Chapter 55: A Favor for Owen
As he spoke, Owen’s eyes drifted back to the scar on Yunice’s face. His brows drew together. He was a doctor—he knew a scar like that would never fully go away. The Johnsons already had concerns about Yunice’s mental health. Now, with a visible scar on her face…
Owen sighed, trying to reassure himself. The Johnsons never planned to have Yunice in the spotlight anyway. And besides, she had already spent the night at their house—cutting ties wouldn’t be that easy for them now.
“Yunny, you and Mr. Morgan got along pretty well, right?”
Yunice locked eyes with Owen, drawing his attention, and subtly slid one foot back to nudge the cigarette Paul had thrown under the bed.
“Mr. Morgan’s not interested in me,” she said with a guilty look.
Owen frowned. “Didn’t you stay the night at his place? If he wasn’t into you, why would he let you stay?”
Yunice repeated Morgan’s words truthfully. “Mr. Morgan told me he’s actually into Elsie. And he said you only tried to match him with me because you don’t respect him. He said one day he’s going to make you pay for insulting him.”
“What?” Owen’s voice shot up. He was fuming. “I haven’t even said anything about his Andro-Elevation Syndrome, and he’s the one getting offended?”
Just then, Lily’s anxious voice called from outside the room. “Owen? Owen!”
Owen glanced toward the door and quickly left without another word. The moment he stepped out, Yunice bent and picked up the cigarette from under the bed.
When she walked out into the living room, she found Lily sitting on the couch wiping tears, while Elsie stood off to the side. Owen slammed his phone down and growled, “I already paid to have the charges dropped—why are they filing again?”
Lily snapped, “Let them sue! So what if there was a mistake during surgery? Nobody died, we paid compensation—why can’t they just let it go?”
The moment Elsie heard that, she froze. If this went to court, officials would get involved—and once they started digging, they’d find out she’d been treating patients without a medical license.
Owen sat there in silence, his face tight. Clearly, he hadn’t come up with a solution yet. Then, Elsie spotted Yunice, and her eyes lit up. She rushed over, dropped to her knees in front of Yunice, and clutched her hand.
“Yunice, please help Owen,” she cried. “Just talk to Mr. Morgan. Ask him to back off the investigation. He’ll definitely listen to you!”
Yunice let out a quiet, bitter laugh. Classic Elsie—acting like it was all for Owen, just to take the heat off herself. She didn’t care about helping him. She just didn’t want to get exposed. And if Yunice said no, she’d be the one who looked heartless.
If Yunice didn’t step in, she’d take the blame—and Elsie would walk away untouched. But Yunice wasn’t falling for it this time.
She reached out to help Elsie up, her tone full of sympathy. “Elie, Mr. Morgan actually likes you. If you ask him… I’m sure he’ll say yes… he’s only interested in Elsie. He said he’ll only help if she asks him herself.”
Lily froze when she heard that—just like Owen had. Then, almost instantly, she snapped, “Who does Morgan think he is, going after Elsie?”
But the second the words left her mouth, she realized she’d slipped. Back when she was trying to arrange Yunice’s marriage, Lily had gone out of her way to praise the Johnson family. But now that Morgan was interested in Elsie, she was suddenly furious. She quickly covered her reaction with a handkerchief and stole a nervous glance at Owen.
Sure enough, Owen was staring at her, surprised. Owen had always believed his mom arranged Yunice’s match with the Johnsons because she didn’t know any better—because she didn’t realize what kind of people they were. That she meant well. But now it was obvious. She knew exactly what kind of family the Johnsons were. And she still pushed Yunice toward them.
Owen had gone along with the marriage too, but in his eyes, Yunice was too good for them. The Johnsons were the ones getting a deal. She had a history and no legal ID. That limited her options, but it didn’t mean Morgan was the best she could get.
Clearly, Lily didn’t see it that way. For the first time, something stirred in Owen. Maybe, just maybe—not all mothers actually loved their children.
Lily, feeling the weight of his stare, rushed to change the subject. “Owen, what are we going to do? That family’s already blowing up online again. If this leads back to Elsie, what then?”
Elsie was still down on the floor where she’d dropped earlier, while Lily and Owen were caught up in their own worries; neither of them even thought to help her up. Her knees were sore, and she was just about to quietly push herself up when Yunice suddenly spoke.
“Eisie, why are you still here? Shouldn’t you be talking to Mr. Morgan?” Yunice asked calmly. “Or do you not want to help Owen?”
Elsie froze.