Betrayed, Then Back For Blood

The loudest complaints cfrom a sharp dressed middle-aged man who clearly had spull in the Wade

family. As soon as he spoke up, the others followed his lead, trying to shove past Brandon at the door to get

inside.

Briar might've looked absorbed in her phone game, but she was fully aware of the noise outside.

The noise was getting on her nerves. She paused the game, glanced at Griffin, and noticed his face had more

color now. The acupuncture was doing its job.

Even the military doctors who had doubted her at first had gone quiet. They didn’t want to get caught in the

middle of anything.

Everyone knew Griffin's body was worn out, and his age didn’t help either. The best most people could do was

keep him alive a little longer.

Briar saw how the crowd was reacting and muttered to Ashton, “It’s too noisy. He needs peace.”

Ashton wasn’t known for his patience to begin with, and the only reason he hadn't exploded already was

because he was worried about his grandfather. He didn’t know much about medicine, but after dealing with

Griffin's condition for so long, even he could tell the treatment was working,

So when Briar said the word, he gave Brandon a nod. Brandon didn’t waste a second-he cleared the room and

pushed everyone back out into the courtyard. Finally, things went quiet again.

An hour would go by quickly, but Briar had no interest in awkwardly staring at the others. She kept her head

down, focusing on her ginstead.

The cheerful gmusic and occasional gunshots helped Briar relax. She leaned into the chair, totally chill.

Ashton couldn't take his eyes off her. In all his years, he'd never met anyone-especially not a teenage girl-who

acted this calm and unbothered in front of him. It made him even more curious about who she really was.

Briar could feel his intense stare, but she didn’t say anything.

She always kept her work and personal stuff separate. Sure, she’d shown up partly because Ashton was easy on

the eyes, but now that she knew Griffin had once been close with Tristan, she had to take it seriously.

After all, Tristan barely called anyone a friend. Briar knew she had to do her best to help, or Tristan would never

let her hear the end of it.

About twenty minutes later, she shut off her gand walked over to Griffin. She checked his pulse, looked at

his face, and nodded to herself before pulling out the needles.

Then she glanced at her watch. “It's working,” she said. “He should wake up in about half an hour.”

Honestly, the results were even better than she'd expected. At this rate, Griffin might wake up even earlier.

Ashton didn’t say much, but his expression changed. His eyes lit up-this was the best news he'd gotten all day.

Outside the door, the Wade family had been waiting, listening in. When they heard what Briar said, they started

laughing again, still thinking she was full

of it.

They couldn’t wait for the moment Ashton tossed her out. They were convinced she’d made a fool of herself.

The doctors looked uneasy. It was the first tthey'd just stood by and done nothing while Griffin was in a

coma.

Half an hour later, the people waiting outside couldn't hold back any longer-they pushed past Brandon and

stormed in.

When Arlette saw Griffin still lying there, eyes shut, she thought she had her chance. She snapped with a smug

tone, “Ashton, it's been thir and he’s still out cold. What now? Are you finally ready to admit this girl is a fraud

and let us have her arrested?”

She acted like she had the moral high ground, but after being kicked out by Brandon earlier, she didn’t actually

dare lay a finger on Briar.

utes,

Chapter 5

The whole room tensed up. All eyes were on triar

r gand beating the final enemy. Their she calmly did it into her parked But Briar didn’t even flinch. She

tapped her phone one last time, finishing her stood up, met Ashton’s gaze, and spid, “What's the rush? He's

already waking up.”

The doctors were closest to the bed. They immediately turned to Griffin, and sure enough, his eyelids started to

twitch before slowly opening

He still looked a little dazed, his old eyes stiff and unfocused, but he was definitely awake, just like Briar had

said.

Ashton rushed over, leaned in, and said softly, “Grandpa, you're awake.”

Griffin's eyes moved slightly. He gave a faint nod and let out a low hum.

The room fell into stunned silence. Everyone

This girl, even without a license, had done what the top military doctors in all of Dasmieca couldn't.

Ashton finally let out a breath of relief. “Miss Jennings, thank you. | mean it.”

Briar stayed as laid-back as ever. Her face didn’t show much emotion as she stood there and said casually, “No

big deal. But just because he’s awake doesn’t mean he’s in the clear. The pill will only last about a month.

Without regular acupuncture, he'll fall back into another coma.”

Then she looked at Ashton, her eyes cool and sharp with just a hint of playfulness. “So yeah, you should find a

doctor who knows acupuncture. Soon.”

Of course, she was being a little tic

on

purpose-

-just to keep them on their toes.

Ashton gave a small, refined smile. “Miss Jennings, didn’t you say you could fully cure my grandfather in a week?

Would you consider staying and continuing the treatment?”

Briar glanced at the stunned Wade family, then gave a dry, sarcastic smile. “Me? Aren't | just sshady girl

with no license and a sketchy background? You guys should look for someone more qualified. Maybe even try

tracking down Tristan.”

If Tristan ever found out his old friend had been sick for this long, he'd definitely show up in Shoneport and raise

hell.

Ashton shot a cold look at the Wade relatives. One by one, they lowered their heads, too scared to speak.

Ashton’s anger cooled a little. He turned back to Briar. “Miss Jennings, please stay and treat my grandfather. I'll

add another 3 million dollars to your payment. And take this as a personal favor-1 owe you one. If you ever need

anything, just say the word.”

As for finding Tristan, Ashton would keep looking. But he was like a ghost, and Griffin's condition couldn't afford

to wait.

Right now, the best choice was standing right in front of him, and Ashton wasn’t about to let her go.

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