CHAPTER 4: CHAPTER 4: SOPHIE IS DISCOVERED AND TAKEN AWAY BY DAMIEN LANCASTER

Ivy Summers took a deep breath.

She was afraid of being recognized and didn’t want to linger.

Going to Aethelgard was out of the question.

"I’m priceless."

After saying that, Ivy Summers turned sideways and walked out past Damien Lancaster.

Damien didn’t stop her, but his gaze remained fixed on her.

The woman had a faint scent about her; not the usual perfume. It was familiar, but he couldn’t place where he had smelled it before.

Moreover, she had a unique aura, very much like the old Ivy Summers.

Ivy appeared gentle, but there was always a resilience about her.

Independent in her actions, decisive enough.

When she decides to leave, she leaves.

No chance given, no room left.

Again, he thought of Ivy Summers.

Damien furrowed his brow. For the past five years, he had often thought of Ivy Summers, about her being seven months pregnant back then, and the child. If she hadn’t aborted the child, the child would be five by now.

Back then, he didn’t have much affection for Ivy, but he never considered divorce. He had also looked forward to the child.

Thinking about it, Damien’s aura darkened.

"Damien, this Auctioneer has quite a temper. How about we find someone else for Grandpa? There are plenty of people who understand antiques out there."

Damien furrowed his brow, "There are plenty of people who understand antiques, but Grandpa specifically wants her. Julian, look into her, I want all her information."

"Damien, why investigate her? Are you interested in her?" Rachel Shaw tentatively asked Damien.

After that bitch Ivy went missing, she had stayed by Damien’s side, but he never mentioned marrying her, which worried Rachel Shaw.

Fortunately, Damien was cold-hearted, not interested in other women at all.

But today, Damien’s gaze at that Auctioneer sparked a sense of crisis in Rachel.

"Not interested, but since Grandpa wants to see her, it’s better to be thorough."

Rachel Shaw felt relieved hearing Damien say this.

Damien was investigating her only because of the old man.

After all, an ugly duckling who doesn’t dare show her true face, Damien couldn’t possibly like her.

"Let’s head back to the hotel first."

Damien turned and strode away.

Ivy Summers clutched her wildly beating heart as she returned to the office.

Damien wanted her to come back to look at antiques. In their three years of marriage, Ivy knew how dominant Damien could be.

He would probably come again. She showed herself in front of him today, unsure if he recognized her or if he would investigate her.

Everything about her, her child, couldn’t be discovered by Damien.

Ivy picked up her phone and dialed a number. Soon, a male’s deep, lazy voice came through the line, "Darling, what’s up?"

"Do me a favor, someone might be investigating me, I can’t let him find out."

With Ivy’s skills, she couldn’t stop Damien from investigating, but the man on the other end could.

"Okay."

With a simple "okay," Ivy knew he would do it.

"The third time."

"What?"

Ivy didn’t understand what he meant by this slow third time.

"This is the third time I’ve helped you in the five years I’ve known you, darling. Once you reach five times, how about marrying me?"

The man on the other end casually leaned against the couch, his tall and solid body wrapped in a half-open robe, revealing perfect abs. He lazily curved his lips, appearing more seductive than any demon.

Ivy shivered, marry a devil?

He might be more terrifying than Damien.

"No way. You help me, I earn money for you, we owe each other nothing."

"I’d rather have you manage my money than earn it."

"Better find a gentle, virtuous person to manage your wealth. I’d just take it and run."

"Heartless."

Ivy hung up the phone, typed a message to her manager, requesting two days off, took a deep breath, and opened the office door, "Sophie, Mommy’s finished working. Let’s go... Sophie?"

Ivy looked inside, but there was no sign of Sophie.

Meanwhile, in the underground parking lot, two little ones peeked out from behind a wall. Nathan Summers sighed, silently opened his laptop to clean up after Leo Summers.

Leo had drawn on Damien’s car. Once the surveillance cameras were checked, they’d be in big trouble.

Nathan quickly hacked into the surveillance system to delete the footage, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

Up ahead, Leo led Sophie, cheerfully waiting to see Damien’s reaction to his masterpiece.

"Who... who did this?"

A group of people came over, led by none other than Damien.

Julian looked at the big words on the car in shock, instinctively reading them out loud, "Unfaithful scoundrel, big cheat! This... Sir..."

Julian looked at Damien in fear and trepidation.

Who was it?

Did they have a death wish?

"Who did this? This is too brazen." Rachel Shaw also frowned.

Damien looked with a somber face. Seven words, one wasn’t written, and two were wrong, obviously done by a child.

"Sir, I’ll check the surveillance immediately."

"Hehehe..." Faint laughter was heard.

Damien’s sharp eyes surveyed the surroundings, immediately noticing two little heads sneaking out behind a wall.

Leo Summers reacted quickly, "We’ve been found, Sophie, run!"

"What? What?"

Sophie was so startled she jumped, and when she turned around, her two brothers had already run far.

"Brothers, wait for Sophie."

Sophie was about to chase after them when her cake dress got caught on something. She couldn’t run a step and fell to the ground with a thud.

The people behind had caught up; she couldn’t escape. Sophie lay on the ground, covering her face with her hands.

If she couldn’t see, they couldn’t see her...

Damien strode over, silently looked at the little bundle on the ground for a moment, then picked her right up.

The little one covered her face, eyes shut tight, as if that made her invisible to him.

A classic case of self-deception.

"I see you; don’t cover up."

Thinking she was well-hidden, Sophie opened her eyes, her big eyes full of confusion.

What’s going on?

Whenever she played hide-and-seek with her brothers, she was always the best hider.

Sophie put her hands down and, being held aloft, wiggled her little arms and legs, finding she couldn’t get down.

Sophie blinked her big eyes at Damien. For the first time seeing her own dad up close, Sophie blinked again, noticing how much two of her brothers resembled him.

Thankfully, Sophie took after Mommy, not Daddy, this ugly man.

Sophie pondered this, unconsciously raising her little chin, making small facial expressions.

Damien studied Sophie, recognizing the richness of her inner world.

"Whose little child are you, and why did you draw on my car?"

Damien’s voice was cold and heavy, devoid of warmth.

Sophie wasn’t afraid of him, just kept her little mouth tightly shut.

Mommy said not to talk to bad people. Daddy was the bad person, who would take Sophie away and stop her from seeing Mommy.

"If you don’t speak, I’ll hand you over to the police, and then they’ll find your daddy."

Sophie blinked her eyes.

Stupid Daddy, don’t look for yourself.

Damien assumed this little one would fear the police, but she didn’t seem scared.

"When a child does something bad, the parents will be punished. Soon, we’ll arrest your daddy."

Go ahead, Sophie was in full support.

Fearless, Damien saw this little one was unyielding.

"We’ll arrest your mommy."

"Why arrest Sophie’s Mommy? Just arrest Sophie’s Daddy, don’t arrest Mommy." Sophie was anxious, hands on her hips, cutely fierce.

Damien chuckled twice.

Can’t arrest a mommy, but arresting a daddy is okay, it seems.

This kid’s father must be pretty unsuccessful.