At the private clinic in the Quincy family residence, Livia sat and waited for the medicine Dr. Dale was preparing. Her wound was not very deep, so no special treatment was necessary.
As she waited, Livia looked at the several advanced medical devices in the room. As a doctor in her previous life, she could tell that every piece of equipment in the clinic was top-of-the-line. If Dr. Dale and the team of medical experts had not been attending an important meeting at the hospital that day, Livia would have been treated in the clinic when she took the poison.
‘Rich people really do know how to spend money,’ Livia thought.
Just then, Dr. Dale arrived and sat down in front of her.
“Miss Livia, this medicine was developed by my nephew himself. It’s highly effective at drying out wounds. Yours should heal in no time.” Dr. Dale looked confident as he pushed the medicine toward Livia.
“Your nephew? Does he work here too?” Livia usually did not like meddling in other people’s affairs. But the symbol on the medicine container’s lid had caught her attention.
The symbol of a snake coiled around a sunflower looked strangely familiar to her.
Hearing Livia’s question, the middle-aged doctor in front of her grew excited. “No. He doesn’t work here. But he’s quite famous in the medical field. My family is a prominent family of doctors in Azkaria, and my nephew has extraordinary talent in medicine. He succeeded in putting the Gallan family on the international stage. People even call him a medical genius.”
Livia picked up the medicine container and brought it closer to herself. Her eyes narrowed as she continued studying the symbol on the lid.
“Caspian Gallan.” Without realizing it, Livia murmured a name.
Her voice was not loud, but it was enough for Dr. Dale to hear. The middle-aged doctor’s eyes lit up with surprise. “Miss Livia, how do you know about Caspian?”
Caspian Gallan had lived abroad since he was a teenager. So even though Dr. Dale was his uncle, he had never introduced Caspian to the Quincy family. Dr. Dale could understand if Ethan or another member of the Quincy family had been speaking to him, since they knew about influential people around the world. But Livia was different. Dr. Dale did not think a timid, isolated girl like Livia would know anything beyond the Quincy family residence.
Still staring at the medicine container in her hand, Livia slowly raised her gaze to look at Dr. Dale. “It’s simple. There are so many articles about him online. Besides, he’s a major figure in world medicine. Even if someone doesn’t look him up, news about him will appear on its own. I’ve read a few articles about him.”
“But how did you guess that the nephew I was referring to was Caspian?” Dr. Dale was still curious.
Although Livia’s explanation made sense, he was still confused about how she had guessed correctly without any clues. There were many talented young doctors in the Gallan family.
“As you said, he’s a medical genius. I don’t think anyone else has earned that nickname.”
Dr. Dale slapped his forehead. “Oh, right. How could I forget that? You’re right. The title of medical genius belongs only to Caspian. Although he isn’t the only talented young doctor in the Gallan family, he’s the only one who has earned worldwide recognition.”
Livia felt relieved when Dr. Dale stopped asking questions. A strange glint flashed in her eyes as she lowered her head to look at the medicine container in her hand once more.
“In that case, I’ll be going now. Thank you for your help, Dr. Dale.” Livia stood and spoke politely.
“Don’t say that, Miss Livia. It’s part of my job.” Dr. Dale stood and followed Livia, escorting the young woman to the clinic’s exit.
Meanwhile, Bella did not stay any longer at the Quincy family residence after hearing what Margaret had said. Her heart pounded with anxiety as she sat in the back passenger seat of the car.
She looked worried, biting her nails and repeatedly muttering curses at David.
“That idiot. I told him not to leave any traces, but he actually contacted Quinton Corporation to demand a ransom. His brain is completely useless!”
Bella wanted to call David, but she had not brought her spare phone. To maintain her good-girl image in front of the Quincy family, she could not afford to make even the slightest mistake. That was why she kept separate phones for contacting certain people.
“Can’t you drive faster?!” Bella suddenly snapped.
The driver was startled. The next second, the car sped up along the road.
After nearly thirty minutes, the car arrived in front of an apartment building. It was not luxurious, but it was not bad either.
Seeing that Bella had been seething with anger the entire time, the driver did not dare drive slowly. He immediately got out and opened the door for her.
People might know Bella as a gentle woman. But everyone who worked at the Finnegan family residence, including Bella’s personal driver, knew how terrible her temper was. In fact, several young servants at the Finnegan family residence had been replaced more than once.
Bella got out of the car with mixed feelings. Irritation and anger surrounded her. She did not even bother glancing at the driver, who stood beside her with his head respectfully lowered.
Before entering the apartment building, Bella adjusted the scarf covering her head. She also put on sunglasses to disguise herself. Then she walked inside and headed straight for the elevator.
Within minutes, the elevator had taken her to the twenty-third floor. Since she had been there many times, she had no trouble making her way to Unit 2305.
Reaching out, Bella began pressing the number buttons on the door to enter the password. The next second, she heard the lock click open, and Bella stepped inside. She had just closed the door behind her when her foot stepped on something. Looking down, she saw a pair of red high heels.
‘That bastard… What other woman has he brought home now?’
Bella angrily kicked the shoes aside and walked straight to the bedroom without hesitation.
“Uh… ahh…” A woman’s disgusting moans began to grow louder as Bella approached.
When she reached the bedroom door, she saw that it was not fully closed. Through the narrow gap, Bella could see a woman moving up and down on top of a man.
Bella had not come there to watch that disgusting scene. So she shoved the door hard, sending it wide open.
When the couple inside saw Bella, they looked shocked. But the man seemed to be on the verge of climax, so he ignored Bella for a moment and quickened his movements.
After satisfying himself, David hurriedly pushed the woman off him. He grabbed a bathrobe and said to Bella, “Wait for me in the living room.”
Bella said nothing. She watched as the woman hurriedly put on her clothes before turning around and going to the living room.
Bella sat in the living room while the woman immediately fled the apartment.
Fifteen minutes later, David walked out of the bedroom, headed straight for the living room, and sat down beside Bella. The man looked neater after taking a shower.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?” David reached out to caress Bella’s face, but she immediately slapped his hand away.
Seeing that, David assumed Bella was angry because he had made her watch another woman climb into his bed. So he took Bella’s hand and kissed the back of it. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to betray you. But you didn’t show up for several days, and I couldn’t reach you either. I’m a man. I can’t hold myself back for that long. Besides, you’re the only one in my heart. I was just fooling around with that woman.”
David continued coaxing her, but Bella’s sour expression did not change at all. Bella was not angry because David had slept with another woman. She was angry because of David’s stupidity in demanding a ransom from Quinton Corporation.
Although they were in a relationship, Bella had never cared whether David wanted to sleep with other women. She was only using David to advance her plans and had absolutely no intention of living with him. Still, she had to use her body to make the man do whatever she wanted.
When Bella remained silent, David moved his face toward her neck and began kissing her, making Bella feel disgusted.
‘How dare he touch me after just sleeping with another woman? Is he trying to taint me with that whore’s scent?’
“David. Stop. I’m not here to fool around with you.” Bella pushed David away and stared at him with a cold expression.
Realizing that something was wrong with Bella’s expression, David asked, “What’s wrong?”
Bella took a breath, trying to suppress her anger so she would not explode. “Did you not use your brain before doing something? How could you contact Quinton Corporation and demand a ransom from them?”
David finally understood why Bella looked so angry. But he did not panic. Instead, he put an arm around Bella and spoke calmly. “Don’t talk to me like that, sweetheart. Of course I thought it through carefully before contacting Quinton Corporation. I spent a lot of money hiring a top international hacker to break into Quinton Corporation’s system and doctor the CCTV footage. How could I not take advantage of it? Besides, that data is confidential. Quinton Corporation has a net worth of billions. Giving five hundred million dollars for confidential data wouldn’t be difficult for them.”
This time, Bella no longer held back her anger. “Listen to me. Ethan isn’t someone you can fool easily. He already knows the CCTV footage was doctored. He’s tracking you right now too. We’ll be ruined if he manages to find you.”
David’s calm expression faltered for a moment after hearing Bella’s words. But then he laughed. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. He won’t be able to find me. The person who hacked into Quinton Corporation’s system is a top hacker. I also asked him to help hide my contact channel. I’m sure Ethan will never be able to find me. He won’t be able to restore the footage either. Don’t worry. I’ll give you a share after I get the money.”
Seeing David’s confidence, Bella felt slightly calmer. Even so, she still warned him, “You’d better make sure our involvement is never exposed.”
“Of course, sweetheart.”