Ch. 761..770
Chapter 761
Chapter 761
An endless meadow, dotted with sprigs of brightly colored wildflowers, stretched out before her feet. It
was enough to lift Vivian’s spirits instantly.
But the gorgeous landscape went unappreciated and unremarked by Vivian, who only had eyes out for
her lost child.
“Come on. Let’s walk around and see if we can find anything,” Finnick pressed. He thought he could
say with some confidence that he’d figured out what they were here for.
The person dearest to Vivian’s heart had been kidnapped. It must be why she’d come all this way to
save him.
Having judged Finnick’s proposition to be reasonable, Vivian decided to follow him forward. After all,
this was indeed too much of an open area for the shady exchange that was about to take place.
Besides, with the car right next to them, Vivian and Finnick might easily have gotten away with both the
child and the money.
Her mind thus lost in thought, Vivian failed to register the extraordinary warmth that flowed from
Finnick’s hand to hers.
Suddenly, Vivian patted her pocket and realized that her phone was still with her.
She turned to Finnick and declared, “You may go now.”
Finnick gazed at his vacant hand and smiled ruefully, looking at Vivian.
“Don’t follow after me,” Vivian warned. She was well aware of Finnick’s obstinate character.
When she noticed him following behind her, Vivian snapped, “What on earth are you trying to do?”
She was in no mood to engage in a discussion of any sort with him. There was absolutely no way
Vivian could allow Finnick to discover Larry’s existence.
“I’m coming with you no matter what,” Finnick said stubbornly. He met Vivian’s gaze steadily.
Vivian knew that it would be impossible to shake Finnick off now. What was of paramount importance,
then, was Larry’s safety.
She decided not to waste her breath squabbling with Finnick.
After they had traversed a short distance, Vivian’s phone rang. It was the kidnapper.
“Hello, where are you? I’ve brought the money with me,” Vivian immediately announced, demanding
the kidnapper’s precise location.
“There’s a little hut up ahead. Bring the money in with you,” the voice on the other end instructed.
“OK,” Vivian answered. She could not risk defiance now, with Larry’s safety still hanging precariously in
the balance.
Vivian approached the entrance of the hut with Finnick following close behind. He stuck fast to her, and
there was nothing she could say that would effectively deter him.
At least there was now one more person on her side.
After they had entered, the door slammed violently shut and locked itself.
Vivian ran back and yanked at it with all her might. Despite her valiant efforts, however, the door
remained firmly shut.
The kidnapper had indeed been meticulous in his design. He’d even chose such a sturdy door!
Finnick stepped forward to examine the door. Upon confirming that it could not be reopened, Finnick
pulled a chair over and sat Vivian down on it.
“Are you going to keep on hiding the truth from me? Who’s been kidnapped?” Finnick demanded. If I’m
going to be trapped here with you, I have the right to an explanation, at least!
After vigorously racking his brains, Finnick had still been unable to figure out who among the Morrison
family was significant enough to warrant a kidnapping.
“That’s not for you to know,” Vivian said with a toss of her head.
At that moment, the phone rang yet again.
“Toss the money and your phone aside. You’ll stay in this room until morning.” Over the phone came
the next set of cryptic orders.
Why can’t he just tell us everything all at once? Why the piecemeal instructions? Vivian puzzled.
“Where have you brought him to?” Vivian yelled in retaliation.
Despite being at her wits’ end, Vivian still remained adamant about not revealing Larry’s identity to
Finnick.
Before she could finish her sentence, however, the line on the other end went dead.
The only audience to Vivian’s fury was the beeping dial tone.
Helpless, Vivian flung the phone away from her, as well as the money she had brought. She collapsed
onto the chair and sat mutely in the room.
Vivian could only hope that morning would come quickly and bring Larry along with it. She would then
take him somewhere far, far away, where nobody recognized or knew either of them.
As Vivian and Finnick waited with bated breath for the first sliver of daylight to appear, Benedict was
furiously analyzing the movement of vehicles within the area.
Noah sat beside him, slogging away with equal measure. Neither of their efforts yielded any result. The
only lead they had was of a rented car that had passed by. However, the car plate was too blurry for it
to be anything more than a dead end.
Chapter 762
Chapter 762
Although Benedict despised Finnick and Noah with everything in him, now was not the time for
personal grudges. There was something else much more important at hand.
“Go to the police station immediately to find out who this car plate number is registered under. I want to
know the owner’s name, address, contact information, and everything else that you can find,” Benedict
instructed.
Noah didn’t waste any time in following Benedict’s orders, he took off down the stairs and zoomed off
towards the police station in his car.
Benedict wanted to call Vivian to check up on how she was doing, but she didn’t answer the phone.
All he heard was a robotic female voice telling him, “The person you are trying to call is unavailable…”
Frustrated, Benedict threw his phone aside, turning his attention to the video clip for what seemed to be
the millionth time. Did we miss anything?
But Coast Haven was a desolate place, with few people going in or out. He was certain that they hadn’t
overlooked anything.
The kidnapping case had caused the entire city to go into a frenzy looking for the missing child
because the housemaid had gone to file a police report.
Of course, it wasn’t because the citizens were just kind, good Samaritans. They just wanted the reward
money for finding Larry.
Larry’s adorable looks had also caused a crowd of more shallow younger women and girls to spring
into action, doing their best to play detective. When the media somehow got wind that the child was
one of the Morrisons, reporters swarmed the lobby of the Morrison Group building in an attempt to
ambush Benedict and try to interview him.
But the man never showed up, and they could only wait aimlessly downstairs while Benedict stayed
upstairs, waiting for updates from Noah.
Thankfully, Noah quickly found out who the car belonged to.
With this new information, he and Benedict made plans to meet up at the address of the car owner.
As soon as Benedict stepped out of the elevator and into the lobby, the reporters flocked towards him.
“Mr. Morrison, who is the little boy?”
“Mr. Morrison, did you secretly get married?”
“Mr. Morrison, who’s the lucky woman?”
“Excuse me! Make way!” The security guards did their best to escort Benedict onto his vehicle,
guarding him against the reporters’ microphones and flashing cameras.
The mass media personnel directed fiery glares at the guards, irritated at how their huge scoop was
getting snatched away right in front of their eyes.
Benedict and Noah arrived at the car owner’s address at nearly the same time. The residential area the
address was located at was entirely made up of narrow, winding roads, forcing them to get out of their
cars and walk the rest of the way.
The rancid odor of moldy trash invaded their senses as they walked, but they could only cover their
noses and push forward.
Outsiders rarely came and went in this small residential area.
“The pig next door just gave birth.”
“The neighboring old lady is hitting her son’s wife again.”
“The lady living in the west cried in the middle of the night again.”
These small, mundane issues were the only things the residents had to talk about over dinner.
That one driver was the only person in the entire area who regularly left the area for work, and many
people envied him because of this.
He also earned some side income through renting out his property, which allowed his family to live a
comparably comfortable life here.
Everyone else merely had a small piece of land to their name and had to provide for themselves.
The residents of the area stared warily at the two outsiders.
The man walking in front was tall and handsome, emanating an aura of regality. The guy following
behind him wasn’t as eye-catching, but clearly also wealthy.
Benedict glanced around at everyone, feeling very uneasy with their curious stares burning into him.
Approaching a middle-aged man in the street, he inquired, “Excuse me. Does Mr. Jeffrey Watson live
here?” The residential area was small but messy and unorganized making it harder to look for a single
person than they’d initially expected.
Or worse, Jeffrey might go into hiding if he heard that there were people looking for him.
“Oh, Jeffrey? Yeah, he lives up there,” the man replied, pointing towards a house that looked much
more modern and extravagant than the rest of the houses in the area.
“Thank you,” expressed Benedict, making a bee-line for the house.
He knocked on the door thrice before a frail-looking young man answered the door.
“Who are you?” Jeffrey had worked in the city for many years. One look at the two strangers’ outfits
was all he needed to know that they were rich people.
Chapter 763
Chapter 763
“Hello. Are you Jeffrey Watson?” Benedict instantly asked, cutting to the chase.
If it was him, then Benedict would continue the conversation. If it wasn’t, then he would leave and start
his search all over again. He didn’t have any time to waste.
“Yes, I am.” Jeffrey stared up at the men in confusion.
From Jeffrey’s point of view, he hadn’t done anything wrong. So why had they shown up at his
doorstep?
“This is an emergency, so let’s get to the point.” Benedict quickly explained what he came here for as
soon as he knew that he had found the correct person.
“Did you take a passenger to Coast Haven today?” Noah frantically asked as soon they had been let
inside.
“Yeah, I did take one passenger there,” Jeffrey replied without thinking too much about it.
“I remember him because Coast Haven is desolate and nearly abandoned. Very few people want to go
there.”
“What did he look like? Do you know how old he was?” Noah pressed on, not even letting Benedict get
a word in.
“It… It was a little kid. And quite a handsome young boy at that.” Jeffrey tried his best to recall that day.
Come to think of it, the incident had been strange. Only a handful of passengers had asked to be
driven to Coast Haven in the past few years, so why did a little boy, of all people, ask to go there?
He had only agreed to take the little boy there because the boy had paid him a large sum of money.
A lightbulb lit up inside Jeffrey’s head.
Why do these men come looking for me? Are they here to seek revenge because something bad
happened to the boy?
“Kid? Mr. Morrison… what kid?” Noah turned to Benedict, perplexed.
“You saw a little boy? Did the boy get on the car by himself?” Benedict knew that the kid had to be
Larry, but he couldn’t understand why Larry had wanted to go to Coast Haven.
“Yes,” Jeffrey answered seriously, afraid that one wrong answer would ruin his life and career.
“I see. That’s all the questions we have. Thank you.” Benedict gave Noah a look, who pulled out a
check and handed it to Jeffrey before they left the house.
“Mr. Morrison, who do you think the kid is? Do you think he’s in cahoots with the culprits?” Noah was
only aware that someone had been kidnapped, but he didn’t know that a child was also involved.
But Benedict brushed the question aside, not wanting Noah to know the details about the situation.
“That’s not important.”
With Noah’s personality, he was unlikely to pry too much into Benedict’s secrets.
Noah was taken aback upon hearing Benedict’s answer, staying quiet.
Did I just waste my entire afternoon to find out about something that was of no importance?
Benedict’s method hadn’t worked out, so they had to turn to other means to discover the truth.
As Benedict and Noah continued their search, Vivian was restlessly tapping her foot on the floor of the
house.
Night was starting to descend, but she was still sitting on the same chair that she’d been staying in
since morning. The outdoors was never warm. If anything, it was painfully chilly.
“Ah choo!” Vivian couldn’t prevent the sneeze that escaped her, sparking Finnick to start worrying
about her.
They couldn’t afford to have Vivian fall ill right now of all times.
Ignoring what she might think of him, Finnick bent down and picked her shivering body up in his arms,
placing her across his lap.
“Don’t move if you’re cold,” warned Finnick, sensing that she was about to try and escape his arms.
“Unless you want to become sick before we can rescue Larry.”
His last sentence made Vivian ze and instantly relax in his lap.
That’s right. Right now, there was nothing more important than rescuing Larry.
Finnick watched as she slowly let her eyelids flutter closed, peacefully resting in his arms. He couldn’t
help but recall how they’d been in this exact position five years ago.
Time flies. How long has it been since we’d last been so physically close to one another?
Chapter 764
Chapter 764
The four walls of the house were starting to prove defenseless against the cold wind of the night.
Finnick let go of Vivian, who had woken up from the zing temperature, to find if there was anything
around them that could keep them warm.
Since the moment they arrived here, all Vivian could think about was Larry, and all Finnick could think
about was Vivian.
Neither of them had bothered to inspect the house, which turned out to be much larger and cleaner
than they’d initially thought.
Finnick looked around and soon found a blanket that looked new.
He couldn’t help but feel somewhat grateful towards the kidnappers for giving him a chance to have
some alone time with Vivian.
I promise to have a little mercy on the culprits after we’ve escaped this place.
The corners of his lips quirking slightly, he picked up the blanket and draped it over Vivian’s shoulders.
His hands accidentally brushed against hers during the motion, the sudden iciness of her skin gave him
sent a chill over to him.
How could her hands be this cold? Finnick wasn’t sure if he wanted to know the answer to that.
Is she worried about Larry or is this the temperature?
Decided to keep his questions to himself, he leaned in to hold her hands in his.
Vivian instinctively tried to pull them away, but she took one wry glance at Finnick’s intense stare and
gave up.
There was no use trying to fight against him.
Vivian’s hands returned to their normal temperature after about fifteen minutes of Finnick warming
them up by blowing on them. He tucked her hands into the blanket, telling her, “There’s actually a
kitchen here stocked with some food. I’ll go make something for you to eat.”
They’d gone on the whole day without eating and had exerted lots of energy. She had to be starving by
now.
Vivian’s eyes widened at the statement.
He’s going to cook? Hah. Is he sure?
In no mood to entertain his joke, Vivian just nodded silently.
Finnick got up and stood in front of the simple, primitive stove.
Naturally, there weren’t any electrical outlets nor any gas for the stove, meaning that he had to start a
fire himself.
He didn’t even have a lighter on him. This is going to be a problem.
What am I to do now?
But he couldn’t just let Vivian stay hungry. So, he decided to attempt to start a fire by rubbing two
pieces of wood together, even though he had no idea how to properly do it.
He placed the two pieces of wood against each other and rubbed them to create friction, but didn’t see
even a single spark.
Sighing, he glanced over at Vivian and persisted with his determination.
I’d promised to cook for her. What kind of man would I be if I can’t even start a fire?
Gritting his teeth, he continued to rub the wood pieces together.
Finally, a flame abruptly roared to life with a satisfying crackle sound.
But Finnick sensed something amiss and reached up to touch his hair.
Because he had been too focused on starting the fire, it had accidentally singed some of his hair off as
it burst to life while he was leaning in close to the wood.
He sighed, giving the fire a deadpan look. He’d gone to such lengths to start it, so there was no way he
would let the fire die.
Tossing the pain of his hair loss to the back of his mind, he concentrated solely on cooking a meal for
Vivian, filling a pot with water and setting it aside.
The kitchen only had some tomatoes, eggs, and fresh vegetables.
Contemplating his options, he decided on making some sort of vegetable stew and an omelet. With a
plan in mind, he set off to work.
As the boss of a huge corporation and the son of a wealthy family, he wasn’t used to being in the
kitchen and even struggled while trying to chop the vegetables.
But he eventually managed somehow, and peered over to check if the water in the pot had started
boiling.
It hadn’t. Glancing underneath the pot, Finnick realized that the fire had long since died out.
Sighing in resignation, he went back to start the fire back up, but his new attempt proved harder than
the last.
In the end, Finnick had not only failed to start a fire after a long time, but he had also caused the house
to be filled with smoke. Vivian curiously walked over to the kitchen to check on him.
Chapter 765
Chapter 765
Finnick’s face was stained with soot from the smoke and only his eyes were visible while his hair
looked like a bird’s nest.
Knitting her eyebrows together, Vivian took the pieces of wood from him.
“Let me try,” she said lightly. She wasn’t sure how to react or treat Finnick when he looked this strange.
Staring at her, he handed the wood to her and stood over her to see what she was going to do.
He didn’t know how, but Vivian quickly started a fire without much difficulty.
This made Finnick feel somewhat inferior. He was a grown man, yet he was beaten by a woman at a
simple survival skill.
But the truth was that Vivian was simply better at him at this sort of thing. And when he remembered
that technically, he had only been beaten by his wife, he didn’t feel too bad anymore.
Vivian started to busy herself in the kitchen, and Finnick once again recalled their life together five
years ago.
Back then, the sight of her in the kitchen had been a common one that greeted him every day he came
home from work.
Getting to see that sight again now was like deja vu.
Before Finnick realized it, Vivian had already finished cooking dinner.
He stepped up and helped serve the food, placing the dishes on the table.
Using his utensils, he cut out a large piece of the omelet and set it on Vivian’s plate. She didn’t refuse,
nearly inhaling the food.
“Vivian.” Finnick tried to start a conversation, but she stayed quiet, and only the sounds of them eating
filled the room.
“Don’t you think that this situation is just like before, when you used to cook for me?”
Her hands froze mid-air before she slowly lifted her head to look up at him. “Even if it was just like
before, we can never return to what we were in the past.”
Her tone was flat and completely devoid of any emotion.
“Please don’t be like that. Come back to me, please?” Finnick pleaded even when he knew that this
was not the best time to be having this conversation.
But he just couldn’t help himself—his feelings for her were overflowing and spilling out.
“Can you stop that? Why would I go back to you? To get hurt again? To watch you sleep around with
other women?”
Vivian had no idea how Finnick thought he had the right to ask her to go back to him.
If he truly wanted to get back together with her, then why did he do everything that he’d done to her
back then?
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Vivian. Can we please have a proper discussion about this
so we can resolve this issue together?” he begged.
But she was in no mood to take a walk down memory lane with him. “No, thank you. We have someone
who’s been kidnapped that we have to save right now.”
The most pressing matter currently was to rescue Larry. Without him, nothing else mattered.
“I’m sorry for bringing up the topic so soon.” Aware that he had come on too strong, Finnick finally
backed down.
With a small smile, he went back to eating dinner. They both finished their food in silence, refraining
from mentioning any other upsetting topics.
At the end of dinner, their full stomachs soothed the fatigue they felt after the long tiring day, having
replenished their physical and mental energies.
The night was dead silent. Only their breathing and the sounds of the wind filled the house.
Outside the building, a small shadow moved around, intently observing every single thing that occurred
inside.
Under the dim light of the moon and the stars, the two people sat in the house as their minds wandered
to memories of five years ago, completely failing to notice the suspicious figure lurking outside.
The tiny figure got down on his knees to peek in the gap between the door and the doorframe, a bright
smile growing on his face.
It was none other than the kidnapping victim himself, Larry.
Watching his parents’ movements, Larry felt like there was something missing. He caught sight of a
grasshopper moving near his feet, and a lightbulb went off in his head.
He picked up the grasshopper and flung it inside the house, letting it fly all the way to rest on Vivian’s
body.
The two adults instantly noticed the abrupt movement, scrambling to their feet. Finnick wondered if it
was something bad.
Chapter 766
Chapter 766
But Vivian had very clearly seen that a bug had flown into the room.
All the blood was drained from her face; she had always been deathly afraid of bugs.
She’d hoped that the bug wouldn’t move around after flying in through the window, but she didn’t
expect it to fly towards her and perch on her arm.
Nearly jumping out of her skin, she gasped and tried to get away from the bug, somehow stumbling into
Finnick’s arms.
The warmth of their bodies calmed both of them down as she gazed awkwardly and fearfully up at him.
He had wrapped an arm around her waist, a charming, satisfied smile on his face, looking like a cat
that had gotten the cream.
Larry knew his mommy very well, and he was well aware that she was afraid of all kinds of insects.
Seeing that the couple inside had reacted exactly as he’d wished, he giggled to himself and got ready
to carry out the last phase of the plan.
Meanwhile, the grasshopper had long since been stomped to death by Finnick. Slowly lifting her face
from his chest, Vivian’s cheeks were flushed a deep shade of red.
“Are you alright?” Finnick asked, concerned.
“I’m fine.” Thinking that that was all she would say to him, he was surprised when she followed up with,
“Thank you.”
Vivian’s mother used to be constantly ill and needed to drink traditional herbal medicine, but their family
was poor and couldn’t afford to buy it from the stores.
So, Vivian had had no choice but to pick out herbs to make medicine for her mother, repressing her
fear and disgust every time she stepped into the long grass infested with all kinds of bugs in order to do
that.
As a result, she eventually developed a phobia of insects, her legs would grow weak at the mere sight
of them.
Thank god that Finnick is here. She wasn’t sure if she would be able stay sane until Larry was saved
otherwise.
“It’s okay. It’s gone.” Finnick, noticing that Vivian was staring blankly into space, assumed that she was
thinking about the past.
He stepped forward and hugged her, rubbing her back in an attempt to soothe her fear.
After a long while, she pulled away from he, proving to him that she was fine before he was willing to let
go of her.
“What is that?”
Vivian spotted a rolled-up ball of paper by the door that she hadn’t noticed before.
“Stay here. I’ll go take a look,” instructed Finnick, wondering if it was a trap.
Worried for his safety, she fretted, “Okay. Be careful.”
Finnick stopped in his tracks.
How long has it been since I last heard her caring words? How long has it been since she talk to me
willingly? How long has it been since I last heard her using such a soft, gentle voice when talking to
me?
He couldn’t stop the grin from growing on his face, turning around to pick up the paper ball on the floor.
The words “Sleep on the bed” were written on the crumpled paper in neat yet childish handwriting.
He did a double-take at the strange message, handing it to Vivian and observed her reaction.
Shock flashed across her face, and then her eyebrows furrowed together.
Assuming that she didn’t want to sleep on the same bed as him, Finnick suggested, “You can take the
bed. I’ll just sleep in one of the chairs.”
Saying that, he spun around and was about to head for the chair.
But he had barely taken more than a few steps away when Vivian abruptly squatted down, trembling all
over.
“Finnick,” she whimpered, clearly sounding like she was in pain and discomfort.
He quickly ran towards her, observing that her forehead was damp with sweat and her messy hair had
fallen out from behind her ears.
Finnick was at a loss for what to do.
“Vivian? Vivian, what’s wrong?”
His heart was hurting for her and wanted nothing more than to help her, but he had no idea what just
happened.
I just turned around and she is all pale and disheveled. What is going on?
Having no time to think about all of that. He reached out and propped up a hand under Vivian’s neck,
helping her move into a more comfortable position.
Chapter 767
Chapter 767
Vivian used all the energy she had left to choke out, “My stomach hurts…”
“Your stomach? Why does your stomach hurt? Was it the piece of paper?” Completely clueless, Finnick
desperately looked around for the possible cause of her sudden illness, checking the paper to see if
there had been any hidden tricks on it.
But there was nothing.
“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Just as Finnick was starting to panic, a small figure swung open the door
and ran inside.
“You…” Finnick stared at Larry in disbelief.
What did he just call her? Why is he here?
He couldn’t get a single word out of his mouth, holding his breath as he watched to see how Vivian
would react.
“I’m okay.” She instantly reverted back to normal, regaining her composure as if nothing had happened.
Finnick’s brain short-circuited.
Didn’t she say that her stomach hurts? Why is she completely fine all of a sudden?
“Larry.” Vivian narrowed her eyes at her son, waiting for him to explain the situation to her.
The little boy kept his eyes on the floor, too scared to meet her gaze. “Um…”
She lifted his chin with one hand, making him look right at her as she asked, “What’s going on here?
Why did you kidnap yourself?”
Larry’s mouth fell open in surprise. “How did you know, Mommy?”
“You tried to change your handwriting on purpose, but every time you write the letter ‘S’, you add an
extra curve in it.”
Vivian had recognized his handwriting as soon as she saw the piece of crumpled paper and instantly
got the idea to pretend to be sick to lure him out.
Larry listened to his mommy intently, getting frustrated at himself for not remembering to change his
writing habits.
Awkwardly scratching his head, he braced himself for Vivian’s scolding as he internally swore to
improve his handwriting so that no one else would ever be able to recognize his habits.
Vivian was entirely clueless as to how Larry could have come up with the plan to get himself
kidnapped, but asking him now wouldn’t help matters. She would make sure to settle this at home.
But Finnick, standing off at one side as he observed Vivian and Larry’s interactions, seemed to have a
sudden revelation as he grabbed ahold of Larry’s arm.
“What did you just call her?” he demanded. The little boy’s face looked eerily similar to him, further
fueling his suspicions.
If this child is really my own son…
“I called her ‘Mommy’,” Larry replied, tilting his head to one side in confusion.
Behind them, Vivian lifted a hand to massage one side of her temples.
She had been so focused on pretending to be sick to draw Larry out of hiding that she’d completely
forgotten that Finnick was here with her.
This was the worst possible scenario to be stuck in, but there was no way she could get herself out of it
now.
“Um… little pumpkin…” Vivian was about to say something when Finnick abruptly hugged the boy into
his arms.
Finnick had actually noted how alike he and Larry looked since the first time he met him, but he was
too busy wooing Vivian to think too much about it back then. Besides, there was no way that he could
have a child.
But now, after hearing Larry call Vivian “Mommy”, he was absolutely positive that Larry was his son.
Excitement and guilt crashed down upon him like a tsunami.
So, the baby that Vivian was pregnant with was really mine. Why didn’t I believe her?
Something was wrong. He had to investigate the incident from several years ago much more
thoroughly.
Larry was a bit taken aback by how carefully Finnick held him. The foreign feeling of being loved and
protected by a father for the first time in his life felt wonderful to the little boy, and he burst out in tears.
“Daddy, why did you only re-appear after so long? Why did you get into a fight with Mommy?” Larry
was still young and had no idea of what had happened before he was born, but even he could tell that
there were cracks in his parents’ relationship.
Otherwise, there was no way that they wouldn’t get back together.
Chapter 768
Chapter 768
“I’m here. It’s Daddy’s fault.”
When Finnick heard Larry call him “Daddy”, he had a sudden rush of emotions.
He had initially been ready to hold on a little longer before being able to get Vivian back.
However, the minute he heard Larry calling him “Daddy”, Finnick knew that he had made the right
choice. He would never have known that he had such an adorable son otherwise.
He could have wasted the rest of his life away—living alone miserably till old age.
At least now he could keep his beloved by his side and was able to protect his own child.
Finnick had not felt this contented and secure in a long time.
Ever since he lost Vivian, Finnick often had flashbacks of their memories together whenever he closed
his eyes.
He had also woken up startled from his dreams many times, only to find that his pillow had been wet by
his tears.
He did not know how he had managed to survive these past few years. Now, it was as if all his sacrifice
was finally rewarded.
Regardless of the outcome, he did have a child with Vivian. Since the son was now on his side, his
mother would soon be too.
Finnick turned to Vivian with a smile.
As soon as she saw the look on his face, Vivian could guess what he was thinking. She suddenly felt
as though she had fallen into a trap.
A huge trap, planned out by her very own son.
“Daddy, where were you all these years? Why didn’t you come back? Was it because Larry was
naughty so you didn’t like me?”
Since young, Larry had always hoped for a father to protect him. Now that he finally had his father
back, he began to swamp Finnick with questions.
“I’ve been quietly watching you grow up these few years. It’s not that Daddy doesn’t like Larry, it’s
because someone else doesn’t like Daddy.”
He then gave Vivian a meaningful look.
“Daddy has to talk to Mommy in private now. Play in the room for a little while first, okay?”
Finnick had so many questions for her.
“Vivian, what’s going on?” he asked as soon as Larry walked a safe distance away. He could no longer
contain his emotions.
Vivian knew that no matter what she tried to hide, Finnick would still be able to find out about it some
way or another. Thus, she was better off being blunt.
“What do you mean? Are you asking me if he’s your son? Or are you trying to ask how that’s even
possible?” Vivian’s temper started to rise as she recalled what had happened back then.
“I wanted to know why you didn’t tell me that I have a son for all these years?” Finnick understood that
Vivian was upset with him but was still determined to get an answer.
“So you’re asking how I managed to raise him for so long without your knowledge?” Vivian interpreted
his question and threw the question back at him.
Although the question sounded normal on the surface, only Vivian knew how much sarcasm it actually
contained.
Finnick could sense Vivian’s sarcasm but did not find it inappropriate. He simply nodded, waiting for her
answer.
“Why don’t you ask yourself? If you hadn’t tried to kill my child back then, would I have kept this from
you for so long?”
She paused before continuing, “I was just trying to protect my child. Is that wrong?”
She then glared at Finnick. If looks could kill, Finnick would have been dead by now.
“I’d agreed to have the child back then. When did I ask you to abort it?” Finnick asked as he thought
back to the events of the past.
He had wanted Vivian to abort the child back then, but since she refused to do it, he had to
compromise and gave in to her wish.
The situation was nothing like what Vivian described. Finnick was not such a cruel person.
“It’s already been so long. No matter what you say now, no one will believe your nonsense,” Vivian
scoffed. Instead of simply being unremorseful, Finnick was not even admitting to his wrongdoings.
“Why don’t you believe me? I’m speaking the truth.” Finnick was confused. Were they not talking about
the same thing?
Chapter 769
Chapter 769
Why was the conversation so confusing then?
“Stop trying to explain yourself. No matter what you do now, I’ll never be able to forget how you forced
me to abort the child back then.”
That memory would always stay with Vivian. She had never felt so miserable and helpless until then.
“What do you mean? I did that?” Finnick realized that there had to be a misunderstanding.
Since he did not do such a thing, someone else had to be playing tricks on them, trying to break off
their relationship.
Finnick contemplated the issue silently. He was determined to find out the truth behind the matter.
He had a feeling that things were not as simple as they seemed.
In the meantime, Vivian was anxious since both Noah and Benedict had not contacted her for the
whole day.
However, Benedict had clearly remembered Vivian telling him not to tag along with her back then.
He had hesitated. What if he wrecked their plan by tagging along? What if the kidnapper hurt Larry?
Benedict was about to call the police for help before he was stopped by Noah.
“You can’t, Mr. Morrison. That place overlooks a very wide area. If anything happens, none of us will be
able to get away.”
Noah had learned a lot while working for Finnick. Naturally, he thought more thoroughly about such
matters. Thus, he knew that calling the police would only blow things out of proportion.
“Then, we’ll go alone.” Benedict wanted to get to Coast Haven as soon as possible. He could not help
but worry about his sister’s safety.
“Okay,” Noah agreed. He was just as worried about Finnick’s safety. He tailed behind Benedict’s car as
they drove off.
Back at Coast Haven, the family of three had prepared to go to bed. Larry hugged Finnick while Vivian
lay on one side of the bed alone.
“Vivian, are you cold?” Finnick asked. However, there was only silence.
Since they had quarreled just now, it was understandable that she would be angry with him.
“If Mommy’s cold, I’ll hug her. I’ll keep you warm.” Larry looked between the two of them. He already
guessed that something bad had happened previously.
However, it was not the right time to speak about it, so he avoided the topic first.
“Mommy’s not cold. Go to sleep, little pumpkin.” Vivian then turned her back to them and went to sleep.
Larry slept very comfortably in Finnick’s arms that night.
All three of them had not slept so comfortably in a long time.
The next morning, as they were packing to leave, someone suddenly kicked at the door.
Finnick instinctively pulled Vivian behind him. He let her go only after realizing who the intruder was.
“Vivian, what’s going on?” Benedict had never expected to see such a scene after opening the door.
He had been thinking up several possible scenes to prepare himself for whatever he would face and
was ready to attack if necessary.
Never would he have guessed that he would see Finnick protecting his sister, which was a heart-
warming atmosphere in the room.
Benedict was taken aback. He turned to see Larry standing beside Vivian and frowned as he was
puzzled.
“What’s going on?”
Have they saved Larry? Or have all of them been captured?
All Benedict knew was that their journey had been smooth, without coming across any obstacles or
dangers all the way.
“Ben, this was all Larry’s plan,” Vivian replied in embarrassment.
It was all a farce, yet it made everyone panic and caused a lot of trouble.
“It’s fine. I want to hear how Larry did it.” Benedict did not want to pursue the matter anymore.
“It was easy. I asked Ms. Booker to go make me food, then took some money and my bag and took a
cab alone,” explained Larry smugly.
Chapter 770
Chapter 770
“Then?” Benedict asked as he started to smile. No one could have thought that a mere child would
have so many tricks up his sleeve.
“Then, I asked around and found out about this place. So I took a taxi over and called Mommy,” replied
Larry as he glanced at his mother to see if she was angry.
Vivian was now only relieved about the entire situation. Her anger had passed long ago.
“You’re really smart, Larry. But you can’t be so naughty next time.” Benedict attributed everything that
had happened to a mere child’s playfulness.
“Uncle Benedict, I wasn’t playing. I just thought that Mommy and Daddy needed to talk things out,”
Larry disagreed. Although he was still a child, Larry did not think like how a normal child.
He wanted to help his Mommy and Daddy reconcile. It was not just for fun.
Initially, Benedict did not think much of Larry’s words. It was only when he called Finnick ‘Daddy’ that
Benedict became stunned.
He looked to Vivian questioningly. She simply gave him a nod and he then smiled knowingly.
“Okay, Larry’s the best.” Benedict took Larry in his arms and glanced at Vivian before he turned and
left.
He did not want to get mixed up in the couple’s conversation this time. He trusted his sister to handle
her own issues well.
“Vivian, wait.” Finnick grabbed her hand as she was about to follow Benedict out.
He did not know when he would be able to see her again once she left. Thus, he did not intend to let
her leave.
“Finnick, aren’t you always trying to lie to me? Since Noah’s here now, let’s get things clear.”
Vivian wanted to get to the bottom of things. Otherwise, she would really be kept in the dark for the rest
of her life.
“Okay, go ahead.” Finnick was sure that he had not done anything wrong to Vivian, so he was not
afraid.
“Noah, back then, did Finnick order you to go to the hospital and force me to have an abortion?” Vivian
asked plainly, not shying away from the incident.
Finnick froze when he heard her question.
When did I ever do that?
Although he was itching to ask his own questions, Finnick kept silent, wanting to hear what Noah had
to say.
Noah, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly fell to his knees and looked at Finnick and Vivian.
Vivian then realized that Noah was about to confess his wrongdoings.
What’s the point of admitting your mistakes now? If Benedict hadn’t saved me five years ago, what kind
of life would I be living now? Would I even be able to live till now?
Vivian thought of that and glared at the instigator of the entire incident.
She did not blame Noah, for he was just acting on Finnick’s orders and did not intend to treat her that
way.
The cause of all this was because of the very man who she once loved so deeply.
“Mr. Norton, this is all my fault. Mrs. Norton, please don’t blame him anymore,” Noah begged.
If it had not been for him, the couple could never have suffered and would not have had to separate for
five years.
“What exactly happened?” Finnick asked when he heard Noah admitting to his wrongs. He had been
his most trusted subordinate.
“It was Evelyn who planned everything back then,” Noah explained.
“She left her clothes on the floor along the way to Mr. Norton’s room and was panting in the room. She
also used a radio to play a recording of a man’s voice, causing Mrs. Norton to think that you were
cheating on her.”
Noah kept his head lowered. He was worried that Finnick would hurt him if he got angry.
“Are you saying that Evelyn planned the whole thing herself?” Vivian finally put the pieces together.