Chapter 20


    “Mom, Mom, is little brother asleep already?” Ezra typed the message.


    Olivia’s reply came back, saying, “He is.”


    “Then what are you guys doing? Is little brother as cute as I am?”


    But Olivia’s message came, “We’re counting money. Let’s talkter.”


    Ezra did not know what to say.


    “Wow, both of you enjoying a whale of a time while I’m here, stuck here all alone with the scoundrel! So


    what am I? An abandoned orphan? Dam ned!”


    Ezra thought melodramatically.


    He was pretending to cry, working up the feelings to send his mother a voice message filled with


    enough emotion when a voice from behind that send a jolt of shock through him, “What on earth are


    you doing, Luci?”


    Before he could even do anything else, a hand ripped the nket off his back.


    He quickly shoved the phone under his pillow and turned around to face Gianna rk who was


    feigning a smile at him.


    “Oh, it’s this witchdy again. Wow, look at that fake smile. The more I look, the more you look uglier,


    you know.”


    Ezra did not say anything. He tugged at his nket and fearfully withdrew further.


    The look on Lucian’s face was enough for Gianna to realize that the boy must have learned the truth.


    He must have discovered that she was the one who had arranged for him to be tossed off the cliff. The


    smile on her face evaporated.


    “You’ve begun to speak, brat? Why the silence now?” she hissed venomously. With the door locked the


    moment she came in, there was no longer any need for pretense.


    A happy-go-lucky young kid all his life, Ezra rke had never seen how a beautiful woman could look


    so wicked and evil.


    Still, he was not in a mood to talk-not to her, at least.


    Of course, most of all, he wanted to avoid being discovered.


    To that end, Ezra decided to maintain as much silence as possible. He wanted to let Gianna do all the


    talking while he would respond as little as possible.


    “Say something, brat. Or do you think that keeping mum is going to make me go away? I’m warning


    you, boy. Watch your mouth when you speak to William. Say something wrong and I’ll have you tossed


    into the reservoir as fish food. Let’s see how you’ll get back then!”


    She leaned closer and seized Ezra’s shoulder. Little did she know that in spite of her insidious threats,


    William had begun suspecting her.


    Ezra was genuinely surprised by her wicked and angry look. But for all his mischief and shenanigans,


    there was no way he was anywhere near panicking yet.


    “What? Can you be clearer, Aunt Gianna? Did you say you’re taking me to the reservoir to fish?” Ezra


    asked her with feigned innocence, trying to agitate her.


    “Lucian Kinsman! Spare me your tricks and just be quiet! If anything were to happen to the betrothal


    between your father and me, I’ll be gunning for you!”


    Even from a young age, Ezra rke was no fool. he could recognize an evil stepmother the moment


    he saw one.


    His little brother must have suffered her bullying a lot!


    “That must mean that Little Brother must know something about her! That’s why she’s here to make


    sure that I keep my trap shut!”


    Ezra thought of how his little brother could be lying in his sickbed and felt bad. Very bad indeed. He had


    enjoyed his mother’s love and care all his life, but his brother had to endure such hardships here with


    the rest of the Kinsmans. How could he feel jealous of his brother just now!


    He should have not felt jealous at all. He should be avenging him instead!


    Seeing how the evil countenance of Gianna rke slowly twisted into worsening grotesquery, Ezra


    calmed her down by saying. “Very well, Aunt Gianna. Pipe down. If you wish for my silence, it can be


    yours.”


    For one moment, Gianna rke was wondering if her ears were deceiving her.


    The little bas tar d who had been nothing but a constant thorn had finally be so agreeable!?


    “Is that a yes?!”


    “That’s right. Rx, I won’t get in the way of your marriage with my father,” Ezra held a bundle of the


    nket close to his chest like a teddy bear


    12:51


    and grinned innocently.


    “Really?! Go d, Luci! I didn’t know that you were so obedient! All right, just be a good boy and Aunt


    Gianna will love you so much!” An overjoyed Gianna eximed.


    Her gaze, once steely and frosty, now turned warm and friendly.


    “Of course it’s real. Kids should not tell lies, but-”


    “But what?”


    “But what’s in it for me if you marry my father?” Ezra tugged the nket in his arms and looked at


    Gianna expectantly.


    Mummy did tell him before that it would be a pity if he did not derive some benefit at a viin’s


    expense.”


    And he has always been an obedient boy who followed his mother’s instruction.


    “Of course! What do you want, Luci? Aunt Gianna will get it for you!”


    Ezra’s eyes glinted with glee.


    *Just you wait, you Medusa!


    “I’ll make you pay for bullying my little brother!”


    At the Maple Vis.


    Olivia was having some fun with Lucian who had just woken up. The little one remained as quiet as


    usual, but she knew that he was reserved and timid-traits that he had carried since his childhood and


    was also part of the reason she taught Ezra to hide in the attic.


    Olivia wished to bond more with Lucian.


    Yet even for a mother who had reared two children herself, she soon discovered that she was having


    difficulty with handling him.


    Toys, figurines, bedtime stories, toy cars, skateboards, cartoons.


    None of them worked and Olivia was going through a long list of items to find if anything would click


    with Lucian. But she soon discovered that nothing was working.


    In fact, the little child seemed to have a temper. One mention of the Kinsmans and the incident that got


    him hurt and he would close his eyes


    and feign sleep.


    And it was an act that he could pull off really well, just like Ezra.


    Olivia had tofort herself and steel herself to go on whenever she felt that she had hit a hurdle. Until


    a notification on her phone alerted her to an iing transaction.


    It was her Paeypal ount, informing that she had received an amount of 80 million dors.


    The jingle of falling coins tumbling into one another made Lucian open his eyes.


    With the same excitement as finding a New World, Olivia knew that she had struck gold.


    “You like this sound do you, Luci?”


    The embers of interest in Lucian’s eyes immediately doused out at what she said.


    Olivia couldn’t help feeling slightly beaten, but she had found the one chance she needed to use.


    She took her phone and powered on the Paeypal app and squeezed it into Lucian’s tiny hands. “This is


    the money we just got from Gianna rke. Do you have anything that you would like? Let’s buy it!”


    If she couldn’t get a straight answer out of him, she might as well let him make a choice himself. The


    little tot still has one good hand and how adroit he was as he tapped furiously on the screen of the


    phone.


    Hearing nna rke’s name had somehow rekindled a fire in him.


    Lucian took the phone and peered at the screen. Then he looked at Olivia, thinking and pondering for


    seconds before he began tapping on the phone before he returned it to her.


    Oliva took her phone and when she saw what was on the screen of her phone, she was stunned.


    Disyed on her cell phone screen were the data of a certain stock on the stock market.


    “Is that what you want, Luci? For me to use the money I just received to buy this stock?”


    An uncertain Olivia leaned closer to ask.


    Exclusive ? content by N(?)ve/l/Drama.Org.


    Deep inside, she was wondering if this son of hers was also another genius toddler.


    12:51 E


    Olivia swallowed her own saliva hard as she reeled from the pangs of shock and anxiety.