James caught on to what Mirabe meant right away. Without asking any more questions, he poured the pills into his palm, picked up the ss of water from the coffee table, and downed the medicine in one go.


    Mirabe clicked her tongue, teasing, "What if it was poison?"


    James ced the ss back down, looked at her, and with a soft smile, pointed to his heart, "You wouldn''t."


    Her eyes followed his finger, and a blush crept up her cheeks. She thought, maybe she should''ve prepared a poison after all!


    ...


    Before long, Dane pulled up outside James''s vi.


    As the car came to a stop, Niki looked out at the gate, then turned to Dane, "Dane, I''ll go in alone. You should head back."


    Dane was just about to unbuckle his seatbelt when he heard this. He hesitated, then turned to his father, "But..."


    Niki cut him off, "It''s best if you don''te with me."


    Dane paused for a moment, then nodded, "Alright, call me when you''re done."


    "No need, I''ll grab a cab back," Niki said, shaking his head as he stepped out of the car.


    Dane watched his father walk towards the gate, his eyes narrowing slightly, and then drove away.


    Once Dane''s car disappeared down the road, Niki turned back and pressed the doorbell.


    In no time, Wyatt came hurrying out. Seeing Niki, he gave a slight nod and opened the door, "Niki, d you''re here."


    Niki nodded and followed Wyatt inside, eager to get the lowdown on the situation.


    Wyatt''s face was clouded with worry, and he sighed, "You''ll understand once you see James."


    Niki felt a twinge of worry himself as they quickly entered the living room.


    James was slumped over on the couch, looking as pale as a ghost, his lips a sickly white, clearly in bad shape.


    Seeing this, Niki skipped the pleasantries and went straight to his side, "James, mind if I check your pulse?"


    James nodded, seeming too weak to speak, and extended his hand.


    Mirabe, watching from nearby, touched her nose, ying along with the charade.


    Niki sat down, ced his fingers on James''s wrist, and as he felt the pulse, his frown deepened, "Why is it so erratic?"


    The pulse was worse than it had been during the worst of times two years ago.


    He pulled his hand back, his mood somber, "James, this underlying issue... what triggered it to re up again?"


    "It just hit out of the blue a few days


    ago, no warning signs at all," Wyatt chimed in, his voice heavy with


    concern, "Niki, is there anything concern, you can do to manage James''s condition?"


    "I''m afraid my skills aren''t up to the task," Niki replied with a ru


    Smilking his head, then looked


    at


    abe, "Mirabe, have you run


    out of tricks too?"


    Mirabe shook her head, "My acupuncture techniques aren''t cutting it anymore.


    I''ve tried everything else I could think of these past few days, but no luck."


    Niki paused, thinking it over, then said, "This condition didn''t just re up out of nowhere. If we can trace it back to the source, maybe we can figure out a way to manage it?"


    "But we''ve hit a dead end," Wyatt said, frustration clear in his voice, his fists clenched and veins popping in his neck.