As the realization dawned upon him, Stan exclaimed, "You were prepared for this? So long ago?"Naturally, the thought gave Stan confidence. It meant that they did not have to worry about Henry impeding them in any way. At this, even his tone lightened up considerably. "I didn't think he could be that heartless…"Henry would actually take back management of Sky Group!Isaac, however, remained impassive. It wasn’t as if he was pleased that the insurance he had prepared kept him safe—in truth, he was sorely disappointed.Irene could sense that Isaac wasn’t in a good mood, and had a rough idea why. Taking his hand, she said quietly, "I won't ever leave you."Even if those around him betrayed or deserted him, she would always stay by his side! Isaac looked into her eyes and gathered her into his arms, while Irene wrapped her arms around his slender waist.Self-aware as ever, Stan promptly stepped out of the office with his eyes averted, even closing the door behind him and telli
Irene didn’t expect that from Sheryl, and walked up to give her mother a hug from the back. "Thanks, Mom."Sheryl smiled and patted Irene’s hand. "You don't have to thank me, silly—I'm your mother. Of course I’ll wish the best for you," she said. She leaned in to whisper into Irene’s ear, saying, "I'm not blind, you know. I saw you two—""Mom!" Irene pouted in embarrassment."Alright, alright, I won't say it," Sheryl said, before adding solemnly. "Just be happy.""Don't worry, Mom." Irene assured her.Sherly laughed. "Okay. I’ll go cook now."Irene let go of Sheryl, and returned to the couch.Isaac did not pick up Tommy—he was sitting beside Tommy and staring at the baby, who was blinking his large, round eyes at Isaac. Tommy appeared curious and wasn’t throwing a fit, lying there unmoving as Isaac watched him.Irene poured Isaac a glass of water. "Why are you staring at him like that?"Isaac did not look up, and instead asked, "Do you want to keep being a doctor, or learn
Isaac smiled. "You’re very rich."Sheryl Harris was sitting at the dining table, smiling as she watched the two—she was pleased that her daughter found her happiness, and that Tommy now has a family."Come sit already," she urged—it wouldn’t do if the food got cold.Meanwhile, Isaac told Stan across the phone, "Contact me right away if you find anything unusual about Ricky."He hung up once Stan confirmed his orders, and headed to the dining table with Irene.Tommy was asleep, so they didn’t have to mind him. Sheryl was eagerly pushing food and soup to Isaac—she appeared happier with him the more they interacted."I'm not sure what you like, so I cooked a little something. Don't hold back."Isaac wasn’t uneasy—the mood around the dining table actually suited him. It had been a long while since he felt at home."Once Irene and I registered our marriage, please pick a date for us. I wish to give her a wedding," he said, offering Sheryl assurance while acknowledging and confir
Irene frowned worriedly. "I think I saw Ricky."Isaac turned towards where she was looking, but saw nothing. "Are you sure you're not mistaken?"Irene shook her head. "No."She couldn’t have been—it was obviously Ricky.He sounded frantic when she called him today, and he was acting all shady just now—something was clearly wrong with Ricky!Nonetheless, Isaac put an arm around Irene’s shoulder and said, "I've told Stan to look into him. He’d have something soon if Ricky really was messing around at Spencer Holdings. Come on, let's go."Irene nodded, feeling gradually uneasy. Her foreboding feeling soon came true!Stan discovered that Ricky was the one who leaked news about the casino ship."How could it be him?" Irene asked in disbelief. "He should have no reason to do it…"However, Ricky's unusual behavior meant otherwise."Did you find anything else? Has he been up to anything recently?” Irene kept on asking Stan."I did, but there's nothing unusual there," Stan replied.
Tommy was clearly uncomfortable in Irene’s hold. He was flailing his arms around, and was choking with tears from time to time, but not crying out loud. It was obvious that he was sick.Irene kissed his cheek, her heart aching for him. "When did you notice that he was sick?""Before I called you," Sheryl replied.Irene nodded—all they could do is wait for the test results.In the meantime, Irene took Tommy to someplace quiet, hoping that he would be more comfortable with less people around. However, that didn’t seem to make things better for Tommy—he soon began to cry. Too young to put feelings to words, it was the only thing he could do.Knowing that he was in a bad condition, Irene told Sheryl, "I’ll get him checked. Wait here for the lab results."Sheryl nodded. "Okay. Go on."Irene brought Tommy to the outpatient service—the only option left for her was to examine any possible cause of discomfort.While she waited, the lab results were soon out, and Sheryl rushed to Irene
Ricky was the caller. He asked, "I heard Tommy’s sick. Is he better now?"Irene did her best to pretend that she never found out, and instead asked calmly, "Who told you that Tommy is sick?""Sheryl told me," Ricky replied."My mom?" Irene exclaimed in feigned surprise, setting her bait.Ricky naturally took the bait, and pressed, "What happened to Tommy?"Irene's gaze turned cool and vicious. She had believed that Ricky was different from Samantha, and so had done her best to encourage him, caring for him and making him feel like family.Yet…"Yeah," she finally said."Is it serious?" Ricky asked worriedly. "He's been admitted. You can come by to check on him if you're worried," Irene told him."Alright, which hospital is it? I'll be right there."Irene gave him a location before hanging up and calling Isaac."Hello?""It's me. Can you send me some well-trained bodyguards?"Isaac grew tense right there and then. "What happened?""Can you send them?" Irene refrained fro
Irene was naturally relieved to have Isaac’s men standing guard. She headed to the elevator, when Ricky happened to arrive, appearing tense. "Where's Tommy? Is he better now? Can I visit him?"Irene calmly studied Ricky’s face, intending to find a tell and perceive if his anxiety was feigned.However, he appeared to be too good an actor—she found nothing!"Come with me, Ricky." She entered the elevator and pressed the button to head downstairs."Is there something you need?" Ricky asked."Yeah," Irene answered quickly."What is it?" "I'll tell you later," Irene replied."Okay." Ricky did not say anything else.When the elevator stopped, Irene left the elevator first and headed straight to the parking lot behind the hospital, leading Ricky there."Irene? Why did you take me here?" Ricky asked, uncertain.Irene ensured that there was no one around before she answered him. "I have a question—are you sure my mother told you that Tommy was sick?"Ricky didn’t expect that from
Irene promptly cut Ricky short, disregarding his cries. "Don't give me that! Just tell me—do you still hold a grudge against me? Or did someone tell you to do this?!"Ricky quickly shook his head. "You're family, I'd never hold a grudge… Someone threatened me.""Who?" Irene asked sharply.Ricky took out his phone and gave it to her. "Look here—it's anonymous, so I don't even know who it is. I can't track the guys down, either."Irene glanced at the screen and frowned. "Your mom’s supposed to be in prison, isn't she?""I checked. She's really gone," Ricky admitted, coming clean now that he has nothing to hide. "Every text sent to me was encrypted, and they're threatening me with my mother's life! I can't—""So they told you to hurt Tommy?" Irene cut him short.Ricky nodded fervently. "Yes! They seemed to know every detail about me, and gave me the substance by mail. They told me it won't hurt Tommy, but I knew that it won't do him good either… S-So I just put in a small amount…"