âDamn it, Evan! You brought this upon yourself!â murmured Nicole to herself. She felt as if an invisible hand was pulling her down and drowning her in fear. Hating someone isnât as easy as I thought it would be. As much as I hate Evan, I donât want him to die.
Nicole clutched at her hair as tears ran down her cheeks.
To prevent the nightmare from becoming reality, she decided to spend more time with Levant in order to make sure that he would not have the time to hurt Evan.
Levant was puzzled by Nicoleâs unusual behaviors. Maybe sheâs getting attached to me because weâre getting married soon, and sheâs just happy to be my bride.
Although they were together most of the time, Levant could not help noticing how distant Nicole was. To him, it felt like Nicole was simply tailing him for some reason, as she would always ask where he was going.
âNicole, Whatâs with the sudden clinginess?â
Nicole kept quiet and only responded with a faint smile.
Whenever Levant tried to get close to her, she would keep her distance and nervously say, âWeâre not married yet, Levant.â
Howâs that an excuse? She never got married to Evan, yet they had four children and were living like a married couple.
Realizing that Nicole had not accepted him, Levant gave her a half-smile. âFine. After marriage it is then. Letâs get married the day after tomorrow.â
Thatâs two days earlier. But I guess thatâs fine. The sooner we get married, the sooner Stephen can return to the estate. I might even be able to look for Evan as madam president of the Wicked Palace once I become Levantâs wife.
âSure.â
Levant only felt better when Nicole agreed with him.
The four little ones were baffled when they noticed how their mother seemed to be getting tangled up with Levant instead of looking for their father.
âHow could Mommy do this?â sighed Juan.
âDoes she really not care about Daddy anymore?â asked Nina, who was confused.
Rubbing her chubby little hands, Maya thought it was wrong of her mother to be so cold. I told her that Iâd cry until Iâm out of tears if Daddy died. Does she not care? Mommy seems to only care about Levant.
Standing aside with a blank expression, Kyle crossed his little arms in silence.
The boy believed in his mother, for he noticed how worried she seemed to be these days. Whenever she came home from Levantâs, she would look sad.
Kyle believed that there was a reason his mother got close to Levant. Sheâs probably doing it to find Daddy. But, with that many guards in the Wicked Palace, it must be hard to find him. What can we do to find him as soon as possible?
âStop complaining about Mommy. We should think of a way to help instead,â suggested Kyle to his three siblings, who sighed before starting to brainstorm.
In the afternoon, Juan pretended to play with Kyle as he ran around in the Wicked Palace, taking the chance to map out the place in his mind. After that, the two returned to their bedroom to draw out an actual map and analyze where their father would most likely be held at.
Juan drew circles on the drawing with his little hand. âThis spot and this spot are the most hidden. Do you think this is where Daddyâs at?â
âLetâs mark all the suspicious spots and go through them one by one. I believe weâll find Daddy that way,â replied Kyle after some thought.
After deciding on a few spots and sneaking their black suits out of the suitcase, the two talked on their bed and waited for nightfall.
Juan suddenly sighed, âI heard that Mommyâs getting married to Levant the day after tomorrow. If we canât find Daddy by then, do you have any idea how to stop the wedding?â