Chapter 139: You Have Some Nerve
“Enough,” Raylee snapped. “Stop pretending to care. Here you all are, playing the good guys, but the moment things go south, I’m the first one you’d throw under the bus. Besides, Jeremiah is my fiancé. Since when was it your business to worry about him?”
The hospital room was steeped in silence.
Raylee was determined to go to the Lorimer Estate. Just as she was about to leave, Harriet suddenly pleaded, “Ray—Ray, if you’re really set on leaving, I won’t stop you,” her mother said. “But can I ask you for one thing?”
Raylee looked at her, confused. Harriet continued, “When you see the Lorimer family, can you keep the fact that Samuel saw the criminal evidence a secret? I’m not trying to protect your brother—I just think it’s best to avoid unnecessary trouble. After all, this might not even be related to Samuel. The data uploaded to the cloud was encrypted. The chances of it getting stolen are pretty low.”
“You really do love your precious son, don’t you?” Raylee scoffed, sarcasm lacing her voice.
“Ray—Ray, please,” Harriet pleaded, her eyes filled with desperation.
“No way!” Raylee retorted, her face hard with resolve. “He’s your son, not mine. Why should I protect him?”
Harriet’s mouth opened slightly, her expression filled with sorrow. A thousand words and countless emotions condensed into a single nod. “I was too harsh… Ray—Ray, just take care of yourself. All I want is for you to be safe.”
Samuel furrowed his brow and said, “Mom, why are you begging her? I’ll handle the mess I made myself! If the Lorimer family wants someone to blame, I’ll take full responsibility!”
“You better mean that,” Raylee said coldly.
She turned toward Percival and expressed her gratitude. “Dr. Shapiro, I really appreciate what you did last night. Without you, I can’t imagine what would’ve happened to me in that red-light district.”
The memory of her encounter with Percival made her cheeks flush involuntarily. The effects of the drug had pushed her to the brink, making her burn with unbearable heat. In her haze, she had clung to the icy coldness of Percival, seeing him as her only salvation.
Percival hadn’t resisted. He kept helping her cool down until he himself had to be taken to the hospital. He shook his head and pulled a small medicine box from his coat pocket. “This is a painkiller I developed in my lab. It’s highly effective and has no side effects. If the pain becomes unbearable, take one.”
“Thank you,” Kaylee tucked the medicine box into her pocket.
After she left the ward, Harriet took a few hesitant steps to follow her but lost the courage to continue. Covering her mouth, she sobbed.
No one knew what kind of treatment Raylee would face at the Lorimer Estate.
Harriet was heartbroken. No matter what, Kaylee was the daughter she had raised with her own hands. How could she not feel pain?
Waverly stepped forward and hugged her. “Mom, this isn’t the first time Ray—Ray has been to the Lorimer Estate. She knows how to handle herself. You don’t have to worry.”
Harriet nodded, then turned her reproachful gaze toward Samuel. “This is all your fault! You didn’t just put Ray—Ray in danger—you’ve put yourself in jeopardy too!”
Ur stepped forward and volunteered, “Mrs. Goodridge, let me escort Ray—Ray to the Lorimer Estate. She’s a woman; she shouldn’t be facing danger alone. I can help protect her. Besides, Fin is from the Sutherland family. Even if they don’t respect me, they’ll at least respect my family name.”
“No way. If anyone’s going, it’s me. I won’t let her take the fall for something I did!” Samuel interrupted.
“If you dare go, I’ll kill myself,” Harriet threatened.
Chapter 139: You Have Some Nerve
“Dad,” Layla said. “Just because he’s an illegitimate child, does that mean he doesn’t deserve your attention? He’s still your flesh and blood! How can you just stand by and watch him suffer? It’s just one project! Why not hand it over to General Mosby? What’s there to hesitate about? Any problem that can be solved with money isn’t a problem at all!”
Raylee paused at the doorway. She hadn’t expected Layla to be so desperate that she would turn to Victor for help. From the sound of their conversation, neither side seemed particularly pleased.
She couldn’t understand it—back when Jeremiah had committed murder, Victor had spared no expense to bail him out. But now, when his life was on the line, he was turning a blind eye. Was there another reason behind this?
Layla angrily ended the call. Realizing she had no one to turn to, she covered her mouth and sobbed uncontrollably. Raylee stepped into the room and handed her a tissue.
Layla took it without thinking, assuming it was from a housekeeper. But when she looked up and saw Raylee, she immediately threw the tissue to the ground.
“You’ve got some nerve showing up here! Aren’t you afraid I’ll rip you apart?”
Layla’s eyes burned with hatred, her voice was ice-cold, and the fury radiating from her was suffocating. Suddenly, she grabbed the coffee pot from the table and hurled it at Raylee’s feet.