“Vivian?” Finnick called out to her but she did not respond.
Finnick could tell that she had fainted when she did not open her eyes. After all, she had just been discharged from the hospital. She was only starting to recover.
He also did not manage to catch wind of what Evelyn said to Vivian just now. However, what else could agitate Vivian and make her cry that way? Was Larry dead after all?
Finnick had drawn a quick conclusion but set that aside. He then quickly rushed Vivian to the hospital. Two bodyguards were left behind to inform the police and provide statements and eyewitness accounts. Evelyn wanted to kill Vivian, so she was shot out of self-defense.
After the two bodyguards nodded, they watched as Finnick left with Vivian and the remaining party.
They departed in the same car they arrived in. The driver was going too slowly, so Finnick requested that a bodyguard with better driving skills rush them there instead.
It did not take them long to arrive at the hospital since they were driving at breakneck speed. Finnick called for the doctor who had been attending to Vivian. The man took a look at the bloodstains on her body but did his duty without asking any questions.
The doctor examined Vivian and noted that the wound she sustained was not infected or reopened. Since everything was fine, he was relieved.
“Mrs. Norton has suffered a deep shock. She’ll be fine as long as she rests properly.” After a briefing of her overall condition, the doctor nodded at Finnick and left.
Vivian was placed on an IV drip again as Finnick kept an eye on her. It was as if time had reversed and they were back to square one. Finnick smiled bitterly to himself. He acknowledged that this happened because of his incompetence.
There’s no point in regretting now. I can only hope that she’ll wake up soon. In the meantime, maybe I’ll have some people look for Larry. Initially, he thought that finding Evelyn would eventually lead them to Larry, but he may have miscalculated.
Evelyn may have said that Larry was dead, but he did not believe a word. Finnick knew that a son raised by him would not perish so easily.
Larry said he wanted to be as capable as his father. How could he then leave his father behind without doing that first? Finnick soothed himself with a faint flicker of hope and continued to watch over Vivian.
When the death notice was delivered to Rachel, she sat on the ground in a daze. Wasn’t my daughter well? Didn’t she just come over recently? How can she be dead?
Rachel refused to believe it, at first. But having seen Evelyn’s body, she had no choice. Her eyes darted back and forth, studying the features that she came to know were her daughter’s. Evelyn’s pale face and lips, her small face, her nose… Rachel knew it was her daughter at a first glance.
This was too much for Rachel. Immediately, she broke down and cried. Shane, who had been observing Rachel, did not know how to react. This was the same woman who had professed her love to him and expressed the desire to live a happy life with him.
How did she end up here? In this state? He knew that Evelyn was lying to him at the time. That was definitely wishful thinking on his part. Shane had been smitten by her the first time they met. So what if she lied?
Having seen Evelyn’s body lying here now, Shane didn’t know if he should have laughed or cried. Am I to weep over my beloved? Laugh at how she would never lose her temper at me again?
However, this was not what he felt Now, he barely had the strength or emotion left in him to cry. Shane merely stood there, in front of Evelyn’s corpse. He stroked her face with a gentle tenderness.
“Rest easy, Eve. I’ll avenge you.” Shane already knew who had killed Evelyn. He vowed to never let Vivian go.
Shane turned away and helped a distraught Rachel out of the mortuary. He led her to a chair to comfort her. Rachel may not have been his mother, but he would take care of her for Evelyn’s sake.
“Don’t worry, Rachel. I will avenge Evelyn.” Shane said this not only for the sake of Rachel, but he felt the need to vocalize it and remind himself. He knew that while he was not that capable, he still had a few tricks up his sleeves.
