My Child and I Married a Billionaire

Brandon Jacobs and Elsa went to the hospital together. Damien Vaughn had acted quickly, arranging for Mrs. Vaughn’s surgery while they were asleep. The operation was a success, and she was now under post-operative observation.

He hadn’t slept at all the previous night and had been up for nearly the entire day, his face etched with exhaustion. Elsa told him to go to a hotel to rest, saying she would take over the watch tonight.

After Damien Vaughn left, Elsa went to the hospital room to see Mrs. Vaughn. Brandon Jacobs saw the professor was there and stopped him to ask about the pillbox from the day before.

The professor was cautious in his reply. "Where did this box come from? If it’s being taken by an acquaintance, why don’t you just ask her directly?"

Brandon Jacobs was frank with him. "She won’t say. Professor, I can handle whatever it is. It’s fine, please, just be straight with me."

"It’s not that I won’t tell you; I’m just not the right specialist. How about this, Jacobs? I’ll recommend a doctor who’s more of an expert. You can ask her, and you can go to her directly with any follow-up questions."

Brandon Jacobs was speechless.

’If he doesn’t know what’s going on, how can he recommend a specialist to me? Isn’t that a contradiction?’

’It must be a very serious illness. The professor is just being tight-lipped.’

He followed the professor to a doctor’s office and was introduced to a new physician. The doctor quickly identified the medication.

"This is a targeted therapy drug for treating breast cancer."

’Breast cancer?’

Brandon Jacobs nearly collapsed.

’Elsa is so young, and she’s a doctor herself. How could she have breast cancer?’

"Are you sure, Doctor?"

"I’m certain. This is my specialty. I prescribe it to countless patients every day. I couldn’t be more certain."

Suppressing his immense shock and grief, Brandon Jacobs asked why someone would get this disease and if it could be cured. The doctor explained.

"Generally, if it’s discovered early or the tumor is benign, it isn’t fatal. All it takes is some radiation and chemotherapy, along with regular targeted therapy drugs. But... you should still have your friend come in for an examination as soon as possible. Honestly, with modern medicine, it’s not considered an especially serious issue."

Brandon Jacobs immediately stormed into Mrs. Vaughn’s hospital room.

Mrs. Vaughn was still unconscious after the surgery. Elsa’s idea of "caring" for her was simply to sit by her side, lost in a daze. Brandon Jacobs rushed over and grabbed Elsa’s hand.

"Come outside with me for a second."

Elsa, annoyed, was dragged out of the hospital room by him. "What are you doing?"

"Come with me for a check-up. Elsa, if you’re sick, you need treatment. The sooner you start actively treating it, the better. You shouldn’t be so defeatist."

Elsa stared into his eyes. They held each other’s gaze for a long moment before she coldly spat out a few words.

"How do you know?"

"I..."

"Did you investigate me?"

"No."

"Then how do you know?"

Brandon Jacobs stammered, "I..."

"Does Damien know?"

"He doesn’t. But if you don’t get proper treatment and continue to neglect yourself like this, I will tell him."

Brandon Jacobs was simply too in love with her, so much so that he couldn’t accept the idea of losing her. He had never cared about anyone so much in his entire life.

Unfortunately, Elsa couldn’t have cared less.

"I told you to keep your distance, but not only did you ignore me, you’ve taken it even further? Brandon Jacobs, we’re through."

After saying her piece, Elsa didn’t even go back into the room, instead heading straight for the elevators. Panicked, Brandon Jacobs hurried after her.

"Elsa, listen to me! Elsa!"

"Don’t follow me! If anything happens to her, Damien and I will hate you for the rest of our lives!"

She was referring to Mrs. Vaughn. Brandon Jacobs had been so worried about Elsa that he had almost forgotten about her.

"Don’t go! Where can you go? Let’s go back so you can listen to my explanation!"

The elevator arrived, and Elsa got in. Brandon Jacobs wanted to follow, but there was no one in Mrs. Vaughn’s room.

"Elsa..."

As the elevator doors closed, he dashed to the doctor’s office, gave a hasty explanation, and then ran out to take the stairs.

Downstairs, Elsa had already reached the ground-floor lobby.

She was incredibly agitated, her mind a total mess. She walked aimlessly, with no idea where she was going, but she felt a desperate urge to escape this place.

She didn’t want to be cared for or pitied. She didn’t want to spend the last days of her life consumed by hospital beds and medication.

’I had no choice in being born; can’t I at least have a choice in how I die?’

Her head was down and her pace was hurried as she brushed past the crowd. Suddenly, a large, strong hand gripped her wrist.

She assumed it was Brandon, having caught up to her so quickly, and reflexively turned to snap at him. But when she looked back, she saw...

It was the man from last night.

He was still wearing the same clothes, but he lacked the dashing air he’d had the night before.

His shoulders, sleeves, and chest were all stained with dried blood, and his head was wrapped in thick layers of white gauze.

"It’s you? What happened?"

’If I remember correctly, Brandon Jacobs said this man rekindled things with his ex-girlfriend last night. So how did he get hurt?’

Seeing Elsa’s confused expression, the man said with a roguish grin.

"Who else but you do I have to thank for this? Your ex beat me up last night."

"What?"

"My head’s killing me. Let’s find a coffee shop and talk about it. What about you? What are you doing at the hospital? Where did you stay last night? He didn’t give you any trouble, did he?"

Elsa had no intention of going with him. Though they’d met, that was last night.

"I..."

But before she could refuse, the man suddenly disappeared from view.

Brandon Jacobs came flying down the stairs and kicked the man squarely in the lower back, sending him flying several meters away.

Damien Vaughn called Cecelia Archer and Candy. He had just taken a shower and was starting to doze off when his phone rang.

He picked it up and looked at the screen. It was Elsa.

Thinking something had happened to his mother, he bolted upright. "What’s wrong?"

But the voice on the other end was a man’s. "Is this Damien Vaughn? The phone owner’s brother? This is the Suthera District Police Station. Your sister is a suspect in an assault case and is currently in our custody. You need to come down and sort this out."

When Damien Vaughn rushed over, he found Elsa sitting calmly in the main hall.

"What happened? Where’s Brandon Jacobs?"

Elsa gave him a quick rundown of what happened. Damien Vaughn was speechless for a few seconds before going to arrange for Brandon Jacobs’s bail, but an officer told him it wasn’t possible.

"The victim’s injuries are severe. He’s currently under observation in the ICU, and his condition is potentially life-threatening. That changes the nature of the incident, so bail cannot be granted."

With no other option, Damien Vaughn could only leave with Elsa for the time being.

On the way, Elsa drove while he called the head of the Vaughn Group’s legal department. The lawyer advised that their best course of action was to meet with the victim’s family as soon as possible, offer a sincere apology, and make it clear they were willing to cover all medical expenses and other compensation. The goal was to have the incident reclassified as a civil matter and convince them to drop the charges. Otherwise, the longer it dragged on, the more disadvantageous their position would become.

Damien Vaughn wasn’t afraid of apologizing or paying compensation; the problem was that Elsa didn’t even know the man’s name.

For the first time, he felt a surge of anger at his sister’s actions.

"In what way is Brandon Jacobs not good enough for you? He has money, he has looks, and he’s genuinely devoted to you. And yet you were about to walk off with a complete stranger right in front of him? Elsa, is he that worthless to you? Why do you have to humiliate him like this?"