Nancy’s brows raised in surprise as she shifted her gaze toward Adrian, a nervous smile breaking out on her lips. “S-sir, you’re here too? Well, uh…my little brother is admitted in this hospital because he has a heart condition and I was just discussing his treatments with the doctor.” she explained in a shaky voice.The doctor whose name tag identified him as Dr. Evans, darted his eyes from Nancy to Adrian, his brows creasing into a frown at the polite way she was talking to him. “And who might you be?” he questioned, gazing pointedly at Adrian.“That’s not important.” Adrian brushed off the question. “From what I overheard, it seems you’re refusing to attend to this lady. May I ask why?”Dr. Evans scoffed, a dismissive snort escaping his lips. Who was this shabbily dressed buffoon to question him? “I don’t see how it’s any of your concern. It’s between me and her.”Nancy, sensing the budding tension between Adrian and the doctor, spoke up with a calming smile directed at Adrian. “Si
Jamie Lawson made his way into Lifemate Hospital, with the aim of confronting his father about the strange occurrence with his bank account the previous day. He had still not gotten over the humiliation he had faced at Elegantè boutique. He walked down the hallway leading to the waiting room and was about to press the elevator button, when he heard the sound of raised voices coming from nearby. The prevalent voice sounded like that of his friend, Ricky so he decided to greet him before meeting with his father.His thoughts were confirmed when he spotted Ricky or rather Doctor Evans, at the waiting room along with a lady and a man. His eyes lit up with mirth as he made his way toward his friend. “Ricky, buddy is that you?” he boomed.On hearing the sound of the voice, Doctor Evans turned to look at Jamie and his scowl melted into a smile. “Jamie, bro, it’s been a while.” “I know right.” Jamie replied as he gave Doctor Evans a friendly pat on the shoulder. “Good to see you.” Jamie's g
Nancy gasped, her eyes widening in horror as she watched Doctor Arnold mercilessly rain a fury of slaps down on Jamie’s face. The blazing hot anger in his eyes sent shivers racking down her spine. How powerful was Adrian that a simple instruction from him had elicited such a brutal reaction from a middle aged man?Doctor Evans felt his throat constrict as he witnessed his friend getting his butt handed to him by his father. If Doctor Arnold could treat his own son with such ferocity, how grave would his own punishment be? Thinking about this sent involuntary tremors running from his head to his toes like little bolts of lightning.“D-dad, what are you hitting me so much because of that guy?!” Jamie sputtered incredulously, wincing from the stinging pain on his cheek. “Isn’t he just a no-”“I must not be slapping you enough if you’re still able to spew garbage from your mouth.” Doctor Arnold seethed as he increased the intensity of his slaps. “Aargh, Dad I’m so sorry.” Jamie croaked o
As Adrian got to Mr. Ben’s ward, the sight before him warmed his heart. Mr Ben was laughing lightheartedly with a smallish woman who looked to be in her mid-fifties. Her eyes crinkled at the corners as she spoke, and a warm smile played on her lips.Adrian’s gaze held curiosity as he approached them with light steps. “Mr. Ben?”Mr. Ben had been so engrossed in his conversation with the woman that he hadn’t noticed Adrian come in. “Oh Adrian, Good to see you.” he greeted him cheerfully.The woman who was sitting next to him on the hospital bed also turned her attention towards Adrian then back at Mr. Ben. “Honey, is this the nice young man you’ve been telling me about?” she asked in a gentle airy voice.“Yes, Hannah dear, he is.” Mr Ben replied before turning to Adrian again. “Adrian, meet my wife, Hannah.” he gestured to the woman with tenderness in his eyes.Adrian let out a genuine smile as he looked at the homely woman who reminded him of his mother. He made a mental note to introd
Hannah’s breath hitched, the panic in her chest rising at the thug’s threatening words. She instantly shot up from her seat and scrambled toward them, her voice shaky as she pleaded. “I-I’m sorry, I know the money is overdue, but I haven’t been able to raise enough to pay you back. Please, can you give me a little more time?” The leader stared at her coldly, his face etched with cruelty. “We’ve already given you more than enough time, lady. Time’s up.” His voice was gruff and devoid of any empathy. “If you don’t have the money, then this diner is ours.” Hannah's eyes widened in panic as her knees buckled under her. “Don’t take away my diner please,” she pleaded, her voice cracking with desperation. “It’s the only thing my grandmother left me with before she died. I’ll do all I can to raise the money, I promi-” “No one cares about your stupid sentiments,” the third thug, a stocky man with a ponytail, spat back at Hannah, his eyes showing no single sign of empathy. “You should have
The thugs exchanged wary glances before the stocky thug snapped. “Tread carefully, you idiot. Do you think $150,000 is an amount to joke with?”“You didn’t let me finish.” He shot back at the thug then continued, “I’ll pay you the money but in exchange, you must do three things.” he held up three fingers as he spoke.“One, you will apologize to Mrs Hannah and Mr Ben here for your actions towards them.” Hannah and Mr. Ben shared surprised glances. Why was Adrian acting so confident? The two thugs scoffed in amusement but the leader remained silent as he studied Adrian with an unreadable expression.“Two,” Adrian spoke again, this time his face hardened and his voice became more on edge. “Each of you will break your own noses just like your leader did to Mr. Ben.”A malicious glint ran through the bald thug's eyes as he sputtered. “Do you want to die? What kind of nonsense are you spewing from your mouth?!”Adrian smirked but ignored the thug’s outburst as he finished, “Three, you will
Mr. Ben and Hannah heaved sighs of relief as the tension in the diner eased substantially. Gratitude shown brightly on their faces as they looked at Adrian, their savior. Hannah didn’t hesitate, she got to her feet and rushed towards him. “You saved us.” she reached out and squeezed Adrian’s hands tightly. “Thank you so much.” Mr. Ben, still affected by the throbbing pain in his nose, rose a bit slower, swaying slightly. He placed a hand against the wall to steady himself before slowly walking toward Adrian. “Thank you, again, Adrian,” he said, his voice filled with sincerity. “My wife and I will be indebted to you for the rest of our lives.” Adrian offered them a smile. “It’s no problem at all. I’ll do it again if I can.” he paused for a moment as a thought crossed his mind. “Mr. Ben, I remember telling you that I’d give you $20,000 to take care of your family’s needs until I find a suitable job for you.” Mr. Ben nodded in confirmation. “Yes, that’s true, Adrian.” With that, A
“Stop here.” Adrian instructed Jonah as they reached an intersection. “My apartment is a few blocks away and parking this car there would raise a few eyebrows.”“I’ll be back shortly.” he told Jonah as he grabbed his new suit and got out of the car. Then, he retrieved his moped from the trunk and drove it towards his apartment while Jonah waited patiently for him.A few minutes later, Adrian returned, now clad in a tailored black suit and slacks. Unfortunately, he had forgotten that he needed new shoes, so he had no choice but to wear his old, worn-out ones. “Head over to Serenity apartments,” Adrian informed Jonah as he got into the car again. “That’s where Anita lives.”“Yes, young master.” Jonah nodded, igniting the car which roared to life as he pulled away from the curb.Less than ten minutes later, the car came to a stop in front of Anita’s apartment building. Jonah met Adrian's gaze in the rearview mirror. "If you don't mind, young master, I can personally chauffeur you and you
Regina was rushed to a nearby ward by Adrian and Doctor Arnold instantly got to work reviving her. Adrian and Vincent stood at opposite ends of the room, each watching what Doctor Arnold was doing with rapt attention. Adrian was calm, though his heart raced as he relived the moment Regina fainted out of shock when she heard the disheartening news about Anita.A coma? He himself still struggled to believe that Anita had slipped into an indefinite coma. At that moment, his heart was filled with different kind of emotions which he wasn’t sure how to express.He simply clenched his jaw very tightly with his fists held to the front of his mouth as he waited for Regina to wake up.Vincent, on the other hand, was struggling to maintain a calm composure. He just got news that his daughter had slipped into coma and now his wife had fainted.That was more than one person could handle. The tears he had been holding back ever since he arrived at the hospital began streaming down his face. And
Adrian pushed the doors of the Life-mate hospital open, and headed straight for the intensive care unit without as much as an acknowledgment to the staff at the reception. He met Vincent, who had been out of Wibston on a trip, and Regina pacing in the waiting room of the intensive care unit and the panic and worry on their faces made his heart sink.The moment Regina saw him approaching, the panic on her face morphed into anger as she marched to him. And before he could say anything, her hand collided with his cheek in a slap that resounded through the waiting room.“What kind of husband are you?” She seethed, her irises flickering with rage. “Anita has been fighting for her life for the past one hour, and you dare to show up just now?!”Her voice rose a few notches as she grabbed the neckline of Adrian’s tee in her hands, completely disregarding the tiny patches of blood around it. “What were you doing that you couldn’t protect my daughter?” She spat again, her voice trembling with
Kai didn’t bother to pay any attention to Adrian as he tightened his grip on Blaze’s neck. The color on Blaze’s face transformed from red to ashen, and it became obvious that Kai was infusing some of his dark energy into him.Adrian’s anger rolled off him in waves, and his body seemed to glow a little more as he crossed the distance to Blaze in the speed of light. Before Kai could process what was happening, Adrian retracted his palm and slammed it against Kai’s chest with enough force to send him flying across the ring and landing on the ground with a thundering crash.Blaze fell to the ground after Kai released him and he wheezed as he tried to catch his breath. The whole arena was silent at this point, as no one dared to utter a word, not even an intake of breath.Adrian walked up to Blaze and extended a hand towards him. “I’ll take it up from here, Blaze. You did well holding the fort for me.”Blaze looked up at Adrian, and his expression was filled with awe as he took in his gl
“Could the duel be over?!” Julian boomed from his spot at the front stand of the arena. “The other guy seems not to be getting up. If he’s still down in the next twenty seconds, he’ll be declared the loser!”Blaze’s ears perked up in alarm at Julian’s announcement, and seeing as Adrian wasn’t going to get up on his own, he rushed to him without hesitation.With a precise strike of his fist against Kai’s spine, Blaze sent him stumbling away from Adrian.Taking advantage of Kai’s momentary disorientation, Blaze knelt beside Adrian and quickly placed an arm around his shoulder to support him. With some effort, he helped him up to his feet just before the final seconds elapsed. “Master, you need to fight the dark energy before it consumes you,” he advised, his tone filled with concern.Adrian wiped the blood from the corner of his lips and held onto Blaze’s arm for a moment longer to steady himself. “I’m trying,” he gritted, his face tightening as the dark energy wrapped around his hea
Nathan’s anxiety began to fade as his friend Malik methodically worked to cover up their tracks, ensuring no one would ever trace Anita’s accident back to him.Still, the memory of her terrified scream, and the sound of the crash replayed in his head like a broken record. His heart gnawed with extreme guilt, but then a dark sinister voice whispered in his head.“Cheer up, Nathan. It’s too late to cry over spilled milk. At least now you’d get back all you lost to her. You’ve won.”At the mention of him finally defeating Anita, every shred of guilt he felt vanished and was replaced with sadistic triumph, and a befitting smile slowly crept up his lips.“It’s all done, Nate,” Malik announced as he pushed back from the table, and reclined on his swivelling chair, both of his hands coming to rest at the back of his head.He looked up at Nathan’s relieved face and chuckled. “That was kind of scary, wasn’t it? Even I froze for a moment before my mind geared into action.”Nathan scratched the
“N-Nathan?” Anita’s jaw dropped in shock as she heard the voice of her cousin come in from the speaker. Her grip tightened on the steering wheel as her unease became stronger. “What’s happening? What did you do to my car?” “Oh, nothing much, just a little…rigging,” Nathan replied in a casual voice. “Isn’t it exciting to know that I can control your car from where I am? I can even..” He trailed off and before Anita could respond, the steering wheel jerked suddenly under her grasp and started moving on its own accord. “Nathan, stop!” She screamed in panic as she tried to regain control of the steering. “My car is swerving out of control! Why are you doing this?!” The mocking sound of laughter came from the speaker again, and slowly the steering wheel started working normally. “Oh you look so sacred, Anita. You should see your face right now.” Anita’s heart dropped to her stomach as her eyes darted around the car. Was he watching her? A shiver ran down her spine as she scanned for an
The air in the hall crackled with tension as the four men faced off with each other. Adrian and Blaze, Lawrence and Kai.Lawrence and Kai wore identical smug expressions as they undermined their opponents, while Adrian and Blaze wore unfazed, yet confident expressions.Lawrence, deciding to add more heat to the tension, turned to Kai with a cocky smirk. “Kai, what do you say we make things more interesting for our dear opponents?”Kai’s brows rose in intrigue and a sly smirk slowly crept up his lips as his gaze flickered to Adrian and Blaze, then back to Lawrence. “I think that’s a splendid idea, boss. Let’s spice this challenge up a bit.”“Perfect, then,”’Lawrence clapped and turned to face Adrian and Blaze, but his gaze was particularly trained on Adrian. “Why don’t we make a little bet?” He tilted his head challengingly.Adrian and Blaze exchanged glances with each other, and Blaze shrugged. “It’s entirely up to you, master. I’ll go ahead with whatever you decide.”Adrian nodded hi
Murmurs and hushed whispers erupted from the crowd at Adrian’s declaration and everyone began to wonder what would have given him the courage to say such.Julian Xu’s brows furrowed as he sized Adrian up from the podium. Adrian was wearing a black, silk untucked shirt and black slacks with a pair of white air force ones, looking more casual and unassuming than any other person in the hall.Was he dreaming? Julian thought as he watched the young man approach the front of the podium.Adrian didn’t pay any mind to all the comments as he strode towards Julian, his head held high and his hands tucked into his pockets.Lawrence Smith, on the other hand, was seething as his irises flickered wildly at Adrian, while Xavier Palmer and Nolan were wide eyed with disbelief.Nolan was the first to break the silence as he turned to Lawrence. “Mr. Smith, you have to do something!” He blurted out. “You can’t possibly let that loser challenge your position!”“Yes, Lawrence,” Xavier added with a frown.
Adrian had overheard Nolan’s request for Lawrence’s help, and initially he paid no mind to it, but seeing as Lawrence had agreed, he became curious to see how things would play out. Especially since he had given specific orders for Sebastian not to be released without his permission.He observed quietly as Lawrence placed a call to his supposed friend. “Hello, Chief Legal prosecutor Rashford,” Lawrence greeted the person on the other end with a smile. “I have a favour to ask you.”“Lawrence Smith, my good friend. Long time no see,” the chief prosecutor responded with equal familiarity. “Of course, tell me what favour I can do for you.”Lawrence’s expression gleamed with hope. Maybe the chief prosecutor will be able to help afterall.“So the thing is,” he began, lowering his voice slightly. “I have a friend whose brother was thrown into Hades Prison. Is there any—”“Hades Prison?!” Lawrence’s chief prosecutor friend echoed, his voice pitched with shock. “No, no, friend. I’m afraid I w