CHAPTER 288: CHAPTER 290: THOMAS SHANNON, YOU ANSWER ME HONESTLY.

Sophie Sullivan turned around and walked out briskly. "Yours truly will no longer keep you company. Goodbye to you."

A charming blush spread across the handsome face. "Come back here right this second!"

But Sophie Sullivan was already far away, humming a tune and heading for the castle.

...

To be on the safe side, Thomas Shannon had people bring George Stanford back to the manor and settled him in the medical office.

A professional medical team was there to treat him.

When Sophie Sullivan came to visit him in the medical office, George Stanford remarked, "My dear Fiona, thankfully you skedaddled quickly that day. Otherwise, not only your ugly mug but also your life would have been beyond saving."

She tolerated being called Maniac.

But ’Fiona’ was something she decided she would not tolerate!

"I am not Fiona!"

It was all that bastard William Guillen’s fault! If he was going to pluck a name out of thin air, he could have at least chosen a better-sounding one.

"I know," George Stanford said softly. A flicker of pleasure crossed Sophie Sullivan’s face, but in the next second, George Stanford added, "But the name Fiona somehow inexplicably suits your temperament!"

"Old Mr. Stanford!"

George Stanford chuckled, then began to cough, clutching his two medical records as if they were precious treasures. A dejected look settled on his face. "Only these two left," he said, his voice filled with sorrow. "My achievements, my glory... this is all I have left."

In that fire, patients he had operated on, along with colleagues from the hospital, had perished...

Old Mr. Stanford might come off as irritable and stubborn ordinarily, but he actually has quite a tender side, Sophie thought. He isn’t just mourning his past accomplishments, but also those innocent lives that were lost.

Sophie understood with chilling clarity who wanted her dead. She recalled the terrified expression on Amelia Shaw’s face when she saw her that day... Connecting that to the subsequent hospital fire, she understood everything. It had to be Amelia Shaw scheming again.

Seeing Old Mr. Stanford in such a sorry state, Sophie softly apologized, "I’m sorry..."

"Fiona, why are you apologizing?"

The slight guilt Sophie felt vanished when he called her ’Fiona.’ She stomped her foot angrily, "Old Mr. Stanford, you are not to call me Fiona anymore!"

"Fiona, then what would you like me to call you?"

"Beauty!"

George Stanford concealed his laughter, unsure if she was serious. Finally, unable to hold it back, he erupted in laughter.

"Youngster, allow me to advise you to look in the mirror more often. To call such an ugly face ’beauty’ is nothing short of an insult to the word."

Sophie took a ton of damage.

She huffed and turned to leave.

If she stayed any longer, she felt she might lose her composure and challenge Old Mr. Stanford to a fight to the death!

After visiting George Stanford, Sophie, all riled up, returned to Thomas Shannon’s room.

She pushed the door open forcefully. Thomas Shannon, who was in discussion with Charlie River, abruptly stopped speaking, their conversation interrupted.

Charging to his bedside, Sophie indignantly asked, "Mr. Shannon, I have a question for you. Answer me honestly."

"Fire away."

"Am I or am I not a beauty?" She held her breath, confident that at least one person would dare to speak fairly.

She waited confidently for Thomas Shannon’s acknowledgment.

However...

Thomas Shannon first looked startled, then the corner of his mouth lifted, and his sexy thin lips curled in a vague smile. He squinted his eyes. "Sorry, I didn’t hear you. Could you say that again?"

Preposterous!

"I asked you, am I or am I not a beauty!"

"My apologies. You’re a person, yes. But whether you’re beautiful... I really wouldn’t know."

Charlie River turned his head to the side, trying to hide his snickers.