âNever mind then. Iâll wire the fees to you later.â Emmeline wayed her arm.
âSince we havenât started the work. A hundred for the drive here will do,â Benjamin said.
âSure. Thanks.â Emmeline nodded her head.
Benjamin gathered the cleaners. âLetâs go, ladies.â
With the cleaners getting into the vehicles, the two MPVs soon drove off.
Adrien called his security team over. âDeliver these roses to Ryker Group to furnish the lobby.â
The bodyguards rolled up their sleeves and buckled down to sort out the 999 roses.
Emmelineâgot ready to drive the triplets to school.
âPretty mommy?â
A boy raced from the corner of the street and called out to Emmeline in a sobbing voice.
Feeling a tug at her heartstrings, Emmeline abruptly turned around and found Timothy standing there with a backpack.
His chubby face bore hurt and sorrow.
With her vision turning blurry, Emmeline spread her arms apart and cried, âTimmy! Youâre here, Timmy.â
âI miss you like crazy, bro!â The triplets were thrilled.
âWah!â Timothy wailed as he jumped into Emmelineâs embrace and put his arms around the nape of her neck.
âDonât you want me anymore, Mommy? Why are you sending me away?â
âThatâs not true, Timmy. Itâs not that I donât want you. Itâs not up to me to decide when it comes to you.â
Emmeline was overwhelmed by a mix of feelings.
âI donât care! I donât want to leave Mommy! I donât want Alana! Alana is not my mommy!â
âYou canât say that. Although I like and adore you, Iâm an outsider at the end of the day. Alana is your real mommy.â
Adrien drew close and pointed at the triplets. âYeah, Timothy. These three boys are Emmelineâs sons. You are the son of Alana and Abel, not mine and Emmelineâs.â
âYouâre lying. My mommy is Emmeline, not Alana. Youâre all lying to mel âYour daddy is Abel, so that can only mean that your mommy is Alana.â
âNo, my daddy is Abel, and my mommy is Emmeline. You got it wrong!â
Emmeline pulled Timothy into her arms. âTimmy, your mommy is Alana. Donât get into it with her. She loves you. All mommies love their children.â
âBut Alana doesnât love me. My gut feeling is telling me that Iâve been kidnapped, and the kidnapper is Alana!â Timothy played those puppy dog eyes to the core as tears ran down his cheeks.
âDonât say that. Why would she do that to her own son?â Emmeline brushed away his tears.
âMommy, why canât Timothy stay with me? I feel bad for him.â Helios felt the urge to cry too.
Endymionâs eyes welled up. âYeah, Mommy. I get the feeling that Timothy and we are real brothers.â
âI think so too. I bet his mommy isnât Alana. You adults got it mixed up!â Hesperus was crying at this point.
âMommy, donât send me away.â Timothy choked with sobs.
Tucking his little frame against her chest, Emmeline patted his back. âBe a good boy. It will freak everybodyâ out if you leave the school on your own. Iâll drive you back.â
Timothy clung tightly to Emmeline, refusing to let go. âI donât want to go back. Sob, sob, sob. I donât want to leave you. Donât leave me. Sob, sob, sobâ¦â
âEmmeline! So it was you who abducted my child!â Alanaâs angry voice came from behind.
âHave you no shame, Emmeline?â
Rosaline was here too. She scowled and shouted, âYouâre Adrienâs woman, and you gave birth to his children. Stop hitting on Abel and steering Timmy away from us.
Alana is carrying another child now. Have you no morals?â
Emmeline rose to her feet. âI did Bothing of that sort. I never seduced Abel. You got the wrong idea about me!â