Suddenly Mr Roman collapsed The music paused mid-beat as gasps broke out through the crowd. Mr Roman's tall frame crumpled like paper onto the marble floor,right where he standing seconds ago. For a long second, no one moved. Everyone was left stunned as they gawked at Roman's lifless body. Within the blink of an eye , Anastacia’s heels clicked sharply as she rushed forward, hunkering down to her dad's position. Mr Roman lay motionless—eyes rolled back, lips parted, skin already turning a pale shade that wasn’t natural. “Dad!” Anastacia cried, shooking his body for a reponse. “Someone help! Please!” A man in a navy-blue suit pushed through the crowd, dropping beside Mr. Roman with practiced urgency. “I’m a doctor,” he said quickly. “Everyone give him space!” The crowd immediately parted around them. The doctor’s fingers moved fast—checking pulse, lifting eyelids and beginning compressions. His calm voice barked instructions to nearby staff.“Get me a light and keep

Anastasia’s voice trembled as she broke the silence. “How good is he? Will he really be able to heal my father?” She asked , her voice laced with doubt Her eyes were restless, her fingers tightening around the hem of her sleeve as if gripping her last hope. “Of course he can,” Morin straightened, puffing out his chest as if the moment had been scripted for him. “His name is Dr. Vanton Cross.Top of his class, trained in every advanced treatment you can think of. There’s no illness Dr. Cross can’t cure.”Anastasia blinked. “Dr. Vanton Cross?”“Wait—Dr. Vanton Cross?” Aunt Monica cut in, her voice rising with sudden excitement. “I know him!” she nearly shouted, turning sharply toward the others. “He was trained by Doctor Ambrose.”A murmur rippled through the room.“Doctor Ambrose’s apprentice?” someone asked, skeptical, as though the name alone needed confirmation.“You mean the Dr. Cross? The best apprentice of Dr. Ambrose?” another chimed in, their voice echoing with disbelief.“Ye

As if that wasn’t enough, sweat began to bead on Mr. Roman’s forehead. His chest rose unevenly. His breathing grew heavy, ragged—as though invisible hands were wrapped around his throat. He clutched at the bedsheet, lips parting in desperate gasps. Then, all of a sudden , a thick, dark clot of blood burst from his lips as his eyes snapped shut again.“Doctor! What’s happening? Do something!” Anastacia’s scream filled the room.“Dad… please stay with me—Dad, please…” Her voice cracked, full of fear. She grabbed her father's shoulders, shook him desperately, but he didn’t respond. She dropped beside him, both hands pressing against his chest, as if her touch could bring him back.“ Dad, please wake up .… don’t do this… not now…”The hall went pin-drop silent .Then all of a sudden an uproar of murmur erupted in the hall with each and everyone of the guests faces etched with shock.“What the hell just happened?”“Wasn’t he just fine?”“Didn’t the doctor just treat him?”“He looks worse

Everyone stood frozen.The whispers hadn't started yet. Only silence. The kind that hangs heavy, like the seconds after a gunshot. And in the middle of it all, Dr. Cross stared at the floor, heat crawling up his neck.He had failed.Not just in front of strangers—but in front of Mr. Roman. In front of distinguished people The salt and water still shimmered faintly on Mr. Roman’s lips, like some kind of joke. And Andrew—an outsider, a nobody—stood with the quiet of someone who had nothing to prove and everything to win.Dr. Cross swallowed hard.This was supposed to be his moment. The one that would make headlines. Dr. Cross, the man who saved Roman Ashton. Instead, he had spent thirty minutes fumbling with wires, shouting instructions, performing tests—and nothing. No result. No sign of progress. Just sweat and rising panic. And now, people would say he did nothing. That he watched while a man poured table salt into a glass and did the impossible.A whisper broke out nearby. A sof

Morin looked away, then back at Anastacia , calm as ever. “I invited some friends to take care of him.” Anastacia’s stomach dropped. “Friends?” “Can you go straight to the point?” She snapped, her voice rising in frustration. Morin's confidence oozed from every fiber of his being as he leaned in close, his voice smooth and laced with a touch of amusement. "Don't worry about that, babe. After I'm done with him, I’ll make sure he signs an agreement to cancel the wedding and leave Jashem City. That way, he won’t be an obstruction to our wedding again." His eyes gleamed with a mischief , his mind already plotting the next steps. Anastasia’s brows creased as she tilted her head slightly. There was something off about the way Morin spoke—too certain, too smooth. “How do you plan on doing that? You were the one who just said how stubborn he is.” Morin exhaled, a heavy sigh escaping his lips, as if she were asking the simplest question in the world. He wrapped his arms around her waist, p