Chapter 219 That Must Hurt
Elizabeth was strolling down the hall when Louis approached her with a wine glass in hand. "Elizabeth," he called out.
She stopped in her tracks. "Louis? Where have you been? I couldn't find you anywhere."
Louis pulled her aside, lowering his voice. "Michael's guys just dragged me into a private room. Michael's been asking about Ms. Johnson's final and most important disciple. The list I gave him didn't have your name on it, so he's getting suspicious. He's going to dig into your time in Valoria. You need to be ready."
Elizabeth nodded. "Got it, Louis. Thanks for the heads-up."
They chatted a bit longer, and Elizabeth introduced Louis to a few of her friends.
Meanwhile, at the Thomas family villa, Michael was restless and couldn't sleep. He headed to his study, fired up his computer, and started digging into Elizabeth's time as a grad student in Valoria.
But all he found were some basic details and a few medical papers.
Elizabeth had been Emily's grad student, but after graduation, she didn't go into medicine. Instead, she co-founded Innovatech Solutions with Dean and made it a hit in just a few years.
She'd known Dean since her student days, and their relationship seemed more than just business. Dean was fiercely protective of her.
Calla, another of Emily's students, had a stellar medical career. Logically, Emily should've favored her. But it was Elizabeth who got into Emily's lab for experiments, not Calla.
If Calla's surgical skills were top-notch, what did that say about Elizabeth? If Elizabeth was just average, why would Emily choose her? And why did Elizabeth ditch medicine?
Michael knew how tough life as a med student could be. Did Elizabeth really give it all up? Was she just dabbling in medicine for fun?
That didn't make sense. She needed money back then; she wouldn't waste time like that.
Michael was stumped. Then he remembered Daniel mentioning Dean's hacking skills.
Could Dean have wiped a lot of Elizabeth's info from the internet? Michael nodded to himself. It was possible.
He picked up his phone and called Daniel. "Daniel, I need you to do something for me."
The next morning at the Jones Group, Dean knocked on the CEO's office door.
Elizabeth looked up. "Come in."
Dean walked in and took a seat across from her. "Elizabeth, I won't be home for dinner tonight. Let Nancy know there's no need to save me any food."
Elizabeth, flipping through documents, replied, "Okay. Sneaking out for a feast?"
Dean chuckled. "What feast? Daniel invited me to a bar."
Elizabeth looked up, her expression serious. "Daniel? He's taking you out for drinks again?"
Dean looked a bit sheepish. "Again?"
Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you two just have drinks and desserts last night? You talked for hours, and it's still not enough?"
Dean scratched his head.
Elizabeth softened. She didn't want to be too hard on him. After all, Dean had his own freedom. "Dean, I'm not stopping you from going."
Dean smiled. "I know, Elizabeth. You're just worried I'll get a headache from drinking too much."
Elizabeth looked at Dean and asked, "Dean, have you ever wondered why Daniel suddenly invited you for drinks? If he wanted to hang out, why not coffee or a meal? He knows you drank a lot last night. Can your stomach handle more?"
Dean hesitated. "Maybe he thinks drinking will help us bond?"
Seeing his confusion, Elizabeth decided to come clean. "Last night, at the banquet hall, Michael's guys took Louis away. Later, Louis told me that Michael's starting to dig into my time as a grad student in Valoria. I bet the first thing he'll look into is our relationship."
Dean was taken aback. He stood up abruptly. "That Daniel! Always trying to get info out of me! Tonight's invite must be another setup!"
Elizabeth asked cautiously, "Dean, will you tell him anything?"
Dean glared. "Of course not! Elizabeth, you're my number one. No one can change that. If anyone tries to hurt you, I'll be the first to take them down!"
Elizabeth pressed on, "What if one day, you and Daniel fall in love and get together?"
Dean shook his head. "Even then, I won't say a word. Elizabeth, you mean more to me than any lover ever could."
Elizabeth felt a wave of relief. "Good. Just be careful with what you say."
That evening at the Last Drop, Dean poured Daniel a drink. "When I called you last time to hang out, why didn't you come?"
"I told you, I was asleep. It was freezing, and I had just gotten warm in bed. Why would I want to go out?" Daniel replied.
Dean pushed the glass towards him. "Alright, I get it. Drink up."
Daniel looked at Dean, sensing something different about him tonight but couldn't quite figure it out.
Dean kept finding reasons to make Daniel drink.
Eventually, Daniel got drunk and leaned on Dean. Dean let him, and Daniel looked up, his eyes blurry with intoxication.
He raised his hand to touch Dean's head. "Dean, why do you have such a long scar on your head?"
Dean held Daniel's hand and looked at him. "I had a brain tumor and had surgery."
Daniel's eyes showed clear distress. He frowned and said softly, "That must have been painful."
Dean lowered his head. "They used anesthesia during the surgery. I didn't feel anything. I just slept, and when I woke up, it was over."
Daniel looked at Dean. "I mean the tumor itself. It must have pressed on your nerves and caused you a lot of pain, right?"
Dean shrugged. "It wasn't that bad. It's all in the past. I'm fully recovered now."
Daniel held Dean's hand. "Was it Elizabeth? Did she perform the surgery?"
Dean looked at Daniel steadily, his eyes cold. "Daniel, why would you think that? Elizabeth was still a student then. It was Ms. Johnson. She saved me."
He turned his head, looking away. His voice was low but firm. "I'll never forget the person who saved me."
Daniel nodded. "I see."
He sounded a bit disappointed.
Dean stood up. "It's getting late. We both have work tomorrow. Let's head home."
Daniel followed Dean out of the bar. Dean called for a driver and took Daniel back to his place first. He helped Daniel upstairs and into his room, laying him on the bed.
Dean looked at Daniel's delicate face, raised his hand, and gently stroked Daniel's cheek.
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