Chapter 25 Critical Illness Notification
Jennifer quietly walked over and pressed her ear against the security door to listen.
Layla said, "Eugene, I've already kicked Jennifer out of the company like you asked. When are you coming to see me?"
Eugene must have made some excuse on the other end, because Layla started acting cute. "I just bought a new set of sexy lingerie, waiting to play games with you."
Eugene loosened his tie, his tone less cold now. "When I have time. Don't call me randomly lately, be good."
Actually, he'd always had sadistic tendencies, but when he was with Jennifer before, he felt too protective of her to ever think about taking it out on her. Layla, on the other hand, was obedient and slutty enough to satisfy his sadistic desires in bed.
Just hearing Layla's words was shocking enough for Jennifer. Eugene was the one behind her losing her job, and he'd been cheating on her all along, with Layla of all people. Though she no longer cared who Eugene slept with, she still found this couple disgusting.
When Layla was about to come out after finishing her call, Jennifer quickly left. Layla caught a glimpse of her clothes and smiled smugly. She'd noticed Jennifer eavesdropping and deliberately made her words so explicit.
She didn't expect Jennifer to be such a coward though, not even daring to confront her face to face. She still had so many mocking things left to say.
Without this stable income, Jennifer suddenly felt even more pressure. She didn't dare go home and tell Marlowe, so she just sat alone in a free park, spacing out. Then Mia called. "Jennifer, are you free to have dinner with me tonight?" She'd had a little fight with her husband Aaron and wanted to chat with Jennifer to cheer up.
Jennifer forced herself to sound upbeat. "I'm very free today, I could even join you for lunch."
Mia could tell something was wrong and quickly asked what happened. When she heard Jennifer had lost her job, she immediately asked for her location and drove to pick her up.
In a private room at a restaurant, Mia asked with concern, and Jennifer told her everything about losing her job today. When she got to the part about overhearing Layla's phone call, Mia couldn't help but slam down her utensils. "That woman Layla is absolutely shameless! Good thing you broke up with Eugene, otherwise this would be even more infuriating."
Jennifer sighed. "Whatever their relationship is has nothing to do with me. Aria is Eugene's fiancée. It's just that I lost my job and I'm really at a loss right now."
Mia downed a glass of wine and patted her shoulder. "Let me ask Aaron if he can help you find an easier job with good pay. It's just that I fought with him last night, so it's a bit embarrassing."
Jennifer looked at her gratefully. "Mia, you don't need to put yourself in an awkward position for me. Eugene just wants to pressure me, I should face it myself."
"We're good friends, don't be so formal." Mia hugged her generously. Then she started complaining about Aaron breaking his promise and lying to her about being at the company when he went out drinking.
After parting with Mia, Jennifer got a call from the manager of her part-time restaurant job, saying a customer had reported her for improper conduct, so they had to end their cooperation.
Jennifer hung up slowly - this must be Eugene's doing again. Was he going to sabotage every job she found? Just then, Eugene called. Jennifer stared at that familiar number for a long time before finally answering.
Jennifer waited, but he didn't speak, so she asked softly, "Eugene, do you have to push me to death?"
Eugene teased. "Jennifer, stop playing dumb. How could I bear to let you die? As long as you agree to be my mistress, I'll let you and your father go. It's such a simple request, why can't you satisfy me? Weren't we good together before? I love you, and you love me too."
Jennifer laughed. "Love me? That's rich. You ruin my family, cheat on me, wreck my career—and call it love? You're with Aria for money. And what about Layla? Is that love too when you're hooking up with her?"
Eugene's tone became urgent. "It's not what you think."
Jennifer sneered. "You don't need to explain to me. Think about how you'll explain it to Aria."
"Don't you dare!" Eugene's tone turned cold. But Jennifer wasn't afraid of him at all and hung up directly. If he kept pushing her, she'd expose his true face to Aria. She didn't believe any woman would want to marry such a shameless, dirty man.
Eugene called back, but Jennifer wouldn't answer anymore. He could only call Layla and demand to know why Jennifer knew about their relationship. Layla played innocent. "I didn't tell her. Did she overhear when I called you today? Anyway, you don't love her, so why care if she knows?"
Eugene said coldly. "Watch your mouth. I can make Jennifer lose her job and I can ruin you too. Try being disobedient again and see what happens."
That evening, Jennifer pulled herself together and went home. Marlowe brought her a glass of warm milk with concern. "You're working too hard, you need to get proper nutrition." Jennifer smiled and took it, not knowing how to tell Marlowe she'd lost her job.
Meanwhile at the hospital, police came to David's room asking him to explain the company's tax issues.
Only then did David learn about everything that had happened while he was hospitalized - the company he'd built was on the verge of bankruptcy, and he himself might even face detention. It was only when Thaddeus intervened, saying "David's health can't handle too much stress right now," that the two officers didn't take him away. However, after learning the truth, David's condition worsened that night and he was given a critical condition notice.
When Jennifer got the hospital's call, she was lying awake. She immediately threw on clothes and rushed to the hospital with Marlowe.
The doctor said David was critical and needed surgery right away. Jennifer, hands shaking, signed the risky consent form. She sat outside the operating room in a daze before remembering to call Francis. The call didn't go through.
The surgery and treatment would cost three hundred thousand dollars. The doctor handed her the bills and told her to pay first. Jennifer had just over thirty thousand in her account. Fighting tears, she told Marlowe to stay with Dad and decided to sell her mother's keepsake bracelet.
The gemstones were high quality, and the secondhand shop owner offered three hundred thousand dollars. Jennifer clutched the bracelet, very reluctant to let go. She almost begged. "Could you hold onto this bracelet without selling it? I'll raise money to buy it back as soon as possible."
The shop owner replied, "How can that work? I need to sell it as soon as possible to make money."
This bracelet was beautifully designed, with large, pure gemstones - she could definitely sell it for five hundred thousand dollars and have plenty of buyers.
Seeing Jennifer's reluctance, she added. "Alright, I'll take pity on you and hold it for three months, but then I can only offer a hundred and fifty thousand dollars. When the time comes, you'll need to bring two hundred thousand to get it back - consider it me not making any profit, just collecting some interest."
Jennifer gritted her teeth. "Three hundred thousand dollars." A hundred and fifty thousand wouldn't be enough for David's treatment. No matter how reluctant she was, living people were more important. She signed the papers, and the shop owner counted out the cash.