Chapter 117: His Favor, I'll Repay
When Sophia woke up, she turned her head and saw William sitting in the caregiver's chair.
Because the wound was on her lower back, she had been sleeping on her side all night.
William's hand had been resting on her arm the whole time, preventing her from accidentally rolling onto her back and pressing on the wound.
She glanced around the hospital room and confirmed it was a private hospital under the Peace Group. The suite was familiar - James and Michael had stayed here before when they were hospitalized.
The moment Sophia moved, William woke up, his eyes bloodshot from lack of rest.
He leaned closer with concern, "Does it hurt anywhere?"
Sophia shook her head and immediately asked about James and Michael's condition.
Learning they weren't injured, Sophia breathed a slight sigh of relief.
She remembered Raymond rushing over last night and asked, "Is Raymond okay?"
William said, "He's not in life-threatening danger."
He told her honestly that Raymond had injured his leg. Although he had the doctors do everything they could, Raymond had just recovered from his leg injury not long ago, and now that he was hurt again, even if he healed, there would probably be lasting effects.
Seeing Sophia fall silent, he said softly, "I'll repay his debt."
No matter what, Raymond was injured saving Michael and James, and as their father, he naturally had to take responsibility for this debt of gratitude.
Sophia said, "When he wakes up, send him to ZN Laboratory."
The lab had recently developed new medications that might be able to completely heal Raymond's leg.
Looking at the dark circles under William's eyes, she pressed her lips together and said, "You should go rest. I'm fine."
The wound on her lower back had been stitched and bandaged. After a night's rest, Sophia's condition had improved a lot, though her lips were still a bit pale.
She wanted to go see James and Michael, but William pressed her back onto the hospital bed.
William was wearing a black windbreaker that softened the formality of a suit, and the hair falling casually on his forehead gave him a more relaxed, youthful look.
William said, "They're not awake yet. Go see them after breakfast."
Sophia was about to get out of bed and go to the bathroom to wash up when William scooped her up in his arms.
He carefully avoided the wound on her lower back and strode toward the bathroom.
"Put me down, I can walk by myself."
"Don't move."
He glanced at her and continued, "By the time you finish arguing, we'll already be at the bathroom."
He set her down in front of the sink, and after making sure she was steady, William went to the small washroom on the other side of the suite to brush his teeth and wash his face.
Sophia fell silent.
By the time she finished washing up, William was already leaning against the bathroom door, waiting for her.
His gaze followed a water droplet sliding down her cheek to her collarbone. Sophia immediately pulled up her collar.
William smiled, "Breakfast is here. Eat first, then go see the kids."
William moved too fast. Before Sophia could refuse, he had already picked her up.
Seeing her angry yet helpless expression, he smiled. He obediently placed Sophia in a chair by the dining table without making any inappropriate moves.
After breakfast, Sophia went to see the children.
To avoid having William carry her again, she proactively chose to use an automatic wheelchair.
Last night's scare had been too much. James and Michael had struggled all night before falling asleep, so they woke up later than usual.
James rubbed his eyes with his fist, and seeing Sophia, immediately tried to get out of bed, but she stopped him.
He asked nervously, "Mom, are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Sophia's heart warmed, "Mom's fine."
Michael woke up a bit later than James. Hearing his words, he also looked at her.
"Mom's lying. Your lips are so pale, you must be hurt." He didn't believe what she said and looked to William, who had come in with her, for confirmation.
Sophia gave him a look, signaling him not to mention her injury, but William didn't listen to her.
William said, "Your mom has a wound on her back. These next few days, James and Michael need to watch your mom and make sure she doesn't touch the wound."
Michael nodded, "Dad, I'll take good care of Mom!"
Compared to the awkwardness and rejection when they first reunited a few months ago, he was now even more attached to Sophia than James was.
She said helplessly, "I can take care of myself. You two just got over your fever, so listen to the doctor and rest well."
Sick children are always more clingy.
Sophia reflected on the past few months - first William's ordeal, then the kids falling ill, and now she was hospitalized. Their luck had been terrible. She should find time to pray for better fortune.
After video calling Emily, Sophia operated the automatic wheelchair to go see Raymond.
The Roberts Group was in a phase of rapid business expansion. Raymond started handling work soon after waking up.
His secretary was with him in the room, and instead of fruit and flowers on the bedside table, there were stacks of freshly printed project proposals.
Sophia knocked on the open door.
Raymond looked up, "Why did you come over? Are you feeling better?"
When he woke up, he had his secretary check on Sophia's condition. Learning she was with James and Michael, he didn't go disturb her, mainly because his leg couldn't be moved yet and had to stay flat to avoid worsening the wound.
Sophia solemnly thanked him.
Raymond said, "If it weren't for me, Lily wouldn't have given you trouble. The cause of all this was me, so I should be responsible."
If it weren't for that blind date dinner between the Roberts family and the Baker family, Lily wouldn't have blamed Sophia for his rejection.
Raymond said, "I should have apologized to you long ago."
"What's done is done. Let's not apologize or thank each other anymore."
Lily's trouble, though it started with her and Raymond's blind date, was fundamentally because Lily was evil by nature.
That previous livestream where Sophia exposed her misdeeds - given Lily's personality, there was no way she would let it go.
For this reason, she had specifically brought extra bodyguards whenever she went out. She just didn't expect Lily's reach to extend so far, and even less expected her to be able to mobilize those dark forces.
Sophia thought to herself that Alice must have played a role in this. The remaining power of the Rivera family was more formidable than she had anticipated.
Most importantly...
Lily got the information from Alice, but how did Alice know that she and the children would be at Greenfield Avenue at that specific time?
Sophia thought of someone.
...Hannah!
Sophia didn't discuss this matter in depth with Raymond. After she arrived, his assistant had left, leaving just the two of them in the room.
Looking at his leg in a cast, she promised, "Your leg was injured saving James and Michael. I'll do everything I can to heal you."
The sincerity in Sophia's eyes was like a flame that Raymond couldn't look away from.
He nodded, "I trust you."
As soon as Sophia returned to her room, she saw an unwelcome visitor.
Ever since she refused to help, Hannah had held a grudge against her. When Alice came to her, Hannah agreed without a second thought!
Last night, when William called back to the Smith Manor and pulled away all the bodyguards, Hannah felt uneasy after learning about it, afraid the matter would implicate her. She didn't sleep well all night.
Unable to get answers at the Smith Manor, she immediately drove to the private hospital under Peace Group and sure enough saw William's car.
Hannah waited in the underground parking garage for a long time. Once William's car finally left, she immediately went upstairs to find out what was going on.
She planned to take the opportunity to express her concern, hoping to get Sophia to agree to connect her brother's client.
After all, someone like Sophia - whose family went bankrupt, whose mother died young, and whose father disappeared - must be desperate for affection and validation.
Hannah, dressed head to toe in luxury brands with exquisite makeup, was sitting on the sofa in the hospital room. Seeing Sophia, she immediately stood up and came over.
"Sophia, I heard you had an accident, and I was so worried about you. So I got up early this morning and personally made you chicken soup."
"Why are you just standing at the door? Come sit down. This chicken soup needs to be drunk while it's hot - it's very nourishing."