"A dream?" Abby blinked and asked Stefan innocently, "Was it a nightmare? Were you scared? Did people try to bully you?" "Umm..." Stefan didn't expect Abby to believe him, and smiled helplessly as he said, "I don't know if it's considered a nightmare, but I felt muddle-headed like a zombie. I always felt like I had lost something important, and only after I woke up did I realize that it was all of you.""Mm, I won't blame you for it then… but I feel sad that I wasn't with you when you had that nightmare. Are you angry at me?" Abby asked Stefan seriously as she held his face. Her mother and brother would always stay with her patiently whenever she had a nightmare, and they would hug and comfort her so she wouldn't be scared. However, Stefan had to face that horrible nightmare alone, and Abby, Adie, and Renee even scolded him when he didn't remember them. It made Abby feel like she had wronged Stefan. "Haha! There's no way I'd be mad at all of you, silly… I dote on you all too much
"I know I didn't keep my word in the past and I hurt you all, Adie… but I guarantee that I'll always be with you and protect you as you grow up," Stefan said to Adie sincerely. Stefan noticed Renee's expression grow colder, and quickly said to the children, "Why don't you both go and play? Your mommy is very tired from shopping at the mall today, so I'll take her upstairs to rest. I'll cook your favorite fish and beef later, okay?""Yeah!" Abby jumped around excitedly when she heard that.Adie looked at his parents and said knowingly, "You both want some time alone with each other, don't you? Don't worry, Abby and I won't disturb you. Abby, let's go!"After that, the children ran to the garden to play.Stefan helped Renee up the second floor and into the bedroom, then led her to sit down on the bed. "You've been through a lot today, so why not get some rest? I'll come and wake you up when the food's ready." Stefan was acting like Renee's personal caretaker. Renee couldn't find an
Stefan's words were reassuring, and Renee felt that maybe she was worrying too much about the future. She didn't want to regret wasting this precious time together, so it was probably best for her to take things one step at a time and live in the moment.After speaking to Renee, Stefan went to the kitchen to cook. He was a bit worried because this was the first time he would be cooking for them, and he had to satisfy Renee, Adie, and Abby's tastes. He worked hard in the kitchen, determined to impress them. The children were enjoying themselves in the garden, and they could smell the aroma of Stefan's cooking from time to time.Meanwhile, Renee was lying in bed. She wasn't sleepy, but the incident at the shopping mall had left her mentally exhausted. After a while, she dozed off."Dear? Dear, the food's ready." As she drifted in and out of sleep, Renee heard a low and magnetic male voice. She pulled the blanket around her tightly and muttered something before going back to sleep.
Sparks flew in the room while Adie and Abby waited in the dining room downstairs, but after a while of their parents not appearing, they soon became anxious. Abby frowned and asked, "What's going on, Adie? Why aren't they coming downstairs? The food's getting cold."Baffled, Adie held his chin and racked his brain. "They're not that far from the dining room, so Mommy should be out by now. Is Daddy bullying Mommy?" "No way! We've just forgiven him, but he's bullying Mommy. We have to go and stop him now!"The children were just about to rush upstairs when Margaret exited the kitchen, carrying a soup that smelled delicious. She hurriedly stopped the children when she saw them. "Adie, Abby, you should eat first. I'm sure your parents are just sleeping, so why don't you let them rest?""Sleeping?" Adie found it illogical. "Didn't Mommy nap in the afternoon? Why would she want to sleep again? She hasn't had dinner yet, and I'm afraid she'll be hungry." "Umm, well... She was sleepin
Renee stretched as if she had just woken up, and she said innocently, "Stefan? Why are you in my room? Who let you in, you rogue? What are you talking about? I don't understand at all!"Stefan knew Renee was pretending, and smiled helplessly. He ran his hand through his hair and said in amusement, "Fine, I'm a shameless rogue that snuck into a decent woman's bedroom to be her plaything. But, master, you're awake now, aren't you? Let me take you downstairs for dinner then, okay?" "Fine, I've rested enough anyway. I'll give you the honor of helping me put on my clothes." Renee reached out, waiting for Stefan to help her put on clothes. Stefan got to his feet and turned on the light in the room, then carefully helped her into a pair of comfortable pajamas. As he helped her with her clothes, Stefan was so close to her he could feel her warm breath on his skin, and his heart pounded in his chest. Once Renee was dressed, he held Renee's waist and murmured in her ear, "You're wicked, mas
After such a lovely dinner, Renee suddenly felt like calling Quinton. Usually, she'd come up with an excuse to end calls with Quinton because of her condition, but after tonight, she felt much more relaxed. She had calmly accepted her condition, and bravely called Quinton.After a while, Quinton picked up her call. "Renee, why are you calling? Are you in trouble?" At that moment, Quinton was south of the sea, gathering manpower and materials to go diving for the treasure that had suddenly capsized. He'd been feeling rather defeated because he hadn't gotten anything, and he'd also been worrying that Renee might bump into crooks at Beach City. Unfortunately, he couldn't go home just yet, so he was happy to see that Renee called. However, he couldn't help but feel worried as well because Renee wouldn't call without a reason."You're so pessimistic, Quinton. Can't I call because I want to share something happy with you?" Renee asked teasingly as she sat on the bean bag on the top floor a
"What's the matter, master?" Stefan asked teasingly."Stop messing around. It's serious," Renee grumbled, "I was on the phone with my brother, and I told him that I found a good helper, but he thinks you have ulterior motives and wants to interrogate you. So, you've got to talk to him nicely when you call him later. Don't expose yourself, okay?"Stefan frowned. "Why do you want to keep me a secret?""It's just better to avoid trouble. I told him long ago that I would cut myself off from you, and I've already broken my promise. Forget about my brother being disappointed in me, I'm disappointed in myself!" Renee complained. She thought that she was someone who always kept her word and stuck to her principles, but it seemed like she broke all her rules when it came to Stefan."I'm sure he can recognize my voice. How can I not expose myself?" "Well, you can try to talk in a feminine voice, I'm sure he won't be able to tell... It's perfect since you're a helper too," Renee suggested m
Before Stefan could answer, Renee snatched her phone back and said quickly, "It's getting late, Quinton. You'd better go to bed!" A sigh escaped Quinton. "You're protecting him again. It looks like you still haven't learned from your mistakes.""I know what I'm doing. He and I have soldiered through a lot of hardships, and all I want to do now is lead a peaceful life and take things one step at a time..." Renee was still devastated over the loss of her sight, and she felt that if she couldn't follow her heart and spend the rest of her life with her beloved, her life would be as dark as her world. She did not want to spend the rest of her life in misery."But you both can't live peacefully together, your identities have always prevented that from happening. I've found some clues about the families who conspired to attack our family back then, and I feel like the enemies we're going to face will be stronger than anyone we've ever encountered." Quinton's voice grew more solemn. Genera
Mateo swallowed. "Yes, I'm aware of that. The Stuart family has been investing in a lot of entertainment properties in Southeast Aeos in the recent few years. They're controlling more than half of the TV stations. Their power and influence are incomparable.""Looks like you keep up with the current events. Are you involved in the entertainment field too?" Liam asked.He had easily gained the result he wanted with just a few words. He faked a smile and looked at Mateo, who was panicking.Mateo glanced at him and said grumpily, "All that Master ever asks us to do is indecent. If we don't have any people in the media, we're doomed."The Triangle was never governed by the law, but public opinion was a dangerous weapon. If they went over the line and got reported by the media, international law would get involved. Naturally, it would affect their business.The Stuarts did decent business like the Osbornes and might appear easy to control. However, they couldn't be offended casually—a
Because of Liam's declaration, he and Mateo failed to reach a consensus.Mateo's gaze grew colder and more sinister, and he glared fiercely at Liam. "Fine. There's nothing to talk about between us.""No, you're wrong." Liam calmly swayed the wine glass. "You can get down on your knees and say sorry. Maybe I'll let you off by then!""How dare you!" Mateo could no longer take it—he pushed all the cutleries on the table to the floor and pointed angrily at Liam. "You refused my kindness. I won't go easy on you!""Just come at me. I'll wait," Liam shot back provocatively. He knew Mateo well—the man was wicked and cautious, but also cowardly. Under these circumstances, he wouldn't act recklessly. Hence, Liam wasn't afraid to infuriate him. Renee was right. Mateo had done so many things to control Liam. As long as Liam remained calm, Mateo couldn't do anything to Renee and Leia. "You think I won't do that?" Mateo clenched his fists and snarled fiercely, "I'll break one of their fing
Liam casually twirled the wine glass in his hand and asked Mateo coldly, "So, you won't stop until you marry Gem?""Not just that." Mateo tore off a drumstick and bit into it, then cracked a cunning sneer. "Marrying Amber is always in my plans. I'll marry her even if you're not involved. Tonight, I want to talk to you about the few territories in your hands.""The territories in my hands?" Liam frowned. Initially, he was confused—then, he understood it and chuckled. "What territories? I just work for Mr. Jenkins. The territories we took in belong to him. You'd better ask them from him instead of me. That's more straightforward."When Liam and Amber decided to fake their marriage, Benjamin focused on training Liam. In the process, he gave Liam a lot of power and authority.Liam didn't fail Benjamin. He did a great job even with his limited power. In half a year, he took three territories, namely the East River, West River, and South River. The three territories came with an importan
"Just forget about it?" Luneth fell into a daze when she heard Amber's words. She glanced at Amber darkly before letting out a twisted laugh. Then, she shook her head."No, I can't let it go just like that! Grady was hurt. How can I call myself a mother if I let it go like that? I must make the two people who hurt Grady pay dearly!"Luneth's expression shocked Amber. She subconsciously swallowed and asked, "Well, how will you handle it?" "I told Mateo to lock them up. When Grady's condition stabilizes, I'll make them pay!" Luneth's eyes shone with fury and vengeance, and she gnashed her teeth. "They hurt Grady, so I'll give them a taste of their medicine! I won't break their limbs or cut off their tongues. I'll just cut their foreheads and tear off their scalps! What do you think?""You want to…tear off their scalps?" Terror gripped Amber when she heard Luneth's plan. An awkward laughter escaped her. "Isn't that too ruthless? If they didn't do it on purpose, I don't think you sh
Amber grabbed some tissues beside her and carefully covered the scratch between her brows. She kept calm in hopes that she could make Luneth let down her guard. She knew very well that Liam, Renee, and Leia would be doomed if she didn't stop Luneth from telling Benjamin and Macsen about this incident. Although her face hurt badly from the teacup, it was nothing compared to their safety. "I'm sorry, Gem… I didn't do it on purpose. I was too angry and scared!" Luneth realized how aggressive she had been, and apologized to Amber in sobs. At the same time, she complained piteously, "You know how hard it was for me to get a child. Grady is very dear to Macsen and me. We don't even speak loudly to him or beat him up. But today, someone pressed him to the ground and beat him up. There's such a large hole in his head! The doctors told me that we needed to take good care of his wound. If it gets infected or he gets tetanus, the bacteria or virus might invade his brain and turn him mentall
Luneth was staying in the southeast of the fort. Her house was a uniquely styled traditional cottage. Upon arriving, Amber could hear a woman crying from afar. Many servants, doctors, and women were standing in front of Luneth's room. Amber walked toward Luneth's servant Jayna Bowie, and asked carefully, "Hello, is Aunt Luneth around?" "Ms. Jenkins, come another day. Mrs. Klein is crying sadly now. She's furious. I'm afraid you might be harmed if you go in," Jayna advised kindly.Those standing in a row at the door were trying to comfort Luneth. However, they were quickly rebuked and became too timid to approach her."It's fine." Amber was aware of her aunt's temper. Smiling, she kept moving forward. "I heard Grady got hurt. As his cousin, I need to see him. Plus, Aunt Luneth always treats me nicely. She won't be angry at me.""Ms. Jenkins, you don't know how serious this is. There's a big hole in the boy's head. The doctor said it might affect his intelligence. Mrs. Klein beca
After that, Amber looked at Liam, who kept silent the whole time. She tried to make Liam say something nice. "See, Liam? I told you, Matt's a great guy. He was just joking with us in the orchard to scare us. I'm sure he'll take our sides and protect us. Don't worry.""Is that so?" Liam glanced at Mateo and faked a smile. "Well, I should thank him properly."The air between them grew awkward, but Liam didn't care. He wanted to make Mateo uneasy and force the latter to expose his true self.Amber was simple, but Liam was no fool. Mateo's acting was smooth, but he couldn't trick Liam.Moreover, Mateo was the one who came up with that scheme. He wouldn't let anyone expose it—he wanted to be the one to do it."Okay, aren't we going to get a drink? Let's go. I'll make the chef cook us something nice." Mateo enthusiastically held Liam's shoulders and dragged him forward. At that moment, he turned icy. "If you're a man, stop involving Gem if you want to fight against me. Stop showing of
Liam was no fool. He immediately understood the profound meaning behind Renee's words and stopped saying too much. "Fine, be good. You guys are just taking a rest. I'll handle this well. Wait for my news."He knew very well that the conclusion would be the same regardless if Renee and Leia had offended Luneth's son or the child of an ordinary villager. Mateo simply wanted to use that method to control him. The only way to solve this was to defeat Mateo. However, based on the current situation, Mateo had a lot of followers in the fort. It would be difficult for Liam to defeat him.Luckily, Liam wasn't an easy target either. He had been winning people over these days. That, and he was close with Benjamin's other foster sons. If both parties were to get into a fight, he still had a chance to win.After confirming that Renee and Leia were fine, Liam left the cell. Mateo was waiting outside, grinning triumphantly. He sneered sarcastically, "What do you think? I was telling the trut
"No, I'm not!" Liam raised his hand to swear. "Trust me. They're just best friends. They're not in that kind of messy relationship. Both of them have a guy they're madly in love with.""I see." Amber watched how Renee and Leia fooled around intimately with each other in the cell. They looked like they were about to kiss! She shook her head and said, "What a pity! They look so lovey-dovey, better than many novels I read about where the women love each other.""You're hopeless!" It was rare for Liam to see such a straightforward and cute side of Amber. Amused, he poked her forehead and sighed. "Stop reading those messy novels! It's harmful."Their actions were loud and finally attracted Renee's attention in the cell."Liam!" Renee, pressed to the chair by Leia, couldn't escape. Finally, she grabbed a chance to leap up and walk to the door.Well… It wasn't a door. Rather, they were iron bars preventing them from escaping.The decoration and facilities in the room weren't bad. Be