Chapter 416 Cunning Harold âWhat?â Winnie frowned. âWhy? Whatâs the point of taking the other tests if he didnât get the blood test done? Hasnât he already done the other checks at the hospital yesterday?â
âYup. Iâm confused as well. I wasnât with him during the blood test yesterday as I had something to handle, but when I returned afterward, he had already left. I tried to call him, but it was Louis who picked up. Apparently, he had some urgent matters to attend to at the office and was resting in the car, so I didnât disturb him after that.â
âThatâs strange. The purpose of his going to the hospital was to take a blood test. How could he not have time for that?â Winnie wondered.
The crease between Winnieâs brows grew deeper before she continued, âIt wouldnât take him more than a couple of minutes. Whatâs so urgent that he couldnât even wait a few minutes?â
âIâm not sure about that,â Josiah replied. âLouis didnât share any details with me. I didnât ask further as Iâm not working for Fairchild Corporation after all.â
Winnie murmured an acknowledgment and said, âIâll ask him about it when heâs less busy. Iâll get him to make another trip to the hospital. Alternatively, you can also go to him.â
âSure. Just let me know whenâs a good time. By the wayâ¦â Josiah stopped himself midway through the sentence.
âWhatâs the matter?â Noticing the manâs hesitance, Winnie got anxious. âJust tell me. You know you can tell me anything.â
Josiah let out a chuckle before answering, âWell, itâs not anything important, but itâs kinda awkward to say⦠Do you remember that evening when you told me that Xavier seemed to have changed and that he appeared emotionless when he was talking to you?â
âYup.â Winnie nodded and said, âI did feel that way, but you told me that it could be because of the change in his voice. I thought about what you said, and it did make some sense. Whatâs wrong? Why are you suddenly bringing this up?â
âButâ¦â Josiah paused for a few seconds before continuing, âDonât you find the look in his eyes unfamiliar? It just seems different from before.â
Winnie was rendered speechless. âYou do know that I canât see, right? How do you expect a blind person to notice the look in his eyes?â
âCrap!â Josiah slapped his forehead and replied, âHow could I have forgotten that? Youâre only able to hear his voice now, but even his voice has changed.â
âYeah. Anyway, why did you say so? Did he give you a weird look this morning? Could it be because you brought a durian here?â
âMaybe?â Josiah was amused by the womanâs suggestion.
âThatâs why I kept asking him to do a checkup at the hospital. He behaved like an entirely different person during his mental episode previously. I was worried that it might happen again,â Winnie said.
At the mention of that incident, Josiah could not help but laugh out loud. âYeah, that was ridiculous!
How could he have mistaken Captain Bennett for you? That was a really serious cognitive impairment.
But Winnieâ¦â
In a more serious tone, Josiah continued, âHowever, regardless of whether he has another mental episode or a new cognitive impairment, you need to protect yourself and not let him hurt you.â
A surge of warmth rose in Winnieâs heart when she heard that. âYup, donât worry. I know what Iâm doing.â
âI know.â Despite the womanâs reassurance, Josiah was still worried. âThings are harder for you now with your eye condition. If you notice something wrong with Xavier, you must let me know immediately, okay?â
âOf course. You are his doctor and also our good friend. Who else could I look for if not you?â
Harold called Winnie in the afternoon.
His intention was to stick with Xavierâs routine and casually check in with Winnie.
However, he did not expect that the first thing Winnie asked him when she answered the call was why he had left the hospital without taking the blood test.
âYou were at the hospital mainly for the blood test. I just donât understand why you had done all the other unimportant tests but skipped the most crucial one.â
Winnieâs words reminded Harold of something.
That morning at the hospital, he was entirely focused on avoiding the blood test, and he had forgotten that that was the main purpose of his visit.
Even though he had managed to get away with it that day by using work as an excuse, it was not possible for him to use the same excuse every time.
The others would definitely start getting suspicious of him if he kept trying to avoid the blood test.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Harold replied, âThere was some work in the office that needed my urgent attention earlier. I will find some time in the afternoon to go to the hospital again. Donât worry.â
Satisfied with the manâs answer, Winnie replied, âTry to schedule an appointment as soon as you can. If you are not free, I can ask Josiah to go to the office.â
âNo need,â Harold rejected at once. âI can go to the hospital. All right, I have to go and attend a meeting now. Take care of yourself at home, and donât forget to miss me.â
âOkay.â Winnie did not say much, but she could obviously feel that the man was much busier than before.
Meanwhile, immediately after hanging up, Harold stood up and walked toward the door.
He had barely taken a few steps away from the desk when Louis walked in with a stack of documents.
Noticing that his boss seemed to be heading out, Louis asked at once, âMr. Fairchild, where are you going?â
Harold furrowed his brows and replied, âDo I have to report my schedule to you?â
Louis was taken aback for a moment before answering, âThat was not what I meant. I just wanted to arrange your transportation and check if you would need me to go with you.â
âItâs okay.â It wasnât convenient for Harold to take Louis along to where he was going. As such, he gave it some thought and said, âIâm making a trip to the hospital. You donât have to come with me.â
âUh⦠Are you going there now?â
âYes, now.â
Troubled, Louis informed, âBut Mr. Fairchild, here are some documents that require your signature.
Besides, you have a meeting to attend ten minutes later.â
âIâll sign them now,â Harold replied while returning to his desk.
He was very satisfied with his new identity as Xavier, but he was annoyed by the fact that he had people following him everywhere he went. Though he did not mind being treated as an important person, it annoyed him greatly that his freedom was restricted.
However, he knew he had to endure it as it was going to be his life from then onward.
Moreover, he had specially called for the meeting that would be held five minutes later. It was to discuss the companyâs financial matters, and it was of utmost importance for him to be present.
At that thought, he flipped through the documents and asked, âHave you already checked everything and made sure that there are no problems?â
âYup. Everything is in order. All that is left is your signature.â
âHow do you expect me to sign?â Harold lifted his hand which was still wrapped in gauze and continued, âCanât you see that my hand is injured? Before I recover, we would be using my signature stamp instead of my handwritten signature.â
Louis nodded continuously and replied, âSorry, Mr. Fairchild. It was careless of me to have overlooked that.â
âItâs understandable.â Harold cast a glance at his assistant and continued, âYou were the one handling all my affairs when I wasnât around. Anyway, what are you waiting for? Get me my signature stamp.â
âSure. Please excuse me,â Louis said before walking toward Harold and opening a safe under Xavierâs desk.
Harold could see everything clearly when Louis was keying in the six-digit password and committed it to memory.
After that, he stamped his signature on the documents, which was something he intended to continue doing.
After all, he had yet to master Xavierâs handwriting.