The Unpredicted Ascendance Of Ashton Pearce

MANDRAKE POISONING

Silence and a smooth ride down the road was enough to clear Ashton's head and put him to sleep. Plus, the tiredness from staying awake all night to tend to his wife's laundry and other chores. 

A sudden vibration in his pocket yanked him out of dreamland and he sourced it out. It had been his phone ringing. 

An empty look took over his face as he stared at the name on the screen. My forever half. He ought to change it or probably delete her number even. 

"Hello?" He spoke calmly into the phone. 

"I can't believe how low you would go just to get back at me." Rebecca said icily. "Why would you do that to me?" She questioned angrily. 

"I don't understand what you're talking about." 

She gritted her teeth as anger boiled her blood like a pot of soup on a hot stove, causing it to bubble. "Are you with Mr Gomez right now?" She managed the words as calmly as she could which was far from calm.

"I am." 

Her scoff sounded in his ear. "You really let me down, for a man who talked on about how he loves me, you just decided to ruin my one shot to greatness! As what? Payback? Couldn't you have just spoken directly to my face instead of hurting my company?!" She barked at him. 

Ashton remained calm and his words came out with ease. "How childish do you make me to be? I ruined your one shot to greatness? Whatever it is that happened with Mr Gomez had nothing to do with me if that's what you're thinking."

"Oh yeah? Then why would he call off our partnership after having a talk with you? I know you did this, my family saw you do it!" 

Her tone was like a harsh thunderstorm that would have struck Ashton if he were standing face-to-face with her. But it still had a little effect on him.

He was utterly disappointed. Had she not even had an iota of trust in him over a marriage of three years? Yet she kept growling at him like a stray dog. 

He managed to still remain calm, not letting her hurtful words get the better of him. "Rebecca, whether you chose to believe me or not is your choice but I had nothing to do with it. Don't call me for such matters again." 

Before she could spit another fiery ball of words at him, he hung up and tucked his phone back into his pocket. 

Mr Gomez, knowing the situation well, put in a few words. "I can straighten her up if you'd like, and her family too. I know they'll try to harass you when they see you again but I can stop it from ever happening." 

Ashton shook his head. "No need for that. Instead I'd rather we never see each other again, it's better that way." 

Mr Gomez said no more until they arrived at the mansion on the Coopers. Like their arrival had been made known, a male servant had been made available for them as they stepped down from their car. 

"If you'd come with me." The man said in the most polite and respectful way.

He led them into the mansion and kept them at the waiting room with tea and biscuits for refreshment. Ashton didn't mind helping himself to some tea, it was made from fresh herbs to soothe the nerves but a hint of something within wished he didn't drink it. 

Thankfully, Mr Gomez was not indulged in the tea nor the snacks either. 

Ashton spared a moment to embrace the unfamiliar environment. The room was large with different expensive decorations but there was a way it all came together to look simple. 

"I know right?" Mr Gomez said like he had heard what Ashton was thinking. "Mr Cooper is a man of simplicity and so is his daughter. Everything they eat and drink is fresh from the garden except for moments when they have a sweet tooth of course. 

"Elizabeth is not one to be looked at as a simple girl though, one can compare her to a tycoon. She raised a whole conglomerate all by herself in just a few years! She is a powerful leader only weighed down by her illness now." 

Ashton nodded his head but said nothing. 

Mr Gomez's face lit up. "What do you think about making use of the situation at hand?" 

"What do you mean?" Ashton arched a curious brow. 

"You are now single, Elizabeth herself is without a husband. If you two get married--"

"Hold your tongue right there." Ashton cut him off. "I'm good." 

Mr Gomez swallowed the rest of his words. Almost immediately, Mr Cooper approached them with an anxious smile on his face. 

"My old friend, good to see you." He smiled as he extended a hand to shake Mr Gomez.

Mr Gomez accepted the handshake with as much pleasantry. 

"Now, we have no time to waste. Where is this miracle doctor you spoke of on the phone?" Mr Cooper's gaze wandered past Ashton and looked everywhere in the room.

"Why is he standing right here?" Mr Gomez pointed at Ashton who wore a pleasant smile on his face. 

"It's an honor to meet you Mr Cooper." Ashton tilted his head respectfully. 

Mr Cooper's face scrunched angrily. "Is this a joke? He looks nothing older than my daughter herself! Experienced doctor's from all over the world have flown in to check her but you bring me a kid?" 

Me Gomez let out a soft laughter. "Trust me, he's more experienced than you think. If there is anyone more familiar with medicines and herbs than him then it must be the god himself." 

With such words, Mr Cooper felt a little convinced but only by a little. Since his friend had vouched for the kid, he would allow it. 

He led them up the stairs to the room where Elizabeth was being taken care of. As Ashton saw her, her beauty caught him by surprise. 

He hadn't expected such flawless beauty even when she was laying on her supposed death bed. He walked up to her and the young lady standing guard next to her bed gave him a harsh look. He could have sworn he heard her growl. 

"Ms Cooper, I have brought the best healer in the entire galaxy to see you, you'll be up and running in no time." Mr Gomez assured. 

Her pale lips gave way to a weary smile. "You're too kind. Thank you." She strained the words from her mouth.

Ashton took one look at her and for a second, his brows creased. His eyes trailed to a cup sitting on her table and he picked it up. 

"What are you doing with that?" Mai, the lady guard, growled. "Shouldn't you be tending to her?" 

Mai Lee was like a sister to Elizabeth, they always did everything together and she hadn't left her side since she fell sick. 

"I am. If I'm allowed some questions..." Mr Cooper nodded and Ashton continued. "Do you know what the mandrake plant is?" 

"Of course! I'm very accustomed to the flowers that grow in my garden." The man boasted. 

"How many of you ingest this plant? Maybe as tea or seasoning for your snacks and soups?" 

"I only like to adore them." The man simply replied. 

"I take them... Sometimes." Elizabeth's weary voice called for all their attention which they willingly gave her. "I like to participate in some kind of... Martial arts, they leave me tired by the end of the day but mandrake tea gets me going like nothing ever happened." She confessed. 

Ashton nodded his head. "My hypothesis is this, Ms Cooper, like people like me with coffee, has grown too fond of this tea. She relies on it for strength like we do with coffee. But a tea like that is too vicious to the human body.

"Be it a pinch you've been ingesting, they have been killing your blood cells slowly and the other doctors didn't notice this poisoning because it isn't posing a threat to you. It's just doing as it should, killing you slowly." 

Ashton's explanation left them all wide eyed, including Elizabeth herself. She hadn't expected to be the cause of her own predicament.