Chapter 396: Chapter 396: And No Vigorous Activity

Chloe Reed frowned, giving him a complicated look. "It wouldn’t have split open if you hadn’t been moving around."

"You were the one moving. I only moved to hold you down," Walker Grant retorted, completely unfazed.

The nurse at their side blushed upon hearing this. She quickly gathered her things and, just before leaving, added a word of caution, "And no strenuous exercise."

With that, she hurried away.

Chloe Reed: "..."

Walker Grant arched a brow, looked at her, and said, "Did you hear that? No strenuous exercise."

Chloe Reed: "..."

She couldn’t be bothered to deal with him.

Just then, her phone rang again. It was Charles Reed.

He had just called her this morning.

’And now he was calling again.’

Chloe Reed lowered her gaze and hung up.

A moment later, Walker Grant’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen and said, "It’s your dad. Should I answer?"

"That’s your business. It has nothing to do with me."

Walker Grant raised an eyebrow, then answered the call. "Hello?"

Charles Reed’s voice was frantic. "Walker, is Chloe with you? I can’t find her. I keep calling, but she won’t pick up. Her mother was just taken into surgery. The doctors have issued a critical condition notice; she might not make it..."

Walker Grant had the call on speaker, so Chloe Reed heard every word Charles Reed said.

Her fingers suddenly clenched into fists, her expression turning vacant.

Seeing her reaction, Walker Grant said into the phone, "She’s not with me. I can’t reach her either."

"What are we going to do now..." Charles Reed’s voice was filled with exhaustion. He sighed. "Her mother just wants to see her one last time. How can she be so..."

He didn’t finish the sentence, but it was clear he was blaming Chloe Reed.

Walker Grant asked, "What happened to Mrs. Linton?"

Charles Reed was clearly taken aback for a moment, but he still explained, "She has a heart condition that flared up a few days ago. She wants to see Chloe. She’s afraid she won’t make it and wants to apologize to her, but when I was able to reach Chloe before, she refused to come..."

Walker Grant’s tone was flat. "I see. If I manage to contact her, I’ll let her know."

"Okay, okay. Walker, I’ll have to trouble you, then." Charles Reed sounded grateful, but then he immediately asked, "Is Sunny missing? Walker, do you know where she is? If you can find her, can you have her come see us too?" 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

When he spoke of Sunny Reed, Charles Reed’s tone grew noticeably softer.

Walker Grant said, "I don’t know."

Charles Reed was silent for a moment before saying, "All right, all right. If you hear anything about her, please let us know."

"Mm."

The call ended.

Chloe Reed scoffed. "It seems seeing me is just an afterthought. They want to die with a clear conscience, but the person they really want to see is Sunny Reed."

Walker Grant watched her, his expression unreadable. "Are you going to go?" he asked in a low voice.

"I’m not going."

Chloe Reed said firmly, "I’m not the one they really want to see, and it’s not like they’re genuinely sorry. I refuse to play along in some touching mother-daughter reunion scene."

’And I couldn’t act the part even if I wanted to.’

’If I saw Autumn Linton in her hospital bed, I know my resolve would weaken. I might even agree to some outrageous request.’

’So why should I go?’

Walker Grant nodded. "Okay. If you don’t want to go, then don’t."

Chloe Reed shot him a surprised look, not having expected him to say that.

It was as if Walker Grant knew exactly what she was thinking. "I used to care too much about what other people thought, and I didn’t consider your feelings. That’s why I let you get hurt so much," he said. "Now that I finally know the right answer, how could I possibly get it wrong again?"