At Sylvia’s residence. The barbecue ingredients that Sylvia spent hours preparing had to be put back into the icebox. Without Liam present, Isabel hardly had any appetite. It was only under Sylvia’s insistence that she took several bites. The child sat on her lap with her eyes drowned in pools of tears as she rambled on and on,” Mommy, do you think the stinky uncle will give brother a hard time?” Sylvia answered, “He probably won’t. ” “But he’s so scary. I don’t think brother can stand up to him. ” Sylvia smiled softly. “He treats your brother the same way your mommy treats you. ” “But Mommy never gets angry at me and also won’t stop me from playing with brother. “ Sylvia felt a lump in her throat. “That’s because he doesn’t know you’re his daughter yet. ” Isabel gasped. “Does this mean he will let us play together if he knows?” Sylvia fell silent. If Odell discovered the truth, the chances that he would take Isabel back to the Carters were high. That way, Isabel would get to play with Liam all the time. However, it would come at the cost of her being separated from both her children for good. Before Sylvia could elicit a response, Isabel turned to her with eager eyes. She immediately noted the sorrowful look in her mother’s eyes. She muted her enthusiasm. “Mommy, who cares about him knowing anyway?” Sylvia smiled. “But if he knows, he might let you be with your brother. ’ “Then, I’ll have to leave Mommy,” Isabel said with a pout, “I don’t want to leave Mommy. ” Sylvia was deeply reassured by the child’s genuine affection, and she felt her nose tingling. She hugged her daughter tightly and gently told her, “Isabel, Mommy will think of something to bring your brother here. Besides, Liam and Isabel were in the same kindergarten and could still see each other during the day. So long as Odell did not transfer Liam to another kindergarten, she could find a way. Early morning at the Bakers’, when the butler knocked on the door, Odell, who had been sitting on the chair all night, snapped his eyes open. He glanced at the bed. Liam, who had stubbornly stayed up and glared at him last night, had fallen asleep sometime. in the night. He was peacefully sleeping on his side of the bed. At the head of the bed, the plate of food they had prepared for him remained completely untouched. Liam did not so much as nibble at the food. A heavy look surfaced in Odell’s eyes. He got up and opened the door

He immediately instructed the butler, “Prepare some breakfast for him. ” Noticing that Odell was leaving, the old butler quickly asked, “Master Odell, it’s time for school soon. Won’t you let the young master out?”. Odell looked back at Liam. The boy was still sleeping soundly on the bed. Odell scoffed and declared, “Keep him here. We’ll decide what to do after he eats. ” He refused to believe that he could not drill this lesson into the brat. ……. The day passed in the blink of an eye. It was evening, and school had ended for Isabel. Sylvia arrived at the gate of the kindergarten on time. After waiting for a while, she saw Isabel walking out sullenly with a small pink schoolbag slung on her shoulders. “Isabel,” Sylvia called out to her. “Mommy!” Isabel ran to her immediately when she saw her. Sylvia embraced her and asked, “Why are you by yourself? Where’s your brother?”. “Brother didn’t come today. I went to ask the teacher, and the teacher said that his family requested leave for him. He won’t answer my calls either,” Isabel answered dully. Sylvia frowned. “Mom, did the stinky uncle lock brother up?” Isabel asked in concern. The concerned Sylv ia knitted her brow s together tightly. Isabel was so upset that Liam could not come to t he barbecue last night that she had broken down i n tears. Knowing Liam, he was probably more upset. Although the boy rarely expressed his emotions, he had m ore or less inherited Odell’s bad temper. He must have g otten in trouble with Odell when he went home last night. Since he was absent today, it must hav e been a huge fight. Being a three-year-old, the only weapon he had against Odell was to refuse to eat at the demise of his physica l health. There was no other leverage he had over Odell. The more Sylvia thought about it, the more worried she became. She s aid to Isabel, “Don’t worry. Mommy will take you home first, and then go to see your brother. ” With that, she brought Isabel into the car. She first took Isabel back home to entrust her to Aunt Tonya, then she drove to the Carters’. It took almost an hour for her to reach th e Carters’. The day was just turning to dus k, and the sky above was rapidly darkening

Sylvia parked the car somewhere hidden, then she put on a hat and then felt he r way toward the back exit of the manor. She was going to c limb over the wall to look for Liam. However, she was completely oblivious to the fact that there was someone else parked underneath the sha de of the trees on the other side, and the passengers in the car noticed her. Tara investigated the sus picious figure and turned to Odell. “Odell, is it just me, or does this person look a bit like Sylvia?” . Odell was about to get out of the car when she said this. He observed the figure again. Moments afte r, he broke into a smile. Who els e could it be? . Sylvia felt he r hands touchin g the backdoor. It w as cl osed. After checking that nobody was passing by, she immediately climbed to the to p of the wall by launching herself off a tree next to the wall. Then, she hop ped off the wall. She landed firmly on both feet before she began to advance. It was around this point t hat she heard a rapid choru s of footsteps approaching. In the blink of an eye, she found herself surrounded by a group of large bodyguards. Shortly after that, a tall figure appear ed from behind them. The handsome, charming prince wore a s toic expression, but a satisfied, cunni ng grin soon broke through the surface. Sylvia took a step back. S he smiled and greeted, “Go od evening, Master Odell. Odell dismissed the greeting w ith a scoff before ordering the bodyguards, “Bring her to me!” . Just as the bodyguards swarmed forward, Sylvia turned and tried to j ump over the wall. However, she was not quick enough and they managed to grab hold of her legs in time. She was yanked back to the ground. Two bodyguards stepped forward and ti ed her hands and feet down with ropes , so Sylvia was forced to the ground. Odell walked up to her and looked down at her with disdain. “What happened? Aren’t you goo d at escaping? Care to show me a few tricks?” . “I’m afraid you’ll have to untie the ropes before I can put on a show for you,” Sylvia answered wi th a grin. Her smile was both candid and seducing. Odell gave her a look, then he squatted in front of her, raised his hand, and pinched her face. His fingertips were war m to the touch, but the pinch did not hurt much. Sylvia was puzzled by this and asked, “Why are you pinching me?” . Odell quipped, “I wanted to see how t hick your skin is. Sylvia decided to rile him up. “The way you touch me so softly and gently makes me wonder if y ou were trying to take advantage of me because of how pretty I am. ” Odell’s expression was wip ed away in an instant, and he suddenly pinched her cheeks harder, making Sylvia wince in pain