Once doormat Now Untouchable Novel

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Chapter 627

Inside a VIP ward at Sacred Heart Hospital, Florence slipped

back into a deep, drowsy sleep after learning the night before

that Sydney had returned home safely.

When she woke again, Theodore and Diana were both at her

bedside, neither having left for a moment.

She did not look at Theodore. Her gaze settled on her eldest

daughter, filled with distress. "Why didn't you go home all night

either?"

"You're my mother. How could | feel at ease if | weren't here?"

Diana replied.

Faint exhaustion lingered in her brows and eyes, but she was

long accustomed to it

She helped Florence to the bathroom to wash up, then, at her

mother's insistence, recounted everything that had happened

the previous night in meticulous detail.

Even though everyone had returned safely, Florence listened

with her heart lodged in her throat. "You're saying she took down

aman over six feet tall, all by herself?"

"Yes." Diana nodded, a quiet admiration surfacing for her

younger sister.

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The three siblings had trained in self-defense since childhood

under their grandfather's strict standards. Yet the bespectacled

man had clearly been well trained as well. If she had faced him,

Diana doubted she could have subdued him so easily.

When she slipped that silver needle into the coat's sleeve, she

had been clinging to little more than a fragile hope. She had

never expected Sydney to rely on that single needle to protect

herself, let alone use it to seize the initiative during the

negotiations.

As Diana spoke, Nina knocked and stepped inside, leaning close

to whisper in her ear.

Diana's expression shifted. She rose and told Florence, "Mom,

something came up at work. | need to step out for a bit."

“All right," Florence replied, without suspicion.

Given Diana's line of work, confidential matters were common.

The Huttons had grown used to such interruptions.

Once outside the ward, after Nina closed the door, the warmth

drained from Diana's eyes, leaving only a cold calm. "Did the

Wolfens end up with a death on their hands?"

Nina shook her head. "Not yet. They're still trying to maintain the

pregnancy, but it doesn't look promising. The Wolfens contacted

Sacred Heart this morning and asked to transfer her here so Dr.

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Chrysous from obstetrics could take over. Their request was

flatly rejected.”

“That's enough," Diana said lightly, cutting her off. “Withdraw our

people for now. There's no need to keep watching that side. And

don't mention this to my mother."

The three siblings differed in how they handled matters, but their

principles aligned. They repaid grudges in kind. To them, this

was simply Penelope receiving exactly what she had asked for.

Still, a life was at stake. In the hope that she might one day find

her youngest daughter, Florence had spent years giving to

charities and helping others, as if goodwill could balance the

scales. If she learned the full truth, the burden might be more

than her heart could bear.

Nina nodded. "Understood."

“What about Flint Donovan? Any leads?" Diana asked.

"No," Nina replied promptly. "| spoke with Mr. Hutton this

morning. He said the other side's counter-surveillance is

extremely strong. They may also have anticipated from the start

that we would tail them and deliberately used decoys to draw

our people away.”

Diana was not surprised. She had heard that it once took the

entire anti-narcotics unit two full years, along with the sacrifice

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of undercover officers, to gather enough evidence to bring Flint

down.

The reason was simple. That man was far too cunning.

When Diana retuned to the ward, Florence had already changed

with the help of a caregiver.

She said anxiously, "I've been thinking. Julian is a grown man.

He probably can't take good care of Vee. Let's bring her home."

"Mom." Diana smiled wryly. "Have you thought about what

reason we'd use to bring her home?"

“I'm her mother, and you're her elder sister. Why wouldn't we be

able to..." Florence's voice trailed off as her confidence faltered.

For more than 20 years, the person who had stayed closest to

Sydney had been Julian, not them.

Theodore had listened in a fog, but Julian's name snapped

everything into focus. He fixed his gaze on Diana.

“Our Vee..." he said slowly, "is she Dr. Wilson?"

Julian was famously cold and distant. The only person he would

personally care for could only be Sydney.