bChapter /bb244 /b

    After leaving the restaurant, Maxineb, /bSebastian, and Brian took a leisurely stroll around the nearby za.

    Christmas was just around the corner.

    Maxine hadn’t felt like this in ages. Sebastian was pushing her wheelchair, while Brian walked beside her, cheerfully pointing out the festive decorations along the street.

    Suddenly, Sebastian spoke up. “I heard there’ll be fireworkster.”

    Maxine murmured an acknowledgment. Unconsciously, they found themselves in the center of the za, where clusters of couples stood whispering, eagerly awaiting the fireworks disy.

    “Mom, I’ll take your phototer!” Brian waved his camera excitedly, beaming at her.

    The scenery was beautiful and the atmosphere was great. Maxine beamed at him and said, “Let’s find someone to help us take a picture togetherter.”

    The other two were taken aback. Brian cheered and lunged toward her, but remembering her injury, he stopped just in time and only gently wrapped his

    arms around her shoulders. “Great! With Mom!”

    Sebastian also beamed and said, “Sounds perfect.”

    As the first firework burst across the night sky, Sebastian lifted his phone and snapped a selfie of the three of them.

    In the photo, Maxine was smiling brightly at the camera. Brian had an arm affectionately around her shoulders, while Sebastian stood beside them, one hand resting on her wheelchair handle like a devoted guardian.

    Just then, a man with a camera approached them, looking somewhat sheepish. He said apologetically, “Excuse me, could I take a few photos of you?”

    He quickly added, as if afraid they might misunderstand, “I truly mean no harm. It’s just that the three of you look so perfect together, I’d love to capture a few photos as a keepsake.”

    As he spoke, he flipped his camera around to show them the screen, capturing Sebastian holding up his phone, all three faces glowing with happiness against a backdrop of brilliant fireworks.

    The photos he took were stunning. Maxine paused in surprise. “Of

    course,” she replied, she really had no reason to refuse.

    As the fireworks show ended, the man smiled and swapped numbers with Sebastian, vowing to send him the photos once he got back.

    After saying goodbye to the man, Sebastian was about to wheel Maxine away when, just then, Brian unexpectedly pulled something from his pocket. “Mom, I found this when we escaped from the vi that day.”

    Maxine frowned, then leaned in for a closer look. In Brian’s hand was a badge bearing the emblem of a Pegasus.

    “Where did thise from?” Maxine asked, taking the badge from his hand.

    Brian thought for a moment. “I found it when they locked me in the storage room that day.”

    After the two men brought Brian to the bvi/bb, /bthey took him to meet Hamlin. Once Hamlin gave the order, they led Brian to a side roomb. /b

    “Damn it! If we’d known that old bastard was such ba /bpain in the ass, we should’ve just handled this job ourselves. He doesn’t even bwant /bthe bmoney/b, bso /bwhat the hell does he want, just for us to stay away from the trial?” one bof /bthe men snarled.

    bThe /bother man sneered. “Think you had a choice? Don’t pretend you don’t bknow /bexactly what you bdid /bbefore this job.”

    Before Hamlin recruited them, they were wanted fugitivesb. /bbIf /bbthey /bweren’t holed up here, they’d bbe /bbrotting /bbin /bbjail/b.

    b1/2 /b

    b08:33 /bbMon/b, b30 /bbJun /b

    bHe /bsneered mockingly and dumped Brian, whom he’d been draggingb, /bonto the ground.

    b“/bbHey/bb, /bbthat /bold man just told us to go easy on the kid, don’t rough him up,” the younger man said with a frown.

    bThe /bother man sneered, “Chickening out now? Weren’t you acting all tough just a minute ago?” He nced down bat /bBrian on the floor and added, b“/bbGotta /bsayb, /byour old man’s something else, even that meddlesome bastard Hamlin trembles before him.b” /b

    AD

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