Outside the car, the cold breeze blew the leaves away.Adina looked down and said in a calm voice, “Whenever we’re at our most intimate moments, a mechanical female voice appears in my mind. The first time it appeared, it asked me to jump off the building. Later, as I grew closer to you, that voice asked me to leave you or forced me to spew nonsense…”She yanked at the strands of hair that had dropped on her brow. “I cannot resist that voice’s order no matter how hard I try, so I have to do what it says. Otherwise, my head hurts so bad until I give in to it. It is so excruciatingly painful that I sometimes wish I could just kill myself to end the pain.”“Addy…”Duke did not know what to say. He hugged Adina close trying to transmit all his warmth and energy to her.He could not take away her pain. But when he saw her so lost and helpless, he felt his heart constrict. Seeing her in pain hurt him so much that it felt as if a knife was thrust in his heart.What he wouldn’t give to s
The caller was Blake. Duke narrowed his eyes and answered the call.“Boss, Earl attempted to escape half an hour ago, but we managed to capture him.”Duke’s eyes turned stormy. “Keep a close watch on him. Do not let him escape!”“Don’t worry, Boss. I have assigned ten more people to stand guard over the basement. He can’t possibly escape this place even if he has gods helping him now.”Duke hung up. He frowned. Adina stroked his cheek. “Don’t worry. There must be a way to solve all this.”Duke patted her back and spoke gently, “Let’s go home first. We need to find an excuse for our children.”They discussed what to tell their kids when they got home. Soon, they arrived at the Winters family’s mansion.Preschool had ended early. So, the children were already home. They were all in the living room, talking to Mabel.Adina and Duke entered the mansion, hand-in hand. When the children saw them, they quickly surrounded them.Harold chirped, “Mommy, aren’t you supposed to rest at ho
Adina always addressed Mabel as Mrs. Winters. Today, she took the initiative to call her “Mother”.Mabel felt as if a huge weight was off her heart.If Duke and Adina accepted her as their mother, it meant that they had forgiven the past.“Oh… Addy, don’t you worry. Leave your children with me. I will take care of them,” she said happily.“Mommy, I don’t want to live away from you!” Harold lunged at Adina and wrapped his arms around her neck. He cried, “Mommy, I want to stay with you. Please, I beg you!”Melody tugged on Adina’s sleeve and said, “Mommy, I’ve never lived away from you. Please don’t move out… please!”Even though George and Alden were quiet, it was clear that they shared their sibling’s wish. They looked very reluctant.Alden, especially, looked hesitant. He and Melody had never been away from their mother. Even when Adina was at her busiest, she had taken them along with her.The Jones Corporation resort project seemed fine for now. He knew that the situation th
Melody was about to cry. “Will Mommy never like me again?”Alden hugged his sister. “Mommy is not angry. I think she has something to do. That’s why she was impatient.”“The succession contest to Jones Corporation is important to Mommy,” George said. “Mommy must have a strong reason to move out. Stop making trouble, Harold.” Harold clenched his fist. He did not want to part with his mother. “I know I made a mistake. I’ll go and apologize to Mommy.”Alden pursed his lips. “Let Mommy calm down first.”“Your daddy and mommy are just moving to live near the project site. They aren’t leaving for another country. When you miss you miss them, I can take you there any time. It’s not a big deal.” Mrs. Winters smiled. “Hal, don’t cry. You’re making Mel cry as well. Wipe your tears.”Harold nodded and wiped his tears. Melody also calmed down.The door of the master bedroom opened. Adina stood at the railing. “Didn’t you all agree to help me pack? Why didn’t you come up?”Harold ran upsta
There was another Winters family’s mansion near the resort project site.It was a large mansion with a sea view located on the hillside. It was a well-kept mansion, so the yard was full of plants and flowers.When the car stopped, Adina turned to look at Duke’s chest. She said in a low voice, “Should we call a doctor?”“It’s just a minor injury, so don’t worry.” Duke stroked her hair. “Rest today. Some programmers will come tomorrow. We will see if they can destroy the chip in your body.”Adina was about to say something, but she remained quiet. She was in this line of work, so she knew very well that there was no way to destroy the chip without getting the original program data.However, she did not want Duke to feel disappointed. She might as well try it. What else could she do?At seven the next morning, there was some commotion. Adina got dressed and went downstairs. She saw Duke talking to three or four programmers.She sat beside Duke and answered the programmers’ question
His sharp gaze fell on the maid. “Be honest with me. Who is the supplier of the biochip purchased by Elder Maurice?”“I don’t know. How could I possibly know that? I am just a maid” The maid shook her head and shivered. “I only heard from the lady that Elder Maurice has at least three or four suppliers for weapons, food, petroleum, and chips because he is afraid of being monopolized by one supplier.”Duke narrowed his eyes. It was indeed something Elder Maurice would do. If he had three or four suppliers at the ready, failure on one front would not have a damaging effect on him.He said coldly, “If you can’t name the chip supplier today, I’ll put this little thing into your body.”He was holding a small crystal chip. The maid turned pale with fright.She knew what it was. When the young lady she worked for wanted to control someone, she would order her to put this thing into that person’s veins. The person would completely change. They turned completely obedient in the end.When
The windows were smashed, and the cold wind drifted in. Adina hugged Duke tightly. “It’s so cold,” she mumbled.Duke carried her to another room, next to the master bedroom. He put her down on the bed. “Addy,” he said in surprise. “You aren’t…”He realized Addy remembered everything. This time, she wasn’t violent and hysterical. She did not try to break free from him like she usually did when this happened. “Duke, I remember what just happened.” Adina was also startled. “A man’s voice rang in my mind and ordered me to smash the French windows. It used to be a robotic female voice. But this time, it was a man’s. The voice sounded familiar.”Duke frowned. He had read many reports on biochips and had a thorough understanding by now. The program of the chip had a function that let the robot send out orders.But this time, it was a man’s voice, which meant it wasn’t a robot giving the order. It was a person.‘Isabelle is dead. Who else could it be?’ wondered Duke.Buzz!Right the
Duke said softly, “Addy, don’t be afraid. Now that we know it is Earl, everything will be easier. You just wait patiently.”He called Blake and told him to find the carrier.Blake called back after an hour. “Boss, I found it! It was an earring. That was the transmitter.”“Send it over as fast as you can,” Duke ordered.However, even the fastest channel would take at least two days.Adina stayed in the mansion and did not go anywhere for the next two days. Duke stayed with her.She leaned on the couch and read a book. Duke was in the kitchen, cooking.Adina smiled watching him trying to cook.The man, who had never cooked, was learning to do it for her. Although he was an amateur at it, she loved the food he made for her.“Jones Corporation discovered a rare large oil field.”News about Jones Corporation was reported on TV, which attracted Adina’s attention.“It is a rare oil field that has not been seen in the Sea City for a hundred years. The amount of exploitation is huge.