Chapter 97

Before Bruce finished speaking, Joanna pulled a stun baton from her handbag and jabbed it aggressively toward him. Bruce reacted swiftly. Before the baton could touch him, he grabbed Joanna's hand and knocked it aside.

"Ah!" Joanna exclaimed, startled. The stun baton fell to the ground.

Bruce's expression hardened. His guilt toward Joanna instantly morphed into anger.

"Joanna, how dare you sneak attack me again?" Bruce demanded.

Joanna's dropped stun baton amplified her panic. She involuntarily retreated.

Furious, Bruce advanced with a menacing expression, taking two steps closer. Joanna's heart pounded with fear. She quickly ducked under Bruce's arm before he could react, then ran toward the parking garage exit.

She dared not be alone with him, terrified of the pain of helpless resistance.

"Joanna, stop!" Bruce shouted.

"Ah, don't come near…" Joanna gasped, panicking like frightened prey, desperately fleeing.

Bruce, even more enraged, gave chase. Unfortunately, Joanna's weakness prevented her from outrunning him. After about ten steps, she tripped over a barricade, falling heavily onto the lime-covered ground. The impact was agonizing; her head swam, and she nearly fainted.

"Joanna!" Bruce cried, rushing to her side. Joanna's arm was scratched; she couldn't get up. Bruce helped her to her feet, his heart aching with worry, yet he harshly scolded, "Serves you right! You did this to yourself!"

Joanna opened her eyes briefly, exhaled weakly, and then lost consciousness.

"Joanna, Joanna, wake up," Bruce pleaded. "What's wrong?"

Joanna remained unconscious, her body limp. Panicked, Bruce pressed his thumb to the area beneath her nose, a highly sensitive pain point. He pressed hard for nearly a minute, but Joanna remained unresponsive, clearly deeply unconscious.

Chapter 97

Completely flustered, Bruce carefully lifted her and carried her horizontally to his car. He drove her to the nearest hospital, running several red lights en route.

"Doctor, someone has fainted!" Bruce shouted, rushing into the hospital with Joanna in his arms, his face etched with panic.

Two nurses responded immediately, followed by another with a stretcher. After Bruce placed Joanna on the stretcher, the nurse swiftly wheeled her toward the emergency room, Bruce anxiously following. "Joanna, you'll be alright," he murmured. "You'll wake up…"

"This is the emergency room," the nurse said. "Please wait outside."

"Okay, please ensure she receives excellent care!" Bruce insisted.

"Don't worry," the nurse replied.

Bruce took a deep breath, forced to wait.

"Sir, please come here to pay the registration fee…"

The urgency of the situation had led him to the nearest hospital, not his own.

"Oh, okay," Bruce said. "How much is the registration fee?"

The cashier, without looking up, curtly replied, "Two dollars for registration, twenty dollars for emergency treatment, and a two-hundred-dollar deposit for medical expenses…" It was a private hospital with unstandardized fees. However, the critical situation left Bruce no choice but to proceed. He reached into his pocket, realizing he had neither money nor his phone, which he rarely carried.

"Oh, I forgot my wallet!" he exclaimed.

The cashier pursed her lips. "How can you come to a hospital without your wallet? We cannot process admission without prepayment. Please go and get the money."

Bruce's anger flared. He tossed his Lamborghini key onto the counter.

"Process the admission," he demanded. "My assistant will bring the payment."

Only then did the cashier look up, seeing a handsome, distinguished face.

Chapter 97

The cashier gasped. A nearby colleague whispered, "Oh my god, is that Mr. Everett?"

"I think so! Oh my god, why is Mr. Everett at our hospital?"

Half an hour later, the emergency room doors opened. The doctor and nurse emerged. Bruce approached immediately.

"Doctor, how is the patient?" he asked.

The doctor, without looking up, replied, "The patient's injuries aren't serious; she's been treated. She'll recover with a few days' rest. Be more careful next time. Young people shouldn't be so reckless."

A blush crept onto Bruce's face.

"Also," the doctor continued, "she has severe hypoglycemia, malnutrition, and anemia. She needs proper treatment and care, or it will be very troublesome in the future."

Bruce repeated incredulously, "Hypoglycemia? Malnourished?"

"Yes," the doctor confirmed.

"Alright," Bruce said. "I understand."

"Does the patient have depression?" the doctor asked.

"Depression?!" Bruce exclaimed. "Impossible! Joanna's too strong and outspoken…" he thought.

"Regardless," the doctor said, "the patient is very weak and needs care."

"Understood," Bruce said.

He entered the ward. Joanna lay unconscious, an IV drip attached. Several glucose bottles hung nearby. Bruce gazed at her delicate form.

"Joanna, I'm sorry," he whispered, holding her hand.

After a time, he remembered her fondness for Honeymoon Dessert. Given her hypoglycemia, dessert would be ideal upon waking. He initially planned to call his assistant, but a Honeymoon Dessert shop was nearby. A round trip would take only twenty minutes.

Chapter 97

He left the ward. Twenty minutes later, he returned with dessert—his first time personally buying food for someone. The ward was empty, however, the IV still in place.

"Where's the patient?"

"Isn't she in the ward?"

"Oh my, when did she leave?"

Joanna had woken and, unwilling to face Bruce, slipped away while he was gone.