Chapter 537:

He didn’t reply. Instead, the cold edge of a knife touched her cheek. “Our boss says you live only if you cooperate.”

“I’ll cooperate! Anything you want!” Her voice broke into a scream. The blade hovered so close that one slip could ruin her face forever.

That same night, she was flown back to Crolens in Eshea on a private jet, her capture kept secret.

Meanwhile, Brad sat back in his office chair, a cigarette between his fingers as he took a call. “Keep her at the suburban villa under watch,” he said evenly before ending the call.

He immediately rang Felix. “Move up the ‘Nexus Future’ tenant selection. Have your people start early — and make sure Rylie gets invited.”

Felix’s brow furrowed, his voice sharp with anger. “You had the hospital under surveillance? My grandpa told you to keep your distance from her, and now you’re watching the hospital?”

“No.” Brad drew on his cigarette, the smoke biting his lungs. He coughed once, then said, “The one who set her up at the hospital today — is the granddaughter of my grandpa’s so-called lifesaver.”

Felix’s voice dropped lower. “Don’t tell me you expect my sister to just swallow this and leave those businesses alone.”

“No. I want you to bring her to the event — so she can enjoy the show.” Brad crushed the cigarette into the ashtray, his tone cool. “I don’t usually hate women. But Zaylee has stepped over the line.”

Felix’s gaze hardened. “And that line — is my sister?”

Brad stayed silent.

Felix let out a slow breath. “Marcus filled me in on you two. No matter how much she likes you, I can’t back this relationship right now. But about this so-called show — I’ll tell her.” The call was then ended.

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Brad’s fingers lingered on the phone, feeling the faint hum fade from the disconnected line, the sound echoing in his chest.

Felix’s last words sank deep, like a stone breaking the surface of still water. No matter how much she liked him? Did that mean she actually felt something for him?

Really?

Brad shared bits and pieces of his daily life with Rylie, but no matter how much he talked, he found nothing that suggested she felt anything for him. At best, she tolerated his company.

While Rylie recovered in the hospital, Connie’s family showed up more than once with the police in tow, intent on causing a scene. Each time, they were turned away at the VIP ward’s doors without so much as a glimpse of her.

Then, without explanation, the police stopped coming altogether. They labeled it a civil matter and left it for Connie’s parents to handle. Enraged, the couple took their anger to social media, stirring up a wave of public indignation.

The situation shifted when word spread that the “Nexus Future” tenant selection had been moved forward. The event, now set in a hotel conference hall, pulled Connie’s family and other parents into a whirlwind of preparations, leaving their protests behind.

Rylie, still in the hospital, kept herself busy. She worked with graduate peers from Kellon Medical University on research projects, tackling the computational side of things. After days of mental strain, on the very morning she was discharged from the military hospital branch, Marsha from HaloFlow Hospital called with troubling news.

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