Chapter 90
"Michael is here too."
Outside the hospital room, Luna walked in arrogantly, dressed head to toe in luxury brands and carrying a handbag worth millions of dollars.
Seeing Michael there, Luna's expression soured. "Nolan, your eldest son Michael is here."
Nolan's face also looked grim. After entering the room, he first glanced at Michael, then looked at Nora lying in the hospital bed.
Nora felt nervous and sat up fearfully.
Michael instinctively stepped forward, positioning himself protectively by Nora's bedside, his imposing presence blocking Luna.
"Michael, what's the meaning of this? You're protecting this Nora?" Luna's voice turned shrill. "Do you know who she is? She's James's fiancée, that little bitch from the Adams family who tried to marry into money through fraud."
"After all these years of marrying into the Smith family, you still haven't gotten rid of your inherent vulgarity and lack of class in your speech." Michael's cold eyes warned Luna to watch her words.
Luna was currently afraid of Michael. Unable to vent directly, she could only clench her fists and turn to grab Nolan's arm. "Nolan, look at this..."
Nora leaned against the hospital bed, gripping her hands tightly. She sneaked a glance up at Michael. He was so tall, and seemed to radiate such a sense of security.
It gave Nora the illusion that as long as Michael was there, nothing would happen to her.
He wouldn't let anyone lay a finger on her.
"Michael, did you know about James being taken away by the police?" Nolan looked at Michael and questioned him with a frown.
"I was there." Michael leaned against the bed, his long legs casually crossed in a relaxed manner. "Walter called the police."
Nora said nothing. It was clearly Michael who had called the police.
He was quite good at shirking responsibility.
"Walter?" Luna was so angry she gritted her teeth. She knew very well that it was Michael who called the police, but she had no proof and couldn't refute it.
"Ms. Nora Adams, James was a bit impulsive. How do you want to resolve this? Money, or some other compensation?" Nolan turned his gaze to Nora.
Luna's face twisted with anger. Was Michael trying to dodge responsibility? "Michael, if you didn't call the police, what are you doing here? James is your brother. Are you just going to stand by and watch this Nora call the police and have James arrested?"
Michael couldn't even be bothered to acknowledge Luna.
Seeing Michael ignore her, Luna was about to explode with rage. "Nolan, look at Michael. He's clearly doing this on purpose. With James in the police station, it's the Smith Group's reputation that's being damaged. The Smith Group's stock will definitely be affected. Brothers at odds, family discord—this is adding fuel to the fire. How can Michael be so thoughtless?"
Nora looked at Luna in shock. She really embodied the art of turning things around and blaming others.
She instinctively looked at Michael. She knew that Michael's mother Fallon had died when Michael was seventeen, and Luna had entered the Smith family in the second half of the year after Fallon's death.
Michael hadn't even come of age yet. He must have suffered quite a bit in that household.
Her own life was already so miserable, yet Nora found herself feeling sorry for seventeen-year-old Michael.
"Isn't it James who's bringing shame to the Smith family—with his complete lack of manners, disregard for the law, assault and battery, and audacity?" Michael tilted his head back slightly, his jawline clearly visible, looking both relaxed and commanding.
He was being sarcastic, mocking Luna's absurdity.
"Father, steal a needle as a child, steal gold as an adult. Without proper discipline, something will go wrong sooner or later, right?" Michael was hinting to Nolan that it was Luna who had failed to properly educate James.
"Michael, you go out first." Nolan took a deep breath and raised his hand to rub his temples.
Nora looked at Michael nervously. She was afraid.
Afraid that Michael would actually leave.
"Nolan, he's trying to destroy James completely. They're brothers. Why does he have to be so ruthless?" Seeing that Michael had no intention of leaving, Luna started crying. "Michael has never liked James since childhood, always bullying him. Now that he's grown up, he still wants to frame James."
"Michael, is that what you think?" Nolan frowned, his tone heavy with blame.
Michael gave a cold laugh.
"Just like you, he also came to ask me to settle privately and drop the case. I refused." Nora clenched her hands and gathered the courage to speak.
Nolan and Luna's eyes simultaneously fell on Nora's face.
This statement cleared Michael of responsibility.
Michael furrowed his brow slightly but said nothing.
"James committed assault and brought bodyguards to threaten me. That's an undeniable fact." Nora took a deep breath. "Mrs. Smith, after all these years in the Smith family, is this the kind of son you've raised. One who tramples on the law at will?"
Luna's face darkened. She stepped forward to confront Nora. "You little bitch, you spent five years in prison yourself. How dare you talk?"
Before Michael could move to stop Luna, Nora had already raised her hand and gripped Luna's wrist tightly.
She looked so frail, yet her wrist bled through the gauze from the force.
She looked at Luna like that, her voice trembling and hoarse, but her eyes showed defiance. "Do you want your son to go to prison too? Illegal detention, illegal restriction of personal freedom, illegal violation of human rights, ordering bodyguards to break the law, intentional harm, causing disability—three years minimum..."
Luna looked at Nora in shock, then turned to look at Nolan. "Nolan, she's trying to extort us?"
Nolan's eyes darkened. He looked at Michael, his voice slightly apologetic. "Michael, what conditions did you propose that she won't accept a settlement and drop the case?"
Michael glanced at Nora and smiled.
He hadn't let Nora speak because he wanted to protect her, given her timid nature.
He hadn't expected her to try to protect him.
"Three million dollars." Nora spoke before Michael could.
Michael leaned to the side, watching Nora with interest.
Nora's cleverness lay in the fact that she knew her own worth.
"Cut yourself a few times and think you can make three million dollars? That's a nice dream." Luna said angrily.
"Just gave birth to a son and daughter for the Smith family without raising them properly, and you think you can fight for the Smith Group empire that Mr. Nolan Smith, his ex-wife, and Mr. Vance Smith built from scratch. Between the two of us, whose dream is better?" Nora gripped the blanket tightly.
She had to save herself.
Just cowering behind Michael, passively being protected by him—how long could he protect her?
She had to find a way to tie herself to Michael, to become a community of shared interests.
To be mutually valuable to each other.
Only this way could Nora protect herself and ensure Michael would continue to shield her.
Michael's lips curved up. So she wasn't a rabbit too timid to fight back after all.
She usually didn't speak much, but when she did, she was quite sharp.
"Nora, you're asking for death?" Luna was clearly enraged.
"I'll add another two million dollars." Nolan said coldly, cutting off Luna's cursing.
Nora looked at Nolan and shook her head. "Five years ago, I was framed by you for extortion and that's how I ended up in prison. I won't make that mistake again. I don't want your money."
Nolan frowned, scrutinizing Nora. "Then what do you want?"
Nora's palms were sweating. She slowly unclenched her fingers and looked up at Michael. "I want Michael to marry me."