Chapter 521 She Said That I Am a Good Man
After a while, the door swung open again, and Mike came in with his hands behind his back.
By then, Lila had already given up the idea of being angry at him. She knew that she could never get through to his dense head, and he would never understand the deeper meaning behind people’s words.
“Quicky, eat your food. The soup is cold now.”
Lila buried her head as she took in a mouthful of noodles while picking out the beef from the bowl and putting it into another bowl. However, she was caught off guard by the touch of pink from the corner of her eyes. When she looked up, she saw Mike grinning at her with a balloon in his hand.
“What’s this?”
Mike began to tie the balloon to her bedside and rambled on about how he had rescued a little girl by the side of the road today. Finally, he stared at the pink color balloon and muttered to himself indifferently, “Her mother said that I was a good man. This is the second time anyone has ever said that to me.”
When Lila heard this, she froze.
At that time, she was naive. Now that she had gone through so many things, she did not have the courage to insist that he was a good person.
With an embarrassed smile, she said, “You’re just unattentive.”
“Do you think they’ll let me back if I perform well?”
After being asked that, she was silent.
She continued to use the chopsticks to stir her soup.
If there were a chance to turn back the fatal mistakes one made, this world would have been too cruel to those innocently dragged into the abyss by such errors.
While she was immersed in her thoughts, a gentle force ruffled her hair. The person who asked this was supposed to be comforted, yet, the person who listened could not extricate himself from a certain depressed mood for a moment.
No, she had seen too many TV shows. The people who did wrong never had happy endings.
Then, she snuggled up to the man’s sturdy chest and slowly started to narrate, “My father used to gamble when I was young, and I would often see my mother staring at her phone alone at home. Later, when he owed the casino money and couldn’t pay his debt, his hands were chopped off, and the debt collectors forced my mother to her death. I used to hate all of them back then, but now, I just hate my dad.”
Suddenly, warm dampness permeated Mike’s shirt. He thought that Lila was going to talk about the debt coolers. He didn’t expect her to chuckle to herself and say, “Vietnam, I was so worried every time you went out that I couldn’t sleep. I feel the same way right now, but I can’t follow behind you anymore.”
She was fumbling with the hem of her hospital gown, and her tone was a little calm.
Mike’s eyes flickered when he heard this.
“I’ll find a way. You can be cured.”
That wasn’t the point of her story, so she merely shook her head as she heard his declaration.
“I’ve always felt that there is no turning back once you’ve done something wrong, but you seemed to be the lucky one. God has taken special care of you. So, I hope you’ll be a good person instead of trying to cure me.”
Lila raised her arm, her thin fingertip slowly moved along the outline of the balloon at the head of the bed, and her eyes twinkled with warmth.
Mike was silent as the blue veins in his arms began to protrude from supporting himself by the edge of the bed. The boiling blood in his body constantly clamored for the shock that the words had just brought him.
It wasn’t until the person lying down on his shoulders slowly fell asleep that his breath regulated, and a cold light appeared in his forbearing eyes.
After Mike tucked Lila in, he turned off the lights and left the ward. The slightly tired future walked along the dimly lit corridor, and the sound of tapping from the phone’s keyboard echoed.
“I’ll take the second option. We’ll meet at the same place at 10:00AM two days from now.”
He quickly got a message back.
“Coward.”
——
…
Two days later, it was pouring in Melrose City. The late autumn rain swept through every corner of the city with an obvious chill.
A man in a black leather jacket was sitting in a shabby noodle soup with a bowl of beef noodles that had been placed on the table for a long time; the aroma of the meat was carried by the heat. He took a pair of chopsticks and ate a big mouthful.
The woman opposite him was wearing an unseasonable black cap with a pair of foxy eyes that showed nothing but disgust. She sat upright, trying to touch as few things as possible.
The sound of rain crackled on the top of the room, upsetting everyone. Finally, the woman took off her black mask coldly and said, “I’m not here to watch you eat noodles.”
Mike took another two mouthfuls of the beef noodle soup contentedly before putting his chopstick down, taking out a flash drive from his pocket, and pushing it to her. He watched her face darken and calmly explained, “You’re still a wanted criminal in Vietnam. Don’t think everything will be fine if you continue hiding in Melrose.”
“What do you mean?”
“Nothing.”
Mike wiped his mouth and continued, “It won’t do me any good to report you. All I need is your money. As long as you keep your end of the deal, I’ll promise to keep everything a secret.”
When the woman heard what he said, she crossed her arms contemptuously and scoffed, “Are you threatening me?”
“Nah, it’s not my style to threaten other people. I’ll do everything I promise you, but this time, you’d have to ensure that all the surgical expenses charged to your account are paid when everything is done.”
Mike accepted the job and had always been indifferent when he spoke. However, he paused this time before adding, “This time, I want an additional 500,000 to ensure that she’ll get to live a normal life once she’s discharged from the hospital.”
“Mike, you’re really infatuated.”
The woman’s smile deepened as she leaned her body closer. With the closing distance, it was clear that scars covered her heavily made-up face.
As her smile dropped, her eyes began to seep a terrifying aura.
“If I go back on my deal, did you think you could’ve threatened me with these?”
However, Mike did not seem surprised by such an answer. Rather, he pushed the bowl of noodles aside and leaned in as well, meeting the pair of vicious eyes, showing no vulnerability.
“You’ve managed to escape a catastrophe in Vietnam. How did you and Courtney get to this point after moving to Melrose? You clearly know that if your identity is accidentally found out, it will be an abyss of eternal redemption. What kind of hatred drives you to take such a risk. Even if it’s not for yourself, have you thought about Jackie?”
He paused before spitting out, “Britney Price.”
“You!”
The woman’s face immediately changed when she heard this and stood up. The chair rubbed against the white floor tiles and let out a screech that caused Mike to frown.
His mouth curled into a victorious smile as he watched the pain and anger grow in her eyes.
“You investigated me.”
Then, in a sweep of her hand, she threw the bowl of soup to the ground in a crash, and fragments of the bowl flew everywhere. The sharp sound echoed in the place was not enough to vent the anger in the woman’s heart.
Mike let out a chuckle and continued to provoke the woman. Finally, he took a photo from his inner pocket of the leather jacket and showed it to the woman.
“I heard that you used to be a big star, yet now you’re just a wanted criminal with an odd face. It must be uncomfortable for you. Look how beautiful you were back then, and look at yourself now.”
