A Replacement Bride

Chapter 123

After Katherine had left, Beatrice said, "Joe, I never thought Miss Cornell would be so skilled in medicine as to be able to treat your severe injuries. That being said, you really scared the hell out of me this time. Could you stop doing such dangerous stuff from now on?" She looked at Joaquin bitterly, only to be overwhelmed with resentment when she saw how his eyes were glued to the door. What is so good about Katherine that makes Joe care so much about her? Could he have learned about what happened five years ago? No, that's not possible. If Joaquin had learned about it, he wouldn't have been so nice to me. Reassuring herself a little, she pouted her lips while acting like a spoiled child in front of him.

Joaquin withdrew his gaze to look at Beatrice. This time, he no longer looked at her as tenderly as he used to. Instead, he fixed her with a frosty, threatening stare.

Beatrice's heart jumped when she noticed the look in his eyes. Looking as pale as a sheet, she almost failed to hold back her tears. "Joe, you—"

Joaquin didn't spare her feelings, though. He said straightforwardly, "Our mission was meticulously planned this time so that no mistake could've happened, but our location was leaked. It was your doing." He did mind what had happened five years ago, which was why he was especially kind and tolerant toward Beatrice. However, the accident this time had cost the lives of two of Area Seven's members; even he had nearly lost his life there. Furthermore, two other members of Area Seven were crippled for life in the accident, and an even larger number of people were injured.

When Beatrice heard this, her eyes flickered for a moment. Not daring to meet the man's gaze, she replied in an injured tone, "Joe, I thought you trusted me at least, but why would you have such a wrong idea about me after Katherine showed up? Did she say something to you?"

Joaquin replied, "She didn't say anything." Seeing how Beatrice was still trying to pass the buck to Katherine at this very moment, he grew more and more disappointed. The Beatrice I remembered isn't supposed to be like this. She was gentle, considerate, kind-hearted, and poised. And now? He felt that the present Beatrice was really alien to him.

heart did a complete somersault when she saw the disappointed look in Joaquin's eyes. Instinctively, she shifted all responsibility to Katherine, saying, "It wasn't me, Joe. How could I possibly harm you? Someone must be trying to frame me for this in order to turn us against each other. It's got to be Katherine. She's got to be the one! She wants to steal you away and

grew increasingly frosty. After closing his eyes wearily for a long time, he finally said impassively, "Just go away. For the sake of what happened five years ago, I won't do anything to you.

everything, only that he had

Theodore had given up on her after becoming thoroughly disappointed with her. If she were to lose Joaquin, she'd really lose everything. Grabbing his arm in a panic, she cried, "Joe, you can't do this to me. Now that I'm already in

ignored her cries with a frosty expression. "Please get out of here before I change my

admit that she's prettier and more capable than me. Indeed, I'm no match for her; she's made so many achievements at a young age.

to her wilful slander on Katherine. He looked

don't believe me? My grandpa is the top scientist in the country. Do you really think it's that easy to join his research institute? I only managed to join the research institute as a research intern by taking advantage of his status. If I want to become a permanent researcher of the institute, I still have to work hard for three to five years. Katherine is younger than me, so what qualifies her to join the

a scowl. After a long time, he finally