Chapter 2004

Rhea stood behind her mother, silently watching her figure with deep, enigmatic eyes.

“He is my colleague,” Rhea spoke calmly, “He’s aware of this situation too.”

“Colleague?” Maria turned to look at her daughter. She was uncertain and somewhat skeptical.

Maria had been living in pain since Rhea faked her death. The former only regained her courage to continue living when her daughter returned. Maria followed her daughter’s instructions without question since her return.

Whatever her daughter said, she obeyed. Maria had no other desires as long as her daughter was content. Nothing else mattered to Maria anymore.

“Yup.” Rhea nodded, looking at Mike. “This is my mom. Since you’re here today, you’re already an accomplice. Do you think you can still stay out of this?”

Mike hesitated. He did not want to get involved but seemed trapped between a rock and a hard place.

After a moment of thought, he decided to bring the situation under control.

He took a deep breath and looked at Maria. “That’s right, I’m Rhea’s colleague, and we’re currently working together. You can rest assured I won’t disclose anything that happens here.”

“Can we trust him?”

However, his words did not ease Maria’s worries. She turned to her daughter doubtfully and asked, “Is it possible he may be lying to you? Men are good at deceiving people.”

Mike remained silent.

Rhea said smilingly, “Mom, you’re overthinking. I’m not dating him, so what could he lie to me about?

Besides, even if he wanted to lie to me, he must be skilled enough.”

Rhea’s provocative and confident eyes seemed to imply she firmly believed Mike could not escape from her grasp and that everything was under her control.

Mike laughed dryly, unsure how to respond to the mentally abnormal mother and daughter.

Maria felt slightly reassured when she saw her daughter’s confidence. However, she could not help but sigh after hearing what Rhea said. “Speaking of which, you should be dating, getting married, and having children at your age. But now, sigh…”

It was a trigger topic for most people, immediately annoying Rhea as she frowned. “Mom!”

With just that one word, Maria flinched like a child who had said something wrong, covering her mouth and saying, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have said those things. I have no complaints as long as you’re alive and well. Nothing else matters.”

Rhea said nothing more after seeing her mother’s reaction.

Upon hearing this, Mike finally understood the situation. Maria was probably traumatized by Rhea’s fraudulent death. That was the reason why she would unquestioningly comply with whatever Rhea said. Moreover, Maria did not seem normal based on her current mental state.

He pursed his lips and said, “Actually… our laboratory’s experiment is complete. Rhea can go back to her normal life. Mrs. Moore, if you want her to have a normal life—”

Before he could finish, Rhea interrupted him, “Shut up!”

“Is that true?” Maria looked at Rhea with hopeful eyes.

However, after hearing Rhea’s rebuke, Maria cautiously glanced at her. Maria shook her head, saying, “It doesn’t matter. That’s enough for me as long as my Ree is happy doing what she wants. No, it doesn’t matter…”

Mike raised an eyebrow, giving a meaningful smile. He said nothing further afterward.

Rhea cleared her throat and said, “Mom, you should leave. We’re about to leave, too.”