Chapter 59 Chapter 59
Zach nodded in agreement and chimed in, "Exactly!"
He paused, then suddenly asked, "What do you think Grace is up to now? She was about to call the cops earlier." Deliberately pulling Grace's phone from his pocket, he showed Landon, saying, "If it weren't for a quick-thinking man here, that call would've gone through."
Landon couldn't believe Zach had actually snatched Grace's phone. Furious, he slapped Zach across the face and snarled, "You idiot! What the hell did you need her phone for?"
Zach looked dazed, scratching his head. "I didn't think much of it. I just put it in my pocket. No big deal, right? It's just a phone. Worst case, I'd throw it away.”
Landon tapped his head with a finger, scolding him. "You're so stupid. Some classified information about Benjamin might be on her phone? Now it's in your hands. If you say you didn't look at it, who's going to believe you?"
"But I really didn't look!" Zach protested. "See? It's password-protected. I couldn't have looked even if I wanted to."
Landon rolled his eyes in exasperation, speechless.
"Should I return it to her?" Zach asked. Noticing Landon's fury, he added, “Or should I just hand it to Mr. Norman and have him return it to the woman?”
"Throw it away!" Landon was exasperated. As Zach rolled down the window to toss it out, Landon grabbed it in panic and snapped, “You can't just throw it out the window! Throw it in the river!"
The car turned around and headed back toward the riverbank. Just as they passed the second intersection, Zach suddenly grabbed Landon's arm and pointed at a car driving past on the opposite side of the street. "Hey, that's the guy's car! Looks like that woman's driving it.”
Landon glanced back and ordered, "Follow them. See where they're going."
The car turned to follow Adrian's vehicle, trailing them all the way to the hospital. Watching Grace park and drag Adrian toward the emergency room, Zach snorted. "This woman's weird. Instead of calling an ambulance, she drove the guy to the hospital herself.”
"She doesn't want to alert the police," Landon said calmly. He took a deep drag on his cigarette and slowly exhaled several smoke rings. Then he continued, "There are two possibilities. Either she's genuinely scared and intimidated by you guys, Or this woman is truly extraordinary—cool-headed and clever."
Inside the emergency room, the medical staff had already taken Adrian from Grace's arms to treat him. His injuries looked frightening, but most were soft tissue damage and not life-threatening. Only his index finger was severed and required surgery. The doctor asked Grace where the severed finger was. If handled properly, the finger could be reattached with a high survival rate.
Although Grace appeared composed, her trembling hands revealed her panic. After leaving Adrian with the doctors, she slipped into a quiet corner and called Benjamin. At first, he refused the call. Only after she sent a text message did he finally answer, sounding cold. "In a meeting. Keep it brief."
Grace couldn't hold back her sobs. "Benjamin, please," she pleaded. "Give me back Adrian's finger. Please."
Benjamin said nothing and hung up immediately.
Grace dialed again, but he didn't answer. After several more attempts, the line went dead. He had blocked her number. Grace closed her eyes in despair and stood silently for a moment before suddenly bolting out like a madwoman. She grabbed her car and raced straight to the Norman Science headquarters. The secretary in the president's office had seen her that afternoon. Seeing her burst in like this, the secretary didn't dare scold her but hurried to stop her, saying urgently, "Mr. Norman isn't in his office!"
This reminded Grace. She abandoned the president's office and turned to look for a conference room. The floor was quite large. She searched room by room, opening several doors in succession, until she finally stumbled upon Benjamin's conference room. The room was brightly lit, and indeed, a meeting was in progress. Her sudden intrusion instantly captured everyone's attention. Benjamin's cold, utterly devoid-of-warmth gaze swept over her.
Under the collective gaze, Grace's mind suddenly cleared. Benjamin responded to softness, not force. Her goal was to retrieve Adrian's severed finger, not confront him. She forced her ragged breathing under control, striving to steady her voice. "Mr. Norman, could you step out for a moment? I have something urgent to discuss with you."
Benjamin regarded Grace impassively. Her lips trembled slightly as she stared straight at him. Her eyes were filled with pleading and pain and devoid of any trace of stubbornness or ruthlessness. He should have been pleased by this, yet seeing her like this stirred an inexplicable irritation within him. He replied coldly, "I'm in a meeting."
Despair flashed in Grace's eyes as she stammered, "Benjamin, please."
Benjamin's lips twitched slightly. Suddenly, he rose from his seat and left the executives in the conference room behind. Without a word, he strode toward the exit. Grace froze for a moment before rushing after him. She chased him all the way to his office. Only then did she grab his arm, her voice hoarse with pleading. "Benjamin, I'm the one who wronged you. If you want revenge, take it out on me. Don't hurt the innocent, okay?"
Hearing this, he curved his lips into a cold smile and turned to look at her. "People must pay for their actions."
"Is the price of a finger, isn’t it?" Her voice trembled. A Swiss Army knife appeared in her hand. She opened the blade and pressed it against her index finger. "I'll pay for him," she said. "Is that acceptable?”
Benjamin raised an eyebrow and snorted. "Grace, are you threatening me with yourself? You must be joking—"
Before he could finish, Grace swung the knife down hard on her own finger. Benjamin's expression changed instantly. Without thinking, he grabbed her wrist, wrenched the knife from her hand, and threw it forcefully against the wall in the distance. Then, clenching his teeth, he pulled her toward him and shouted, “Grace!”
Tears fell from her eyes. She didn't struggle but knelt down slowly and wrapped her arms around his legs. "Alex," she pleaded. "Please, give me back his severed finger. I don't want to live my life feeling guilty toward him. I don't want him to be disabled because of me.”
Benjamin gritted his teeth in fury, wanting to kick her away. Yet somehow, his foot refused to lift.
He called Landon and demanded, "Where's the severed finger?"
Landon froze at the question. When he finally processed it, his heart skipped a beat. Benjamin had only ordered him to cut off Adrian's finger, never mentioning what to do with it. Hearing Benjamin's demand, Landon instantly sensed trouble. "Zach wanted to finish the job perfectly," he hurriedly explained. "That's why he put the severed finger in a plastic bag and brought it out."
Benjamin cut him off, his voice cold. "I asked about the severed finger."
Landon's voice faltered. "I threw it away."
“Where?” Benjamin pressed.
Landon shot Zach frantic glances while answering cautiously, "Not far from there. I just tossed it on the street.”