Ch. 1951..1960

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1951 -"You've worked hard.” Mike nodded. This was the first time he acknowledged what she said. He hated Rhea because she was vicious, scheming, and had no boundaries. Her heart was as black as coal. However, she had indeed worked very hard.

Mike could see the efforts she had put in regarding experimenting. Regardless of whether he had woken up early or gone to bed late, he noticed she was always in the laboratory, experimenting all day and night.

Rhea was either reading books or looking up information. He had never seen another woman that was as hardworking as her.

“Then, why is God so unfair?!" She slammed her hands onto the table, venting her dissatisfaction.

‘I worked so hard but failed, while Lily casually...’

"Hard work is nothing in the face of a prodigy,” Mike said.

"Huh?!" Rhea suddenly turned her head to look at him with surprise.

Mike breathed a sigh of relief before saying, "Yes, you're hardworking and talented, but there will always be an inherent gap between gifted individuals. Although effort can compensate for the gap, hard work is insignificant despite absolute talent.”

He had come to terms with this fact long ago. He was also someone who had gone through hard times. He had worked harder in the business industry and could endure hardships better than anyone else. Moreover, he thought his talent helped his business grow.

However, every growth would be met with bottleneck situations that were difficult to break through. He had struggled for a long time and plateaued. He even almost regressed to where he started.

Later, he met Alexander. Just a few words from him could resolve Mike's confusion, and the latter overcame his struggles immediately. Just like that, Mike managed to get out of his predicament.

He soon realized Alexander's 1Q was much higher than his own. That kind of thinking and vision for Alexander was natural. It was not something Mike could learn by putting in an effort. Therefore, Alexander's business landscape was also at a height Mike could never reach in his lifetime.

Now, Rhea was just like himself back in the day. No matter how hard she tried, she could never reach Lily's level.

"Talent..." Unlike before, Rhea did not get angry. Instead, she stared blankly at her hands and, for the first time, began to doubt herself. She had never doubted her talent. She even thought she was gifted.

However, this tricky experiment had always pushed her to her limits. It made her see she might be a little smarter than ordinary people, but compared to a prodigy, she was nowhere close to beating one.

"Come on. Let's go look for the boss,” Mike said. Rhea continued lying on the table and did not move. Mike noticed she was still lying there and was about to leave when he heard a cold sneer. “Why are we looking for the boss? How long will you keep up this act? You should know where he is!”

"Huh?"

"You kidnapped the boss.”

"You should watch your w—"

Rhea turned her head, which was still planted on the desk.

As Mike spoke, she looked at him with a darkened smile and interjected, “Drop the act! The boss is physically disabled, so there’s no way he can leave this place.

“Plus, we're always around here. How can an outsider break it without a trace? We've checked all the surveillance footage and found no outsiders around. No one else was around except you.”

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1952 -"Although none of the workers here are loyal to the organization, at least we wanted the experiment to work, unlike you and Lily, who came here to sabotage the experiment.Who else would have done it besides you two?"

"It's pointless to make false accusations." Mike turned around, not wanting to continue the conversation.

‘I don’t care if she did find out about it or is simply trying to trick me—it's just a waste of time arguing with her"

"It doesn’t matter anymore since the organization has abandoned the boss.Now that the experiment has worked, you, me, the boss, we're all expendable."

Rhea suddenly burst into laughter.

As if she had just said the funniest thing in the world, she laughed so hard that she half-collapsed on the table.

Mike was somehow affected by what she said.

‘She's right.Now that the experiment has succeeded, everyone has become expendable"

He could not help but feel a profound sorrow, realizing he had failed to determine what the organization was truly up to.

"As you said, we're in the same boat.There's no need to argue among ourselves," Mike said sadly, then turned to leave.

As he took the first step, Rhea said, "Do you know why Rick brought Lily away?"

"To meet the higher-ups."

Without looking back, Mile said, "Lily made it work.I suppose they would like to meet her."

Rhea chuckled.

"You're so naive.To tell you the truth, the experiment isn't a success yet since there’s still one more step," she said meaningfully.

At this moment, she slowly straightened up, becoming calmer.

"Lily never would have expected to bring herself closer to her death even if she made it work."

‘If Lily discovers the truth, would she still be so calm? No, she wouldn't! Everyone is afraid of dying! Even if she isn't, she still has her unborn children to consider.I wonder what she would feel when she realizes her creation will kill her!’ Rhea suddenly felt less disappointed and sad after imagining the look on Lily’s face.

The former even looked forward to seeing Lily's reaction.

Unfortunately, Rick refused to let Rhea tag along, so she could not see it.

"What the hell you're talking about? What last step?"

Mike realized something was amiss and turned to storm over, glaring at Rhea.His reaction pleased Rhea, and she chuckled.

"Why? Are you worried now? Do you still think we're in the same boat? Mike, I'm not like you guys.How do you know the organization doesn’t need me anymore?"

She casually tugged her glove and continued, "The truly dispensable one is Lily."

Mike knew Rhea was not trying to provoke him.He grabbed her collar and asked, "Tell me what you know!"

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1953-Rhea glanced at Mike’s hands and exclaimed coldly, "Get your hands off me!"

She looked fierce after dropping her smile.

Mike loosened his grip but did not let go.

"Rhea, what's the experiment’s last step? Haven't we completed it?"

He subconsciously looked toward the computer.

Although he could not understand what was on the screen, he roughly knew what it was about.

‘Doesn't the data indicate the experiment’s success? Why would Rhea and Lily say the experiment has worked if it doesn't?’ Rhea followed his line of sight and looked toward the screen before chuckling.

"Do you think the experiment is about creating the product?"

"It’s not?"

Mike noticed her staring coldly at his hands and quickly let her go while softening his tone, "I'd like to know exactly what you're talking about."

"Must I tell you? We're not on good terms, aren't we?" Rhea asked.

Mike knew they almost resembled enemies.

However, he also knew they had no reason to hate each other so profoundly.

Besides, their fates were uncertain now that the experiment had made such progress.

They were in the organization for a long while yet had never met the true leaders and did not even know how to contact them.

Therefore, they did not know if they mattered to the organization or whether or not it would keep them alive.

"Rhea,"

Mike said thoughtfully, "No matter for what purpose Rick took Lily away, he didn’t want us to know about it.We're nobody to the organization.

"You're indeed capable, and I know you're not afraid of dying, but if you die, you won't be able to wow the world with your future experiments."

After a pause, he looked at Rhea and slowly said, "You also won't be able to surpass Lily."

He knew Rhea quite well after being around her for so long.

Although Rhea did not fear death, everyone cared about something.

What Mike cared most about was his son, and for Rhea, nothing was more important than her ambition to become world-famous for her experiments.

Therefore, she could not stand being unable to surpass Lily— nothing would make Rhea sadder than dying as a nobody.

As Mike suspected, Rhea became upset.

"Rhea, you might not be as talented as Lily, but you can outperform her through hard work.Besides, if she dies, I doubt you can’t surpass her if you devote your life to that goal," Mike continued to tempt her.

"However, if the organization thinks we're expandable and kills us, you'd be deprived of that chance, wouldn't you?" Rhea stared ahead thoughtfully.

"Rhea..."

Mike tried to provoke her further, but Rhea suddenly lost her temper.

"Enough! What's the point of provoking me?"

Mike chuckled, taken aback.

"I'm not.I'm just trying to remind you of a fact.Of course, unless you feel you'll never surpass Lily.As I said, hard work is nothing compared to real talent."

"B*llshit!"

Rhea suddenly snapped, "I'll prove hard work matters! So what if Lily is gifted? I'm also talented, okay? She just got lucky.

Besides, she'll become a vessel for the experiment soon!"

"A vessel?"

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1954-Rhea blurted those words despite herself. Mike was shocked by what he just heard.

Rhea tried to leave, but Mike seized her. “Don’t go yet! What kind of vessel are you talking about? Didn’t you put the test tubes in the container? Why would they still need a vessel?”

He was utterly confused.

“Just forget about what I said.” Rhea was reluctant to elaborate further and struggled to break free.

However, Mike held her tightly, determined to get an answer. “Rhea, do you think the higher-ups will let you off the hook now that you’ve revealed their secret? Tell me what vessel you’re talking about!”

Irritated, Rhea stopped and turned around to look at him. “Mike, are you that dumb? You’ve been around here for so long. Haven’t you met R16, R14, R8, and others? Why are you asking the obvious?”

Mike was stunned and recalled the tortured faces of those test subjects. He had goosebumps just thinking about them. “You’re saying…”

“I’m saying you should think harder. I’ve got nothing to add if you can’t figure this out!” Rhea yanked her arm away from him. ‘You can’t change a thing even if you know the answer.”

She glared at Mike and left.

Mike stared after her and wanted to give chase but could not. Her words had left him dumbfounded.

‘Lily’s experiment was not the only one the organization conducted but was the hardest to tackle. Most of the previous experiments had ended up failing.’

However, the experiments shared a common characteristic, whether or not they were successful-using human beings as test subjects. Austin, Cameron, and the others were nothing more than guinea pigs.

‘Does Rhea mean Lily will become the organization’s next test subject? No, that can’t be! How can it be possible?! The organization has spent so much effort recruiting Lily for the experiment because only she can make it work. Why would they turn her into a test subject after she succeeded?

‘The organization will lose Lily if it fails. Who else can carry on with the experiment, then? I don’t get it! Wait! Lily emphasized that the experiment wasn’t successful yet. Was she aware there’s still a final step and that she’s in danger?

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1955-After Lily got changed, she went outside and saw Rick already waiting. He was evident,y not worried she would seize the opportunity to escape. After all, it was hard for her to do so since she was heavily pregnant.

Still, Lily rolled her eyes and sighed. “What a bummer! I thought I could get away.”

“Come with me!” Rick did not want to waste time talking to her and turned to lead the way.

Lily followed behind steadily and peered at the box in his hand. “Why are you so sure it’ll work today? What if it doesn’t? Are you going to kill me?”

Rick did not answer. He did not even slow his pace as if he had not heard her.

Lily pouted, saying, “Aren’t we going to see the higher-ups? Who are they anyway? How do you usually communicate with them? I don’t see any special communication devices here.

“Are you staying silent because you fear revealing a secret, or is someone watching you? Is there an even more advanced listening device somewhere? If the product fails due to unstable performance…” She licked her lips and continued.

At that moment, Rick responded. He halted, turned, and looked at her coldly. “Don’t try to provoke me.”

Lily stopped and looked at him innocently. “I’m not!”

Rick looked at her intensely, glanced at the box he held, and said calmly,” I’m just following orders. Your questions are irrelevant.”

In other words, he would not answer Lily’s questions.

Lily saw him turning away and walking ahead like someone devoid of emotions. She shrugged, saying, “You can at least tell me where we’re going, can’t you?”

“I have no idea,” Rick answered.

‘You don’t know?” Lily did not believe him. However, she soon did because a black car was already waiting for them when they reached the underground parking lot.

Rick walked straight toward it, and Lily followed skeptically. Two men in black came from the car, each holding a piece of black cloth. Bewildered, Lily saw one approach Rick and blindfolded him. Despite being a good fighter, Rick did not resist.

Lily was stunned. She finally realized Rick meant it when he said he had no idea where they were going.

‘They even blindfolded him? Isn’t the organization being overly cautious?’

Lily and the others initially thought the boss was the middleman. However, Rick started running the show after Edward kidnapped the “boss.” However, when they thought Rick was the intermediary contact, they discovered he did not know everything, either.

‘No wonder the organization has managed to stay under the radar for so long even though it has operated globally. They are incredibly cautious.’

Before Lily could think further, one of the men in black blindfolded her, too. After that, she smelled a unique scent.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1956-Since Lily was familiar with scents, she immediately knew it would make her lose consciousness. Surely enough, it soon did.

Mike floored the gas pedal as he drove. He was too anxious and could not care less about his safety.

The other workers in the laboratory did not know the experiment had worked, and they were still conducting their daily experiments. Only Mike knew it was a state of emergency now. He called Alexander again, but no one picked up.

‘How can you not answer your phone at this crucial moment, Alex?!’

Mike did not know Alexander was overwhelmed at the moment. Dominic’s symptoms were worsening again, and Austin could not handle his granduncle alone. Simultaneously, Galen developed a slight fever again while all the servants in the estate began experiencing worsening symptoms.

Moreover, Alexander’s guards were outside guarding the place, so they did not know what was happening inside.

Mike floored the gas pedal to Alexander’s office building. He thought Alexander would be in a meeting in his office but heard the latter had been working remotely these days. Someone helped Mike call the secretary and discovered Alexander was not in the office.

However, Mike did not receive information on Alexander’s whereabouts. Mike stepped out of the building and saw the setting sun. He felt a profound sense of helplessness.

‘Rick took Lily away, and I can’t reach Alexander. If something happens to Lily, I won’t be able to forgive myself!’

At that moment, Mike’s phone suddenly rang. He took out his phone and saw Alexander’s number before excitedly answering. “You finally returned my call!”

Alexander’s voice was somewhat husky as he asked earnestly, “What happened?”

When he returned to his bedroom, he saw dozens of missed calls from Mike on his phone screen. As Mike had never called him so frequently and urgently, he knew something crucial must have occurred.

Worried, Alexander tightened his grip on the phone.

“Something terrible happened!” Mike said gravely. He briefly told Alexander what happened, then said, “I’m sorry. I failed to protect her.”

“What’s the point of apologizing?” Alexander sounded calm despite his anger. He knew it would be pointless to lose his temper now. “Where did she go?”

“I have no idea…” That was one of the reasons why Mike was ashamed.’ You know I can’t get in touch with the higher-ups. They’re too cunning, and I have no idea where Rick took her.”

“You…” Alexander said through clenched teeth.

Mike nearly cried in shame. “I know it’s my fault. I’ll figure out how to find her, but my network here isn’t as strong as yours, so it’s best to get your men to locate Lily. If Rhea is right…”

He dared not finish his sentence.

What Rhea said was a shock to him, let alone Alexander. Mike could not imagine how hard the blow would be to Alexander.

“Rhea Moore…” Alexander narrowed his eyes. “Mike, return to the research facility right away!”

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1957 -"What about Lily?" Mike asked, worried.He was ashamed about not knowing where she was and that she was ina dangerous situation despite promising Alexander he would protect Lily.

"What else can you do besides return to the research facility?" Alexander asked, "Are you able to locate and rescue her?"

"I..."

Mike was stumped.

Alexander said grimly, "I'll find her.Return to the research facility now and ensure nothing harmful gets out of there!"

He was angry but knew it would not do him any good.

‘What matters most now is to solve the problem.There's no use losing my temper, is there?’ Mike guiltily grunted a yes, then suddenly thought of something.

"Oh, yeah! Has Edward returned yet?"

"Edward?"

Alexander was puzzled.

"You don't know?"

Mike knew from Alexander’s response that he probably was unaware of what had happened.However, as it was not a time for small talk,novelebook.com he only told Alexander about meeting Edward in the facility without going into the details.

Alexander answered, "I see.Go back now.I'll get my men to look for Lily.If you hear anything, just inform me! Let’s keep in touch."

"Sure!" Mike answered.He felt sorry but knew apologies would be pointless now.

Thinking so, he was determined to perform his task well and not make any more mistakes.

Alexander pondered momentarily after hanging up the phone.

Then he took his jacket and went to see his son.

Meanwhile, Galen was sitting on a small chair on the balcony playing with Lego bricks.

Since it was his favorite pastime activity, Alexander had someone deliver many of them so Galen would not get bored.

Alexander wanted to say something but stood aside when he noticed how engrossed his son was with his toys.

After several minutes, Galen finished assembling a component and proudly showed it to his father.

"Daddy, look!"

Alexander examined it seriously and nodded, "You got all the details right quickly.You did very well!"

Pleased with his father’s compliment, Galen smiled happily.However, his smile froze when he saw a jacket draped over his father’s arm.

"Are you leaving, Daddy?"

‘My son is indeed very observant" Alexander nodded.

"Yes, Daddy has to make a trip outside."

"Without me again?" Galen blinked after catching on.

Alexander felt helpless but wanted to smile at the same time.

Galen was so clever that Alexander did not even need to elaborate.

Alexander thought for a while and asked, unsure, "Yes, Daddy has some important work to do.Are you okay to stay here by yourself?"

He did not know if it was the right decision as the situation here was not ideal either.

‘Dominic’s symptoms have kept recurring, and Austin has his hands full.Besides that, since the servants aren't well, I doubt they can care for Galen"

Alexander thought it through before changing his mind and asked, "How about I take you to your great grandma’s house?"

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1958-"No, no!" Galen waved his tiny hands, reluctant.He had seldom been to Margaret's house.

Although he only had vague memories of those trips, he knew the place was so far away that he had to sleep for hours before getting there.

Furthermore, it was boring there, and Margaret was not good at entertaining children.

As a result, Galen felt uneasy with her.

Children’s intuition was sharp, so it would be challenging to be close to someone if they did not like that person.

Since Galen was unwilling, Alexander did not want to make him go against his wish.

Besides, he knew going there would delay his plan as Margaret lived far away.

"Then..."

"I'll stay here and look after Grandpa Dom!"

Galen jumped off the chair and said confidently.

Alexander chuckled.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! Mommy says I will grow up to be someone capable like you, Daddy!"

Galen cocked his head and recalled what his mother had told him.

Alexander was surprised at how much his son had grown and how he could express himself clearly.

Galen could only say a few incoherent words a while ago but could speak fluently now.

Alexander could not help thinking he had missed out on his son’s life as the boy grew so fast.

"Well, your mommy’s right!"

Alexander chuckled and bent over to hold his son up.He pressed his face against Galen’s cheeks and said, novelebook.com"You're my mini-me, aren't you?"

"Go do your things, Daddy!"

Galen held his father’s face with both hands and said thoughtfully, "I can take care of Grandpa Dom and Uncle Austin!"

Alexander felt sentimental as he looked into his son's clear, unwavering eyes.

On the one hand, he was proud of his son.

On the other hand, he missed his wife.

‘I wonder how Lily is doing now"

He put Galen down and kissed his cheek.

"Daddy promises to bring Mommy back.Our family and everyone will all be safe and sound, okay?"

He made the promise both to Galen and himself.

"Daddy is the best!"

Galen stood on tiptoe and kissed Alexander's cheek.

Galen’s gesture warmed Alexander, and the latter smiled before patting Galen's head.

"You're the best, too!"

As he turned and walked out of the room, he bumped into Austin, who was surprised to see him holding the jacket.

"You're going out?"

"Yes." Alexander nodded.

"I’m leaving this place in your hands for now." He was putting his faith in Austin.

Austin was taken aback.

"But won't you spread the disease if you leave now?"

‘Alex has sealed off the entire estate to contain the disease.How could he leave now?’

"I don't think so," Alexander said thoughtfully, "I've been here for several days, so I would have gotten infected long ago if the disease could spread so easily.Besides, Galen is fine as well.Since we're still unsure how the pathogens or symbiotes work, I shouldn't just stay here and do nothing."

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1959-"But it’s quite risky for you to leave here.What if—"

Before Austin could finish, Alexander interrupted him, "How much longer will the world be safe?"

Austin was at a loss for words.

Alexander said solemnly, "The situation is changing every day.Besides, even Dominic says symbiotes might not cause the disease, and we aren't even sure what kind of pathogens it is.However, more unknown pathogens will soon spread if we don't solve the problem.Then it'll be even harder to deal with the situation!"

Austin noticed his somber expression and lowered his

I — hands from trying to stop Alexander.He knew the

I — mysterious and vicious organization was not only 4 researching one type of pathogen.Also, the variety and ' complexity of these biological weapons were beyond his

I = imagination.

He was shocked when he learned about the experiments the organization was trying to do.He also knew Alexander had much more information than him.

"I know you're under a lot of pressure.All of us are."

Alexander gently patted Austin’s shoulder.

"Okay, I won't be stopping you, but please try to have minimal contact with others," novelebook.comAustin said seriously.

As the source of the disease, he was still worried.

‘Whether it is a virus, a symbiote, or something unknown, I can’t change the fact that the disease came from me"

The deep sense of guilt tormented him even more than physical pains.

‘The organization truly knows how to torture us, physically and mentally!’ "I will."

Alexander understood Austin’s concerns and nodded.

"Also..."

Before he could finish, Austin caught on and said, "Don't worry.I'll take good care of Galen.Although I have little experience with children, I believe I can.Just leave him and Dominic to me and go do your things."

Alexander nodded.

"I'll leave some of my men outside.Tell them if you need anything, and they'll deliver it.If there’s—"

Austin chuckled.

"Hey, I'm not a three-year-old, okay? I know what to do.Just relax and go."

Alexander stopped telling him what to do after hearing that.He could not help but chuckle as he had never been so wishy -washy.He thought it was because he had never faced such a difficult situation in his entire life, nor had anyone.

"Take care, okay?"

He then hurried away.

One of his bodyguards saw him as he exited the estate and quickly greeted him.

"Take me to the Rollins’ residence,"

Alexander instructed.He leaned back against the car seat and turned to gaze at the passing scenery, feeling like he had a dream.

When he first came to take Galen home, he did not expect to stay there for so many days, not to mention the risks he had to face.

The few days felt like years.

Even though he had left the place, he felt even more overwhelmed than relieved.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 1960-Alexander stayed awake to observe the streets as the car headed toward the city area.He noticed the city was bustling as usual compared to the sparsely populated outskirts.He was somewhat relieved.

However, he knew things would worsen if they did not try to contain the situation.

After all, he had experienced the pandemic in Burnwken and knew how scary it was.

People had time to react in large-scale wars, but viruses could quietly sweep over a country.

Burnwken was peaceful and thrived.

However, half of its population began exhibiting symptoms such as coughing and fever, followed by difficulty breathing,novelebook.com eventually leading to widespread deaths overnight.

Alexander could never forget the horrifying scenes he saw there.He knew how dangerous the symbiotes were as he had survived the disease and saw how Austin suffered.

If those symbiotes were to spread, the whole world could collapse overnight.

Alexander called Cameron on the way there, but no one answered.He had a terrible feeling but stopped himself from wondering needlessly.

Under a circumstance like this, he had to remain calm.

When the car reached the house, the chauffeur honked.

However, the guard only glimpsed at them without opening the gate.

Alexander stopped the chauffeur from honking the second time and opened the car door.

Then he stepped out, went over, and asked, "Is Secretary Rollins home?"

However, the guard merely peered at him through the crack of the guardhouse window and shut it.

Alexander guessed something was amiss and tried searching for Anastasia’s number on his phone.

Then he realized he had not saved her number.

Fortunately, he had a good memory and recognized her number from the call log.

Someone soon picked up after letting the phone ring for a while.

Anastasia sounded tired as she said, "Hello?"

"Ms.Rollins? It's Alex."

He went straight to the point, "Are you home now? Is your father home?"

"My father..."

She paused to catch her breath.

Alexander frowned.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, we're home,"

Anastasia said, "Come in."

After the call disconnected, she informed the guard, and the gate opened.

Alexander looked inside through the guardhouse door and saw the guard quietly working on something.He vigilantly surveyed his surroundings and noticed many guards were not at their stations.

‘Something doesn't feel right!’ Alexander thought.