Ch. 1911..1920

Chapter 1911

All the other men in black were about to dart into the cabin to give their comrades a hand.

Right that instant, someone pointed at the sky and shrilled, "My goodness! What's that?"

All the other men in black lifted their heads instinctively.

They were thunderstruck by the sky darkened by a soar of eagles! They loomed over the men in black like an air force battling against their mortal enemies.

The men squealed at the top of their lungs as they fired frantically, but they were incomparable to the eagles that outnumbered them outrageously.

A series of gunshots resounded to every corner of the hill.

Coincidentally, Danrique had reached the foot of the hill.

Startled by the gunshots, his face turned ashen.

Without hesitation, he sped off up the hilltop at a mind-blowing speed with his outstanding driving skill.

In a blink of an eye, his car was nowhere to be seen.

His convoy trailing behind his car a while ago could not catch up with him.

Gordon instructed the others placidly, "Stay calm and head toward the hilltop.”

"Noted," the other drivers responded respectfully.

Preoccupied with the possibility that Francesca might have met her tragic fate, Danrique’s heart was in his mouth.He stepped on the accelerator to reach the hilltop soonest possible.

The moment he caught sight of the cabin, he was utterly speechless at the overwhelming chaos. A badly damaged jeep was stuck on a big tree.

Meanwhile, a few men in black were lying motionless on the ground carpeted with feathers

On top of that, the cabin's door was wide open, and the roof was gone.

Panic-stricken, Danrique shrieked, "Cece!"

He jumped off the car at once and dashed into the cabin.

Again, he was taken aback by the unsightly mess there.

Apart from a few lifeless snakes, there were animal furs and ghastly pools of blood on the floor. Nevertheless, there was no sign of anyone there

Francesca seemed to have vanished into thin air with them too.

"Cece! Cece!"

Danrique called out her name as he continued searching every corner of the cabin for her but to no avail.

Like a cat on hot bricks, he switched to search for her in the forest.

Shortly after, Sean and Gordon arrived with the others.

After being momentarily dumbfounded by the absolute mess, they started tracking down Francesca without wasting time.

As the hours passed by, the sky became darker gradually.

However, there was still no sign of Francesca at sunset.

Gordon assigned his men to bring the few severely injured men in black with them.

Furthermore, he collected other potential clues that he believed would be helpful to them in tracing Francesca's whereabouts.

Meanwhile, Sean approached Danrique and tried to appease him warily.

"Mr.Lindberg, don't worry. I'm convinced that Dr.Felch will be all right.My gut instinct tells me all these animals were summoned by her earlier.Perhaps, they had rescued her!"

Even so, Danrique only stared into the distance with inexplicit complex emotions in his eyes without uttering any words.

At that very moment, the fiery redness of the sunset bathed the entire sky, shrouding the whole forest with a red veil.It was a breathtaking view, but Danrique was not in the mood to admire it. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally opened his mouth.

"Let Gordon leave with all the others."

Sean was flabbergasted.

"Huh? Mr.Lindberg, aren't you looking for Dr.Felch? She should be still in the hills.I have a feeling she is not very far away."

"She has been hiding from me.Thus, I'm sure she won't show up when the others are around.Just bring along a few quick-witted ones to back me up.Let the others retreat”

Danrique stated placidly as he smoothened his clothes.

"Noted."

Sean nodded solemnly and proceeded with the arrangement.

At the same time, Gordon rushed over and reported, "Mr.Lindberg, we spotted Ms.Cece's bag and this...”

He handed a blood-stained bag and passport to Danrique.

The latter's eyes lit up the moment he caught sight of Francesca's name on the passport.

Ha! My instinct is proven right! Later, he opened her bag intuitively.

Other than identification documents, there was a big bag of jewelry given by him.

Catching sight of the bag of jewelry, Danrique’s mouth lifted into a triumphant smile.

"She's indeed fantasizing about money.Hmph! She didn't even forget to bring this bag of goody along when running away from me!”

Sean suggested hastily, "Since Dr.Felch’s identification documents and jewelry are still here, I'm sure she'll be back to retrieve them.

Mr.Lindberg, do you think we need to assign a few men to wait for her here?"

"Yeah! Get a few men to stand guard here.” Danrique nodded.

"Mr.Lindberg, noted.” Sean arranged for a few men to stand guard around the cabin immediately. Danrique continued to track Francesca down with him and the other bodyguards.

On the other hand, Gordon led the others to retreat as instructed by his boss.

 

Chapter 1912

The sound of water dripping, the rustling of the leaves as animals moved among the bushes, and the unique sounds from unknown bugs blended in as background music for the quiet night.

The enchanting melody of nature sounded near Francesca's ear, waking her up.

As she slowly came to her senses, the agonizing pain was really unbearable to her.

What she had been through earlier was beyond description

When the men in black were caught off guard in the cabin, she grabbed the opportunity to request the black bear to take her away.

Thus, it carried her on the shoulder and left.

However, it stumbled along the way.

Inevitably, her head knocked on the cabin’s door, the trunk, and the stone wall.

Subsequently, her wound opened up and started bleeding again.

In the end, the big black bear finally took her back to the cave and threw her violently on the floor. She only let out a yowl before drifting into unconsciousness.

It took her a few hours to regain consciousness again.

By the time she was awake again, night had fallen

It was pitch black in the cave.

The few black bears were sleeping soundly beside the rocks and exhaling breathes of pungent stench.

Francesca tried to move, only to find that her entire body was stiff.

Numbed by the tormenting pain, she could not even lift her head.

She parted her lips and tried to call out to the bear feebly.

After quite a while, one of the bears eventually woke up and fed her some water with a piece of leaf. Even though the beast was not gentle enough, it had at least helped moisten her dry throat. When she was able to speak again, she requested the bear to help her search for her bag at once. Nonetheless, it did not manage to find her bag even after searching high and low in the cave for a long time.

Finally, something came to her mind and she realized her bag was still in the cabin.

Thus, she commanded the black bear to help her retrieve it.

Other than the identification documents and the jewelry, there was medicine inside the bag.

Not to mention, it was chilly on the hill, and she was severely injured.

My life will be in danger if I don't take the medicine in time! Seconds later, the big black bear stepped out of the cave to look for her bag as commanded.

Lying on the ground, the excruciating pain was numbing Francesca's senses.

She realized even if the bear was able to retrieve her bag, the common medicine in her bag might not be able to cure her wounds.

She had lost a lot of blood after her wound opened up earlier and bled profusely.

As she started to have a fever, she had a feeling that there was inflammation in her wound.

No way! I must leave this place at once! Otherwise, my life will be in danger! Time flew by as her mind ran wild uncontrollably.

Before the black bear was back, Francesca was overcome by another wave of drowsiness.She had no choice but to keep reminding herself.

You must stay awake! Don't fall asleep! If not, you won't be able to wake up anymore! She suddenly felt itchy all over her body, as if some unknown bugs were biting her.

In fact, there were countless of them! She was not afraid of ferocious beasts and various types of animals.

Notwithstanding, her blood ran cold whenever she thought about the rats and bugs.

The thought gave her goosebumps instantly, suffocating her with intense repulsion and fear, both mentally and physically.

She presumed the bugs were drawn toward the blood stench of her body.

Hence, she shook her body frantically to shrug the bugs off, but in vain.

Screech! A mysterious chattering sound rang out as she waited to get over it with bated breath.Next, she felt something furry moving agilely on her body.

One of them even crawled along her thigh and abdomen before moving up to her breast! When she mustered up the courage to take a closer look, it scared the wits out of her.

Oh my! It's a rat! Having an emotional breakdown, Francesca was on the brink of tears.

However, she fought to refrain from bursting into tears—she could only whimper helplessly.

In the meantime, Sloan shone his flashlight in the direction of the cave.

"Mr.Lindberg, there seems to be a cave over there."

Hearing that, Danrique advanced toward the cave at once and spotted the bears’ footprints outside the cave.

Hence, they lowered the brightness of their flashlights right away before moving toward the cave slowly.

Under the dim light, he could make out two bears sleeping soundly in the cave.

Surprisingly, Francesca was lying next to them! Sloan was about to dash into the cave and called out, "Dr.F.."

Even so, a whip-smart Danrique stood in his way with a kick, gesturing to him to zip his mouth.

 

Chapter 1913

Sloan quickly shut his mouth and didn't dare to utter another word.

Danrique stood at the cave entrance and squinted to observe the situation inside.

Sob...He heard Francesca's sobbing voice.lt seemed like she was crying.It was the first time she felt lost and hopeless because more and more rats were crawling over her body, and she was about to go crazy.

At that moment, all she could do was wish for someone to save her.

As long as someone, anyone, could take her out of that place, she would be grateful.

Danrique made a gesture, and Sean aimed a tranquilizer gun at the two black bears.

Soon after, the two bears dropped their heads and slept soundly.However, Danrique didn't rush inside.Instead, he gestured at his men.

Sean immediately spoke while pretending to sound casual, "Mr.Lindberg, we have been looking from evening till late at night, but there were still no signs of Ms.Cece.She might not even be on the mountain at all.Could she have been taken away?"

"That's right, Mr.Lindberg.Why don't we get off the mountain first?" Mylo cleverly chimed in. "Huh? Ms.Cece is—"

Before Sloan could speak, Mylo covered his mouth and stopped him from uttering another word. Sloan was an honest man.He didn't understand what Danrique meant by that.

All he wanted was to go in and save Francesca.

Mylo was afraid that he would cause trouble, so he refused to let him speak any further.

When Francesca heard their voices from within the cave, she was overjoyed.She wanted to call out to them, but she hesitated.

Someone finally came to rescue her, and it was Danrique.

However, if Danrique brought her back, she wouldn't be able to escape again.

Moreover, he might have already known about her true identity.

One could only imagine what he would do to her.

"Okay.Let's go down the mountain”

Danrique deliberately said.

As the group prepared to leave, Sloan held on toa boulder next to him and tugged at Mylo's hand, refusing to leave.He made a whimpering sound, trying to remind Danrique that Francesca was in the cave.

Mylo was rendered speechless by Sloan's dense nature.

If he ruined Danrique’s plan, his fate would be uncertain when they returned

Sean made a gesture, and the two other bodyguards helped Mylo drag Sloan away.

"Don't go.I'm here..."

As expected, Francesca became anxious and shouted.

However, she was severely injured, and her voice was weak.She was afraid the people outside the cave couldn't hear her and wanted to get up in a hurry.

But her stiff and numb body didn't allow her to do so.She couldn't even move a muscle.

Hence, she struggled to pick up a stone with her hand and threw it toward the cave entrance. Thump! Suddenly, the sound of footsteps outside the cave stopped.

"What's that sound?" Sean asked.

"There seem to be someone in the cave,” Mylo chimed in.

"No" said Danrique, "It must have been the wind"

"That's right!"

Sean immediately responded, "If Mr.Lindberg said it's the wind, it is the wind"

"Yes," Mylo quickly replied.

Sob...

sob...

Sloan whimpered and was about to cry, but Mylo kept his mouth covered.

The two other bodyguards held on to his shoulders to prevent him from moving, or he would have rushed into the cave long ago.

"Let's go!" Danrique instructed, and the group continued forward.

Francesca shed tears when she saw them leaving before her eyes.She was shaking from all the panic.

She mustered all her strength and shouted, "I'm here...I'm in here..."

But her voice was weak and no one paid her any attention.

"Help..."

She became even more terrified as they moved further away.Still, none of them seemed to hear her. As their figures were about to disappear from the cave entrance, Francesca shouted, "Danrique!” This time, Danrique finally halted his tracks.

"Did someone call out my name?"

"Seems like it!"

Sean was very implicit, "If my ears served me right, it does sound like Ms.Cece's voice"

"It seems to have come from the cave,” Mylo added.

Sean took a glance at Mylo and admired his limitless potential.

 

Chapter 1914

In the end, Danrique turned around and walked into the cave.

Sean and Mylo followed closely behind him with flashlights.

Sloan and the other two bodyguards went in after them.

The two stopped holding him but signaled him not to speak.

Sloan covered his mouth with his hand, not daring to make a sound.

The flashlight illuminated the inside of the cave like rays of hope penetrating the darkness. When Francesca raised her head and saw Danrique's tall and slender figure, she suddenly had the urge to cry.She was finally saved!

"So that's where you were."

Danrique was calm and cold.

There was no sign of excitement, worries or sadness on his expression at all. He stood before Francesca and looked down at her as if looking at a frail creature.

"Dr.Felch!" Sloan rushed over in a hurry.

He wanted to drive away the rats and ants on Francesca, but Mylo tripped him and he fell to the ground.He tried to get up, but the two bodyguards stopped him by stepping on his back.

Sloan was the most slow-witted of the bunch, and they couldn't afford to let him ruin Mr.Lindberg's plans.

"Save me..."

Francesca struggled to reach out to Danrique for help.However, Danrique remained indifferent. He sighed, "I've been so kind to you.Why are you thinking of running away all the time?"

"Take me with you.Take me away..."

Francesca had no intention of discussing the matter with him.

Many mice, ants, and various bugs were crawling all over her body.

The insects got into her ears, and the mice crept all over her body.She was already on the brink of losing her sanity.

Hence, she wouldn't be in the mood to explain herself to Danrique.

"Why should I take you with me? You won't even marry me."

Danrique squatted down, picked up a mouse on its tail with two fingers, and dangled it in front of Francesca as he spoke.

"Argh!"

Francesca closed her eyes at the unsightly scene.

"Aren't you adept at manipulating animals?"

Danrique looked at her with an amusing expression.

"So why are you afraid of mice?"

"Rogue!"

Francesca was so angry that she wanted to shout at him.But Danrique brought the mouse even closer to her face, and its whiskers almost touched her face.

"You dare to raise your voice even when you're stuck in this situation, huh?"

Danrique smirked and said smugly, "You should beg me"

"Why you..."

Francesca got so livid that she couldn't speak.

"Well, this is a beautiful cave.lt's warm in the winter and cool in the summer.There are even pets as company.If you lie here for half a month, you'll get used to these mice.You might even eat them alive to survive."

Danrique felt gratified at her frightened face.

"You..."

Francesca was about to cry.

"W-What exactly do you want?"

"I want you to beg me.” Danrique finally said it.

"Beg me, and I'll take you away!"

"Why you..."

"Come on.My patience is limited!"

Danrique refused to give up his long-awaited opportunity.

"Do you want to see a doctor downhill or remain here as mice food? You decide!"

"Go to hell."

Francesca was infuriated and was about to summon animals to attack Danrique.But if she drove them away, she would lose her last hope for survival.

"How stubborn!"

Danrique stood up and said, "Since she doesn't want us to save her, what are we waiting for? Let's go"

"Yes, Sir"

Sean and Mylo quickly followed behind.

"Mr.Lindberg—"

Before Sloan could speak, the two bodyguards dragged him outside.

Poor Sloan, who wholeheartedly wanted to save Francesca, was still shouting anxiously, "Mr.Lindberg, please save Dr.Felch.Mr.Lindberg—"

Danrique remain unfazed.He simply turned around and left.

Francesca looked at his retreating back, distressed.

Before his figure disappeared from the cave, she yelled, "I'm begging you...Save me..."

"Hmm?"

Danrique finally stopped and turned around to look at her.

"What did you say?"

 

Chapter 1915

ow

Francesca gritted her teeth and said humiliatingly, "I beg you.Please save me."

She was in a disadvantageous situation.It would be wise for her to do as Danrique said.

As long as she survived, it would never be too late for revenge.

At that moment, countless thoughts flashed through her mind.It would be best for her to stay alive for now.

"Hmm." Danrique walked to her and looked at her condescendingly.

"You should have do that from the start"

"You..." Francesca was beyond enraged.

"Now, will you take me away?"

"Not yet." Danrique crouched and smiled at her.

"How will you repay me for saving you?"

Francesca was about to explode with anger.She had to repay him even after begging.

"How about this,"

Danrique crouched and continued, "Vow that you will marry me, and I will take you away right now!" "Go to hell" Francesca erupted.

"You can kill me but I will not be humiliated.I'd rather die here than beg you.”

"Very well!"

Danrique nodded with a smile.

"You have some spine!”

Having said that, he was about to leave with his men.

"Rogue! I dare you to kill me right now! Otherwise, I will come back for you! Just wait and see!" Francesca was so angry that she was gritting her teeth when she was cursing him.

At that moment, she didn't sound weak at all.

Danrique ignored her and continued to step out of the cave.

"I will snap your limbs, skin you, and cut you up into a thousand pieces! Argh!"

Before Francesca finished her swearing, she began to scream.

Suddenly, a mouse got into her clothes and climbed up her skirt.

"Ah!"

Francesca shrieked in horror.

"Save me! Save me! Rogue!"

"Will you make your vows?"

Danrique looked back at her.

"Yes. I vow! I vow!"

Francesca was already crying.

"Save me!"

Danrique strolled toward her and reached out to grab the mouse.

Then, he kicked the mouse away.

"There's more.There's more."

Francesca trembled as she looked at the mouse in front of her chest.

Danrique frowned, kicked the mouse away, and shouted displeasingly, "Get lost! I haven't even got to touch her!"

Boohoo..

Francesca's tears fell down her cheek.

"Rogue, I was wrong.Please save me."

"Vow."

Danrique wouldn't budge.

"I will save you after you swear upon it!"

"You!"

Francesca rolled her eyes.However, she held back her anger, gritted her teeth, and squeezed her vows from her mouth, saying, "I, Francesca...hereby vow to repay Danrique for saving my life...even if it means marrying him.May God smite me if I go back on my word!"

"Wait"

Danrique took out his phone and turned on his camera.

"Repeat it.Say it loud and clear!"

"You!"

Francesca was seething in rage, but she had no choice but to hold back her anger and repeat it again.

"I, Francesca, hereby vow to repay Danrique for saving my life even if it means marrying him.May God smite me if I go back on my word!"

"Well done!"

Danrique recorded her oath with his phone, took a picture of her embarrassing appearance, and threatened her.

"If you go back on your word, I will make this video public.Then, the world will see that the legendary Francesco couldn't keep her promise!"

"You win!"

Francesca no longer had the strength to speak.Her body was as weak as a kitten.

"Is Kate not here yet?" Danrique asked with a frown.

"I gave her our location when we found the cave.She should be on her way here.l have already sent someone to pick her up" Sean explained

"Leave us for now!" Danrique ordered.

"Yes." Sean quickly led the other subordinates away.

"What else do you want? Hey, Rogue. What are you-"

Chapter 1916

Danrique removed Francesca's clothes and got rid of the ants and rats on her body. Subsequently, he wrapped her up with his jacket and carried her petite figure out of the cave.

At that very moment, Francesca was feeling woozy, and her head throbbed with pain.

A pungent stench of blood from her neck slowly filled the air.

As they exited the cave, they were greeted by a gust of cold wind.It sobered Francesca up a little.She clenched Danrique’s collar and muttered weakly, "My backpack and passport..They're left in the wooden house..."

"I got them.”

As he spoke, a jeep pulled over on the slope and picked both of them up.Kate treated Francesca's wounds and bandaged them accordingly.

Afterward, the jeep drove them down.The sun was already breaking through the horizon by the time they got to the foot of the mountain.The morning twilight was as refreshing as a beacon of hope. Lowering his head to gaze at Francesca who was sleeping soundly in his arms, Danrique had never been so delighted before.

When she's not fussing, she's like a docile and obedient child.

Although she was stinky and completely disheveled with dirt and blood stained all over her body, he did not mind that at all.

Conversely, he even brushed away the loose strands on her forehead.

If only time could stand still for us to stay like this forever...

"Mr.Lindberg!"

Sloan called out anxiously as a thought occurred to him all of a sudden.

"Dr.Felch hurt the back of her head before.If I'm not mistaken, it was quite serious.I wonder if her new wounds would trigger her old injury.”

Sean recalled something upon hearing that.

"Oh, that's right.I remember seeing the X-ray images.Back then, Dr.Wright did a check-up on her and discovered multiple metal chips pressing on the nerves of her brain.As a result, she lost her memory."

"If that's the case, it's going to be a challenge.”

Kate added, "Let's do a scan on Ms.Cece as soon as we get to the hospital.”

"Notify M Nation to call upon Helen now" Danrique instructed decisively.

"Arrange for the hospital to perform a thorough check-up and follow-up treatment.”

"Noted."

Immediately, Kate made a phone call to convey the order.

Thereafter, the convoy set off steadily for the hospital.

When they arrived, Danrique carried Francesca down personally, and they were met by a team of medical officers who had been patiently waiting at the entrance, on standby.

The medical superintendent and his team of experts hurried over to offer their care and concern. However, Danrique ignored them all and made his way through the entrance.

Kate trailed behind him, explaining Francesca's condition to the doctors.

Soon, the hospital put her through an urgent MRI scan.

After running through a battery of tests, the medical experts and specialists had a discussion to research the most ideal treatment plan for Francesca.

The next morning, they finally had an action plan.

Kate brought along the X-ray images to report the updates to Danrique.

The situation was more or less similar to what Helen found out earlier.

The claim regarding the metal chips pressing on the nerves of Francesca's brain was indeed true, and surgery was inevitable because her life was at stake.

However, no one dared to handle the case because it involved a high-risk operation.

Kate and the other experts at the hospital were not confident to guarantee much success.

None of them could afford to bear the consequences should the surgery fail.

Instantly, Danrique asked for Helen, who was already on her way to the hospital.She should arrive in a few hours’ time.

Since Danrique insisted on staying at the hospital to keep Francesca company, Sean made arrangements with the housekeeper to deliver them some change of clothes.

Right then, Gordon dashed over and reported, "Mr.Lindberg, the three prominent families are looking for you high and low.

They said that there's an important meeting for you to attend this morning.”

"Reschedule it to the afternoon.” Danrique was rather annoyed.

"I told them that, but..."

Before Gordon could finish his sentence, a familiar voice rang in their ears, "I'm afraid the decision isn't yours to make, Danrique, for the vice president is coming over today."

 

Chapter 1917

Danrique knitted his brows when he heard that voice.He turned around and saw Harrier slowly walking toward him.

"How did you know that I'm here?" Danrique shot him a cold glare and questioned.

"When there's a will, there's a way." Harrier grinned.

"The entire company is looking for you, and they needed a representative to be the bad guy.who else could it be besides myself?"

"The three of you could easily join hands and chair the meeting" Danrique said curtly.

"I'll catch up when I can.” He did not want to elaborate further.

"Fine."

Harrier smiled, not wanting to argue with him.

"You're the one in charge, whatever you say, goes.I'm just a messenger for all the shareholders.All right, my duty is done"

"Leave then" Danrique urged impolitely.

"Okay!"

Harrier shrugged and walked away.

A few steps later, he turned around and asked, "By the way, is everything all right with Ms.Cece?" Danrique said nothing.

He merely narrowed his eyes and stared daggers at Harrier, who then caught the hint and left with a pursed lips.

When he had finally disappeared, Sean asked under his breath, "Could it be him?"

Everything that had happened throughout the day was Clearly carefully orchestrated by someone. The other party followed Francesca all the way and abducted her as soon as she got off the car.

In addition, they were fully armed and even destroyed the surveillance cameras at the entrance to the airport in advance.

The clues suggested that it was not an act of one person only.

"I'm not sure.” Danrique frowned

"If it was him, he wouldn't have the courage to come see me in public. Then again, I doubt there's anyone else who is so bold and ambitious to do such a thing.”

"Anyway, Gordon is investigating the case.We might be able to get more information once the few guys are awakened," Sean comforted him.

"Mr.Lindberg, are you sure you don't want to attend the meeting? Don't worry about Ms.Felch since the doctors are with her."

"I'll decide when Helen is here to confirm the treatment plan.” Danrique checked the time.

"Go and call her again.”

“Noted.”

Right then, another subordinate rushed in and reported, "Mr.Lindberg, Prince William is here." "Usher him into a room downstairs and wait for me there.” Danrique gestured.

"Yes, Mr.Linderberg."

Shortly after Danrique got himself changed, he made his way to the room next door and found an anxious William there.

"How is she?" the latter queried immediately and wheeled himself closer to Danrique.

"You knew her identity already?"

Danrique answered with a question.

"Yes."

William came clean with him

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hide it from you.lt's just that the situation was a bit tricky.Once her identity is exposed, I'm afraid it will invite a lot of troubles.”

"Telling me about it doesn't count as exposing her identity unnecessarily.”

Danrique looked right into his eyes.

"You're right." William nodded.

"However, she doesn't want you to find out about that.Hence, I have to help my friend keep a secret.”

"Friend?" Danrique asked mockingly.

"Well, she's my fiancée!"

He purposely included the term to subtly remind and warn William who Francesca was.

Stunned, William quickly explained himself, "You know that I don't have many friends except for you and Francesca.l don't harbor any ulterior motives.Francesca is a friend, and she will always remain a friend.”

His words soothed Danrique.

The icy aura in his eyes gradually dissipated...

"How is she?" William asked again.

"Nothing too serious.”

Danrique gave him a laconic reply.

"She might need a brain surgery. Anyway, I'm still waiting for Helen to get here.”

"I doubt Helen is able to solve her problem."

William furrowed his brows and continued, "It's ironic that a miracle doctor like Francesca can't heal herself..."

"Helen is of no help?"

At that point, Danrique finally realized the severity of the problem.

Though he was the one who hit Francesca with a car, Sean was the person who cleaned up the mess and settled everything on his behalf. Therefore, Danrique had very little knowledge about the details.

 

Chapter 1918

"I suggest delaying the matter until Francesca is awakened," William proposed.

"Perhaps, she has her own solution.”

"Hmm."

Danrique headed toward the door and instructed Sean, "Escort His Highness back.”

"Duly noted.”

Sean immediately approached William and ushered him reverently, “Your Highness, this way, please.”

William wanted to say something as he gazed at Danrique's back profile, but held himself back in the end.He wanted to take a peek at Francesca.

Unfortunately, with Danrique’s imposing and domineering attitude on full display, the former would never grant him that request of his.

In the past, William thought that Danrique would only draw a line between friends and enemies in business.

Now, it seemed like he acted the same in relationships too.

After escorting William out of the hospital, Sean directed two cars to send him off.

He watched the convoy leave the hospital compound before returning.

Robin withdrew his gaze from the rearview mirror and said cautiously, "Your Highness, the Mr.Lindberg that I know will never leave any room for Your Highness to get near to Dr.Felch.Shall we go home?"

"Let's wait for a while more."

William lowered his eyes, seemingly in deep thoughts.

"Just wait for a few more days."

Sigh.

Robin dared not say more, but he was fretting deep down.

The kidnapping incident reveals just how much Francesca means to Danrique.lt's way beyond what we've expected.

The moment he found out about it, he engaged the military and used its resources to locate her without considering the impact of his actions.

He even went to the jungle and saved her personally.

Now, he willfully neglects his business and insists on staying by her side at the hospital.

He has never valued and focused so much on one single person in his life.

This is definitely a first. As such, it's impossible for Danrique to give others a chance to covet his woman, not even Prince William.

Unfortunately, William refused to give up, making Robin very worried.

A fight might break out between Prince William and Danrique, resulting in them both becoming archenemies...

"Don't you worry, for I know what I'm doing.” William could read Robin's mind.

"My only wish is for her to be well.That's it."

He smiled.

Robin felt slightly relieved upon hearing his words.

When it stopped snowing in the morning, Helen finally arrived at the hospital.

After retrieving the latest X-ray images and examination report, she started checking on Francesca's wounds.

At that time, she was oblivious to Francesca”s real identity.

The only thing she knew was that Francesca pretended to be a guy in M Nation the last time they met.

After a detailed check, Helen said solemnly, "I can perform a surgery on her, but the risk is exceptionally high with only twenty percent of success rate.”

"What?" Sean gasped.

"Twenty percent? Didn't you say it's fifty-fifty back in M Nation?"

"Yes, there was a fifty percent chance because her condition then was not as serious as now.But currently, she has a brain injury too. studied the X- ray images just now and noticed that the metal chips are completely pressing on her nerves.In addition, there's evidence of infection on her wounds as they are covered with pus.I'm not too positive about this surgery..."

Helen's expression grave.

Moments later, she added, "If we want a hundred percent survival rate for a risky surgery as such, there's only one person who could do it - the legendary miracle doctor, Francesco.Rumor has it that her techniques and skills are impeccable with a hair-splitting mentality.”

“Um...

Sean took a deep breath.

Gosh, how could the amazing Francesco operate on herself? This is close to impossible.

"Besides Francesco, do you know any other miracle doctor on the same par as her?"

Danrique who had been keeping silent finally spoke.

"Hmm...Not that I know of."

Helen looked extremely concerned.

"Mr.Lindberg, I urge that you contact Francesco soonest possible.

This lady's condition can't drag on like this any longer, or else her life will be at stake.”

When Danrique heard that, a conflicted look crossed his face.He felt so sorry for her.It's all my fault.I overlooked the fact that any delay in denying her a well-deserved treatment could cause her condition to deteriorate.How could I even threaten her on purpose when we were trapped inside the cave?

 

Chapter 1919

"Then, what else can be done?" asked Sean anxiously.

"I can clean her wounds now to stabilize her condition.There's no problem with that.” Helen said grimly, "However, that won't be able to buy you a lot of time.The priority is still to get Francesco.lt's better for you to work on that right away."

"Okay." Sean nodded.

"Please help to treat Ms.Felch’s wounds first."

With that, Helen attended to Francesca at once.

Danrique exited the ward and gave a command to his subordinates.

"Go all out and look for the best doctors in the world.l don't believe that there's only one miracle doctor."

"Yes, Mr.Lindberg!"

Gordon hurried off to carry out his task.

Danrique’s phone had since rang multiple times, but he could not be bothered to pick up any calls.He was too distracted by that one thought that kept on playing in his mind - how could he save Francesca? In the evening, Francesca woke up with a terrible headache.

Her whole body was aching too.

When she opened her bleary eyes, a familiar handsome face appeared in front of her.

Surprised, she shut her eyes close.

Darn it! Is there no way for me to escape him?

"You're awake!"

Seeing so, Danrique pressed the emergency bell to call for a doctor.

"Would you like some water?" he offered gently.

Francesca's eyes remained closed.She did not want to engage in a conversation with him.She could vividly remember everything that happened inside the cave.

Thus, she was filled with deep hatred toward him and wished for nothing more than to strangle him to death.

Too bad she was so badly injured that her exhausted body could not move a muscle.

Therefore, she chose to ignore him totally.

"What's the matter? Why aren't you saying anything?"

Danrique leaned forward and stroked her face.

Francesca did not want to entertain him at all.

Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of her rolling eyeballs and knew that she was pretending to sleep. At that instant, he forcefully opened her eye lids and yelled, "Look at me!"

"D*mn you, b*stard! Argh!" cursed Francesca.

Just as she had finished reprimanding him, the flaring pain from the wound behind her head throbbed intensely and caused her face to pale drastically.

"Keep that energy to take care of yourself first instead of scolding people.” Danrique’s forehead creased.

"Can't you just behave?"

He was angry and heartbroken at the same time.

"You..."

Francesca got all worked up, but she was too weak to lash out on him.

A few seconds later, a team of doctors strode into the ward to check on Francesca.

"Be gentle, and don't hurt her" reminded Danrique while observing from afar.

"Sure thing, Mr.Lindberg.”

"I told you all to be gentle!"

"Yes, Mr.Lindberg."

Francesca was at a loss for words.The nurses are just doing their job.

Can he stop shouting each time I draw a sharp breath? His rage is making them trembling in fear. Thankfully, Norah came forward and appeased the situation.

Otherwise, it would have been unbearable for the poor nurses.She also brought along Francesca's favorite Chanaean cuisine.

Afterward, Norah waited on Francesca during lunch along with two other housekeepers. Danrique noticed the food and commented with displeasure, "Why is the portion so small? It's so plain too.Hurry up and order her some beef and seafood"

"I'm sorry, Mr.Lindberg, a patient should avoid those food."

She explained, "Ms.Cece is injured.So, her diet has to change to something light.”

Danrique shifted his gaze to Sean upon realizing that he had no knowledge in this area.

The latter nodded as a response.

"Okay then.She shall be consuming a light diet these few days.Mdm.Norah, please help to deliver her some healthy meals every day"

"I will, Mr.Lindberg.Don't worry."

Norah nodded as she grinned.

Then, she spoke softly, "Um...Mr.Donald has been waiting for you at home for the entire day.Basically, he's just wondering when you are coming home?"

"Now," Danrique said after glancing at his watch.

Subsequently, he gave his men a stern warning.

"Deploy more people to station here and ensure her safety always.”

"Yes, Mr.Lindberg."

Sean went off to make the necessary arrangements as requested.

Danrique waited for Francesca to finish eating.

Then, he said, "I'm leaving in a bit, but I'll return as soon as I'm done with work. Take a good rest" "Get lost!"

Francesca rolled her eyes and blurted the words through gritted teeth.

 

Chapter 1920

Unexpectedly, Danrique did not get upset.

After giving some orders to the doctor and reminding Sean to wait for Gordon to return before ending his shift, he left the ward.

Later on, Sean needed to go consult the doctor.

So, he gave Mylo and Sloan a stern warning.

"Take good care of Ms.Felch, and don't let anything untoward happen to her if you want to live to see another day."

"Okay, okay.Don't worry, Sean.”

Mylo nodded fervently.

"I'll protect Ms.Felch with all my life."

Sean then fixated his gaze on Sloan who was tiptoeing to peep on Francesca from outside the ward. Mylo smacked Sloan's back.

Upon coming to his senses, Sloan promised at once, "Rest assured that I won't make any more mistakes, Sean.Anyhow, Dr.Felch is severely injured.She can't go anywhere, can she?"

Indeed, he's right about the last part of the sentence.

Sean rolled his eyes at him before leaving to see Helen.

In the evening, Norah wiped Francesca down and served her a glass of warm milk.

"Rest well, Ms.Cece.l'll bring you breakfast first thing in the morning.”

She was reluctant to leave her side.

"Thank you, Mdm.Norah.”

Francesca watched her exit the ward.

Then, she turned to the two medical staff who were guarding the ward after cleaning it up.

"Feel free to leave too.I'm going to get some shut- eye."

Right before she snoozed, she was interrupted by the knocking on the door.

"Ms.Cece, may I come in?"

It was Sean.

"Sure."

Francesca was having a slight headache.

Sean walked in with a couple of documents in his hands, followed by a cautious Sloan. "Ms.Cece..Oh no, I should address you as Dr.Felch."

Sean was not used to the change of terms because Francesca was completely a different person when she was Dr.Felch.

Back then, she was always the one chasing after Mr.Lindberg.She even stole kisses from him, and he would detest her presence.

Now, it's the total opposite.

He's the one begging and pleading for her to marry him

"The cat is out of the bag, eh?" Francesca felt so helpless.

"Tell me, what is it?"

"There are two things that I need to report to you" Sean as he reached for her backpack.

"This belongs to you.There are jewelry, documents, and some medication.Everything should be here.Could you check if anything is missing, please?"

"Bring it over and let me have a look at it."

Francesca appeared excited when she heard that.

Sean obliged and whipped out one item after another to show her.

Upon examining that everything was there, Francesca heaved a sigh of relief.

"Thank God nothing is missing."

Sean grinned before continuing, "I'll take this home for you..."

Francesca cut him off and said, "Just leave it here. feel safer when it's all under my nose” "Err...Sure."

Sean smiled wryly.

Then, he placed the backpack in the cupboard next to her bed.

"There's one more thing..."

Sean relayed what he knew, "Regarding your illness, we've consulted Dr.Wright. However, she's not too keen to handle the operation herself as she only has about twenty percent of confidence to get it right.So, she wants us to look for Francesco, the miracle doctor, soonest possible to heal your sickness.”

"Rubbish!"

Francesca's wounds hurt so much that she couldn't speak.

"Yes, I know."

Sean nodded vigorously.

"I'm aware that you are Francesco herself, but doctors don't treat themselves.So, no matter how excellent your skills are, it's impossible for you to perform a surgery on yourself.Then again, your condition right now is very risky.We can't afford to drag it any longer.Therefore, I want to ask if you Know of any other miracle doctors, or perhaps a senior or junior of yours of similar caliber? Maybe your master?"

It suddenly dawned on Francesca that her life was at stake.

She fell silent and mulled it over for a moment. guess the only person who could save me is none other than my master.

Considering that I disobeyed him in the past and cut off ties with him for so many years after being adamant that I should leave the mountains, I'm really doubtful if he would be willing to lend a hand. Who knows if I'm able to locate him in the first place? Ugh, that stubborn old man.

I wonder how long he is going to lecture me this time...