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CHAPTER b089 /b

JULIAN’S POV

“Thank you,” I said to the delivery guy, handing over the cash for his fee and collecting the brown paper bags filled with the food I had ordered earlier. He nodded, gave me a half–smile, and turned back toward his motorbike.

With the bags in hand, I turned around and walked back into the orphanage. The kids. had already been taken back to their rooms, just like I had instructed. I could hear soft chatter andughter from one of the rooms upstairs, and it brought a small, fleeting. smile to my face.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. A call. Again. My eyes nced at the screen and saw the name sh across: Mom.

For a brief moment, I considered ignoring it. After all, I had just spoken to her not even an hour ago. But I couldn’t forget the fact that she had helped me out earlier today. Whether or not I liked it, I owed her a little grace. I sighed and epted the call. bracing myself for whatever she was about to throw at me.

“Julian, you’re so lucky you picked up. I was already starting to think you’d backstabbed me,” she said

“You spoke to me less than an hour ago,” I replied, trying to keep my voice calm. “What can I help you with now, Mom?”

“You’ve gotten what you wanted, and now your shoulders are high,” she said in that sarcastic tone she had mastered over the years. “Very funny. Anyway, I just wanted to inform you that I’ll being to your city.”

I froze.

Her words hit me like a p across the face. Did I hear that right?

“What did you just say?” I asked slowly, unsure if I even wanted to hear it again.

“I’ming to your city,” she repeated as if it were the most casual thing in the world.

“I didn’t ask you toe. Why would you want toe here?” I asked, already feeling the tension rise in my chest.

“You didn’t ask me to be/b, that’s why I’ming,” she said tly. “Since you wouldn’te to me, I’lle to you.

I could hear the sound of a zipper being yanked through fabric in the background. Great–she was already packing.

God, why would she evere sessfully unlocked!

y unlocked this, she was the reason why I left the house and came here, she .t, and now when I thought I was safe she wasing down here.

“Don’t worry, I’m not staying forever,” she added, her voice much too cheerful for my

liking. “It’s just for a few days. Besides, there’s enough room in the mansion. So why are you sounding like this?”

Am not even going to answer this question, there was too much going on right now. for her toe and add to the stress, I wasn’t free at the moment and I didn’t want her to find out about any of this.

“Mom, my hands are full at the moment. I’m hardly around, so there’s really no point in youing,” I tried again, hoping logic would work.

But of course, it didn’t.

“No, you can’t change my mind, son,” she said. “I’ve packed my bags and booked my flight, so I’ll see you soon.

And with that, she ended the call.

Just like that.

I stared down at my phone, still blinking from the disconnection, and felt a headacheing on.

Jeez… if she really came here, it would throw everything upside down.

We’d been walking a tightrope, carefully bncing every move. One wrong step, one unexpected variable–and everything could fall apart. My mother, in all her dramatic, overbearing glory, was the very definition of chaos. There were still people in the house that she didn’t know about, people she wouldn’t understand if she did. And I highly doubted she’d be able to tolerate living under the same roof with actual mercenaries. Hell, she’d probably call the police the moment she saw one of them cleaning a gun or sharpening a de at the kitchen table.

My stomach let out a small, hollow growl, interrupting the thoughts going through my head. I let out a sigh and shifted my weight, If she’d already booked her ticket, then what could I do? It was already out of my hands. She wasing, whether I liked it or

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Fine. Let here.

I’d just have to make sure the others didn’t cross her path. Maybe I could rent a temporary ce for Ron and the rest to stay there. It wouldn’t be ideal, but it was the best y. Once she realized no one was around to entertain her or give her attention, she’d get bored and leave, I hope.

With that thought half–settled in my mind, I walked into the office and sank into a chair, not far from where the investigators were working. Each screen still disys paused frames, zoom–ins, and files.

They were neck–deep in trying to figure out what happened, and I appreciated their persistence.

But at that moment, all I could bthink /babout was food. My stomach wasn’t letting me

forget how long I had gone without eating.

I dug into the delivery bag and pulled out the steaming bowl of ramen along with a container of stick chips. The savory aroma hit my nose immediately, making my mouth water. I opened the lid, grabbed a fork, and began to eat like a man starved for days. The rich broth and spices filled my mouth, bringing a warmth I didn’t realize I needed. m sure Olivia would have loved the taste of this. I swallowed that thought along with a mouthful of noodles.

Just then, one of the investigators approached, holding a USB stick in one hand and a focused look on his face. “We were able to ess footage from a nearby street cam,” he said. “You’re going to want to see this.”

He didn’t wait for my response–just turned on his heel and headed back to the row ofputers.

I wiped my mouth quickly and followed him, still holding my bowl of ramen because yeah–I was that hungry.

“Alright then,” I muttered under my breath. “Let’s see where you came from, Liv.”

As I walked up behind the investigator, he inserted the USB into the port and tapped at few keys. The footage began to y, and immediately I noticed how sharp it was. The

lution was leagues ahead of what we had from the orphanage cams. I could

make out the people walking by, the details of their clothes, even their facial

essions

was baffling that a random street cam could provide better footage than the one installed in a supposedly secure facility. This ce definitely needed some upgrades.

The video continued, cars moving slowly, people walking, normal street noise–but then I saw it.

And everything else bfaded/b.

I didn’t even realize I had dropped the bowl I was holding until I heard it hit the floor, the tter loud in the quiet room. Ramen sshed everywhere, forgotten.

My eyes were glued to the screen, my heart hammering, lungs suddenly tight. Because what I saw wasn’t just bunexpected/b–it was unexinable.

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