Chapter 1335
Based on my nature, there's absolutely no way that I will let Asher off the hook. I would have ordered Asher to be
disposed of if it weren't for Sonia. Yet, Asher just had to be acquainted with her. He's not just a mere acquaintance
either. In fact, he just had to be the senior member of Paradigm, which has brought significant contributions to the
company. Moreover, not only was he her father's business partner, but also his good friend.
Even though their friendship crumbled to dust afterward due to conflicts caused by Asher's inferiority complex, we
still can't deny that Asher had been a decent friend in the past. Coupled with her soft-hearted nature, it's very likely
that she won't mete out a heavy punishment toward Asher out of respect for his contributions to Paradigm.
Although I can't deny that my wishes are the exact opposite of her possible decision, I would still respect her choice.
That's why I decided to ask her about what she will do with Asher.
That was what Toby thought.
On the contrary, Sonia didn't know what he was thinking. Even so, a hint of hatred immediately appeared on her
face when she heard him asking about Asher. "Of course, I will make him pay a heavy price. He nearly killed the
two of us, so we should not handle his case lightly."
She balled her fists tighter as her anger grew, so she added, "Nevertheless, I have inquired about Asher's case.
According to the police, the most severe punishment he will receive is life without parole. Still, nothing is set in
stone. It's also very likely that he may just be sentenced to more than ten years in prison. That's why I'm mad. I
would be fine if he receives life without parole, but I would be utterly disgusted if he only gets sentenced to more
than ten years in prison.''
Toby stared at her with slight shock in his eyes and asked, "So, you want Asher to receive life without parole?"
Sonia nodded resolutely. "Yes. The only problem is that life without parole in Caruna doesn't mean the individual
convicted in court will spend the rest of their natural life in prison. They will still be released after spending 20 or 30
years, at most, in prison. Oh, how I wish for Asher to spend the rest of his life in prison so that he will never taste
freedom. Just imagining him being released and tainting the cityscape 20 or 30 years later makes me want to
shudder."
Life without parole, huh? That's a rather vague sentence in Caruna. Here, getting sentenced for up to 20 or 30
years is defined as life without parole. Therefore, there's no such thing as truly locking the individual up for the rest
of their life. However… There are such criminal sentences abroad, though.
As Toby thought of that, he curled his lips into a faint smile. He couldn't deny feeling relieved after truly
understanding her sentiments regarding Asher.
I was truly afraid that Sonia would go soft on Asher. Nonetheless, I'm also surprised that her hatred for Asher has
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtpeaked to such an extent. Is it because of my near death?
No words could describe how triumphant Toby felt at that very moment. He would probably be wagging his tail so
hard he might strain it if he were a puppy.
"I can make it work if you want Asher to receive a genuine life sentence or even the death penalty," Toby answered
nonchalantly with narrowed eyes.
As Sonia never doubted his words, she was overjoyed when she heard his words before she shook her head in
resignation. "There's no need for Asher to receive the death penalty. After all, Paradigm is indebted to him. Besides,
his crime doesn't warrant the death penalty. In fact, imprisoning him for the rest of his natural life and taking away
his freedom forever is far more tormenting to him than receiving the death penalty. Since death can be considered
a way out for him instead, I think he should receive a life sentence. But I have to ask, what do you intend to do with
him?"
"There's no actual life without parole in Caruna, but there is such a sentence abroad. Therefore, I will change
Asher's nationality and send him to a country where he will be forced to spend the rest of his days behind bars. I
assure you that he will spend the next few decades of his life in a small prison in a foreign country."
"That's good." She nodded agreeably.
After he received her agreement, he spoke once more, "Call Tom and inform him of this decision. He'll know what
to do."
"Okay," she immediately agreed. Then, she thought of something and smiled. "Speaking of which, Mr. Brown still
doesn't know you're awake yet. We really should call him and inform him of this good news. He will be thrilled. He
had transformed into a busy bee these past few days, moving back and forth between Fuller Group and the
hospital. He even had to make a trip to the airport to pick up the predetermined heart from the carrier for the
heart transplant procedure. His dark circles had gotten almost as dark as a panda's eyes. I was so worried that he
wouldn't be able to hold on and collapse when I saw him working himself to the bone. Now that you're awake, he
can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Make sure to reward him well once you have recovered and are discharged from
the hospital. But don't you dare try to leave the hospital without the doctor's green light."
"I will." Toby nodded, for he knew very well all the pressure would be on Tom alone when he collapsed.
Since he was never a stingy boss who liked to be indebted to his subordinates, he surely would compensate for
Tom's sacrifices twofold.
"Alright, then. I'll be making that phone call in a bit. Besides, my 10-minute visit is almost up. We can talk through
the glass if there's anything else you want to discuss," Sonia said as she gestured to the glass wall.
As Toby, too, knew very well that he wasn't in a general ward, he instantly pouted and complained, "But the glass
wall is both bulletproof and soundproof. You can't hear me."
"It's okay. I'll write what I want to say on a clipboard and stick it on the glass," she said with a smile, utterly
dismissing his complaint.
He frowned upon hearing her remarks. "But I can't write."
She tilted her head as she tried to think of a solution before musing, "It's okay. I'll make sure to write things that
wouldn't require you to overexert yourself. Then, you only need to nod or shake your head in response. That way,
I'll know what you want to say."
With that, Sonia slowly rose to her feet and intended to leave the ward when suddenly, Toby called out to her,
"Wait!"
"What's wrong?" She stopped in her tracks to glance at him.
Toby rested his worried gaze on her face and asked something that had been bothering him for a while now, "I
forgot to ask you about this earlier. Why are you suddenly wearing glasses?"
The instant she heard his question, she silently thought, I knew he would eventually ask me about this matter. As
she never thought of hiding the truth from him, she lightly touched her glasses before she frankly replied, "My eyes
were hurt rather severely from the smoke that day. As a result, my eyesight has weakened, and I need glasses to
see clearly."
"What?" Toby's pupils shrank. "Was it because of me?"
He figured it out right away. It's definitely because of me! She was probably worried sick after I passed out and
entirely forgot to take care of herself. There's no doubt that she had placed her entire focus on my condition. It
even caused her to injure her eyes to such an extent.
Sonia lowered her head and gently kissed Toby's scrunched-up forehead. "Now, now. It's just a trivial matter. Don't
take it to heart. Tim said that there's still hope for my eyes to achieve full recovery, so don't worry about me. You
can ask Tim and Mr. Brown if you don't believe me. They are aware of my condition. In short, don't overthink things
and just focus on getting better. What you have to do now is to have proper rest, receive your treatment, and try to
get discharged from the hospital as soon as possible. Alright, I'll be leaving now."
Then, she waved at him and left the ICU ward.
After Sonia left, she deliberately went to the glass wall and flashed Toby a smile, who had a sullen look on his face.
Finally, she whisked out her phone and dialed Tom's number.
Tom was delighted when he heard that Toby had gained consciousness. He immediately threw his work out the
metaphorical window and rushed to the hospital. Work isn't my priority right now. I'll just do overtime in the office
later tonight.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmBy the time Tom arrived at the hospital, she had already returned to her ward to rest.
Actually, even though her condition wasn't serious, her body still suffered from some sequelae after being rescued.
The pace of her breathing would become very short and rapid if she stood for too long. It felt as though she could
hardly breathe.
According to Tim, she suffered from shortness of breath because she inhaled a lot of smoke and dust, which
damaged her lungs. In addition, medical care procedures such as bronchoalveolar lavage were also detrimental to
her lungs. Therefore, it was inevitable that she would face some difficulty breathing.
Of course, such a condition wasn't permanent, and she would be healed with time as long as she took good care of
her health. Regardless, Tim also warned her that it would very likely develop into asthma or lung cancer if she
didn't.
Given that there were currently enough matters troubling everyone, Sonia didn't want her loved ones to worry
about her, especially Toby. Hence, she forbade Tim to inform Toby and Tom of her actual condition.
This was followed by her getting threatened by Tim to take good care of herself. Otherwise, he would inform the
others no matter what.
Tim told her that he would be supervising her throughout her stay. He also created a daily schedule for her and
ordered her to follow it to the letter. He also made it explicitly clear that he would inform Toby of her condition the
minute she refused to listen to his advice.
Due to Tim's very effective threat, Sonia would obediently return to her ward when it was time for her to rest.
Even if Toby looked at her with such reluctance when she left the ward, she still heartlessly turned around and left.
Although she was also equally reluctant to part with Toby, she had no choice in this matter. She didn't dare to
confront a devilish figure such as Tim.
Tom arrived not long after Sonia departed for her ward. After he hastily changed into a sterile gown, he entered
Toby's ward with undisguised concern painted across his face.
When he saw Toby, Tom clasped his hands in excitement as he exclaimed in sheer relief, "President Fuller! You're
finally awake! You have no idea how worried we all were these past few days."
Toby wearily opened his eyes upon hearing the warble in Tom's voice. He couldn't help but feel speechless at the
sight of Tom's teary eyes.
Good God, I'm just injured, not dead!
Even so, Toby didn't lecture Tom this time. He knew full well that Tom had gone above and beyond for him when he
was temporarily indisposed.
So, Toby parted his lips tiredly and sincerely thanked Tom in a hoarse voice, "Thank you for your hard work."