CHAPTER 921: CHAPTER 921: TREATMENT

Private island.

Before arriving, Ann Vaughn had already prepared herself to be a quiet third wheel.

But unexpectedly, someone had beaten her to it...

"How lucky do you have to be to eat the fish I caught with my own hands? I haven’t even had a bite myself! Hope it chokes you to death!" Julian Ford’s frustrated voice came from the front of the barbecue grill.

Evan Sawyer had just stuffed a grilled fish into his mouth, and upon hearing this, he spit it out immediately, looking horrified, "Is anything you cook even edible? If something happens to me from eating this, The Third Ford, you’ll pay with your life!"

Julian Ford pushed him aside, "Eat it or leave it, I don’t care!"

Saying that, Julian Ford grabbed the remaining barbecue from Evan Sawyer’s hand and happily walked towards Ann Vaughn, who was relaxing on a beach chair.

"Sis... Barbecue! Miss Vaughn, would you like to try the barbecue I just made?" Almost slipped up, Julian Ford’s voice subconsciously intensified.

It almost startled Ann Vaughn, who was zoning out.

"Tha...thank you."

If Julian Ford didn’t have such a goofy smile, Ann Vaughn would have been too scared to take the barbecue he offered.

"By the way, where’s James?" Julian Ford looked around but didn’t see Cyrus Hawthorne.

"I forgot to bring sunscreen, so he went back to get it for me."

Actually, Ann Vaughn didn’t care much about sunscreen. Even in Gothasen’s hottest weather, she could sit in the garden for half a day without getting tanned.

But getting tanned and getting sunburned are two different things, and naturally, Cyrus Hawthorne wouldn’t let her run around under the hot sun without sunscreen.

So Ann Vaughn had to sit there and wait for him to return.

Hearing Ann Vaughn’s words, Julian Ford suddenly felt a bit bitter.

Thinking back to when he was investigating on Isle of Flora in K Country, he once complained to his brother that the sun was too harsh and he should have put on sunscreen.

What did his brother say?

"With your thick skin, do you still need sunscreen?"

Julian Ford almost burst into tears back then.

Both getting sun exposure, why does the treatment change so much when it’s his sister-in-law??

Julian Ford swallowed his bitterness and said to Ann Vaughn, "Miss Vaughn, are you sitting here because you can’t swim? Do you want me to ask James to teach..."

"Oh my! This barbecue is toxic! The Third Ford, get over here!"

Before he could finish, Evan Sawyer suddenly interrupted Julian Ford, forcibly covering his mouth and dragging him away from Ann Vaughn.

After they had walked some distance, Evan Sawyer said indignantly, "Cian’s wound hasn’t healed completely, didn’t the doctor say to reduce activities? How can he teach his sister-in-law?"

"I just wanted to set them up... Do you think our brother can hold back? His beloved woman is right by his side, and he has to pretend not to know her and keep his distance? I couldn’t bear it."

Evan Sawyer stroked his chin thoughtfully, "Who knows if he can hold back or is just playing the long game?"

After the two of them had walked far away, Ann Vaughn finished the barbecue in her hand. Seeing that Cyrus Hawthorne hadn’t returned, she got up to look for Kenny.

Just as she reached the beach, she saw Little Dumpling carrying a small pastel yellow bucket, taking a few steps and squatting down to pick up some shells, leaving a trail of little footprints behind.

Ann Vaughn couldn’t help but chuckle. As the warm wind blew, her earlier reluctance to go swimming suddenly turned into a desire to give it a try.

She thought she shouldn’t be a poor swimmer, right?

The waves were rolling, and the temperature was rising as noon approached.

Cyrus Hawthorne placed things on the beach chair, his narrow eyes scanning the surroundings, then headed towards the barbecue grill in the shade.

"Where’s Annie?"

"Sister-in-law?" Julian Ford threw away the burnt fish and glanced at where Ann Vaughn had been sitting, but she was nowhere to be found, "Maybe she got too hot from sitting and went for a swim?"

Seeing that Cyrus Hawthorne hadn’t changed into swimming attire, Julian Ford felt relieved.

It’s a good thing he didn’t suggest it to his sister-in-law just now, otherwise, he would have jeopardized his brother and broken trust with his sister-in-law.

... Wait.

Can his sister-in-law swim?

Julian Ford abruptly looked up, just in time to see Cyrus Hawthorne with a darkened expression striding toward the sea, and his heart skipped a beat.

No way!?

...

The sea water swept in from all directions, like invisible tentacles, tightly wrapped around Ann Vaughn’s right leg, desperately pulling her downward.

She had taken in several mouthfuls of salty seawater through her mouth and nose, making her want to cough but unable to, and her lungs were burning with pain.

She struggled to swim upward, but her body felt heavier and heavier. The water gradually covered her eyes, slowly stripping away her consciousness.

In the midst of disarray, she heard a loud splash beside her.

Ann Vaughn struggled to open her eyes, but her eyelids felt exceedingly heavy.

Before her eyes closed entirely, she saw a beam of white light diving powerfully into the water, graceful like a startled swan or a dragon in flight, causing her a moment of bewilderment.

A faint voice suddenly passed through her mind.

"I love you more than anything in this world, without past or future limits."

Subsequently, endless darkness thoroughly enveloped Ann Vaughn.

...

Fortunately, she was discovered in time, and Ann Vaughn merely choked on some seawater and fell into temporary unconsciousness due to oxygen deprivation, but was otherwise unharmed.

But Cyrus Hawthorne wasn’t so lucky.

Though the doctor had advised against getting the wound wet recently, Cyrus Hawthorne had an obsession with cleanliness, which made it impossible for him to adhere to such medical advice.

Thus, his gunshot wound still hasn’t healed to this day and has been recovering very slowly.

Soaking in seawater, the consequences are easy to imagine.

As the private doctor changed the dressing for Cyrus Hawthorne, Julian Ford stood nearby, grimacing as if he himself were the injured one.

Cyrus Hawthorne’s thin lips quirked, apart from looking a bit pale, his brows barely furrowed.

"The Third Ford, are you done yet?"

"Brother, it doesn’t hurt you but it pains me to watch." Julian Ford swallowed, "You know, if it weren’t for your heart being in an unusual position, you would have been gone with that shot."

"Who the hell took a shot at you? If I find out, I’ll..."

Before he could finish speaking, Cyrus Hawthorne cast a cold gaze at him, his expression displeased, "What will you do?"

Julian Ford’s heart skipped a beat, his brother’s reaction... something’s off.

Could it be that the one who shot his brother was that person again?

Julian Ford’s face darkened, staring at Cyrus Hawthorne’s fearsome wound for a long time, then sighed.

"Brother!" Evan Sawyer pushed the door open and said to Cyrus Hawthorne, "Sister-in-law is awake, but..."

"But what?" Cyrus Hawthorne’s brows furrowed.

"Sister-in-law asked me who rescued her, she wants to meet them." Evan Sawyer looked at Cyrus Hawthorne’s already bandaged wound and said, "I’m worried that sister-in-law will worry if she sees you like this, so I haven’t told her yet. Came to ask you first."

No doubt about it, a true friend of many years.

Cyrus Hawthorne hadn’t even spoken, yet Evan Sawyer already knew his concerns.