The moment those words were spoken, Cloudia on the other end of the phone was about to explode.


    "From two thousand to ten thousand isn''t enough? What on earth do you want?"


    To Cloudia, ten thousand was no small sum for Ste, especially considering the humble background she came from. Ste never wanted to spill the details about her foster family. Probably because they were too poor. Even if she was her own flesh and blood, Cloudia couldn''t help but feel Ste was being incredibly hypocritical.


    After all, weren''t they the ones who raised her? How could she look down on them? Two years ago, they had offered her a deal - if she told who her foster family was, they would offer them a sum of money. Now, it seemed better to let it go. Their poor upbringing left Ste without having a shred of gratitude.


    "I don''t want anything."


    "Well, you better think it through. If you can''t pay your rent and get kicked out, don''t me me for being heartless."


    The meaning behind those words was clear. If she couldn''t afford to stay at Silk-River Residences, she shouldn''t dream ofing back to the Larkin family.


    Ste blinked, gazing at the bright sunshine outside the window, "To reach this point as a mother, truly an eye-opener for me."


    Without waiting for Cloudia to respond, Ste hung up first.


    Being a mother like that...huh! Ste genuinely wished Cloudia could forget she ever bore that title.


    At this moment, Ste felt like she was being unfairly used.


    ...


    At the hospital, hearing Ste hang up again, Cloudia was so incredibly furious. When she tried calling back, she was cklisted.


    Jaxon came over and saw Cloudia in a fury, "Who did she learn this bad habit from? Always cklisting people on a whim."


    It was enough to drive Cloudia insane, truly the angriest she had ever felt in her life towards Ste.


    Jaxon looked a bit pale, evidence that Ste''s kick from the night before had nearly done him in.


    "How are you feeling?"


    "Fine now," Jaxon said.


    He imed to be fine, but was clearly seething inside.


    Cloudia had filled him in on Finley''s situation the night before, leaving Jaxon perplexed.


    How could it be that both doctors they dealt with were all connected to Ste?


    It was too much of a coincidence.


    "She didn''t agree?"


    Cloudia scoffed, "Agree? Why does she have to be at odds with Urs?"


    The thought alone infuriated her.


    Jaxon remained silent, his face dark.


    Cloudia turned to him again, "Hey, how does she even know people like Tegan and Finley?"


    Jaxon couldn''t give her a reply.


    Cloudia continued, "Given where she grew up, it''s impossible for her to know them, right?" That was a puzzle Cloudia couldn''t solve.


    Jaxon frowned, pondering before he said, "The James family has been involved in charity work in impoverished areas for years. Could her knowing Tegan be rted to that?"


    en


    Cloudia nodded, "Possible. So, her knowing Finley could also be rted to Tegan?"


    Tegan and Finley, both from the medical field, might not be in the same department but were still kind of working in the same industry.


    Thinking this over, Cloudia and Jaxon didn''t suspect much further.


    "How''s Urs doing now?" Jaxon nced at the hospital room.


    Mentioning Urs only made Cloudia sigh, "She woke up in pain twicest night."


    Thinking about Urs enduring such pain made her heart ache.


    ...


    Orion was woken up early by Yorick to deal with the Mist Bay situation. Just as he was about to leave, Yorick called again, saying he would personally go to Mist Bay for negotiations.


    Considering the buzz fromst night, which for some unknown reason had blown up into rumors that Yorick was buying Mist Bay just so Urs could have a peacefuDce to recuperate.