Frieda flinched and clamped her mouth shut, but she still felt aggrieved. What good is Roxanne? How is she making the King of Medicine stay for her? Clearly, we can provide him with better treatment. If he stays, he should be staying with us instead!
The atmosphere in the living room turned tense. Shawn frowned and was quiet for long while. All of a sudden, he said, “Even if we can’t keep that old man around, we can’t let Roxanne get such a good deal so easily!”
Frieda nodded in agreement before curiously asking, “What do we do then?” Peregrine joining Roxanne’s research institute was already a matter set in stone. What could they possibly do to stop Roxanne from getting away with that?
When Shawn glanced at her again, the fury on his face dissipated. With a smile, he filled a cup of tea for her and said, “Regardless of everything, you were the one who hired Old Mr. Lomax. Now that he has treated Roxanne, they should be thanking you.”
Frieda turned to look at him in confusion. Impatience surged through Shawn, but he forced himself to stay calm as he said, “Go home and tell your brother about this. I believe he’s not an unreasonable man.”
Frieda’s heart skipped a beat in excitement, but she was still plagued with a little worry. “But my brother… Even if he wants to thank me, he’ll thank me with some money and nothing too substantial.”
Due to her interactions with Shawn and Aubree, Jonathan had been wary of her. Even if she did return to the Queen family, she would not be able to get an important position. Those thoughts infuriated Frieda.
She was also part of the Queen family, but while Jonathan was regarded with great importance, she could only be lorded over by her brother.
Shawn could see the fury in her eyes, and a cold look flashed past his own eyes. He then slowly consoled, “If I can say that, it means I have a way to get you an important position. All you need to do is heed my instructions.”
Frieda was tempted by his words. Standing beside her, Shawn pulled her into his arms and said to her in a low voice, “We’re in the same boat. Why would I lie to you? Didn’t I help you hire Old Mr. Lomax when you asked me to find someone to save Roxanne?”
Upon his persuasion, Frieda began to show, signs of relenting. “Just do as I say. Who knows who’ll end up as the future head of the Queen family?” Shawn persisted.
Finally, Frieda leaned into his arms and softly said, “I’ll… talk to my brother about this then.. Let’s see how he plans to thank me.”
Shawn lowered his gaze to look at the woman in his arms. There was nothing but gloominess in his eyes, but he patted her shoulder in encouragement as he said, “I’ll be waiting for your good news.”
The two of them continued to discuss more details about the plan for a while longer. When it was getting late, Shawn sent someone to bring Frieda home.
Meanwhile, Roxanne had a pale look on her face, but Lucian did not know if it was because she had not fully recovered from the poison or because she was in a foul mood. Lucian was worried, so after exiting the hotel, he brought her to lunch before taking her to the hospital for a full-body checkup.
Knowing that he was worried, Roxanne went along with his plans. Lucian was finally at ease after Roxanne underwent a series of tests and was confirmed to be mostly fine.
“I know my own body. The poison is gone,” Roxanne softly reassured him. “It’s just that too many things have happened lately, and I’m having a hard time digesting them all. I’ll be fine once things blow over.”
Roxanne would feel wistful every time she thought about Jack’s true nature and the collapse of Damaris Group. At that, Lucian pulled her into an embrace and spoke in a quiet voice.
“Jack only has himself to blame for the downfall of Damaris Group. Furthermore, the Damarises have to bear the responsibility for not noticing what he has been doing. To put it simply, it was them who caused their fall from grace.”
Jack’s vision for the continued development of Damaris Group, if realized, would result in worsening circumstances over time.
If their cover had not been blown this time, it was highly probable that Damaris Group would be implicated in an irreparable medical mishap the next time.
Perhaps this was the best ending for Damaris Group instead of involving even more victims. Roxanne knew that, and yet, she still could not help but feel wistful about it.
If this is the true nature of Damaris Group, a company known for its benevolence, what about the other medical groups? Roxanne wondered if her decision to put her patients as her priority was wrong.
Seemingly reading her mind, Lucian leaned closer to her ear and said, “Every professional has their own responsibilities. Damaris Group was established by a family of doctors, and they should prioritize saving lives. Even if they sought wealth, they should not have taken the path of evil. They were the ones who mixed up their priorities. Doctors like you are a rare sight now. I’d say Peregrine liked how you continued walking down the path you initially chose, and that’s why he has chosen to stay at your research institute.”
He then ran his fingers through Roxanne’s hair and continued, “With me around, you won’t need to worry about money as Jack did. All you need to do is focus on your medical career and leave the financial issues to me.”
Moved, Roxanne smiled at him. Despite his subtle words, she understood that he was asking her to hold on to her principles and ethics.
His reassurances washed away her worries, and she no longer appeared so grim. A comfortable silence ensued in the car.
Right then, the ringing of a phone broke that silence. Taking out her phone, Roxanne realized it was a call from Madilyn. Smiling, she answered the call. “What’s up, Madilyn?”
– Madilyn sounded excited. “I saw the news! I saw how Jack was caught! I can’t believe that petty man was thinking of running after hurting you like that. He better stay stuck in prison for the rest of his life!”
Roxanne turned to look at Lucian. At the end of the day, Lucian was the one who managed to make Jack pay for his actions. “By the way, how do you feel? Have you recovered completely?” Madilyn asked in concern.
“I just had a checkup at the hospital. I’ve mostly recovered.” “That’s fantastic!” Madilyn was even more excited than her. “This is a double blessing! Let’s head out to celebrate, and it’ll be my treat. Bring Mr. Farwell and the kids along.”
Upon hearing her best friend’s words, Roxanne could not help but tease, “Are you sure you want to foot the bill if I’m bringing Lucian along?”
Roxanne knew her friend far too well. There was no way Madilyn was going to pass up on a chance to take advantage of Lucian..
Yet, to her surprise, Madilyn did not hesitate in her answer. “I’ll do that next time. This is a celebratory meal for you. Mr. Farwell will have to get in line if he wants to treat you too.” A chuckle escaped Roxanne. “All right, I won’t spare your wallet, then.”
Madilyn hummed in agreement. “I’ll send you the location of the restaurant later, so just follow the address.”
Without saying anything further, they ended the call. Roxanne turned to Lucian and said, “Madilyn is treating us to dinner tonight, and she asked us to bring the kids along.”
Lucian inclined his head, and they drove back to pick the three children up. The children had not seen Roxanne since Lucian sent them home the night before. When they finally saw their mother returning safe and sound, they were visibly thrilled.
“Mommy, you’re back!” Roxanne smiled and crouched down to hug the children who darted toward her before listening to the merry words they had for her.
After a while of chatting with them, she said, “Come on, let’s get changed. Your Aunt Madilyn is treating us tonight, so we’re heading out for dinner.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.