The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Vivienne muttered under her breath, "Where is he?" The audacity of someone to mess with the Martinez family; who gave them such guts? Percival, seeing right through Vivienne's thoughts, picked out a matching jacket from the closet and handed it to her, "At the hospital. Thomas is with him; it shouldn't be anything serious." Glancing outside at the breaking dawn, Vivienne found herself more speechless about Percival than about Leopold, the troublemaker.

At the hospital...

Leopold was lying in the hospital bed, swathed in bandages from head to toe, looking like a mummy. Only his eyes were visible, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Thomas, standing by with a mix of disdain and admiration, asked, "Leopold, I've got to hand it to you. Did you really think you could take on the Martinez family all by yourself? Are you brave or just brainless?" Leopold managed a stiff glare in response.

What do you know? It was all for love.

He wasn't about to waste his breath on someone who couldn't understand.

Thomas didn't need a second to catch the subtext, snorting, "Have sdignity, man. If only you had acknowledged Griffin before today, you wouldn't be in this mess, almost beaten to death by the Martinez family." Leopold was speechless.

Really? Rubbing salt in the wound now? When Vivienne and Percival arrived, Leopold was tilting his head, enduring Thomas's lecture.

He was furious, yet unable to escape.

After all, he hadn't dared to let his family know about the incident, resorting to calling Thomas instead. Thomas greeted the neers with respect, "Percival, ma'am." Vivienne nodded slightly and approached Leopold.

His eyes were clear; he seemed alright.

Not dead, at least.

Upon seeing Vivienne, Leopold looked so wronged he was on the verge of tears, his voice a garbled mess.

Vivienne wasn't interested in listening, turning to Thomas instead, "Have the Martinez family's weapons malfunctioned? How is he still jumping around?" Leopold was bewildered.

Did Vivienne have smisunderstanding about "jumping around"? He was nearly dead.

Thomas thought, That's savage, even for the lady of the house.

Not even sparing her own brother-in-law.

If Leopold couldn't see the anger in Vivienne's eyes now, all his years of keen observation were for naught. Despite his hoarse voice, he desperately pleaded with her.

"Vivienne... I was wrong. I shouldn't have gone off on my own..." Percival pulled over a chair for Vivienne to sit, cutting off Leopold's rambling with a glance at Thomas, "The Martinez family took their private justice on him, and now his voice is gone too?" Thomas was speechless, explaining, "He screamed too much while being bandaged up and strained his vocal cords." The injuries were actually from falling off a wall, blaming the Martinez family was a bit unfair.

Leopold was mortified.

Now they were pointing out every embarrassing detail? Percival had no words, realizing only Leopold could land himself in such a predicament.

Vivienne handed Leopold a pill, cutting to the chase, "Who from the Martinez family let you go?" Leopold swallowed nervously before taking the pill, his voice meek, "Mr. Martinez. He said he was showing respect to my grandfather and toldnot toe back again." Vivienne exchanged a knowing look with Percival. It seemed Leopold wasn't entirely without support.

Maybe there was still hope for this mess.

As Percival glanced at his vibrating phone, he warned Leopold, "Your uncle is on his way. You better think of what you're going to say." Them? Leopold's eyes widened in panic.

That meant not just his dad wasing, but his grandfather too...

"You told them about this?" Vivienne looked at him as if he were an idiot, "You caused such a scene at the Martinez family's place. The whole of Rivenwood knew in less than ten minutes. Did you think you could hide it?" As if on cue, hurried footsteps approached from the hallway.

"That damn kid, is he trying to disgrace the Sterling familypletely? I'll not spare him today!" "Dad, slow down. Lethandle it. You just watch..." This was bad! Leopold, in a panic, attempted to hide behind the curtains, only to realize his legs were still sticking out, making his hiding spot utterly useless.

The three onlookers narrowed their eyes in unison.

Thomas was the most shocked; he had personally seen the doctors put Leopold in a cast for his broken bones, advising against any movement.

How did Leopold manage to spring up so quickly? Kellan stormed in, his eyes instantly locking onto Leopold's failed attempt to escape.

Fuming, he threw his cane, "You disgrace! Hiding now? You've really grown wings, sneaking into the Martinez family's territory at night.

Were you not afraid they'd blow you up, leaving nothing behind? Douglas glared at Leopold's antics but internally breathed a sigh of relief.

The Martinez family had deep connections; if they had decided to go hard on his foolish son, there wouldn't have been an escape. Leopold, dodging the cane, moved around the room, mindful of his injured leg, "Grandpa, stop! I'll be really crippled at this rate..." "Better crippled than causing trouble all the time!" Leopold looked pitifully towards Vivienne for help, "Vivienne, save me!" Vivienne, already with a headache, could barely tolerate Leopold's whining, feeling on the verge of an explosion.

Max halted the elder's move with urgency, "Kellan, we chere to solve this issue, not make it worse by getting into a fight." Kellan, recognizing it was Vivienne, immediately relaxed his posture and sighed, "I get it, Vivienne. The Martinez family sent out their wedding invitations to everyonal? us, clearly wanting to sever ties. What else can we do?" Douglas chimed in, "Miss, the Martinez family's alliance is with one of their own kind. Even if they're not as powerful as the Martinez, they're still above the Sterling family in status." Vivienne glanced at Leopold, who was underestimated by everyone, and calmly stated, "So what if it's within their own kind? Is Leopold any less capable?" Kellan, looking at his grandson, was naturally biased in his favor.

The concern wasn't about the altercation per se, but the fear that Leopold, in his stubbornness, might actually confront the Martinez family head-on.

Douglas was somewhat taken aback by the turn of events.

Leopold was nearly moved to tears, "Vivienne..." Vivienne, uninterested in the melo, declared, "No one from Emerald Mountain is to be trifled with." Kellan's eyes sparkled with hope, "Are you saying there's still a way out of this?" Vivienne pursed her lips, "What the et Martinez family wants is merely to send a warning to Leopold and the Sterling family. Otherwise, why would Griffin, the Martinez heiress, chase him for twenty years and even propose herself? Speople's pride is too inflated. It's embarrassing for the Martinez family." wr The thought alone made Leopold feel as if all eyes were on him, their glares sharp enough to flay him. Swallowing hard, Leopold said, "Vivienne, just tellwhat to do. I'll follow your lead." "Let's get your mentor involved. He can back you up and ensure your success." This would also solve her own dilemma, sparing her the trouble of searching any further.