Chapter 4 A Laughable Excuse To Leave

• “I...” Winnie began to panic and stutter when Winston questioned her. “Anna... Anna was fine before. I have no idea why she suddenly fell ill. I mean, it's not like I can control that!”
• “Is that so?” Winston continued with the mocking stare. “What did you do then? You just gave up on her and decided to leave her here?”
• “No, it's not like that! There was just so much going on in the company, and I couldn't be everywhere at once.” Winnie tried to defend herself.
• “Okay, let's set Anna aside and talk about the company. I heard that you lost everything I left you.” After all the hardships, Winston learned to remain collected no matter the situation.
• Still, his blood boiled with anger when faced with the woman.
• When Winston brought up the matter, Winnie froze like a statue. Even though she had her mouth agape, no words came out.
• After all, there was nothing she could say to deny the fact that she did lose the millions' worth of assets.
• “That's enough, man. A lot has changed in the four years you were away. Winnie did her best, so I don't think it's fair to blame everything on her.” Hugh stepped forward to stand beside Winnie with an indifferent look, hardly excited to see Winston again after so long. “I've already acquired the company, so if you want, you can have any position you like. It's the least I can do for you.”
• “Is that so? And just who do you think you are?” Staring at his former friend, Winston felt nothing at all.
• The two had been best friends since high school. Since Hugh came from a financially-challenged family, Winston arranged for the man to work at his company after graduation and allowed his friend the opportunity to slowly climb up the ranks.
• In the end, Hugh got too ambitious and decided to repay Winston's kindness with evil.
• Still, Winston did not believe that someone like Hugh could afford to pay tens of millions to acquire the company.
• Hugh's face immediately turned grim when Winston offended him with such bluntness.
• “If this is how you want to play it, fine. Since you seem to know everything, let's stop beating around the bush, Winston.”
• When Winnie heard that, she quickly pulled at Hugh's shirt and voiced concernedly, “I... I don't think that's a good idea.”
• “Sometimes, you just have to rip off the band-aid. The sooner we get this over with, the better.”
• Facing Winston, Hugh seemed determined and proactive on the surface. However, underneath, the man was stressed out and wanted nothing more than to get out of there as soon as possible.
• “To tell you the truth, Winnie and I started seeing each other after you got locked away. I know it hurts you to hear about this since you only went to prison because of her. You've done a lot for us, so I decided to offer you a million as compensation. You have nothing now, so you're going to need the money.”
• “Seriously? Do you think a million is enough to make up for everything I went through?” sneered Winston coldly while narrowing his eyes at Hugh.
• “What else do you want then? Do you remember your advice to me? Don't be greedy,” reminded Hugh with a hardened face.
• “He's right, Winston. You can't force anyone to be with you, including me. What do we have to do to convince you to give up?” Since Hugh had already pointed out the elephant in the room, Winnie saw no point in holding back any longer.
• “I want you to restore my sister's health!” demanded Winston.
• The moment Hugh and Winnie heard those words, they turned as pale as a ghost.
• “But... But how's that possible? It's not like we wanted her this way. We can't control what happens to her, Winston! Why do you have to be so difficult?” scoffed Winnie.
• “I'm being difficult? Then let me tell you something.”
• Winston walked to Anna's bedside and gently stroked his sister's cheek before continuing, “Anna didn't fall ill; she was poisoned! You're gravely mistaken if you think I'm going to let the person responsible get away.”
• “What?” When the two heard Winston, they exchanged looks and turned even paler than before.
• “However, Anna has already regained consciousness, so you don't have to worry. It won't be long before I get to the bottom of it,” revealed Winston after seeing how the two reacted.
• “What? Anna's regained consciousness?” The couple was completely drained of color as they turned to look at Anna.
• “Mr. Ginsel, is that true?” Even though Anna was still asleep, Winnie had to confirm the matter with the director.
• Colton nodded before responding, “It is. She did wake up, but it'll take two days before she fully recovers. She's still weak after having lost her consciousness for so long.”
• The couple could no longer keep their composure after confirming with Colton, for they thought they could tie up loose ends before things got messy. If Anna's really regained consciousness, we'll be in trouble.
• Suddenly, Anna groaned and furrowed her eyebrows, seemingly ready to wake up once again.
• Upon seeing that, Hugh and Winnie knew it would be terrible for them to stay any longer.
• After the two exchanged looks again, Winnie plastered on a smile as she uttered, “We're glad that Anna regained consciousness, so let's talk about the heavy stuff some other time. We just remember that we have something important to do. Goodbye!”
• “Good riddance.” The look on the couple's face and their laughable excuse to leave in a hurry were enough to tell Winston everything he needed to know about their involvement. Now that I've returned, they won't be able to escape me.
• “Winston, it's really you!” Right after the couple left, a tall and lovely woman entered the room and sized up Winston. Her pretty face was filled with surprise.
• “You're... Jennifer Larkin?” Staring at the woman, Winston was stunned for a brief moment before he remembered who she was.
• Jennifer sat beside Winston in high school and was a nerdy-looking girl, so he never thought she would grow into such a beauty.
• “So it really is you! I thought the man in the video they sent in the chat group looked like you. As it turns out, I was right!”
• Like before, Jennifer was not particular about her outfits. The woman had a simple T-shirt, a pair of jeans, and light makeup on, making her look like an energetic teenager.
• “Chat group? You're working here?” Winston was visibly confused.
• “Not exactly. Jennifer would volunteer to help out here whenever she's available. You don't see many women as kindhearted as this one,” explained Colton.
• “And what good is that? I'm still broke!” joked Jennifer at her own expense.
• Then, she approached Anna, who had just woken up, to brush the hair on the young lady's forehead.
• “That was impressive, Winston. Everyone knew about Anna's condition, but none expected that you'd be able to help her regain consciousness! So when did you get... I mean, when did you return?”
• The news of Winston getting imprisoned for his ex-wife's sake shook the entire Jadeborough, so naturally, his classmate heard about it.
• “Today,” answered Winston as he smiled bitterly at his half-awake sister. I had no problem helping her regain consciousness, but curing her isn't going to be as easy. The materials required are so rare that it's almost impossible to gather them all. Since I've already left the organization, I'd rather not go to them for help. Fortunately, Mr. Ginsel was able to provide some information on Emerald Chalcedony.
• With that thought in mind, Winston took out a bank card and handed it to Colton.
• “Mr. Ginsel, this is for the medical fees I owe. You can keep the rest as my donation to the rehabilitation center.”