Chapter 49 Would You Please Give Me the Pendant?
Olivia had previously asked Alexander's driver for the address, so his arrival was not unexpected. When Tom saw Alexander, he was caught off guard and instinctively hid behind Olivia.
"It's not my fault this time!" Tom protested, tugging on Olivia's sleeve. "Olivia! Help me explain to Alexander."
Alexander secretly raised an eyebrow at Tom's actions before Olivia intervened to explain. "Well, it's not his fault," she confirmed.
Alexander wondered who could be responsible if not Tom. His gaze fell on Megan, who lay unconscious nearby, wondering if she could be the culprit. Despite his suspicions, he chose not to investigate further, as he was more concerned about Olivia's safety.
An ambulance arrived quickly, transporting the seven people from the rooftop and Linda from downstairs to the hospital. Owen and Quinn rushed over after hearing about Megan's accident. After hearing the details and seeing Megan unconscious while Tom was unharmed, they bombarded him with questions.
"What is the matter with you?! Why didn't you protect Megan?" Owen demanded. "Megan is always very fond of you. If you have a conscience, you should not allow anything to happen to her. How are you going to explain to her when she returns?"
Initially eager to share his thrilling encounter, Tom was overcome by their accusations, his face flushing with rage.
"What do you all know? How do you know I didn't protect her? Why don't you ask her what happened at that time?" Tom's youthful impulsiveness fueled his fury and was exacerbated by the baseless accusations. He turned and stormed away in anger without saying anything else.
Owen and Quinn chose to ignore Tom, assuming he couldn't face the consequences of his actions, believing he had done something wrong.
Olivia was unaware of what had happened in the hospital room. She had just visited several other rooms and effortlessly removed the residual evil forces from other patients' bodies. When she returned, she saw Tom storming out of the room and into the safety staircase.
Inside the staircase, Tom wiped away his tears, not out of vulnerability but because he felt wronged and upset. Despite his impulsive agreement to the competition, he remained vigilant. When the silkworms appeared unexpectedly, nobody reacted in time. His immediate reaction was to grab Megan and flee, even throwing himself in front of her to protect her from the silkworms.
But as the silkworms entangled his feet, Megan broke free and fled, while Linda rushed to his aid, only to be ensnared.
Tom reflected on how he was able to free himself after his feet felt like they were on fire and the silkworms unexpectedly separated. He didn't think about it at the time because the situation was dire, but the memory has resurfaced, prompting him to carefully inspect his shoes.
To his surprise, Tom found a layer of black ash on his insole, indicating that something had been scorched. On closer inspection, he discovered a small piece of yellow paper in the corner. When he saw the yellow paper, he immediately thought of Olivia's magic card and had a sudden realization, which made his eyes even redder.
When Tom realized Olivia had saved him from the start, he couldn't help but cry harder, this time out of gratitude and remorse. Olivia had explicitly reminded him to not come out, but he insisted on following Megan. Not only was Olivia not angry, she also secretly placed a magic card in his shoe to protect him. Despite his previous hostility toward her, including joining Owen and Quinn in pushing her away, Olivia had willingly assisted him. Tom cried, moved by Olivia's kindness.
As Tom cried, he heard the door open behind him, surprising him. He quickly wiped away his tears as Olivia entered. He briefly forgot about his tears, caught off guard. Tom's attractive appearance persisted despite his red eyes and tears, giving him the appearance of a fragile American boy.
Olivia raised an eyebrow at Tom's red face, which made him feel even more embarrassed and shy. "Why did you come here?"
As the words came out, he realized that his tone seemed a bit harsh, so he immediately softened his voice. "I'm not saying you can't be here. If you want to rest here. I... I can give this place to you."
Having seen Olivia's abilities, Tom now admired her very much. But thinking about his previous attitude toward her, he felt that she must not like him, so now he didn't dare to speak to her as intimately as before.
"I came to find you," Olivia replied, extending her hand to him. "You should return the pendant I lent you for self-defense." Her demeanor was cold as if they had never faced challenges together.
Tom's eyes welled up with tears again as he instinctively protected the pendant around his neck, ignoring his previous grievances and frustrations. He looked at Olivia with pity, "Didn't you give me this pendant?" The pendant was the same as the ones she had given Alexander and Kenneth.
Olivia glanced at him and said, matter-of-factly, "I just temporarily lent it to you. I didn't say it was yours." Tom knew she was telling the truth, but he was hesitant to return it.
Tom pleaded, "Olivia, can you give me this pendant?" He wanted the pendant's protection as well as Olivia's acceptance. Quickly realizing his error, he added, "It was all my fault previously, Olivia. I promise not to go against you in the future. Tell me anything, and I will do it."
Olivia looked at him calmly and asked, "Do you really want it?" Tom nodded enthusiastically, expressing his sincere desire.
Olivia extended her hand without emotion, as if the situation were a business transaction. "This pendant is worth $40,000, plus the payment for this mission, four Thunder Cards worth $80,000, for a total of $120,000. Cash or credit card?" Tom understood Olivia's stance. Given his previous behavior toward her, it was reasonable for her to expect payment.
Tom didn't hesitate when he realized his past behavior warranted compensation. "I'll transfer the money to you through PayPal." Olivia smiled as she saw the credited amount. She commented on the Sinclair family's wealth and was impressed that Tom had transferred $120,000 without hesitation.
Tom returned to the hospital room and found Megan awake. After a moment of embarrassment, she greeted him with a smile and expressed her concern. "Tom, I just woke up and didn't see you. I was very worried about you. Are you okay?"