The mask covered up William’s face completely. One could only see how beaten-up he was, but not how he actually looked like. A few even cast him quizzical glances, what with the only thing exposed were his bloodshot eyes. His breaths were already labored, and with the mask on his face, he felt like he was running out of oxygen. Even with that, and with his head buzzing, face pale and swollen, he endured it as he entered the lift. All of a sudden, he lost his balance, legs turning into mush as he slumped inside the lift heavily. The moment that he fell, he managed to hold up the artificial kidney, and he sighed in relief when he knew it was safe.He withstood the pain and pressed the button with difficulty. Following that, he bit his tongue and tightened his grip, causing his veins to protrude, to climb back up on his feet. By the time he went out from the lift, his face was extremely pale with cold sweat all over. After a few deep breaths, he dragged his worn-out bod
The nurse rushed in urgently. Seeing that the operation had not started, she sighed in relief, saying, “Thank goodness I’m right on time!” Nial looked at her and frowned. “We’re undergoing an operation. Why did you barge in?” The nurse handed the artificial kidney to him, saying, “Dr. Nial, Ms. Charmine doesn’t have to donate her kidney anymore. Someone sent over an artificial kidney, he said we may use this on Ms. Faye.” Charmine was baffled, and Nial was just as shocked, too. Charmine looked at her and asked suspiciously, “Who sent it to you?” The nurse frowned. “He insisted on letting me bring this in. I was in a hurry and forgot to ask for his name.” Charmine frowned. Who could it be? Only she and Nial knew about the operation. The nurse seemed to understand her, just as Charmine was about to inquire more about it, and said, “He was wearing a mask and had wounds all over him. I couldn’t see his face clearly.” Nial looked at the artificial kidney that looked just l
Charmine fell silent before asking, “How’s Frank doing?” Nial said, “He had a skin grafting procedure yesterday. He’s now in the ICU.” “Okay.” Charmine stood up. “I’ll visit him now.” Nial nodded. Thinking of Anthony, he asked suspiciously, “Where’s my brother?” Charmine was then reminded of that matter. “I distracted him.” Since she did not need to undergo the operation, he could come back. Nial looked at Charmine with admiration. “Clever you are, Charmine!” Charmine smiled. “Of course!” With that, she picked up her phone as she walked toward Frank’s ward, texting Chris, [Baby, Mommy has sorted out the matter. You may come home now. Remember to tell your Daddy; don’t make him worry.] Meanwhile, Chris was on a cruise. When he received Charmine’s text, he replied, “Alrighty, Mommy!” After sending the reply, he turned off his phone and rubbed his eyes. He walked over to the waitress and feebly muttered, “Miss, I can’t find my Daddy…” “Huh?” The waitress was shocked.
“Okay, Daddy.” Chris hung up and handed the phone back to the waitress. “Thank you, Miss. My Daddy is picking me up.” The staff adored Chris for being a well-behaved boy. Any other child would have cried and caused a scene if this happened to them, yet not only was Chris unafraid, but he even calmly phoned his father to pick him up! The waitress ruffled his hair and said, “My dear, you’re amazing. The cruise has to move on, so I can’t stay here till your father comes.” Chris nodded. “It’s okay, I can wait alone here. Thank you.” The waitress waved to bid him farewell. After the cruise moved, another boat arrived by the port a few minutes later… Anthony came off the boat. When he saw Chris standing alone not far away, his heart sank. He wanted to lash out at him, but he reminded himself that Chris was merely a five-year-old kid. He knew nothing! He was his son—his flesh and blood! It did not help that he would have to go under the knife soon, and no one could tell
“I see…” Frank thought more into the matter and said, “If you have time, help me find out who it was, Charmine. She saved Faye and was also the reason why I don’t owe you a kidney and hurt you. I must thank the individual.” “Hmm… Okay.” Charmine agreed to it and looked at him. “Faye’s matter is now sorted. You shouldn’t put your operation on hold anymore. It’s time to get it done.” Frank nodded. “Okay. I’ll have a look at Faye before the operation.” Charmine could only help him get to Faye’s ward. Frank sat by the bedside, and though unable to see how she looked, he could feel Faye’s breaths were better than before. It was no longer weak like yesterday. Finally reassured, he looked at Charmine’s direction and said, “Charmine, I’m sorry to have troubled you in the past few days. I’m ready for the operation.” Charmine let out a sigh of relief and nodded. “Okay. I’ll ask Anthony to call for the doctor.” Frank nodded. “Thank you.” “You’re always welcome.” Charmine phone
Charmine was talking to Anthony when Jennie walked out of the lift and passed the resting lounge. She was shocked to see Charmine standing. Did she not donate her kidney to Faye? Why was she standing here, completely fine? Anthony looked at her and said, “Frank is ready for the operation.” Jennie gave a small nod, the medical box still at hand as she glanced at Charmine. She did not manage to see how pained she was after removing a kidney. What a shame! She left arrogantly and went right into the operating room. A few minutes later, Frank was pushed inside. With Chris still in her arms, Charmine waited outside the operating room as Anthony accompanied them, his dull eyes never wavering from them both. He would have to be experimented on once Frank recovered. If the experiment caused paralysis or injured his brain, he might forget the two of them… Even the thought of it was painful. Charmine waited patiently with Chris, but they did not notice the emotional look
The small figure entertained himself, though Chris still looked lonely. Anthony stopped short. As a father, he spent too little time with his son. Perhaps, in the future… He let his emotions sink in and watched his son for a long while before going inside his bedroom. Charmine was planning their wedding when she saw Anthony walking in. “You came at the right time.” She smiled. “Come and have a look.” Anthony walked toward her. Charmine showed her laptop screen displaying their wedding gown and suit to him. “What do you think?” Anthony looked at their attires and felt heartsick. This gown would look so good on her. She would be the most beautiful woman in the world. Would he still have a chance to see it? He gulped, muttering softly, “It’s beautiful.” Charmine’s alluring lips curled up. “You’ll look good in this suit, too.” Touched, Anthony lifted her face by the chin and kissed her alluring lips. “Why don’t we take some wedding photos later?” “Hmm?” Charmine
Anthony could tell what Cain was thinking, hence he earnestly introduced, “This is my only wife. It’s not a joke.” Cain was surprised. Was Waverly just a joke, then? Right. Waverly was too over the top and was just like any heiress. She was not unique. Cain walked over and shook his hand before turning to Charmine. “You’re doing well, Boss Bailey. You find yourself such a beautiful wife behind our backs!” Anthony glared at him coldly, and Cain instantly wiped off his flirtatious grin, instead saying, “Charmine, please come here to pick a gown.” Anthony held onto Charmine's hand as they made their way to choose a gown, not letting go of her hand once. “This is a bright red gown, and it suits your temperament,” suggested Cain by the side. Charmine glanced at him. Cain was indeed a top designer—this was what she had in mind! Anthony looked at Charmine. “What do you think? Would you like to look around for the time being?” Charmine nodded. “This gown is fine. We don’t h
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