Chapter 201: The Simple Truth Behind It All

Ethan had no idea how ambitious his wife was—or, more accurately, how determined.

Easton was in chaos. If she had the nerve to swallow up the Sinclairs’ businesses along with everyone else’s, then with the Lowell, Quincy, and Ashby fortunes behind her, she really could become the only power that mattered in Easton.

By the time Ethan woke up, it was already afternoon. He went out to eat with Zoe, then went back to the company to rest.

That evening he returned to the clinic, took delivery of two samples, and shut himself in to run comparison tests.

Later that night, Ivy had someone bring over another sample: some of Julian Sinclair’s blood.

His phone rang. It was his wife, and he didn’t answer. A moment later a text came through—she was right outside the clinic. Ethan kept her out and focused on his work.

The results came back quickly, just before dawn, and they left him stunned.

The two samples his own people had gotten both came back negative. No match.

But the blood Ivy had sent came back positive. Natalie and her two sisters were Julian Sinclair’s daughters.

How could the results contradict each other like that?

Ethan felt no joy at all, only a burning grief. Now that the girls’ biological father had been found, every tie between him and them would be severed for good.

In the end, they belonged to another family.

Ten, twenty years of pouring his heart and soul into them—and all of it for nothing.

There had to be some error in the tests. There was still sample material left, so he ran cross-comparisons.

After that, all he could do was wait.

For three whole days, Ethan didn’t leave the clinic.

Round after round of testing gave him the same answer: all three girls were Julian Sinclair’s.

When no one was around, he locked himself in the clinic bathroom. Under the running shower he finally broke down, and he cried for a long, long time.

He told no one. He left Easton immediately and went back to the monastery, where he lit candles in the chapel, read the old contemplative texts, and tried to find some peace.

A few days later, Tori Fairfax showed up. Ethan’s head was still shaved, and he was wearing ordinary clothes. The sight of him made the corner of her mouth curl up. No one else knew where he’d gone, but she had worked it out.

She held out the tin of tea she’d brought. “Ethan, I got it on the first guess. I knew you’d be here.”

“If you’d already guessed, you didn’t need to come looking for me. After a few quiet days I would’ve gone back on my own.” He glanced at her and decided to satisfy her curiosity. “I’ve confirmed who Claire was sleeping with. The girls’ real father is Julian Sinclair.”

He had barely spoken to anyone these past few days. Now, whoever was in front of him, he found he wanted to talk.

Tori was stunned. She hadn’t imagined that this was why he’d come here—after all, he’d left Easton suddenly, without a word to anyone.

“If you say you’re sure, then it’s true,” she said. “I don’t know how to comfort you. All I can say is that I’m your friend. A real one.”

So Ethan hasn’t been sitting idle in Easton all this time,she thought.

“Is there anything else you came to see me about?” he asked.

“No, nothing else.” Tori sipped her tea, then picked up a book lying nearby and leafed through it.

Suddenly Ethan didn’t feel like talking anymore. He’d already said the one thing he most needed to say.

As she was leaving, Tori said, “Ethan, maybe this isn’t my place, but I have to say it. Running away won’t solve anything.”

“I’m not running away. I’m cooling down and thinking about how to deal with it. A man can only hang once—and my life is a long way from over.”

He waved a hand and sent her off.

Tori went back to her grandmother’s house to spend the night.

Once the housekeeper had been sent away, she told Grandma Fairfax about finding Ethan and asked for her advice.

Her grandmother listened to the end, her brows knitting tighter and tighter. “The Sinclairs have really done something wicked,” she said indignantly.

“I’m going to back Ethan openly and help him get some answers.”

Her grandmother sighed. “That’s your business, you young people. If you want to do it, do it.”

She didn’t say more than that. From spending time with Ethan recently, she’d come to understand what kind of man he was, and she felt all the more sorry for what he was going through.

After a moment she added, “Ethan needs help right now. Help him with everything you’ve got.”

“Grandma, not long ago you told me not to get too involved in his affairs. Why are you backing me now?”

“A man like Ethan Hale won’t take you to heart just because you do him a small favor. You have to understand him. When he goes back to settle the score, if you just stand by and watch, how are you ever going to get close to him?”

She smiled. “Of course, I have my own selfish reasons too. I hope the two of you might end up together someday. If you get the chance, tell him how you feel.”

“Grandma, you…”

“Those are just my thoughts. Matters of the heart are for you young people to sort out.” She chuckled.

That was how she saw it: Ethan had talent, her granddaughter had looks, and the two of them might just be a match.

Of course, both of them were married, and everyone knew it. They couldn’t be together openly, and she’d made sure to remind her granddaughter of that in private.

The things you should do while you’re young but don’t—by the time you reach her age, it’s too late even to regret them.

And Tori had her own reasons. She and her husband couldn’t have children, yet they needed one—her husband’s position depended on it. Without a child, she would soon be past her prime, and in a great family like theirs she would be forced to step aside. Rich families never ran short of people with heirs.

But she could never tell Ethan that. If she did, their friendship would sink like a stone.

…

The Integrative Medicine Center in Easton.

Claire had come to Viv’s room again. Once more, Viv was using the project as leverage, demanding that Claire hurry up and find Ethan and bring him to treat her.

After several days of treatment, her condition hadn’t taken a sharp turn for the worse, but it hadn’t improved either. Her legs still wouldn’t work properly, and word was spreading through the Sinclair family that they couldn’t be saved—that they’d have to be amputated.

Ambrose Sinclair had already had people in the medical world assess whether her legs could be cured. If not, he’d replace her in the family.

“Treatment is treatment,” Claire said bluntly. “Recovery is thirty percent medicine and seventy percent rest. The worst thing you can do is work yourself up like this. Keep it up and you can forget about getting better.”

“If I don’t get better, our partnership is over!”

“And if we end it, you’ll get better? If that’s how it works, then for the sake of your health, I’ll end it right now.”

Claire knew ending the project would hurt her, but she wasn’t going to let Viv order her around like this.

“If I don’t recover, I’ll make sure none of you do either!” Viv spat.

“You’re going down and you want to drag everyone with you? That attitude is even worse. Keep it up and you won’t have a friend left.”

“Spare me the lecture. Just find Ethan Hale and get him to treat me. He cured Tom Marsh—he can cure me too. Go find him. Now!”

“My husband isn’t in Easton. He’s gone away to clear his head. And I’ll be honest with you: he won’t treat anyone from the Sinclair family. You should already know why.”

“Like he has a choice,” Viv shot back.

“Why wouldn’t he? Yes, he’s a doctor, but he’s also a human being, and everyone gets to choose. He’s not the man he used to be. He’s proud now, and prickly. If you want him to treat you, Viv, then climb down off your high horse, drop the act, apologize to him sincerely, and beg his forgiveness.”

She stared hard at Viv. “Especially about my daughters. How exactly do you plan to explain that to him?”

After a few more days at the monastery, Ethan returned to Easton. There were things that still had to be dealt with.

His first stop was the Sherwoods’, to check on Gene. His condition had stabilized, and treatment for the Sherwood family’s hereditary illness was making progress too. Barring anything unexpected, Ethan wouldn’t need to come in person anymore.

Tom Marsh also came for another round of treatment, acupuncture in particular.

As he worked, Ethan told Tom and his daughter, “Once this course of treatment is done, you can move on to rehab and maintenance. Follow the doctor’s instructions and you’ll make a full recovery and get your normal life back.”

Tom was overjoyed and thanked him over and over.

When Tom dozed off during the session, Ethan had someone keep an eye on him and went back to his office.

Tessa joined him there for coffee. She got straight to the point. “Ethan, you must know that Viv’s doctors used the same treatment plan you used on my dad. So why isn’t it working for her?”

“Every patient is different. You can’t just copy a treatment plan. And there’s something else: I’m the one who treated your dad, and someone else is treating Viv. My understanding of how certain illnesses work isn’t the same as other people’s.”

Ethan smoked and sipped his coffee. “What do you get out of helping Viv like this?”

“Nothing. Other people get all the benefits.”

“Oh? Which other people? Claire? Rachel Tate? Someone else?”

“Your wife, Claire. The Lowell Group does business with the conglomerate behind Viv. If Claire gets you to cure Viv, Viv will owe her a huge favor, and she’ll have to repay it. So tell me—isn’t Claire the one who comes out ahead?”

Ethan laughed. “Then you really are a good person.”

Being called a “good person” like that felt like a slap, and Tessa knew it—but she couldn’t exactly lose her temper.

“The problem is that Viv’s treatment isn’t working…”

“You’re not about to ask me to go treat Viv too, are you? Because if you are, I’ve misjudged you. I thought you were on my side. Guess I was wrong.”

He said it flatly. He was genuinely disappointed in how she’d behaved.

Then again, from where Tessa stood, it made sense. Her father had been cured, which was an enormous blessing for the Marsh family. Now Easton was in turmoil, and she saw a chance to make money. There was no reason for her to pass it up.

Once a patient has fully recovered, the doctor stops being important. You could even say there’s nothing left tying them together.

People were driven by self-interest. Everything they did, they did for themselves.

“Ethan, you’ve got it wrong. I am on your side,” Tessa said quickly.

Seeing how calm he was, she sensed a faint distance between them, and it unsettled her. But her father was nearly cured, after all, and siding with Claire seemed to serve her own interests better.

“I’ve got it wrong?”

“Yes. You’ve got it wrong.”

“Then I suppose I have.”

Ethan didn’t pursue it. Anyone who wasn’t truly with him was someone to let go.

When Tom’s session was over, Ethan walked them out. Just before leaving, Tom asked when his next follow-up would be.

“You’ve recovered. There’s no need for another checkup.”

“Ethan, if my dad ever feels unwell again, we’ll come back to you,” Tessa said.

“Well, this clinic probably won’t be around much longer. If I don’t close it, I’ll sell it.”

“Oh? It’s a perfectly good clinic. Why close it?” Tom asked. “Didn’t you just open it?”

“The clinic was only ever a stopgap. I’ve gotten what I came for, so there’s no point to this place anymore.”

“Then how do we reach you in the future?” Tessa asked.

“I haven’t closed yet, have I? If anything’s bothering you, you can still find me here. As for later on—we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

He left it there and waved the two of them off.

In the car, Tom’s brow was furrowed. Something about Ethan felt different to him.

“Dad, what’s wrong?” Tessa asked. “Was the treatment different today? Did Ethan not give it his all?”

“Don’t talk about Dr. Hale like that. His skill is extraordinary. I’m doing very well—my legs have never felt stronger. I just wish he weren’t closing the clinic. We’ll hardly ever get to see him now.”

“If it’s only minor aches and pains, the doctors back home can take care of it. There’s really no need to come back. Don’t overthink it, Dad. You’ve recovered. From now on, you can go wherever you want.”

Barring anything unexpected, they would probably never see Ethan Hale again.

“He also said he’d gotten what he came for,” Tom said. “What did he mean by that?”

“I’m not sure. His life is nothing like ours. Maybe he’ll turn his back on the world and join a monastery.”

“A monastery? That would be such a waste!” Tom frowned. For a doctor as brilliant as Ethan to take vows and shut himself away would be a real loss.

“Dad, everyone has their own path. You can’t make Ethan do something he doesn’t want to, can you? I’ll drop you at the airport, and you can head home.”

“You’re not coming with me?”

“Tori’s back. I’ll spend a few days with her, then come home and keep you company.”

She had come all the way to Easton, and her father was cured. As for the huge pie that was Easton right now—she had to get her slice, didn’t she?

Not long after they left, Ethan left the clinic too and went back to the company.

That evening, his wife came.

She looked at his familiar face. He’d gotten thinner. His eyes were clearer, and he was colder toward her than before. In his gaze she found no affection, no attachment—only polite distance.

“Honey, where have you been all this time? I’ve been looking everywhere for you. Now that you’re back, come home with me.”

“If you hadn’t come, I’d have come looking for you. Your timing is perfect.”

His voice was calm. He badly wanted to ask her why she’d chosen Julian Sinclair, but now that he knew the truth, he didn’t much care about her reasons. In a marriage, what often matters more is how it ends.

“When you get home, give Natalie and the others the antidote I gave you last time. If you want them back to their lively selves by tomorrow, give them these as well.”

He handed her a prescription listing several medications, which she could get at the hospital.

“So… are they out of danger now?” she asked.

“Yes. There’s no more danger. They’re free.” He gestured toward the door.

“They miss you so much. I miss you too. Please, just come home with me. I’m begging you.”

“I’m still keeping my temper, and I’m still talking to you nicely. Don’t push me. I told you to go home, so go home.”

This time there was an icy edge to his voice, and his eyes were even more distant—fierce, even.

The three girls were innocent. Once he’d restored their health, he would no longer have that weight on his conscience. Then it would be time to lay all his cards on the table.

And after that—revenge.

Chapter 202: Showdown with My Wife

Her daughters still came first. Claire took the prescription and left.

Not long after, Ivy showed up.

She’d noticed the change in Ethan too, and she didn’t beat around the bush. “You never actually left Easton this whole time, did you? You were hiding here in disguise, watching us make fools of ourselves. I can’t cure Viv—you must be absolutely thrilled.”

“You think far too highly of yourself. I don’t think much of Viv, either. Whatever mess you’re in has nothing to do with me. But since you’ve come all this way, I might as well say it: if you can’t handle the job, don’t take it.”

He had her sit down, boiled some water, and made tea.

As before, Ivy waited until Ethan drank before she touched her own cup. She still didn’t trust him—least of all this Ethan Hale who had suddenly reappeared in Easton.

He refilled her cup. “Whichever way you look at it, I owe you my thanks. Without you, I never would have found the girls’ biological father.”

“Who is it?”

Ivy was shocked. She’d never expected him to actually track down the man Claire had cheated with, and her curiosity was instantly piqued.

“Julian Sinclair.”

“How did you confirm it was him?” she asked, puzzled.

“DNA testing. Natalie and her sisters are a perfect match with Julian Sinclair. It’s ironclad. Now everything’s out in the open. All that effort you people put into covering it up—it must have been exhausting.”

His voice was calm, but there was a cold, murderous edge beneath it.

“DNA? Then there’s no arguing with that. So what are you going to do now?”

Ivy had come intending to discuss Viv’s treatment with him. After so many days, she’d assumed his hatred toward Viv would have cooled a fair bit.

But now that he knew the man was Julian Sinclair, he’d only hate the Sinclairs more—Viv included.

“What do you think I should do?” he asked back.

“Me? I have no idea. This is your personal business. Besides, I’ve never dealt with anything like it. How could I advise you?”

“I don’t know either.”

That was all he said. He went back to his tea.

After that, he had no interest in talking medicine, and she had no interest in giving up any more of the Sinclair family’s secrets, which was what he wanted. With nothing left to discuss, they parted soon after.

That night, Ethan called Pierce. Pierce had no intention of taking the clinic back and left it to Ethan to deal with.

The next day, at the clinic, Ethan talked with Zoe and the others about what would happen to the place. Zoe had her family’s pharmacy and could practice there, so she wasn’t interested in taking over.

But one of the other doctors saw a chance to get a practice that was already up and running, and she was willing to take it on.

She couldn’t come up with that much money all at once, so Ethan let her pay in installments. He only asked for what it had cost him—he had no intention of profiting off her.

When they were alone, Zoe asked, “The clinic’s doing well. Why give it up?”

“I opened this clinic—even my chemical company—for one reason: to help me find what I was looking for. Now I’ve found it. There’s no need to hang on to all this. Doing more would only spread me thin.”

“Will you keep practicing medicine?”

“Of course. I’m still a doctor. It’s how I make my living.”

He wasn’t about to throw away the skill that let him stand on his own two feet—but he’d be using it differently from now on.

Anyone who wanted his medical skills would have to pay for them. Give him money, or do things that served his purposes.

Or pay with a life.

He had only two targets now: Claire, and her lover—Julian Sinclair.

By the time he’d sorted out the clinic, it was noon, so he took Zoe and the others out to lunch.

Afterward he went back to the company and kept a low profile, rarely going out.

Two days later, his wife came to the company again, beaming. “Honey, I’ve got good news. Nat and the girls have made a full recovery. They really want to see you. Come home with me.”

“Good. I’m glad they’re better.”

All of this was exactly what he’d expected. He took out some documents and handed them to her.

“I haven’t been sitting around either. There were a few setbacks, but I found the truth I was after. The man you’ve kept hidden all these years couldn’t stay buried forever. Julian Sinclair is the biological father of Natalie and her sisters. He’s your lover, isn’t he?”

“What—what nonsense are you talking about?”

The documents were paternity reports, and as Claire read them, her scalp went numb. The conclusions left no room for doubt: her daughters were Julian Sinclair’s.

“The facts are right in front of you. Denying them is pointless. We’re getting a divorce, and you and Julian Sinclair are going to come apologize to me and beg for my forgiveness.”

He said it lightly. He’d known she would refuse to admit it. He was bitterly disappointed, in agony, and furious—but he didn’t explode.

“This—this can’t be. It’s impossible! Honey, don’t believe any of this. You’re Nat’s father. You’re their real father.”

Smack!

“Don’t call me honey. You don’t have the right.”

Seeing how ugly and contemptible her face had become, he slapped her hard.

“You—you actually hit me?”

Claire was stunned. He had hit her, and hit her hard. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and she stared at him coldly—disappointed, furious, and a little afraid.

“Claire, the first time I tested Natalie’s paternity, you wouldn’t admit it. You said the science was wrong. Now the proof is airtight, and you still won’t admit it. That makes you stupid, vicious, and a hypocrite. Sorry, but I’m done playing your game.”

“Ethan, spare me the speech. Apologize to me right now. You hit me, and that’s on you. If you apologize before I walk out that door, I can still forgive you. Otherwise, I won’t let this go.”

She couldn’t take in any of what he’d said. Her eyes were locked on him in warning.

He sighed. “Claire, do you really have to push this until we destroy each other? I’m not the man I used to be—and you’re not the woman you used to be. With me, it’s life or death now. All your money and all your connections won’t do you a bit of good when your life is on the line.”

He said it casually. He himself was the most dangerous thing she faced.

Then he smiled coldly. “Take right now, for example. If I killed you, I’d have a thousand ways to get rid of the body…”

“Then go ahead! Kill me!” Claire was furious too.

“Then let’s give you a taste of what I can do. You’ve been testing my limits this whole time. Did you really think I was a pushover?”

He went to the medical kit beside him, took out an auto-injector filled with blue liquid, and walked toward her.

“Don’t worry. It won’t hurt a bit. You’ll drift off to sleep and have a beautiful dream—just like all those years you spent fooling around with other men. You’ll get to enjoy that pleasure forever.”

“You—you’re insane!”

Her scalp prickled at his words, and she scrambled to get away. The cold indifference, the dark aura around him, his calm voice—everything made it clear he’d become a completely different person.

She didn’t dare take the gamble.

Once she was in her car, she looked up coldly at Ethan, who was standing at the upstairs window. She wasn’t about to let it end like this, so she called her people and ordered them to grab him.

Before long, five sharp, capable bodyguards—three women and two men—were standing in front of him.

“Claire sent you to rough me up? Then come on.”

Ethan swept his eyes over the five of them. He could tell they were Lowell family security, and he didn’t have to think twice to know who had sent them.

The five hadn’t expected him to show no fear at all—he was calmly drinking his tea. They itched to go over and teach him a lesson, but he was still Claire’s husband, and unless they had no choice, they couldn’t very well lay hands on him.

As they waited for Claire’s order, someone knocked on her car window. It was Tori Fairfax. At the same moment, two of Tori’s people laid spike strips in front of and behind Claire’s car.

Another stood on the other side holding a sledgehammer, ready to smash the window at any moment.

Claire was alarmed. She lowered the window a crack. “What do you want?” she asked coldly.

“If your people lay a finger on Ethan, I’ll lay one on you,” Tori said with a cold sneer. “Ethan dotes on you. He treats you like a treasure and can’t bear to hurt you. I’m not like him. And Ethan is a brilliant doctor—even if I beat you half to death, he could still save you. Right?”

“You’re standing up for him? What gives you the right?”

Claire was shocked that Tori, of all people, would take Ethan’s side.

“Does everything need a reason? Then what’s your reason for treating Ethan this way?”

Tori started counting down. If Claire’s bodyguards hadn’t backed off by the time she reached ten, she would go after Claire herself.

“You win this round.”

Claire had never expected anyone to come at her so directly, or she would have brought more bodyguards. All she could do was order the ones harassing Ethan to withdraw.

She shot Tori a vicious glare, burning her face into memory. She wasn’t going to take this setback lying down.

From the car, she called Tessa Marsh and told her to keep Tori in check. But when Tessa called Tori, Tori ignored her.

Claire wanted Ethan to give in that very night. She had Tessa send people to his company—if they showed up, Tori would surely come out too. She also had Rachel Tate send people over.

Tessa and Rachel did as she asked, and both brought plenty of people, but they came up empty-handed. Ethan had no intention of taking them on head-on. He was long gone.

By then he had quietly arrived at Harlan Court, where Ruth Sawyer and her daughter lived. The people there barely knew him, and no one would disturb his rest.

Late into the night, Claire still hadn’t found him. She slowly calmed down. The thought that she might have lost Ethan for good this time made her feel even worse. And the girls really were Julian Sinclair’s—the test results made her skin crawl.

She went back to the Integrative Medicine Center, straight to Viv’s room.

She yanked the nurse’s aide off the spare bed and told her to get out. Viv hadn’t expected her to barge in so aggressively.

“I’d only just fallen asleep, and you come here to pick a fight. What do you want?”

“Viv, what have you been doing behind my back? I’m giving you one chance to come clean. Talk. Now.”

Claire’s voice was ice. Ethan had backed her into a corner, and now she was backing Viv into one. If Natalie was Julian Sinclair’s daughter, then Viv was the girls’ aunt, which meant she’d had a reason—or rather, an ulterior motive—for getting close to the three of them.

The girls’ blood could be used for Julian, and for their aunt as well.

Viv had been diagnosed with progressive freezing, and there was currently no effective treatment for it. But what about a blood exchange? Swapping in younger, healthier plasma might improve her body’s function.

The odds were slim and the improvement would be limited, but it was a method all the same, and worth a try.

Viv was stunned for a moment. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Claire, if you keep disrespecting me, our partnership is going to fall apart.”

“You’re pretending. I’ll ask you one more time: why did you draw my daughters’ blood? Don’t try to cover it up. Just tell me.”

“Didn’t I already tell you? What’s the point of making me repeat it?”

“Ethan was right. You really are a hypocrite. You deserve this disease.”

Claire looked at her with cold contempt. “I didn’t believe Ethan’s suspicions at first. But the harder you try to hide things, the more you give away, and all of it proves him right. Ethan has found out the truth and seen through your scheme. Why are Natalie and her sisters Julian Sinclair’s daughters? And what else have you done?”

“Wh-what did you say?” Viv stared at her in shock.

“Ethan ran a paternity test. My daughters are Julian’s. Julian is your older brother. So what exactly happened here? Talk!”

“Ethan Hale has a death wish!” Viv ground her teeth.

Ethan was a troublemaker through and through. Next, he’d definitely go after her brother, and who knew what would happen then? She’d already had a taste of what he could do—he’d dared to come after her, so of course he’d dare to go after Julian.

“If you touch a single hair on his head, I’ll make you pay for it ten times over,” Claire said. “Viv, if you don’t give me a reasonable explanation, you can forget about working with me. I’ll join the others and finish you.”

“You—what makes you so sure your daughters are my brother’s? Just because Ethan showed you some evidence, that makes it true? What if he’s trying to drive a wedge between us? You hear one rumor and believe it. Are you stupid?”

“That’s a pretty weak argument. But of course I’ll check for myself. Get Julian out here now.”

“How should I know where he is? If you want to check, go find him yourself.”

“I will.”

Since Viv wouldn’t admit anything, Claire stayed put and waited her out. She had two bodyguards keep an eye on Viv and sent people to Julian’s home to look for him. But word came back that his house had been empty for a long time—no one there at all.

Before long, however, Julian Sinclair was brought into the emergency department. His right arm and both legs had been broken, and he was unconscious.

“Claire, it was Ethan! It had to be him. He’s a dead man! You still want to fucking protect him? You can’t!”

The moment Viv heard, she was beside herself with rage. And underneath it, she was terrified. Ethan had uncovered the link between Julian and the girls, then struck back immediately. His ruthlessness had caught her completely off guard, and now she was in danger too.

“Don’t jump to conclusions. When Julian wakes up, we’ll ask him, and then we’ll know. If you people can’t give me an explanation, I won’t spare you either—and the Sinclair family won’t be able to protect you.”

Claire quickly had someone draw Julian’s blood and keep it for testing.

She called Ethan, but his phone was already off. Through her connections she had the phone’s last location traced—it was inside his company. That meant he’d already vanished.

She had security around her daughters stepped up, and she had people keep watch on Julian and his sister.

Then another idea occurred to her. She had people she trusted inject her daughters again with a safe, controllable virus to keep them sick. That way, no one would want to draw their tainted blood.

It was a trick Ethan had used, and she’d picked it up and put it into practice on the spot. And it was exactly this move that would one day save her daughters’ lives.

Chapter 203: Right in Front of My Wife, and She Doesn’t Know Me

Ivy was jolted out of bed and rushed to the hospital to treat Julian Sinclair. When she saw that his broken limbs had been caused by blows from something hard, she marveled at how decisive and ruthless Ethan’s revenge was.

Then again, after everything Julian had done to Ethan, he was only getting what he deserved.

Broken arms and legs wouldn’t kill him. Once Ivy had set the bones, he was completely out of danger. When she got back to her office, Viv was already waiting.

“How’s my brother?”

“His injuries have been treated. He just needs time to heal. Other than that, he’s fine. You don’t need to worry.”

Ivy glanced at Viv but couldn’t quite meet her eyes. She was the one who had sold Julian’s address to Ethan.

And she’d supplied Julian’s blood as well. You could say every breakthrough in Ethan’s investigation had come through her.

She pulled up the X-rays of the fractures and pretended to study them.

Viv could see the breaks clearly. “That bastard Ethan Hale,” she hissed. “How dare he lay a hand on the Sinclairs? I’ll make him pay with his life.”

“Oh? How can you be sure it was Ethan? Do you have proof? Have you called the police?” Ivy asked, feigning curiosity while her heart raced.

“It was him. What do I need proof for? I’ll deal with that Hale bastard my own way,” Viv said viciously.

Should I warn him? Forget it. If he had the nerve to do it, he should have the nerve to face the consequences. If he can’t get through this, Viv and the others will get him sooner or later anyway…

Ivy didn’t press further. She did think about calling Ethan to warn him, or even going to his company. But with something this big happening, the Sinclairs had probably already gone looking for him—and judging from Viv’s reaction, they hadn’t found him. So for now, at least, he was safe.

She let it go and focused on her patients. Around eight o’clock, she spotted Ethan in the public treatment area—in disguise, of course, wearing the face of “Evan Hart.”

She was stunned. She had him go to her office first, then followed and got straight to the point. “Are you out of your mind? How can you show your face here? Do you know how many people are looking for you right now? They’d love nothing more than to find you and finish you off.”

“Looking like this, who besides you could recognize me? As long as you don’t sell me out, I’ll be fine.”

He was calm, completely confident in his disguise. After all, he’d reshaped his very bones and muscles—the contours of his face were entirely different.

“You tricked me into the same boat. If I sold you out, I’d be selling myself out. Do I look that stupid?” Ivy rolled her eyes at him. “But this is the Integrative Medicine Center. Don’t make trouble here. Whatever grudges you have with anyone, settle them outside. Got it?”

“I know where the line is.”

There was a knock at the door. Ethan fell silent—and then watched his wife, Claire, push the door open and walk in.

“Ivy, release Julian Sinclair to me. I want to have him transferred.”

She demanded him the moment she opened her mouth. She noticed another doctor in the room but only gave him a passing glance before ignoring him.

Ivy casually handed Ethan a medical file and sent him out first. Then she turned to Claire. “You don’t have the authority for that—not unless you go through Viv and the others and get the paperwork done. I don’t have that authority either.”

Getting nowhere with Ivy, Claire went to find Viv. Seeing a staff elevator standing open, she walked right in.

Ethan was already inside. He gestured for her to step out—and she snapped at him for it.

As overbearing as ever,he thought.

They were both headed to the same floor: the VIP wing where Viv’s room was.

His wife didn’t recognize him at all. As far as she was concerned, the doctor next to her was just some junior doctor at the hospital.

Ethan went into Viv’s room. She was awake, but hadn’t combed her hair or washed her face yet. The nurse’s aide had set out breakfast beside her, but she hadn’t touched it.

She didn’t look well.

He told her offhandedly to take care of her morning routine first—there’d be an examination later.

He didn’t go far after leaving, and soon he heard his wife’s voice inside. “Are you hiding my husband? You’d better hand him over.”

“If he falls into my hands,” Viv said, “you can come collect his body.”

“Just try it. Whoever kills him, I’ll bury them right alongside him.”

The room went quiet.

Claire, I don’t need you worrying about whether I live or die, Ethan thought. You’d do better to worry about yourself.

He headed for another room—Jasper Sinclair’s.

He was honestly surprised Jasper had lasted this long. It made him even more curious about the Sinclair family’s life-saving Titan pills.

He started thinking about how to get one out of Ivy.

Of course, Jasper’s transfusions and blood exchanges had played a part too. They might not do much, but they weren’t useless.

In short, for a rich patient like Jasper Sinclair, even dying wasn’t so easy.

It was shift-change time, and almost no one was around, so Ethan was free to examine Jasper.

After a thorough examination, he concluded that Jasper was like a candle guttering in the wind—the flame could go out at any moment.

Moving on to other rooms, he passed someone in the corridor who was both familiar and a stranger: Great-Uncle Frederick’s caretaker. A moment later he spotted Great-Uncle Frederick himself, lying in bed in one of the rooms.

What’s the old man doing here? How did he end up in the hospital?

Ethan didn’t go in to say hello. He kept his head down and walked away.

But after Ivy and the others finished their brief morning meeting, Ivy brought Ethan along to Great-Uncle Frederick’s room anyway.

They each took his pulse. Ivy offered the old man a few reassuring words, then left with Ethan.

Back in the office, she asked, “What do you make of Great-Uncle Frederick’s condition?”

“That’s your call.”

“If you still want to hide behind this identity, don’t let this chance slip by. And we’d better make the act convincing. You don’t have to treat him yourself—just give me your opinion.”

Ethan was using her, so she had to get some use out of him too.

“Fine. Let’s make it convincing.”

He had her pull more of Great-Uncle Frederick’s test results, then offered a theory: the old man had been poisoned, slowly, with a chronic toxin.

“The Tate poisoners of the Southwest never could be trusted. So they’ve made their move after all!”

Ivy was badly shaken and immediately reported it to the Order.

Ethan seized the chance to pin every poisoning incident in Easton lately on this poisoner.

Before long, the elders of the Order arrived for a joint consultation.

Ivy brought Ethan in to present the evidence of poisoning. She wanted the elders to go to the Southwest and demand an antidote.

But one elder said, “The way things stand, nine times out of ten this is the Tates of the Southwest challenging the Order. Going to them for an antidote would only make us look weak. Unless we have no other choice, we can’t ask. For now, we should rely on ourselves.”

After some discussion, they ended up passing the problem to Ivy.

Back in the office, Ivy gave Ethan a meaningful smile. “You have a way to deal with this, don’t you?”

“Of course. But what’s in it for me?”

“Straight to the point already? I thought, given our relationship, you wouldn’t just come out and demand something. That’s so crass,” she said, displeased.

“Does being a good person pay off?” he asked.

“It does.”

“If the payoff only ever goes to you, then you’d better be the good person.”

“You—don’t forget, I’m the one sheltering you right now. The second you step outside, the people hunting you will grab you.”

“If you won’t have me here, I can always go to Ridgeview Psychiatric. See you around.”

He waved and turned to leave.

“Stop right there!”

Ivy couldn’t let him go now. If he changed his face again, he’d vanish into the crowd, and finding him would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

She hurried to block his way. “What do you want? As long as you don’t put me in an impossible position or ask me to do anything illegal, we can talk about anything.”

“That’s more like it.”

Ethan still had uses for her, so he didn’t turn on her and walk out.

He went over the detox plan with her. Shortly before noon, a nurse came to tell them that Julian Sinclair was awake.

As she was leaving the office, Ivy noticed Ethan was coming too. “How did you manage to knock him out?” she asked.

“That’s a secret.”

He didn’t give her a straight answer and went with her to the post-op observation unit. Sure enough, Julian’s eyes were open. His oxygen mask had been removed a while ago, so he could talk.

Ethan had seen photos of Julian Sinclair, but this was the first time he’d seen the man in person. He was a little older than Ethan, strikingly handsome, and fairly tall. His fair, clean-cut face had a refined, scholarly air, and he carried himself like the heir of a great family—calm, composed, and commanding.

A man like this really was a cut above the rest. No wonder Claire had willingly borne his children, over a span of more than ten, even twenty years.

If there was no real love in that, Ethan refused to believe it.

And whatever revenge he took, he felt none of it would be too much.

You’ve been exposed. You’ll never get to enjoy yourself like that again. When you were fooling around with Claire, did you ever ask yourself if you were tough enough to survive it?

His killing intent surged. He badly wanted to walk over, pull the scalpel from inside his coat, and end Julian Sinclair on the spot.

Of course, then he’d pay with his own life—dying just to take the man down with him.

He didn’t want to die.

And he had no reason to.

Ivy asked Julian a few questions about how he felt. Once she was satisfied the treatment had gone well, she had him moved to a private care suite where the Sinclairs could look after him.

Viv came over in her wheelchair. “Julian, you’re finally awake. You were out cold and wouldn’t wake up. We were worried sick.”

“I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

“Who beat you up? I’ll hunt them down and cripple them too. I’ll make them regret they were ever born.”

But Julian was looking at Ethan. “Who are you?”

Only then did Viv notice there was an outsider in the room besides Ivy.

“Julian, this is my guy, Evan,” Ivy said. “He’s helping me figure out how to treat Great-Uncle Frederick’s poisoning. He’s one of us.”

“You should talk as a family. I’ll step outside,” Ethan said—but to his surprise, Ivy grabbed his hand.

“Great-Uncle Frederick was poisoned with a Southwest poison,” she said. “I suspect others have been poisoned too, so the situation is still very serious. Evan has read a lot of medical texts. He can help me out.”

“Julian, the two of them went up Dragon Ridge together, so he’s one of us too,” Viv said, seeing how things stood.

She was putting in a word for Ivy, even though she had no fondness for the ugly “Evan Hart.”

Then she went right back to what she cared about. “Who did this to you?”

Ivy was dying to know too. She stole a glance at Ethan but didn’t dare let anything show on her face, afraid Julian would notice.

She was the one who’d given away his whereabouts, and her heart was pounding.

Ethan, by contrast, was perfectly calm.

Julian took in Ethan’s plain, forgettable face and paid him no further attention. Remembering the beating, he felt his broken arm and legs throb, and he drew a sharp breath.

“I was at home. Some people from building management showed up at the door saying they needed to check the water and electricity. They put something over my face and knocked me out, and I don’t know what happened after that. When I came to, I’d already been beaten.”

So that’s how it went,Ivy thought. She didn’t know whether Ethan had shown up in person.

“Did you get a good look at who did it?” Viv asked.

“No. Go ask building management. But if they had the nerve to come after me, they must have planned it for a long time. I got the worst of it this time.” Julian clearly wasn’t willing to let it go. “The ones who did the dirty work don’t worry me. It’s the one hiding in the shadows plotting against me who deserves to die. A bastard like that—I will find him.”

That bastard is miles away and right in front of you at the same time,Ivy thought. She glanced at Ethan again. He was completely unfazed. His nerves were clearly made of steel.

“Mm. We’ll find him,” Viv said.

She asked Ivy and Ethan to step out; she had something to discuss with her brother in private.

Neither of them had to think hard about what it was—the siblings wanted to talk about Claire’s daughters.

Scheme all you want. If you’re not tough enough, it’ll all come to nothing,Ethan thought.

Bringing the two of them this low was only the beginning. The miserable future waiting for them was still a long way off.

And if they weren’t tough enough, he’d finish them in one blow.

Back in the office, Ivy let out a long breath, took off her white coat, and had Ethan clock out too. Then they went home together.

Neither spoke on the way. Once they were inside, Ivy finally asked, “Ethan, tell me the truth. Everything that happened to Julian—that was you, wasn’t it?”

“That’s right. Now that I’ve confirmed he’s the one, I can’t let him off. I’m in no hurry to kill him. I’m keeping the dog alive so he can watch what comes next, knowing he can’t do a thing about it.”

Ethan wasn’t afraid to admit it. The more tightly Ivy was bound to him, the less likely she was to betray him. She only had one road left: to follow him all the way to the end, however dark it got.

That was her fate. From the moment she’d lost their medical duel, she’d belonged to him, and he’d been deciding her moves ever since.

Broken bones take a hundred days to heal. The days ahead were going to be hell for Julian Sinclair.

And with things as turbulent as they were, an injury like this was even worse news.

This was exactly when the Sinclairs needed every hand they had. If Julian couldn’t do his part for the family, the resources under his control would be carved up by others.

The pain of his injuries would be nothing compared to finding out, once he’d recovered, that everything he’d had was gone.

That would hurt far more.

“But now those two are definitely going to suspect you,” Ivy said. “Next they’ll throw everything they have at catching you. You’re in real danger.”

“Suspecting me is one thing. They still need proof. Besides, I’m not going to just sit around waiting to die.”

Ethan lit a cigarette. “A nobody like Ethan Hale vanishing from Easton—that doesn’t affect anyone, does it?”

“You planned all of this a long time ago, didn’t you? Including this identity? And if you couldn’t disguise yourself, you’d just stay hidden and never come out, right?”

Then something occurred to her. “Right now I’m the only one who knows you’re here. Aren’t you worried about me?”

“Even if you told Claire what I look like now, it wouldn’t cost me much. I’m not afraid to face her head-on. And once she finds out what I’ve done, she’ll end up on the other side from me sooner or later anyway.”

Ethan had a feeling that Rachel Tate was about to betray him too.

Chapter 204: I’ll Just Sit Back and Enjoy the Show

Ethan no longer fully trusted anyone but himself—not even Ivy, standing right in front of him.

He had uncovered the truth about the girls’ father and exposed his wife for who she really was. All that was left was to see how she’d play her part.

If she agreed to a divorce, apologized, and compensated him, it could all still end peacefully. If not, he’d make her pay.

He wouldn’t take her life. He’d take everything she was proud of.

His informants soon reported back: his wife had brought her people to the Integrative Medicine Center, but she hadn’t managed to take Julian Sinclair away.

Useless woman. You’re just putting on a show for everyone, aren’t you?

Another idea came to him: deliver Julian to his wife personally and see how she’d explain herself then.

Right now the Sinclairs were busy hunting down the Tate poisoners of the Southwest, and they also had the Outsiders breathing down their necks. Security around Julian was bound to be lax.

He’d heard something else, too: Viv had put out word that whoever found him would get a bounty of $100,000.

Viv, you bitch, by the time you regret this it’ll be far too late. Your legs can’t be saved. Just wait for the amputation.

Ethan rested for a while and went back to the Integrative Medicine Center in the afternoon. In the meantime, he received the sample of the passion toxin Pierce had sent over.

His own access level still didn’t let him roam the wards freely, but he could borrow Ivy’s badge, which would swipe him into any unit with a keycard lock.

He spent the afternoon helping Ivy treat Great-Uncle Frederick.

Once the old man had fallen asleep and no one else was around, Ethan asked the middle-aged caretaker outright, “From the way you look after Great-Uncle Frederick, the two of you have a certain kind of relationship, don’t you?”

The caretaker looked at the frail old man in the bed. When no one was watching, she thought the arrangement suited her well enough. She didn’t get love from him, but she got money.

But how could she admit something like that in front of a young man?

It was far too embarrassing.

“Don’t talk nonsense,” she said. “If you go around slandering me, I’ll tell Mr. Frederick, and you can forget about working here.”

“I’m not trying to make trouble for you. I just don’t think you’ll get what you want out of all you’re putting in. Once you’ve served your purpose, you get tossed aside. When Great-Uncle Frederick passes on, you’ll be no use to anyone. I can help you get more money than you’re hoping for. Think it over. If you want in, come find me.”

He didn’t believe she’d report him. A woman taking care of a man that old—what else could she be after?

At the evening shift change, Ethan stayed behind instead of leaving. Ivy was worried about him, so she stayed too.

He was smoking in the designated smoking area when the caretaker came over. The wary but greedy look in her eyes told him she’d taken the bait.

“Dr. Evan,” she said in a low voice, “this afternoon you said you could help me. What did you have in mind?”

“Come by the office in a bit and we’ll talk.”

He obviously couldn’t speak freely there. He went back to the office first and sent Ivy away.

He took out a pinch of the passion toxin powder, stirred it into a cup of water, drank some himself, and handed the rest to the caretaker.

Then he explained his plan.

Since he’d drunk it himself, the caretaker figured it couldn’t be poison—and what he was asking her to do wasn’t anything shameful, either. It was all about love, and the more of it, the better.

“Once this is done, I won’t forget your kindness.”

She poured the water into her thermos and left. That night she would carry out his plan. Anyone who happened to peek in would have seen something far from wholesome.

Ethan had drunk the tainted water, but another medication would suppress it. As long as he didn’t let himself get aroused, it wouldn’t flare up. He’d make a few extra trips to the restroom later, and that would flush it out.

Before long, just as he’d expected, his wife and Rachel Tate showed up at the hospital together. They wanted to see Julian. When they were flatly refused, they went to Viv instead—but she had no intention of taking them to see him either.

He didn’t know what the three women talked about. All he saw was that when his wife and Rachel left, they both looked furious. The talks had obviously fallen apart.

He watched it all in silence, like a spectator.

At ten that night, Ivy took Ethan home. Seeing that he hadn’t gone off to cause trouble, she was able to relax.

The night passed without incident.

The next day, Ethan went on rounds with Ivy. When they got to Viv’s room, they found her food smashed on the floor. Viv had tried to get out of bed and walk on her own, but she couldn’t keep her balance at all, and when she fell she’d knocked everything off the table.

The fall had made her condition even worse.

“Is the Order just a bunch of freeloaders? Why can’t you fix my legs?”

Viv took her frustration out on Ivy and the rest of the medical staff.

All Ivy could do was try to calm her down.

“Find that Hale bastard and bring him back. Make him treat me.”

Treat you? Dream on,Ethan thought—but he didn’t step forward.

Ivy understood what he meant. All she could do was keep calming Viv down. She’d have to ask the elders of the Order for help—get some of the senior Sinclairs to come and settle Viv down.

Viv’s outburst got her nowhere. All she could do was curse at people.

When Ivy gave her her medication, she slipped in a mild sedative, and Viv drifted off to sleep.

As they went on to the other rooms, Ethan remained a bystander the whole time.

Julian hadn’t improved much and still needed bed rest.

Ethan began plotting how to get Julian out of the hospital and hand-deliver him to his wife.

His wife had gotten Julian’s blood yesterday and started a paternity test. The preliminary results should already be in—a match, without a doubt. But he suspected she wouldn’t believe it; she’d wait the full three days for the more accurate results.

Let’s see how you deny it then,he thought.

Back in the office, Ivy let out a long sigh, completely drained, and asked Ethan to rub her shoulders.

He didn’t hold back. While he massaged her shoulders, his hands started to wander. She shut him down firmly and didn’t dare ask again.

“What are we going to do about Viv?” she asked.

“I’ve gone over her test results. Tell her to prepare for amputation. If you don’t want to say it, I will.”

“Amputation? If—if that gets out, she’ll want to kill you.”

“She doesn’t know who I am. I’m just an ordinary doctor telling the truth. If you don’t have a better option, accept reality. Not everyone can be cured. You’re a doctor. Do your best, and that’s enough.”

“But you could do it…”

“Being able to and being obligated to aren’t the same thing. You’re young, and you’re already one of the top doctors at the Integrative Medicine Center, but you’ve never given much thought to saving more people or helping more people. You only see VIPs, power brokers, or members of your own family. Ordinary outpatients, ordinary people—you don’t even look at them. I have the ability, but I don’t have the obligation.”

“What about your conscience?”

“My conscience? When you find out that the person you’ve loved for over a decade—for twenty years, the person you love most—is the one who’s hurt you the worst… conscience is just the moral high ground other people use as an excuse to walk all over you.”

“No matter what, I still hope you’ll step in and treat Viv. If you could cure Tom Marsh, I’m sure you can cure her too. Name your price.”

Ivy couldn’t understand what he was feeling, and she couldn’t force him, either. He was in disguise right now; if he showed off medical skills that were too miraculous, people would start to get suspicious.

“If you can’t handle it, the Order will send someone in. Not that I think they’ll manage either. Whatever happens, just do your best. No one will suspect a thing.”

Ethan took out a cigarette, sniffed it, and put it back. “This is your chance. Put in a request for your miracle medicine. I’d really love to see it for myself.”

“You’ll get your wish eventually.”

As she was speaking, her phone rang. Another Sinclair elder was in critical condition and had to be brought to the hospital.

She turned to Ethan. “What the Tates used is a slow-acting poison. More and more people on Dragon Ridge are reaching the acute stage. Can you put your grudge aside and help me get through this first?”

“I’ll work on the antidote with you. But I’m not treating anyone. You Sinclairs are much too precious—I’m not worthy of laying hands on you. I can’t stand anyone connected to Julian Sinclair.”

Ethan made no attempt to hide how he felt. After he’d taken his revenge on Julian, he still wanted peace and stability—and ideally, he’d bring down the entire Sinclair family too.

People who sat so high above everyone else needed to find out what it felt like to have nothing.

And he’d make sure the Lowells ended up the same way.

Ivy went to get ready for the patients being brought in from Dragon Ridge. Worried Ethan would make trouble at the hospital, she brought him along to keep an eye on him.

“It’s Great-Uncle Thaddeus and Grandma Nell. You have to help me,” she pleaded quietly.

Ethan nodded. Helping with the examination was fine—he wanted to see what was so special about the Tates’ poison. He’d done a fair amount of research on toxins himself; they had a lot in common with his reverse medical skills.

He and Ivy were partners of a sort. If he wanted to keep using her, he had to toss her a bone now and then.

After examining the two patients thoroughly, he didn’t give her the best treatment plan. Instead he offered a compromise, just enough to keep the elders alive for now. Later he’d track down the source of the toxin and find out whether it was extracted from nature or synthesized in a lab.

While Ivy was conferring with the people from the Order, Ethan slipped off to Viv’s room.

“Do you have a minute to talk?”

Viv sent the aide out first. “What do you want?” she asked coolly.

“There are things Ivy can’t bring herself to tell you, but I think you need to hear them. About your condition. Do you want pleasant lies, or the truth? If you think what I have to say is worth it, spare me a little cigarette money.”

“The truth. And don’t you dare lie to me, or you won’t walk out of here in one piece.”

Viv took out a check for $1,000. When he reached for it, she held it down and gave him a warning look.

He took it anyway. “Your condition is very bad. Worse than what Ivy and the others have told you. Ivy doesn’t really have a handle on it. And I overheard a call from Dragon Ridge. They said if you still can’t be cured, they’re going to cut you loose.”

“Whose call was it?” Viv’s eyes went cold as she stared at him, trying to read his mind.

“How would I know? I only caught a sentence or two. Think about it—who in the Sinclair family gets to decide your fate? That’s who said it. Ivy hasn’t told you how bad it really is, but she has to give Dragon Ridge an honest report. Guess what she told them?”

“What did she say? Don’t keep me hanging. Spit it out!”

“If I tell you and you go confront Ivy, she’ll kick me out. And this—” he flicked the check, clearly wanting more, “is a little light.”

“You greedy little rat. Push your luck any further and you really won’t walk out of here.”

She was annoyed, but she still took out another check, this one for $5,000.

“All right. I’m an honest, principled doctor. Ms. Sinclair, your condition is getting worse. At the rate it’s going, in ten days your legs will have to be amputated.”

“Wh-what did you say?”

Viv felt as if she’d been struck by lightning. Amputation was the worst outcome she’d ever imagined. If it came to that, her whole life would be ruined.

“Amputation.”

“You filthy beggar! You ugly freak! You worthless quack! Take that back right now, or I’ll make sure you’re finished here!”

She glared at him with even more disgust.

He sighed. “I tell you the truth and you won’t believe it. You’d rather hear sweet lies. That’s just burying your head in the sand. Fine, I take it back. Do whatever you want.”

This time he didn’t push back. If anything, he was extremely accommodating, even a little cowed and fearful.

“Get the hell out!”

Viv immediately hit the call button by her bed to summon Ivy.

“Ivy’s treating Great-Uncle Thaddeus and Grandma Nell, and she has a consultation after that. You’ll have to wait a while.”

With that, he walked out.

He hung around outside. Before long, he saw the aide wheel Viv out, heading for Julian’s room.

Just as they went in, he spotted his wife and Rachel Tate coming toward them. They were looking for Viv.

Claire, that’s an Oscar-worthy performance. Not a flicker on your face. Oh, wait—I had it backward. In front of me, of course, you play innocent and keep trying to fool me. The minute I’m not around, you go right back to sneaking around with Julian Sinclair. You really are something else.

His wife looked as radiant and put-together as ever—nothing like the tense, defensive woman who had sworn to him she’d never been unfaithful.

Beside her, Rachel Tate didn’t look like a decent person either, yet she held her head high like a proud princess.

To Ethan, though, Rachel was utterly contemptible.

Birds of a feather, wallowing in the same filth.That was the only way he could describe the two of them.

His wife and Rachel didn’t have a keycard and couldn’t get in. After a moment’s thought, Ethan went over and swiped them through.

“Get out! Who let you in?”

Viv’s shrill voice rang out from inside, driving the two women back.

Then the bodyguards and the aide pushed them out and stood guard at the door, letting no one near.

“Looks like Viv is going to back out,” Rachel said. “That project’s dead. We’ll have to find another way.”

So they came to Viv about a project, Ethan thought. Claire, for you, profit really does come first—you and the Lowells, before anything else. And here I thought you might actually put Viv in her place. I gave you far too much credit. What a fool I was.

His wife didn’t bother arguing. She had her own bodyguards come in and go straight at Julian’s men—but her people were clearly outmatched. They were quickly subdued and shoved aside.

Watching how skilled Julian’s bodyguards were, Ethan remembered Bee asking him for tranquilizer needles a while back. Only now did he understand that a situation like this really did call for every unusual trick in the book.

He took out his phone and quietly snapped a photo of the head bodyguard’s face. Later he’d talk it over with Tori and the others and take the man down. He wouldn’t kill him, but he’d need him out of commission for a while.

Once the farce was over, his wife and Rachel were escorted out of the hospital. Ethan followed. As he watched his wife leave, resentment smoldered in his eyes.

Then, passing through the billing office, he saw Lana Reyes, and another idea took shape.

What if I set Julian Sinclair up with Lana? Or some other woman?

Claire, when you see the man you love completely wrapped up in another woman, how will you feel?

Will you be jealous?

Chapter 205: He Still Wants to Hurt Me

Ivy had barely left the consultation room when she was called to Julian Sinclair’s room. Only then did she find out that Ethan had told Viv about the amputation, and she instantly got a headache. Ethan really couldn’t stand to leave well enough alone.

She also knew he wouldn’t actually do anything to Viv. Just telling her she’d need an amputation was enough to scare her half to death.

Keeping someone awake at night, tormented in body and mind—that was the cruelest revenge of all.

Ivy realized Ethan was a truly frightening man.

As for Viv’s condition, she could simply tell Julian the truth. There was no real pressure in that.

“Is there really nothing the Order can do?” Julian asked.

“We’ve already done everything we can. But with difficult, stubborn conditions like this, more often than not we’re simply out of options.”

“But Tom Marsh had progressive freezing too. How did he get cured? Go find Ethan Hale and have him come treat her.”

“Ethan Hale? We have no idea where he is right now. You’ll have to look for him yourselves. The treatment we’re using is based on the plan Ethan used for Tom Marsh, but it isn’t working well. If we can find him and bring him here, there might still be a chance to turn things around.”

Then Ivy changed her tone. “Mr. Julian, we’ve heard that Claire Lowell’s three daughters are yours. With that between you and Ethan Hale, do you really think he’ll come?”

“That’s right. Claire’s three children are mine. That’s an honor for the Lowells, and for Ethan Hale too. What could he possibly object to? If he won’t cooperate, then make him disappear from Easton,” Julian said coldly.

“Th-that’s beyond what I can do.”

Inside, Ivy felt even more sympathy and indignation on Ethan’s behalf. A man with no background and no status really could be pushed around by anyone.

She thought she understood now where his courage and determination to fight back came from.

Ethan, it’s a good thing you have your medical skills and your disguises. Otherwise you’d spend your whole life being trampled on. You poor guy…

The thought only made her feel sorrier for him.

She didn’t mention that Ethan was right there in the hospital, working alongside her. Without another word, she left.

Back in her office, she called Ethan in. “You have to be careful now. Don’t let anyone find out who you are, or you’ll die a horrible death.”

“Oh? Why the sudden concern? Heard a rumor? Is it my wife coming after me, or that loser Julian Sinclair?”

As far as he was concerned, her warning was the kind of unprompted kindness that usually came with strings attached.

“Look at everything you’ve done. On top of that, you’ve got skills other people would kill for. Can’t you keep your head down and be more careful?”

“Right now I’m hiding in plain sight—the safest spot there is. As long as you don’t sell me out, I’m safe.”

“Your tricks are clever enough, but I still hope you’ll be careful. Better safe than sorry. Oh, forget it. It’ll just go in one ear and out the other.”

She’d given her warning. If she kept going, it would really look like she had feelings for him, so she quickly changed the subject.

“How could you say something so frightening to Viv? She’s been sick for so long without getting better, and she’s already in terrible shape mentally. Now she’s heard she might lose her legs—she’ll only get more anxious. She can forget about recovering.”

“I was only telling the truth. Besides, it’s not like she’s out of options. She can go to New York, Boston, or Chicago and see the top specialists at the big hospitals. Actually, you should suggest she go get treated somewhere else. Out of sight, out of mind.”

“That’s not my decision to make. Since you’ve got time on your hands, let me pick your brain about Great-Uncle Thaddeus’s detox.”

Ivy took out the latest test results and started going over them with him.

Before long, an old man opened the door and walked right in. Ivy jumped, but since she and Ethan had only been discussing a case, she quickly composed herself.

“Elder Gunther, you’re here! If you’d let me know, I’d have come down to meet you.”

She got up quickly and went to greet him.

The old man nodded, then turned his gaze on Ethan and looked him up and down. “Filthy little nobody. Why haven’t you gotten lost yet?” he said coldly.

Ethan was a little taken aback. He hadn’t expected the old man to be so rude. He snorted softly, tempted to ask how exactly he’d offended this old fossil.

Ivy quickly sent him out, shooting him a look that said she’d explain later.

“Elder Gunther, how can you talk to Evan like that? That’s so rude,” she said, with just the right touch of sweetness.

“Word about you and him has already gotten around. I didn’t believe it at first. I never thought you’d actually keep him by your side. What were you thinking? He’s a nobody reaching far above his station. Can’t you see that?”

“Oh, so you were worried he’d take advantage of me. That’s not going to happen. You’ve all got the wrong idea. Elder Gunther, let me be clear: I brought Evan in to help me as a shield. I don’t want people pestering me for no reason.”

“Even so, you can’t pick a filthy nobody like that.” Elder Gunther frowned.

“Well—he really is ugly. But that’s exactly why I’d never fall for him.”

Ivy thought about Ethan’s homely disguise. No one would ever look twice at him. But that ordinary identity was exactly what kept him from drawing suspicion.

She quickly changed the subject. “Elder Gunther, you’ve come at just the right time. I need you to take charge. Viv’s legs can’t be saved. I honestly can’t think of a better treatment. If this goes on, amputation is the only option. And I’m not confident about some of the other patients either.”

“What are you panicking for? I came precisely to settle your nerves. Now that the Sinclair Order has been dragged into the open, every stray dog out there has come running to chase us down and bite. This is a challenge to all of us.”

Elder Gunther sat down, back straight, his expression grave, a steady light in his eyes.

Ivy hurried to pour him tea, then took out Viv’s medical records and started briefing him.

Outside, Ethan was in no hurry to leave. He listened for a while and only walked off when someone came by.

Soon after, he got a text from Ivy telling him to find somewhere else to stay that night. An older classmate of hers had finished her studies and come back, and would be staying with her.

Ethan simply applied for staff housing at the Integrative Medicine Center. With Julian and Viv both here, he might as well make the hospital his base. Until people like Julian Sinclair were living a life worse than death, he’d never be at peace.

Ivy went along with it and got him a single room tucked away in a quiet corner.

That night, he saw his wife and Rachel Tate come to the hospital again. They went into Viv’s room and talked for a long time before coming out. As he watched his wife leave, he noticed that Lana Reyes was actually tailing her.

He didn’t leave the hospital. He went back to his room first.

Using a different phone number, he got in touch with Tori Fairfax and learned that her people were about to fight Tessa Marsh’s. Tori had accused Tessa of switching sides—of helping Claire instead of Ethan.

Tessa had finally shown her true colors. She’d laid it all out: Ethan was of no use to her anymore, and she’d rather settle things with Tori and see which of them came out on top.

Ethan reassured Tori: as long as no one died on the spot or was hurt beyond saving, he’d do everything he could to save them. But they couldn’t go to the Hale Clinic. They should go to Zoe’s instead.

If the injuries were minor, Zoe could handle them all without him.

Just before dawn, Tori called. None of her people were seriously hurt, and they’d deal with it themselves. He was relieved.

But when he went in to work, he found Tessa in Ivy’s office, her face gray with fury.

Three of her people had been killed in the fight and four more badly injured. She was in serious trouble.

Ethan was wearing a mask, and with his slight hunch and those dull, fishlike eyes, Tessa didn’t recognize him even standing right in front of him.

She was demanding that Ivy find Ethan Hale to save her people, while Ethan was standing right there under her nose. She was searching high and low for the very man beside her.

Just as Ethan had said the day before, Ivy only spent her energy on VIPs and Sinclair patients. She handed Tessa’s people off to other specialists.

Ethan didn’t overstep either. As a mere attending physician, all he could do was assist.

Ivy also refused to help Tessa find Ethan. She headed straight into the treatment area and ignored her.

Shortly afterward, Ethan saw his wife, Claire, arrive. Tessa went to meet her.

“Have you found Ethan?” Tessa asked. “Get him here right now to save my people.”

“I haven’t found him. I’ve searched everywhere he might go and come up empty. Once he turns off his phone, he washes his hands of everything. There’s nothing I can do.”

His wife was perfectly calm, without any of the tension and anxiety Tessa couldn’t hide.

“Easton isn’t that big. Where else could he be?” Tessa said through gritted teeth.

“I don’t know. Maybe he’s left Easton. He disappeared for a while before—ran off to some monastery to pray and meditate, as if he didn’t have a family or a career to think about. Don’t count on him. Focus on doing everything you can to save your people here first.”

Then she asked, “Who did this? Have you found out who’s responsible?”

“No. They were complete strangers. From their accents, they weren’t from Easton, and they weren’t Tori’s people either. This place has always been full of all kinds of people, and I got careless. These were men my father trained himself, and they fell on my watch.”

Tessa sighed, torn between grief and rage.

His wife said her people were already investigating with everything they had, and there should be news soon.

Those two are thick as thieves. Neither one of them is any good,Ethan thought with a cold sneer.

He walked away. Not long after, thermometer in hand, he wandered into Viv’s room.

“Get the hell out!”

The moment Viv saw him, she flew into a rage. It was as if she blamed his big mouth for her worsening condition, as if he’d jinxed her and made the prediction come true. She put all the blame on him.

“Ms. Sinclair, I understand how you feel. There’s no need to get upset. I’ll go.”

He still went over and took her temperature—a quick, routine procedure.

“Come back here.”

He was about to leave when she called him back.

“Tell me the truth. How risky is this amputation surgery?”

“There’s no real risk. Just trust Ivy and the others. It’s not a difficult operation.”

“Really? No risk?”

“Of course. I’m an honest doctor.”

“Then explain this to me. What do all these numbers and conclusions mean? And you’d better tell me the truth.”

She had him go through her latest test report and even compare it with the previous day’s numbers. She was sharp, but she wasn’t a doctor, and the other doctors wouldn’t give her the truth—they only told her what she wanted to hear.

It was no challenge for Ethan. He could recite the textbook explanations perfectly well, but when it came to certain causes and treatments, he held back rather than risk giving himself away.

Then the door opened and someone came in: Elder Gunther and his people.

“Filthy little worm. Out!”

Once again, Elder Gunther didn’t treat him like a human being.

Ethan didn’t argue. You old bastard. Keep looking down on me like that and sooner or later you’ll end up on my list,he thought.

He stepped outside.

In the corridor he ran into his wife again, and she stopped him. “Why aren’t visitors allowed in Room 6?”

Room 6 was Viv’s room, the one he’d just left.

“They’re treating the patient right now. Please wait a bit,” he said lightly, and walked off without giving anything away.

With Ivy and the others elsewhere, when he passed Julian’s room and saw the door open, he went in.

A female assistant was there with a laptop, going over some work with Julian.

Ethan said he was there to take temperatures and walked over. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the assistant’s screen and saw that the project’s keyword was “downtown redevelopment.”

It was only a quick glance, but Ethan had excellent eyesight and a photographic memory—he could take in ten lines at a glance and never forget them. He committed what he’d seen to memory.

“Hold it.”

Julian stopped him and sent the assistant out, saying they’d finish later. Then he stared at Ethan, sizing him up.

Ethan was sure there was nothing to give him away. Julian probably thought of him as a spineless nobody and had never bothered to study him, so he wouldn’t have much of an impression. And Ethan’s appearance was almost completely different now—there was no way Julian could recognize him.

Over the past two days he’d run into his wife several times without being recognized, which only made him more determined to keep up the disguise.

“Your temperature’s a little high, but that’s perfectly normal,” he said. “There’s no infection. You’re recovering.”

“Why did you tell my sister about the amputation? What are you really after?”

“It was already a fact. All I did was say it out loud. Of course, what I was really after was a little tip. If you want to report me, go ahead—but after that, you’ll have a much harder time hearing the truth.”

“You’ve got some nerve, trying to squeeze money out of the Sinclairs.”

“The Sinclairs are a big family with a big fortune. A few thousand dollars won’t hurt you, will it? You’re up so high—how many people are actually going to tell you the truth? A few thousand for the truth is a bargain. Of course, you’re all big shots. If you want to get rid of me, it’d be as easy as crushing an ant.”

He was neither groveling nor arrogant, just perfectly calm.

“Who gave you the backbone to talk to me like that? Ivy?”

“Right now I’m Ivy’s shield. Once that’s done, I’ll leave Easton. So I’m making a little extra money while I can, so I’ll have something to live on wherever I end up. The more stable my life is, the less likely I am to cause trouble. That’s why Ivy doesn’t stop me from earning a bit on the side.”

“You’re honest, at least. Then tell me—how’s Jasper doing?”

“For his condition, you’ll have to ask Ivy and the others.” Ethan rubbed his fingers together lightly.

A vicious gleam flashed in Julian’s eyes. He called in the bodyguard from outside and ordered him to break Ethan’s fingers.

The bodyguard hesitated for a split second, then moved to grab Ethan. He was absolutely obedient.

“Wait—I was kidding! Old Mr. Jasper is… fuck! You actually broke it! Fuck…”

Ethan had underestimated the bodyguard. The man was incredibly fast. By the time Ethan reacted, his hand had already been seized, and one of his index fingers was broken.

Pain shot through him. His counterattack was just as fast—he kicked the bodyguard hard in the groin. The man couldn’t take it and had to let go, and Ethan hurried out.

Doubled over, the bodyguard chased after him, only to run into Claire’s bodyguards outside. He didn’t dare go after Ethan any further and went back to the doorway. Protecting his employer came first.

Chapter 206: A Dog That Bites Gets Put Down

“That lapdog sure bites hard.”

Ethan went to find Ivy and had her help him deal with the fracture.

She only assisted, handling the parts Ethan couldn’t reach himself. Between them they quickly treated the injury, set it in a cast, and took care of the rest.

“I told you not to provoke Viv,” Ivy said. “Now someone’s taught you a lesson. You’d better learn from it.”

“I got careless,” Ethan said. They headed back toward the office, but as they stepped out of the elevator, they saw that bodyguard.

With Ivy and the others around, the bodyguard didn’t dare make a move. But he fixed his eyes on Ethan like a hunting dog that had spotted its prey, ready to tear him apart at any moment.

Damn it. Now he’s fixated on me? Just how tough do you think you are?Heat surged through Ethan’s blood, urging him to go head-to-head with Julian Sinclair and the rest of them until either they died or he did.

But his mind stayed perfectly clear. He knew the layout of the hospital departments well, and he slipped away to safety with ease. Then he began plotting against the bodyguard.

The man wasn’t on duty around the clock. He rotated shifts with the others and went back to Dragon Ridge to rest. That meant Ethan could make his move away from the estate and stay under the radar.

Once he got back, Ethan spent some time treating himself. He felt fine. If he was careful, he could even take the cast off.

Of course, the bone hadn’t knit yet, and the injury was still fragile. He wasn’t in any hurry. In fact, it gave him the perfect excuse to say no whenever Ivy wanted him to step in and save someone.

After that, he rested properly.

At six that morning, the bodyguard’s car pulled into the hospital. Ethan’s lookout spotted it immediately and let him know.

In the underground parking garage, Ethan waited beside a pillar. As soon as the bodyguard got out of his car, Ethan called out to him.

The bodyguard took the bait. He glanced around. No one was in sight, and they were outside the range of the cameras. He strode quickly toward Ethan.

Thwip!

A sharp pain stabbed into his thigh. He looked down and found a tranquilizer dart buried in the muscle. He yanked it out, but the drug was already in his system.

Then came a sting at his neck. He reached up and found another dart.

His attention had been fixed entirely on Ethan. It had never occurred to him that this was a trap.

He tried to run, but it was too late. Ethan had made the anesthetic himself, and it worked extremely fast. The bodyguard’s hands and feet went numb, then his whole body went soft and limp. What he hadn’t expected at all was that Ethan was also holding a bottle of whiskey, which he poured straight down the man’s throat.

The bodyguard soon blacked out.

“Sweet dreams, dog.”

Ethan and his people cleaned up the scene and left.

Hospital security found the bodyguard on their second patrol and sent him up for treatment. The conclusion was that he’d passed out from drinking too much.

Afterward, Ethan noticed that the guard outside Julian’s room had been doubled. There used to be one bodyguard. Now there were two.

Julian hadn’t found out who had taken his man down, so all he could do was add more muscle.

On top of that, Ethan’s wife, Claire, must have seen the paternity results by now. That would only make her more determined to take Julian away. If she controlled him, she could get her hands on more of the Sinclair family’s interests. Julian obviously didn’t want to be under her thumb, so he had to guard against her as well.

That was how Ethan read the situation. Chances were, they wouldn’t suspect him.

That made him even more set on his plan: get Julian out of the hospital and personally hand him over to the Lowells.

It would take careful planning, especially to keep Ivy and the others from finding out.

He picked up a chart and went on with his rounds, taking temperatures, until he came to Viv’s room again.

Once he’d taken her temperature, Viv kept him there. She wanted him to explain the results of her tests from yesterday and today.

“I’ll be honest with you,” Ethan said. “All I wanted was a little money. If you couldn’t pay, you didn’t have to tell your family. I would’ve just refunded you. Instead you went and complained, made me out to be some money-grubber, and now someone in your family has snapped my finger. They’re trying to take away the tools I make my living with. With people like you, who’d dare have anything to do with you? I can’t afford to cross you. Is it too much to ask to just stay out of your way?”

Viv stared at his injured finger. “What are you talking about? Who in my family broke it?”

“I’d rather not say.”

“Say it! Or I’ll have someone break it again.”

“Your big brother. Julian Sinclair.”

“Julian? Why would he do that to you?”

“Didn’t I already tell you? He’s angry that I told you the truth about the amputation. And he