Melody Strikes Back by Myra Walker (Chapters 406, 407, 408, 409, and 410)

Chapter 406

“Melody, sometimes I seriously can’t figure out what’s going on in your mind, but I think you’re awesome!” Zara declared, amazed by Melody’s reaction.

Melody was tickled by that starry-eyed declaration.

“Dig in! This fruit salad is great during the hot season. I added some traditional medicinal herbs to it. You’ll forget you’re in such warm weather after you finish this bowl of salad!” she said smilingly.

“Really? Then I’ll have to eat more. I’m melting under the heat…”

Zara had child-like innocence and was quickly distracted by the lure of food.

There was a greenish dressing on the salad, which wasn’t appealing to Zara. Nevertheless, she trusted Melody and ate it without hesitation.

She scooped a spoonful of the fruit salad into her mouth and her eyes lit up instantly. The fruit salad was refreshing and appetizing, with just the right touch of sweetness. It was a delicious salad with a cool, minty aftertaste.

“This is yummy!” she declared as she eagerly took another mouthful. In no time, her bowl was empty.

“Can I have more? It’s to my liking! This salad is delicious!” Zara said.

Melody smiled and said, “One bowl a day would be just right. Everything in moderation, Zaza. If you like it, I’ll give you the recipe and you can prepare it at home.”

“That would be great!” Zara nodded happily.

Melody suddenly thought of Yana, so she asked, “How is Yana? Was she kicked out of the production team?”

“Oh yes. They’re looking for her replacement now. That’s the reason I’m free these few days.” As Zara spoke, memories of herself being bullied by Yana flooded back to her. “Yana must hate me to the core now,” she sighed.

Melody ruffled her hair and said, “Don’t worry, I’m here for you. Let me know if she makes things difficult for you again.”

“I will.”

Zara was blushing, feeling a little bashful because of Melody’s affectionate act of ruffling her hair. “I sneaked out without informing my agent. They’ll probably find out soon, so let me head back now. I’ll catch up with you again soon!” she said.

“Sure!” Melody said, and she began packing some fruit salad for Zara to bring back for her agent and assistant.

After sending Zara off, Melody went home and contemplated for a moment as she stared at the balanced fruit salad. She decided to bring some for Mr. Yager, who had suffered from heat stroke at the cocktail party.

Since Rodney was the one who attended to Mr. Yager, she reckoned he must be warded at Central Hospital.

She could kill two birds with one stone and visit Lucas as well.

Meanwhile, the mood was dark back at the Fox family. Russell was limp on the sofa, cursing angrily, while Mabel was livid with rage. They were beaten up badly and in intense pain. They went to the hospital but the doctors could only prescribe them some painkillers as the injuries were inflicted in such a way that they were not visible and detectable.

Mabel’s mood brightened a little only after the official announcement was made by the Fox family to sever ties with Melody.

However, she still could not help but worry. “Dad, the agreement you signed entitled Melody to thirty percent of the shares of the Justalion Group, right?” she asked.

The mere mention of Melody’s name made Russell hopping mad.

“In her dreams! I’ll not honor that agreement. She won’t get a dime from me!” he growled, obviously exasperated.

“But… you’ve already signed it…”

“So what? If she dares to ask for the shares, I’ll make sure she’s ruined and shamed by all in Silverlake!”

Mabel heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing that assurance.

The black market assassin incident actually reminded her of something else.

She had hired a group of assassins from the forum to deal with Wilona on the day she attended the Swanson Group cocktail party. However, she received no updates thus far, so she wasn’t sure if it had been done.

Her phone suddenly rang while her mind was wandering.

With much pain and difficulty, Mabel managed to fish out her phone.

The moment she saw the incoming number, she jumped.

Noticing Russell’s puzzled gaze, she haltingly said, “Dad, it’s… it’s Astrid calling. Do you think s-she found out about Mom and wants to call off the engagement?”

“Astrid?” Russell immediately sat up and said, “Pick up the call! Put it on speaker mode then watch for my instructions.”

“Okay.” Mabel nodded and nervously answered the call.

As soon as the call was connected, Astrid’s impatient voice came through.

“Hello, Miss Fox, you must be such a busy person. Am I so unworthy of your attention that you took so long to answer my call?”

This was Astrid’s usual sarcasm, her style of speaking when dealing with people she didn’t like.

Mabel’s face fell, but with Russell’s silent signal, she put on an apologetic tone and said, “How is that possible, Mrs. Swanson? My phone wasn’t with me just now. I immediately ran over to pick up your call when I heard the phone ring. What can I do for you, Mrs. Swanson?”

“It’s nothing important. I heard about your mother, so I called to check if you need any help from me?” Astrid said casually, but that casual question made Mabel’s face turn ashen. Russell panicked too, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

Despite the painful injuries they had after the black market assassins left, the Fox family placed priority on mobilizing all their resources to try and suppress the news. Alas, Astrid still found out about the matter.

They were positive those gossipy ladies who attended the birthday banquet were the culprits.

Mabel was trying to keep her cool when suddenly, she thought of something, and her eyes lit up. “Thank you for your kind offer but we’ll manage. We were all very shocked when we found out about Mom’s misdeeds. Our family hopes that she can reflect on her mistakes.”

Astrid clearly did not expect Mabel not to side with Yolanda, but before she could utter a word, Mabel continued, “I do wish to speak to you. However, I have to rush back to school to complete the assignment given by Professor Ander Morgan. Can I buy you dinner after I’m done with that assignment?”

“Ander Morgan?” Astrid paused momentarily before asking, “Is it Ander Morgan from the research institute?”

“Yes. He wanted me to work in his laboratory, so he gave me an assessment assignment. I hope you won’t mind, but can I meet up with you after I finish the assignment?”

Astrid went silent for a moment before saying, “Let me know where to meet when you’re done.”

“For sure! Thank you, Mrs. Swanson,” Mabel chirped.

After the call ended, Russell quickly went over to her and asked, “Have you finished the assignment?”

“Yes, I’m done. Coincidentally, today is the deadline. After the painkillers take effect, I’ll go to school to submit it.”

“Wonderful! With this, despite your mom’s incident, you’ll still be of value to Astrid. Have some rest and get going to school once you feel better.” Russell was pleased.

“Okay, Daddy…” Mabel was about to break into a smile when she felt a sharp pain at the corner of her mouth. That successfully killed the joy and led her to collapse onto the sofa, mourning in pain.

She swore she’d definitely take revenge after she successfully married into the Swanson family. It’ll be payback time for Melody!

Chapter 407

Meanwhile, Melody had made it back to Central Hospital, carrying some fruit salad.

Seeing that Rodney had just finished his outpatient consultations and was taking a break in his office, Melody handed him two servings of the fruit salad she had already portioned out.

“I made this with some traditional herbs,’ she said. ‘It’s really healthy and tasty. Keep one for yourself and give the other to the director.”

Rodney smiled and said, “Fruit salad sounds great, especially with those herbs. Why don’t you take it to the director yourself? He’d love it for sure.”

Melody shook her head. “I’ve got one more to drop off. Remember the patient from the cocktail party? Which ward is he in? I want to check in on him. It’s pretty rare to see heatstroke that severe, and I’d like to keep track of it.”

Melody had a habit of jotting down details of challenging cases in her notebook.

“Mr. Yager?” Rodney asked.

“Yeah, that’s what everyone calls him,” Melody replied.

Rodney looked a bit uneasy. “If it’s really him, you might want to avoid going.”

“Why?” Melody asked, confused.

Rodney sighed and said, “Mr. Yager’s family isn’t exactly easy to deal with. He’s actually pretty easygoing, but his distant relatives from Silverlake are a different story. They’re always acting high and mighty and making weird comments whenever I check on him. They even think I’m trying to get something out of him, but honestly, I don’t even know much about Mr. Yager’s background.”

Rodney paused and said, “But if you go, they probably won’t give you any trouble. You’re the reason Mr. Yager’s still around, after all.”

Melody considered this and replied, “Then I’ll go. The fruit salad might really help, and I’ll give him the recipe too.”

“Sounds good,” Rodney said. “I’ll come with you to make sure those relatives don’t give you a hard time at the ward.”

“Thank you,” Melody said.

“Don’t mention it,” Rodney replied, admiring Melody. “You’re not familiar yet with this hospital, so I’m glad to help.”

Just then, a nurse rushed over and interrupted them. “Dr. Stanton, we have bad news! The patient in bed five is having trouble breathing, and his oxygen levels have dropped a lot. I’ve given him oxygen, but he’s not getting any better.”

Rodney looked concerned. “Looks like I can’t join you after all, Melody.”

“It’s fine,” Melody said, waving it off. “The patient comes first. Go check on him, and if you need help, have someone find me.”

“Got it,” Rodney replied, nodding. He instructed the nurse to take Melody while he headed to the patient in bed five.

As Melody watched Rodney leave, she shook her head, thinking, ‘When will people start respecting doctors for the hard work we do?’

“Miss Fox, this way please,” the nurse said, then quickly added, “I mean, Dr. Knowles. But, uh, Dr. Knowles, why did you change your name?”

Melody shrugged and said, “I’ve cut ties with my family. Just remember to use the right name from now on.”

The nurse looked apologetic. “I’m sorry for asking. I didn’t mean to overstep.”

“No worries,” Melody replied. “Let’s head out.”

She entered Central Hospital under the name “Wilona Knowles.” The main reason for the change was not just to distance herself from the Fox family but to address the situation with Ken.

Owen’s sudden betrayal had led to Ken being moved from the headquarters to Swanson Universal Entertainment, so she needed to approach Owen as Wilona.

Once she dealt with Owen, she could return to being Melody.

The nurse, concerned about saying the wrong thing again, remained quiet and guided her through.

Ten minutes later, the nurse led Melody to the door of a VIP ward.

“This is it,” the nurse said, about to knock, when a man and woman stepped out.

As soon as Melody saw them, her eyes went wide instantly. It was Wendell and Cadence.

Melody had not seen Cadence since the pit bull incident, and though Cadence clearly had lost some weight, she looked lively and fully recovered.

As soon as Melody saw them, Cadence and Wendell noticed her too, and their expressions immediately soured.

Cadence spoke first, her voice cutting. “What are you doing here? How dare you come looking for me now?”

Melody met Cadence’s gaze without flinching and replied calmly, “Miss Hunter, it’s been a while. Have you recovered?”

Cadence’s face darkened, looking like thunderclouds were gathering. “Bitch!” she cursed.

Cadence swung her hand to slap Melody, but Melody caught it easily before it could land.

Cadence tried to pull away, but she was shocked to find that Melody, who looked weaker, was surprisingly strong. Frustrated, she shouted, “Let go of me, you bitch!”

“Let her go!” Wendell, who had hoped to let Cadence get the upper hand, now saw his daughter struggling. He stepped in, ready to punch Melody.

Melody pushed Cadence away and ducked just in time to avoid Wendell’s punch. Quickly grabbing his arm, she used his momentum to pull him forward.

Wendell couldn’t stop himself and was slammed into the wall with a loud crash. He yelled out in pain.

“Dad!” Cadence shouted, furious. She rushed forward, ready to grab Melody by the hair.

Melody delivered a sharp karate chop to Cadence’s arm.

“Ah!” Cadence shrieked in pain.

Melody turned calmly to the dazed nurse and said, “Call security right away. These two are causing trouble, and they might need the police.”

“Okay!” The nurse quickly snapped out of it and went to call for security.

At that moment, a weak voice came from inside the ward, “What’s happening out there?”

Cadence, still in pain, glared at Melody and mouthed, “You’re dead.” She then turned and dashed into the ward. “Mr. Yager, there’s a woman outside who attacked me and my dad!”

Cadence held up her arm, showing Sean the red and swollen marks on her fair skin.

Chapter 408

When Sean saw the marks on Cadence’s arm and heard her accusations, his face hardened instantly.

He glanced at the two bodyguards, who quickly understood and stepped outside.

At that moment, Wendell burst into the ward, shouting, “Mr. Yager, you have to stand up for me and Cadence!”

Just then, Melody walked in. She said calmly, “I also need you to hear my side, Mr. Yager. I came here to deliver something, but before I even got inside, these two were rude and tried to hit me. I was just defending myself.”

“Nonsense!” Wendell shouted, his face reddening with anger. “You’re the one who attacked us without any reason!”

Sean looked at Melody with suspicion, feeling that she seemed a bit familiar. “And who are you?”

Melody did not say his name. He only said, “Mr. Yager, you had a severe heatstroke that day. I was the one who performed acupuncture and first aid for you.”

Sean’s expression changed as he recognized her. The two faces came together in his memory, and he finally placed her.

“So, it was you who saved me!” Sean exclaimed, getting off the hospital bed and moving to hug Melody. “Thank you for saving my life! Without you, I might not be here.”

Melody waved him off. “No need to thank me. But Mr. Yager, please set the record straight about what just happened. You’re a fair person, and you know who was in the wrong.

She was certain Sean was aware of how Cadence and Wendell treated the medical staff, including Rodney.

As expected, Sean turned to Cadence and Wendell with an accusing look. “I’ve told you two to be humble and respectful, but you didn’t listen. And today, you’ve shown this attitude towards my savior. Apologize to her immediately. And from now on, don’t come here again.”

Cadence and Wendell’s faces turned pale. Wendell quickly spoke up, “Mr. Yager, you must be mistaken. How could she be your savior? I was there, and it wasn’t her who saved you. She’s a liar.”

Cadence chimed in, “Exactly, Mr. Yager. I knew her from before. She’s just a nobody from the countryside. There’s no way she could have saved you!”

Melody’s brow furrowed slightly. ‘If this goes on, my real identity might get exposed,’ she thought.

Melody’s eyes darkened, and just as she was about to speak, Rodney rushed in, having handled the situation. He heard “Mr. their accusations and immediately backed her up. Yager, I can vouch for her. She’s the one who saved you.”

Wendell, still unconvinced, shot back, “That’s impossible! Are you saying I’m blind?”

Melody seized the moment, saying, “Wendell, believe it or not, it’s the truth. Why are you bullying me and questioning me?”

She turned to Sean, pretending to be angry. “Mr. Yager, I came here out of kindness to bring you some food that would help with your recovery. But with your relatives treating me like this, maybe I should just leave and forget this ever happened.”

As she spoke, she turned around and was about to leave.

Sean panicked and quickly went forward to block Melody’s path.

As she spoke, Melody turned to leave. Sean panicked and quickly stepped in front of her. “Doctor, don’t be angry. These two aren’t my relatives. Cadence is just friends with my son and acts like we’re close.”

Cadence, growing desperate, said, “Mr. Yager, would you really believe an outsider over my dad and me?”

“Enough!” Sean said coldly. “I know why you two keep coming here. Tell Ulric that I’m not giving him what he wants, and I never will. Now, both of you, leave immediately!”

“Mr. Yager,” Cadence began.

“Cadence!” Wendell quickly covered her mouth, sensing the situation was spiraling out of control. He turned to Sean with a forced smile. “Mr. Yager, you know how Cadence is. She’s just blunt and didn’t mean any harm. She’s just worried you might be lied to.”

Sean snorted. “Lied to? Even if she were a liar, do you think Rodney would lie to me?”

“Well…” Wendell hesitated, almost suggesting that Rodney might be in cahoots with Melody, but the anger in Sean’s eyes made him rethink. “M-Maybe I was mistaken,” he stammered.

“Get out, right now!” Sean demanded with a firm voice.

Wendell gritted his teeth. “Fine. I’ll visit another day,” he said, leading Cadence away.

With that, Wendell dragged the reluctant Cadence out of the ward. Once they were outside, he finally let go of her mouth, and Cadence immediately protested, “Dad! Why didn’t you let me speak?”

“Are you stupid or what?” Wendell snapped. “Couldn’t you see that he was furious? We are here every day to help Mr. Swanson make connections. Mr. Yager made it clear. If we don’t leave, we’ll ruin everything for Mr. Swanson.”

Cadence took a deep breath, calming down. “What do we do now?” she asked, worried.

“What else can we do? Let’s check in with Mr. Swanson first,” Wendell said with a smirk. “But don’t worry. What’s fake can’t stay hidden forever. Melody pretending to be Mr. Yager’s savior will come out eventually. When it does, she will be in big trouble.”

Cadence’s eyes lit up. “You’re right! The worse Sean’s attitude is toward us now, the guiltier he will feel when the truth comes out.”

“Exactly,” Wendell nodded. “When that happens, Mr. Swanson will be even closer to Mr. Yager. Our trouble today won’t be for nothing.”

“Okay, then hurry up and ask Ulric what he thinks. I’ll find Kevin and tell him his dad got tricked by an imposter!” Cadence said eagerly.

Sean’s son, Kevin Yager, happened to be Cadence’s classmate at university.

“Alright, let’s split up and get to it,” Wendell said, and they quickly left the hospital.

Moments later, the security team arrived. “Dr. Stanton, Dr. Knowles, we’re here! Where are the troublemakers?”

Rodney rolled his eyes. “Great timing. Why not show up tomorrow instead?”

The security team looked embarrassed as one of them said, “Sorry, Dr. Stanton. There’s been so much going on in the hospital lately. We’re stretched thin.”

Melody waved them off. “It’s fine. You can go now. We’ve got it handled already.”

“Yes, Dr. Knowles,” they replied in unison before leaving.

Then, Sean turned to Melody. “Divine Doctor, I’m really

sorry about those two. When I’m discharged, I’ll make sure they learn their lesson.”

Chapter 409

While speaking, Sean quickly wrote out a check and handed it to Melody. “Divine Doctor, this is just a small token of my gratitude. I had planned to thank you in person once I was out of the hospital, but you beat me to it. I can’t truly repay you for saving my life, so please accept this. I won’t be able to rest easy otherwise.”

Melody looked at the check, the amount was 10 million dollars.

It was a significant amount, especially for someone like Sean, who wasn’t involved in business.

While Melody could sense that Sean was trying to protect Cadence and Wendell, given his promise to deal with them later, she found it odd.

Despite their appalling behavior, Sean seemed determined to shield them. Melody kept her thoughts to herself, though.

“I’m not taking the money,” Melody said, handing the check back to Sean. “Instead, why don’t you donate it to our hospital? We’ve got a support center that helps families in need. It’d make a big difference.”

Sean thought for a moment, then nodded. “Such a generous divine doctor you are. Alright, I’ll donate it to your hospital and make sure it goes to the support center.”

Melody smiled and handed him a container of fruit salad. “And this is for you.”

“What is this?” he asked.

Melody said. “It’s a cold dish that’s really good for cooling down in the summer.”

Then, she also handed the recipe to Sean. “Do you often deal with heatstroke?”

“Yes, that’s true,” Sean replied with a hint of frustration. “I’ve past been getting heatstroke every couple of days for the two years, even in winter. I’ve seen many doctors, but nothing has really helped.”

Melody nodded. “The arthritis and stress you’ve been dealing with, plus not exercising much, might be behind your heatstroke. If you make this fruit salad and eat it regularly for a month, it should help reduce your chances of getting heatstroke.”

Sean’s eyes lit up. “Really? Can this fruit salad actually help?”

“If it doesn’t work wonders, at least it’ll be a tasty and healthy treat,” Melody said with a shrug. “Feel free to give it a try.”

Sean nodded, but deep down, he wasn’t completely convinced. He figured the fruit salad might not be as great as Melody made it sound.

He kept his doubts to himself and said with a grateful smile, “Doctor, you saved my life and even gave me this fruit salad recipe. Are you sure you don’t want any kind of reward?”

“It’s part of the job,” Melody said, checking Sean’s pulse.

“It’s looking better, but you still have some arthritis. Try to get more exercise. I won’t keep you. I’m heading out now,” she added.

Melody was only here to assess Sean and make a note of his condition. After that, she and Rodney left.

As soon as Melody left, the smile on Sean’s face faded, revealing the dignity of a superior.

Once Melody and Rodney were gone, Sean’s friendly demeanor turned serious. “Have someone look into her. I want to know if she’s really who she claims to be. Cadence might be a bit intense, but she does not usually lie about these things.”

The guard asked, “So, you’re not sure if she’s the one who saved you?”

Sean hesitated. “Not entirely. They look similar, but the voices are different. It’s worth checking out.”

“Roger that!”

Sean added, “Also, see if this fruit salad recipe actually works.”

“Got it, Mr. Yager!” The guard nodded and left with the recipe.

After the guards left, Sean sent another one out and then called his son, Kevin. “Where are you?”

Kevin answered from the other end of the line, “I just landed and was heading over to see you. I don’t need anyone to pick me up. Cadence said she’d handle it.”

Kevin sounded unmistakably passionate about Cadence.

Sean frowned at Kevin’s tone. “Cadence isn’t right for you. Can’t you find someone else? I heard she had some mental health issues recently. How can you be so sure she’s the one for you?”

Kevin’s voice grew cold. “Dad, what are you saying? Cadence is just straightforward and innocent. The mental health stuff was all a setup. I’m not interested in anyone else. I’ve made up my mind to not marry anyone but her.”

Sean’s frustration flared. “Are you trying to drive me crazy?”

Kevin shot back, “You can think what you want! I gave up my dream of becoming a designer to go into politics, just like you asked. You promised me that you’d stay out of my relationship if I did that.”

Sean groaned. “I wish I hadn’t sent you away to study. You didn’t learn what I hoped, but you sure mastered going against my wishes.”

“In any case, I’m committed to Cadence. If you can’t accept her, be prepared for the fallout of losing your son!” Kevin shot back.

“Kevin! Don’t you push me to the edge!” Sean’s voice was filled with exasperation.

On the other end, Kevin took a deep breath and said, “Think it over.” Then he hung up.

Furious, Sean threw the fruit salad beside the bed, shouting, “How did I end up with such a stubborn son?”

Meanwhile, Melody had said her goodbyes to Rodney and called Ken.

As Ken picked up the phone almost immediately, she was ready to update him on Sean. However, she overheard a conversation on his end.

“Mr. Swanson, we’ve got a problem with the project. The script and crew are all set, but the director is insisting on Yana for the lead role. Since you’ve asked Yana to stay at home for now, we’re stuck. What do you want us to do?”

Melody realized Ken was in a meeting and quickly considered hanging up.

But just then, Ken said, “If she doesn’t want to do it, then let her go. No room for negotiation.”

“Understood,” came the reply.

“Get out! And don’t bring me any more of these petty issues,” Ken added.

“Yes, sir.” There was the sound of a door closing.

With the conversation seemingly over, Melody asked, “Did I interrupt something important?”

“Not at all,” Ken said, his tone as cold as usual. “Yana’s been laying low, but it looks like she’s starting to stir trouble up again.”

Melody shrugged. “If we don’t handle this properly, she’ll just come back with more tricks. Zara went easy on her last time, who knows what she’s planning now?”

Ken responded, “Then, should I just ban her now?”

Chapter 410

Ken’s tone was so laid-back, it was almost like he was talking about the weather rather than discussing banning someone.

Melody figured he might be joking. After all, Yana was still valuable for making money. There was no way Ken would actually ban Yana because of her.

Melody shrugged and kept her phone to her ear. “Forget it. If she doesn’t stir up trouble, I’ll be on edge. Trouble is what she does. If we can use this to show Zara that some people can be forgiven, but others will never change, then so be it.”

Ken paused for a moment before asking, “You seem pretty invested in Zara. Why is that?”

Melody didn’t pick up on any disapproval. She answered honestly, “I see a bit of myself in her. I just feel for her and want to help.”

“Like you? I don’t see it,” Ken replied, sounding puzzled.

Melody thought, ‘I was a lot like her in my past life.’

But she didn’t dwell on that. Instead, she shifted back to the main topic. “I visited Mr. Yager today and ran into Cadence. It looks like she might be trying to leverage him for Ulric. You should find out more about her connection with Mr. Yager.”

“I know,” Ken replied.

“You do?” Melody asked, surprised.

“Yeah, it’s complicated. I didn’t want you mixed up in it, so I kept quiet. But now, you seem to be caught up in it.”

“Ken, we’re friends, right? You should have told me. What’s the deal with Cadence and Mr. Yager? Why does he seem to favor her even if he doesn’t like her?”

Ken sighed. “Do you know who Sean Yager is?”

“Not really… just that he’s an official from Insterimond,” she said.

“Exactly.” Ken lowered his voice, explaining Sean’s significant influence.

When Melody realized that Sean was way more powerful than she thought, she was momentarily speechless.

“No wonder Ulric wants to rope him in. But you still haven’t answered my question. How’s Cadence connected to someone like Sean?” she pushed.

“Sean has a son named Kevin. He’s been after Cadence for ages. They were university classmates, and he was set on marrying her. For some reason, Cadence never agreed, but lately, it looks like she’s changing her mind.”

A hint of mockery flashed in Melody’s eyes. The only reason Cadence hadn’t agreed was because she already had her sights set on someone else: Ulric.

Cadence would naturally keep such a scandalous relationship under wraps. If Melody hadn’t lived through it before, she wouldn’t have known about Cadence’s secret.

Melody filled Ken in and said, “She’s only playing nice to help Ulric win over Sean.”

Ken paused for a moment before asking, “How do you know that?”

Melody tried to dodge the suspicion. “Call it a woman’s intuition. Trust me on this one.”

“Okay,” Ken replied, still puzzled by how Melody seemed to know things even he didn’t.

Melody’s knack for knowing things wasn’t the only odd thing about her. Ken didn’t dwell on it, though. “What you did today will definitely make Sean more unhappy with Cadence. But since Kevin’s his only son, he might still agree to their marriage.”

“So what should I do now?” Melody asked.

Ken sighed. “I need to deal with Owen’s situation first. Once that’s settled, I can handle things better when I get back to headquarters.”

Melody nodded. “I was going to tell you, I’ll see Owen tomorrow. I’ve kept him waiting for two days, so he’ll be even more desperate for me to treat his daughter.”

“Got it,” Ken said. “Don’t forget about the class reunion. My team will come by in an hour to help you get ready. Just head over to Serenity Villa and wait for them.”

“Oh, I’ll head over now.” Melody hung up and drove to Serenity Villa.

Meanwhile, Wendell was meeting with Ulric at a private

summer resort.

But at the entrance, Wendell was stopped. “Sorry, Mr. Hunter. Mr. Swanson is with a guest. Please wait outside for a bit.”

Wendell’s frown deepened. “A guest? What’s so important that I can’t get in? I need to see your boss right now!”

“Guest? What guest? I have something important to tell your young master! Let me in now!”

He started to push past, but the bodyguard blocked his path with his arm. “Mr. Hunter, don’t make things difficult for us. We can’t let anyone in until the guest has left.”

“You!” Wendell was about to argue when the door opened.

He glanced inside and saw a striking woman in a red dress walking out.

She had a captivating, almost dangerous aura, and while her face was heavily made-up, the lines on her neck hinted at her real age.

The woman gave Wendell a brief, scrutinizing glance before looking away, clearly uninterested.

Wendell couldn’t help but think, ‘Is this the guest Ulric was seeing? Why’s she looking at me like that?’

Feeling annoyed, Wendell was about to speak up when Ulric, bare-chested and looking unusually flushed, came rolling out behind her. He addressed her politely, “Jennie, thanks for coming. I know it’s been a long day.”

Jennie’s red lips twitched in a slight smile. “Mr. Swanson, no need to be so formal. We’re all on the same side now.”

Ulric grinned and said, “Exactly. We’re in this together.” He then turned to the bodyguard and said, “Please see Jennie out.”

“Pronto!” The bodyguard gave a quick nod and signaled for Jennie to head out. She walked past Wendell with a haughty air, barely sparing him a glance.

Ulric didn’t seem to care, acting like it was no big deal for Jennie to ignore Wendell.

Wendell’s irritation grew. He was Ulric’s uncle, but here

Ulric was, showing more respect to an outsider than to family. Wendell could only address Ulric as Mr. Swanson in private, which stung him even more.

After she left, Wendell asked, “Who is that woman?”

Ulric’s expression turned serious. “That’s Jennie Taylor. She’s the one who can actually treat my leg. You’d better show her some respect.”

Wendell’s annoyance faded a bit, but he was still thrown off. “So, were you… you know, undressed because she was treating you?”

Ulric didn’t respond directly. Instead, he wheeled himself into the room, and Wendell followed quickly.

Once they were inside, Ulric said, “Jennie promised that my leg would be back to normal in under a month.”

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