Chapter 128 No, Don't Die

A revelation had sparked within Raymond, a glimmer of understanding in the dark. The people who had brought them here, he suspected, had done so for a reason that was only now becoming clear to him. If his suspicions were correct, then Paige's healing abilities and her association with a man like Sullivan had to be kept under wraps. Noticing Raymond's growing anxiety, Paige quickly queried, "Mr. Carnegie, have you discovered something?" "I can't be certain," Raymond replied, his brow furrowed in thought. "We've lost contact with Sullivan. Are your people protecting him?" Paige dismissed the concern with a wave of her hand. "Sullivan never uses his real identity and he has multiple aliases. He's more than capable of looking after himself. But tell me, have you thought of something?" Raymond's face was a mask of seriousness, suggesting that he had indeed stumbled upon a significant realization. Paige couldn't be sure what Raymond had figured out, but his demeanor was a clear indication that his mind was working on something important. "I believe I understand what these people are after," Raymond finally admitted. "For now, we should try to relax. I doubt anyone will disturb us at this late hour. In fact, we might not be bothered for the next couple of days either." Paige's eyes widened in surprise. "So they're just going to leave us locked up in this shipping container house without causing any trouble?" Raymond could only shrug helplessly in response. The container house was surprisingly spacious, with a small section partitioned off as a washroom. It was equipped with heating, basic cooking facilities, a fridge, food, and all other necessary amenities. Even the electrical system was functioning perfectly, suggesting that their captors had no intention of meeting with them anytime soon. Raymond wasn't entirely sure if Paige was the intended target, but he was certain that he was. Looking around the room, Raymond pointed out, "It may be small, but it's got everything we need—we can easily hold out here for two or three days without any trouble.” Paige hesitated, "But why...?" Before she could finish her question, Raymond took her hand and urged, "Rest. Since they're not making a move yet, we need to conserve our energy." With that, he guided Paige onto the bed and swiftly turned off the light. Raymond wrapped Paige in the blanket as outside, the snow fell heavily. Despite the heating system, the room was far from warm. Paige wanted to ask more, but Raymond silenced her with a soft "shush" near her ear, "Remember, the walls here are thin." Seeing that Raymond appeared confident and in control, Paige decided not to press further. They were both exhausted and weary, but the thought of rest had seemed impossible until now. With Raymond's assurance that their pursuers wouldn't find them easily, they focused on resting and regaining their strength. In the darkness, Raymond insisted that Paige rest. Meanwhile, a man with a black leather eyepatch removed his headphones and tossed them onto the table with a thud. A cold glint flashed in his exposed eye. "They're actually sleeping at a time like this?" A woman, swathed in luxurious fur, approached him, a glass of red wine in her hand. Her presence was a testament to opulence, her fur coat made from exotic material, her makeup bold. She was the embodiment of lavishness. She handed a glass of red wine to the man with the eyepatch and took a seat by the roaring fireplace. With a slight parting of her red lips, she spoke in a calm voice, "Don't be angry; anger won't solve anything. It certainly won't help you find the clues you're looking for." The one-eyed man joined her by the fireplace, downing half a glass of wine in one gulp. He held out his glass to her. "Another." Instead of pouring, she handed him the entire bottle of wine. "It's all yours. This Paige, just how far will she go for Mrs. Sackler's antidote?" Her question was filled with curiosity. The one-eyed man shrugged, "Who knows? The investigation report stated that Mrs. Sackler was her only relative, right? Plus, she managed to secure the backing of the Carnegie family and take on the Sacklers head-on. Raymond hasn't been married to her for long. Since she agreed to bring Raymond in exchange for the antidote, I bet she could get us what we want." The woman shook her head, "I'm not so sure. Her biggest support is Raymond. If she really sold him out, she may not have good days ahead. By the way, did you find out who she's been contacting with the satellite phone Raymond gave her?" The one-eyed man replied irritably, "How should I know? If we hadn't accidentally picked up the satellite signal that day, we wouldn't have been able to contact Paige in such a covert manner."

The woman's lips curled into a smile. "It's truly remarkable," she mused, her voice filled with a sense of wonder. "Several years ago, we accepted a request for a bespoke drug, and who would have thought it would lead us to such a surprise? This time, we'll finally receive the recognition we've long deserved. No longer will we have to suppress our pride. The executives will undoubtedly increase our funding, and from then on, it will be nothing but prosperous times for us."As she spoke, her smile broadened, her eyes gleaming with anticipation.The mood of the one-eyed man visibly lifted at her words. "You're absolutely right," he agreed, a hint of excitement in his voice. "We stumbled upon this fortune without any trouble. We merely intended to intimidate them into a hefty payout, but who could have predicted that we'd discover Raymond's hidden identity through our upper-level contacts? It's as if destiny itself has grown tired of watching us struggle all these years and has decided to gift us a victory.""Victory is now within our grasp," he continued, a sense of determination in his voice. "Let's bring those two in for questioning tomorrow. The performance we need is right here; we can't risk accidentally killing them. We have a woman and a disabled man – let's extract the information quickly. After this, our team will ascend to a whole new level."The woman nodded, already picturing the scenes of triumph that lay ahead.The one-eyed man, nursing his drink, suddenly sat upright as if a realization had struck him. "There hasn't been any leak about this, has there?"The woman shook her head, her expression confident. "Absolutely not, don't fret. We may not possess formidable action capabilities, but when it comes to maintaining secrecy, who can outdo us?"She let out a deep sigh, her gaze distant. "I can't even recall how many years it's been since our group was in the limelight, or since we had to accept unsavory jobs just to scrape by. Why else would we have agreed to manufacture that kind of drug for an ordinary family like the Sacklers?"With that, she drained the remaining red wine from her glass in a single gulp.The one-eyed man also inhaled deeply, his eyes reflecting a newfound resolve. "Hearing you talk like this makes me want to bring those two in for questioning right now."The woman's smile returned, her tone soothing. "There's no need to rush. Worrying won't do us any good at this moment. Let's just relish the anticipation of our imminent victory tonight."With that, she rose to her feet, selected a record, and poured herself another glass of wine. As the rhythm filled the room, her body began to sway in time with the beat.That night was theirs, a wild celebration of their impending success.Despite the unease gnawing at her, Paige found herself sinking into a deep sleep in Raymond's arms.Once she was asleep, she was swept away into a dream.In the dream, she was back in the small village of her childhood. She was with the family that had adopted her, sitting on her Grandpa's knee, listening as he read from a medical text.“Paige,” Grandpa said, his voice warm and comforting, “medicine can heal, and it can also harm. If you're kind, if you harbor a healer’s spirit, practicing medicine is a way of accumulating virtue and bringing blessings. But harboring ill will turns that knowledge into a curse. You, Paige, with your kind heart, you're going to make an excellent doctor.”Back then, Paige was too young to understand the concepts of good and evil, virtue and sin,but she knew one thing: the art of healing she learned from Grandpa had only one purpose—to treat the sick, to bless humanity, to give people health.In her dreams, she grew from a child listening to medical texts on Grandpa's lap, to a dignified young woman competent in her medical knowledge.From the innocence of learning about medicine, she became a revered local healer under Grandpa's guidance,vbut she had to remain cautious about revealing her identity, even in the act of healing, so she did it all under Grandpa's name.She could have continued on this path of righteousness alongside Grandpa, but her life was abruptly divided at the age of eighteen.In Paige's dream, Grandpa lay motionless in a cold coffin, his lifetime complete, having passed away without seeing Paige one last time.As the lid was placed on the coffin, Paige suddenly sat up screaming from her dream, "No, don't die..."