The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Standing outside the door, Vivienne spoke in a detached tone, "How are you feeling?" The place wasn't far from her research facility, one of the many ventures under her belt.

Bringing Colin here served a dual purpose: one, to better understand and neutralize the poison coursing through his veins; and two, because Declan, still useful for now, would not hesitate for a second to exploit dark magic to end Colin's life if he discovered his whereabouts.

Colin, with a bitter smile, looked down, "Ms. Hawthorn, you're well aware of my condition. Attempting any treatment onis futile, a mere waste of your time." Vivienne frowned. She had little patience for those who gave up on themselves before she even had a chance to weigh in. Walking over to a table, she extracted a pack of silver needles from her coat but didn't rush to open it. "I'm the doctor here. Whether or not you can be cured is forto decide, not you. I'm pressed for time, so you have a minute to consider your options." "Of course, I can't guarantee aplete recovery, but for now, I can at least save your life." After saying this, Vivienne fell silent, only watching Colin, who stood bathed in backlight by the door.

The sheer force of Vivienne's presence overwhelmed Colin. After all, eyes don't lie.

Vivienne was offering him help.

Thinking of Winston, waiting outside, Colin realized he was perhaps too pessimistic. He indeed couldn't afford to wallow in self-pity. Within ten seconds, Colin had his answer, "Ms. Hawthorn, I'll accept your treatment." Vivienne nodded, e here." After checking his pulse, Vivienne instructed Colin to remove his shirt; she needed to block certain points near his heart with the silver needles to prevent the poison from causing an immediate death.

In her eyes, there was no room for embarrassment or hesitation in the face of medical necessity.

However, the sight of numerous scars covering the intended areas for needle insertion made her frown, not out of disgust, but because itplicated the procedure.

Colin mistook her reaction, asking softly, "Did I frighten you?" Without changing her expression, Vivienne turned to grab her needles, "I prefer not to be disturbed while I'm working." Taken aback, Colin remained silent.

The treatment required the needles to be left in for a while.

Rising to wash her hands, Vivienne noticed sbooks on the windowsill and casually flipped through them.

Twenty minutes later, upon removing the needles, Colin's face was as pale as paper, his body covered in cold sweat.

After giving him sinstructions, Vivienne packed her things to leave, not intending to stay a moment longer. She had to reach the Dorian residence by noon, as Mr. Wolf was away, and no one else would be cooking.

She was particularly missing Cordelia's home-cooked meals today.

As Vivienne hurried to leave, Colin, clutching his chest, called out, "Ms. Hawthorn, please wait." She stopped and turned, "What now?" Barely managing to speak, Colin inquired, "How is Winston doing now?" Vivienne glanced at him, her voice calm, "He's with the Linklater family. If you're worried about him being left unattended after your incident, the Linklaters will take care of him. Besides, my parents are quite fond of Winston." Colin looked up, deeply inhaling before sincerely thanking Vivienne, "Thank you!" "You should be thanking yourself, not me." Vivienne always believed that the oues one faces are the result of their own choices. "Had you not decided to seekout, the Wright family would indeed be in ruins now, including everyone involved." Colin's eyes flickered, "The Wright family now..." || Knowing what he meant, Vivienne cut him off, "Only Robbie and Brianna remain. One's drowning in debt and desperation for money; the other's lost their mind. The Wright family is essentially no more." Hearing the fate of the remaining members made Colin close his eyes, accepting the inevitable.

Lifting his head, he saw Vivienne stepping out, on the verge of leaving.

"Ms. Hawthorn!" He had something crucial to reveal.

Vivienne, visibly annoyed, approached him, "I'm giving you one last minute. Say everything you need to, all at once." For the first time, Colin saw her visibly upset but proceeded to share everything he knew.

"I believe Abigail spared my grandfather because he possessed something vital, something that saved his life." Vivienne's eyes narrowed, "What was it?" Vivienne didn't press further, "I understand." Without waiting for Colin to respond, she turned and left.

Watching her depart, Colin smiled faintly, hoping his information would be of help.

Once outside the clinic, Vivienne dialed Draven, instructing him to discreetly surround the Wright estate.

If there was something there that Abigail coveted, she would undoubtedly attempt to retrieve it.

Catching her was Vivienne's main objective, not the item itself.

She was after Abigail, the person.

When Vivienne's car pulled up to the Brooks residence, it was already one o'clock in the afternoon. She had et called ahead to Cordelia, telling her not to go out of her way, just to leave sfood for her would be fine. BUMS Knocking on the door, Cordelia promptly cto open it, "Vivienne, you've arrived." Vivienne nodded, "Got held up by something around noon, Cordelia." Cordelia waved her hands dismissively, "Not late at all. The important thing is you've made it.e in, I've saved you slunch." Once inside, Vivienne glanced around, noticing no unfamiliar faces, and then inquired with Cordelia.

Cordelia gestured towards the guest room, "Your aunt's child wasn't feeling well, so I let them rest in there. There's no rush, you could see a doctor after lunch." Speaking thus, Cordelia brought out the warm dishes from the kitchen, setting each one before Vivienne.

Without exception, they were all her favorites.

Seeing the almost untouched dishes, Vivienne handed Cordelia a pair of forks, "It's no fun eating alone, Cordelia. Join me." Cordelia paused, recognizing Vivienne's thoughtful gesture.

Smiling, she accepted the fork and scooped up servings of steaming pasta for both of them.

As they ate and chatted, Cordelia mentioned that Dorian's arm injury was all healed up, and he had gone to the office early. Thaddeus had classmates looking out for him at school, so his studies weren't affected.

Mid-conversation, a muffled cry of a child erupted in the house, low and deep, as if stifled by something in the mouth, afraid even to cry aloud.

Vivienne glanced at Cordelia, reading the source of the noise from her face.

Cordelia's expression shifted slightly, and she stood up, telling et Vivienne, "It's your aunt's kid, probably having a fit again. You continue eating; I'll check on them." Vivienne put down her fork, standing up as well, "Let's go together; I want to see how serious the child's condition is." Cordelia hesitated for a moment but then nodded.

The guest room door was unlocked. After knocking twice, Cordelia pushed it open.

Only a dim light filtered through the room, casting shadows.

Vivienne looked for the child and unexpectedly met a pair of murky eyes staring straight at her, the flicker of light in them disappearing as quickly as it had appeared.

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