Chapter 245 Trickery I: Snap out of It
Maurice carefully re-dressed Alaric's wound, his demeanor serious. "You can't afford any more infections. I'm not a miracle worker, and neither are you."
Alaric acknowledged him with a curt nod, clearly not too bothered. Maurice didn't press further; everyone knew the situation.
As Maurice packed up his medical kit, Cassius watched Alaric, who lay on the bed looking uncharacteristically weak. "Have you ever considered that Cecilia might eventually discover our secrets?" Cassius asked.
"I never thought I could keep it from her forever," Alaric admitted bluntly.
"You're not taking precautions?" Cassius probed.
"No need," Alaric replied.
"But can she accept you?" Cassius countered.
Alaric's throat tightened slightly.
Cassius continued, "I'm just giving you a heads-up from a humanist perspective. Seraphina already 'killed' Dashiell; you don't want to repeat the same mistakes."
"I know my boundaries," Alaric said coolly.
"I feel like you've already lost your way with Cecilia," Cassius added.
Alaric gave him a sharp look. Cassius wisely shifted his gaze, aware of how intimidating Alaric could be when angered.
Maurice finished packing up and was ready to leave. "Maurice, I'll walk out with you," Alaric said, rising from the bed.
As they left, Alaric lay back on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. Cassius' words about Cecilia being able to accept him troubled him more than he cared to admit.
The door creaked open, and Cecilia walked in. Seeing Alaric looking weakened on the bed, she couldn't suppress a tinge of anger.
"Serves you right," she muttered, referring to his indiscretions earlier that day.
"If it's for a beautiful woman, it's worth it," Alaric smirked, his grin laced with a certain arrogance.
His smile was so charming that Cecilia sometimes couldn't even look him in the eye, fearing she might be swayed by him.
Avoiding further interaction, she headed straight to the bathroom.
As she showered, Cecilia wondered how Seraphina and Dashiell's wedding night had gone.
In the previous life, they had ended up together.
The next morning, Cecilia's alarm went off. Before she could even reach over to turn it off, Alaric had already silenced it.
Half-awake, Cecilia glanced at him. He was still groggy, and after shutting off the alarm, he pulled her back into his arms, drifting back to sleep.
Cecilia wriggled, finding Alaric's weight unbearable.
His leg was draped over her, making it impossible for her to move. There were nights she woke up thinking something was wrong.
She resolved to find a way to sleep apart from him. In Cecilia's mind, his condition was stable enough now; he could manage on his own.
Determined, Cecilia wriggled free from Alaric's embrace. She had work to do and had never been one to linger in bed. Her strict upbringing and self-discipline had always driven her to give her best, but it had only led to heartbreak.
Reflecting on her past, she felt a surge of anger towards Dominic, wishing she could crush him beneath her feet.
Cecilia quickly washed up and sat at her vanity to do her makeup, preparing herself for the day ahead.
She couldn't help but marvel at the difference.
In the mirror, her 22-year-old self stood in stark contrast to the 32-year-old version from her previous life.
At 22, her face was smooth and supple, practically bursting with youthful collagen. It was as if her entire visage was emblazoned with the word "Youth."
She found herself lingering in front of the mirror, admiring her own youthful appearance.
"Didn't realize Ms. Lockhart was so vain," Alaric's voice suddenly broke the silence.
Cecilia jumped, startled.
She thought, 'Hasn't he been snoring like a pig just moments ago? How is he awake now?'
He said seriously, "You can't get infected again. I'm not a god, and neither are you."
It meant that none of them had the power to bring back the dead.
Alaric responded, clearly not too concerned.
Maurice didn't say more.
"Not really, Ms. Lockhart. I've had a hard time sleeping," he said, with an air of false seriousness.
She wanted to curse him out.
She thought, 'How could he always seem to know exactly what I'm thinking? Is he some kind of mind reader or just exceptionally perceptive?
'Either way, it is unnerving. I need to keep my distance.'
Yet here she was, unable to look away as Alaric changed clothes right in front of her. She found herself staring at his bare back through the mirror.
"Do I look good?" Alaric asked, glancing over his shoulder, though his back was still facing her.
Cecilia snapped back to reality, her cheeks flushing a deep red.
"Not really. You're just skin and bones," she replied, trying to sound indifferent.
Alaric chuckled, "And love. Don't you notice the love radiating from me?"
Cecilia could hardly stand it. "Alaric, why don't you get George to make you some coffee?"
"Why's that?"
"To wake you up," Cecilia answered plainly.
They finished getting ready and headed downstairs for breakfast before leaving for the day.
Cecilia suspected that Alaric had his own plans for the morning. After all, with his new government job, he had to be punctual every day.
After all everyone understood the reasoning.
He packed up his medical kit.
Cassius watched Alaric lying weakly on the bed after his wound was treated.
He said, "Have you ever thought that Cecilia will find out our secret one day?"
Augustus drove Alaric first, then Cecilia, and she didn't mind sharing the ride.
The car and driver both belonged to Alaric.
Even if Cecilia wanted to object, she had no real reason to.
Upon arriving at the Lockhart Group, Cecilia led Augustus into her office. Rose, as always, followed closely behind, her face set in business-like seriousness.
"Ms. Lockhart, the Tower of Light has seen a continuous surge in foot traffic for a week now. The revenue hasn't shown any signs of decline and is even steadily increasing. It appears that the Tower of Light's performance is within our projections and might even exceed them by 5%."
Cecilia nodded, acknowledging the report.
Rose continued, "Regarding the international Flower Beach project, the initial planning is underway as per your earlier instructions. Should we schedule a meeting today to finalize the plan?"
"Let's set it for 10 AM." Cecilia decided.
"Understood," Rose replied with a nod.
"By the way, any updates on Andrew's work progress?" Cecilia inquired.
Rose thought for a moment. "I haven't heard of any notable achievements from him recently."
"Keep an eye on him. If anything unusual comes up, let me know immediately."
"Certainly," Rose affirmed before asking, "Ms. Lockhart, would you still like your black coffee?"
"Thanks," Cecilia said, already turning her attention back to her tasks.
At 10 AM, key members of the sales department gathered in the conference room.
Cecilia addressed the group, "I just reviewed the sales data for the Tower of Light. The results are promising. However, we can't slack off on the follow-up marketing strategy. Ms. Juliana Lockhart, I expect continued focus from your end."
"Of course," Juliana replied quickly.
"The main focus today is the Flower Beach project. I've looked over everyone's proposals…"
"Ms. Cecilia Lockhart," Rose suddenly interrupted, bending slightly to hand Cecilia her phone.
Cecilia frowned slightly as she glanced at the screen.
The message from the Chairman's Secretary read: [Officials from the Attorney General's Office are currently in the Chairman's office.]
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