The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Chapter 234

“What?” The old man grumbled as he took the pack of cigarettes Anna tossed to him, skillfully slipping

it into his jeans pocket. “People are always rummaging around here, as if there’s something worth

finding among all this junk. It’s truly preposterous”

“Has anyone else been here recently?” Anna asked, her face showing signs of concern.

“Yeah. Some weirdos in black suits were here a few days ago and were tossing things around i asked

them who they were and got nothing but bad attitude in return” The old man retorted, clearly irked by

the disrespect he was given by those men.

“You’re okay, right?” Anna asked, her anxiety mounting.

“I’m fine. I threatened to call the cops, and they ran off The old man puffed out his chest with pride

Anna let out a sigh of relief. She and her friends, Percival and Vivienne, exchanged looks.

“Let’s get what we came for Anna led the way to the basement

Percival and Vivienne followed As Vivienne looked back, she locked eyes with the old man, who

snorted before walking away with his head held high

making Vivienne frown.

Inside the basement.

This used to be Karen’s main lab. Upon entering. Vivienne noticed an abandoned 3D bio–printer.

She blinked in surprise, while Percival looked around the lab as a softness crept onto his normally stern

face.

When he first visited this lab, he was just a child. At that time, he was completely awestruck by the

wonders inside.

Later, when he understood that many of the beneficial medical advancements in the world came from

here, he felt a swell of pride for his mentor

Unfortunately, the visionary behind all this was no longer with them

Anna, oblivious to their thoughts, headed straight to a hole in the corner. It was the entrance to a rat’s

nest.

She bent down and gently tapped on the entrance.

Two small, white heads popped out. They were lab rats.

Recognizing Anna, they squeaked and retreated back into their hole, only to return shortly with a small

glass vial filled with a green liquid.

Did you train these rats? Vivienne asked as Anna picked up the vial and rewarded the rats with some

cookies and candy

Anna bought the cookies and candy from a 24–hour convenience store earlier, along with the cigarettes

for the old man.

Vivienne thought Anna was hungry, not realizing it was for the rats.

“No They’re probably descendants of the lab rats used here before.” Anna replied while shaking her

head

“When I first came here, they were bold enough to ask for food I found them to be quite intelligent and

unafraid of me, so I decided to hide the drug

bere

Who would have thought she’d hide something so important in a random rat hole?

“Here you go” Anna handed the potion to Vivienne

Vivienne accepted it without a word

“Let’s get going” Percival suggested

Anna patted the rats, which were still squeaking around her feet, and followed Vivienne and Percival

out of the basement.

When they emerged, the old man was gone

“Goodbye” Anne called out to the empty air

“Hmph came a response from a hidden corner

As Percival drove them away, he asked Anna, “What are your plans?”

haven’t thought about it“Anne was still in a slightly dazed state For years, she had been running and

heding, fearful of being discovered by G TO

members

“You’re exposed now‘ Percival pointed out calmly “You have two choices. You can come with me and

work for me, or you can go with Vivienne, retó i also protect you‘

Anna stayed silent

“Take your time Percival said as he drove. “You still need go to university But dont do anything reckless

again. vi might not always be there

“I understand” Anna replied

As they reached the city, the sunlight was beginning to peak through the clouds

Percival glanced at the time It was 6:15 am so peak morning traffic was about to begin

“Let’s go to my place ‘Percival suggested to Vivienne My grandfather wants to meet you”

“Sure Vivienne agreed She sent a text to Draven, asking him to bring the gifts the had prepared for the

Ellington family

As soon as she hit send Percival slammed on the brakes causing the car to lunch

She steadied herself by pressing her foot against the seat.

After looking up, she saw seven or eight cars surrounding them.

They were in Riverwood now. Could GTO be bold enough to confront them in broad daylight?

Her face hardened, but as she looked at the man stepping out of one of the cars, her expression

changed.

Scott!?

Percival got out of the car, not letting his disheveled appearance reduce his aura of aristocratic

coldness

He stood in front of Scott as his gaze swept over the cars surrounding them His tone was cold and

challenging as he asked, “Scott, what is the meaning of this?”

“Percival, I mean no harm. I’m here to take Vivienne home. Scott’s gaze moved past Percival to where

Vivienne sat in the car

The young girl’s gaze was sprinkled with a nonchalant air. She lazily locked eyes with him, not shying

away. She even radiated subtle mockery at him.

He knew why Vivienne was mocking him

She was poking fun at how they had been played by Beatrice and Arabella, bringing home a counterfeit

treasure and causing chaos in their household

She was mocking him for not being able to recognize his own daughter.

But who said he couldn’t recognize her?

From the moment he laid eyes on Vivienne at the family reunion banquet, he had suspicions The girl

was too much like Karen, except that Karen always exuded a warm aura, while Vivienne was extremely

cold. It was so cold that it was hard to get close

But this coldness might just be because of the hardships she endured in her early years, causing her to

armor herself with coldness to keep everyone at bay

Thinking of this quilt flooded Scott’s heart. He turned to Percival and loudly proclaimed, “Vivienne is my

biological daughter