The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne)

On the way back, Percival got a call from Leopold, saying there was a bit of a bother at the estate in the suburbs and asked him to come over.

Vivienne was behind the wheel since Percival had indulged in some wine over lunch.

She asked for directions, planning to drop him off before heading back to the Linklater estate.

Percival didn't agree; the suburbs were quite a trek from where they were, and more importantly, he had left the renovation of the place as a surprise for her. Seeing it in advance would spoil everything. In the end, Percival had Leopold come to pick him up.

Leopold showed up looking like he had battled with insomnia, dark circles and all.

He headed straight for the driver's side door, "Percival, you did this on purpose, don't think a mere record... Oh, Vivienne!"

Vivienne watched him calmly.

Leopold swallowed hard, his previously menacing demeanor deflated instantly, "Vivienne, what are you doing here? I thought it was..."

Percival, lounging in the passenger seat, squinting over, said, "And what if it was me? Planning on a quick murder?"

Leopold, "..."

Even if he harbored the thought, he lacked the guts, especially with Vivienne there. If he dared to lift a finger, Vivienne would have him turned to ash in seconds.

Leopold, with a forced chuckle, "Me? Never dare."

Vivienne, with a smirk, "Leopold, pull yourself together!"

Leopold felt a chill run down his spine.

Did Vivienne know something?

Why else would this couple speak in such a unified tone?

After dropping off Percival, Vivienne turned the car around, heading back to the Linklater estate.

As soon as Vivienne left, Leopold's demeanor changed, tossing the car keys to Percival, "You drive, I need a nap."

Percival gave him a look, "If I could drive, you wouldn't be here, would you?"

Leopold froze, "Since when are you unable to drive?"

Percival, "..."

Right, no good deed goes unpunished!

Meanwhile.

Just a few hundred meters from the Linklater estate, there was a commotion at the intersection, traffic and people clogged together.

Vivienne attempted to detour, but was stopped by voices outside.

"Poor thing, it's been so long, and no parent has shown up yet."

"Such a little kid, who knows if he'll make it."

"Yeah, there's so much blood on the ground, he's fallen so badly, and the kid's still clutching a lotus flower, probably lost by his folks." Vivienne frowned, pulling over sharply.

To others, it might be unclear, but she knew better.

Lotus and water lilies were essentially the same, hard to distinguish from afar for the untrained eye.

A child holding a lotus...

Instinctively, Vivienne thought of someone.

Pushing through the crowd, the child lying in a pool of blood, clutching a twin lotus, was indeed Winston.

Vivienne stepped forward, lifting Winston in her arms, feeding him a pill before taking out her emergency acupuncture kit.

"Hey, who are you, don't you know you can't just move someone after an accident, and what's with feeding him stuff... and now needles?"

"Seriously, you're not a doctor, what's with the act? Instead of rushing to a hospital, you're doing this for what?"

"This is a life we're talking about, are you even human to be so cruel?"

"Let him go, or we're calling the police!"

The crowd grew increasingly accusatory towards Vivienne's actions, with some even attempting to push her away.

"Back off!"

Vivienne's expression turned ice-cold, her demeanor intimidating.

The person stepping forward was taken aback by Vivienne's aura, caught off guard but trying to save face, "You, you're harming a life, hurting him..." "So, you're going to save him?"

Vivienne's retort left the man speechless.

She didn't bother with the onlookers who were all talk, no action.

From her quick diagnosis, she realized Winston's injuries were more severe than anticipated.

All she could do was temporarily seal his heart meridian, buying him the best window to get to the hospital; otherwise, the outcome could be dire... Thinking this, Vivienne swiftly called Sasha, asking her to meet at the hospital.

Driving there herself seemed quicker than waiting for an ambulance.

Back at the Wright estate.

Brianna walked in to find Colin, as usual, pouring his herbal medicine into a houseplant.

Confused, she asked, "Bro, you've been well for so long, why won't you let grandpa know?"

Colin responded flatly, "It's not time yet."

Then, turning to her, "You needed to see me?"

Brianna gestured outside casually, "Bro, have you seen Winston?"

Colin approached, his tone casual, "No, why do you ask?"

Brianna shrugged, "The person

responsible for him came to meet

said Winston vanished during his nap, and they couldn't find him even after checking the surveillance..."

"When did this happen?"

Brianna was startled by Colin's suddenly intense tone, "What?"

"I asked, when did Winston disappear!"

Feeling Colin's anger, Brianna hesitated before responding, "About an hour ago..." Before she could finish, Colin had vanished.

At the hospital.

Sasha and Arthur arrived just as Vivienne followed the lead surgeon out of the OR. Arthur rushed forward, eyeing Vivienne for any sign of harm, "Vivienne, are you alright?" Vivienne, removing her mask, barely managed a smile, "The accident wasn't mine." Sasha approached, her concern obvious, "How's Winston?"

Vivienne's expression was grim but composed, "We did what we could for now."

Vivienne's expression was grave. "He was bleeding internally from the accident. If I hadn't stumbled upon him by chance, things could've ended as some might have wished."

A chill passed over Sasha's face.

She knew all too well how much the Wright family valued Winston. They wouldn't have let him wander off alone, especially not to someplace so distant.

With a half-smile, Vivienne added, "What's even more curious is that at the scene of the accident, the kid was clutching a twin lotus."

Sasha's eyes darkened.

Winston's accident might have been

just that an accident. But once it got tangled with something

belonging to the Linklater family, whether they caused it or not was irrelevant.

Either way, the blame would eventually fall on the Linklaters.

It was a setup.

A deadly scheme, orchestrated with human lives.Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

"Sis!"

Alyssa burst in, panic written all over her face. The moment she saw Arthur, she veered toward him. "Arthur, I heard my brother was in an accident. How is he?"

She broke down before finishing her sentence. "Grandpa has always adored my brother. If anything happens to him, I... I couldn't go on."

Vivienne snorted with derision. "Then you might as well die now!"

Alyssa froze, her tears forgotten. "Are you saying Winston is... dead?"

Vivienne replied nonchalantly, "You seem almost happy at the thought."