"Iris Bowman…" Cyrina whispered, overcome with shock. She couldn't believe Iris Bowman was standing before her. Iris was like the sun in the sky, and she was the ground on which everyone stepped. She didn't know what brought the powerful businesswoman her way, but finally saw hope.
On the other hand, Iris was also dumbfounded by Cyrina's words. 'She knows me already?'
In her former life, Cyrina didn't know who Iris was, until later on when Iris sent her to withdraw an enormous sum of money. Iris was covering her trail, and couldn't use any ATM without getting caught.
Iris Bowman wasn't broke when Malcolm took everything away from her. However, she ended up living like a pauper, all because her life was threatened multiple times and she had to hide in the outskirts of town for her safety. It was the last place they could ever think to search for her, as it was a sharp contrast to the life of luxury she was used to.
With her family's fortunes under his control, Malcolm bought the connections he needed and became her worst nightmare. He wanted her dead at all costs, and Iris could only hide.
Since he knew about the places she would usually go, who she knew, and any other hideout she had, Iris could only live in hiding - that too, at the last place anyone would ever think to find her. Cyrina and her mom made her days a little less unbearable, as they became her new family.
"Mhmmm!" Cyrina whimpered.
"You animal, get away from her!" Iris recovered from her shock when the scrawny guy kicked Cyrina's abdomen again.
"Hey, pretty one, you wanna join in on the fun?" He taunted lecherously, licking his lips like he just saw a tantalizing meal. His minions also continued groping Cyrina's mother as if Iris wasn't even there, but they equally fixated their lecherous gazes on Iris Bowman. It was as if they were taunting her - telling her to wait her turn.
However, as soon as the scrawny man concluded his words, his teeth were on the floor, and he fell to the ground with a thud. He passed out from the agonizing pain, but Iris didn't bother with him.
Watching their backbone shamefully eating dirt on the floor, the three minions quickly let go of Cyrina's mom, and the woman crawled to her daughter without delaying a single moment. They hugged each other and cried tears of joy, thankful that someone could save them from the hoodlums.
"Who… are you people? We have no business with you." The scrawny guy's minions were terrified at how a single punch from the young man sent their boss into unconsciousness. They needed to find their way out of there and felt it would work to talk their way out of it.
The second one chimed in, "Don Basil wouldn't take it kindly with people who interfere in his business..."
At the mention of Don Basil, Iris' blood boiled with rage. In her past life, she heard that name so many times, but never met the man. However, his minions wreaked havoc in this family and wherever they went.
The outskirts of town soon became his forte, and they tormented Cyrina and her mother whenever they felt like it - but molesting them was out of the question. She was a bit surprised that in this lifetime, Don Basil allowed his boys to toy with a woman he claimed to like.
"Unless he didn't tell them to molest the mother and daughter," Iris concluded. It suddenly dawned on her that maybe they wanted to kill them after all this. That way, there wouldn't be anyone to tell the tales. Maybe the man wasn't in charge of his gang as much as he thought.
"Maim them and deliver their bodies to Don Basil. Let him know what they came to do here. We leave in thirty seconds." Iris dropped the order and supported Cyrina's mother to get up. The hoodlums tore the woman's clothes, so she had to give her overcoat to her. Though she hesitated, the older woman knew she couldn't walk out like that, so she finally accepted it after mumbling words of gratitude.
Seeing how battered Cyrina was, Iris changed her mind and said, "Wait! The bodyguard, who had just been jubilating over his boss finding the perfect woman who could easily survive in their world, took her hesitation as a sign of weakness.
"It would do girls a lot of good if they were eunuchs." The bodyguard understood exactly what to do. However, when he approached them, they fled. "Let them go. Help me out here."
Cyrina was shocked at how ruthless Iris was, but she loved her decisiveness. Iris wasn't the type of heiress who was a softie, and she knew it. She had tried to reach Iris over the years, but nothing came out of her attempts. She was a nobody, and the president of Bowman Corporation wasn't someone she could meet at will.
"Miss Bowman, this is our house," Cyrina whispered in embarrassment, but Iris still heard her.
"I know. But you're coming with me. Let's get you to a hospital first." She didn't wait for her words to sink in before helping her up, and the bodyguard assisted with the mother as well.
When they were outside, the guys who escaped had already been dealt, with just like Iris would have wanted, and their little members were sticking out of their mouths. The bodyguards stuffed their mouths with it and tied them up.
However, a closer look would reveal that their limbs were at strange angles. Just like Iris ordered, they were maimed, and their little members severed.
Iris' personal bodyguard who came out of the dilapidated building with her couldn't help himself from giving his subordinates a death glare. They took the cue and quickly scrambled to hide the bodies. Soon enough, they were securely stuffed in the boots of their vehicle.
"Won't we have issues with the police?" Iris asked carefully, her gaze falling on the boots of the vehicles.
The bodyguard was surprised that the lady boss didn't know who her man was, or what he was capable of. However, he still responded politely, "No police officer would dare to stop our vehicles, madam." He declared with conviction, and Iris had the answer she wanted. She knew her husband was an entity of his own, but this response was something else. Her heart was settled.
"Good job." At those words, she moved to the vehicle and safely positioned Cyrina in the vehicle. Her mother was also securely in her seat, and they left there as quickly as they arrived.
"Let's go to Coprean Hills Premium." Iris gave them the direction, and the journey back to the city began. Iris intended to visit someone else, but she noticed that Cyrina's breath was becoming more and more difficult.
Anything else could wait, and Iris decided to complete her other tasks later.
"Ms. Bowman, we can't afford the treatment there. Please, just…" Cyrina began to dissuade her. Even in her wildest dreams, she wouldn't dare to visit that hospital that was more like a seven-star hotel. Cyrina didn't even understand why Iris helped them in the first place. It's not like she owed them anything. They weren't even familiar with each other, so she couldn't understand why she was being so nice to them.
The hospital in question, Coprean Hills Premium Medical Centre, was a medical facility that catered to the rich and powerful.
Common people like her couldn't even work as janitors at the place. It was controlled by one of the top families in Coprean Hills, having the reputation of a seven-star hotel. They offered nothing but premium care.
"Don't worry, Cyrina. Everything is taken care of."