The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

In an instant, Brody’s mind raced with countless ways to make a break for it, his feet itching to bolt.

Unfortunately for him, in Vivienne’s grasp, there was no chance of escape.

“Blowing up my lab now, huh? Living a little too comfortably these days, aren’t we?” Vivienne said, her grip firm on Brody’s shoulder, patting his head like he was a naughty puppy.

Brody glared at Vivienne and retorted, “Cut me some slack, Specter Healer! I was just experimenting!”

“You’ve got some nerve!” Vivienne raised her hand, poised to strike again.

A real man knows when to fold. Brody, raising his hands to his ears, shouted, “Okay, okay, I was wrong!”

Only then did Vivienne relax her stance.

On the sidelines, Karen chuckled. “You must be Brody, right?”

Hearing her, Brody shot Karen an impatient look, “Yes, and who might you be? Have we met…”

He took a closer look at Karen and realized something about her face seemed familiar. Suddenly, his eyes widened in recognition. “It’s you! You’re Evelyn!”

Vivienne was taken aback, not expecting Brody to know her mother.

Karen just smiled at Brody, her gaze filled with an enigmatic meaning as she stepped forward and gently placed her hand on his shoulder. “Still as impolite as ever, huh? Don’t you know how to greet your master properly?”

As she finished her words, a sharp pain shot through Brody’s shoulder, causing him to buckle under her grip.

Vivienne was even more surprised.

Since when had her mother become Brody’s master?

But Brody was wise enough to know when to give in. He wailed, “Master, I’m sorry! I was wrong!”

“You’re sorry? Stealing my research papers, running off with lab secrets, do you think a simple apology is enough?” Karen’s gaze was fierce, her grip tightening.

Brody’s body was nearly doubled over, powerless to resist, like a lamb in the grip of a lioness.

“Mom, since when did he become your disciple?” Vivienne asked with a hint of amusement.

and daughter! No wonder I couldn’t just beat you like that! I knew there

boy’s got talent. Met him on a mission once, and with a bit of guidance, he was able

a knack for things that align

the show, with no intention of intervening on

“Vivienne, I’ve got something to tell you. Can you—can your mom… my

spoke up leisurely. “Mom, let him go. I’ve

having no

shoulder. “No wonder this lab looked so familiar. I couldn’t beat you

remembered that before he became

was busy with her own lab while leading

talent, she had given him

did she know this gifted young man would one day

that, years later, he would run into the daughter

gave you coming

ask your mom? Wasn’t this

in Vivienne’s potion stemmed from his experience in Karen’s lab,

trio moved into another lab, one Brody was responsible for

enough to keep his potion experiments separate to avoid another

previous research direction was indeed effective, but now it seems this thing has a mind of its own. It keeps changing direction with every bit of progress we make. It’s devouring the old cells and spawning new ones, like a phoenix rising from the

and Karen crouched before the potion cultures, engrossed in the phenomenon Brody

thought it only had healing effects, but now it seemed

was like a

keeps giving

previously discovered the potion’s healing properties and found them odd. But now, this reaction

of virus is GTO researching that

Vivienne was deeply puzzled.

the world has a dual nature, saving or taking lives at the flick

poisons, adequately diluted, could

of the wrong substance,

potion before them, with reactions of healing,

we imagined,” Karen mused, her

Vivienne shared the sentiment.

ultimate goal was not just to develop something akin to a