Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
In the photo, there was a couple hugging and kissing.
The man was the young Darius Gaston.
He caressed the woman’s face and kissed her passionately. Unfortunately, the photo captured only the back of the woman.
She was slender in a white dress and with black hair. From her hair to her feet, the woman’s figure was covered in needles. Every needle reflected the hatred of the person who had done it.
“Candice Liam, you b*tch. I shouldn’t have let you die so easily.”
Sofia’s eyes were filled with hatred. Her scorn ran so deep that it saw no end. She even wished she could find the dead woman’s tomb, take her out, whip her corpse and cut her to pieces.
However, Candice was not the woman in the photo.
Sofia had mistaken the woman in the photo to be Candice because the woman shared a similar figure and dress. Candice had lied to her for several years and had even used her own life to protect that b*tch’s son.
Candice was dead. Sofia couldn’t exact revenge on her, but she could carry it out on her daughter, Mary.
Sofia put the photo back into the safe when she heard the door open.
She closed the door to the safe.
Walking out, she saw her husband, Darius, packing his clothes.
Anger flashed across Sofia’s eyes. She walked over and threw to the ground the clothes that Darius had just put into the suitcase.
She shouted and pointed at him, “Darius, why are you packing your clothes? Do you treat this home as a hotel or a mall? Did you come back just to take your things?”
Darius grabbed her wrist. “Are you crazy?”
“You are the one who is crazy. You disappeared for a month, refusing to answer my calls or reply to my messages. Darius, do you even still care about me and your family?”
“My phone fell off the cliff while I was climbing the mountain. I haven’t bought a new one yet.”
It was hard to tell if Darius was telling the truth. Sofia stared at him for some time before appearing to believe him. She took a deep breath and asked, “Where are you going now? You’ve only just come back, and in the middle of the night.”
“I’m not leaving tonight. I promised my friend that I would go to Burnham County to teach for three months.”
Sofia laughed. She smiled mockingly and looked at Darius’s face with tears in her eyes. “Do you really not care about this family anymore?”
Darius sat on the floor and folded the clothes that she had thrown. He said indifferently, “I’ll leave the family to you. Max and Marcus are both outstanding. There’s nothing that this family needs me for.”
“What about your grandson? Mary came back with a four-year-old boy. She says that he is Max’s son. Have you not heard?”
Right when Sofia said this, she felt a little regretful. But she told herself that it was not a big deal to let him know, as long as she could keep him.
___
When the sun had just risen, Max opened his eyes and saw that no one was beside him in bed. His expression turned glum.
He got up and returned to his room to shower.
At 7 a.m., Max went to Jason’s room. He stood at the entrance and looked at him.
Jason had just woken up. He was staring at the ceiling with his big and beautiful eyes. As he rolled around, he smiled and muttered to himself, “This is great. My dreams will come true.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Max strode into the room and walked towards Jason. Jason immediately jumped up from the bed. He resembled a little leopard as he looked at him warily.
“Max, weren’t you on a business trip? Why are you here?”
Max stood by the bed and reached out to pat Jason’s head. Max said in a gentle voice, “I finished my work and came back early. Just now, you said that your dreams were going to come true, right?”
“Max, this is a secret.” Jason’s eyes darted around, and he glanced at the door. He lowered his voice and said, “I might have a new father soon.”
Max’s expression changed instantly. He could feel the anger boiling up inside him.
He held back his rage and asked, “Why do you still want to have a dad?”
Seeing that Max was angry, Jason stuck out his tongue and said with a smile, “Max, I had a dream. I dreamed that Mom was getting married. It’s not real. Don’t be angry. Calm down.” As Jason spoke, he held Max’s arm with his small hands to coax him. Jason seemed to be afraid that Max would not be able to catch his breath.
Max grabbed Jason’s little hands and saw through his fake smile. Max thought about how Jason was talking to himself earlier. He said he wished the dream would come true.
That was probably was indeed just a dream. Max did not pursue the matter further.
Jason secretly heaved a sigh of relief. He stared at Max’s mouth and asked, “Max, why is the skin on your mouth broken? Did someone bite you?”
Max hummed, “I was bitten by a kitten.”
“What’s going on? You and Mom are getting bitten by either a dog or by a cat. Stay away from me. I’m afraid that you’ll infect me with rabies.” Jason jumped a couple of feet away.
The corners of Max’s mouth twitched. He frowned and asked, “When your mother said that she was bitten by a dog, you were so concerned about her and asked if she had been vaccinated. Why do you run so far away from me now? Haven’t I been nice to you?”
“Max, you’re a man. How can you compare yourself to my mother? She needs my protection.”
Max shook his head and sighed. “Come here. I’ll help you change.”
Jason said, “I’ll change myself. Don’t come near me or my mother. Don’t infect her.”
“I’ve been vaccinated. It’s not contagious.”
“Uh… okay.” Upon his reassurance, Jason approached Max and smiled at him.
With Max’s help, Jason quickly changed and washed up.
When they went downstairs, Max asked Jason, “Do you want to learn how to make breakfast? Then you can cook for your mother. She would be excited to eat the food you make for her.”
Jason looked at him with an impassive face. “Max, don’t you know that I can cook?”
“You can cook?” Max was surprised.
Jason nodded proudly with his eyebrows raised. He was such a cute child whom everyone would want to spoil. It was unbelievable that he could cook.
“Of course, I need to take care of my mother.”
As he spoke, he instructed Max, “Please bring me a stool. I’ll make breakfast today.”
“Okay.” Max’s interest was piqued.
He wanted to know if his four-year-old son really knew how to cook.
When Mary came downstairs, she saw Jason and Max discussing her preferences in the kitchen. “Mommy said that having an egg at breakfast is good for health.” Jason was standing on a stool, preparing breakfast for his mother. “Then you should fry an egg for her.” Max stood behind Jason to ensure that he would not fall.
After a while, Max asked, “Are you done?”
“It’ll be ready soon. Go upstairs and wake my mother up for breakfast.” Jason told Max as he concentrated on the egg.
Max turned around and saw Mary standing in the living room. His gaze met hers for a split second. She looked away indifferently.
Max was a little embarrassed. He said to him, “Jason, your mom is here. Go accompany her. I’ll cook.”
“Alright, I’ll give you a chance to show your skills.”
Jason then jumped off the stool and ran over to hug Mary’s legs. He sought her praise, “Mom, I made breakfast today. I specially made an egg for you.”
No matter how upset or angry Mary was, she would feel better after hearing Jason calling her “Mom” in his sweet voice. Her heart softened at the sight of him.
Bending down, she lightly touched Jason’s head and smiled. “Thank you, Jason.”
“Mom, have your injuries healed?”
Jason took Mary’s hand like an adult and checked the newly formed skin on it. His heart ached as he looked at Mary’s hand. Even though there was a only little difference from yesterday, Jason loved her mother very much. To him, any difference was a big one..