The Unlucky Turn by Mark Twain 161
After sending the message, he put his phone away and strode out of the airport. He drove straight to the private hospital where Arnold was staying. Before going to the family estate, he needed to make sure Arnold was settled.
The Langley family’s influence was stronger domestically than abroad, making arrangements much faster and more convenient. Within an hour, Callahan had everything set up.
Outside the VIP suite at the hospital, black-clad bodyguards stood at attention. Upon seeing him, they bowed respectfully. “Mr. Langley.”
Callahan nodded slightly and pushed the door open. Inside, Arnold was still in a coma, his face pale and his breathing shallow.
Callahan’s eyes darkened. Although his enemies hadn’t reached into the country yet, the previous incident had taught him a lesson. He decided to station more men to protect Arnold.
He issued cold instructions to Lennox, who had rushed over from the Langley Group as soon as he
heard Callahan was back.
“Lennox, increase the security detail. Twenty-four-hour rotation. If any suspicious persons approach, detain them immediately.”
“Yes, sir!”
Once everything was arranged, Callahan checked the time and left, driving toward the family estate.
In the banquet hall of the Langley estate, the guests had arrived. Amidst the clinking of glasses, a flushed and happy Dante pulled Leilani onto the main stage. He smiled broadly at the crowd.
“Everyone, thank you for traveling from far and wide to celebrate my birthday today.”
Dante expressed his gratitude to the guests before formally introducing Leilani.
“Today, on this joyous occasion, I want to introduce a very special friend-Leilani!”
Applause rang out from the floor as curious gazes turned toward the stage.
Dante beamed with pride as he continued. “Not only is this young woman a brilliant doctor, but the fact that I am standing here alive and well today is entirely thanks to her! So, I declare that from this day forward, Leilani is a VIP guest of the Langley family! Anyone who goes against her goes against
me.”
Leilani stood to the side, maintaining a polite smile, but she felt a vague sense of unease. This was Dante’s moment; introducing her with such fanfare felt overly high-profile.
Her instincts proved correct a second later. A sharp female voice cut through the air from the audience.
“Leilani? Isn’t that the jailbird daughter of the Sloan family?”
The entire hall fell into dead silence. Everyone’s eyes snapped toward the source of the voice. It was a
12:09
young woman in a pink dress standing next to Beatty, looking at Leilani with a sneer.
Her name was Brenda. She was a friend of Beatty’s and had only been invited because of that connection; normally, her family wouldn’t qualify for a Langley event.
Alloy City was small enough that the wealthy social circles overlapped. Brenda knew Tamara Sloan and considered herself a “friend” in their circle. Tamara had shown them photos of Leilani before, trashing her as worthless. Because of this, Brenda assumed Leilani had deceived Dante.
Beatty’s face paled, and she quickly tugged on Brenda’s sleeve. “Brenda! What are you saying?”
Brenda feigned innocence. “I’m not making it up! Beatty, did you forget? Tamara showed us pictures of her sister. It’s this woman!”
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