"The strength of the Robinson family is meaningless to me now," Maryann said. "I can't lose what remaining respect I have with them."
She looked around the room and sighed. "I can't help but think they might actually want the winery to close down. Obviously, after today's incident, Blue Bottle Winery is also trying to shut us down. I can't stand the internal and external troubles.
"If it hadn't been for your help today, I was about to call it quits. But now, you've given me a new hope. I've read about you in the news, and you seem like someone who likes to fight for the underdog. Well, I hope you'll fight for me." She looked up at Alex once more, a pleading look in her eyes. "Please, will you help me?"
Alex stared at her for a while, and then he sighed. "Three months isn't nearly enough time to get this company back on its feet. It will be hard to hit the goal of one hundred million dollars."
Maryann's lips formed into a pretty little pout, but there was determination in her eyes. "But I still have some time, right? Maybe there will be a miracle. If I don't succeed, I'll at least die trying."
Alex nodded slowly. Maryann's indomitable spirit had moved him, and her situation was not unlike his own family story. The Ambrose family had driven him out, and he had been forced to start from scratch. It had been hard, but he had succeeded. Looking at Maryann's determined face, he thought she might just make it through everything, too.
He cleared his throat and asked, "So what's the story with the Blue Bottle Winery? Are they having trouble too?"
"The Blue Bottle Winery is owned by the Murdoch family. Louisa Murdoch and I are friends." She frowned as a dark cloud crossed her expression. "At least, I thought we were friends."
She shook her head and began to tell Alex what she knew. "The Blue Bottle Winery used to struggle like this place is now. They had to fight to make ends meet, and much of their vineyard was half dead. They made it through by relying on only a few varieties of red wine to survive.
"But a few months ago, Steven Murdoch, Louisa's uncle, carried out a reform. He's a cunning businessman, I'll give him that. He lured in new investors with the promise of rolling out a new line of wine within the year. Steven has always been a smooth talker, and thus, he usually gets what he wants. He got his investors, and the winery bounced back.
"The Blue Bottle Winery no longer focuses only on fine red wines; it has started a low-cost boxed wine series. Of course, benign competition doesn't matter, but they don't care about the bottom line or who they run over in the process. They've even tried to plant spies in my staff, trying to imitate some of the successes of our brand. Our market share has fallen as a result."
Her eyes burned with a grim light. "Today's act by the Blue Bottle Winery was just one more nail in the coffin."
It was obvious the war between the two wineries had escalated. Alex was concerned because he knew what kind of man Steven Murdoch was, and he knew Steven wasn't above stooping to illegal deeds to knock out his competition.
Alex frowned and asked, "Have you told the authorities about any of this?"
Maryann sighed. "I don't have any hard evidence, so what can I tell them? I've tried to talk to Louisa about all this and tried to get her to see my side of things, but the Blue Bottle Winery is starting to make a lot of money again, so she doesn't care."
She sighed and then went on. "After today, though, I've had enough. It's time to fight back. I won't let this go. I made a mistake by letting those virus-infected people in here, they could have ruined me. I'm not going to let that happen again."
Just then, the office door burst open with a bang. Her assistant ran in and cried, "Miss Robinson, oh Miss Robinson! Something terrible has happened!"
Maryann, who had been feeling so determined and hopeful only a few moments before, now felt a sense of helplessness.
Now what's happened? she thought. Why can't I catch a break?
"What is it?" she asked tensely.
"It's terrible!" her assistant said, wringing her hands. "Michael has been hit by an arrow!"
Maryann's heart skipped a beat, and her pretty face instantly turned white.
She turned to Alex pleadingly.
This time, Alex resolutely decided to not make any promises. He knew he had to leave, or Maryann would begin to rely on him too much, and he still wanted to get back to Debbie.
Alex put his hands in his pockets and said, "Excuse me, Miss Robinson. I have to go." He turned around and went outside. He avoided looking at her face, knowing if he made eye contact, he would end up staying. Instead, he stepped outside and literally ran toward his car and got in.
He was so flustered that he simply sat there for quite a while.
Eventually, he sighed and started the car, driving to the hospital to visit Debbie.
**
When Alex arrived at the hospital, he was relieved to see Debbie's skin color had improved and that her overall appearance looked great.
Debbie looked up and saw Alex, and then she gave him a big hug.
Whenever Debbie was in Alex's arms, she felt safe, warm, and content. Even though there were many sentries outside her room from the Baltimore Martial Arts Association, guarding her in secret, she always felt better when Alex was there.
Will and Rufus were also nearby, and Debbie's safety was their top priority. No one dared to be careless.
Seeing Alex and Debbie hugging, the others shrank back out of sight.
For the rest of the day, Alex stayed with her. They ate a meal together and chatted. Debbie was the only one who ever got to see this gentle side of Alex.
After a lot of talking, Alex realized Debbie needed something to do. She was an excellent student, and it was time for her to realize her potential.
There were many people who wanted to kill Alex, and Debbie had often been a target to get back at him. He must be careful, and so should she, but what he had in mind wasn't risky at all.
"How are your studies going?" Alex asked. Before waiting for an answer, he went on, "I want you to do something for me."
"Why Alex, do you want to give me a job?" Debbie asked, smiling teasingly. Then she hesitated as she said, "I don't actually have any real experience, so what do you want me to do?"
"Don't worry, you'll be helping me out in my new business," Alex said, as he took out some papers.
She studied it, and sure enough, she saw that Alex now owned a lot of land with a mansion and a lot of villas. She smiled as she thought, Alex is really successful now. He'll be rich!
"If I'm the boss, and you help me run things, we will have a grand time," Alex said, reaching out and playfully touching her nose.
Earlier that day, he had arranged some matters at Birchwood House. Now that he had talked with Debbie, his plans could move forward more quickly.
**
Debbie was discharged from the hospital the following day, and she recovered well. In fact, while Debbie's physical fitness had not been particularly good before, after Alex's intervention, her health had improved dramatically, and she was now stronger than any average person.