The sound of Emma's chilling sneer immediately came through the other side of the line. "Dad! Of course I did everything you told me to!""That's my girl!" Axel gritted out."Aren't uncle and my cousin trying to cut us out?" Emma deadpanned, her voice cold. "Didn't Sebastian take over most of your weapons? Isn't he all about protecting that skank of a wife he has? We are going to sink our teeth into them even if it means death! Let them all catch rabies! That woman will be heading back as soon as possible! Soon, we can sit and enjoy all the drama!""Well, then, daddy can be assured. That's all for now!" Axel chuckled casually and hung up. After that, Axel left from the side door without announcing himself to his nephew and grandnephew.Over on the other side, no one noticed when Axel took his leave or that he made such a malicious phone call, Sebastian and the others remained cheerful in their conversations. The past two weeks in Star Island had been a complete success to Sebastian
Ruth was bending down and talking to Aino. "My beautiful Aino, your mom interrupted you earlier when you were about to say something to pretty Aunt Ruth, which got me thinking, did you bring a gift from Star Island for me?"Though Ruth was an honest-to-god person and could sometimes be a bit slow, though at times she could be rather sly as well. When dealing with people her age, she was hardly as thoughtful as others, but when she communicated with children like Aino, her wittiness shone through. Ruth saw the monstrous doll in Alex's hand earlier and found it horrendous and dark with a sense of humor. The doll was huge and awkward-looking, with its teeth being musical keys. It didn't take much for Ruth to figure out that Alex wasn't the type of person who would buy something like that. None of the others would either. Even Sabrina, who was closest to Ruth, couldn't possibly buy such oddly-fashioned toys that were likely used in pranks, because she was a serious person who rarely joked
Ruth didn't respond immediately, as she thought to herself, ‘Me? Beating you up? I wouldn't even have a chance to raise my hand at you before your dad, your mom, your bodyguard Kingston and probably Yvonne, too, beat me up first instead. How do I even beat you up?’"Of course I won't beat you up! Just give me my gift already! If you don't do it right now, let's see if I'm going to beat you up right now and here," Ruth glared at Aino sternly.Aino flinched. "Alright, then." She ran off to the back of the car and took her gift for Ruth out."Here you go, pretty Aunt Ruth." Aino cocked her little head to the side and held her gift up high towards Ruth."Ah...!" Startled, Ruth immediately jumped into Ryan's arms.Jane, who was next to them, was amused and glad to realize that Aino loved her after all. Jane found her gift beautiful and heart-warming, in comparison to Ruth's gift."You...! Aino Scott! Our friendship is over! You...what on earth is this thing you are giving me?""It's
Aino sighed. "I'll show you now, then.""No! Just pass it to your Aunt Yvonne, Aunt Ruth won't look at it for now." Ruth grinned mischievously. She had been scared to obliviation and so she wanted Yvonne to experience the same.‘Hehe! I'm sorry, Yvonne, but it's your fault for not coming here to see Sabrina!’ she thought.Aino ceased hurrying towards her gifts at Ruth's words. She didn't want to show Ruth her gift to Yvonne to begin with, because she wanted to keep it mysterious for the surprise.After handing out all the gifts, it was time for Sabrina, Aino and Sebastian to head home. Kingston drove them home and when the three sat in the car, they were all overwhelmed with the feeling of returning home after a lifetime. Familiar streets, familiar roads, even the street lights felt like home. Sabrina gazed out the window.The car went towards their residential area and before they reached the gates, Sabrina accidentally saw those long-lost eyes, only that this time, she saw it di
Sebastian pulled Sabrina into his arms, his heart heavy with guilt."Mom, I miss you so much. Is it really you, mom?" Sabrina sobbed uncontrollably. "Why won't you come out and see me? Mom, Aino, Aino's dad, and I, we all miss you. Mom, could you please come out? Mom..." Her wailing started catching the attention of passersby and even Aino was shocked by the sight."Sabrina, you are scaring Aino. Don't cry," Sebastian whispered gently.Sabrina tried her best to calm down and turned around to find Aino, who was at the brink of crying as well."Mommy..." Aino stepped towards Sabrina and said, "Mommy, don't be sad, okay?""Baby..." Sabrina muttered."Actually, I bought you a gift as well. I wanted to wait until we get home to surprise you, but mommy, I want to tell you what I bought for you right now," Aino reached out to her to offer her comfort.Sabrina wrapped her arms around Aino. "I'm sorry, baby, did mommy scared you?"Aino wiped the tears off Sabrina's face like a miniature
That reminded Sabrina of her mother again. Those eyes she found outside their area were dazed, and even though Sabrina couldn't see her face, she was certain that those were the eyes of her mother. The thought of what her mother had been going through pierced through her heart like a sharp blade. She went off the shower in silent sorrow, not even bathing Aino could help brighten up her mood. The child noticed her mother's struggle and decided to remain quiet as well. After they had showered, Sabrina tucked Aino in for a short nap and she slowly drifted off to sleep after Aino. She was exhausted, but couldn't seem to find peace in sleep.Sebastian, too, was tired but he had no time to rest. After seeing that Sabrina and Aino had gone to sleep, he went to his study to work. It's been half a month since he showed up at the office. Everything was operating as per usual, with only the documents that were pending to be approved piling up in an electronic drive. After handling them all, it w
Sebastian stared at Sabrina, his eyes widened with surprise. "What's wrong, Sabrina?""Don't do it, Sebastian. Please don't."He cupped her cheeks in his palms and said, "Sabrina, once the old Master Shaw sees that Selene is the imposter, he will no longer try to protect her. You can deal with the Lynn Family however you want then."She shook her head. She forced a bitter smile at him despite the tears in her eyes and said, "Don't you get it, Sebastian? The old Master Shaw hates me."Sebastian sighed."He hates me to the bones," she continued miserably, "Marcus had told me that I looked like his aunt from the first time we met. If even Marcus could recognize the similarity, do you really think the old Master Shaw couldn't? But still, he insisted on acknowledging Selene as his granddaughter, because he took a natural liking in Selene and instinctively wanted her to be his granddaughter. This is nothing but an act of fooling himself into finding comfort in his selfishness. If they g
On the other hand, Sabrina had been so understanding and embraced everything about him. She never asked for anything in return and every single thing she did was out of consideration for him. At that moment, Sebastian was at a loss of his words. He could only hold her close fiercely with his arms tightly around her. He was so afraid of losing her.For over thirty years, he had always been alone. Always. The Fords despised him, and he was exiled to foreign land, left to make ends meet with his mother. He was not born this way, but the environment he grew up in made him the vicious man that he had become, until he met Sabrina. He could still remember the electronic filter she gave him one night, the creamy lemon pasta she made for him before, and the smile as bright as the sun that blossomed on her face at the smallest gesture of kindness she was shown. All those were proof as to how lonely Sabrina had been, and how much she longed for real love. He was lonely too. He also shared her lo