02

The car sped off, leaving James and Stella in the dust.

Amelia pulled out a lollipop and handed it to the pouting Elsie. "Thanks for sticking up for Mommy, Elsie. Here's a little treat for you."

Elsie scrunched up her nose. "I'm not mad at all."

Matthew, standing nearby, ruffled Elsie's hair and turned to Amelia. "What's up?"

"Just ran into old friends, nothing major," Amelia shrugged.

Sensing she didn't want to elaborate, he switched gears. "The Brown family man who's been trying to find you finally got in touch with me. Want to meet him?"

The Brown family was the top dog in Novaria, with a web of influence and connections. People joked that their scandals alone could keep half the gossip blogs in business. Their current head, Alexander Brown, was just 28.

Amelia lazily sucked on her lollipop. "Nah."

"Got it, I'll take care of it," Matthew nodded.

The car cruised through the city and pulled up to Opulence Heights Estates, the swanky part of Emerald City.

Matthew hopped out first and opened the door for Amelia and Elsie. "Go on in. Everything's set up for you, and the nanny, Gemma, is solid. Call me if you need anything."

Elsie, groggy from jet lag, rubbed her sleepy eyes. "Matthew, aren't you coming in?"

Matthew glanced at Amelia, her expression calm. His warm smile had a touch of sadness. "I've got some stuff to handle. I'll see you in a few days."

After Matthew left, Amelia had just settled Elsie into her room when her phone rang.

She glanced at the caller ID; it was Hayden.

She answered, and Hayden's irritated voice came through. "Amelia! Where have you been? Stella said she saw you at the airport with a strange man. You haven't even come home. How dare you be so ungrateful..."

Then her stepmother Ava chimed in, overly dramatic. "Yes, Amelia. It's not safe to be out alone. Even with a child, you should behave."

Amelia rolled her eyes and hung up.

Three seconds later, the phone rang again.

"Amelia! How dare you hang up on me!" Hayden yelled.

Amelia hung up again.

After a few rounds of this, Amelia figured Hayden was about to blow a gasket, so she finally answered.

She said coolly. "Sorry, you sounded so scary, I thought it was a bad guy and hung up."

Knowing that Amelia was not in her right mind, Hayden forcibly restrained his anger. "My bad. Come home tonight. We need to talk."

Amelia, thinking about her goals—finding her son and reclaiming what was hers from the Johnson family—agreed obediently. "Okay, Dad."

She drove a low-key Volkswagen out of the garage towards the Johnson Villa.

But just as she was leaving the estate, something happened.

"Are you okay?" she asked, worried, looking at the small figure in front of her car.

The boy had darted out as she was turning. Fortunately, despite the distance, Amelia resolutely applied the brakes and avoided hitting him.

As Amelia got out to check, she saw the boy squatting on the ground, his face buried in his knees, and his hands covering his ears.

Amelia frowned, recognizing the defensive posture. The car wasn't going fast, and she didn't have the high beams on, so it shouldn't have scared him. She squatted down, trying to get closer to the boy.

Just then, an arrogant child's voice piped up from the side. "He's such a simpleton! He can't even talk!"

The harsh voice and mockery made Amelia's eyes flash with anger. She shot a sharp look towards the source of the voice.

The group of kids who had been chasing Sawyer Brown and came to watch the scene scattered under Amelia's fierce gaze.

Amelia didn't chase them but approached Sawyer, gently stroking his stiff back and speaking softly, "I know you can hear me, right? Those mean kids are gone; don't be scared."

Feeling Sawyer's tense spine slowly relax under her caress, Amelia sighed in relief.

Sawyer sneaked a glance at Amelia, then quickly lowered his head again.

Amelia didn't miss his every move, but he was too quick for her to see his face clearly. She realized that Sawyer showed some signs of autism.

Touching Sawyer's thin spine, Amelia couldn't help but think of her own missing son, and her heart softened. She reached into her pocket, took out a lollipop, and placed it in Sawyer's hand. "Smart boy, this is for you."

Seeing a person dressed as a nanny hurrying over from a distance, Amelia guessed that Sawyer's family had come looking for him. Not wanting to get involved, she got up and got back into the car.

As the car drove past Sawyer, Amelia couldn't help but remind, "Hurry home with your family and remember to eat your meals."

As the car drove away, Amelia saw in the rearview mirror that the nanny had picked up Sawyer and sighed silently.

Sawyer was too thin. Autistic children often shut off communication with the outside world; she wondered if he had received her kind reminder.

"Who was that? Leo, you mustn't talk to strangers in the future," the nanny said gently; Leo was Sawyer's other name.

Receiving no response, the nanny was used to it and skillfully carried Sawyer home. She didn't see that Sawyer was looking at the departing Amelia, his lips moving slightly, clearly saying, "Mommy."

Arriving at The Johnson Villa, Amelia had just gotten out of the car and noticed that the villa's gate was wide open, which she found amusing.

She glanced around at the servants who had come to greet her; though they all kept their heads lowered, their eyes occasionally met, clearly anticipating some drama.

Sure enough, after taking just a few steps inside, a high-pressure stream of water shot straight at her face.

Prepared in advance, Amelia sidestepped to avoid the water stream, accelerating swiftly with a few quick steps, and seized the culprit's wrist; as expected, it was her sister, Stella.

The force on her wrist surprised Stella for a moment, almost causing her to drop the hose.

'How could this fool be so strong?' Stella wondered.

Before she could react, Amelia used a clever move, and the high-pressure water gun in Stella's hand turned around.

With a piercing scream, Stella was knocked to the ground by the high-pressure water, the strong stream soaking her thoroughly.