Chapter 314 Attempt
Ashley's face dropped even more, her eyes getting all red and teary. If she wasn't trying so hard to keep it together, she'd be crying by now.
Everything looked fine on the outside, but deep down, it was all messed up.
She knew it, and so did he.
Martin nodded and stopped with the questions. "Alright... I get it. Hang tight for a sec; I gotta get some stuff ready."
He left the room, leaving just the sound of their breathing. Ashley and Damian stayed quiet.
Time dragged on.
Finally, Damian broke the silence, "Does your neck hurt?"
Ashley slowly looked up, "What?"
When their eyes met, Damian saw her red eyes and the confused look in them. It was a weird look for her.
Damian wanted to reach out and touch her face, to calm her down, but he held back. Just talking to her like this was something he had to work hard to make happen.
"Are you feeling sorry for me?" Damian wasn't sure, but the words came out before he could stop them.
Ashley glanced at his bandaged arm and sighed, "Honestly, trading an arm for a life is worth it, but you're gonna suffer."
Damian smirked coldly, "You think his life is worth my arm?"
"What's your measure, Mr. Hearst? Money? Sure, he's not as rich as you, but Mr. Collins comes from a family of doctors who've saved countless lives. From that angle, his life might be more valuable than yours," Ashley shot back.
Damian's lips twitched into a faint smile. "You're the only one who talks to me like this."
Ashley replied coolly, "That's because I have no ulterior motives."
Everyone else either wanted something from Damian or were scared of him.
But she had nothing to gain, nothing to fear.
Except for Faye.
She closed her eyes and shook her head, pushing the thoughts away.
The words "no ulterior motives" hurt more than his arm. Damian said in a low voice, "We're gonna be here for a few days."
"Okay, I'll take leave from the law firm. What about you? Can you leave the company?" Ashley asked.
Even if he didn't check his email for half a day, it'd be flooded with messages.
"Victor and Nathan can handle it," Damian said.
Speaking of Victor, Ashley said, "That day at Emerald Lakeside Gardens, Steven seemed to meet with Victor. Are they close?"
Damian replied, "Business partners, not friends. Businessmen only hang out with people who are useful to them."
Seeing him so straightforward, Ashley asked, "So, Mr. Hearst, do you have any real friends? Those who flatter you might be cursing you behind your back."
Damian scoffed, "I don't need friends. I need people who, whether they like it or not, have to be polite and respectful when they see me."
Ashley wasn't surprised by his answer. She even thought that if Christian and the others ever crossed him, he'd turn on them without a second thought.
His heart was probably cold, with only a few moments of warmth when he chose to be.
That night, after washing up, Ashley stood by the window, looking at the dark mountain peak in the distance, thinking about the crazy events of the afternoon.
And Martin's words.
He owed Bodhi a life, so he had to repay it with his own.
A life for a life.
Maybe influenced by Bodhi's Buddhist beliefs in karma and reincarnation, she felt that this trip was fate's way of reminding her that debts, no matter how much she tried to avoid or hide them, must be repaid. She owed Faye a life, and eventually, she'd have to pay it back with her own.
The next morning, Ashley walked past Damian's room. The door was open, but he wasn't there.
So early, and he wouldn't be working out with one arm, right?
"Looking for me?" As she wondered, Damian came around the corner of the stairs, carrying a bunch of steaming plastic bags that smelled like food.
Ashley was surprised, "You went to get breakfast?"
"Yeah." The hotel's breakfast was pretty lame, and Damian's picky taste wasn't having it, so he went out to find some local goodies.
Damian laid out the breakfast, which included a bunch of stuff she didn't recognize. She didn't expect Damian to explain, so she just started eating quietly.
Damian watched her eat, seeming to enjoy it, then looked away and began to eat slowly himself.
When they got back to Martin's house, Bodhi was nowhere to be seen.
Ashley didn't feel comfortable asking.
After Martin applied medicine to Damian's arm, he started the treatment.
Damian lay flat on the bed, eyeing a row of fine, hair-thin silver needles and frowning slightly. "Does this really work?"
Martin smiled wryly, "Afraid of a little pain?"
"I just don't want to suffer for nothing," Damian said.
"Don't worry, you'll sleep well tonight. But to completely cure insomnia, you'll need two courses of treatment," Martin said.
Ashley asked, "How long is one course? Does it have to be continuous?"
It wasn't convenient for them to come to Coastal City often.
Martin replied, "One course is three months. The first course requires treatment every other day, and the second course every three days. The recovery also depends on the patient."
Six months? Half a year.
Ashley couldn't help but smile wryly, "Mr. Hearst?"
Damian closed his eyes, waiting for the first needle, "Let's see the results first."
If it really worked, he had ways to bring Martin to Rochester City.
Ashley had seen her father endure treatment, and maybe he was just good at handling pain, showing no reaction when he was being injected. But when the fine silver needles were inserted into Damian's head, her heart clenched.
Damian frowned deeply!
He grabbed Ashley's hand, which was resting on her knee.
Ashley felt a surge of strength from him, his hot palm gripping her fist.
Seeing his pitiful state, Ashley didn't have the heart to pull away. She relaxed her hand, letting him hold it more comfortably.
After the acupuncture, Martin packed up his things and noticed their clasped hands, "You have nothing to do this afternoon. You can visit the east side of town; there are many interesting things."
The town had mostly been developed for tourism, and this place was no exception. Ashley wasn't very interested; all the tourist spots were the same.
But Damian seemed interested, "Alright, let's go take a look."
Ashley pouted, "I want to sleep."
In the afternoon, Ashley still didn't see Bodhi but found the little boy practicing martial arts in the yard. "You're working hard."
The boy's forehead was sweaty, his little face flushed, "Yeah."
Ashley smiled, "Are you upset about losing to Damian and want to beat him?"
The boy, caught off guard, reluctantly admitted, "Mr. Collins said that if I'm not as skilled, I have to practice hard. Just being angry is useless."
Ashley patted his head, "Mr. Collins is absolutely right. But learning martial arts also requires guidance from a master, right? If you want to beat him, the best way is to have him teach you, and then you can use what you learn."
The boy straightened up, his innocent eyes shining, "Will he teach me?"
"That depends on what method you use," Ashley said.
"What method? Tell me, I'll listen to you," the boy said.
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