Chapter 35: The Trouble of Carmen
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The Royal Bar had been operating for many years. Carmen Benneth had worked here since Ryan was still in college. At that time, Ryan was working under Carmen as a part-timer in the Royal Bar.
Carmen had always taken care of Ryan. She would assign him to do relatively easier tasks and usually gave him a bit more at payday.
His pay was not high back then. But a few hundred dollars was a good income when he was banned by the Fletcher family and had to live with the Mears family.
Sometimes, whenever Ryan was working late, Carmen would let him take a rest in her office.
She had often taken him out for dinner.
They were six or seven years apart, like siblings, yet no blood tie. Their relationship was nuanced.
“Miss Benneth, I…he…” Percy shuddered all over upon hearing what Carmen said.
Ryan cut in while Percy was speaking. “Mr. Santiago treats me well, Carmen. He has agreed to let me come back to work. We are colleagues again.”
Those bar staff had no word when they heard what Ryan said.
‘Ryan is her colleague?’
‘He is now the owner of the bar, for God’s sake. He is the boss.’
‘Ryan must be too addicted to pretending, like a wolf trying to look like a sheep.’
Everyone at the scene knew Ryan was the boss of the company. Carmen was the only one still in the dark. “Oh, is it? Percy, you have at least done something right. Don’t worry, Ryan. I will smash the eggs of those who dare to bully you next time.”
She hooked her arm around Ryan’s neck affectionately.
Ryan’s heart skipped a beat from the body contact. He could feel how good her body shape was. He nearly could not control his surging testosterone.
“OK.” He responded with a smile and secretly winked at Percy and other staff.
His message was apparent enough. He wanted them to keep things secret by not revealing his identity.
Carmen had been taking care of Ryan since he was in college. For this reason, Ryan was very grateful to her.
No duty is more urgent than giving thanks.
Ryan had become a rich kid all of a sudden. He had even bought the entire Royal Bar. For this reason, he was afraid that it could harm his relationship with Carmen if she knew the truth.
Carmen let go of him and glanced at the sofa and the table in the middle of the lobby with a frown. “New boss? Is the new boss not coming today? Did I miss it?”
Percy looked a little evasive. ‘Isn’t the new boss standing next to you?‘ he said in his mind. But he was not stupid. He must not reveal Ryan’s identity. He had got a quick wit. “Well, the new boss has come and left. It is John Valdez, Preston Parker’s man.”
Ryan was taken aback at hearing what Percy said. He could not help but give Percy a big thumbs-up in his mind.
‘What a clever Percy.’
John had indeed been here, but he was representing Preston Parker in announcing Ryan as the new boss. That said, saying that John was the new boss was entirely believable.
“Preston Parker’s man?” Carmen frowned, and she looked at the head of the security team. “So it was Preston Parker who bought up the car, right?”
The eyes of the head of the security team darted between Percy and Ryan before he nodded. “Yeah. Yeah.”
Carmen nodded. “OK. It is almost time. Let’s get back to work.”
“Aye!”
The staff dispersed and went back to their respective positions. The Royal Bar went lively as guests started to arrive.
As a waiter, Ryan went into the locker room and got changed, preparing for work.
After getting changed, Ryan walked past Carmen’s office. The door was ajar, and he could hear Carmen’s anxious voice coming from the inside. “What? You said my grandma’s condition deteriorated suddenly, and she needs to undergo surgery immediately? One million dollars? All right, I am on my way to the hospital right away.”
Ryan’s heart missed a beat when he heard that Carmen’s grandma was sick. When he was in college, Carmen used to bring him back to her house, and he had eaten the meal cooked by her grandma.
For several days, Ryan had noticed the sadness on Carmen’s face. It turned out that it was about this.
After hanging up the phone, Carmen anxiously walked back and forth in the office and finally made another phone call. “Fortune Credit? I would like to mortgage my house in the city center. I need it to be done fast—I mean by tomorrow morning. I need one million dollars.”
Ryan now knew what it was about. Carmen was short of money.
For the Fletcher family, $100 million was just a small change. But Carmen was just an ordinary person in Saltband City. Her parents had died since she was young, leaving her living with her grandma. She had to support her ailing grandma while accumulating enough money to buy a house in the city. That was not easy.
Ryan let out a sigh. He turned around and walked away from Carmen’s office. On his way out, he found a black garbage bag in the utility room.
There was a bank right next to the Royal Bar. Ryan had a global gold card with distinguished VIP privileges.
Five minutes later, he took the garbage bag filled with $1 million dollar cash and returned to the Royal Bar. As he arrived at the entrance, he bumped into Carmen, who was hurrying out.
“What’s going on? You look in such a hurry.” Ryan asked the obvious.
“My grandma is sick. I can’t talk to you now. I have to hurry to the hospital.” She furrowed her brows tightly.
She then walked quickly toward the Toyota parked outside the entrance and pressed the key fob.
As soon as she got into the car, Ryan held the garbage bag and jumped into the front passenger seat. “I will go with you to see your grandma, Carmen.”
“OK.” Carmen had no idea what was in the garbage bag that he was carrying. But she could not bother now. She was too worried and couldn’t care less.
…
Twenty minutes later, in Ward 308 on the third floor of Saltband Medical Center, a bald old man was arguing with a doctor in a white coat. “What do you mean? Do you still have professional ethics? Isn’t the old lady’s granddaughter on her way right now? How can you kick the old lady out?”
Lying on the hospital bed next to the old man was a weak old lady. A nurse was reaching out to pull out the oxygen tube from her nostrils.
The leading doctor in a white coat stretched out his hand to stop the bald old man. “You’d better not be nosy, old man. How much can this old lady’s granddaughter come up with? She is just working in a bar. Hmph! She has to vacate the bed immediately. Mr. Thompson’s mother is waiting in line!”
After some scolding, the doctor in a white coat told the other nurses, “Carry her out of here quickly and put her on the bench outside. Let her granddaughter bring her back home. She will not make it for long.”
The doctor in a white coat then servilely turned to a man in suit next to him. “Mr. Thompson, don’t worry. It will be done soon. I will have someone put on clean sheets immediately, and your mother will go through the admission procedures before you know it.”
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