Chapter 631
Odalys smiled and leaned against Percival’s shoulder. They watched the sun setting, painting the sky with hues of red and orange like a giant yellow carpet spread across the earth.
She raised her hand, shielding Percival’s face from the setting sun. The warm light filtered through her fingers, falling gently upon his handsome features.
The soft glow of the sunset seemed to pierce through him, warming him from within.
The gentle warmth was like a caress, soothing his heartstrings.
Feeling her warmth, Percival softened. The chill that usually surrounded him seemed to dissipate under her gentle touch.
“We are not a fake couple,” Percival suddenly said.
Odalys let out a soft laugh and nodded quickly.” It’s not fake,” she said, her voice taking on a soothing tone as if she were comforting a child.
“We’re a real couple. We’re meant to be. We are destined to be together,” Odalys said, pushing him away playfully. Her delicate fingertips lightly tapped the bridge of his straight nose.
“Right,” Percival agreed, listening intently to her words.
They were meant to be and destined to be together.
Percival’s deep-set eyes lit up instantly. He gazed at her as if trying to imprint her image in the depths of his soul.
“Mr. Stewart, are you full?” Odalys asked, her eyes sparkling with amusement.
She smiled and looked at him with a bit of a mischievous glint in her eye. Percival rarely saw her at ease, so his mood was affected by her. “I’m full. Do you want anything else? I can grill some more for you,” Percival offered, about to get up.
As much as he hated letting her go, he couldn’t bear the thought of her going hungry.
“No, I’m good. Let’s head to the hospital if you’re full. I want to try out that ancient emerald with you when we get back home tonight,” Odalys said.
Percival listened to her, realizing he had always been a part of her plans.
A deep sense of satisfaction welled up within him. He felt needed. His presence was acknowledged, and his resolve strengthened. “Okay. I’ll go and tidy up then,” Percival replied. As he stood up to pack away the barbecue and other things, Freya suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
“Stop! You go and keep Odalys’ company. Spend more time with her. I’ve got this. I’ll take care of it,” Freya insisted, pushing him toward Odalys.
As she held Percival’s arm, she snuck a glance at Odalys.
“Percival, step it up! Don’t let Odalys slip away,” Freya exclaimed.
Percival looked at Freya with a complex expression. Staring at her face full of curiosity for gossip, he rubbed his brows and asked, ” Were you eavesdropping just now?”
“Huh? No way! How could you say that? I’m a good person!” Freya froze.
She was dumbfounded, never expecting to expose her eavesdropping by jumping out like that.
The moment she turned around, her heart sank. Selah, Stellan, and Francis had all run off without following her, making her feel awkward.
“Percival, let’s go.” Odalys didn’t want to make a fuss.
She turned to Freya and said, “Thanks for cleaning up. I’ll take you out for a good meal when I’m done.”
“Thanks, Odalys. You’re the best!” Freya beamed.
She even went up to them and pushed them toward the parking lot. “Go on. Don’t waste any time. Selah and I discussed it. We’ll stay with Francis and make sure nothing happens to him.” “Okay,” Odalys replied.
Percival walked over to the Rolls-Royce with the car keys and opened the passenger door for her.
As Odalys got in, Percival suddenly leaned close to her. His body was almost touching hers, and she sat up straight, afraid to move.
She saw his arm reach past her, pull the seat belt, and fasten it for her.
The faint scent of his cologne lingered around her nose briefly. After fastening her seat belt, he walked around the car to the driver’s seat and sat down.
Percival explained to her, “Recently, the wealthy families in Crownridge have been secretly raising funds, consolidating all their family assets, and emptying them. By then, all wealthy families will become empty shells.
“No matter what the Simpson family wants to do, or what the people behind the Simpson family want to do, even if wealthy families are calculated, all they will get is empty shells. They won’t get a single cent of the funds.”
Odalys was a little surprised to hear that.
She thought, ‘I know Percival is always busy, barely having a moment to rest. Yet he still finds time to come to see me.
‘I don’t expect he is quietly working on something big.’
Percival said, “Last time, the Simpson family was seized and its funds were frozen and transferred to your card. The Simpson family secretly contacted some wealthy families, hoping they would lend a helping hand, but they were all rejected.”
“Now the Simpson family is calm and has not made any moves. However, the quieter they are, the more it seems like an omen before the storm.
“With the Simpson family’s previous high profile, they could not have a backup plan. As for what the backup plan is, it is unknown.”
Percival’s control was easily demonstrated when it came to finance and business.
It was his best field, just like Odalys was best at magic. Although Percival couldn’t participate, he was indeed in his element in business or politics.
“Um,” Odalys replied softly.
The atmosphere in the car was somewhat ambiguous. Percival drove while glancing at the rearview mirror, paying attention to her every move.
Upon seeing her looking out the window, seemingly lost in thought, Percival didn’t dare to speak, afraid of disturbing her.
Percival drove toward the hospital. As the car came to a stop, Sienna walked out of the elevator.
Upon seeing Odalys, she immediately walked up to her.
“Odalys.” Sienna’s eyes reddened as soon as she saw her. She took Odalys’s hand and looked her up and down. She said, “I heard from Stellan that you’ve been busy until now and haven’t slept much.
“I told you nothing is more important than sleep. You’re still young. Why do you always stay up late?” Sienna felt distressed for Odalys.
Her words weren’t merely out of courtesy. She did care about her from the bottom of her heart.
Sienna knew Odalys had been abandoned by the Bennett family and had a tough life even after being found, yet Odalys never complained and continued to live strong. Sienna felt an overwhelming desire to have her as her goddaughter.
‘If Odalys were my goddaughter, I would never allow her to suffer such grievances,’ thought Sienna.
“I’m fine. I slept,” said Odalys, smiling.
She felt like she was being treated like a little girl in front of Sienna Drake.
“You have to get enough sleep even if you have slept. I just heard from Orson that you are coming, so you have to promise me you will go home and rest after Dangelo finishes testing his medicine and is fine. You can’t go anywhere tonight, okay?”
Sienna said in a somewhat strong tone.
Chapter 632
She didn’t want Odalys running around.
“Okay. I’ll listen to you.” Odalys’s heart was warm.
She could feel who was truly good to her.
Sienna took her hand and walked toward the elevator, talking to her as they went. Percival followed behind, watching her being pulled along by Sienna. He wisely kept silent.
Odalys was taken by her into the VIP ward and saw that the table was already filled with delicacies.
“I just heard from Stellan that you only ate a little barbecue, so I got you something to eat,” Sienna said, opening the lid. It was all Odalys’s favorite food. Odalys never told Sienna what she liked to eat, but Sienna had observed her diet and quickly knew what she wanted to eat. Odalys’s lips moved, and her eyes instantly turned red.
“Well, I’ll have some cereal,” Odalys said.
Upon hearing that, Sienna immediately filled half a bowl of seafood cereal for her and said, “Have some first and see how it tastes. If you don’t like it, you’ll eat something else.”
Dangelo came over after hearing the noise.
“Odalys, here you are.” Dangelo didn’t put on any airs of being a president. He came over in his hospital gown.
He put the newspaper in his hand aside and watched Odalys eat her cereal. The indulgence in his eyes was almost unconcealable.
Ever since Sienna had the idea of recognizing Odalys as their goddaughter, the more he looked at her, the more he liked her.
Odalys was “forced” to eat a lot of food. It was not until she was almost full that Sienna stopped picking up food for her.
“Where is the medicine? Let me see it,” Odalys said.
Orson hurriedly handed over the medicine and said, “This is the first pill.” Odalys took the medicine, put it under her nose, and sniffed it gently. A strong medicinal smell wafted into her nostrils. She handed the medicine to Dangelo and said, “It seems that Orson has put his heart into it. The medicine is just right.”
Sometimes, even if one had the prescription, one might not be able to make the medicine.
After all, there were many things to pay attention to, such as heat, temperature, and dosage. It was impossible to succeed at once, so repeated operations were required.
It might not be successful even after hundreds or thousands of failures.
Orson was able to make the medicine in half a month, which was impressive.
“You flatter me, Odalys,” Orson said lightly but was bursting with joy.
He couldn’t suppress the smile on his lips, standing there unnaturally, squeezing his cell phone. His charming eyes were fixed on Dangelo, watching him swallow the medicine.
Everyone held their breath. After Dangelo took the medicine, he felt warm all over as if a force was holding him up. The next second, his face suddenly changed.
“Honey, how are you feeling?” Sienna was startled.
She hurried forward to support Dangelo and found his body was tense. The next second, Dangelo spat out a mouthful of blood.
Everyone was stunned. They didn’t expect Dangelo to vomit blood immediately after taking the medicine. Everyone panicked instantly. Sienna held Dangelo’s body, continuously wiping the corners of his mouth with tissues, but the blood kept oozing out no matter how hard she tried to wipe it away.
“How could he vomit blood? There must be nothing wrong with the prescription. Even if it doesn’t work, he can’t vomit blood,” Orson said urgently.
He had concocted the medicine himself, and he could guarantee there was nothing wrong with it.
Moreover, Odalys had checked it, so there couldn’t be any problem with the medicine.
Orson thought, ‘What was the problem?
‘Why did Dangelo suddenly vomit blood after taking the medicine?
“Odalys, don’t be afraid. Nothing will happen. There must be nothing wrong with the medicine. Maybe it’s because his health is poor,” Sienna panicked but didn’t forget to turn around and comfort Odalys.
After all, it was Odalys who gave the prescription, and it was Orson who concocted the medicine.
They couldn’t join hands to harm the Drake family. Dangelo was the one who was driving all the wealthy families to invest together. If something happened to Dangelo, those wealthy families would be in chaos.
Moreover, she trusted Odalys.
“Let me see.” Odalys was also startled.
Her heart was heavy. She reached out and placed her hand on Dangelo’s pulse. Percival, on the other hand, looked up and glanced outside. He strode forward and opened the ward door.
“Who’s there?” Percival asked coldly.
Sure enough, a figure darted out from the shadows and ran toward the stairwell.
Upon seeing that, Orson walked out quickly.
The bodyguards looked at the empty corridor, not expecting Percival’s words to expose the presence of someone secretly peeking outside. They hurriedly gave chase.
With a single phone call from Orson, all stairwells were blocked. All the doctors and nurses came out and stood in the corridors.
They also made sure all patients entered their wards. Apart from doctors and nurses, there were no other idle people in the corridors. Their speed was even more professional than that of the bodyguards.
After all, they were all trained by the Lark family. Like ordinary doctors and nurses, their job was to treat patients, but their skills were equally impressive.
Even if they weren’t nurses or doctors, they would make formidable bodyguards or secret guards.
It was the special training of the Lark family.
It was true the Lark family was a medical family, but it had always been bound to the Stewart family. The two families have always been inseparable. The Lark family couldn’t survive to this day solely on medical skills.
The entire hospital was filled with an eerie feeling.
It was quiet in the corridors, and the faint sound of running footsteps could be heard echoing from the stairwells.
Oliver panicked. The door to the stairwell was locked.
He stared blankly at the locked door. Then he turned and pushed open the door, running down the hallway.
He found many doctors and nurses standing in the corridor, but there was not a single patient or family member visiting. These medical professionals were just standing there, looking down at their medical records.
They heard the commotion and looked up briefly without saying a word.
“Damn. It is creepy,” Oliver cursed under his breath.
Oliver thought these doctors and nurses were looking at him strangely. Clutching his chest, he gritted his teeth and walked forward with difficulty.
As he stood in the middle of the corridor, a figure emerged from the front.
“Oliver, why are you here in the VIP ward instead of treating your illness?” Orson asked lightly with a hint of cynicism. With his hands clasped behind his back, he looked at Oliver with a playful smile. Oliver’s lips moved slightly. Upon seeing Orson walking toward him, his face darkened. He stared at Orson and then at the serious-looking doctors and nurses.
Only then did he realize the ambulance had taken him to the Lark family’s hospital.
“Mr. Lark,” Oliver said calmly.
Oliver had lost his former glory and appeared rather disheveled and haggard. His injuries were severe. He clutched his chest as he took a few steps forward.
Meeting Orson’s gaze, he said, “Your forehead is darkened, a clear sign of misfortune. Have you recently encountered someone from the Magic Sect who might have cursed you?”
Orson stood there silently.
Oliver’s heart was in his throat, wondering what Orson meant by staring at him like that.
Chapter 633
Oliver frowned in displeasure. He thought, ‘After all, who in the wealthy circles of Crownridge doesn’t know me?
‘I was once the leading energy field master of Crownridge.
Some rich people would offer me limousine service and over three million dollars in travel expenses to get me to their doors to check their energy field. Otherwise, I wouldn’t lift a finger. ‘However, Orson’s indifference now makes me uncomfortable.’
“Mr. Lark, if you don’t deal with this in time, disaster will befall you! Did someone die in your house today?” Oliver asked, pretending to be profound.
Orson listened and raised an eyebrow.
“No one died in my family, but someone I know died today.” Orson’s tone remained indifferent.
However, Orson looked at Oliver and found he had lost his previous composure. Oliver was a little flustered and uneasy as he faced Orson.
Obviously, Oliver had also noticed that the nurses and doctors standing in the corridors were extraordinary.
Oliver said, “That’s right. Mr. Lark, you are tainted with the resentment of that person, who must have been close to you before. Now that he is dead, all his resentment is on you.
“Did someone give you a talisman or something? That talisman just absorbed a lot of resentment into your body, causing your forehead to turn dark. If you don’t remove the talisman, I’m afraid you will be in big trouble.”
Orson listened with a smile but said nothing.
Oliver felt embarrassed for a moment, as if everything was just him talking to himself. Orson didn’t even respond, making him wonder if he should continue.
Oliver continued to brainwash, “Mr. Lark, it is fate we meet today. You’d better listen to my advice; otherwise, something will happen to you. The other party is targeting the Lark family. It must be that the Lark family’s energy field is great, and someone wants to destroy it. Be careful of mistresses.”
Orson listened and silently took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth.
Smoking was not allowed in the hospital, so Orson did not light the cigarette but held it in his mouth. Then he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.
“In that case, is there something wrong with the talisman Odalys gave me? Then look again. Is the person who died today related to Odalys?” Orson suddenly said. His tone was flat, and his emotions were unreadable.
It even made it hard to understand what he was trying to ask.
Oliver wasn’t stupid. He had seen countless people from wealthy and influential families, so he knew those people were fickle and unpredictable. Orson’s attitude seemed somewhat careless.
He also couldn’t figure out how deep Orson’s trust in Odalys was.
“Yes! The person’s death is Odalys’s doing. Now many people believe her but don’t know her goal is probably to gain a foothold in Crownridge and then dismantle you step by step,” Oliver said.
Orson looked at Oliver in surprise.
He said, “You know all this? Oliver, you’re indeed a master. You’re amazing! You can figure all this out. So what did you mean just now when you were outside the VIP ward and wanted to eavesdrop?
“Did you want to know what Odalys was up to, or did you make a move on Dangelo?”
Oliver’s expression changed slightly.
Before he could speak, he heard a woman’s laughter. Then, Odalys appeared, striding out from the darkness.
Odalys said coldly, “You don’t think no one is here watching you, do you? You hid near the VIP ward and tried to peek. Are you trying to stir up trouble or provoke the Lark family into dealing with me?
“You said the talisman on Orson’s body had a problem and that it would absorb resentment and hurt him? Oliver, you are truly a talent. If he had listened to you and removed the talisman, he would probably be dead before you by now.
“You can’t break my talisman and can’t hurt him, so you want him to throw it away on his own initiative. I didn’t know you, an energy field master, had such a vicious heart.”
Oliver didn’t expect Odalys to be there, let alone that she would expose him in public.
He did want to fool Orson and make him throw away the talisman just then. The talisman Odalys drew was powerful. Oliver had no chance to make a move. Once the kind of talisman sensed his move, it would actively attack and even take his life directly.
Oliver didn’t expect Odalys to have such a powerful talisman. He was even more convinced there must be an expert behind her.
He didn’t believe Odalys could draw such a powerful charm at such a young age. He had lived for decades and had never seen it before. He would never recognize her power.
“You are talking nonsense.” Oliver was furious.
He was blocked there by them. If Odalys hadn’t appeared, he would have been able to escape, but now that Odalys had appeared, he felt he couldn’t leave.
“How can I talk nonsense? Wasn’t it because of me that you were sent to the hospital today?
“How can you be expected to come to the hospital on your own if you’re not seriously injured? Oliver, don’t tell me you couldn’t even predict this. You’ve suffered three backlashes, and your health has declined significantly,” said Odalys, raising an eyebrow.
Her words were light but only served to further infuriate Oliver.
He had never met anyone so young and arrogant.
“You! The three backlashes were all you? Odalys Stone, are you setting me up?” Oliver panicked.
He had been an energy field master in Crownridge for decades. He was accustomed to a life of admiration. Now, his comfortable life had been shattered.
He was reduced to hiding in Bennett Villa for his safety. It was infuriating.
“What else? You want to help the Bennett family deal with me, but do you think you can drive a wedge between us? Or did you believe I wouldn’t dare to act because you used Windsor?” Odalys said with a smile.
Her questions struck a nerve, and Oliver looked flustered.
“Did you have a hand in the Stewart family’s downfall all those years ago?” asked Odalys coldly.
Oliver was stunned.
He looked at Odalys in disbelief. Even a fool could tell she was there to settle accounts. It was because of what happened to the Stewart family back then.
He thought, ‘I suddenly backfired today, vomiting blood incessantly.
‘Then I was sent to the hospital and was finally caught eavesdropping.
‘So the news that Dangelo took his medicine today was probably also released by her, just to let me hear it?’
Oliver thought of that, and his legs went limp with fear.
“Did you deliberately let someone tell me the news that Dangelo took his medicine today?” Oliver was unsure but still wanted to ask.
‘If I have to die, I will die with a clear understanding, thought Oliver.
“What else? Dangelo stays in the VIP ward. His daily life and medication are kept secret. Why did the doctors and nurses suddenly chat about it in an ordinary ward like yours?” said Odalys, smiling.
Oliver’s eyes widened.
He stared at Odalys before him and thought, ‘She managed to scheme against me.’
“You!” Oliver was speechless. He kept staring at Odalys with his eyes wide open.
Chapter 634
Oliver instinctively stepped back as she walked toward him. After taking two steps back, he realized he had lost his confidence.
His entire dignity had been trampled underfoot by Odalys, the 20-year-old girl.
Odalys said, “You’ve been helping wealthy families with their energy field for all these years. In fact, you’ve been tampering with their energy field to make things go wrong for them, and then they continue to come to you for solutions.
“You created troubles for them but also personally solved them, allowing yourself to secure the throne as the number one energy field master in Crownridge. Aren’t you ashamed of yourself after doing this so many times?”
Oliver was silent.
He stared at Odalys with hatred, as if trying to see through her.
However, she was surrounded by a layer of white mist, and he couldn’t see through her mind or even see her face clearly, no matter how hard he looked.
Oliver thought, ‘An ordinary magic master can’t be so powerful. Odalys has used a talisman to block my vision.
‘Apparently, she is on guard against me or looking down on me, disdaining to look at me.’
Thinking of that, Oliver was fuming with rage, feeling like he had been insulted.
“Your attempt to deceive Orson just now is enough to show you have ill intentions. Oliver Carline, you’re not worthy of being
a member of the Magic Sect. After sitting on the throne of energy field master in Crownridge for so long, you think you’re the best in the world.” Odalys stepped forward as she said. Oliver instinctively stepped back but saw Odalys take out a talisman and hit him. He instinctively fought back.
With a “Bang”, the talisman shot into his body, and his body was ejected 1.5 feet away. When his body fell heavily to the ground, he felt his waist being bound.
No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn’t move.
“Ah!” Oliver fell to the ground in pain.
Blood was constantly oozing from the corner of his mouth as he watched Odalys approaching from afar.
She stood before him, looking down at him with disdain as if he was garbage and was not worthy of her looking at him. “Odalys Stone, who is your master? How could you possibly draw this kind of talisman?” Oliver blurted out.
He had practiced his skills for decades and still couldn’t draw this kind of talisman.
It could penetrate his body, bind him, and even seal all of his meridians, which meant he could no longer draw talismans from then on.
“It doesn’t matter who I am. Today, I should take your life because you provoked Windsor to harm Francis and then sneaked into the hospital to try to harm Dangelo.
“But guess why Dangelo just vomited blood, and you still sent the message when you escaped?” Odalys continued.
He looked at Odalys in disbelief, only to see her turn around gracefully and stride away, unwilling to say another word to him.
“Tie him up.” Upon seeing that, Orson immediately waved his hand.
Doctors and nurses immediately stepped forward and held Oliver down.
A long needle was thrust toward Oliver, and the medicine was injected into his body. Oliver’s body went limp, and he collapsed on the ground. The doctors dragged him by his legs and into his ward.
“Keep an eye on him. Without my permission, no one is allowed near him, and he is not allowed to leave the room. If he tries to escape, break his legs,” Orson said.
“Yes, Mr. Lark,” the doctors responded.
Oliver was dragged back to his ward. His body was bound by Odalys’s talisman. He couldn’t escape even if the doctor didn’t inject him with medicine.
He looked out the window in a daze, realizing it was dark outside. He couldn’t see anything.
His eyes fell on the phone beside him. He reached for it after the doctors left. He was about to make a call when he realized the phone screen wouldn’t respond.
Upon closer inspection, he realized his phone had been switched.
What he was holding was a child’s toy phone. Enraged, he threw it against the wall.
Oliver murmured, “I still have a chance and haven’t lost yet. The Bennett family sent me here, and Brandon came with me. Even if Odalys and Orson are trying to trick me, as long as they realize Brandon hasn’t returned, the Bennett family will be anxious and come looking for me.
“If they refuse to release me, the Bennett family will call the police. Then they will have no choice but to let me go.”
Oliver suddenly didn’t feel anxious anymore when he thought that.
He thought again, ‘After all, Odalys didn’t kill me. She must be scared.
‘If I can leverage all the connections I have made in Crownridge over the years, what can Odalys do to me?’
It was just that those wealthy families hadn’t reached out to him in a long time.
Oliver wasn’t sure if he could still call upon those people.
He had tried to contact them before but was turned away.
‘Was it Odalys’s doing?’ thought Oliver.
Oliver looked out the window gloomily.
Brandon did not return to the ward at that time.
Brandon realized something didn’t seem right when Oliver went upstairs. From the moment Oliver vomited blood and was sent to the hospital, he had a feeling something was amiss but couldn’t put his finger on it.
So instead of following Oliver to the VIP ward, he went downstairs and walked out.
After he left the hospital discreetly, he quickly hailed a car and headed toward Bennett Villa.
Brandon felt the atmosphere was eerie when he returned to Bennett Villa. Brandon walked in in a panic and saw Henry sitting on the sofa while Atlas looked awful.
“Mr. Bennett,” Brandon greeted Henry hastily.
It wasn’t until he looked at Atlas that his face changed drastically.
He found that both Atlas and Caspian had hazy shadows on their bodies. The shadows seemed to be attached to them, and they seemed to be trying to get inside their bodies.
Brandon was startled. The shadows looked familiar to him.
Brandon thought, ‘Aren’t the dark shadows on Atlas Bennett and Caspian the same ones that are on Windsor?
‘How do they get on Atlas and Caspian? ‘Once this kind of shadow lasts for a long time, it will recognize its owner. It will only fixate on one person’s figure and will not let go. It will not change people in the middle.
‘But why do they suddenly run out of Windsor’s body and attach themselves to Atlas and Caspian?’
Brandon sank into deep thought.
“You… you.” Brandon’s body swayed.
He swayed and collapsed onto the sofa, and his eyes fixed on Atlas and Caspian.
He was now in his seventies. He was old and looked haggard. His emaciated appearance, coupled with his staring eyes, made one’s hair stand on end. What are you looking at? Didn’t you say you were taking Oliver to the hospital? Why are you back alone? Where is Oliver?” Atlas asked angrily.
He didn’t show the slightest bit of kindness to Brandon.
No one in the Bennett family had ever met Brandon, but Atlas had seen him when he was recording a variety show with Sophia.
There was something wrong with the quadrangle courtyard Brandon lived in.
Later, Atlas didn’t expect Brandon to return to Crownridge and live in Bennett Villa, even sleeping in Hannah’s room at night, though Hannah said she and Brandon were not in that kind of relationship.
However, Atlas felt uncomfortable looking at this man.
“Have you seen Odalys today?” Brandon was startled.
Chapter 635
Brandon felt something was wrong but couldn’t figure it out for a while.
Atlas gave him a scornful look and said, “Isn’t that obvious? Odalys is my sister. Is it hard for me to see her? Besides, why are you, an outsider, asking about our family affairs?”
Facing Atlas’s mockery, Brandon was a little embarrassed.
“How could this be? Why did it go to them?” Brandon staggered back in fear.
He almost jumped up and rushed toward Atlas. Then he grabbed Casplan’s arm and lifted him. “What are you doing?” Caspian immediately shook off his hand.
Brandon stood there ashen-faced, staring at the two of them furiously.
Henry remained silent, sitting quietly on the sofa and observing Brandon’s reaction. His eyes were on his phone, but his attention never left Brandon.
“Come in with me,” Brandon said, tugging on Caspian’s sleeve.
Caspian stood firm, looking at him warily.
“What are you trying to do, you old geezer? Don’t you dare touch Caspian!” Atlas rushed over.
He stood before Caspian, glaring at Brandon. Upon seeing his expression, Brandon realized he had been a bit abrupt. He stood there for a long moment before regaining his composure. Then he softly asked, “Are you feeling alright?
“Or rather, did anyone try to do anything to you after you went out?” Brandon prodded them further.
Atlas started to reply, “Of course…”
Before he could say his words, he felt a gust of wind.
“Slap!” A hard slap landed on his face, sending Atlas flying onto the sofa. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and the pain made him grimace.
The slap almost swelled Atlas’s face, and he was dumbfounded.
Not knowing where the slap came from, he hurriedly covered his aching face and looked around in fear.
“Who? Who hit me?” Atlas was furious.
He immediately got up from the sofa and yelled into the air, “Who dares to hit me? Get out here! Stop playing tricks on me and get out here.”
Facing his agitation, Caspian seemed to be deep in thought.
“What’s the matter with you?” Seeing that, Brandon hurriedly asked Caspian.
Caspian lowered his eyes and remained silent for a while as if verifying something. Then he said, “We went to the Film Capital this morning and saw my father…”
Before he finished his words, a slap also landed on his face.
Caspian was prepared. He was only beaten back half a step but managed to stabilize himself. He was also startled.
When Atlas was slapped just now, Caspian noticed the slap seemed invisible. They would be slapped as long as they said where they went today.
Caspian didn’t believe it at first, so he tried it but didn’t expect it to be true.
The slap was so hard that blood oozed from the corner of Caspian’s mouth, and the smell of blood filled his mouth. He kept staring around but didn’t know where the invisible slap came from.
“Caspian.” Atlas ran over immediately upon seeing that.
He held Caspian’s arm and looked around vigilantly as if Bennett Villa was haunted.
“Let’s move out? We can stay in a hotel or sleep under a bridge. I don’t want to live at home.” Atlas panicked.
Atlas thought, ‘It feels like there are ghosts everywhere.
‘If there were no ghosts, how could I explain where the slap came from? Did it fall from the sky? Odalys is not here now, and neither is Oliver. Who can control the slap?’
Thinking of that, he turned his head and stared at Brandon.
“Are you playing tricks? Don’t tell me Oliver did it. He’s dying and being sent to the hospital. Besides you, is there anyone else here?” Atlas was acting crazy.
He rushed over and choked Brandon’s neck, wishing he could strangle him to death immediately.
Brandon was choked by Atlas. His eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he grabbed Atlas’s neck in retaliation. Both men fell to the ground, each with a stranglehold on the other. Henry did not intervene.
He looked up upstairs thoughtfully and noticed Edie was still helping Sophia on the staircase.
“Let’s go,” said Edie.
Sophia’s ten fingers were injured, and the pain left her unable to speak.
She felt like her hand was useless after arguing there for a long time.
Her hatred for Odalys reached its peak at that moment.
Sophia quickly looked away, not daring to meet Henry’s gaze when their eyes met.
“Slap!” Henry threw the newspaper onto the coffee table and stood up from the sofa. He strode forward, grabbed Sophia’s arm, and yanked her toward him.
“What are you doing?” Sophia cried out in alarm.
Henry threw her hard onto the sofa, kicked her leg, and said, “Did you have something to do with Caspian and Atlas being slapped just now?
“You even tempted me to go to your room at noon, tore my clothes, and wanted to take my heart blood. Now you are pretending to be innocent?” Henry said through gritted teeth. Sophia didn’t expect him to say it in public. Atlas looked over in astonishment, thinking of the scene where his chest was torn open by Sophia.
“You want Henry’s heart blood, too?” Atlas jumped up immediately.
He rushed to Henry, took off his shirt, revealed the wound on his chest, and said, “Henry, look at my wound. She did it, too.
“Sophia, the bitch, must be possessed. She wants our lives!” Atlas yelled immediately. Now he was like he found a companion.
Henry looked at the wound on his chest and then Caspian. He asked, “Has she ever thought about hurting you?”
“No,” said Caspian, frowning.
He looked at Sophia with some puzzlement.
Sophia collapsed onto the sofa and felt a surge of panic. She hadn’t expected Atlas and Henry to expose her like that in front of everyone. Her blood boiled with anger.
She regretted selling Henry. If only she hadn’t, he wouldn’t be back in the Bennett family.
She was furious.
“You bitch!” Atlas spat, storming toward Sophia and slapping her across the face.
Sophia’s fingers throbbed with pain, leaving her powerless to resist. Her face burned after it was slapped twice hard. She lunged at Atlas in a frenzy.
Atlas stumbled back from the impact. He watched as Sophia, practically rabid, bolted out of Bennett Villa.
“Damn it. Bitch! What kind of sick game is demanding heart blood like a vampire? Caspian, you better watch your back. You could be next,” Atlas muttered.
Brandon glared at Atlas. Then he grabbed Caspian, dragging him forcefully into the room. He slammed shut the door with a resounding bang.
Edie walked down elegantly from upstairs with her car keys.
She merely glanced at Henry silently and then strode out.
“Henry! Why don’t we move out?” Atlas pressed.
He felt he couldn’t stand staying in this house for another day.
He wanted to move out immediately. Otherwise, his life would be in danger.
“Do you have money?” Henry suddenly asked.
Chapter 636
”At the mention of money, Atlas’s whole demeanor crumpled. His eyes looked lost.
He had never been short of money since he was a child, so he had no concept of money.”
Now, after discovering the family company’s troubles, it seemed they had to pay for everything but couldn’t.
“What should we do? We can’t keep living here, can we? Henry, haven’t you noticed how strange the house feels? It feels incredibly cold at night,” Atlas said, flustered.
As he spoke, his eyes darted around, terrified of receiving another slap.
Henry stared at the door, lost in thought.
“Besides you and me, Sophia didn’t ask anyone else for heart blood, right?” Henry asked.
“Yes. I guess she didn’t dare to ask Caspian for it.” Atlas peeled a banana, eating and speaking with his mouth full.
Henry didn’t say anything and just sat quietly on the sofa.
Windsor’s words from last night kept echoing in his ears. He had asked him to tell Odalys she was right to leave the Bennett family.
The Bennett family!
Henry’s eyes were somewhat gloomy.
“Henry, where are you going? Henry, wait for me.” Atlas finished his banana and noticed Henry walking out. He hurriedly chased after him, only to find Henry had driven away.
Atlas stood alone outside Bennett Villa, but when he turned around, he found Brandon opening the door and walking upstairs.
Caspian didn’t come out of the room. Atlas was a little puzzled, so he walked in and found the lights were not on. Caspian was sitting in a chair, lost in thought.
“Caspian, what’s wrong?” Atlas stepped forward and nudged him.
Caspian’s face was ashen. He stood up and walked out.
“Caspian, what did he say to you? Don’t scare me,” said Atlas.
“Caspian, aren’t we going to find Dad?” Atlas chased after him.
However, Caspian drove off, leaving Atlas standing outside, bewildered and lost in his thoughts. Atlas looked outside, then at Bennett Villa. He was unsure whether to leave or go back. “Why did you leave me behind?” Atlas was exasperated.
He plopped down on the ground, not wanting to go back.
**
In a VIP ward at the Hospital.
After Odalys finished dealing with Oliver, she returned to the ward and saw Dangelo spit out blood again. She strode forward and pressed her hand on his back.
Dangelo’s face was pale and bloodless, but the moment she touched him, he felt like a warm current flowed into his heart, and his previous discomfort disappeared.
“Dad, how are you feeling?” Stellan hurried over. He asked with concern.
But Sienna stopped him and said, “Why are you so impulsive? If you don’t trust your dad, do you not trust Odalys?”
Stellan fell silent.
He was pushed onto the bedside by Sienna and was told to stay out of the way.
“How come I feel like I’m useless to you?” Stellan was dumbfounded.
However, no one paid any attention to Stellan. Everyone’s attention was focused on Dangelo. After Odalys withdrew her hands, Dangelo frowned and slowly stood up.
“I did vomit blood, but my body doesn’t feel weak. It’s not like before when I felt weak.
Instead, it feels like all the meridians in my body have been opened up.
“I can’t say where I feel uncomfortable. It seems like I’m not feeling any discomfort at all.” Dangelo concluded.
He was afraid they wouldn’t believe him, so he quickly turned and walked around.
“Take a look at him,” Odalys turned and told Orson behind her.
Orson hurried forward and checked Dangelo’s pulse. After he finished, Kenneth came over and said, “I’ll have a look, too.”
Kenneth and Orson checked Dangelo’s pulse in turn.
After they both finished, Sienna asked anxiously,” Kenneth, Orson. How is he? Is he going to die?” Atlas was even more silent.
He silently looked at the hospital bed, and his eyes fixed on Dangelo. He noticed Dangelo’s face did look a little better, not as pale as before. His condition was visibly improving.
“His pulse seems strong and powerful, unlike the weak pulse he had before. Let’s get a blood test.
“If I’m not mistaken, it must have gathered the harmful cells in the blood and forced them out after Odalys’s medicine took effect. Let Orson take Dangelo’s vomit for a test later,” Kenneth said.
He turned around in surprise, looking for Odalys.
Odalys turned and walked out at that moment, followed by Percival.
The corridor was empty except for her and Percival.
“It’s Caspian,” Odalys said.
Percival froze, his deep eyes flickering with surprise. “The one who has a blood relation with Brandon is Caspian?” he asked in a low voice.
“Yes. I put the talismans on Caspian and Atlas. After Henry took them back to Bennett Villa, they had to contact Brandon, so I asked Orson to let him go.
“Orson deliberately let Brandon go. When Brandon returned to Bennett Villa, he might have noticed the shadow of others on Atlas and Caspian, so he asked them what was going on. “With my talismans, whenever Atlas and Caspian wanted to tell the truth, they would be slapped by my talismans, causing them to panic and feel uneasy.
“In the end, Brandon called Caspian away alone. Although I don’t know what they talked about.
“But after the incident, he chose to call Caspian aside to talk alone, which proves he cares more about Caspian. After the incident, Caspian was the only one in the Bennett family who was unscathed.”
Odalys told him all her guesses and analysis in one breath.
She sensed the information from the talisman as soon as she returned to the ward. She also judged the conclusion she had just drawn.
Percival nodded slightly and said, “Caspian has indeed kept himself out of it. He is calmer and more rational than the other two. He doesn’t even interfere in the affairs of the Bennett family. It seems he doesn’t want to get involved.” Moreover, Caspian had been secretly trying to replace Henry.
Odalys said, “However, Brandon only contacted Caspian alone. I’m not sure if Caspian is related to him by blood, but I can be sure Brandon’s blood relative is in the Bennett family.”
Now Caspian was the most suspicious one.
Odalys added, “No wonder Brandon didn’t feel sad at all when the son he carried with him died tragically outside Bennett Villa that night. He tried to find a way to enter Bennett Villa afterward.
“If Caspian is his blood relative, everything makes sense.
“Everything Brandon did was paving the way for Caspian. In addition, he easily found Elias in the East District and wanted to take Sophia for a posthumous marriage.
“I just don’t know if Brandon knew who was behind Elias when he found him. If he knew the person behind was Edie, he still wanted to curry favor with him.”
Chapter 637
“So Caspian deliberately approached and even curried favor with Edie, but pretended to be a coincidence. He catered to Edie so much; maybe his goal is the same as Henry’s.” Percival analyzed her words.
He looked at Odalys.
The two said almost in unison, “The Simpson family.”
As soon as they spoke, they couldn’t help but laugh. They didn’t expect to be so tacitly understanding with each other, and their guesses were so consistent.
Odalys said, “Elias was arrested, and the villa in the East District was sealed up. Edie’s way was blocked. The previous training classes for socialites and the rags-to-riches men have all closed down.
“Edie should be impatient. I just don’t know if she or the Stewart family will make the first move.”
It felt good to be the one pushing the waves behind the scenes.
Now Edie, the Simpson family, and the Bennett family were all passive. They were all acting according to Odalys and Percival’s promotion. They were in a superior position.
“No matter which of them goes first, it’s right to consume them. When they can’t afford it anymore, they will naturally jump out,” Percival said.
He was absolutely in control of such things. Nothing had ever escaped his control.
Odalys said softly, “I just don’t know where Windsor is now.
“It’s been eight hours since Windsor left Film Capital, and I told him he only had 48 hours. If he went over 48 hours, he’d be back to square one.”
Percival raised his wrist and glanced at his watch.
It was eight o’clock in the evening. Night had fallen.
“Windsor didn’t return to Bennett Villa, which means these things are not important to him. He has more important things to deal with,” Percival said.
One must vent if one has been restrained for too long.
Revenge was secondary. Windsor might have something more important to do than revenge. Odalys said, “Dangelo’s condition is under control. With continued medication, it should be completely under control. Once the cancer cells in his body are transformed, I will be able to treat other heads of wealthy families.”
For some reason, Odalys felt everything was going too smoothly.
She felt vaguely uneasy as if she had overlooked something. She tried to grasp it, but it eluded her.
“Things have gone too smoothly. I might have missed something. You’re more rational and calm than me. Review it later and see what we’ve overlooked,” Odalys said again.
Obviously, she also relied on Percival.
She wasn’t prepared to bear the strangeness in her heart alone, so she directly told Percival what she was thinking.
Things were too dangerous, and she wasn’t arrogant enough to think she could handle it herself.
“Don’t worry. I’m here.” Percival reached out and rubbed her hair.
Percival’s action was gentle and indulgent. His move fell into the eyes of Clarence, who had just come out of the ward. Without a word, he turned around and dragged Orson out.
“Grandpa, what are you doing? Take it easy.”
Orson groaned.
He was dragged out by Clarence, who pointed to the distance and said, “Look and learn.”
“What? Learn what, Grandpa? Don’t go. Let me learn what?” Orson was confused.
He turned his head and saw Percival rubbing Odalys’s hair. Percival was taller than Odalys. He naturally bent down when talking to her, lowering his head to speak to her with a rare smile.
“Learning how to pat heads?” Orson asked with a puzzled look.
He stared at the scene, raised his hand, and scratched his head. He felt like many of his brain cells had died.
Until Percival turned to look at him, Orson turned and ducked into the ward the moment their eyes met.
In the ward, Sienna helped Dangelo lie down. Stellan hurriedly climbed out of bed, poured a glass of water for Dangelo, and handed it over, asking, “Dad, how are you feeling?”
“I seem to be in better spirits than before,” Dangelo said.
Sienna was still a little apprehensive, but her eyes were full of longing.
They had been in the hospital for over two months. Although they were staying in a VIP ward, it was the hospital, and the smell of strong disinfectant all day long felt suffocating.
“We can go home once your illness is under control,” Sienna said with emotion.
Orson slipped in at that moment.
He almost twisted his ankle when he lost his footing.
“By the way, any news from Officer Hersey?” Stellan asked with concern.
Lee had saved him several times, and now that he was missing, Stellan was naturally worried. “No. I heard he’s missing. The police can’t find him, not even his body. His wife and daughter have been placed in a high-security residential area. No visitors are allowed, for fear of retaliation.”
“Officer Hersey is a rare good cop, but…it’s coincidental he ran into the suspect he’d been after for ten years,” Dangelo analyzed.
Orson listened quietly, not saying a word.
As they were talking, Dangelo’s lab results from the hospital came back quickly.
The doctor brought the results and handed them to Orson.
“How is it?” Odalys and Percival returned after their discussion.
Orson looked at the results, and a look of joy appeared on his face. Orson said, “The spreading cells have decreased.
“And this is the lab report of the blood he vomited. The cancer cells in the vomited blood are more abundant than those in the normally drawn blood, which also confirms that the blood vomited after taking the medicine is all damaging body tissues.”
Upon seeing that, Sienna also stepped forward and took the report for a look.
She and Dangelo smiled at each other, and their eyes reddened.
Dangelo had been diagnosed with cancer and thought he was going to die, but unexpectedly, they met Odalys. Finally, he had a turning point.
“Odalys, thank you.” Sienna stepped forward and hugged Odalys.
As Odalys was being hugged, she patted Sienna’s back gently and said, “You should thank Orson, not me. He made this medicine.
“The whole process requires his involvement. I only provided the prescription, and he made all the achievements.”
She didn’t want to take credit for it.
Orson didn’t expect to be recommended by her. Logically speaking, most people would take credit for granted, but Odalys didn’t.
He didn’t care about those, but was still a little touched.
They chatted in the ward for a long time. It wasn’t until nine o’clock that Odalys and Percival went downstairs.
The two got into the car, and Percival drove back to Stewart Villa. Neither of them spoke along the way.
“How is Callum’s injury?” Odalys suddenly asked.
Callum had also come to join in the fun during the barbecue today, but the injury on his hand still seemed quite serious, and he couldn’t move it.
“His external injury has healed a lot, but the back of his hand is badly injured, and he still can’t move it,” Percival said.
Every time Percival returned to Stewart Villa, he would meet Callum, so he naturally knew about his injury.
Chapter 638
After returning to Stewart Villa, Percival parked the car, and Odalys jumped out of it.
It was a little cold at night, and the wind made her shrink involuntarily.
A man’s jacket was draped over her. Odalys turned her head and saw Percival walk around before her and pull his jacket closer around her.
“Winter has come. Wear a jacket when you go out,” Percival said.
Odalys was enveloped in his large coat, dispelling the chill from earlier.
She looked up at him and smiled. She nodded and said, “Okay.”
They walked back. Percival’s hand instinctively reached out and held her hand through the fabric of her clothes. Odalys felt a tingling sensation, like an electric current running through her hand at his touch.
Just as she was about to speak, she vaguely heard someone talking in the distance.
“Son, I miss you.” Evander’s voice choked with sobs.
Odalys and Percival stopped walking.
In unison, they turned their heads and looked toward the big tree in the courtyard.
They saw Evander sitting under the tree, wearing the same clothes he had worn. during the afternoon barbecue. Beside him were a spread of wine, pastries, and the leftover barbecue they had packed up earlier.
Evander murmured, “Odalys said she brought you back. You left a note and a cup in her room, but you never came to see me.
“Are you blaming me? I didn’t have a chance to save you back then. The Stewart family was too busy with many things, and I didn’t seem to have taken good care of Percival afterward.
“But whether I did a good job or not, I just want to tell you I miss you.
“If you were still here, you would like Odalys when you see her.”
It was as if Evander was talking to himself or the air.
However, Evander firmly believed his son could hear what he said even if his son didn’t show up.
Otherwise, how could his son have left the word Wait in Odalys’s room? The handwriting was strong, and Evander could still recognize it after all these years. It was his son’s handwriting.
His son had been dead for so many years, but he came back and left a message in the room.
Anyone else would be terrified, but Evander wasn’t. He even stayed up every night, just wanting to wait and see if he
could see his son. Unfortunately, he never did.
Evander never thought about coming back that time in the Time Tunnel.
If it weren’t for Percival and Odalys, Evander wouldn’t want to come back. He wanted to stay there with his son. If it didn’t work once, he would try a hundred times or a thousand times.
‘What if it works once? Can it change the fact that my son is dead?’ thought Evander.
“Evander,” Odalys said softly.
Evander heard her voice and slowly looked up to see Odalys and Percival standing beside him.
His lips moved. Odalys squatted in front of him before he could speak.
“Odalys.” Evander’s voice was bitter.
He didn’t want to upset his children, nor did he want to expose his vulnerability in front of them. He didn’t even mention those things again as if he had forgotten them.
“It’s okay. I’m just bored and sitting here,” Evander said with a bitter smile.
However, the sadness in his eyes was unconcealed.
After all, Evander was so old that it was easy for him to hide his emotions. But his emotions could no longer be concealed. He couldn’t pretend to be joyful.
“I miss my father, too,” Percival suddenly said.
Evander froze for a second.
He watched as Percival picked up a glass of wine and poured it aside.
It was the place where he had personally buried that handful of soil. The last time, it was also he who personally buried his blood there.
The first thing he did every morning when he woke up was to go to stand there for a while.
No one spoke, and time seemed to stand still.
“Good. Good.” Evander’s voice choked with emotion.
He repeated the word Good several times. Looking at Percival’s tall figure, Evander vaguely saw the image of his son when he was young through Percival.
The Stewarts had good genes. Each of them had an extraordinary temperament, the kind of innate aura others did not have. Moreover, they all had great advantages in terms of both appearance and height.
“Do you want to see him?” Odalys suddenly asked.
Percival and Evander were both stunned, thinking they had heard wrong. They looked at her subconsciously.
Odalys said, “Last time I asked you to bury your coagulated blood after you were injured here. The blood of close relatives can awaken the dead soul. It’s been 14 days.
“I’ll find a way to get him to show up. It depends on whether he’s willing to. If he is, I can let you see him.”
However, Percival held her hand.
He longed to see his father, but only if it wouldn’t hurt Odalys.
“You’re too tired today, and you’ve consumed a lot of energy. Will you hurt yourself if you forcibly do it?” Percival asked hurriedly.
Evander saw that and came to his senses.
Evander quickly shook his head and said, “Forget it. I was just sitting here out of boredom. I don’t particularly want to see him. After all, death is like a lamp going out. There’s nothing to see.”
He knew the kind of thing was physically and mentally draining. Moreover, Odalys had been busy all day long. She looked tired now.
Evander didn’t want to be selfish and hurt Odalys.
Odalys didn’t say anything. She took half a step back. Before Percival or Evander could speak, she suddenly bit her fingertip. She suddenly bit her fingernail, and a drop of blood splashed from her fingertips. She flung blood into the air.
The blood hung in the air for a moment, then her hand began to trace shapes.
Golden rays of light appeared in mid-air, converging into rune as her hand moved. The rune rose into the air with her movements.
Golden light descended from the sky, enveloping them.
With a deafening boom, the sky turned pitch black. The moon seemed to be forcibly pushed behind the clouds as a clap of thunder sounded and lightning flashed continuously.
Then, the tree was enveloped in darkness.
Then a figure stood beneath the tree with his back to them. His hands clasped behind his back.
He was tall and dressed in casual white clothes. His posture was elegant as he gazed into the distance. He seemed to sense someone watching him from behind and slowly turned his head.
“Father, you’re here?” the man said calmly.
He turned around slowly. A soft chuckle escaped his lips as he looked at Evander.
“Son.” Evander saw the figure and almost rushed forward regardless of his image, wanting to throw himself into a tight embrace with the man. However, Evander stopped subconsciously when he was half a step away from the man.
Evander was worried he would miss when he stepped forward to hug the man.
What frightened him even more was that it would be a dream. If he stepped forward, he would break the dream.
So Evander didn’t dare.
And he couldn’t.
Evander stood there blankly, a little at a loss, like a child who had done something wrong and not knowing where to put his hands. However, his eyes were always fixed on the man before him.
Chapter 639
Evander looked at his appearance and his elegant and calm demeanor. He was the same as he was before.
“Father, would you like some coffee?” The man suddenly asked.
Then he sat down slowly and quietly made coffee. Evander’s tears almost welled up uncontrollably, and tears blurred his vision.
He looked at his son, who had been dead for twenty years and was now right in front of him.
He sat quietly there, making coffee, holding the same style of coffee cup he loved most before his death. Evander had specially ordered it for him.
After his son’s death, Evander always used this set of coffee cups.
Evander swayed and almost fell. Percival reached out to support him.
“The coffee’s cold. Let me pour you another cup,” the man said.
He kept making coffee as if he was dissatisfied with each cup.
Evander stood there, his lips trembling. He whispered, “It’s okay; the coffee is cold. I will be happy as long as you’re fine.”
The man stopped making coffee just as Evander said his words.
He seemed to remember something or be nervous about something.
The sound of a car could be faintly heard. Evander and Percival turned their heads to see a truck speeding toward them. Without thinking, the man stepped forward and pushed Percival and Evander away.
“Boom.” A truck rammed directly into the man.
His body flew 1.5 feet away from the impact. As he crashed to the ground, his flesh and blood blurred.
“Father,” called Percival.
“Son,” called Evander.
Percival and Evander were startled. They both rushed forward almost simultaneously, wanting to help the man up.
However, the moment they reached out, the man disappeared. When they came to their senses, they found the man standing under the tree again. He looked at the coffee in his cup, saying, “Father, the coffee is cold.”
Evander was stunned.
The truck had hit him just now, but now it was as if nothing had happened to him. “What’s going on?” Evander asked in a hoarse voice.
He was a little too emotional. Percival quickly supported him, worried Evander would faint from the shock.
Percival said, “It should be an endless loop. He was in a car accident before his death. Now that he’s awake, he’ll be chased and hit by that truck again and again.
“Just like what happened to us in the Time Tunnel last time.”
Evander’s heart was breaking as he heard.
He couldn’t imagine his son being hit by a truck over and over again after death.
Evander almost fell to his knees in agony. He didn’t know what he had done wrong to make his son suffer such misfortune. Now, looking at his son alive in front of him, he couldn’t touch him.
“Percival, let’s go! Let’s go back. Hurry. Evander panicked.
He didn’t want to see his son continue to suffer this kind of pain, even if death was painless and without feeling, just a
numb repetition.
However, he didn’t want to see it.
Evander’s son was the apple of his eye. How could he bear to watch him get hurt like that again and again?
Evander didn’t want to see it and wouldn’t see it. He couldn’t see it and didn’t dare to see it.
“Boom!” The truck rushed over again. The man was still sitting there drinking his coffee, seemingly unaware of what was happening.
Percival and Evander saw it. Without a second thought, they rushed over. Just as the car was about to hit, they grabbed the man and dodged out of the way.
However, the moment the truck hit them, it suddenly stopped.
Before they could react, they saw the truck suddenly fall with a “boom” and disappear from their sight.
“What’s going on? The car didn’t hit us?” Evander was surprised.
The man was still drinking his coffee as if everything was under his control.
It was as if neither being hit nor being rescued could affect his mood for drinking coffee.
Before Evander and Percival could recover, they each had a cup of coffee in their hands. Feeling the hot coffee, they came to their senses. They turned their heads and saw the man slowly getting up.
He didn’t speak, nor did he look back. He just lifted his foot and walked toward the darkness.
“Son,” called Evander.
“Father,” called Percival.
But the man walked briskly away. He heard them. He didn’t look back but raised his hand and waved at them. He walked further and further away, and his figure was soon swallowed by the night. As the man’s figure disappeared, the golden light that enveloped the big tree also disappeared.
The dark clouds in the sky were also dispersed, and the moon emerged from them. The moonlight spilled onto the earth, sweeping away the darkness, and the dim lights refracted.
“This?” Evander came back to his senses.
He found he was still holding a cup of coffee, and so was Percival.
They touched the coffee cups and found the coffee was still hot.
The remaining warmth of the coffee told them that what had happened just now was not a dream. What they saw was real. The cups were real, and the coffee in the cups was also real.
“Did I just see your father?” Evander’s voice trembled.
He felt like he had a dream.
The dream was so real, yet it felt so unreal.
“It seems to be real,” Percival said.
The two looked at the coffee in their cups with complicated feelings. When they turned their heads, they found two pieces of cookies on the table missing, and a fruit was gone.
The wine on the table was gone, and the bottle was gone, too.
“They are gone?” Evander was startled.
He looked outside and saw Odalys sitting on a rock nearby, watching them quietly.
Upon seeing their movements, Odalys said, “He took them.”
Her words confirmed what they had seen was real.
Evander hurriedly walked over with the cup, but he didn’t dare to walk too fast, for fear the coffee would spill out. He held it in his hand as if it were a treasure.
“Odalys, was that just a dream or real?” Evander asked nervously.
Looking at his son’s figure, it seemed real.
Otherwise, why would he be holding his son’s favorite coffee cup?
“It’s real,” Odalys said.
She didn’t expect Percival’s blood to awaken a dead person.
At first, she just wanted to experiment- drawing his blood, allowing it to clot, and then burning it beneath the tree. To her surprise, it worked just as she expected. Her sudden success took her by surprise. “Why did the truck appear again? The first time it hit him, but the second time…” Evander trailed off, fear still clinging to his words as he remembered.
If they shared this secret, people would either think they were insane or not take it seriously at all.
“He was trapped in the space between life and death. When people die, their souls often linger at the place of their passing, reliving their final moments.
“Percival’s blood, empowered by Oliver’s charm and mixed with the soil we brought back, might have allowed him to absorb nature’s essence.
“Moreover, this century-old tree holds magical power. Percival has been spending about 30 minutes here every day. Over time, his energy might merge with the tree’s…” Odalys explained
It started as a bold guess but then led her to the truth.
Chapter 640
Odalys stopped mid-sentence and looked up at the big tree. Under it was pitch black, too dark to see anything. She wondered if the darkness was due to the heavy wicked energy or the thick foliage blocking the moonlight.
“What’s wrong?” Percival sensed her pause.
He wasn’t relieved or happy to see his father that night. Seeing that strange look on her face, he sensed that
something more complicated was at play.
“Has he ever been in contact with any mage or powerful expert?” Odalys asked, her voice trembling.
Odalys found it hard to pinpoint what exactly she was looking at. She had a feeling, but it was so elusive.
Percival paused for a few seconds, looked her in the eye, and said, “The reason I married you before was to bring good luck.”
Suddenly, he turned his head to look at Evander. “Grandpa, did the expert I met when I was a child have any dealings with my father? Or were they old acquaintances?”
“Did they meet before my father’s accident?” Percival’s voice trembled slightly.
Odalys’s question seemed to have reminded him of something. Then Percival asked the question, snapping Evander out of his trance.
“Expert? Mage?” Evander narrowed his eyes, once again deep in thought. Memories flooded back from the depths of his mind, and a flicker of confusion crossed his face.
“I think there’s the person that you’re looking for. I’ve got something that will explain why you married Odalys. Come with me,” Evander said as if something had clicked.
He quickly turned and walked towards the Stewart mansion. Despite his old age, he walked with impressive speed and agility. Percival and Odalys followed Evander upstairs to his room.
The bedroom was very large, with a secret compartment against the wall.
Evander opened the compartment and pulled out a stack of old documents.
Then he walked over to the table and laid them out on it.
“I remember there being a draft,” Evander said.
“As he flipped through the documents, Odalys Stone quickly spotted something and pulled it out. The handwriting on it was a jumbled mess.
“Is this it?” Odalys’s voice was shaky. With a glance, the few recognizable words seemed to beckon her.
It was a birthday horoscope, exactly the same as hers.
And there, circled for emphasis, was the surname Bennett. Below it, the words change the fate’ stood out. Those few simple words seemed to hold a world of meaning.
“I guess yes.” Evander quickly put on his glasses and leaned closer to check the paper in her hand.
“After a brief silence, he said emotionally.
“That’s why I came to you about the engagement. My son mentioned something to me when he gave it to me. “After all these years, I completely forgot about it. If not for Percival’s accident, it wouldn’t have crossed my mind. I never thought the Bennett family would let their adopted daughter marry into our family.
“I told them I wanted a girl for my grandson from their family. I assumed they would be bold enough to send a fake. I also had no idea the Bennett family was in chaos back then. By mistake, they sent you.”
“To him, it had always been just talk. But now, it felt like everything was fated, destined.
“Is this your birth date?” Percival stared at the line.
‘The same date we found near the thurible, in the space between the living and the dead,’ he thought.
“His photographic memory allowed him to recognize it instantly, but he still wanted her confirmation.
“Yes,” Odalys replied in a low voice.
Percival tapped his fingers on the table, then pulled a chair over for her and motioned for her to sit. He poured a glass of water for her and Evander.
“They sat around the table, dazed, their gazes fixed on the yellowed drafting paper.
“The person who wrote this was friends with my son, but I never met him. I just heard my son mention him now and then, saying something big was about to go down.
“But the weird thing is, it seems like Odalys wasn’t even born when he wrote it,” Evander murmured.
Odalys’s eyes darkened slightly at his words.
“So, someone predicted the accident and a girl being born into the Bennett family on that very day? Or was it a girl raised by the Bennett family?” Percival sharply got to the crux of the problem.
‘Maybe my father’s friend can actually see the future,’ he mused.
“He told me there would be a major event and an unborn child who would eventually marry you,” Evander murmured as he sipped his water.
So far, the whole thing just sounded plain odd.
“Remember what I told you before?”
Odalys said. “Maybe your father put himself in that situation as bait to set the plan in motion.”
“When Percival nodded, she went on in a whisper, “In other words, your father might have staged his accident or used it to his advantage, even planning the time and place.”
“He even predicted our paths would cross someday, and that my birthdate would be a secret hidden under the thurible.
Everything seemed normal at first glance, but underneath, it was far from it. The events were cloaked in mystery, tempting the trio to uncover the truth, yet filling them with a sense of fear.
“If that was true, wasn’t my son scared that he might die and that what he was told was a lie? Or was he betting his life and even the whole Stewart family?” Evander felt lost.
In his memory, his son was never impulsive. ‘My boy was always super smart, outshining everyone and usually a step ahead,’ Evander thought.
These merits were a key reason the Stewart family thrived under his leadership.
Some called him a prodigy, and many envied Evander for having such a remarkable son. Except for his indifference to women, he was almost perfect in the eyes of others.
“Do you think my teacher and your father might have known each other?” Odalys asked suddenly.
She was startled by her own bold assumption.
Returning to the Bennett family was her teacher’s idea. It had never crossed her mind until he suggested it. With her teacher’s disapproval, the Bennett family wouldn’t stand a chance of finding her, no matter how hard they tried.
Just like when Henry sent people up the mountain to kidnap her teacher, they never even saw him. Instead, they were all injured and had to be carried back.
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