eric, and she did not want to die yet. She looked at Eric and begged, "Please let Anthony be, why don't you? He’s your brother, after all, and he doesn’t even know about your existence. If you’re really angry, just kill Charmine, and I'll make it up to you—"Anthony's expression contorted in sheer fury upon hearing Susan's plea, and he glared at her with murderous intent."This was all your fault, so what right do you have to make Charmine take your blame?!""What on earth are you going on about?" snapped Grandma Bailey. "Charmine has been kidnapped because of you, yet you want