CHAPTER 71: CHAPTER 71: MATTERS OF THE HEART

Hospital.

Ronan Rhodes helped Landon Sutton into a wheelchair, saying, "Master Nate, did you foresee this? You told me to prepare a wheelchair earlier, and now you’re really using one."

Landon Sutton seemed well-acquainted with using a wheelchair and rarely bothered with idle talk with Ronan. He simply wheeled himself out of the ward.

Ronan instructed the remaining two guys to pack up the things in the ward and hurriedly chased after them.

"Master Nate, slow down!"

Just as they reached the elevator, the doors opened automatically before they pressed the button. Coincidentally, Shannon Quinn and Erin Bishop were the ones coming up in the elevator.

Seeing the wheelchair, Shannon Quinn was momentarily stunned, as if her heartbeat stopped. When she recognized Landon Sutton sitting in it, she slowly regained her composure.

Since there were others in the elevator going up, Shannon and Erin didn’t delay and walked out. Shannon looked down at Landon in the wheelchair and asked, "Being discharged?"

Landon Sutton seemed somewhat displeased that she hadn’t visited him in the hospital these past few days. He deliberately averted his gaze, pretending not to hear her.

Ronan quickly replied, "Yeah, the doctors suggested he stay a few more days to rest, but he wouldn’t listen to them. We couldn’t argue with him, so we just finished the discharge paperwork and are heading back."

"How is the recovery going?"

"Well, now he’s in a wheelchair. You know, it takes a hundred days to heal bones and muscles, so it’s not something that will get better quickly." Ronan said, then turned to Shannon Quinn, "Miss Quinn, you’re at the hospital for..."

Shannon glanced at Landon in the wheelchair, who hadn’t said a word, and replied with a light smile to Ronan, "It’s the weekend, so I came to check on Mr. Sutton."

"Miss Quinn, you might not know this, but because you haven’t visited recently, Master Nate hasn’t shown me a kind face all these days. I..."

"You talk too much?" Landon suddenly interrupted in a low voice, cutting off Ronan, who then shut his mouth sullenly.

Just then, the elevator came down from above. Shannon and Erin stepped aside to let Ronan push Landon in first, and the two of them followed.

Inside the elevator with just the four of them, apart from Landon, the other three exchanged awkward glances in silence.

As the elevator neared the bottom floor, Erin finally asked Ronan, "Didn’t you tell me your brother was returning soon? Is the time set?"

Ronan, ever eager to stir things up, immediately revealed his brother’s whereabouts, "You’re just in time. My brother is arriving tonight, around eight or nine. If Miss Bishop has time, you can come with me to pick him up."

Erin seemed surprised it was so soon. Although she had been eagerly waiting for Zane to return, now that it was happening, her usual carefree demeanor showed a moment of hesitation.

"Or I can arrange for you to meet him another day. He’ll be staying long-term after returning, so there will be plenty of chances to meet."

Suddenly resolute, Erin said, "I’ll go with you tonight."

When it came to personal feelings, Landon Sutton couldn’t be bothered to interfere. He found it hard enough to handle his love life, let alone worry about others’.

Landon was helped into a car by Ronan, and the wheelchair was stowed in the trunk.

Standing to the side, Shannon Quinn watched, feeling a little dazed.

The wheelchair felt like a connection to Vincent Rhodes in her mind, but she couldn’t link Landon Sutton to Vincent, nor could she have imagined the person she’d been searching for was right in front of her.

"What are you spacing out for? Get in the car." Erin in the driver’s seat urged her, snapping Shannon out of it. She opened the car door and got in.

Both cars headed in the same direction, and even the ever-talkative Erin turned silent, clearly distracted by thoughts of Zane.

When the car with Landon stopped below an apartment building, Shannon grew puzzled. Having seen Landon’s room, she felt it wasn’t a place he frequently stayed at. Given his status, he surely had more than one property, and she thought Ronan would take him to one of his regular homes.

"Shannon, I’m not going up. My mom called earlier to ask me to come home."

"Alright."

"Tonight... would you come with me? It’s been so long since I last saw him, I’m a bit scared."

Shannon readily agreed with a nod, "Sure."

"I’ll drive over to pick you up then."

Despite Erin Bishop’s claim of being experienced with men, facing someone she truly liked made her nervous and flustered.

But having someone to care for seemed quite nice.

Shannon sighed softly and headed into the building.

Ronan stood by the elevator pushing the wheelchair, on a call for a moment before hanging up.

Then he turned to Shannon with a sheepish smile, "Miss Quinn, it seems you’re quite familiar with our boss. How about you help push him upstairs? I’ve just got a sudden urgent matter to attend to."

Before Shannon could agree, Ronan handed her a bag of medicine, saying, "Instructions are labeled on how to take the medicines inside. Ask Master Nate if you’re unsure, he knows. I’m uncertain if I can come by tonight. If I can’t, could you bring him a meal or order delivery? He won’t shortchange you on living expenses."

The elevator door dinged open, and once the others exited, Ronan pushed Landon inside. From the door, he reminded, "If I don’t make it tonight, I’ll definitely come by tomorrow morning. But for tonight, I’d really appreciate your help. If anything comes up, you can also call me."

With Ronan being so courteous, Shannon couldn’t bring herself to refuse. She chuckled dryly and nodded.

"Master Nate, I’ll be off then."

Watching Ronan leave, Shannon looked down at the expressionless Landon Sutton. She said nothing, watching the elevator doors close slowly and pressed the floor button.

Internally, she mused about how she wasn’t begging to take care of him, yet he acted so unwilling and displeased. She didn’t even want to be bothered with it and take the brunt of his mood.

But despite her thoughts, he was still a patient. Once they arrived, Shannon dutifully pushed him out of the elevator.

Reaching his door, she rummaged through her bag and found his house key.

As she unlocked the door, Landon said, "I haven’t been around these past days. You didn’t sneak in to steal anything from my place, did you?"

Those words irritated Shannon further. Her hand twitched with more force as she turned the key, speaking through gritted teeth, "What’s there to steal from your place? Anything I need, my husband can buy for me. Your stuff isn’t even worth my attention!"