A Replacement Bride

Chapter 275

Chapter 275

Hearing that, Marcus finally let out a sigh of relief.

"Miss Cornell, I knew that asking for your help was the right choice! You're amazing for being so talented at a young age!"

However, Katherine didn't think there was anything to be proud of and raised her hand at that moment to stop his compliments.

"Don't get too excited. Even though I've taken care of the man-faced curse and the poison in their bodies, there are probably quite a few more people who have been infected."

As soon as she said this, Marcus jolted in surprise and soon frowned.

"Other people have been infected? I've sent someone to isolate the Fraser Residence from the outside world. Other than Lexie, no one can enter this place. Besides, no one has gone near the three patients, and so far, everyone else has been fine…"

Katherine shook her head, her slightly pale face cold and solemn.

"You've only seen the surface, but things are far from being as simple as you think. You said that the man-faced curse ran rampant in the Fraser Family three years ago, except that they weren't poisoned for long and weren't at the point of a terminal illness. Even though some people had died, there was no full-blown outbreak, so nobody took it seriously. When I was treating these three people today, I found that although the outbreak of the man-faced curse was intense, it had existed in their bodies a long time ago. In other words, the man-faced curse has a certain incubation period, and while the duration is unknown, it's still contagious even within the incubation period."

Upon hearing her words, Marcus finally realized the severity of the situation and instantly grew nervous.

"What should we do, then? After all, before the outbreak of the man-faced curse, the Fraser Family members must have come into contact with many people, and we can't find them all even if we start searching for them now. Besides, those people will come into contact with even more people, so won't it spread further? Even if you are highly skilled in medicine, surely you can't save so many people…"

It had taken her so much of her time and energy today just to save three people. It was a no-brainer that her skills alone were far from enough to treat everyone who was infected.

Just as he was breaking out in a cold sweat, Katherine spoke up in a calm voice, unlike his frantic demeanor. "Relax and calm down. Things aren't that bleak."

Hearing that, Marcus brightened up and asked curiously, "Miss Cornell, are you saying that… you have a way?"

Katherine fell silent with pursed lips, but just as she was about to speak, Joaquin returned.

"You can continue talking later. Kathy, the bath is ready."

Immediately after, he came forward and bent over to carry her.

Katherine jolted, hurriedly pushing him away. "It's alright. It's not like I broke my leg. I-I can walk by myself." Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

For some reason, she inexplicably felt a little nervous at that moment and even stumbled over her words when she spoke.

Upon seeing her lowering her head to look for her slippers, Joaquin raised an eyebrow and nodded, heeding her words. "Alright. You can walk by yourself."

Next to them, Marcus cleared his throat a little awkwardly. "About that…"

He was still occupied with Katherine's unfinished sentence and longed to press her for the answers.

However, Joaquin cast him a glance and said coldly, "Kathy is already exhausted. She's just woken up, so let her have some rest."

Since he had already said so, Marcus stopped questioning further and was forced to comply helplessly.

…

When Katherine finished her bath and returned, she saw Joaquin sitting by the bed with his head lowered, browsing his phone. The warm yellow light cast a halo around him, and his usual aloofness seemed to have eased greatly at this moment.

She stood in the doorway with a towel in one hand as she stared at him blankly, somewhat lost in thought. As if sensing her gaze, Joaquin raised his head and met her eyes, raising his strong eyebrows.

He extended a hand toward her and said in a soft voice, "Come on over, Kathy."

When Katherine returned to her senses, she realized that she had been staring at him for a long time. There was an awkward look on her face. As though trying to hide something, she walked over with an air of indifference while toweling her hair dry.

"Why are you still here? Aren't you going to rest?"

Joaquin's upturned eyes narrowed slightly as he questioned instead of answering, "Do you want me to stay in another room? Kathy, we are now husband and wife, so it's natural for us to stay in the same room."

His words rendered Katherine speechless. Eventually, she cleared her throat and took a seat on the other end of the bed, choosing not to reply to him.

She was about to continue toweling her hair when the towel in her hand disappeared. When she looked up, the towel fell on her head. Immediately after, a pair of hands began drying her hair with the towel gently.

"I can do it myself…" Katherine's cheeks warmed, her voice involuntarily turning quiet when she spoke.

A deep chuckle sounded above her head, and Joaquin continued to dry her hair as he said, "You don't have to be so formal around me, Kathy. It's time to change this habit of yours."

Katherine blinked noncommittally. Over the next few moments, neither of them spoke again, and the atmosphere in the room inexplicably became somewhat ambiguous, filled with subtle nuances. After some time, her hair was finally toweled dry.

Joaquin set down the towel and was going to tease her a little more, but when he stepped forward and took a look, he saw that her expression had turned somewhat solemn; she looked deep in thought. Seeing that, he raised his eyebrows and couldn't help but sigh helplessly to himself.

This woman really doesn't take a break, even for a moment.

At once, he raised his hand and lightly knocked on her spotless forehead, saying softly, "Come to bed and lie down. Stop thinking so much. You haven't gotten enough rest yet. Come here, let's sleep."

However, Katherine shook her head. "I just woke up, so I don't feel sleepy now."

Besides, her mind was still racing, leaving her even more sleepless.

Right after that, she walked toward the only desk in the room and sat down. After rummaging through the drawers for a piece of paper and pen, she began to bury herself in writing.

Joaquin knew he couldn't persuade her, so he had no choice but to step over and stand beside her, looking at her as she wrote down series after series of chemical formulas on the paper.

"What's this?" When she finally set her pen down, he couldn't help but feel curious.

Katherine clenched the paper with a flickering gaze, and it was only after a slight pause that she began speaking.

"This is a unique type of antidote."

"Antidote?" Her words left Joaquin even more confused. He couldn't understand why she would write that down all of a sudden.

Katherine nodded before swiftly raising her gaze to look at him, her expression turning serious.

"When I was treating those three from the Fraser Family earlier today, I noticed that they had the same kind of poison in their body that I've never seen before. It probably has something to do with the man- faced curse. Hence, I made a bold guess: the reason why the man-faced curse has an incubation period in the human body for a certain amount of time and has such a sudden and intense outbreak must be closely related to this poison…"