Chapter 7
Shortly after that, inside a private room on the second floor of the Elysian House, Odell was seated next to Tara while Sylvia and her two colleagues sat with them at the table.
Perhaps due to Odell’s intimidating aura, both of Sylvia’s colleagues kept their heads low and did not dare to utter a word or make any sort of movement.
From the moment he sat down, he had been staring fixedly at Sylvia without any attempts to conceal his gaze.
Sylvia shifted uncomfortably as he watched her like his prey in this manner.
She felt she had to say something. “Master Carter, it’s quite inappropriate for you to keep staring at me like this with your wife sitting right by your side.”
Odell chuckled softly. “After three years, it doesn’t seem like you’ve changed all that much apart from the attitude you’ve developed.”
Sylvia returned his snark response, “Well, I’ll have to thank the sixty slaps you gave me for that.”
Odell’s lips twitched as his face darkened.
It was as if he could not find a rebuttal to this statement. ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .
Tara, who was seated next to him, silently ground her teeth. She then turned to Sylvia to say, “Sylvia, let’s not spoil the mood by saying these things, especially considering that you’re finally back after so long.”
Then, she turned to Odell and said in a gentle tone, “Odell, it’s already been three years, and I've forgotten the entire incident about Sylvia causing my miscarriage. Let’s not get hung up on all that.”
It was rather queer that she brought the miscarriage up now of all times.
Sylvia could not help but chuckle, "Tara, Odell wouldn’t even have been upset if you hadn’t mentioned that in the first place.”
Tara was flabbergasted by how blunt Sylvia was.
Before she could figure out what to make of the situation, Sylvia added, "Look, his face is as black as a block of charcoal after what you just said.”
Tara felt a lump appear in her throat.
Odell's complexion took on an even darker shade than it was before.
It seemed as if a gust of blizzard had just blown into the room, causing the temperature to plummet.
Sylvia shivered as well. Anyone with a good sense of judgment would know that it was best to tread lightly around Odell at this point.
Nonetheless, she feigned agitation and asked, “Master Carter, was it something I said? Why do you look so upset?”
Odell cast a brutal glare at the woman who was constantly trying to get on his nerves.
Sylvia continued to patronize him, "Uh, I do apologize if I said something wrong. I’m sure someone as magnanimous as you are will find it in yourself to forgive my foolishness.”
After saying this, she blinked repeatedly in an innocent manner.
Odell chuckled. “Heh…”
He conveyed his irritation with a suppressed scoff. A powerful gust of freezing air burst from within his body, and it seemed as if the sheer force of it was going to uproot the very foundation of the room.
In a heartbeat, the air was sucked out of the room.
The two colleagues who came with Sylvia shrunk, too afraid to say anything.
Tara remained silent as well and stared at Sylvia without a word.
Although things had changed and Sylvia was no longer the same person she was three years ago, she was still frightened by Odell's overpowering aura.
The expression on her face changed as she put a hand on her stomach and stated, "Uh, my stomach is acting up a little. Please excuse me. You guys go ahead and eat first."
With that, she got up and winked subtly at her colleagues, hinting for them to follow her.
She had barely taken two steps when Odell’s deep, threatening voice came.
“Don’t make a move.”
Sylvia halted instinctively before she turned to him and said, “Master Carter, my stomach isn't feeling so good, and I think I need the toilet.”
The agitation was visible in her eyes.
Odell smirked cunningly. “Hold it in.”
Sylvia chuckled drily.
Without any indication, she took off and ran.
Odell grimaced and got up abruptly.
Before he could take another step, Sylvia had bolted out like a rabbit emerging from its burrow and vanished without a trace.
Thump!
Odell slammed his fist on the table.
Tara shuddered all over with fright whereas Sylvia's two colleagues shrunk back into their chairs as well.
…
Sylvia bolted out of the Elysian House in a single breath and continued running until she arrived at the elementary school she worked at.
After standing outside for a moment and noticing that her colleagues had not caught up with her yet, she dug out her phone and called one of them.
It rang a few times before someone picked up.
Sylvia immediately asked, “Jenny, are you guys coming back?"
There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone before the deep voice of a man responded, "Sylvia, I'll give you ten minutes to come back and apologize to me. Otherwise, you will bear the consequences.”
It was Odell!
Sylvia hung up the phone with trembling hands.
Then, she entered the school and darted to her office where she packed up her belongings and wrote a resignation letter in the form of a text message to the principal. With that, she left the school premises.
She was not going to allow herself to be lectured by this man.
Needless to say, she was not going to apologize!
…
Shortly after leaving the school, Sylvia went to a nearby woodcarving studio.
She enjoyed the practice of carving wood in her spare time, and she had considered applying for a position here in the past.
After showcasing her technique to the boss, she was hired on the spot.
The working hours were very flexible, so long as the tasks could be completed on time.
After she became familiar with the working place, Sylvia got to work and stayed busy until it was time to pick up Isabel from school.
She was about to finish up and head to pick her daughter up from the kindergarten when she received a call from the little girl.
A tender, soft voice came from the other end of the phone. "Mommy, you don't have to pick me up. My classmate is going to drop me off on his way. I’ll see you at home.”
Sylvia was about to ask which particular classmate it was when Isabel hung up.
Sylvia figured she would head straight home.
Twenty minutes later, she returned to the district where she lived.
Before she even got to the door, she noticed two large, muscular men standing on both sides of the door. They wore no expression and had identical uniforms; these must be personal bodyguards.
After making sure again that she did not have the wrong house, she pushed the door open and entered.
The first thing that came into her sight was the two kids sitting on the floor of the living room.
One of them was the rosy-cheeked Isabel who was grinning from ear to ear while the other was a fine- looking child as well—it was Liam!
Sylvia was taken aback.
She had the impression that she was hallucinating and blinked repeatedly.
Holding back tears of joy, Aunt Tonya said, “Sylvia, Isabel brought Liam back from the kindergarten. They happen to be in the same class. Don't just stand there now. Hurry up and come over here.”
With that, Aunt Tonya closed the door so that the two bodyguards outside would not interrupt their precious moment.
Sylvia ran up to Isabel and Liam before anyone could even blink.
She looked at Liam who was sitting in front of her. It was Liam in the flesh! She felt tears welling up in her eyes.
Liam was also staring back at her with an innocent expression.
His expressive eyes fluttered as he said, "I saw you on the night of Great-grandma’s birthday. Are you my mommy?”
Though he was the same age as Isabel, there was a subtle hint of maturity that did not quite measure up to his age.
He was like a tiny adult.
Sylvia smiled and answered softly, "Yes, I'm your mommy.”
The corners of Liam’s lips curled up into a wide grin, and his eyes sparkled.
Sylvia could not resist the urge anymore and pulled him into her embrace.
His body was soft to the touch and noticeably light. He was distinctly lighter than Isabel.
Sylvia felt a sense of sadness and guilt blossoming within her.
Isabel pounced on top of them as well.
She pulled Sylvia and Liam nearer to her and shouted, "Mommy, bro, I want a hug too!"
Sylvia laughed heartily and pulled both Isabel and Liam closer to her.