Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Matthew blinked his eyes a couple of times and answered honestly. "Daddy, I saw someone following me. That man looked very strong and fierce. Everyone was afraid of him!"

Although his words were a bit vague, Alan understood it at once.

Matthew was trying to say that he felt some unsavory characters following him, which was why he found a strong and fierce-looking man in the crowd. By hugging and calling that person 'Daddy', he could escape the danger.

That was the trick that both Samantha and Alan had taught him.

When Matthew was more than two years old, Samantha once took him to the hospital to see a doctor. At that time, he was targeted by human traffickers and was forcibly brought away.

Fortunately, Samantha responded quickly and noticed that something was wrong. It was only after she chased the traffickers that she managed to save the child.

Since then, Samantha and Alan had paid great attention to what happened and repeatedly instilled in Matthew a skill of saving himself.

Although the child was still young, his IQ was much higher than that of ordinary children. He was very smart and possessed a very strong comprehension too.

On that occasion, he managed to avoid danger and come out unscathed.

Even so, Alan could not help but feel a little scared.

It was better to be prepared than to be caught unprepared.

Three years ago, Samantha owed her survival in large part to her baby. Had she not been pregnant with him and bore the burden of two lives, she might not have been able to endure the pain and torture.

Alan let out a gentle sigh and complimented him unhesitatingly. "You did a good job, Matt!"

Matthew raised his chin happily. "I didn't embarrass my mother, did I!"

"Not at all! You're the pride of your mother!"

Matthew loved hearing his mother being complimented much more than he enjoyed hearing himself being complimented. He was smiling so widely that his eyes had curled into little crescent moons.

Alan looked at Matthew through the rearview mirror of the car and could not help but lament in his heart.

There were plenty of men at the airport who were stronger and fiercer than Timothy. Why, among all those men, did he have to pick out Timothy?

Matthew just had to pick out his true biological father.

Was there really a so-called…blood connection between father and son?

That thought left Alan with a strong sour feeling.

Did the fact that Matthew and Timothy were father and son have any genuine significance?

The way Timothy treated Samantha made him undeserving of being called 'Daddy'.

However, Alan could rest at ease knowing that nothing seemed out of the ordinary when Timothy saw Matthew earlier.

In any case, the encounter was simply an accident.

As a precautionary measure, Alan still said to Matthew, "You don't need to tell your mother about what happened today, alright Matt? Keep it a secret, or else she'll be worried sick."

Matthew would always look for his daddy if he got injured from a small knock or had any minor illnesses. He would not tell his mother about it because he did not like seeing her shed tears.

As a result, he and his 'daddy' always kept little secrets and agreements between each other.

He nodded vigorously and covered his mouth with his little hands, signaling that he would not say a word.

As soon as Alan saw that, he was bemused by the boy's cute appearance and could not help himself from smiling.

Since there was a bit of a traffic jam, Alan had to brake at regular intervals.

When he reached the red light, Alan braked fully and casually glanced out the car window. He caught a glimpse of the screen in a large plaza that was playing a replay of the global summit.

It just so happened to be broadcasting an interview with Timothy.

"My wedding will be held on the first of next month."

Tch.

Alan grinned coldly and there was an inexhaustible coldness in his eyes.

The second he laid eyes on Timothy earlier, it took all of his strength to restrain himself from punching that man in the face.

It was fine if he did not love Samantha, but the least he could do was end things on a less sour note since they were already divorced anyway.

He had no reason to be ruthless to the point where he would take Samantha's life.

Alan had seen life and death and indifference ran deep in his bones. However, the sight of Samantha's agony at the time made him feel like reaching for a knife and fighting Timothy to the death.

Although he studied medicine and believed in science, he still believed that there was a God that watched a person's every single deed.

God would one-day hand judgment down on anyone who did evil!

No one would be able to escape that!

The car drove into a residential area and stopped in front of a building.

Alan parked the car, got down, and went around to the back seat of the car. He then opened the door and bent down to carry Matthew out. Then the two of them went into the building.

He took the elevator to the third floor and came to Door 302. He pressed his thumb on the biometric fingerprint lock and the door opened with a beep.

As soon as Matthew walked in, their nostrils were filled with a delicious aroma.

Samantha had come out with some freshly-baked cake. When she saw them return, she smiled calmly, "You came back just in time."

Matthew ran directly to Samantha and hugged her. "Mommy, Mommy! I miss you."

He followed Alan to Vincent's place for a routine physical examination and was separated from his mother for three days.

Samantha missed her little boy too and she placed the cake on the table before hugging Matthew and looking carefully at him.

"Hmm…your complexion looks fine, so I guess there's nothing to be concerned about."

Alan walked over and responded, "That's right. My uncle called Matt's body a miracle. He was a weak child when he first came to the world and Uncle couldn't confidently say whether or not Matt was able to continue growing. He did start growing a little later, but he never spoke until he was two and his complexion wasn't very good either. He even got sick every couple of days."

"Remember when he was kidnapped by the traffickers? We all thought he was traumatized. He came back seriously ill and went down with a fever of more than forty degrees, which was so worrying for us that we had sleepless nights. Then suddenly, his health returned in the blink of an eye and he even started talking too. He even became extraordinarily lively."

"We thought it could have been some new issues, but we never found anything after checking every couple of months. At most, he was smarter and more active than ordinary children, which people sometimes describe as socially confident."

He could not help reaching out and pinching Matthew's chubby flesh. "You have been a miracle ever since you were born, Matt!"

Matthew could not understand that complex series of words, but he felt that he was being praised and so nodded proudly. "Mommy's amazing, and I'm amazing too!"

Alan was amused. "Yes, your mother is amazing and so are you."

Matthew then added, "You're amazing too, Daddy!"

On hearing that, Samantha frowned slightly and corrected him, "Matt, how many times have I told you to call him Uncle Alan, not Daddy."

Matthew had always listened to Samantha, but that was the one thing he was unhappy about and immediately pouted reluctantly.

Alan hurriedly said, "It's no big deal. You can call me whatever you want, Matt."

Samantha looked back at Alan, "I know you're just looking out for him. You don't want other children to make fun of him for not having a father, but we—"