The fireworks shot up into the sky and exploded into a dazzling display of lights.The kids were holding sparklers, but they weren't the least bit excited."Dad, Mom will come back to us if she sees the lights in the sky, right?" Zack said as he sobbed."She loves all of you very much. She'll come back soon. Don't cry."Connor looked at the plum blossoms in the yard. He said calmly, "The cherry blossoms will bloom soon. "She promised me that she would meet me under the cherry blossom trees. She won't break her promise."Ethan felt horrible as he looked at the faces of the kids. He wanted to find Olivia as soon as possible, but the kidnappers were well prepared. They didn't leave any clues. He could only hope that Olivia was still alive. Back on the island, Olivia had just finished eating some cookies. Her stomach was full, but her heart was empty.She had gazed at the night sky countless times. It was one of the few entertainments she had on the island. It was New Year'
Those words sent a shockwave into the group. Ethan dropped whatever he was doing and raised his head abruptly."What did you say? Where is Liv?""Mr. Miller, Mrs. Miller is currently in Kreene."Ethan immediately knew what happened. "Where Wayne was born? Damn it. So it really was him. I should've known."If the kidnapper were the person who was trying to kill Olivia, she would've ended up like the rest of the crew.Only Wayne would set up such a distraction. His confession was rejected. So, he faked Olivia's death to hide her whereabouts. He didn't expect Ethan to place a tracker on Olivia."Wayne is a ruthless man. He'd even resort to such methods. Mr. Miller, let's go and bring Mrs. Miller back."Ethan raised his hand to stop him. "No. Wayne must be keeping tabs on us. If we make any sudden moves, we risk alerting him.""You're right, Mr. Miller. Then, what should we do? We can't just leave Mrs. Miller with him, right? He might move her to another location soon.""W
Kreene was a city that Olivia had heard a lot of rumors about. She knew that this was Wayne's hometown from the information she read about him.She only realized how segregated the city was when she saw it with her own eyes.The city was very prosperous. The roads led to all corners of the city, and the streets were busy. But there was such a rundown area in this city. It was like the difference between heaven and hell.Olivia had been to many cities. She had met many refugees as well. It was her first time seeing such a place. It looked so prosperous, especially the airport. It was better than a lot of the cities in Arlandia. The refugees from other places appeared because their entire city was destroyed. Olivia was shocked that there was such a slum in such a nice city. How poor were the people here?There were some people that lived under bridges in some other cities, but there were whole families living in graveyards in Kreene.The children's faces were covered in
Alan didn't say anything as he stared at Ike. Ike glared at him. "Why are you looking at me like that? Am I wrong?""Ike, didn't you enjoy the cookies that Dr. Ophelia made? You shouldn't be so rude to someone who offered you hospitality. "I feel like Mr. Maxwell is happier than before. There's nothing bad about that.""You're a fool. Don't you know that a forced relationship never ends well? "Besides, if Mr. Maxwell falls hopelessly in love, his enemies will tear him to pieces. A man like him can't have any weaknesses.""Even if it isn't Dr. Ophelia, he might fall for some other woman. You can't just expect Mr. Maxwell to be single forever."Wayne led Olivia to a dilapidated old building with ease. The house would be easily flattened by a typhoon if it was built near the ocean. There were no elevators in the building, and there were countless ads posted by the stairwell. There were all sorts of odors in the building. Wayne stopped before a wooden door. He took out a key
"Mom, she didn't explain the whole picture. She was divorced a long time ago."Jade pulled Wayne's ear. "Didn't you notice that she doesn't have any feelings for you? Whether she has children or if she is married or not, those are all excuses. "Be honest. Did you kidnap her?"Unable to hold it in anymore, Olivia laughed. She never expected Wayne, who didn't seem to fear anything, to be scared of someone."Mom, let go!""Darling, tell me. Did he threaten you to come here? I'll teach him a lesson."Olivia smiled. She knew that Wayne was only behaving respectfully toward Jade. Even if Jade knew the truth, she would only lecture Wayne a little.Also, judging by Wayne's personality, if he listened to Jade, he wouldn't have brought Olivia home without warning. This meant that they were in cahoots with each other, and Jade also wanted Wayne to get a wife.However, Jade was just secretly feeling glad on the inside. She wouldn't actually help Wayne out.Olivia was nice enough to
Jade was quite straightforward in her speech as well. "I'm talking about those doctors he called over in the past. They think they're mothers or something; they nag so much. "It was so annoying! They kept telling me to quit smoking and drinking. Ugh, those annoying flies!"Olivia knew that. Even though Jade was quite old, other than her liver and lungs, her health was completely fine. Olivia could tell that she took great care of her body.Even though Jade was living in a place like this, it was quite peaceful in the area. There weren't any thieves or robberies that happened as soon as she stepped into this place.This meant that an even more powerful person was protecting this area. That was how Jade managed to live in safety."Mr. Maxwell cares about you, so he's worried about you. I won't tell you to change your lifestyle."But if you trust me, I'll prescribe something for you to maintain your health."Jade nodded enthusiastically. "Good girl. I can see that you ca
Wayne peeled off the dirty skin on the onion. "I don't know. I was abandoned as soon as I was born because of my weak physique. Someone took me in because I was a boy."But after the family had a son of their own, they sold me off."After some twists and turns, I was abandoned here when I was three. From then on, this place has become my home."He tossed the onion peel into the trash can. "The people here are like weeds in the soil. No matter how difficult their surroundings are, they will give it their all to emerge from the soil."He briefly recounted his tragic past. Olivia knew that it must have been very difficult for him to get to where he was right now.He didn't have a prominent background, and he had to survive by stealing and robbing from young. His story was quite a legend.Olivia examined his face. If he wasn't abandoned by his family, he might have been a child from a wealthy family."Anyway, you should get out of this kitchen. I've been cooking for myself for
Olivia couldn't deny it because it was the truth.While she was pregnant, Marina happened to return to the country.Marina was pregnant as well. She wanted proof that Ethan would treat her well, so she asked Ethan to cook for her, too.Back then, Ethan was filled with guilt toward Kurt, so he would fulfill any wish Marina had."It's kind of boring talking to you," Olivia grumbled."I hit the nail on the head."Wayne flipped the food in the pan, sending sparks flying. "I won't be like him. I'm like a wolf, you see. As soon as I lock onto a prey, I will never give up on it. I won't be distracted."I'll admit that my background isn't as good as Ethan's. But with my position, I can give you things he won't be able to. I am not inferior to him in this sense."Olivia scoffed. "Men would make empty promises and whisper sweet nothings when they are trying to court women. "How would I know that you're not another Ethan to me? Or do you think that I'm a pure 18-year-old, and I'll f
Warren's pale face showed a hint of pleading. "Olivia, we've gotten to know each other better in the past two years. Have you ever loved me?"Hatred was evident in Olivia's cold eyes. "Never. I pray for your death every single second of my life.""I knew it." He smiled at that embittering answer. Karma had always been there. Another sound of a gunshot surprised the birds. A pool of blood splashed over the flowers. Warren stared at the picture on the gravestone. "Mona, I've returned everything that I owe you…"Olivia's gaze alternated between the two bodies. Her heart ached as she began crying. "It's finally over, Mona. Please rest in peace."She had been waiting for this day to come for too long. When the revenge was finally over, she felt hollow on the inside. …Yarrows reached their peak of beauty during the season, dancing along the wind. Willow was chasing after Zack, her bells ringing briskly. He teased, "You can't catch me!"After weaving a garland, Alicia bec
Warren was so blinded by love that he didn't realize that Olivia had spent the last two years setting this up.The moment he saw Olivia nestling in Ethan's arms, he knew that his identity had been exposed since the beginning.It was time to end all of this.Although the Fordham family had won the fight, they sustained heavy casualties. Brandon and Deborah, together with Jacqueline, had hurt and killed countless people. Quinn became a sacrifice, never waking up again despite her young age. Olivia placed a bouquet before Quinn's gravestone. "Rest in peace, Quinn. I'll take good care of the family. Don't worry."The breeze carried a leave before it landed on Olivia's shoulder, as though trying to respond to Olivia.Douglas reunited with the family, and Natalie was finally buried in peace. It was a private funeral, but Mason paid a visit. Mason and Douglas looked at each other. They were both important to Natalie, and they finally met each other after her death. With reddene
"Avery, what happened?" Olivia inquired.She had no clue what was happening and didn't dare to go anywhere close to Louis. The only person who she got close to was Avery."Stay away, Olivia! It's too dangerous!" Avery yelled worriedly. Louis shifted his gaze to Olivia. "My experiment is going to be successful soon. That's Natalie's descendant. She has Natalie's genes in her…"Olivia's eyes widened as she finally realized why Louis had been taking special care of her. Back then, she simply assumed that it was due to her health and talent, but it turned out that he had known her identity all along!The purpose of the human modification project was to resurrect Natalie! The thought of it gave her goosebumps.To think that he had made so many preparations just to resurrect Natalie…Even Olivia was deceived. She took the human modification project at face value; she didn't think much about it! "Let Natalie go, Louis. She's been gone for years. She could be watching us from up
Olivia arrived on the island. She noticed the change in the atmosphere this time around.It was the same old scenery, but the robots that once filled the island to the brim were gone. She expected to encounter some inspection robots upon arrival, but there weren't any.Ships were docking in lines by the seashore, and most of them belonged to private foreigner organizations and mercenaries. People were coming to the island!What happened?Was Louis in danger?Although Louis wished to transform her into a cyborg, she hoped he could live regardless. No matter what field it was, no one would come before an outstanding scientist like him. It would be a huge loss to lose him.Olivia grew worried. "Calm down, Liv. A lot of people came to the island, but I don't think it's a big issue for now," Ethan reminded her.He bet that the ships were loaded with ammunition. Still, the buildings on the island were intact, and nothing seemed to be destroyed. She disagreed, "No, there should
Mason and David had a long discussion by themselves. No one knew what they talked about.But it didn't matter because it was just an extra member joining the Fordham family anyway. That was it.On the other hand, Tatiana was a little worried. If the whole Fordham family were to be added to the family registry, would her children inherit less from the Heath family?Humans were born selfish. When the event actually came to pass, everyone would be thinking about their own benefit. However, the result of the discussion between David and Mason surprised everyone.Even though David wasn't acknowledged as one of the Fordhams, he wasn't planning to change his surname to Heath.He saw himself as a Fordham because his mother married Douglas.Nevertheless, he didn't mind his family being relatives with the Fordham family.Mason was a little disappointed, but he still respected David's decision because he knew how well Douglas treated David's family.Mason asked the Fordham family to sta
Olivia and the others returned to the Fordham family. Everything was going back on track under Avery's management. Sean's leg was recovering well. He could walk like a normal person, and he didn't have to pretend to be a cripple anymore. Troy would need more time to heal, but he was making progress.David clearly seemed better than he was before Olivia left. Everyone could still hardly believe that Jacqueline almost killed everyone in the family all by herself. When Olivia returned, David asked with concern, "Olivia, Avery said that you were cursed. How are you feeling right now?""Don't worry, Dad. I'm all better now. But we think that Jacqueline's dead in the sea," she assured.He hugged her. "It's alright. Your safety is all I hope for."It broke her heart to see how time had chipped away at his physique. It hadn't actually been that long since the family was in trouble. "Any news about Mom's whereabouts?" asked Olivia. "Avery found something, but he's still trying to
Alan brushed it over, but it was enough to leave Wendell in shock. Wendell imagined what kind of life Wayne had led before this. Growing up in a slum where all kinds of people lived… People like them had never really owned anything anyway, so they wouldn't feel the pain of loss…Ever since his wife passed away, Wendell didn't really care much about Alexander's upbringing. Wendell was merely generous when it came to spending money on Alexander. But once he reunited with his son, he realized how much it could hurt to be a parent. If that marriage arrangement was Wayne's wish, Wendell was hell-bent on making it happen.…Olivia was watching the sunset painting colors to the horizon by the seashore. Although Jacqueline was dead, Olivia didn't feel happy, not even one bit. So what if the mastermind was dead? The Fordham family was still in disarray, and no one knew where Shana was.Olivia sighed softly. "You're too young to be sighing like that." Wayne suddenly appeared next
Wendell felt helpless. He was seriously down on luck.Instead of his son, he thought that he had found himself a bossy superior. It was a heartfelt reunion after 30 years of separation, and yet the first thing Wayne talked about was an announcement about his marriage rather than expressing words of concern for his family. If it were any ordinary woman, Wendell wouldn't have minded it. But the person he insisted on marrying was none other than Olivia! She was a divorced woman with four kids!On top of that, Olivia's ex-husband was Wendell's nephew! The divorced couple was somewhat entangled with each other too.Ethan and Wayne were both dear to him. What should he do? Wendell was at his wit's end. Ignoring Wendell's dilemma, Wayne handed him a cigarette. But Wendell refused, "I quit it."Wayne lit a cigarette and squatted on the ground. Instead of a ruler of a land, he appeared more like a construction worker. Wendell massaged his forehead at that. How had his son grown
Wendell had been frail all his life. He never imagined that his biological son would have been missing for so many years. What surprised him more was that Wayne had grown up well despite hardships. Still, there seemed to be something off about this son of his.They were father and son who had been separated for years. Now that the truth was revealed, shouldn't they be hugging each other in tears of joy? Why did Wayne show no joy in reuniting with his father but seemed interested in his identity as the son of the Procter family—or more precisely, the marriage arrangement between the Procter family and the Fordham family?""Son, things are a bit complicated right now. We need to take our time to discuss this thoroughly—""Am I not your son?" Wayne's restless temperament was exactly the same as his mother's. There was no chance of dissuading him. There was only one thing in his head. He felt fortunate that he had run a background check on the ties between both families. Otherwise