After a while, Timothy finally regained his composure and turned to Caleb. "Can you help me find out how Mia is doing?"As Caleb dialed the number, his complexion turned pale, his hand trembling so violently that he could barely hold the phone properly.Casting a horrified glance at Timothy, he found himself unable to utter a single word.Timothy fixed him with a piercing gaze, a sense of dread gnawing at him. "What's wrong? Speak up," he urged.Sweating profusely, Caleb managed to respond, "The hospital informed us that Mrs. Barrett underwent premature labor and suffered severe bleeding. Unfortunately, she succumbed to complications from an amniotic fluid embolism... "Timothy abruptly rose to his feet, his vision darkening. He clutched his head, his eyes brimming with profound despair. "Say that again," he demanded.Caleb was too frightened to utter another word, having never witnessed Timothy's reaction like this before.Without a moment's hesitation, Timothy rushed to the pu
After Timothy uttered those words, Heath, who was seated in the front passenger seat, was taken aback.Timothy had never been fond of children, yet here he was, voluntarily showing concern for the little girl on the roadside!Ginger's eyes sparkled as she approached the car door, her small hand reaching out to open it.She effortlessly climbed into the car, saying, "Thank you, sir, you're so kind."She obediently folded her small umbrella, even reaching down with her chubby hand to pat the rainwater off her shoes, making an effort to keep the car interior clean.Timothy observed Ginger with a stern expression. "Don't get too comfortable; I'm not a kind person," he warned.After all, he wasn't particularly fond of children.Ginger looked up and inquired in a sweet voice, "Hey mister, do you eat kids?"Timothy found her question rather odd. Typically, he wouldn't pay attention to such troublesome children.However, those sincere almond eyes gazing at him made it difficult for hi
"I want to go to the Xanier Island Grand Hotel!" Seated in the passenger seat, Heath quickly suggested, "Since she's headed to the same place as us, why don't we give her a ride?""Yes, I promise to behave!" Ginger added eagerly, nodding her head as her pigtails bounced in front of Timothy.With a stoic expression, Timothy eventually agreed. He turned his gaze toward the misty weather outside the window, reminiscent of that rainy day four years ago.Since that day, he hadn't been fond of rainy weather.The vehicle continued on its journey, moving at a slow pace.Inside the car, a heavy silence hung in the air.Shortly after, Timothy felt a tug on his sleeve and heard Ginger's sweet voice, "Mister, can I ask you something?""No," Timothy replied curtly; he was aware that children were unlikely to behave obediently."Mister, I want to ask you a grown-up question. Perhaps you don't want me to ask you the question because you're unsure of the answer. But don't worry, I won't judg
Timothy had never imagined finding himself in a scenario where he'd be escorting a young child from the airport to a hotel.He certainly wouldn't confess that his decision was swayed by the child's resemblance to someone else.Ginger turned her head toward him. "Mister, are you interested in my mommy too?"Timothy raised an eyebrow. "You're thinking too much.""Mister, my mommy is really pretty, and many people try to win her over. But Mister, you seem nice. I could ask my mom to let you skip the line."Timothy's patience reached its limit. He glanced at Heath. "You handle this."After all, he had no interest in Ginger's mother whatsoever.He was simply prompted by Ginger's familiar appearance, compelling him to perform a small act of kindness.Heath swiftly interjected from the passenger seat, saying, "Hey there, sweetie. Mr. Barrett simply wants to reach out to your mom to arrange for her to pick you up."We just want to ensure your safety, considering we're the ones who bro
Timothy's expression remained stern as he ordered, "Get the person in charge of this island on the line."He needed to locate Ginger as soon as possible.After all, he still had her umbrella with him!In no time, the hotel manager, Matthew Crosby, hurried over. "I apologize, Mr. Barrett. Our staff overlooked your identity. I'll escort you to review the surveillance footage right away. Please, come with me."Timothy followed Matthew to a nearby lounge, where Matthew set up a laptop and brought up the surveillance footage of the lobby.Timothy watched as Ginger skipped into the lobby and then turned toward a staircase, disappearing from view.Matthew furrowed his brow and remarked, "Mr. Barrett, as you know, our hotel has its peculiarities; some sections lack surveillance coverage.""Could a child easily wander into those areas?""Usually, they shouldn't have access to those locations. However, security might have overlooked her due to the high number of guests today."But don't
Tears trickled down Timothy's hand as Ginger found solace in his arms, weeping profusely.He couldn't fathom the source of her abundant tears.She appeared to be quite the sensitive little one!Ginger's cries were gentle, almost like a whimper. Although Timothy usually couldn't tolerate children crying, he found his heart melting at the sight of Ginger's tears.Timothy stood still, tenderly holding Ginger. As a person who usually kept to himself, he felt as though he had ventured into unfamiliar territory. After all, he had never comforted a child before.A tension settled over the atmosphere.Turning to Matthew, Timothy inquired, "Could you please explain what is happening here?""Mr. Barrett, we're not entirely sure either. It's quite surprising that a child like her managed to wander off and hide in this place. Our staff searched the vicinity but couldn't locate her."Timothy's lips tightened. "But she claimed someone was trying to kidnap her.""Mr. Barrett, that's simply n
Ginger looked up at him, her smile radiant. "Mister, you're such a kind person.""Why did they kidnap you? What does your mother do?" Timothy inquired, his eyes narrowing.He was aware that the staff at the Xanier Island Grand Hotel wouldn't simply abduct a child without reason; there must have been something suspicious going on.Ginger nervously glanced down, swaying her bare feet. "I don't know why they took me.""Be honest with me!"Timothy sensed immediately that she was trying to divert the conversation. He calmly stated, "I don't like it when people lie."Ginger sulked as she replied, "I asked the hotel staff about my dad's room. They said they'd take me to him, but instead, they tried to lock me up secretly."Timothy furrowed his brows. "Weren't you looking for your mom?"Ginger looked at him with teary eyes, wearing a guilty expression. "I'm sorry, mister. I lied."Timothy sighed softly, unable to forget Ginger's earlier comment in the car about having only a mother an
With that, Timothy promptly ended the call, leaving Caleb with no chance to inquire further.Setting his phone down, Timothy turned to Ginger, unable to resist lightly poking her round face. "What's your mommy's name?""Mister, my mom says I can't just tell anyone her name or her phone number."Timothy raised an eyebrow. "And why's that?""Because she has too many admirers; Mommy doesn't want to be disturbed."Upon hearing this, Timothy's impression of Ginger's mother shifted negatively. She seemed to be a woman who enjoyed dating around.He cleared his throat and asked, "And what's your name?""I'm Ginger, four years old, and I'm a Taurus. My favorite foods include ice cream, fruit candies, marshmallows, fudge, chocolate, and tiramisu!" Ginger replied, barely pausing for breath.Timothy arched an eyebrow. "Shouldn't you keep that to yourself?""But Mister, you're a nice person."Timothy couldn't shake the suspicion that Ginger was deliberately bringing up her love for sweets
None of the major shareholders was a fool.After that, Mia was busy handling Barrett Group affairs and barely had time to rest.With an exhausted look, she returned to the hospital.Mia looked at Timothy and said, "I'll run away if you don't wake up soon.""No… Please don't go…" Timothy grabbed her hand. His gaze was deep.Mia's eyes reddened as she gazed at the man who had just regained consciousness. Timothy finally came out of his coma.After that, everything was back to normal. Those who caused trouble quieted down.Sharon visited Timothy and told him that she was going to settle down overseas and would not come back anymore.Timothy bought her a property and gave her a huge sum of money before sending her away from Bern City.As for Maya, it was discovered that she was not the granddaughter of the Prime Minister of Yellow Island but merely his caregiver. Yet, she had been deceiving people outside.After Maya was exposed, she ran away dejectedly. Nobody knew where she was
Sage stood beside Timothy in silence.Soon, news that Timothy was hospitalized spread, and Barrett Group's stock plunged.The relatives of the Barrett family requested to hold a board meeting to elect another CEO.On the day of the board meeting, Mia brought her two children to Barrett Group.They managed to keep everyone on a leash as Sage bore a striking resemblance to Timothy.Mia marched into the meeting room, sat in Timothy's chair, and glanced at everyone present. "Let's begin. Didn't you all want to have a meeting?"One of the middle-aged men said, "Ms. Lane, this is the Barrett Group board meeting. It's not appropriate for you to be here.""That's right. Though the kids are Mr. Barrett's children, they're still young and do not have any shares. You all shouldn't be here."Mia flung a document onto the table. "This is an agreement signed by Grandma Laura to authorize me to manage Timothy's shares.""Anyway, we still need to elect a CEO to handle our company affairs.""
"Because to me, you're my family too," Timothy said.When Sharon heard the word 'family', her eyes turned red. Then, she turned around and left the ward.Mia walked out and asked Peyton to send Sharon to the hospital for a checkup.Looking at Sharon's back, Mia said, "I hope you don't let him down since he regards you as his family. He's the only one you can depend on now."Sharon did not turn her head around. Mia did not know if Sharon would listen to her advice.Mia immediately called her brother. "Dominic, I met Maya."She then told him everything about Maya.Dominic frowned. "I never thought she would go to Yellow Island.""Do you think she's really the granddaughter of the Prime Minister of Yellow Island?""Don't you know how good she is at lying?" Dominic said.Mia nodded. "Yeah, you're right. But I still don't know whether she's related to Yellow Island.""Don't worry, I'll find out."When Mia returned to the ward after ending the call, she saw a doctor bustling arou
Mia went straight to the hospital to ask Timothy about the matter.But when she arrived, someone had reached there earlier than her."Timothy, what do you mean? All I did was pull a few strings, but you want to humiliate me publicly. How am I going to maintain my standing in the company?" Sharon said.Mia went in with a frown. "This is funny. It's not just about pulling a few strings, but it's aimed at me. Mrs. Barrett, your actions have leaked confidential commercial information.""Stop trying to scare me. It's my son who opened doors for you. It's the Yellow Islanders who wanted to collaborate with us, and they are much better than you," Sharon retorted. Mia said with a half-hearted smile, "At first, I didn't want to pursue this matter. But since you put it this way, wait for my lawyer's letter then.""Such big talk, huh?" A mysterious-looking woman wearing a hat and a mask walked in from outside.Mia felt that the woman looked somewhat familiar. "Are you the rumored granddau
Mia glanced at the person on the screen. Without answering the woman, she turned off the laptop.After all, there was no need for Mia to explain anything.After Mia turned off the laptop assertively, she turned around and looked at Timothy. He did not say a word but started eating.Soon, Heath received a call. He left the ward and said to the woman on the other side of the phone, "She's Mr. Barrett's ex-wife. You'd better not mess with her."While Timothy was eating, Mia finished reading the proposal in her hand.She had to admit that the document was very valuable.Mia was about to leave the ward when Timothy almost finished eating, but his voice sounded behind her. "What did you say when you met her at the cafe earlier?""Did you follow me?""I followed her, to be exact. After all, the Hopkins are not good people."Mia totally agreed with that.She paused briefly before she said, "Grandma Laura asked me to talk to her because she doesn't agree with you about giving her all
"You don't know anything," Sharon said.Mia retorted, "I might not know everything, but Timothy is innocent. Before he knew the truth, he always regarded you as his mother. Even after he found out the truth, he has never mistreated you."Besides, when you said you wanted the Barrett family's wealth, he agreed. Tell me, who else could do what he did?"Mia felt that Timothy might have been hurt by Sharon's words.He seemed impressive on the outside, but his identity was a dark secret.Therefore, his relationship with Sharon became awkward.Sharon's eyes reddened. "But I also treat him like my biological son.""You're also his foster mother. Now everyone related to him is dead, and you're the only one he has. What are you afraid of?"Sharon wiped off her tears. "I'm not afraid of anything. It's just that I felt that I can't trust anyone.""Timothy is a man of his word. However, Grandma Laura said that if you remain stubborn, making the will public is her only option," Mia said.
Mia noticed Sharon's expression changing slightly when she mentioned Laura.Sharon took her cup of coffee and said, "What? Does Mrs. Barrett Senior still want to lecture me even when she's on her deathbed? She must have known Timothy's identity all along, but she conspired with her son to keep the truth from me. "She and the Barretts are birds of a feather. What else does she have to say?"Mia was not surprised by her words. She had expected that Sharon would certainly think this way.Fortunately, she managed to stop Laura when she said she wanted to meet Sharon.Sharon was emotionally unstable now. What if Laura said something unpleasant and Sharon retorted? Her words might upset Laura.Mia took a kraft envelope out of her handbag and placed it in front of Sharon. "I hope you won't regret saying those words after reading this.""What's this?""This is the will that your husband left behind, as well as the divorce agreement."Hearing that, Sharon quickly took the document out
Mia hesitated to risk exposing Laura to Sharon's potential agitation.Due to Sharon's emotional vulnerability, she often spoke impulsively. With Laura's delicate health in mind, any disruption was simply out of the question.As Laura recounted past events, Mia remained silent, absorbing her words.Upon hearing Laura's story, Mia was taken aback. She hadn't expected there to be hidden aspects to Timothy's family history.Taking a moment, she asked, "Does Timothy have any knowledge of this?""He doesn't. Some things are best kept from him," Laura replied calmly.Mia harbored some lingering questions in her mind. Unable to suppress them any longer, she asked, "Considering your knowledge of Timothy's background, what is your opinion of him?""Tim is a commendable young man, and he has never let our family down. He has achieved remarkably well for himself. To be honest, I feel indebted to him as well."At first, I only kept him around for the sake of preserving the Barrett family li
Despite her initial reluctance, Mia eventually found herself making her way to Timothy's ward.As she entered, she couldn't help but notice Timothy's expressionless demeanor as he lay there.Carrying a tray of food, Mia approached him. "The doctor pointed out your extreme fatigue. It's crucial that you increase your food intake and prioritize proper rest to reduce the risk of sudden complications."Upon hearing Mia's voice, Timothy lifted his gaze to find her seated beside him. His lips moved slightly as he asked, "What did you tell Luna?""Not much," Mia responded. "Just a sprinkle of salt on the wound and a dash of psychological pressure to make sure Luna doesn't have it easy in prison."Placing the tray of food in front of him, Mia urged, "Please, just a few bites.""I'll eat later. By the way, the kids have been here at the hospital for quite a while. You should take them home," Timothy suggested.Frowning, Mia insisted, "You should eat something first."As her words faded,