Chapter 8 Leave The Hospital

"I see!" Maria leaned back in the bed and realized she was starving. Looking at Ethan, she asked, "Could you ask someone to bring me something to eat, please?" 'This young man looks nice. Since he's a close friend of James, he can also be mine from now on,' Maria thought to herself.

"I beg your pardon?" Ethan couldn't help thinking he had misheard her. Otherwise, he had just been sent on an errand by a woman. No woman in H City had dared to order him around as Maria just had.

"Thanks in advance!" Maria showed her gratitude, letting him know he had indeed heard her right.

Ethan stood still for a moment, deep in thought. As he didn't come to any conclusion, he pulled out his cell phone and scrolled down on the screen, looking for a number. "Hello, James. Your ex-wife asked me to find her something to eat. Do you think I should starve her to death or follow her order?"

"Come back here, and I'll tell you what to do," James replied sternly.

Ethan sensed the threat in his voice right away. Scratching the back of his head, he refused, "No, thanks, James. Bye!"

"Wait!" Maria uttered.

Ethan turned to look at the woman, puzzled. Maria tried to get out of bed, but she was held back by the IV. Realizing this, she pulled out the infusion tube immediately and stood up. Under Ethan's shocked gaze, she walked to him barefoot and took his phone. "James, shall we talk face-to-face?" She couldn't have drunk those three bottles of brandy for nothing!

However, the only answer she got was the phone's beep.

Looking at the device in her hand, Maria bit her lower lip while a mix of anger and sadness flashed through her eyes.

Ethan didn't have to ask Maria to know James had hung up on her. He thought, 'Poor Maria. I can't help feeling sorry for her now.' Taking his phone back, Ethan pinched the bridge of his nose in order to hide his embarrassment and said to the woman in a daze in front of him, "Alright, get back to bed. I'll ask someone to bring you food."

As Maria had offended James and survived, Ethan had taken her for a strong woman and started to admire her. Therefore, he was willing to help her fill her tummy at that moment.

"Forget it. I lost my appetite." Maria changed her mind.

At her sudden refusal, Ethan asked in confusion, "What's wrong?" He wondered if all women were also so changeable.

"I want to leave the hospital now!"

Ethan looked her up and down, and it was clear to him that Maria needed to stay in the hospital longer. Not only did her face seem deadly pale, but the back of her hand was also bleeding. How could she leave in such a state?

Regardless of the doctor's objection, Maria insisted and left the hospital later that day.

Driving on the most bustling avenue in H City, Ethan's face was dark as he glanced at the rearview mirror and said to the silent woman in the back seat, "Maria, please don't tell James that I was the one who took you there."

'Maria's one tough cookie! Not satisfied with knocking me down earlier, she now forces me to take her to James' office.' Ethan resented her.

If she weren't a woman, he would have beaten her down already! Perhaps, he would even force her to kneel and show him some respect!

Maria looked into his eyes through the rearview mirror, and suddenly, a smile showed on her face. In a soft voice, she coaxed the young man in the driver's seat, "Ethan, how do a simple and adorable young man as you be have a cunning friend like James?"

As Maria was well aware of, all of James' friends were quite difficult to deal with. Each of them came from a more extraordinary background than the other and possessed a set of unique skills. One of them was the leader of a mysterious organization. His name was Lawrence Lu.

Ethan didn't seem to be one of them, though. Or, at least, he was really good at pretending that he wasn't. Nevertheless, Maria couldn't help but wonder who he was.

Despite the hospital gown on her, Maria's charm remained unaffected. In her pale face, there was a morbid yet beautiful smile, and her eyes were glowing. The moment Ethan met her gaze, a shiver went down his spine, and he asked, "Why do I have the feeling that you're mocking me?"

"I'm not. But don't you think James would know right away that it was you who took me there, even if I didn't tell him?" Maria believed the young man was really underestimating James.

Her ex-husband wouldn't need to think much to realize it was Ethan who had taken her to him. In fact, it was most likely that he had already predicted that Maria wouldn't waste the chance to ask such a thing from Ethan.

Also, the HL Group was not open to the public, and the floor where the CEO's office was located was not available to all the employees who worked in the company.

During the nearly two years she had been married to James, Maria hadn't set foot in that building once. Hence, very few employees would recognize her and give her a free pass.

Not to mention that earlier in the hospital, Maria had requested to meet James over Ethan's phone. James would put these facts together and know how she managed to get in.

"You're right! I'm doomed!" Ethan sighed, a bit frustrated. James was too smart to be deceived like that. After thinking it through for a moment, he continued, "Well, forget it. At worst, I'll hide from him for a week."

Maria was speechless at his solution. 'You're too young and too naive, my friend,' she thought.

Ten minutes later, a pretty common white SUV that cost less than 80 thousand dollars drove into the HL Group's underground parking lot.

As soon as he parked the car, Ethan got out of it and walked toward the elevator to have his palm scanned. As the doors to the CEO's exclusive elevator opened, he turned around and told the woman standing behind him, "Maria, you can go up now. I won't join you. I'd better hurry up and leave. Good luck."

"Thank you, Ethan." Maria nodded before getting into the elevator. Through the closing doors, she caught a glimpse of the young man's back hurrying to his car and leaving as if his life depended on it.

Once the doors finally closed, Maria turned to the glass of the panoramic elevator and looked down at H City. The higher the elevator reached, the wider became the view in front of her eyes.

As she got to the 66th floor, Maria stepped out of the elevator and saw a few assistants at their desks. Her eyes scanned for Summer, but she was not present. Still, she recognized someone else who promptly walked up to her.

"Ms. Song." Lorenzo Lan was surprised to see her.

Maria smiled faintly. Without exchanging any greetings with him, she went straight to the point. "I'm here to see James."

Lorenzo was James' stepmother's nephew. At the time when Maria was still a member of the Xi family, this man had never been nice to her.

Lorenzo looked her over his glasses, unable to conceal his disdain. "I'm sorry, but Mr. Xi's in a meeting right now. Ms. Song, if you want to see Mr. Xi, please make an appointment in advance."

"In a meeting? I don't mind waiting until it finishes." It wasn't every day that she could get in the HL Group. Therefore, she wouldn't leave before achieving her goal.

Lorenzo's lips curled up into a sneer. "Ms. Song, you're Mr. Xi's ex-wife. You're nobody to him now. Do you really think he would like to see you?"

Maria looked at him sharply. "You have no right to decide for James whether he would like to see me or not. Since he's in a meeting, I'll wait here. Please, go back to your work."

Lorenzo was taken aback at Maria's sudden aggressiveness. Where was that coward woman he used to know? "Ms. Song, if you insist, then please go to the reception room. You'll be informed when Mr. Xi is available." Lorenzo pointed to a room far away from his desk and then waved to a secretary nearby. "Please prepare a cup of tea for Ms. Song."

"Yes, Lorenzo," the secretary replied, ready to get up from her seat.

"No, thank you. I'd rather stay here waiting for him," Maria refused.

From where she stood, she could see the entrance to the CEO's office and certainly wouldn't miss the moment James came back. But if she went to the reception room, she might lose her only chance to meet him, after all.

Lorenzo was annoyed by Maria's stubbornness, so he tried his best to sound calm. "Ms. Song, if you stay here, I'm afraid you will disrupt our work. It's also inappropriate for us to let someone standing in the hallway. Why don't you go to the reception room and take a seat there? Besides, it looks like you've just left the hospital, right? Won't you a have a quick recovery if you have some rest? My advice is for your own good, Ms. Song."

Maria ignored Lorenzo completely and turned her back to him as she walked towards the window.

The other two assistants exchanged looks, but neither dared to say a word.

Lorenzo was furious. If he hadn't heard that Norman himself took Maria to Alina's birthday party a few days ago, he would have already called security to throw this woman out. But now, his hands were tied.