Chapter 166: A Family Reunion

Rocco was adamant that he needed to lose weight. Seeing he wasn’t willing to go up, Amanda Vance didn’t say any more and took Samuel Ford upstairs.

Two small figures stealthily slipped out of the taxi behind them.

The darkness of the night served as the perfect camouflage for the two little ones. They kept their distance, watching from afar, and even Rocco didn’t spot them.

"Jean." Felix Ford tugged on his sleeve. A cold wind blew past, making him shiver. "Where are we going now?"

’It’s so cold.’

Jean thought for a moment, then said, "You go back to the Fords’ first."

"Huh?" Felix was taken aback for a second before immediately shaking his head. "I don’t want to."

’He can’t be thinking this, can he? That now that Mom knows about me, he’s scared I’ll steal her love? Is that why he’s trying to get rid of me on purpose? What if I go back to the Fords’, and he just runs off with Mom?’

’I wouldn’t put it past him.’

’Anyway, he had him all figured out. Jean was a jealous little tyrant who always wanted Mom all to himself.’

Thinking this, he shot him a glare. ’Hmph. You’re not getting rid of me.’

Seeing his reaction, the corner of Jean’s mouth twitched. "You go back first. You can’t handle what’s going on with Mom. She needs me right now."

Felix was not happy to hear that. "I can keep Mom company too! How do you know she doesn’t need me right now?"

Looking at Felix’s cocky expression, Jean’s face darkened. ’I should have expected this. Living with the Fords, this kid has been spoiled into a lawless brat. Isn’t it just because he knows Mr. and Mrs. Ford dote on him? He knows he has people to back him up, so he isn’t afraid of anything.’

’So now that he knows Mom likes him, all his previous worries have vanished. The worst-case scenario is that they both stand in front of Mom, and given how much she cares for him, he’s sure she’d never abandon him.’

Sure enough, Felix then said, "Then why don’t you come upstairs with me and we can ask Mom who she needs? Dad’s there, right? We can get him to sign the transfer papers while we’re at it. He can give up his custody rights, and I’ll live with Mom from now on."

"Idiot. Mom and that man were never married. What papers would they need to sign? Are you an object? What’s there to ’transfer’?" After he finished speaking, his face grew even darker. ’Why am I even telling him this? He’s completely sidetracked me.’

Felix’s eyes darted about, and then he smiled. "Oh, so I don’t need any paperwork to be with Mom!"

’Well, that put his mind at ease.’

Even though the streetlights weren’t as bright as day, Jean could still clearly see the smug look on his face. His soft, pale, chubby cheeks were especially detestable.

’Who said he was dumb? This is pretty smart. He even knows how to bait me for information.’

Jean put his hand to his forehead, took a deep breath, and said in a low voice, "Listen to me. Holly Vance daring to reveal that Mom isn’t his biological daughter—that definitely wasn’t his idea alone. It’s a disgrace for any man to admit something like that. For him to say it, completely disregarding his own pride, it must be because someone offered him something better. That’s the only reason he’d talk. The Vance Family is easy to handle, but the person backing Holly Vance won’t be."

Hearing this, Felix’s little face grew serious too. But then he asked, "Hey, wait a minute. Can’t you investigate while you’re at the Fords’ house? Didn’t you say there was something wrong with Miss Lynch? Maybe they’re all in it together. Wouldn’t it be easier to investigate if you were closer to her?"

’When did he get so quick-witted!’

’Suddenly, Jean didn’t like smart kids. They were hard to trick and incredibly annoying.’

He continued, "I’ve already installed a bugging system on Miss Lynch’s phone. As soon as she calls the person behind all this, I’ll know. I don’t need to be physically near her for that. But as for Mom, I’m worried this business with Holly Vance isn’t over."

As he said this, his expression grew somber.

"What else is there?"

Jean shot him a look and sneered, "Heh. Those people just rehash the same old stories over and over. They have zero creativity. Based on their usual tactics, I suspect they’re going to launch a smear campaign against Mom. I know my way around a computer, so I can help if I’m with her."

Felix retorted, "I’m good with computers too! I can help!"

His stance was firm. No matter what Jean said, he was not going to leave.

’For some reason, he had a feeling that if he left Mom this time, he might have a very hard time seeing her again.’

’He didn’t know where this feeling came from, but the very thought made him anxious. And now Jean wanted them to switch back? He was absolutely, completely against it.’

Seeing that it was useless to argue, Jean grew annoyed. But just as he was about to speak, he suddenly saw a figure getting out of the car. He immediately clammed up, slapping a hand over Felix’s mouth. "Shhh—"

Rocco was starving, so he got out of the car to find something to eat. He thought he heard a noise and glanced in that direction, but he only saw a flowerbed with no one around. ’I must have imagined it,’ he thought.

’There’s no way the young master would be here.’

Shaking his head, he walked off.

Behind the flowerbed, two small heads slowly peeked out.

Jean took a deep breath and glanced at Felix. He decided not to argue anymore. After a moment’s thought, he said, "Fine. You stay with Mom, and I’ll go to the Fords’ house."

Felix’s face lit up with joy when he heard that. He nodded eagerly. "Okay!"

Jean glanced at him but didn’t say anything.

After a moment, Felix looked at him. "Why haven’t you left yet?"

"I’ll wait for your dad to come out."

’Samuel Ford was still here, so the little idiot couldn’t go up yet. If I just left him here all alone in the dark, what if he got scared?’

Felix’s eyes flickered, and—perhaps due to the psychic bond between twins—he understood what Jean meant.

Pressing his lips together, he gently tugged on Jean’s hand. His voice softened considerably. "Jean, thank you. And... I didn’t agree before because I was scared I’d never see Mom again. I’ve never even met her. Finding her has been the only thing I’ve wanted to do every single day. I’ve been looking for five years. You’ll have lots of time with her in the future... I might only have these next few days."

As he said this, his expression grew forlorn.

Jean glanced at him, hesitated, and finally said reluctantly, "Not necessarily."

’He’d seen how that man protected Mom today. It wasn’t impossible that Mom could develop feelings for him. If that happened, maybe... their family could be reunited.’

’A family reunion... The thought of that phrase made Jean pause. Why had he even thought of that?’

While Jean was lost in thought, Felix had the same idea. His earlier gloom vanished as he said happily, "So if Mom and Dad get together, does that mean we’ll never have to be apart again?"

Looking at his joyful face, Jean poured cold water on his excitement. "Do you really think Mom will forgive him if she finds out your dad is the reason she’s been dealing with all these rumors?"

The smile on Felix’s face froze.

’Knowing Mom... she wouldn’t.’