Chapter 79: Time to Fight Back
Wendy Wynn cried, her face streaked with tears.
Henry Sterling gently patted Wendy Wynn’s back, trying to soothe her.
Inside the hospital room.
Just then, Caleb Quinn came out and gently closed the door behind him.
Leaving it open just a crack, Caleb Quinn looked at Henry Sterling seriously and said, "Professor Sterling, I used to admire you a great deal. I thought your dedication to your academic research was incredible."
"But today I learned that someone who excels academically can be a complete failure in other aspects of their life."
"Now, I have a message for you from Tanya. She’s injured, she’s exhausted, and she wants to rest. If you two want to talk, reminisce, or get affectionate, please do it somewhere far away from here!"
After saying his piece, Caleb Quinn nodded to Vivian Lowell, his gaze softening slightly, before shutting the door completely.
Henry Sterling looked toward the hospital room.
His throat bobbed. He clearly wanted to say something, but just as the words were on the tip of his tongue, Wendy Wynn came over and tugged on his arm.
"Henry. Is Miss Rhodes injured? Is it serious? Can... can I go in and see her?"
Wendy Wynn looked worried. Wiping her tears, she added, "I really didn’t know about the cat situation. Henry, I’ve had Little White for a few days now, and I’ve grown very fond of him."
"Do you remember that little white cat we used to feed when we were abroad?"
"I think Little White looks so much like him! Back then... if my apartment hadn’t forbidden pets, maybe that little white cat wouldn’t have..."
As Wendy Wynn spoke, she choked up again.
She looked so incredibly pitiful.
So pitiful that Vivian Lowell wanted to march right over, slap her, and kick her to the ground.
"Henry Sterling."
Vivian Lowell closed her eyes for a moment, then walked to the door of the hospital room and said to Henry Sterling, "In that case, you should just accompany Miss Winslow home."
Without waiting for Henry Sterling’s reply, Vivian Lowell turned, entered the hospital room, and closed the door.
Inside the room.
Eleanor Rhodes had her eyes closed, whimpering to Caleb Quinn, who was beside her, that she was in pain, a little hungry, wanted a late-night snack, and also wanted to sleep.
Caleb Quinn was completely at a loss with what to do about Eleanor Rhodes.
Hearing her whimper, he could only start humming a gentle song. Caleb Quinn had a pleasant voice, and the melody he hummed was soothing and lyrical.
Listening to it was indeed comforting, as if the sound could ease the pain.
While humming, Caleb Quinn took out his phone, opened a food delivery app, and asked, "What do you want to eat? Chicken wings? Fries? You’re sick, so you can’t have anything deep-fried."
"I see a place that sells porridge. How about some millet porridge?"
Eleanor Rhodes was someone who couldn’t be happy without meat.
When she heard Caleb Quinn suggest millet porridge, her face fell. She grumbled, "I’d rather starve than eat porridge. Forget it, give me the phone. I’ll look myself!"
Vivian Lowell entered the room and couldn’t help but smile wryly at Eleanor Rhodes, who was acting like a child. "Tanya, let me order some food for you."
"How about some white cut chicken? It has the meat you love, it’s not greasy, and it can pass for a light meal."
Eleanor Rhodes listened and hesitated for a moment.
She wasn’t actually a big fan of white cut chicken.
She preferred dishes with bold flavors, like Sichuan or Hunan cuisine, but now that she was sick, getting to eat any meat at all was a blessing.
’If I get any pickier...’
’My dear friend Vivian Lowell will definitely take away my late-night snack privileges!’ she thought.
"Alright."
Eleanor Rhodes agreed reluctantly, her gaze drifting toward the door. "Is he gone? With that Wendy Wynn?"
"Yeah."
Vivian Lowell nodded. Not wanting to talk about Henry Sterling, she instead asked Eleanor Rhodes for the details of what had happened that night.
Eleanor Rhodes couldn’t quite explain it herself.
She had been at the clinic, and the two vets were just about done for the day. She was getting ready to go home when that woman burst in with the dog.
The two vets were also about to leave, but when they saw the situation turn dangerous, they stepped in to protect Eleanor Rhodes. What happened after that was basically the same as what Henry Sterling had told Vivian Lowell.
"Henry Sterling knocked out the big dog and the woman with a stun baton. It’s a good thing the clinic had those on hand for protection, otherwise..."
Eleanor Rhodes didn’t dare to think about what might have happened "otherwise."
Seeing Eleanor Rhodes like this, Vivian Lowell offered a few words of comfort. "More fame, more problems. People who are jealous of you will always try to slander you."
"Tanya, what happened this time was just an accident."
"Why don’t you tell your family? They could assign a security guard to you. And we can coordinate with the local police station to have them keep a special eye out for you during their patrols."
Eleanor Rhodes was a little hesitant.
Normally, she would have refused, but now that she was injured, she had little choice but to agree.
"Okay, Vivian. Once I’ve recovered and I’m out of the hospital, I’ll talk to my dad. Thanks for coming all this way. You’ll probably have to help me look after the pet clinic for the next couple of days, too."
Eleanor Rhodes added, "My injuries aren’t serious. I should be fine in two or three days."
"Mhm, I will," Vivian Lowell agreed. Beside them, Caleb Quinn chimed in, "Tanya, you forgot about me! I’ve already gotten the hang of everything at work!"
"I can help you with all of this, right?"
"Yes!" Eleanor Rhodes smiled. She was getting tired and said she wanted to rest, so they all fell silent.
Vivian Lowell saw how attentively Caleb Quinn was taking care of Eleanor Rhodes and said, "I’ll go check on the two vets, then. I’ll also give your mom a call."
"I’ll tell her you’re staying at my place tonight and won’t be coming home."
"Okay," Eleanor Rhodes agreed and closed her eyes.
After leaving, Vivian Lowell went down to the first floor and saw the two vets from the pet clinic.
They had both been bitten by the dog. One of them had a wound that needed stitches, and now they had both received rabies shots, had their wounds debrided, and been stitched up.
When Vivian Lowell went over to see them, they were preparing to be discharged.
Medical resources at Concordia Hospital were extremely tight. Even if they had wanted to be admitted, there were no beds available. Henry Sterling had been the one to contact the hospital and find a bed for Eleanor Rhodes.
"Thank you both so much. Let’s add each other on WhatsApp so I can cover your medical fees!"
The two vets looked at each other, initially wanting to refuse. After all, as vets who had watched Eleanor Rhodes rescue so many poor little cats, they were compassionate people themselves.
However, their families weren’t happy about the situation, and as soon as they heard there would be compensation, they urged the vets to accept.
Vivian Lowell gave them 10,000 yuan each.
After receiving the money, they said their thanks and left with their families.
Vivian Lowell breathed a sigh of relief.
’This wasn’t the time to be stingy with money. Better to avoid any future trouble.’
Julian Faulkner had been by Vivian Lowell’s side the whole time.
Just then, he took a call. After only a few words, his expression turned grave, and he handed the phone to Vivian Lowell.
"What’s wrong?"
Vivian Lowell was puzzled.
She took the phone, and just as she said "Hello?" Vance Wyatt’s voice came from the other end.
"Ma’am, do you remember the man who jumped from the Grand West Aethelburg Hotel tonight? The police have just confirmed his identity."
"He’s the one—the man in the raincoat who abandoned the stray cat at your pet clinic’s doorstep!"
"The police found his suicide note at the scene! In it, he wrote that after you exposed him, he was cyberbullied, and his son died!"
"He wanted justice but couldn’t find any other way, so he chose this method to let everyone know about the injustice he suffered!"
"He felt you were in the wrong. Even if he abandoned the cat, he said it was his own cat to abandon!"
"He claimed that you were just using animal rescue as a front to chase clout and make money, and that you’re not good people. Ma’am, this whole thing has already been posted online..."
Vance Wyatt’s tone was grim. He asked, "Ma’am, should I hire people to get this taken off the trending lists?"
"Or do you have a plan for how to clarify the situation?"
After hearing the whole story, Vivian Lowell fell silent.
She had never imagined that the man who jumped from the Grand West Aethelburg Hotel tonight was the man in the raincoat.
And at the same time, his wife had shown up at the pet clinic and injured Eleanor Rhodes!
Vivian Lowell took a deep breath, her fists clenching. "We have to fight back! We can’t let them just drag our names through the mud like this!"