CHAPTER 26

CHAPTER 26

"Were you surprised?" their Chief nudged her, making her look at him. "Me too, I was surprised when we saw Mr. Sandoval. We even thought he was the deceased CEO of a big company in our country."

Anyone who saw Rik Sandoval would really think he was Michael. The two bore a striking resemblance, if only you didn't look at their eyes. The color of their eyes was truly different.

Who exactly was Rik Sandoval? Why didn't Michael say anything about the man when he was still alive? Were the two at odds? Or was there a proper reason? A deeper reason.

Jia sighed as if that way, the questions in her mind would be answered. Because the man disturbed her thoughts, she momentarily forgot her wound. She also forgot about her brother. And she remembered even less about what happened to them.

"Chief..." she nudged the elderly man as he peeled an orange. After he peeled the fruit he was holding, he gave it to her.

"Oh, eat that. Eat a lot so you can recover quickly. Do you have any questions?"

She looked at the fruits on her table. "You take some too, Chief, so you can eat as well. Take some home too because there's so much. I can't finish all of it."

"How could there not be a lot, when Mr. Sandoval visits, he always brings food, especially those fruits."

Jia frowned. "Does that mean that man is always here?" It was natural for her to be confused by his behavior if what Chief Gary told her was true. She didn't fully know Rik Sandoval, so what was his reason for constantly visiting her? Based on what her boss said and the fruits piled on her table, she could tell that the man was visiting her very often.

It wasn't just the fruits that caught her attention. She looked at the long couch that also had fruit baskets, chocolates, and flowers.

"Don't tell me those are also from him?"

The person she was talking to nodded. "Yes. That's not all of it either. The other day, I brought a truckload home, also from him. He just happened to catch me here."

It was as if a warm hand touched her heart because of what he said. Before, she always told her brother that they shouldn't both get sick at the same time because no one would take care of the two of them, especially since they only had each other to rely on. Aside from Michael, they weren't close to other people, which was why they didn't have any help.

But here now, even if Chief Gary didn't explicitly tell her that he was always here, she knew he was watching over the two siblings.

"Thank you, Chief."

"What for?"

She shrugged her shoulders to shake off the embarrassment she felt. She wanted to remain cool, especially since that's what she always showed in her work.

The young woman scratched her head before speaking. "Because I didn't expect anyone to watch over me and my brother. I thought back then that no one would take care of us if something happened. Don't worry, Chief, we'll make it up to you for your kindness."

"Oh, you kid. It's nothing. And if you really want to repay me for this, then get well. You need to get well and get strong. You need to remember everything that happened so we can hold the person behind the harm to you and your brother accountable. What that person did was a big sin when they messed with my personnel. Those who hurt you have evil souls. You shouldn't have experienced this. It's a good thing we still managed to reach you and your brother."

She was more intrigued by what she heard from him. "What happened, Chief? I really can't remember, no matter how much I rack my brain. I'm confused. I don't remember anything."

"You don't remember calling Nikki?"

Nikki was his tech guy nephew. He was also a police officer and was on duty at that time.

She frowned at what he said. "Nikki, I called him? Why?"

She was even more surprised because his frown was deeper than hers. His true age was revealed by his action.

"You had Brent's number traced, that's why he became suspicious. It's a good thing someone called us—"

"Who called you?" she cut him off.

"We don't know. Unknown caller. They said you and your brother were in danger, so we needed to go to the place they mentioned. We became more suspicious because the place they mentioned was where your brother's number was traced. Instead of asking questions, I deployed our personnel, especially since the caller's voice was serious."

"When we arrived there, we found no one except for traces of blood scattered around," he added.

"Who brought us here to the hospital?"

"Mr. Sandoval's butler. When we arrived here, he was the one taking care of everything. Mr. Sandoval also arrived shortly after, causing a near commotion among the hospital staff because of his strong resemblance to Michael. Wasn't Michael's body brought here back then?" She just nodded in response to what he said.

"Could that butler have called you? Or perhaps Mi—Mr. Sandoval?" She shook her head because she almost mentioned Michael.

"Impossible if that's the case. The caller's voice was old earlier, while Mr. Sandoval and his butler are still young. The caller's voice was muffled and it sounded like they had a sore throat, so it was hard to understand what they were saying, contrary to how the two speak."

"Why can't I remember anything? I don't know what to do now." She even held her head because whenever she tried to remember everything, it would hurt.

"Take it easy. If you can't remember, don't force it for now. You need to get your strength back first."

"How many days have we been here in the hospital?" she just asked because she was worried about the bill they would have to pay.

"Two weeks."

"What??!”