Inside, James spotted Mirabe hovering at the doorway. After a quick phone chat, she hung up. He strolled over, "Why are you just standing there?"


    Mirabe gave a little nod, "You looked busy."


    "Yeah, got a bunch of stuff to sort out. Not watching TV anymore?" James nced towards the living room.


    Mirabe yawned again, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She shook her head, "Nah, it''s gettingte."


    James''s expression softened, and he checked the time, "I''m gonna be a while. There''s a spare room next door; you can crash there if you''re tired."


    "No can do. If I get home after ten, Zach will give me an earful." Mirabe waved her hand and added, "You keep working. I''ll just grab a cab."


    James was momentarily at a loss for words.


    First Nick, now Zach.


    He rubbed his temples. "Hang on a sec."


    He ducked into the next room, came back with a thick coat, and draped it over Mirabe. "Come on, I''ll drive you home."


    Mirabe raised an eyebrow, snuggled into the coat, and followed him.


    Half an hourter, Mirabe was back home.


    Zach, who''d been discharged from the hospital a few days ago, was lounging in the living room. Papers were scattered all over the coffee table, and he was typing away on aptop bnced on his knees. When he saw his sister, he set theptop aside and checked the time, "Mirabe, you''re back a bitte."


    "Yeah, grabbed dinner with a friend," Mirabe replied, her expression unchanged.


    "What friend?" Zach took off his sses, suspicion written all over his face. Could it be that idiot?


    Mirabe shot him a sidelong nce, dodging the question, "Zach, your bones aren''t aching anymore?"


    "Don''t dodge the question." Zach was serious and wasn''t about to be distracted.


    Seeing his determination, Mirabe walked over and handed him a bag. "A friend gave me some herbal stuff, and we ended up having dinner."


    The scent of herbs drifted from the bag, making Zach touch his nose, wondering if he was overthinking things.


    He noticed a fancy square box inside and paused before taking it out, "What''s this?"


    Mirabe leanedzily against the sofa arm, not bothering to sit, "A gift card from someone."


    A gift card in such fancy packaging?


    Curiosity piqued, Zach opened the box to find a sleek ck card, smaller than a business card, with the same high-end craftsmanship as the box.


    It looked pretty swanky.


    Zach picked up the card, noticing the three embossed gold letters, "Vice President? That''s a new one, sounds like something out of a pyramid scheme."


    Zach joked.


    Mirabe raised an eyebrow and nodded, "Pretty much."


    "But what''s this card even for?" Zach looked it over again, finding it impressive but with no clear purpose.


    "Think of it as a discount card," Mirabe summed it up.


    Hearing that, Zach realized this was exactly the kind of thing his sister would


    keep. He put the card back in the box, not pushing for more details.


    Mirabe casually rested her hand on the back of the sofa, remembering something, she said, “You''ve been taking the meds I gave you, right?"


    Zach nodded, "I remember everything you say, haven''t missed a dose."


    "Good, then rest up. I''ll give you some acupuncture in a few days," Mirabe mentioned offhandedly.


    Zach immediately looked wary, his tone shifting, "Why the needles all of a sudden?"