Chapter 283 A Strong and Dependable Backbone
But Crystal didn't notice.
She was furious. "I took my uncle and aunt, along with my parents, to another private hospital that's really well-known locally, older than both the Solomon’s and Rhoads’ family hospitals. But... they refused us too! They even said that any private hospital using the AP medical system wouldn't accept us!"
Private hospitals were not bound by as many rules as public ones.
Especially these elite hospitals.
With the mission to deliver better service to their clients, the staff sometimes had to block a few unfriendly ones.
After all, this type of clinic was never short on clients.
Chris's eyelids drooped.
If it had been Ashton, even a hint of discomfort in her voice over the phone would immediately alert him that something was amiss.
"What on earth did Ashton do?!" Crystal had never faced such a humiliating affront.
"Why go to that clinic? Couldn't you just steer clear of ones tied to the Solomons and the Rhoads family?" Chris said gravely, "Crystal, Ashton wouldn’t do anything. I told you this yesterday!"
"Chris, are you defending Ashton?" Crystal asked, punctuating each word, "Her actions got us blacklisted everywhere. Is this also my fault? Did you ever consider what would happen if our parents, or yours, had an emergency and these top-tier medical facilities refused to treat them?"
"What do you suggest we do, then? Should I go find her? Or talk to Darwin or Janna?" Chris could no longer suppress his anger, "Crystal, do you have any idea where I am? Didn't you notice something off in my voice?"
Crystal was stunned into silence.
Chris had never lost his temper with her before.
"What...what's wrong?" She finally expressed her concern.
"I've been in an accident. I have internal bleeding, and I'm in the hospital," Chris explained slowly, "That's why I haven't been answering your calls—because I can’t!"
"My God!" Crystal exclaimed, "Which hospital are you at? I'm on my way. Chris, why wouldn't you tell me something this serious?"
"I won't die; I didn't want you all to worry." Chris's gaze fell.
He could no longer hold on to Ashton.
So, he couldn't afford to lose Crystal's support...
As for Ashton... Once he had everything, once he was powerful enough, he would take her back, no matter what underhanded methods he had to use!
Crystal ended the call and rushed towards Chris's location.
On the way, a friend inquired about a certain AP Medical for her.
"Crystal, is your family getting into the healthcare business? That's a big leap, bypassing the lower rungs and aiming to partner with the top of the food chain?"
"Top of the food chain?" Crystal's brows furrowed, "You mean, AP is that formidable? Even more than the medical conglomerates of the Solomons and the Rhoads family?"
You can't even compare them. I mean, the medical conglomerates of the Solomons and the Rhoads family don't hold a candle to AP! Sure, the Solomons and the Rhoads may have ventured into healthcare in the last couple of decades, but they’re not originally from the field. AP, on the other hand, are a whole different story. Back in the Old West, they were the go-to pharmacy in the country and pioneers in bringing Western medicine to these parts."
Crystal was confused.
"How come I've never heard of them then?"
"That's because AP has shifted gears from being out in the forefront to powering the engine room. They now specialize in providing backend medical service systems for private hospitals domestically," the other person explained. "Aside from the likes of the Solomons and the Rhoads families who have the know-how, conservatively speaking, about sixty to seventy percent of the world uses AP's systems."
"That can’t be right..." Crystal found it hard to believe. "So, has AP been bought out by the Solomons or the Rhoads family?"
"Why do you keep bringing up those two? Who could possibly take over the Walker family’s business?"
"The Walker family? Which Walker family?"
"The Walker family."
At that, Crystal slammed on her brakes, stopping the car abruptly.
The car behind her nearly crashed into hers, cursing loudly as it swerved past.
But Crystal couldn’t care less about that now.
The Solomons, the Rhoads family, and now a Walker family from the South—each of them alone could crush her and the Shaw family with ease.
Now these financial titans were coming out to back Ashton?
"Hey, what's going on over there?"
"Nothing... It's nothing."
"If you need AP’s contact information, I can ask around for you. Remember, if this deal goes through, you owe me a big, fat bonus."
"That won’t be necessary." Crystal hung up the call.
Why on earth did Ashton have such powerful backing?
She felt completely overwhelmed.
The well-connected Ashton, who seemingly could do as she pleased, woke up.
Sunlight spilled across the room through the floor-to-ceiling windows, shining on the spacious, soft bed that was oddly fragrant.
Wait a minute.
Spacious, soft, fragrant?
She remembered ordering the bed by mistake—it was comfortable alright, but not exactly what she would call soft.
And the scent. It definitely wasn't Ashton’s usual laundry detergent.
It took her a few seconds to piece it together.
She bolted upright in bed.
Oh right—she was staying at the Kennys'!
She grabbed her phone to check the time. It was almost nine.
She had scheduled to meet with her designer at ten-thirty to continue discussing the project.
“Oh no, I'm so late!"
Ashton shot out of bed, made a beeline for the bathroom, and quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face. She was about to change clothes when a knock sounded at the door.
"Coming!" She called out, striding swiftly to open the door.
There stood Kenny, the concern on his face preempted by swift reassurance, "I've already spoken with them. We have a video call at 10:30, and you can keep your camera off. Told them you had an allergic reaction."
Ashton breathed a sigh of relief, "Puppy, you're a lifesaver!"
With that, she gave Kenny a quick, grateful hug. Maybe she could catch a few more winks of sleep.
"Puppy?"
It was only after she let go of him, intending to return to her bed, that she heard his puzzled voice.
Ashton froze.
"Huh?" She tried to play it off.
"Why exactly are you calling me puppy?" He pressed, genuinely curious. After all, he had seen plenty of golden retriever puppies; his nephew's chubby one came to mind. He couldn't see any resemblance.
"I'll tell you another time," Ashton said, nudging Kenny back to close the door. "I need to change, Mr. Walker. Please, some space!" Without waiting for a response, she quickly shut the door and locked it with a flick of her wrist.
Flopping back onto the bed, she grabbed her phone to text Fiona.
"Girl, that was close!! I just called him puppy!!!"
After a while, Fiona responded.
"Are you two living together now?"
Ashton didn’t know how to respond.
Ashton dawdled in choosing her loungewear, lingering in the comfort of hesitation.
Then a text from Kenny popped up.
"Mrs. Walker, breakfast's getting cold. — From Puppy."
Ashton was speechless.
Now, she wanted to face the day even less.
Kenny’s initial look had hinted at a lifetime together, till hair turned white with age. And her? The first time she saw Kenny, she had him pegged as a dog?
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
