The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Vivienne's eyes narrowed in concern as she rushed forward to catch Mr. Wolf before he could fall to the ground. After checking his pulse for a few seconds, her expression finally relaxed.

Thomas, standing nearby, was too shocked to speak. After all these years, he had never seen Percival in such a weakened state. He worriedly murmured, "Madam, is Percival...?" Vivienne glanced at him, "What are you thinking? He's just drained from overexerting his energy. Go and get him admitted; Mr. Wolf needs an IV." Thomas, momentarily stunned, quickly helped Percival to a chair before dashing off towards the reception.

But he had only taken a few steps when he paused, realizing something was amiss.

Weren't the lady's homemade remedies supposed to bolster one's health? Then why did Percival need an IV? In the private hospital room, Vivienne watched over Mr. Wolf, now hooked up to an IV, and made a phone call.

On the other end, Draven's voice was steady, "I've been keeping watch as you requested." Vivienne acknowledged with a hum, "And? Any changes?" Draven reported, "No reactions, not even when there was a strange light in the southeast sky. No indications on the equipment either." Vivienne, shifting the topic, asked, "What about the Wright family? Any findings?" Draven replied, "Indeed, we found something, but not a person. Matthew used equipment to scan a specific area on the Wright estate and found a considerable amount of gold and antiques. Most notably, there were pieces of jewelry, each worth millions, but none seemed to have been excavated recently; they appear to have been preserved from an earlier era, in excellent condition." Vivienne frowned, pared to what?" Draven was quick to answer, "The National Museum." After a moment of thought, Vivienne decided, "Don't touch those items. Have someone guard them until experts can take over. Whoever they belong to should have them back. Keep an eye on the Wright family." This must be what Colin Wright was referring to.

But if this was the extent of Abigail's hidden treasures within the Wright estate, it was underestimating her. Having weaved through the intricate web of ancient warrior families for years, mere wealth was no longer her focus.

The real cornerstone she wouldn't dare part with until the very end was still out there.

Without uncovering it, the demise of one Abigail wouldn't ensure the absence of another. Human greed knows no bounds; only by cutting this root could matters be thoroughly resolved.

After hanging up, Vivienne checked on Mr. Wolf's condition.

The moment she touched him, he grabbed her hand with a strength that made it impossible to pull away.

Despite being unconscious, Mr. Wolf's body reacted, unwilling to let her go even in sleep.

With no other choice, Vivienne decided to lie beside him and catch ssleep herself. After a day of turmoil, she was almost out of energy.

Perhaps it was the warmth from Mr. Wolf, but Vivienne quickly fell asleep.

When she awoke, the human-sized pillow beside her was gone, replaced by a fluffy teddy bear. She wondered why it felt so different.

It was already dark outside. Before she could check her phone, Percival returned.

"Awake?" His voice was soft as he flipped the light switch by the door.

Bathed in light, Vivienne squinted to see Percival carrying a bag of goodies, among which she immediately recognized a strawberry cheesecake.

With a sleepy smile, she remarked, "Mr. Wolf, you went out to geta cake." Percival nodded, washing his hands before unpacking the food containers, "Vivienne, eat something first. We can have the cake later." Vivienne, knowing his habits, agreed.

While waiting for the food, she checked her phone and found messages from Leopold, Dorian, and her mentor, but mostly from her martial brothers expressing their concern.

Her inbox was overflowing.

Scrolling to the bottom, she called Dorian and her mentor first, ignoring the rest.

Dorian seemed genuinely alarmed, his voice cracking as he spoke, "Vivienne, are you alright?" After taking a sip of water Percival handed her, Vivienne reassured him in her usual tone, "Dorian, I'm fine. Just needed ssleep. How's Cordelia?" Considering Cordelia must have been through a shock while Abigail impersonated her, Vivienne was concerned.

Dorian quickly assured her, "It's good to hear you're okay. Cordelia's fine, just worried about you. She was a bit shaken up earlier but she's slept after taking smedication." Thinking of Delilah's situation, Vivienne promised to visit Cordelia soon, "That's good. I'lle to see her when I get a chance." Dorian didn't press further, only advising Vivienne to take care of herself.

After hanging up, Vivienne dialed Finnian's number.

Before she could speak, Dawson's voice cthrough, "Vivienne? Is that really you?" Vivienne, "...

She just wanted to finish her sentence.

The next moment, the voice on the phone switched to old man Larry, "Vivienne, are you alright? Didn't hurt yourself, did you? You have no idea how worried we were. I was about to ask Leopold where you were, but that dude dared to ignore my calls. Wait till I catch him, he'll have it..." en.kikistories Vivienne silently moved the phone away from her ear.

She should've known better than to call when all those guys were together.

The old man had vanished without a trace; it seemed like no big deal.

As she hung up, Dawson, who had just grabbed the phone back, couldn't hide his grin, "Li-" he began, but was cut off by the dial tone.

His face darkened instantly.

Old man Larry, standing beside him, swallowed nervously and shook his head, "Dawson, it's really not my fault, I was having a nice chat with Vivienne, and the moment you took the phone, she hung up..." Dawson's expression grew even stormier, "So what you're saying is, Vivienne would rather chat with you than say a word to me?" Larry shook his head franticly, "Dawson, you got it all wrong. That's not what meant. Plus, if Vivienne wanted to hang up, what could possibly say? I barely exchanged two sentences with her, didn't even get to hear her voice." en.kikistories Jerry walked over and said, "The boss said, next tViviennees over, to bring sof that homemade stuff she brought last time; he needs it!" Dawson snorted, "That's a job for Larry." Larry, "..." He really only did exchange a brief word with Vivienne! Meanwhile, at the hospital.

Vivienne had barely touched her food, her eyes fixated on the cake on the table.

Percival reluctantly cut her a small piece.

Just as she took her first bite, Vivienne sensed something was off, turning to look at Percival, "Mr. Wolf, did you make this cake?" Percival nodded, "Didn't trust others to make it. Didn't want you to have something you're not used to." It was more about him not trusting anyone else to handle the food.

Vivienne glanced at the barely touched meal, swallowing hard, "Mr. Wolf, you didn't happen to make all of this at home, did you?"