Chapter 958: Chapter 961

After pulling away from the hug, the two of them walked out of the garage laughing and saw Michael in front of them.

“Linus, you’re back.”

Michael spoke as if he never treated himself as an outsider at all.

Looking at the matching shirts Sophia and Michael were wearing, Linus subconsciously shifted his gaze.

“Yes, I’m back.”

However, Michael thought there was something different about Linus today, but he could not put his finger on it.

Since it was the new year’s, it was great that he was back to celebrate with everyone. It would not be the same without Linus.

After his return, he went to meet Cooper, who was in his study.

“I’ve met with the Family Elders Council and told them about Sophia’s situation. I managed to buy some time for her and Carmen to prepare.”

In fact, the council was getting impatient. They wanted Sophia and Carmen to return to the Michel family as soon as possible, but Cooper had not settled their registries yet.

However, the Fletcher Family certainly would not let Carmen go easily, and Cooper did not know how to tell Mark about it.

As for Sophia… He was more worried about her. If she returned to the family now, she would have to undergo DNA tests. She was the daughter of Fass Michel, so she would naturally be the focus of the council. They were hoping for her to be Fass’s second in command, and that she would take over the responsibilities soon. However, with Sophia’s current situation, there was definitely no way she could take over the responsibilities of the Michel Family so soon.

While Linus and Alice both grew up receiving elite education from the Michel Family and Cooper’s guidance, Sophia was too inexperienced compared to them.

To Cooper, she was still his dog-leash-selling baby. If she returned to the Michel family now, she would have to compete with Linus and Alice. She was still lacking in terms of resources, experience, and connections.

This time, Linus had gone back just to buy a little more time for them.

After hearing Linus’s report, Cooper patted his shoulder and said sincerely, “You’ve done well.”

In fact, Linus had never let him down. Although he had gone astray once, he found his way back to the right path. How Cooper wished Linus was his son.

Meanwhile, Linus also asked about Cooper’s son, to which Cooper replied there was no progress at all.

They had investigated all the possible high-profile local couples who had left the country, but they still found nothing.

His child seemed to have just disappeared.

Looking at the dejected Cooper, he comforted him. “We’ll find him.”

Cooper smiled helplessly.

He was overwhelmed by everything that was going on, and he could only feel a deep sense of helplessness.

Just then, Linus was about to say something, but he hesitated and decided not to say anything, It was bizarre that Cooper’s son could not be found for such a long time. With Cooper’s capability, as long as his child was still alive, he could definitely find some clues. But now, other than the leads from Michael, he made no progress.

Now, Cooper was hoodwinked by Daniel. He believed that everything was up to fate and that his son would just magically appear out of nowhere.

However, Linus was still a little wary.

This matter had not been progressing for a long time, and he suspected there was someone else behind this who was trying hard to hide something. On top of that, there weren’t many people in Bayside City that could keep something hidden so well that not even Cooper could find it, and Michael was one of them.

Recently, he crawled through dog doors, endorsed stainless steel basins and sanitary pads, and he appeared on a local TV drama. He was tarnishing his own reputation again and again, which caused Cooper’s impression of him to become progressively worse. To Cooper, he was just a sleazy and lowly son-in-law. However, Linus thought he was deliberately acting this way to lead Cooper to forget that he was Mr. Nobody—who, along with Harry, dominated Bayside City’s underworld!

He was a mafia boss, so how could he not be able to find Cooper’s son? That was unless he was doing that on purpose. But, why? Was he afraid that the return of Cooper’s son would jeopardize Sophia’s position?

Even so, Michael should know that Cooper would not treat Sophia poorly even if his son did return.

As for Sophia’s position, there was no need to worry at all. She was capable, and no one could threaten her status. If she wasn’t, then it didn’t matter whether Cooper’s son returned, because she would be threatened by many.

At that moment, Cooper noticed that Linus was hesitant to speak, but seemed to have something important to say. “Is there something else, Linus?”

Coming back to his senses, he answered, “I’ve told the elders about my intention to marry Sophia, and all of them approved of it.”

At once, Cooper fell silent.

At this point in time, Linus and Sophia getting married would be the simplest and the most mutually beneficial way.

However…

A few days ago, Mark’s passing was all over the news!

As soon as they heard the news, the entire Edwards residence was shaken. Everyone rushed to the military compound, only to see Mark and his friends doing Tai Chi exercises in full spirit.

He mischievously said to everyone who had rushed there, “Shh! Keep this a secret. Everyone is always accusing Mikey of using me to climb to the top, and I’m starting to become a taboo to Mikey. So, I deliberately told them to spread the news. Once everyone believes that I’m dead, no one will question Mikey’s success anymore.”

“Besides, the promotional period for ‘The Winter Breakthrough’ will be starting soon. With the entire country shocked by my passing, the film could ride on the wave of this news and it surely will be a box office hit!”

Upon hearing this, everyone was at a loss of words.

This old man was actually quite generous in a way.

He really worked hard to hype up Michael’s new film.

Ever since Michael claimed his ancestry and his identity as Mark’s grandson was revealed, all his hard work seemed to have been invalidated.

When his debut film blew up, everyone assumed the Fletcher Family was behind the high box office sales, and that the good reviews of all his subsequent films were written by ghostwriters that the Fletcher Family hired.

Even when he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, many speculated that the Fletcher Family had pressured the organizing committee to present the award to him.

Furthermore, they all thought they were behind every blockbuster that he worked on.

Since he was the favored grandson of Mark Fletcher, all his achievements must have been the result of his grandfather’s influence and affection!

As a matter of fact, the old man was a hundred years old, and this should be the time for him to enjoy his remaining years. Instead, he was being dragged through the mud. As such, he was annoyed and thought it was best to just play dead.

Realizing it was a false alarm, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Since they were already there, they thought they might as well have a meal together before leaving. Before that, Michael brought Sophia and Carmen to Joel’s place while Cooper and Mark played a game of chess.

During their game, Cooper wanted to tell Mark about changing Carmen’s name, but everytime he wanted to, he changed his mind.

“Is there something bothering you, Coop?” Mark’s wise eyes were still sharp. He knew at a glance that something was stressing him out.

When he was about to speak, Mark hurriedly said, “No, no, don’t tell me. I’m already a dead man, so just pretend that I don’t exist anymore. Settle your problems on your own!”

Hearing this, Cooper was speechless.

Was Mark giving him the greenlight?