"Ma'am..." The two doctors began to speak, but the door opened. Fred, cane in hand, announced, "You wanted to see me?"

The doctors stepped aside. Lily glanced at Fred, then placidly reclined, adjusting her posture. "Not you."

"Oh, really? But you just said..." Fred raised an eyebrow, then scratched his ear. "I must have misheard."

"You didn't. I wanted to see your boss, not you!" Lily stared fixedly at the ceiling. Her long confinement had given her the ability to maintain that gaze for hours.

Fred shrugged and turned to one of the doctors, who quickly wiped blood from Lily's body and attempted to lift the blanket covering her abdominal wound. Lily held the blanket down, mechanically repeating, "I want to see your boss."

"Don't push your luck!" Fred's expression hardened. "Consider yourself fortunate I've even come."

"Oh, really?" Lily chuckled coldly, slowly turning her head. "You know better than I do what's crucial for activating R10's full potency. If I don't see your boss, I'll kill myself."

A cunning smile played on her lips. "Staying here is worse than death; I'd rather die than cause further trouble. Besides, I could ruin your plan!"

Fred narrowed his eyes. "Don't forget we have your children. Don't you care about them?"

"Of course I do," Lily said, her gaze softening as she looked at her children, then hardening as she returned her stare to Fred. "But that changes if you push me too far!"

"Besides, you could still hurt them even if I'm alive, right?" she scoffed. "I'm not naive. I know you don't want me dead after all the effort you've expended getting me here.

"If you don't know what to do, ask your boss," she said mockingly. "Perhaps he can make the right decision."

Her words angered Fred. He glared fiercely. "Do you think you can threaten us? Do you think you're irreplaceable? Our organization can accomplish anything; finding a replacement for you is trivial!"

He exuded confidence, his demeanor suggesting complete control.

"Oh? You can accomplish anything, huh?" Lily chuckled, shaking her head. "You seem to forget I was the one who made R10 work. Could you have done that without me? And I know R10 better than anyone. How do you know I haven't concealed its weaknesses? Are you sure the drug will reach maximum potency after activation?

"If your research team is so competent, why couldn't they make it work initially? R10 contains many herbal ingredients. Does your team understand them? If you use the drug on your boss and it backfires, no one can save him!"

Lily's words left Fred unsettled.