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Novel Catalog
Chapter 42
Veronica and Xavier, both of whom were familiar faces in the public eye, sat at an open-air food stall, enjoying skewers of lamb.
“Well, since your parents have gone back home, when are you planning to come work at my company? By the way, what do you do at your current job?” Xavier asked between bites, savoring the skewers.
Despite Xavier being a young master from the prestigious Crawford Family—one of the Four Big Families of Bloomstead—he seemed perfectly at ease in the humble surroundings of the food stall. His elegant demeanor, however, set him apart from the other patrons, making it clear that he existed on a different plane entirely. His effortlessly cool appearance made it hard for anyone to approach him.
Veronica looked up from her food, her gaze lingering on him for a moment. He wore sunglasses perched on the bridge of his nose, a casual floral shirt, and matching pants. Despite his carefree outfit, he was undeniably handsome, with features that were both devilishly attractive and undeniably bad boy. He propped one arm against the window while the other rested on the steering wheel. His look was eccentric, but it didn’t diminish his appeal.
After a few moments of silence, Xavier broke it. “Hey, I’m asking you a question here.”
Veronica snapped out of her thoughts. “I manage the marketing department,” she replied quickly.
“Ah, just join the project department at my company, then,” Xavier suggested. “Might as well learn something there.”
Her curiosity piqued by his nonchalant suggestion, Veronica raised an eyebrow. “Can I really?”
Xavier’s lips curled into a smug smile as he raised an eyebrow of his own. “I’m the boss. My word is the law.”
Veronica smiled, amused by his confidence. But deep down, she wasn’t asking if he’d take her in. She was wondering whether the experience at his company would actually be worth her time. Regardless, she decided to play along.
Raising her cup, she clinked it lightly against his. “Here’s to being my future boss, then. I look forward to working under your guidance!”
The rest of the evening passed in joyful conversation and easy laughter. Being with Xavier was the only time she could truly forget about the weight of her responsibilities. After finishing their skewers, they parted ways, heading back to their respective homes.
Exhausted from a week of hard work, Veronica returned home and locked her bedroom door before going through her nightly routine and collapsing into bed. She was out like a light almost immediately.
The next morning, she awoke early, as was her habit, and changed into her workout attire. She had always enjoyed morning runs, but after Tony’s accident and coma, she had been too focused on making money to care for herself. Now, with that burden lightened, she could finally return to the simple joy of a morning jog.
As she sat on a bench in the park, catching her breath after more than 30 minutes of running, a crowd began to gather nearby. A few people murmured as they walked past her.
“Oh no, what’s going on over there? I’ll go take a look.”
“A granny has passed out!”
“Gosh, how did this happen?”
Veronica’s attention was drawn to a group of elderly men and women surrounding an unconscious figure on the ground. Among them was an old man who had already dialed emergency services, but no one seemed to be doing anything else to help.
She stood on tiptoe to peer over the crowd and immediately recognized the figure lying on the ground—a woman clad in a Tai Chi uniform, foaming at the mouth. The situation was much more serious than the murmurs of the crowd suggested.
Without hesitation, Veronica pulled out her phone and started recording the scene. She pushed her way through the crowd, calling out, “Make way, please. Coming through.”
Reaching the woman, Veronica’s eyes widened in shock. It was Elizabeth—the matriarch of the Crawford family.
“Madam?” Veronica muttered, startled. Of all the places to meet her, this was certainly the last place Veronica would have imagined. But she knew there was no time to dwell on the coincidence. She had to act quickly.
She gently turned Elizabeth onto her side to help her breathe more easily, unbuttoning the collar of her Tai Chi uniform. Veronica then pressed two acupuncture points on Elizabeth’s back with precise force, calling to the crowd, “Please make space! She’s foaming at the mouth. She needs air!”
A few onlookers raised their voices, some with concern, others with doubt.
“Do you know her?”
“Be careful! She’s foaming at the mouth. If anything happens to her, it’ll be a problem for you.”
“Just save her! I’ll vouch for you if anything happens.”
Encouraged by a few voices in the crowd, Veronica continued working on Elizabeth, trying to stabilize her. She pulled the hair tie from her hair and quickly stuffed it into Elizabeth’s mouth to prevent her from biting her tongue during the convulsions.
The crowd murmured in anxiety, watching as the woman’s body trembled violently.
“This is so scary.”
“I can’t believe it. She’s convulsing and foaming at the same time!”
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing? Why is she twitching so much?”
Despite the rising doubt in the crowd, Veronica stayed calm, refusing to stop massaging the acupuncture points on Elizabeth’s back. She was drenched in sweat from the physical effort, but she kept focused. Time passed slowly, and after what seemed like an eternity, an ambulance finally arrived.
At the hospital, Elizabeth was rushed into the emergency room. Veronica stood by, unsure of what to do next. She could have easily left, but she knew that informing Matthew of his grandmother’s condition was the right thing to do.
Without hesitation, she dialed his number. It rang twice before Matthew’s voice, tired yet alert, came through.
“What is it?”
“I found Madam unconscious in the park. She was foaming at the mouth and convulsing. It looked bad. You need to come to Central Hospital—now.”
“Okay. I’ll be there as soon as possible.”
Though he was suspicious about why Veronica had been with his grandmother, he didn’t waste time asking questions. He simply grabbed his keys and left for the hospital.
Half an hour later, Matthew arrived outside the emergency room. Veronica was sitting alone in the corridor, her body still tense from the incident.
He approached her without hesitation, his tone curt. “What happened to Grandma?”
Veronica looked up at the familiar voice and saw Matthew standing there in black silk pajamas, looking every bit the handsome man he was—even though his hair was messy, and his usually perfect demeanor was clearly disrupted by his worry.
“They’re trying to save her,” Veronica said, her voice soft but steady.
Matthew didn’t appear satisfied by her brief answer. His frown deepened as he stared at her, his cold eyes prying. “Why were you with Grandma?”
The accusation in his tone made Veronica bristle, her expression faltering. She quickly responded, “It was just a coincidence. Now that you’re here, I’ll be leaving.”
She turned to go, but Matthew’s hand shot out, grabbing her wrist in a swift motion. “You want to leave? You’ll have to wait until Grandma regains consciousness.”
His words left little room for interpretation. He was implying that he suspected Veronica had something to do with his grandmother’s condition.
Her chest tightened with frustration. “You…” she bit out, unable to finish the sentence. Anger surged within her, and she was just about to pull out her phone and show him the recording of her efforts to save Elizabeth when the doors of the emergency room suddenly opened.
Matthew immediately released her wrist and strode toward the doctor emerging from the room. “Doctor, how is my grandma?”
Veronica stayed in the background, feeling the tension between them hanging in the air. She could only wait for the doctor’s report, and whatever it would reveal, her next steps were uncertain.
