Chapter 14
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*Just hypertension?” Nina sounded bewildered. “But Dr. Evans said Grandma needed bypass surgery or she’d die. The cost is 600 thousand dollars. We sold our house and managed to gather 450 thousand, but still owe the bank 150 thousand.”
Olivia frowned. For a regular family, 600 thousand dollars was a sky–high price. Besides, a bypass surgery shouldn’t cost anywhere near that much.
“Nina, listen to me,” Olivia sighed. “Your grandma just had a minor problem. She didn’t need surgery at all. In fact, this surgery only ruined her otherwise healthy body.”
Olivia leaned down and whispered in Nina’s ear, “I’m sorry, but your grandma may not have much time left.”
Nina shook her head, unable to believe it. “How could this happen? Dr. Evans is supposed to be the top doctor in Hillarica. How could
he…”
Olivia stayed silent. She didn’t want to crush the kid any further. Honestly, no matter which hospital Nina went to, the diagnosis would always be the same.
Olivia knew that the Evans family essentially controlled most of Hillarica’s hospitals. People trusted them as they were the dominant force in the city’s medical field.
Lately, their influence had surged, with everyone eager to secure an appointment with Nathan. Even the Shea family had traveled here solely because of the Evans family’s renowned reputation.
Nina slowly knelt by her grandma’s bedside, tears streaming down her face. “Grandma, I’m so sorry. I was so stupid. It’s all my fault. I did this to you.”
“It’s not your fault,” the old lady said, smiling warmly. She knew her body well; since the surgery, she’d been growing weaker daily. Yet, after just a few acupuncture sessions with Olivia, she felt significantly better and began to grasp the true situation.
“Nina, if something happens to me, you have to live your life well, okay?” Nina’s grandmother said, gently stroking Nina’s hair, her eyes full of warmth and love.
Olivia’s eyes turned icy, a lethal glint flickering in them. ‘Is this how the Evans family preys on the vulnerable?‘ she mused. “The wicked will face their reckoning,” she stated coolly, her stunning beauty untouched by her frosty demeanor.
Nina’s grandmother’s ailment was minor, yet the Evans farmily had the audacity to suggest surgery. Nathan had needlessly ruined a healthy body–a crime, exploiting the ignorance of ordinary people with false diagnoses and swindling them dry.
Olivia stepped outside, took out her phone, and logged into the Shadow Syndicate. In every major industry, the name whispered in hushed tones was the Shadow Syndicate. It was an underground network governed by the elite, nearly invisible to outsiders. Olivia was its leader.
She quickly typed out her orders: [Starting now, the Shadow Security Division needs to dig up everything on the Evans family. The Violet Division is banned from helping them in any way—no medical help, no money, nothing.]
[No division is allowed to share any info with them. Break this rule and you’re out.]
[The Evans family is blacklisted. Effective immediately.]
She sent those commands under the name “Phantom Chief.” Most people called her the Phantom Healer because her legendary Phantom Thirteen Needles technique was that good. But only a few people knew she was really the Phantom Chief.
Since Shadow Syndicate was founded, she’d only ever spoken up three times. This time, her words blew up the whole organization. Shadow Security Division: [By your command, Chief.)
Violet Division [At your command.]
Enigma Institute [Message received, boss.]
Phantom Chief never went after any of the big families. Her rule was simple as long as people didn’t mess with her, she’d leave them alonr
But now that she was targeting the Evans family, everyone in the Shadow Syndicate knew they’d really ticked her off. Whatever they did, it had to be serious–and now the Evans family was screwed
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