The two maids assigned to look after Bryan and Christine stood there helplessly."Ma'am, Mister Bryan and Miss Christine were fighting over a toy. We couldn't stop them.""They threw a tantrum when we tried to stop them."Corinne pinched the bridge of her nose again. She had been so busy recently that she sort of neglected the two kids to the point where they had become even more bad-tempered."Enough is enough! Both of you stop!" roared Corinne.The kids stood quietly as they felt their mother's burning rage.Corinne pulled them closer, scolded them sternly, and forbade them to have any snacks for one month. Christine and Bryan's faces immediately fell when they heard that.Nonetheless, Corinne stood firm on her decision. She took out the handwriting homework the kindergarten had given them and told them to do it. She would be back later to check on their progress.Christine and Bryan were displeased with the punishment they received but did not dare to disobey her, so they di
After a whole day of investigation, Adam finally tracked down his wife and daughter's whereabouts and got there as fast as he could.When he arrived at the place, he rang the doorbell. After a while, he could hear footsteps approaching."Coming!" said Lilin.Lilin rushed to the door, thinking that it was the food delivery they ordered.When she opened the door and saw the solemn face of her father, she was startled for only one second before she slammed the door shut."Li…" Adam hardly finished uttering his daughter's name when the door was slammed in his face. He took a deep breath to calm his anger and rang the doorbell again.This time, no one opened the door."Mister Adam, should we kick the door open?" asked one of his men when he saw Adam's face had contorted out of rage.Adam waved his hand and said sternly, "No. She hates it when people do that. Go out and wait for me there.""Yes, sir!" The men nodded and left Adam alone.Adam sighed and continued to ring the doorbel
"Yes, I received a downgrade in my lifestyle after I left you. But don't worry, Lilian and I will never starve to death. What are you doing here? If you have something to say, say it out now! And if you don't, leave so we can eat in peace!"Adam was not used to Melinda speaking so harshly to him. He sighed, sat down, and softened his tone when he said, "Mel, that's enough now. You're not young anymore, so you shouldn't act so wilfully. Come back with me after you've finished eating all this trashy food."Melinda bit into the chicken wing she was eating before putting it down and saying, "Brian Addison, do my words mean nothing to you? Or have you forgotten what I told you that day?""Of course your words are important to me. Mel, let's stop this nonsense, okay?" said Adam helplessly.Melinda took a sip of Lilin's soda and said, "I told you I want a divorce, no? Since we're getting a divorce, we should start with living separately. Why should I go home with you?"Adam frowned. "Why
Adam wanted to smoke a cigar to compose himself. He felt a little embarrassed, and he became even more so when Melinda threw his cigar away."Mel, I understand everything you're saying. I admit I was unfair to Lilin, and I could've done better as a husband and a father. But you shouldn't rush into divorce like this. Think about how this will affect Lilin! Do you really want to let her grow up in a broken home? She's still so young…"Lilin, who was sitting beside Melinda and eating a burger, suddenly chimed in, "Please don't use me as an excuse. I'm really fine with the divorce; a complete home is wherever Mom is.""Why you…"Melinda rolled her eyes at Adam. "Hear that? It doesn't matter to Lilin whether you're in her life at all."Adam slapped his own thigh out of agitation. After a long while of silence, he looked up and said, "How can you think that I won't leave anything for you and Lilin? I didn't want to let you know because I didn't want to burden you with the knowledge. I w
Melinda was speechless.Lilin moved closer and said, "Daddy, you shouldn't blame Mommy. I also think you favor Sophia over me!"Adam lifted his head to look at her. "You ungrateful child. Don't I spoil you as well?"Lilin put down her half-eaten burger and crossed her arms. "You do! But only when Sophia isn't around. You'll do anything she says as soon as she appears and try to drive a wedge between us!"Adam recognized that he favored Sophia most of the time, but it was not because he loved her more than Lilin! It was only because Sophia lost her mother when she was so little, so he thought he would make it up to her."Lilin, how can you say that about your sister? Sophia can be a drama queen sometimes, but she doesn't try to drive a wedge between us! You're not allowed to talk like that about your sister anymore!" said Adam sternly.Lilin simply rolled her eyes until she could not roll them anymore. "See! You're doing it again. You're so blinded to the truth whenever it comes t
Adam did not want to get divorced from Melinda; he loved her too much. Otherwise, he would not have come to beg her to go back home with him!"Mel, I know you don't like Sophia, but she's my daughter. It's not like I can get rid of her!""I never said that I don't like Sophia. It's her who doesn't like me. I'm not going to force her to accept me, but I'm not going to force myself to stay in a place where I'm not welcome either! Brian, I really hope you can understand why I've made this decision," said Melinda lightly.Adam started to panic. "I don't understand! I'm not going to divorce you! We've been together for more than half of our lives, so how can you even bring up divorce?""Brian…"Adam held up his hand to stop her from talking. "That's enough. You don't have to say anything else. You can either come back with me, or I'm going to move in with you here!"Melinda frowned. "What are you talking about? Can you stop being so stubbornly childish for one second?""Daddy, didn't
Seeing that Adam was not saying anything, Lilin said, "Daddy, you can't do it, right? Then I suggest you go home now."Adam frowned at his wife and daughter. "Why do you two want him to go back to his real wife and kids? What good does that bring to you?"Melinda did not know where to begin, but Lilin answered righteously, "It doesn't bring us any good, but it's fair to Zachary! Daddy, you should know very well Zachary's real name isn't Zachary Finnix, but Jeremy Holden! Sophia brainwashed him into losing his memory because she wanted him for herself! She then gave him the name Zachary Finnix and told him they were husband and wife! But we all know he already had a wife and kids back home. Just think about what his real wife and kids must've been feeling to not know whether he's dead or missing. It's time we end this."Adam became furious at Lilin telling the truth. "That's enough! You're not allowed to bring this matter up again. Zachary is our family now, and his past has nothing
Adam did not get angry at Melinda. He did, however, get angry at Lilin. "How dare you talk to me like that! Who are you calling a stinky old man?!" he shouted sternly.Lilin immediately hid behind Melinda and stuck out her tongue at him. "You're the stinky old man! Bleh, bleh, bleh. You're not only stinky but a fool as well!""Why you!" Adam was livid.Melinda put her hand on Lilin to shield her from Adam. "That's enough. She's my daughter, so it's up to me to discipline her. You should head back to keep Sophia company."Adam reached out to grab her hand. "Mel, let's all go back together."Melinda moved her hand away. "Like I said, I'll consider going back if you agree to the condition just now.""No! I don't understand why you'll go to this length to help out a stranger! Do you not want to see Sophia happy?" asked Adam frustratedly.Melinda frowned. "Happy? Do you really think Sophia has been happy over the years? She's only lying to herself! Zachary doesn't love her at all, so
Sherman could not help but feel fearful when he recalled the incident.Rita gently smoothed his furrowed brow. "I knew you'd come to rescue me, just like all the times you did. I love you, Sherman."Previously, Rita confessed her love to him when she was groggy. At this moment, however, she was clearly awake, even sporting a faint smile on her face as she confessed.Sherman immediately blushed. "I love you, too."Rita did not stay long in the hospital; she quickly returned to the Parr family's mansion. Just as Sherman's grandparents had said, Rita did not have any major injuries, so there was no need for her to stay in the hospital that long. In fact, she might even recover faster emotionally under the care at home.Not once did Sherman bring up Rita's job, but she surprisingly resigned from New Capital Times on her own accord. It would be difficult for her to investigate cases with her current condition; not to mention Sherman had handed over the evidence to the police. The polic
"Sherman, I like you. I love you," Rita finally confessed.Sherman, deeply pained, pulled Rita into his arms. "This is all my fault. I should've looked for you quicker. I've never blamed you. All I want is to see you smile. It's enough for me as long as you're willing to let me stay by your side."You don't have to confess to me. I know it's hard for you to do that because of your family. I've seen the way they've treated you, and…"The bodyguards who had barged in with Sherman felt a bit awkward to see their company president in tears. However, the priority was to get Rita to the hospital for a check-up. Being tied up for hours could cause circulation issues, and it could be dangerous if her limbs did not regain feelings soon.In the end, they got the bravest among them to convince Sherman to let them take Rita to the hospital. Instead of letting them do it, Sherman wiped away his tears and, with ease, lifted Rita as if she was as light as a feather.Fortunately, after the hospit
With that, Karen left without looking back. She was carrying Vince's baby in her womb, so how could she pin all her hopes on Sadie? Since Sadie was obviously unruly, she would have to rely on her son.'Sadie can spend the rest of her life with Esmond since she likes him so much. God knows it had been exhausting enough to raise her. Plus, it's only fair for Esmond to take care of her since I've done my part taking care of her until now,' thought Karen.Meanwhile, the only consolation for Sherman was that Esmond did not try to put up a fight. It seemed that he still cared about his daughter Sadie.Sherman led his men to a dilapidated house. Esmond had been cautious enough to choose a rundown house situated at the end of a village.When Sherman barged in, he found Rita lying on the floor while Esmond's men ignored her. Esmond's men had followed his orders, and since he did not instruct them to do anything to Rita, they left her well alone.Before the men could react, they were surrou
Karen cried and silently knelt by Sadie's side without trying to defend herself. Sadie, on the other hand, feebly tried to explain herself. Alas. Vince refused to listen.There had been many occasions before when he had chosen to believe Karen and Sadie, but at this moment, he realized he had been terribly wrong to do that.Rita used to be so kind, understanding, and well-behaved. However, ever since Karen and Sadie moved in, Vince felt like his daughter had become manipulative, always trying to compete for attention, and stirring up jealousy in front of him.Unfortunately, it took Rita's disappearance to make Vince realize that Rita was not trying to compete for attention. All Rita wanted from him was to treat her the same as Sadie.Vince used to think that Rita should give in to Sadie more since Sadie was younger, too."Why don't you go live with your biological father since you prefer him so much? I never want to see you show your face around here anymore! As for your mother, s
Sadie was so anxious that she wanted to jump out. "Mom, don't tell me you fell for it! Why did you call Esmond? Now they all know where Rita is. You've ruined everything, again! What were you thinking?"Karen could not care less. She cried and slapped Sadie. "You nearly scared me to death! What would I do if something happened to you? I didn't raise you just to watch you die. I told you not to meet up with Esmond, so why did you secretly meet up with him? How can you ask him to get rid of Rita?"Are you out of your mind? All I want is for us to live out the rest of our lives peacefully, so why didn't you listen to me?!"Sadie was furious. Karen had stopped trying to get rid of Rita ever since she got pregnant, so how could Sadie not be angry? Rita was like a thorn in her side, and Sadie would never be happy unless Rita was dead."Don't you know I like Sherman? How could you ask me to do nothing when Rita has stolen him from me?! I was the one who liked him first. It's either Rita g
Karen wanted so badly to slap Esmond through the phone.'What good are his pompous words now? We wouldn't be in this mess now if he hadn't hit me back then! What's more, he's saying he's doing this for Sadie. But has he ever thought of what would happen to me and Sadie if he got rid of Rita? Rita's the heiress of the Russell family. Not to mention, she's married to Sherman, so that makes her owner of Parr Group too! What makes Esmond think he can get rid of Rita so easily?'Karen's breath was ragged as she said, "If you don't believe me, just listen to your daughter's screams. I can't save her now; you will literally decide her fate! Plus, I'm pregnant with Vince's baby, so even if I lose Sadie, I still have a kid—which is more than what I can say about you!"Sherman could not help but be impressed by Karen a little. Even in this dire situation, she did not forget to express her heartfelt feelings to Vince, letting him know that she was always on his side. It was certainly not an ea
"Sherman raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, I'm sure it's just a minor injury, maybe just a finger. There shouldn't be any major issues. A sprained joint takes only a hundred days to heal, and it might take her even less time to heal if you take very good care of her while she's recuperating."Karen's heart ached upon hearing that. She lunged toward Sherman, wanting to hit him, but the bodyguards stopped her before she could get close.Vince, still worried, held Karen tightly beside him. "Calm down. I'm sure Sadie will come out unharmed if Rita's kidnapping has nothing to do with her. But if it does, then you should know very well that…"Vince's voice dropped an octave. He could not believe his daughter's disappearance had anything to do with his stepdaughter. However, he was not utterly naive.He continued, "How could a girl like her take Rita away? Even the car window was smashed. Others must've been involved. Does her biological father have anything to do with it?"Sherman nodded
"Yes, it's true I met up with my biological father, but it was just a one-time thing. I don't want to go back to him at all! Otherwise, I would've done it ages ago. Dad, I'm really grateful to you for taking me in and looking after me all these years. That's why I feel like you're my real father, even more real than those who share the same blood."How could you unjustly accuse me and Mom like that? Sherman is the one spouting nonsense here. He's trying to push all the blame onto us. Dad, you have to wake up and see the truth!"Karen nodded along, but her heart was racing. 'When did Sadie meet Esmond? How did Sherman know when I don't even know? Seems like Sadie does have something to do with Rita's kidnapping. I have to settle things and get Sherman out of here.'Karen never had the thought of rekindling her relationship with Esmond. The only thing she wanted then was to peacefully give birth to her son. Everything in the Russell family would eventually go to her son, and she would
Sherman detested people pointing their fingers at him when they spoke. He stood up slowly, towering over Vince instantly."You claim to be Rita's father, yet if I were you, I'd choose to shut up and stand aside. I can't believe you're scolding me for threatening Sadie when she's not even your real daughter!"Look at her guilty expression; it's clear she's involved. If you don't believe me, use your brain a little. No wonder Russell Group is declining under your leadership. It's only a matter of time before the company goes completely bankrupt!"Sherman showed no mercy, causing Vince to retreat with every word. Vince clutched his chest, struggling for breath.Karen, despite her weakness, stepped forward to support him. "How could you speak to your father-in-law like this? What has Sadie done to offend you? She has nothing but admiration for you. Plus, she's just a child. How could you treat her like this?"She went on and on, but Sherman stood his ground. Meanwhile, the burly bodyg