Chapter 74
âI see.â Evelynâs voice was lower than before. âYouâre a sensible man. Though youâre not a qualified
lover, youâre an excellent businessman.â
Christian only grunted and said nothing further as he continued driving. His fingers on the black
steering wheel were alluring in the dark of the night as silence filled the car.
After a while, Evelyn turned to look at him and said, âYouâve broken Toriâs leg, had her imprisoned, and
even prevented the Coleman Family from contacting her. No matter how deep your anger toward her
was, you should be satisfied now.â
With his murky eyes remaining still on the horizon, Christian tightened his grip on the steering wheel
slightly, causing his fingertips to turn slightly white.
Evelyn received no answer from him even after waiting for some time, thus straightened up her posture
and looked straight ahead. Under the veil of the night sky, her long sigh was tinged with a sense of
resignation.
Inside the ward, Lucas returned not long after Christian had left.
Lying on the bed, Victoria took a nonchalant glance at him before she closed her eyes and pretended
to sleep; she refused to take notice of him.
âDoes⦠your leg hurt?â Lucas asked as he stood beside the bed. Looking at how pale she was, he felt
sorry for her as his heart involuntarily throbbed.
Opening her eyes, Victoria replied with an indifferent expression, âThank you for the concern, Mr.
Spritz. However, this isnât as painful as it was two years ago, so I can take it. If thereâs nothing else,
then you should leave. I donât want to be explaining myself should dear Mrs. Spritz come here and
think I was seducing you.â She treated him as though he was a stranger, albeit with much more hostility
and aversion.
Frowning, Lucas said, âThereâs no one else here. You can drop the formalities.â
Victoria only sneered as she continued to ignore him.
âI apologize for the matter of Bella accidentally bringing you harm and for my motherâs attitude toward
you.â Pained as he noticed the red marks on her forehead and the scar located near her brows, he
subconsciously reached out, wanting to touch her face.
Victoria cocked her head away from him and avoided his touch. She was disgusted by the man, for he
was about to be engaged with Scarlett yet was here trying to be intimate with her.
As hints of gloom flashed in his eyes, Lucas withdrew his hand before he balled them into fists. With his
expression turning cold, he said, âHowever, Bella had already apologized to you about that accident, so
you shouldnât have urged Vincent to splash her with hot water!â
âShouldnât?â Victoria repeated with an exasperated smile. With both her hands holding onto the railings
of the bed, she sat herself up with some effort and continued, âWhether it was in the past or the
present, Mr. Spritz seems fond of teaching me on how I should behave ever so righteously.â Then, she
tilted her head at him and said in deliberation, âBut, what makes you think youâre qualified to teach me
how to live my life?â
âVictoria,â Lucas said with gritted teeth.
Kneeling on the bed as she gradually straightened her posture, Victoria closed the distance between
her and Lucas before she said, âIs it because youâre older in age? Or is it because youâre much more
educated than me?â
The faint scent of soap from her body tickled Lucasâ nose, causing his heart to pound uncontrollably. âI
thought you would have learned your lesson during these past two years, but I see youâre still the same
woman that canât differentiate right from wrong, one that cannot be reasoned with.â Having said that
with a stern face, he turned and left.
âWait,â Victoria shouted.
âWhat else do you want?â Lucas stopped in his tracks with his back still on her.
Due to her moving about, the needle inserted in the back of her hand got detached, which caused her
blood to stain the two strips of medical tape on the back of her hand. After she put the needle aside
and returned to her sitting position with difficulty, she said, âSince Mr. Spritz despises me and hates me
that much, do not meet me alone ever again. I donât want to be called a vixen or a mistress by
someone else just because someone canât stop being delusional and annoying.â
Lucas turned to face her and yelled, âYou talk too much!â
âAs you can see, I shouldnât be moving about due to my condition, so I wonât be seeing you out the
door,â Victoria said indifferently.
As the response she got was just the loud sound of the door slamming shut, Veronica snorted before
she lay back down. Staring at the ceiling, she was lost in her own thoughts.
Not long after, a doctor came to change her medication. After noticing Victoriaâs hand growing slightly
swollen and the needle being placed aside, the doctor became furious and said with a frown, âI have
never seen such an inconsiderate patient like you!â
Although the doctor had said many things, Victoria only heard the first sentence and stopped listening
to the rest of the doctorâs rants. She knew that the doctor was only nagging at her for her sake, but she
hadnât the mind to care about those so-called precautions. Perhaps this was due to how she wished for
her death at times. She needed not suffer this much if she were to just die, after all.
When the doctor had changed her medication, he called for a nurse to look after Victoria during the
duration of the medication. Since the nurse had only twenty minutes left in her shift, her expression
grew conflicted as looking over her meant that it would be extended by another hour for the post-
medication procedure.
âOnce the infusion is done, Iâll take care of it myself. You can leave when your shiftâs up,â said Victoria.
After the nurse double-checked with Victoria about her decision, the nurse happily left when her shift
was over.
It was eleven-thirty when the infusion was done. Victoria looked at the inserted tube in a daze as she
thought itâd be all over if she just inserted air into her system via the tube. Just enduring this small
amount of pain would free her from her suffering. Just as the air bubble slowly traveled its way down
the tube and was about to reach the back of her hand, she took off the needle, as she thought that her
dying here would only cause trouble for the innocent nurse. In the end, she decided to bear with it a
little longer, though she wasnât sure how much longer she could last.
The next day at noon, when Gabrielle came to visit Victoria, she came bearing a neatly wrapped box
and a thermos with pork rib soup in it.
âYou didnât have to come visit me when youâre so busy with work,â said Victoria.
âIâm not so busy now since the new supervisor is so nice. He immediately agreed to my request for
leave when I said I was coming to visit you.â Gabrielle put her things down and swept a glance around
the ward. However, she was slightly disappointed upon noticing that neither Christian, Bella, Lucas,
Vincent, or Teresa were around.
Pursing her lips, Victoria said, âItâs okay for you to go back now.â
âSince Iâve just gotten here, you should at the very least let me rest for a bit here, right?â Gabrielle
served her a bowl of pork rib soup and said, âHere, have some soup. Itâll help replenish your energy.â
Victoria shot a glance at the clear white gourd at the bottom of the clear ribs soup before she said
indifferently, âMy parents will be watching both my brother and sister-in-law very closely for the coming
days since Iâve created such a mess. They wonât have any opportunity to come and visit me.â She
paused briefly before she continued, âAs for the Thatcher Family, it would be less likely for them to visit
me since they originally hated me. Even if they do visit me, Iâm sure theyâll just be here taunting me.
Since youâre my colleague, I doubt you would get any benefits from meeting them, and you might even
be implicated because of me instead. So, you can go home now,â Victoria repeated once more.
âSince your family doesnât acknowledge you, and you only have me as your friend in the club, youâll
really be alone if I do leave,â Gabrielle said while nudging the soup toward Victoria.
Victoria did not take the bowl of soup from her.
âYouâre just too uptight sometimes.â Gabrielle lifted the bowl of soup and took a big sip before she
continued, âWhether itâs family, a lover, or friends, your relationships are never just purely that.â Then,
she gave the meat to Victoria.
Frowning, Victoria took the meat and nibbled on it without making any remarks.novelxo.com fast
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âI donât think Iâve told you about me, have I?â Gabrielle then continued without waiting for Victoriaâs
answer, âI wonât be touching about my family matters though since itâs just too dreadful.â With a self-
deprecating smile, she took a bite of the pork ribs. âMy boyfriend knows that Iâve slept around. Although
heâs angry, heâs pretending not to have noticed it.