A Graduation Gift

"Sure, you rarely have a day off! Do you need to ask for official leave?"
Edith hadn't been out shopping with Cassandra in a very long time and she missed it. Now that Cassandra brought it up, she
was excitedly looking forward to it.
"That's all right. I just have to tell Lyndsy. Now that Stella is there, everything will be alright. You don't need to worry."
She just hoped that Edith could soon leave this place. Lately, she had been having a very bad feeling even though everything
seemed calm. She intuitively felt that something was lurking beyond the horizon and it made her anxious.
"Did I hear that Cassandra has a day off tomorrow? Would you like my company?"
Clark interrupted them as he walked inside the room and overheard their conversation.
"Yeah, that's a good idea, Clark. I am going to visit my daughter and I need to buy some things tomorrow!"
As soon as Edith saw Clark, her face broke into a smile.
Clark was startled at her words but he immediately composed himself and feigned ignorance. The corners of his lips lifted.
"Really? Then you need to be well prepared, Auntie Edith. You haven't seen your little daughter in a very long time, right?"
Cassandra noticed a flash in his eyes as she watched him speaking but she wasn't sure if she was reading too much into it.
Clark's eyes turned cold and calculative, abruptly and easily.
"Yeah, I haven't seen her in a long time. In fact, she looks quite like Cassandra!"
Edith's face wore a soft and gentle look when she spoke of her daughters. The older she got, the more she cherished them.
"Really? Then I'm worried that I might mistake her for Cassandra when I get to meet her,"
Clark joked, knowing fully well how to get on Edith's good side. The smile on his face grew bigger.
But Cassandra didn't find it amusing. She was wary of Clark and even though she felt that her own mind was playing tricks on
her. She just knew that there must be something hiding behind Clark's smile.

Ever since she learnt about him, she had started to scrutinize his every move. She found his behaviour very strange and couldn't
help but wonder why he behaved so generously in the presence of her and Edith.
He seemed to care about her a lot, and was also very patient and gentle with Edith. Clark never acted powerful nor dominating
before them. He listened to them and seemed to have their best interests at heart. In fact, he treated Edith and Cassandra like
his own family.
If Cassandra hadn't noticed any inconsistencies, she would still have looked at him with grateful eyes. She would have continued
believing that he really was a kind man who loved her very much. But now, all she did was anticipate his next move.
His entry into her life was too coincidental. He was too infallibly good to her. It wasn't normal. 'What the hell is he trying to do?'
The next day, when Cassandra got up, she was surprised to find that Edith still wasn't up. Normally, Edith woke up before her
and always had breakfast ready for both of them. This routine had always remained unchanged.
Suddenly, a thought struck Cassandra. She immediately ran to her mother's room. She opened the door to find Edith, her face
pale, lying on the bed in a very uncomfortable position.
"Mom! Mom! What happened?"
To say that Cassandra was frightened, was an understatement. She ran to her mother and immediately checked her pulse.
Hearing her daughter's voice, Edith struggled to open her eyes and looked at Cassandra for a second before her eyes closed
again. She looked so tired. She weakly gestured at her head.
"My head hurts..."
Edith's voice was weak, and her lips were white. She was obviously very sick.
Clark appeared, having heard Cassandra's voice. He rushed into Edith's room right after Edith closed her eyes again. Seeing her
pale face, Clark immediately took out his phone and called an ambulance.
"Cassandra, don't move her! I have called an ambulance. Let's get her to the hospital now!"
Clark's brows furrowed into a tight frown when he saw Edith's condition, his eyes brimmed with worry.
Cassandra was panicking. She didn't know what to do right now. Her worry made her so feverish that she rushed to do exactly
as Clark said.

The ambulance came soon after Clark's call. The medical staff came in and carefully moved Edith into the ambulance. They
immediately took her to the hospital while Clark and Cassandra followed the ambulance in his car.
Closeby, Rufus pulled open the curtains to see what the commotion in the next villa was about.
The medical staff, wearing white, carried a stretcher into the ambulance. Cassandra followed them closely and wanted to enter
the ambulance but was pulled back and held by Clark from behind.
Rufus didn't know what Clark had said to Cassandra to her change her mind. But finally, Cassandra followed Clark to his car, and
they drove after the ambulance.
Rufus's eyes grew cold as ice and his hands tightened on the curtains.
The person on the stretcher was obviously Edith. He had already asked his people to find a way to persuade her to leave that
house. 'Why did this have to happen at such a critical time?'
His guts told him that this was definitely not a coincidence!
This was very similar to the issue with Cassandra's throat. It definitely had something to do with Clark.
Clark seemingly wanted to destroy everyone around him. He wanted to make them suffer. What was more, he even wanted them
to remain in his house to make Rufus suffer as well.
Rufus's face grew darker and darker as he made the connections in his head. If Clark really did something to make Edith fall sick
so she couldn't go abroad, then it was mortally dangerous for Cassandra and her to remain there with him any longer. No, he
must think of a way to get them out of that monster's lair!
In the hospital, seeing her mother lying in the hospital bed, Cassandra's eyes were filled with tears. She tried to contain herself
and didn't allow them to fall down.
It was lucky that she found Edith when she was taken ill. Or her mother could be seriously in danger of losing her life.
Clark walked into the ward after chatting with Edith's doctor for a while.
"The doctor said that you are fine now. You just need to rest and keep yourself calm. Auntie, I don't think it's advisable for you to
go abroad in this condition right now. You can wait till Cloris is on holiday. I will ask someone to bring her back, so you won't need
to worry about not seeing her!"

Clark said to Edith.
He gave Cassandra a meaningful look, and she understood the implication. She followed him out into the hallway.
"I guess your mother was so excited to see your sister that it triggered her episode. She needs complete bedrest. And most
importantly, she should keep herself calm and not excite herself again, it's not good for her health,"
Clark spoke, a frown superimposed on his handsome face.
Cassandra still remembered the feeling of horror when she saw Edith earlier. If there wasn't anyone around to take care of her, a
simple episode could probably prove to be fatal.
"Cassandra, how about I find someone to look after Auntie? You are usually busy at work and are rarely at home. If we hire a
nanny, she can take care of your mother and also help with other things. It will be very beneficial for her! And she will have
someone to give her company as well,"
Clark proffered and looked at Cassandra with eyes full of care and affection. It seemed that he did genuinely care about her
mother.
Cassandra's head was in a mess right now. She had no idea of what to do. Clark's idea was welcome and she immediately
agreed.
"Oh, okay, I will pay for it!"
Cassandra wasn't willing to exploit Clark's kindness anymore. He had done enough for her and her mother. So she quickly made
it clear that she would be the one to pay for the nanny.
A trace of disappointment flashed through Clark's eyes and the smile on his face faltered. He stared at Cassandra with a serious
look on his face.
"Cassandra, why are you still drawing a line between us after all this time? Do you still consider me an outsider, seriously?"
Clark's voice got higher with passion. He reached out and grabbed Cassandra's hand, looking at her intensely.
"You know how I feel about you. I won't hesitate to do anything for you when you are in need. Cassandra, you need not be this
formal with me, okay?"

Clark kept his eyes fixed on Cassandra's face. His eyes were full of affection for her. He really did feel for her.
But Cassandra felt too uncomfortable. She wanted to withdraw her hand, but she just couldn't.
Clark was rigid and clearly, he wasn't willing to let her go. Cassandra just couldn't get his hand off her, so she tolerated it.
"Cassandra, I really don't know what to do now. Can you tell me how I can win your heart?"
His tone was so helpless and desperate. If Cassandra hadn't suspected his true motives, she would have surely fallen for him by
now.
"Mr. Ji, please let go of me. We are in public."
She tried to avoid Clark's question. There were a lot of people in the hospital and Cassandra was at great discomfort at being
held by Clark.
Clark stared at her for another moment before slowly letting go of her hand.
"I am leaving now. Take good care of your mother."
With these words, he looked at Cassandra with anguish. Then he turned around and left.
Only when Clark completely disappeared from Cassandra's eyes could she finally feel her body relax.
'Gosh! Why does Clark always make me feel so nervous? Yes, I also feel nervous when I'm close to Rufus. But Clark always
succeeds in making me feel uncomfortable.'
She felt depressed, afraid and also suspicious of the man.
Cassandra let out a long sigh before turning around to walk back into the hospital room. But as soon as she turned around, her
hand was grabbed by someone again.
A big and strong hand grabbed her wrist and the person dragged her all the way along the corridor to the staircase.
"Rufus, what are you doing ?"
Cassandra knew, in her heart, that it was Rufus. She struggled but just couldn't get free. There was no one in the dimly-lit
staircase. Cassandra had no idea why Rufus was here.

"Why did you let him hold your hand?"
Rufus's words dripped with jealousy as he recalled the way Clark held Cassandra's hand a few moments ago. He so badly
wanted to punch Clark in the face then take Cassandra away just now. But he just had to control himself—it was not the right
time.
"What? Yeah, I let him hold my hand, so what? I like the way he holds my hand! It's none of your business!"
Cassandra was startled by Rufus's sudden appearance and now was also interrogated by him. She was not in the mood so she
deliberately lashed out at him.