Chapter 572 His Surprise

Andy stood by the road waiting. From a distance, he saw Tilda rushing over, so he waved at her right away.

“Tilda, I know you missed me, but running full speed like that? You’re making me feel way too important.”

“Drive. Take me to the airport–I need to get to Dugan!”

“What?”

Wasn’t she supposed to meet him today and let him handle everything? Andy had already set up their plans, ready to whisk her off and start living in their little sweet world together. And now, she suddenly wanted to ditch him and fly out to Dugan? Seriously? What a heartbreaker. It turns out I was just wasting my time all these years!

It stung, but Andy still drove her to the airport without a word. Tilda hacked the airline system herself and grabbed the next ticket. On the way, she told Andy everything Manfred had said. He sat there stunned, needing a moment to process. If even a top lawyer like him was rattled, it showed how big the news was.

“… Alright, now I get it. Buckle up. I’m stepping on it. You’re catching that flight!”

Andy grinned, shifted gears, and slammed on the gas. The red Ferrari tore down the highway like a fire arrow. Jeselton to Dugan was only a three–hour flight. By the time Tilda landed, it was 4:00 p.m. Right then, a message from Dane popped up.

“Tilda, we did it.”

It was just a few words, but she could feel his excitement bursting off the screen.

“Yes, Dane, you did it! You finally built the 4nm chip lithography machine!”

“This victory belongs to everyone. Without your help, none of it would’ve happened.”

Almost immediately, Manfred called. The car he’d arranged was already waiting, taking her straight to the hotel. At the center of Dugan, Tilda finally reunited with Dane and Liam. They walked toward her. Liam called out, “Tilda!”

“Dane! Liam!”

She ran over and hugged them both, her eyes glowing. “I missed you guys so much!”

Liam ruffled her hair fondly. “We missed you, too. Hard to believe it’s been nearly two months already.”

“Yeah, I still can’t believe it myself. The second I saw Mr. Parker’s message, I booked a flight straight to Dugan. I had to celebrate this moment with you guys! Oh, does Mystro know yet?”

“Dane already messaged Mystro, and he replied. Oh, Tilda, Dane has got something he wants to ask you.”

“Ask me? Dane, whatever it is, just say it. If I can help, I’m all in!”

Tilda never said no to her seniors. She and Liam had already spent plenty of time talking about Dane’s condition. What Dane was dealing with was something no one had ever come across before. Nothing in the medical books even came close. No surprise Harvey couldn’t figure it out either. But thanks to Liam’s steady treatments, things had finally started moving forward. Tilda couldn’t help but let herself hope. If there was truly a breakthrough, would it show up now?

Right as she was about to speak, Dane signaled her to stay quiet. He took her hand, pulled her out of the crowd, and brought her into an empty room. Tilda followed without a fuss, closed her eyes cooperatively, and teased, “Dane, what kind of surprise are you cooking up for me?”

“Til… da…”

A rough, shaky whisper brushed her ear. She froze in place, then slowly opened her eyes. When she realized the sound came from the man standing right in front of her, her breath caught.

“Dane… say that again?”

“Tilly… Tilly…”

He kept softly calling her nickname while patting her head. His voice was ragged and weak, but to Tilda, it was the sweetest sound she’d ever heard in her life. She threw her arms around him. “Dane, you can finally talk!”

“It’s still… hard… but at least… I can speak…”

“It’s all… thanks to… Liam…”

Truth was, Dane had almost given up hope. Plenty of top doctors had tried, even Tilda herself, but nobody could solve his problem. He had only stuck with Liam’s treatment so that he wouldn’t disappoint him. But somehow, it worked.