After school, Sophia returned home with the rosary around her neck. The black obsidian cross was hard to miss and easily recognizable with a mere glance.
Michael had already warned her not to have any interaction with the Mitchells. Not only did she meet up with Woody, but she even brought Cooperâs rosary home with her.
The moment she opened the door when she arrived home, she saw Michael watching TV on the couch.
Nathan dashed for his new toy as soon as he went to the door while she stood without moving, afraid to step in.
Seeing that no one was in the living room, Nathan went out to play with the toys in his hands. With nobody else around, she faced her back to the living room with an anxious yet reddened face before poking her butt in.
Since she had done something wrong and deserved to be punished, she should enter with her butt first.
Actually, Michael had already known about the events that transpired for the past couple of days and he was strongly adamant of her not being involved with the Mitchells. Like a quagmire, it would be impossible to break free once contact, even a minute one, was made.
Yesterday, she had offended the eldest daughter of the family head of the Mitchell Family, Natasha, whereas today, she kept Cooperâs rosary, which all the descendants of the family had been aggressively eyeing for.
He thought to himself sarcastically, How amazing she is!
It was getting harder to suppress the fact that she was born with the Mitchellsâ genes.
Setting aside the fact that Woody mistook her for his son with a mere glance, even his slow-witted grandfather, Mark, had called to confirm her background a couple of days ago. âAre you sure that girl is from the Edwards Family, and not the Mitchells?â he had asked in a serious tone.
Her involvement with the Mitchells were getting deeperâwhether she knew it or not.
Despite that, the frustrations he had inside for the entire day evaporated when he saw how she wriggled her butt through the door earlier. Standing up, he paced over and gave her butt a tight slap.
Smack! Sophiaâs face reddened, but she was afraid to withdraw her butt.
Michael gave her a few more slaps in succession, with each one being louder than the last.
Smack! Smack! âHave you realized your mistake?â he asked sternly when she was silent and afraid to say something.
She lowered her head and answered, âYes.â
He slapped her again, but stroked it afterward. âWhat did you do wrong?â
âI shouldnât have been involved with the Mitchells,â she answered timidly.
After giving Sophia another slap, Michael asked, âWhat else?â
Retracting her head, she said, âI shouldnât have accepted Cooperâs amulet.â
Then, she surrendered the rosary herself.
Upon taking the rosary from her, he still felt her warmth radiating from it and it felt different as it was a little warmer than his own. With the amulet in hand, he headed into the living room with her following behind and standing at the side as her head drooped.
Staring at the rosary in his hand, it looked exactly as how he remembered it to be. It was said that Woody had obtained it from a high priest and Cooper had worn it since childhood, never removing it even once.
In every photo of Cooper, the rosary could be seen. It was all a terrified Michael had subconsciously stared at every time he was writing in front of Cooper. Over a long period of time, he was brainwashed by what he saw and the rosary became a nightmare from his childhood!
Legend had it that it was a rock with spiritual powers. Therefore, everything was smooth sailing for Cooper since young because of the rockâs blessings.
He later passed away because he had removed the rosary. The first time that he took it off was the time when he met with a car accident.
The descendents of the Mitchell Family had vied aggressively over each other for it, but Woody regarded it as his life and wouldnât give it to anyone.
However, he had easily passed it to Sophia.
Of course, Michael didnât believe that the rock had any spiritual powers at all; it was merely an amulet.
Back then, Cooper probably had already prepared himself to completely sever his ties with the Mitchells and even removed the rosary to return it to Woody. Maybe he didnât want to take anything away from the Mitchells.
Based on the information that Hale had given Michael, Woody had privately sought out Annabel and offered a sum of money to leave his son in an attempt to force them apart when her relationship with Cooper was exposed. At the same time, he lied to Cooper that he had her killed.
As kind-hearted as Woodyâs solution to the problem was, it still created a wedge between father and son, turning them into strangers from then on. It was probably around that time when Cooper hatched a plan to sever all ties with the Mitchells! For ten long years, he planned the future of the Mitchells and Woody before leaving with no loose ends and anything that belonged to the family behind.
Michael held the rosary in his hand for a long time until it became warm, but for some unknown reason, it didnât feel like his own warmth on the rosary. Rather, it still felt like Sophiaâs warmth and he sighed.
Maybe this rock really has spiritual powers and can recognize its owner!
Sophia was still nervousâshe had liked the rosary and wanted to wear it for a couple more days before returning it, but he would never permit that.
Focusing on the rosary before looking at Michael, who was holding it, she observed that he would sigh for a moment before frowning in the next second.
Suddenly, he patted his own thigh and called out to her, âCome over here, chica.â
She went over and sat on his thighs before he put the amulet on her. âThis rock has spiritual powers and it will bless you in your studies if you wear it.â
It could have been her fate with the rosary. Although Woodyâs eyesight was failing him, he could somehow tell that Cooperâs child had returned.
With the rosary around her neck, Sophia was absolutely delighted as she admired it in her hands.
Michael had almost blurted out the truth about her background a few times when he saw how happy she was, but he held back on his urge.
At that point, he had much more to considerâshe was Cooperâs daughter, the one who inherited his insane genes and that made her as good as a sleeping dragon! It was only a matter of time before she would break through the skies and he felt that he wouldnât be able to keep her protected much longer.
Sooner or later, the Mitchells would discover her identity!
It was as though the blood flowing in her was gradually drawing her closer to the Mitchell Familyâs quagmireâand unless she stayed at home for the rest of her life, there was no other way to prevent it.
He growled internally, However, if sheâs sucked into their family conflicts⦠That will be a massive headache!
Michael had once made up his mind to bring the secret to his grave, but it was getting arduous to conceal Cooperâs genes in Sophia and he had to be prepared for the day when she would be discovered.
If only Cooper could be found nowâ¦
As he decided on what to do next, he reminded, âMinimize your contact with the Mitchells, but Old Master can be an exception. Heâs getting on in his years and doesnât have any children, so you can go and visit him whenever youâre free!â
Sophia was overjoyedâhe had outdone himself in being kind! He has really lived up to his name as an idol! No matter from which angle you look at him, heâs perfect and shining with the brilliance of humanity 365 days of the year!
After receiving the amulet, she wore the rosary.on a daily basis. Perhaps she could have been possessed by the prodigyâs soul, but she felt that her brains were more active and she was able to learn things at a faster rate.
Within a few days, she had discreetly passed a professional-grade minority language exam and obtained a third-level certificate in Computer Science without a glitch.
Her obsession with obtaining certificates was something that she couldnât control and she suddenly received a call from the university one day. âIs this Miss Edwards? The finals for Miss Misty Pageant, which you had registered for, has been brought forward to the 18th. It will be held at the universityâs main auditorium at 2 in the afternoon. Please be prepared beforehand!â