?Chapter 1398:


    Hadley opened it and instantly recoiled at the image. Without a word, she turned the phone around and held it out for Eric to see. “She sent this. Her hand’s injured.”


    Hadley didn’t like Linda, but she wasn’t the type to lie or hide something as serious as this.


    Whether Eric chose to go or not was his decision to make.


    “Here, take it.” Hadley held the phone out and urged him, “Answer the call.”


    A faint smile curled Eric’s lips. He reached up and took the phone from her hand.


    Was he going to answer Linda’s call?


    For a second, it looked like he might actually give in. But instead of answering, his finger slid across the screen and ended the call. Hadley stared at him, stunned. He wasn’t just avoiding the call. He was determined not to answer.


    Eric handed the phone back to her, his expression unchanged. “Didn’t I say I wouldn’t answer her call?”


    He did, but…


    Hadley looked down, her brows drawing together in a frown. After a pause, she spoke again. “The photo… Her hand looked seriously injured.”


    A deep, jagged cut sliced across Linda’s palm. It was a bloody mess.


    “Are you really not going to check on her?”


    Eric shook his head. “There’s nothing to see. Besides, I’m not a doctor. Me being there won’t change anything.”


    He looked indifferent. Hadley blinked, uncertain. Was this really the same man? Had something in him… changed?


    “There’s really no need for me to go.” Eric lifted his hand and brushed his fingertip across the center of her furrowed brows. “Don’t keep frowning. Too much of that, and you’ll get wrinkles. Your face is meant to stay pretty.”


    Then, almost as an afterthought, he added, “Don’t worry. She’s not living alone. She has people around her. They’ll take her to the hospital.”


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    He knew exactly what this was.


    Linda had staged the whole thing. She nned to lure him over.


    She wanted to use the moment to reconnect. Maybe even to test him to see if he really meant what he said about not treating her the same way he used to.


    If it were in the past, he would have rushed over without hesitation. He had always seen her as family. She was someone he needed to protect, someone he believed he was obligated to care for.


    But what Linda never understood was that once Eric made up his mind, no one could change it. Not even her.


    Still, his exnation didn’t sit right with Hadley. Instead of feeling reassured, she grew more confused. The whole situation was just too strange.


    Hadley studied him carefully for a moment and hesitantly asked, “Did you two… have a fight?”


    “No.” Eric paused, then let out a quiet chuckle. “Linda and I… we’re not in a ce to fight each other. If anyone’s going to fight me, it should be my partner, and that’s you.”


    Hadley frowned. Why did it alwayse back to her?


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