Chapter 15
Vampire Doctor
Chapter 15 Vampire Doctor
As soon as Lisa opened the door to the Will family's house, a stench hit her, and she quickly took out a handkerchief to cover her nose.
One can imagine the miserable state of a person paralyzed in the lower limbs without anyone to care for them.
Hobert fanned his nose with his hand and stepped inside. There were no valuables left in the room; they had obviously all been stolen.
A man in his forties lay on the bed, his face covered in stubble, looking disheveled. This was Will after his injury.
Moldy food and empty bottles were scattered haphazardly on the ground. Will, clutching a bottle of liquor, stared at Hobert with bloodshot eyes: "Who are you? What do you want?"
"Who I am is unimportant," Hobart said, opening the window to let in fresh air. "Where are your parents?"
Will sneered, "He's long dead."
"Where is your wife?"
"That bitch ran away a long time ago!" She even took his savings from all those years.
Hobart said, "Please allow me to make a bold guess: in your current condition, you probably won't live more than half a month."
Will stared at Hobart: "What do you want? I don't recall offending you."
"Or I could give you some money to hire a maid to take care of you for a while, until you get used to being paralyzed," Hobart coaxed.
Will was initially incredulous, then seemed to understand something: "What do you need me to do?"
Hobart didn't beat around the bush: "The charges against Hugh are dropped."
Will retorted fiercely, "That's impossible! She's the one who made me lose my legs. Let her spend the rest of her life in prison!"
“You didn’t die on the spot,” Hobart said. “This can only be considered intentional assault. With my defense, she can be released in three or four years at most.”
"Oh, my goddess, look at the state of the world!" Will shouted drunkenly, "The murderer who paralyzed me hasn't received the punishment he deserves!"
Hobart waved his hand dismissively: "Alright, the fact that you're still alive is the greatest mercy the goddess can show."
"Let's get down to business. I'll give you 300 pounds if you drop the charges."
"Or I can come and collect your body in two weeks."
Hobart has been using the ability of "Twisting" rather clumsily, hoping to twist Will's thoughts.
But Will, panting heavily, stared at Hobart for a long while before finally saying, "I want 3000 pounds."
Hobart was somewhat disappointed; clearly, his "twisting" ability hadn't been very effective.
The young man who had brought Hobert over had been watching the commotion outside. When he heard Will's offer, he was almost speechless with astonishment.
"I will grant your request," Hobart smiled. "Then, after you drop the charges, I'll pay 100 pounds to have you killed."
Looking at Hobart's hearty smile, Will was somewhat frightened.
Hopper said, "My friend, your price is too high."
"Then it'll be £2000, no lower than that."
Hobert shook his head again.
Will sneered, "Anyway, I'm just a worthless corpse now. Young lawyer, come and collect my body in half a month. But you should also tell that son of a bitch arbitrator to prepare for jail time."
Hobart thought for a moment: "Then let's change the terms. I'll find you a doctor who can help you get back on your feet, and then you'll drop the charges!"
Will was initially agitated, then he shook his head dejectedly: "I've seen many doctors, and they all say I'll never be able to stand up again."
Hobart continued to use his "Twisting" ability to influence Will's thoughts, saying coldly, "Excuse my bluntness, but what kind of good doctor can you find?"
Will paused, as if he had suddenly realized something: Right, what good doctor could a thug from the East End possibly find? The doctor he saw when he was carried to the hospital in Joewood was the best doctor he had ever seen.
So his hope was rekindled: "If you cure me, give me another 300 pounds..."
Hobart interrupted him: "You can only choose one: money or your medical treatment. My patience is limited. If you continue to act like a scoundrel, you will get nothing."
He was somewhat excited because his influence had had some effect.
"Alright, alright, I'll choose to get treatment!" Will said. "However, I'll only withdraw the lawsuit after there's a significant improvement."
Hopper nodded and asked the peeking young man outside, "What's your name?"
"Pete, sir, my name is Pete."
Hobart then pulled out a pound note: "Okay, Pete, would you like to run errands for me today? If you would, you'll get another pound."
Pete rushed in, reaching for the banknotes: "Of course!"
Hobart put the money away: "I'll give it to you when you finish your work. Now go find four homeless men and tell them I'm hiring them for the day and will pay them 6 soles each."
"Happy to help." Pete turned and left.
He quickly found four vagrants, and Hobart had Pete rent a carriage. Then the vagrants carried Will to a nearby bathhouse, and Hobart also found someone to shave and cut Will's hair.
When they came out of the bathhouse, Will, who was being carried by the homeless men, looked at least ten years younger.
It was already noon, so Hobart found a nearby coffee shop for lunch and invited the four homeless men to join him.
The four homeless men expressed their deepest gratitude to Hobart, and two of them shed tears, as they hadn't had a proper meal in a long time.
Hobart kept reminding them to eat slowly so they wouldn't choke on their food.
The food here was very oily, but Hobart still finished it all. After walking around the East End, he felt that any waste of food was shameful.
However, Lisa didn't seem to have an appetite and barely touched the lunch she had ordered. After getting Lisa's permission, Hobart divided the lunch among the four homeless people.
After lunch, Hobart said to the driver, "To River Bend Avenue, South of the Bridge."
The driver asked, "Sir, what number are you going to?"
"I forgot too. I'll get off at River Bend Avenue and ask for directions." Hobart was telling the truth. The address of the White vampire family had appeared a few times, and he was already thankful that he remembered it was on River Bend Avenue.
After the carriage started moving, Lisa, in the lead two-wheeled carriage, asked somewhat anxiously, "Mr. Hobart, although I'm not a doctor, I can see that Will is badly injured. Are you confident you can heal him?"
Hobart smiled and said, "Whether I'm confident or not isn't up to me; it's up to the doctor."
He said, "However, the doctor I know is very special and highly skilled. If he says he can't cure him, then Will is truly beyond saving."
Lisa did not continue the topic, and the carriage returned to silence.
Upon reaching River Bend Avenue, one finds that most of the residents are middle-class families. Walking along these streets, one feels as if they have returned to a more human world.
Hobart went down and asked a passerby, and soon got the address of Dr. White, who was skilled in "bloodletting therapy": 48 River Bend Avenue.
They knocked on the door of room 48, and a young vampire—no, a young man—opened the door: "Who are you looking for?"
Hobart asked, "We've come to see Dr. White. Are you Dr. White?"
"No, I am his son, Emlyn White."
Thank you to [Yuzhe] for the 200 points donation today.
(End of this chapter)