Vivian frowned. When she heard Luca say so, she thought it must be the kind of medicine that was hard to purchase.There were two types of medicines that were hard to find in the market. One was prohibited drugs, while the other were medicines used to cure extraordinary diseases. Vivian looked at Luca and thought she was probably not looking for the prohibited drugs. Besides, she would have her own reason for needing this medicine…“I can help,” said Vivian. She knew people who could get such things because of Ray. Luca shook her head and replied, “I can find them myself.”“You’re worried that someone will find out about it, right? Don’t worry. You’ve been listening to me all day today. I’m thankful. I’ll help you look for the medicine, and I’ll keep it a secret at the same time,” said Vivian. Although she still felt down, she was doing much better now after pouring her feelings out. Luca thought to herself that since Vivian had promised not to tell, then Luke would not be a
In the hotel.Vivian was drinking water after she swallowed the pill Luca gave her. Then, she was getting ready to rest. The doorbell rang when she had just sat on the bed. Vivian frowned. Could Luca have left her belongings behind, so she came back for them?Vivian headed to the door and remembered what Luca had told to her. The underworld scene in Russia was chaotic now.Ray's group was formidable. A big tree would attract the woodman's ax. A few smaller groups were green with envy over their family’s success. However, they always had bodyguards with them, and that was why they had been safe.Vivian was also under Ray’s protection. She never went out alone as two bodyguards would always follow her. Hence, nothing had ever happened to her.Now, Vivian was here alone. Perhaps those groups had received the news and they were planning to do something bad to her.Vivian was alerted. She did not open the door right away. Instead, she chose to take a glimpse through the peephole o
Russian food tasted bland to them. Hence, Luca's home-cooked meal smelled so good that it made them hungry.Jason was looking forward to it too.Luca walked into the kitchen and took the plates and cutleries out. Then, she placed them in front of Luke and Jason. She said, “There aren’t many ingredients and spices available here, so the food might not taste as good.”Spices such as oregano, rosemary, and thyme were not available in the hotel.Luca tried using Russian ingredients to prepare Western food.There were four dishes and soup on the table. Jason swallowed his saliva and suppressed the urge to immediately pick up his spoon to grab some of them.After all, Luke was still here. He should not be in a rush.Luca filled their bowls with soup for them. Just then, Luke’s phone vibrated. Luke picked up his phone, glanced at it, and said, "They’ve already decided on the meeting time."“Boss, when is it?” Jason asked. They had been communicating with the office in the Capital fo
Gale had some influence in Russia and knew that Ray was in search of Vivian.Hence, when he was reporting Luca's whereabouts, he reported about Vivian as well.However, Luke did not immediately tell Ray about it. After all, it was Ray's family issue. Previously, Ray did not talk much about that incident, so Luke did not think that he should comment too much about it either. Ray believed in what Luke said, and neither would Luke lie to Ray. Hence, Luke immediately made a call to his subordinates. He got them to head over to Ostin Hotel to look for Vivian."I didn't expect you to once again do me a big favor," Ray expressed his gratitude."My subordinate just happened to bump into her." Luke did not claim all the credit. If Ray really wanted to thank someone, it would have to be Luca.If it were not for Luca being nearby, she would not have bumped into Vivian.He recalled that even in the past, Bianca was never bothered about Vivian’s ugly appearance. She even treated Vivian with
Vivian was shocked. 'Ray got someone to look for me?'She initially thought it was Luca who did not keep her promise and informed Ray that she was in Ostin Hotel."What's wrong?" Ray asked after seeing her shocked expression.He did not tell her anything about it because Luke had requested not to tell her the truth. The truth was that it was Luke who informed Ray."Nothing. My things. Did you men help me bring them back?" Vivian asked."Yes. They brought back everything. They even helped you check out of your room. All of your things are over there." Ray lifted his chin toward the direction of the dressing table.Vivian's purse was on the dressing table."I got it." Vivian got down from the bed, and when she got up, she felt her legs weaken. She frowned."You'll be fine after drinking lots of water," Ray said. That drug was initially meant to be used against enemies. If it was not because he was worried that Vivian might struggle and escape, he would not have asked them to use
Bang! The phone was smashed into two pieces.The maid, who was standing at the door eavesdropping, was shocked. Due to the good soundproofing, she could only hear the sound of an item being smashed.'Is Gordan mad?'The maid quickly left and sent Ray a message.…On the other hand, it was late at night and Luca was sitting in front of the office table. She was handling the data sent by Rhett. Suddenly, she felt her body feeling uncomfortable.Subconsciously, she touched her forehead and found it to be rather warm…‘Did I catch a cold when I was outdoors today?'Luca sighed and looked at the monitor of the computer. Suddenly, she felt as if the words in front of her were starting to become blurry.'It seems like my body is giving a reaction.'Luca looked at the time and thought of getting some rest since she still had some time to work on the following day…'I should be fine after sleeping…'The next day, Luke woke up. After taking his time to sit in the wheelchair, he then
"Alright." Luke nodded. He was not influential here and did not know any friends who were doctors.Luca lay on the medical bed and was pushed out by the doctor and the nurses.Luke heard the doctor talking about Luca in Russian, "This patient's condition is a little special, so send her to an isolation ward."Luke saw Luca's face that was red because of the fever. he thought he should seek help from others.Only Gordan and Ray could help him here.In the end, Luke decided to look for Ray. He ordered Jason, "You follow them to the ward. I'll go and make a call.""Got it, sir." Jason quickly caught up to the doctor's footsteps.Luke made a call to Ray. "Luca is sick. Can I trouble you to help me look for a doctor?""She's sick? What kind of doctor do you need?" Ray was astonished. If Luke was reaching out to seek help from Ray, it would mean that Luca's illness was very serious.‘But she was still alright a few days ago. She's now sick?' "For now, I'm not too sure about it. Sh
'Hospital?'Luca looked at the bed and the people who were standing around here. Indeed, they were in uniform. "How did I end up here?" she frowned and asked. She had no collection of her wound getting inflamed. "Your family sent you here. Your body started to give a reaction after your wound became inflamed. Your fever didn’t subside and you passed out. We’ve given you antipyretics, and at your family's request, we injected you with Amphotericin B. Now, your fever has subsided. Besides, we’ve also resutured your wound. Unfortunately, the wound is too long and will leave a scar. For the time being, don't get your wound into contact with water," the doctor said.Luca lowered her eyes. 'If I was sent to the hospital, it means that Luke knows about it. How am I supposed to explain all of this?'"When can I be discharged?" Luca asked.The doctor looked at the time and calculated the elapsed time for the antipyretics to take effect. "If you don't wish to be admitted, you should at l
“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