Chapter 317: Brewing Doubts

Sierra didn’t answer. She already knew who Shane was implying—but she refused to believe it. She couldn’t believe that Johnathan would ever do something like that. And yet, Shane’s voice kept echoing in her ears.

“You think he’s clean? He’s no cleaner than anyone else.”

His tone was low—too low for Autumn to hear—but Sierra caught every word. Without hesitation, she grabbed the cup on the table and threw it straight at him.

Shane hadn’t expected her to act so suddenly. With his limited mobility, he had no way to dodge it. The sugary drink splashed all over his face, sticky sweetness clinging to his skin and clothes. The smell was sickening.

Before he could react, Sierra was already on her feet.

“A person like you has no right to judge anyone—let alone him.”

Without another word, she grabbed her bag, called to Autumn, and stormed out of the restaurant, leaving Shane alone. He sat frozen in his wheelchair, stunned. A long moment passed before a server cautiously approached and handed him a napkin.

“Sir… are you all right?”

That seemed to jolt Shane back to life. His familiar, polished smile slid back into place.

“I’m fine. Thank you.”

Seeing his polite demeanor, the server couldn’t help but comment, “Your girlfriend sure has a temper.”

Shane was momentarily taken aback. Then his smile deepened, just a bit more genuine.

“Yeah… she’s always been like that. Can’t blame her, though. I did her wrong once…”

Maybe the server had never met someone who could stay so gentle even after being doused with a drink. She kept chatting, but Shane only nodded vaguely. No one could tell what was really going through his mind.

Downstairs, Sierra pulled Autumn along, walking fast and tight-lipped. Noticing her expression, Autumn didn’t dare say a word. Not until they stepped outside did Sierra finally stop. She let out a breath and said apologetically, “Autumn, let’s just end the day here. We can hang out again in a few days.”

“Sure,” Autumn replied, then added, “Don’t let someone like that get to you. He’s not worth your anger.”

“I know.”

Sierra felt warmth spread through her chest. Autumn’s words lifted some of the weight from her heart.

After saying goodbye, Sierra didn’t head home right away. Instead, she called Johnathan again. Still no answer. His office lights had long since gone out. From the security guard, Sierra learned that Johnathan had left that afternoon—with Quinn. When she heard that, she couldn’t quite say what she was feeling. She wasn’t suspicious. But Shane’s words kept circling in her mind. She didn’t believe Johnathan would do something illegal—but she still needed to hear it from him. She didn’t want this silence to become a wall between them.

At the hospital, Johnathan frowned as he read the test results, then looked up coldly at Quinn. “You really don’t know how bad your condition is?”

Today had been a big day—an official collaboration project. He’d brought Quinn along, and everything had gone smoothly. But just as they left the government office, she collapsed. She was rushed to the hospital and had just regained consciousness. But the test results were worrying. Most concerning was a severe illness detected in her blood.

Quinn avoided Johnathan’s gaze and spoke softly. “I just thought I was tired. I mean… I’d just had Dora. I didn’t think it was anything serious.”

“What did you come in contact with?”

The numbers on her report were far too high. Something wasn’t adding up.

“I… I don’t know.” Quinn bit her lip.

Johnathan looked at her, then asked in a low voice, “What about Dora? Did you get her tested?”

“No.” Quinn shook her head, looking distressed.

“Get some rest,” Johnathan said. “I’ll come check on you tomorrow.”

As he turned to go, he suddenly remembered—Dora still hadn’t been picked up. Everything had happened so fast, he’d asked his secretary to grab her. But she couldn’t stay with the secretary forever. Just as he reached for his phone to make arrangements, he noticed several missed calls—from Sierra. He called her right away.

Sierra had just gotten home when her phone rang.

“Where are you?” she asked, her tone sharp.

There was a pause before Johnathan answered. “The hospital.”

“The hospital? What happened? Are you okay?”

“It’s not me,” he said. “I’ll explain when I get home.”