Drew also added, “I’ve been investigating things about Clyde. And I did find a lot of suspicious things. He probably found some top secrets we didn’t know. They might just cause his death.”
The furrow between Enzo’s brows deepened, “But if the baby is really Clyde’s, how come Lana just decided to get herself pregnant? Does she also know something?”
“She’s been living abroad for so many years. I’ve investigated her, but I didn’t find anything suspicious. Getting pregnant using frozen sperm is not an easy task. Someone must have helped her as well.” Drew added.
“That person who helped her had to be very close to Clyde before he passed away. Or that person wouldn’t have known something so private..” Linford pondered.
“Who could it be then?” Enzo asked.
“I don’t know,” Linford shook his head, “I’m still trying to find out. I bet you must have known why I need more time now. I have to do a test again, so we will know who the father is. You also want to find the truth, Enzo, don’t you?”
This thing was quite serious. Enzo knew they must be extremely careful.
He sighed and nodded, “Fine. One last chance. But you need to promise me that you won’t emotionally harm Pop anymore. He’s too fragile and old for this kind of chaos.”
The doctor said Pop’s health was currently at risk.
Enzo reminded Linford about Franco’s condition; he didn’t want his little brother to do anything he would regret in the future.
Linford knew what Enzo was thinking. He thus nodded quietly.
After the discussion, Linford added, “Enzo, could you send some men to protect Frank and Selena? They must be very safe. They’re important to me.”
Enzo nodded curtly, “Of course. Just leave it to me.”
****
Lily made a lot of dishes for dinner. But no one would come out to eat except Drew.
To cheer the old lady up, Drew ate as much as he could.
But Lily was still quite bitter the whole time.
“Damn that White girl! Damn, their family name! What’s wrong with those girls from the White House and the Palton House? Why do they just have to cling to the Bradley boys? I hate them so much! They ruined a happy family.” Lily started to sob mid-sentence.
Drew didn’t know how to comfort Lily. He sighed and dragged his chair over, pulling the poor lady in and letting her rest her head on his shoulder.
The dinner table had never looked so large and empty before.
Linford skipped dinner to pick Frank and Selena up from his old house. He drove the car to Pop’s place.
“You guys just stay here during this time. This place is much safer. I actually still need your help here.” Linford led them into the mansion as he talked.
Frank seemed a bit worried, “Linford, I’m more than glad to help. But I need to remind you that I actually don’t have much time left here. I still need to go back to Africa.”
“I know… I won’t keep you guys here for too long,” Linford nodded before turning toward Claire, “Selena, I have a favor to ask you. I wonder if you would be so kind as to help me.”
“What is it?” Claire was curious.
Linford brought the young woman into the garden, “To be honest, Cody and Candace ran away a couple of days ago.”
“What?! Ran away? Are your people stupid? They are such small kids. How could they be so careless and let them run away? What if they ran into bad guys? They’re my…” Claire shut up timely.
“I know. I know… I should’ve been more careful,” Linford didn’t seem to care, “But we’ve found them back. However, the babies refuse to eat or sleep. They’re… They’re mad at me for some reason. Their Mom has left for a business trip, and we don’t have any young woman in this house who could approach them and make them feel better. Do you mind taking care of them for me for a bit? I will appreciate it so much.”
The twins were Cristelle’s babies. Claire didn’t care if Linford was gonna appreciate her help or not. She knew she had to take care of the babies for Cristelle while she was not around.
“Of course. No problem,” Claire said eagerly, “Where are they right now? Can you take me to see them immediately?”
Linford nodded and took her to the babies’ room.
Claire pushed the door open and walked in. The babies were nestling against each other on the couch. Cody was holding Candace in his arms in a protective manner. Candace’s face was tear-streaked. It broke Claire’s heart to see the babies like this.
“Cody? Candace? What’s wrong? Why are you guys crying?” Claire walked over.
Cody cast the woman a look, feeling slightly pissed off. That man was cunning. He sent their Aunt to handle them.
How shameless!
“Selena?” Candace sniffed as she saw the woman, “Why are you here?”
Claire sat on the couch and got some tissue to wipe the little girl’s face, “I’m here to take care of you guys. Why are you crying, sweetheart?”
“Mom’s gone. Cody said they hid Mommy away. They wouldn’t let us see her.” Candace sobbed.
“Selena, do you mind leaving us alone?” Cody asked calmly.
Claire regretted everything she told the boy that day. If she didn’t tell him those things, the boy probably wouldn’t have taken Candace and run away. That was so dangerous.
“Cody, Candace, I know you both miss your mommy so much. But you really shouldn’t have done this. They have made their decisions. They wouldn’t change their decision just because you refused to eat or sleep. It will break your mother’s heart if she gets to know your situation. You guys must learn to take care of yourselves when she’s away.” Claire said gently.
“But we have no choice. Linford Bradley would find a stepmother for us immediately if we don’t protest.” Cody explained calmly.
Candace nodded. She thought her brother was always right.
“But you can’t abuse yourself to achieve your goals. If some people mean to hurt you, they won’t care about how you feel. If you don’t like what they did to your mother, you can still get back at them when you grow up. If I were you, I would choose to bide my time and wait until I get the right opportunity,” Claire sounded genuine. She didn’t care about moral correctness anymore. Her sole purpose was to get the babies to eat, “The stupidest thing to do in this world is to harm yourself and expect other people to empathize with you and give you what you want. You will never be able to hurt anyone except yourself. Come on, Cody. I know you’re smarter than kids your age.”