Filed to story: The Regretful Billionaire: An Unpredicted Reunion
“No, no. Let’s go now.” He shook his head, knowing they were at greater risk with each passing minute. Still, Danika flipped his coat open and saw the bleeding on his lower abdomen. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she held back from crying. ‘How could you say you weren’t shot? Are you only planning to tell me when you’re dying from blood loss?’
Despite her fury, she understood that he hid the gunshot wound from them to keep them from worrying and wasting time at the scene.
“Don’t move. I’ll bandage your wound.” Thankfully, Danika had a first-aid kit with her in the car. Even though there was no tool to extract the bullet from his wound, she could at least perform simple bandaging to stop the blood loss.
“Let’s go!” she yelled at the driver. With wounds in his thigh and lower abdomen, Graham must be sent to the hospital as soon as possible to avoid complications. Danika had her regrets about not prosecuting Kevin directly, but she had to prioritize Graham’s safety.
She had stationed some men at the border. Once Kevin arrived, he’d be arrested right away.
While leaving, she turned to check out the mercenaries one last time. She did not take their lives because they were in the territory of Clusia. No matter how damned they were, they should be left to the authorities and the rule of law.
The car sped down the road, and Graham was finally transported to the nearest hospital. Although the hospitals in Bardoff City were better equipped, she had no choice but to get his bullet extracted as soon as possible before transferring him to Bardoff City.
Meanwhile, Kevin and the rest of his subordinates hurried over to their destination.
They finally heaved a sigh when they saw the borders.
“Boss, that woman did not come after us,’ one of his men reported.
“Great. Let’s find a place to rest and get moving after dark. Once we’re on the other side, we can start a wonderful new life.” He beamed at the thought of the life awaiting him.
They could not cross the border in broad daylight, hence the decision to move after dark. If they were lucky, no one would spot them at all. Still, Kevin was worried that Danika might not let them off the hook.
He took a deep breath and told himself to stop overthinking. Putting aside Danika’s capabilities, she had to tend to her father first. He believed that she’d feel thankful to have Graham back and would rather not waste her time to come after them.
Alas, he underestimated Danika’s vengefulness. She was happy at the successful rescue, but it did not detract from her plan to get the mercenaries arrested.
They Can’t Escape
In an inn near the border, Evan ended the call in relief after learning that Danika had rescued Graham and James. It was his time to shine now. This was the first time Danika asked for his help after he returned from abroad, and he was determined not to disappoint her.
He looked at the unassembled gun on the table and picked it up. Within seconds, the gun was assembled. If Danika was around, she’d be surprised by his proficiency. He stowed it away when he heard a knock on the door.” Come in.”
One of his men entered the room and reported, ‘Boss, the mercenaries have arrived at the border.” Evan’s men were stationed across the border, and they immediately spotted the fugitives who arrived. Still, they did not make a move without an order from him. “Should we bring our men over?” the subordinate asked.
Evan shook his head. “We’re not in a rush. They want to cross the border, don’t they? We’ll let them cross and wait for them at the end.”
It wouldn’t feel thrilling enough to capture Kevin and his men right as they were about to cross. Plus, that’d be a waste of the time Evan’s men spent preparing at the border.
Evan wanted to give hope to the fugitives, who were looking forward to exiting the border after scaling the mountains, only to plunge them into despair at the other end. He couldn’t wait to see them breakdown. He vowed to torture the fugitives as payback for hurting the people he knew. Only then would he be putting his years of experience to good use.
After Graham’s surgery at a town hospital late at night, he was transported back to Bardoff City. Danika finally felt assured when he was warded in a hospital in Bardoff City.
After James completed his full body checkup, he went to visit Graham. “Is Mr. Zellweger doing okay?’
“Yeah. The doctor gave him a checkup and said he was fine. But he will need time to recover because of excessive blood loss,” Danika replied.
“It was my fault for not protecting him well.” James felt guilty. Being the younger one, he should have protected Graham, and the fact that Graham was Danika’s dad weighed on him more.
However, Danika disagreed. “James, why do you think it’s your fault? It’s all the fault of the mercenaries.’
“And the Glasses.” His face was as cold as winter at the mention of the Glass family.
A murderous gleam flashed across Danika’s eyes. She had no mercy left for the Glasses. “James, I’ll leave them to you. If we don’t get rid of them once and for all, we’ll be at risk of their attacks. You understand what I’m saying, right?’
“Don’t worry. I get what you mean. I will not give them a second chance.” Looking at the list of crimes that the Glasses had committed over the years, there was plenty of reason to put them in jail forever.
James hadn’t considered doing so before because he did not think the business competition warranted airing dirty laundry. After all, every one of the Ten Elites had things they’d rather cover up. Since the Glasses pushed their luck too far, James wouldn’t go easy on them this time.
He immediately went to work. Before leaving, he asked, “You made arrangements at the border, didn’t you?”
Although he was more than familiar with Danika’s meticulous personality, he wanted to double-check with her just in case. He would immediately send his men over to stop
Kevin from escaping if she had no plans to deal with Kevin at the border.
“Don’t worry. They can’t escape.” She smiled. Nothing would go wrong with Evan standing guard at the border.
James beamed, knowing that Danika would never spare Kevin and his men. He did not linger long in Graham’s room and went to the Windsor Corp next. He had plans to put the Glasses behind bars for life
You Won’t Be Where You Are Without Me
After James left, Paul showed up in the room. She was a little taken aback to see him.
“What’s wrong?” “Your dad…”
“He’s fine,” she replied with questions in her head. Since when did Paul care about her as a person? She soon learned the purpose of his visit.
“If you have time, you should visit Eustace,” he urged her. “His room is one floor below. You haven’t visited him once since he woke up.” He could tell that Eustace wanted to meet Danika, even though his friend never specifically brought it up.
She frowned at Paul quizzically. “Well, that’s great to hear, but why should I visit him? You should get Miss Watkins to do that.” She had more important tasks; she had to look after Graham while communicating with Evan to prevent any missteps in their border operation.
“Danika, Eustace has regained his memories,” Paul explained again.
She merely shrugged at him with a speechless expression. “Oh, really? That’s good news. It’s the reason he came for the surgery in the first place.”
Paul believed that Danika understood what he was implying and was feigning ignorance. There was nothing he could do if she played dumb.
“I still wish you would visit him.” With that, Paul left the room. Whether Danika wanted to visit Eustace was out of his control.
She pursed her lips and watched as he left. Then, she sat down again. She really had no time for Eustace, and even if she did visit him, she wouldn’t know what to say to him.
At the same time, Kevin and his men were crossing the mountain. Once they got to the other side, they would land in a foreign land where Clusia could not lay a finger on them. By then, they’d be truly free.
The thought kept their spirits high, especially knowing they could receive a fair share of money from the ransom. No one spared any thoughts for their colleagues who had been arrested in the ambush; some were thrilled that there were fewer people to divide the fruits of their labor.
“Guys, keep it up. We’re getting across soon,” Kevin encouraged his men, fearing they’d make a mistake at this crucial comment. His fears came true when they reached the top of the mountain, where fires were being lit up. They could only see the foreign land ahead if they made it down the mountain.
Soon, Kevin and his men were surrounded by crowds with torches in their hands. Evan emerged from the crowd and smirked at Kevin. “Do you think you could escape?”
Kevin frowned at the sight of Evan. ‘ And who are you? Do I know you?” Evan looked familiar, but he could not recall any memories of their acquaintance. Given that this was his first visit to Clusia, he would be surprised if he had brushed shoulders with Evan.
“Who am I? You don’t have the honor to know me.” While snickering, Evan took out his gun.
Kevin responded immediately, pulling out his own gun. ‘Let us go, or we all die here today.” He had to bite the bullet and dash to the finish line that was so close to him. It was impossible to give up at that point.
Evan showed no fear at the sight of Kevin’s gun. He even took a few steps forward and laughed as he pressed his forehead against the muzzle. “I dare you to shoot me.”
When they exchanged glances, Kevin looked like he was spooked out. “It’s you! It’s you!” Amid his screams, Evan pulled the trigger and shot him in the heart, taking him out in no time. Then, Evan knelt on the ground and examined his body. “Yes, it’s me. You won’t be where you are without me.”
He Deserved to Die
When Evan rushed to the hospital, he found Danika by Graham’s bed. She was surprised to see him. “Have you captured Kevin and his men?” “Yes, we caught all of them.” He nodded and added, “But I accidentally shot Kevin dead when he fought back.’
“Oh, he deserved to die anyway.” Danika didn’t harbor any suspicion as she was not surprised at Kevin’s refusal to cave in.
A gleam flashed across Evan’s eyes when Danika did not doubt his account. “How’s Mr. Zellweger?” he asked.
“He’s doing fine. He just needs to be hospitalized for a few days,’ she informed him. Later, he stayed back to support her by Graham’s side.
In Eustace’s room one floor below, Paul noticed that Eustace was in a bad mood and offered words of comfort, “Something’s happened to her family. It’s not surprising that she didn’t visit you.”
“You don’t have to make me feel better. I get it.” Eustace knew that Danika must be extremely disappointed in him after everything. Even he was disappointed in himself.
“Why did I suffer from memory loss? Without that, Danika and I would have been together by now,’ he silently lamented as pain shot through his heart.
“I’m not trying to make you feel better. Graham Zellweger was abducted by someone hired by the Glasses. He also got shot and stays in the room above you.’ Paul handed
Eustace his phone to show him the news of Graham and James’ abduction. Frowning, Eustace read the news on the phone and appeared shocked. “When did this happen?”
“It happened on the night of the surgery,” Paul answered. Eustace felt irked because he believed Paul should have informed him in the first instance. Upon second thought, he realized that Paul did not want to add to his worries, especially when he was hospitalized.
“So, how is everything?’ he sighed and asked.
“Graham Zellweger should be fine. I asked the doctor about his condition; he suffered from excessive blood loss. He will be okay after taking some rest. ” Paul looked into all the details, seemingly knowing Eustace would be concerned.
Eustace nodded after learning that Graham was doing fine. He would be riddled with guilt if something bad happened to Graham and he failed to offer Danika help.
“Thanks,” he expressed his gratitude to Paul, who shook his head, unbothered.
“Don’t mention it.”
Eustace did not say more after that.
Driven Mad by Envy
Blake was able to give a confident and eloquent speech only because she had prepared her excuse before the visit. Eustace indeed suffered from mental health issues before, and as long as that was undisputed, her arguments would stand.
Eustace understood her explanation. Before the memory loss, he had noticed an odd development in his obsession with Danika, which was why he had sought her help to prevent things from getting out of hand. The memory loss that came after was an unexpected development.
“I do not intend to argue on the details, but I’d like to make it clear that our relationship is strictly business. I have no interest in you, and you shouldn’t have any feelings for me.” He gave her a cold glance. No matter how Blake explained herself, he couldn’t bring himself to like her. Still, he needed to keep her around because he had to rely on the Watkins’ support.
His words didn’t anger Blake. She’d take anything as long as he didn’t suggest a breakup. ‘Okay. I got it. Our goal is to create a win-win situation, and I’m clear on that. You should have lunch now. We can discuss it later.’ She smiled at him and dropped the conversation.
In the next few days, Danika and Eustace did not meet up even though they were both in the hospital. They seemed to avoid seeing each other as though they were strangers.
A week later, Eustace was discharged from the hospital, and Graham made a full recovery. However, Graham appeared slightly lethargic after his injuries, perhaps due to his old age.
“Eustace, the other families visited Mr. Zellweger when he was in the hospital. Should we visit him too?’ Blake casually suggested while she packed Eustace’s stuff. He went up to her to yank his belongings from her and said, ‘Sure.”
