The squad memberâs eyes turned bloodshot as he dashed forward while yelling, âMs. Woods? Ms.
Woods, where are you?â
âIâm here, Mr. Dahl! Iâm hereâ¦â
Amidst the ruckus, a familiar female voice rang out, accompanied by a series of coughs. She seemed
shaken.
The squad member, Karsten Dahl, scurried toward her instantly.
Indeed, in the emergency ward that was blown up, he saw a woman curled up in a corner shaking in
fear. She was both bruised and battered from the explosion.
âMs. Woods, donât be afraid. Are you all right?â Karsten hurried to her side and checked her condition.
Luckily, though she was injured, it wasnât serious. The moment Karsten arrived, Kira collapsed to the
ground in fear.
âDevin! I-I want Devinâ¦â she wailed like a traumatized child.
Grabbing Karstenâs arm, she demanded to see Devin.
Karsten was at a loss for words.
He took one look at her and picked her up.
After they entered his SUV parked outside the hospital, he drove back to their base.
Back in Avenport.
To prepare for tonightâs dinner with Solomon and the Hayeses, Sasha woke up early to head to the
hotel so that she could select the dishes herself.
Sebastian could barely conceal the shadow on his face.
âYou seem to care for him a lot,â he remarked gloomily.
âAh?â Sasha raised her head and looked at him. âSebby, stop it. Iâm doing this for you! If he resigns,
youâll have to return to Hayes Corporation!â she uttered with a pout.
Sebastian fell silent. Whatâs going on? Iâm the upset one, but why do I have to coax her now? Sheâs
grown smart now, huh?
Realizing the situation was now in her control, the man clenched his teeth angrily.
The moment she shot him a pitiful gaze, his heart had already melted into a puddle.
He strode over and pulled her into his embrace before planting a firm kiss on her lips as a form of
punishment. He then released her.
âAll right. Drive safe. I wonât be home today.â
âMm?â Sashaâs brain was fuzzy from the sudden kiss. His words didnât really register in her brain.
âWhere are you going?â
âI have an appointment with the customsâ Sebastian answered. He didnât reveal much, though.
Customs? Is this about the Jadesonsâ smelting plant? How does it concern the customs? Is it part of
something complicated?
Sasha broke out into a cold sweat.
However, she didnât press the issue any further.
After all, she knew the Jadesons werenât ordinary businesspeople. They also had connections with the
political world.
Ten minutes after Sasha left, Sebastian grabbed his keys and went down the stairs.
On the way out, he heard a commotion from Ianâs room that was right beside the stairs.
âHurry, Daddyâs coming downstairs. We have to end the call so that he wonât find out!â An adorable
voice demanded anxiously.
Sebastian heard footsteps pacing around nervously inside, and everyone stopped talking.
Little imp, Iâm not deaf!
Sebastian pretended not to hear them and walked down the stairs calmly.
When his car disappeared from sight, the three kids ran out of the room and made sure he had left for
real before heaving sighs of relief.
âThank goodness he didnât find out.â
âRight. If Daddy finds out weâve been video calling Great-grandpa, heâll yell at us. Matt, Ian, I heard him
first. I did a good job, right?â Vivian leaned on the railing as she tried to fish for praise.
Matteo patted her head. âYes, you did a good job. Remember to always stay alert!â
âMm!â Though Ian was a child of few words, he responded in the positive.
The three of them went back to Ianâs room.
âIan, Great-grandpa wants to visit us. What should we do? He also reminded us to keep it a secret from
Daddy. What is going on?â Matt asked in confusion.
Vivian chimed in, âYeah, I donât get it, too.â
A cool glint flashed across Ianâs face. âHeâs too proud!â
Both Matteo and Vivian were speechless.
Blinking in confusion, Vivian stared at Matt before turning to Matt as her fatherâs expressionless face
appeared in her mind.