Chapter 60 Extortion
Leo brought Nadine and Marie to a residential area called Long Village. “Mr. Harris lives here.”
Marie also volunteered to buy a big fruit basket on the way. The three of them went into a deep alley and stopped before a bungalow.
Leo knocked on the door and said, “Mr. Harris, it’s me, Leo.”
Soon, a girl about the same age as Marie opened the door slightly and asked timidly, “Who are you?”
“Are you Lizzie Clark?” Leo asked happily.
Lizzie was surprised that this young man knew her name.
“It’s me, Leo Cohen. I had dinner here before,” Leo said.
Lizzie thought about it carefully and exclaimed, “Leo?”
Leo nodded with a big smile.
Lizzie was adopted by Mr. Harris and she was smart and docile; the polar opposite of Shawn.
“You must be Leo’s friends. Come in.” Lizzie warmly invited them into the house, then ran back into the room and said happily, “Dad, Leo is here…”
Leo glanced around and found that the house was quite small and had only two rooms – a small bedroom and a dining room. The kitchen occupied a corner of the living room, making it even more crowded.
Lizzie came out with three cups of water and apologized. “It’s a bit cramped here. Please don’t let it bother you.”
“It’s nothing.” Leo smiled and seemed to think of something and asked, “Lizzie, you used to live in the downtown area, right? Why did you move to this neighborhood?”
“Ugh, don’t even bring it up.” Lizzie’s expression turned gloomy. “Shawn borrowed a ton of money when he gambled last time. We had to sell the downtown house to pay off all the debt.”
“Oh…” Leo remained calm but only Nadine saw the coldness in his eyes. “Where does Shawn live then?”
“He doesn’t like this shabby place and has been living somewhere else. He came back several times when Dad was really sick. I’m taking care of my father these days,” Lizzie answered.
Leo was slightly surprised and asked, “But you are still a college student, aren’t you?”
Lizzie’s bright eyes dimmed for a moment but she still forced a smile and said, “I’ve dropped out.”
Leo was shocked and even Marie felt a little depressed.
It was too cruel to deprive Lizzie of her right to go to college.
Leo gave Nadine a look, who nodded to indicate that everything would be prepared.Exclusive content © by Nô(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.
“Let’s not talk about this. I’ll go and get Dad up.” Lizzie smiled, ready to go.
But Leo stopped her. “No need. Mr. Harris has a bad cold. Let him rest in bed.”
Lizzie looked at Leo in surprise. “How did you know…”
“That’s the reason why we’re here.” With a serious face, he said, “There is one more thing that you should know. This is Miss Henderson. She wrote the prescription for Mr. Harris.”
“What?” Lizzie widened her eyes and stared hard at Marie.
Leo said, “But I can vouch for her with my life that she has been framed. There is nothing wrong with the prescription and the problem was the drugs themselves.”
Lizzie calmed down slowly.
She was no fool and had read the prescription, which was indeed a prescription for colds. But she could not figure out why her father’s condition worsened after taking the medicine.
“It’s very simple. Someone is playing tricks.” Leo sneered, “And he’s very likely a mole.”
“It can’t be.” Lizzie could not accept it and her face was as pale as paper.
Leo did not say anything and was lost in thought. She led Leo to the bedroom. There was a bed, on which lay a weak old man. It was Mr. Harris.
“Leo is here.” Mr. Harris wanted to sit up but he had no strength at all.
Leo hurried over and said, “Mr. Harris, please lie down. Don’t move.”
“I’m too old and can’t pull through this time.” Mr. Harris coughed slightly and said with a helpless smile, “I wanted to see you get married and hold your child in my arms, but that seems impossible now.”
“No, you will.” Leo said sternly, “I’m married and have a lovely daughter. I’ll bring them to see you soon. But now, let me treat you first.”
“Sure.” Mr. Harris had a complicated smile on his face but he did not try to refuse the offer. Only Leo could tell that he had resigned himself to his fate.
“Mr. Harris, I won’t let you die.” Leo placed one hand on Mr. Harris’ wrist, feeling the pulses attentively.
“How’s Dad?” Lizzie asked nervously.
So was Marie.
Leo shook his head and said, “His pulse is weak and his heart rate is unsteady. Just like the diagnosis of the hospital said, he has pneumonia and other infections.”
Lizzie and Marie turned pale at the same time.
Leo said grimly, “But there is still hope. I need help.”
Marie volunteered, looking serious. “I can help. What should I do?”
“Help him sit up. I’ll get rid of the internal heat first, and then use needles to kill the cold.”
Marie nodded, and then carefully helped Mr. Harris to get up from bed and sit up straight.
All of a sudden, her phone rang. It was from an unknown number.
She frowned and was not sure who would call her at such time.
She answered it still. “Hello? Who is it?”
“Wow, you forgot my voice so soon?” A man’s sinister laughter came from the other end of the line.
Marie and Lizzie’s faces changed at the same time. It was Shawn!
“That brat…” Mr. Harris’ face turned livid in anger. Leo motioned to him and Lizzie to keep quiet as Shawn could not find out that they were in Mr. Harris’ house now.
“How did you get my number?” Marie asked angrily.
“Don’t bother asking.” Shawn then said without haste, “I’m just wondering how the one million dollar compensation search is going.”
“One million? What one million?” Lizzie looked confused.
Until now, Leo was even more certain that this was a well-organized and premeditated trap.
Shawn exclaimed threateningly, “I admit defeat for what happened earlier, but it’s still the case that you ruined my father’s health. Turn yourself in if you won’t pay the one million!”
Lizzie immediately explained to Leo with a pale face, “Leo, we know nothing about this. We lead a simple life and would never extort others for money, even though Dad’s unwell.”
Leo sighed and said, “I know you wouldn’t do that, but it doesn’t mean that an addict like Shawn isn’t capable of it.
After a pause, he glanced at Marie and motioned to her to play along.
Marie said as suggested by Leo, “I’ve raised one million, like you asked. How should I give it to you?”
On the other side, Shawn was slightly surprised because he didn’t expect this little girl to actually meet his demands. He sneered to himself, “Great. One million, all in cash. Meet me at Middlehill Garden at 5 p. m. today”
“You better come alone. If I see you bring someone, don’t blame me for making this whole thing public!”