The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

In an instant, Brody's mind raced with countless ways to make a break for it, his feet itching to bolt.

Unfortunately for him, in Vivienne's grasp, there was no chance of escape.

“Blowing up my lab now, huh? Living a little too comfortably these days, aren't we?” Vivienne said, her grip firm on Brody's shoulder, patting his head like he was a naughty puppy.

Brody glared at Vivienne and retorted, “Cutsslack, Specter Healer! | was just experimenting!” “You've got snerve!” Vivienne raised her hand, poised to strike again.

A real man knows when to fold. Brody, raising his hands to his ears, shouted, “Okay, okay, | was wrong!” Only then did Vivienne relax her stance.

On the sidelines, Karen chuckled. “You must be Brody, right?” Hearing her, Brody shot Karen an impatient look, “Yes, and who might you be? Have we met...” He took a closer look at Karen and realized something about her face seemed familiar. Suddenly, his eyes widened in recognition. “It’s you! You're Evelyn!” Vivienne was taken aback, not expecting Brody to know her mother.

Karen just smiled at Brody, her gaze filled with an enigmatic meaning as she stepped forward and gently placed her hand on his shoulder. “Still as impolite as ever, huh? Don’t you know how to greet your master properly?” As she finished her words, a sharp pain shot through Brody's shoulder, causing him to buckle under her grip.

Vivienne was even more surprised.

Since when had her mother becBrody's master? But Brody was wise enough to know when to give in. He Elica, “Master, I'm sorry! | was wrong!” “You're sorry? Stealing my research papers, running off with lab secrets, do you think a simple apology is enough?” Karen's gaze was fierce, her grip tightening.

Brody's body was nearly doubled over, powerless to resist, like a lamb in the grip of a lioness.

“Mom; since when did he becyour disciple?” Vivienne asked with a hint of amusement.

Through his groans, Brody gasped in surprise, “Mom? You two are mother and daughter! No wonder | couldn't just beat you like that! | knew there must be a reason!” Karen snorted with laughter. “The boy’s got talent. Met him on a mission once, and with a bit of guidance, he was able to unlock spretty deep medical mysteries. It’s just a shhis mind's always on the crooked path.” “No wonder he seemed to have a knack for things that align with my thinking, thanks to your mentoring.” Vivienne sat back, enjoying the show, with no intention of intervening on Brody's behalf.

Brody pleaded with a gloomy expression, “Vivienne, I've got something to tell you. Can you—can your mom...

my dear master let go of me?” Hearing this, Vivienne finally spoke up leisurely. “Mom, let him go. I've got a job for him.” Karen released her grip, having no real intention of harming him.

Brody stood up, rubbing his shoulder. “No wonder this lab looked so familiar. | couldn't beat you because you're mother and daughter. It’s like I'm cursed by you two!” If it were not for running into Karen here, Brody would never have remembered that before he bec‘Brody,’ he had interned in a lab just like this one.

Back then, Karen went under the nof Evelyn. She was busy with her own lab while leading a team at Vanguard Agency.

Impressed by Brody's talent, she had given him a few pointers.

Little did she know this gifted young man would one day steal her lab secrets and disappear! And Brody never imagined that, years later, he would run into the daughter of his nemesis! “How's the task | gave you coming along?” Vivienne inquired.

Brody caught his breath. “Why don’t you ask your mom? Wasn't this what she was researching before?” Brody's interest in Vivienne’s potion stemmed from his experience in Karen's lab, and back then, he lacked the skills to unravel it.

The tmoved into another lab, one Brody was responsible for his potion research.

He was smart enough to keep his potion experiments separate to avoid another explosion.

“Our previous research direction was indeed effective, but now it seems this thing has a mind of its own. It keeps changing direction with every bit of progress we make. It's devouring the old cells and spawning new ones, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, inexhaustible, an extraordinary phenomenon.” Vivienne and Karen crouched before the potion cultures, engrossed in the phenomenon Brody described.

They had initially thought it only had healing effects, but now it seemed that those effects were merely a prelude to cellular regeneration.

It was like a self-healing process.

Karen frowned. “This thing keeps givingsurprises every time.” She had previously discovered the potion’s healing properties and found them odd. But now, this reaction was even more baffling.

“What kind of virus is GTO researching that could cause such a reaction?” Vivienne was deeply puzzled.

Every poison or remedy in the world has a dual nature, saving or taking lives at the flick of an intention or dosage.

Spoisons, adequately diluted, could beclife-saving medicines.

While smedicines, with just a pinch of the wrong substance, could turn into deadly toxins.

But something like the potion before them, with reactions of healing, self-healing, regeneration, and expansion, was entirely unprecedented.

“GTO’s ambition might be deeper than we imagined,” Karen mused, her brows knitted tightly.

Vivienne shared the sentiment.

Perhaps GTO'’s ultimate goal was not just to develop something akin to a bioweapon.

What F-Poison sought might be more shocking still! Vivienne took the latest research report from Brody, studying the data, the timing, and the characteristics of each cellular extension.

A new idea suddenly sparked in her mind.

“What if we stop its cellular regeneration? Will it produce sother reaction?” Brody stood there, stunned for a moment. “What if the potion loses its potency and turns into nothing but stagnant water?” A loss of potency would mean that the potion was now worthless, with no further need for research.

For Brody, who was so keen on deciphering the potion’s secrets, this would be a catastrophic blow.

Yet Karen simply shook her head. “No, it won't. And, if the potion does lose its potency, it actually proves that it has a natural enemy, which makes it no different than an antidote.” Brody raked his fingers through his hair. “You two are quite the daring pair, aren't you? But even so, how can we figure out how the potion was created in the first place?” “Can't we figure out a poison if we have an antidote?” Vivienne asked, her face a picture of confusion as she looked at Brody.

Karen nodded in agreement.

Having the answer right in front, how could one miss the question? Brody was speechless. Even if there was only one answer, there could be countless possible questions, right? He was about to argue, but seeing the look on the faces of the mother-daughter duo across from him as if they were looking at an imbecile, he swallowed his words.

Fine, a pair of oddballs, he thought. He would not say another word.

Vivienne and Karen spent almost a full day at YQ with Brody, pouring over the potion’s research.

Finally, they had a clear direction for the future study of the potion.

While Brody verbally resisted, his actions were exemplary, following their lead without question! Vivienne had a hunch that the day when the truth would be unveiled was not far off.