Chapter 294: The Seeds Of A Scandal

Not far away, Henry and Mary Dalton had witnessed the entire incident unfold.

They had also been present when Carlos posed for the group photograph, and throughout the brief commotion, their attention had remained fixed on Isobel and the little boy named Kai.

Mary had been watching the child for some time, her brows gradually knitting together as she studied his face.

There was something strangely familiar about him.

The shape of his forehead. The delicate curve of his nose. The outline of his face.

Even the way he tilted his head and pursed his lips when someone spoke to him reminded her of someone she knew.

She had noticed the resemblance when they were at the carousel earlier, but seeing Isobel standing beside Carlos while he held Kai had made the nagging suspicion in her mind grow stronger.

It was more than a passing resemblance now.

There seemed to be a connection between them that she couldn’t quite explain.

Mary leaned closer to her husband, keeping her voice low enough that the people around them wouldn’t overhear.

“Honey, the more I look at them, the more convinced I am that there’s a resemblance. Don’t you think so?”

Henry followed her line of sight. His gaze settled on Carlos, who was still holding Kai, before shifting to Isobel standing beside him.

He studied the trio for a moment, his expression unreadable.

At first, he seemed unconvinced. But the longer he looked at the little boy, the more his brows furrowed. There was something about Kai’s features that made him pause.

Then a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

His expression changed.

“Wait a minute…” Henry murmured, turning to his wife.

“Kai is older than Alexander.”

Mary’s eyes widened slightly before she nodded.

“Exactly.” She leaned closer, her voice dropping to an almost inaudible whisper.

“That’s what I’ve been thinking about.”

Their gazes met, and for a brief moment, neither spoke.

A troubling possibility had just occurred to both of them.

Mary swallowed, her thoughts racing as an unsettling possibility began to take shape.

“Could it be…” She hesitated, almost reluctant to voice the suspicion taking root in her mind. But the more she thought about it, the more plausible it seemed to her.

“Could Isobel have been involved with Carlos first, before she became involved with Kristoff?”

Henry’s face grew grave.

Neither of them had any proof. They were merely speculating, allowing their suspicions to fill in the gaps.

Yet Mary found it increasingly difficult to dismiss the possibility.

Her gaze returned to Isobel.

The young woman stood there with her usual composed demeanor, seemingly unaware that two pairs of eyes were scrutinizing her every move.

There was nothing in her expression that suggested she knew Carlos.

But to Mary, that calmness only made the situation more suspicious.

Could Kai actually be Isobel’s son?

The thought struck her like a bolt of lightning.

If it were true, then the relationship between Isobel, Carlos, and Kristoff might be far more complicated than anyone had imagined.

And the implications…

Mary’s stomach twisted.

Alexander was her grandson. Isobel, meanwhile, had become part of the Foster family and was now associated with the Daltons as Alexander’s biological mother.

If she had secretly borne Carlos’s child before becoming involved with Kristoff, wouldn’t she be a stain to Alexander? To the Dalton family?

Mary felt a surge of revulsion, her lips pressing into a thin, disapproving line.

To her, it wasn’t merely a question of Isobel’s past. It was a question of family reputation.

The thought that Kristoff might have chosen a woman with such a complicated history to be Alexander’s mother was intolerable to her.

So this is the kind of woman my son has gotten secretly involved with?

Her fingers curled tightly around the fabric of her dress.

Whatever doubts she had entertained about Isobel before, they now seemed insignificant compared with this new suspicion.

Mary had never been particularly fond of Isobel. She resented the young woman’s growing influence over Kristoff, and the fact that Isobel had become connected to the prestigious Foster family had only deepened her hostility.

Now, she found what she believed was another reason to despise her.

Whether the suspicion was true or not, Mary had already begun to treat it as though it were a damning revelation.

Her eyes hardened as she watched Isobel from a distance.

If Kai really is her son, then I’d better find out what happened between her and Carlos.

One thing was certain.

Mary Dalton would not allow a woman she considered unworthy to threaten her family’s reputation—or her grandson’s future.

…

Soon, Kit and Kat’s birthday celebration drew to a close, bringing an end to the afternoon’s laughter, games, and fairytale magic.

However, the festivities at Wonderland were far from over.

The Foster family’s guests were informed that they could continue enjoying all the amusement park’s rides for the rest of the day.

Meanwhile, the invited guests of Daltons were ushered into a separate ballroom, where another grand celebration awaited them.

This time, the birthday star was the heir of the Dalton empire…Alexander.

For his first birthday, the ballroom was transformed into a magnificent cosmic wonderland, with the theme celebrating the little boy’s completion of his first orbit around the sun.

The moment the guests stepped inside, they were greeted by a breathtaking spectacle.

A life-sized spaceship stood proudly on the stage as if about to take off. Its sleek exterior gleaming beneath the lights.

Behind it stretched a gigantic backdrop depicting the Earth suspended in the vastness of space, its luminous blue oceans and swirling white clouds glowing against the vastness of the universe.

Above, the ceiling had been decorated with clusters of balloons forming the clouds, glittering starbursts, and celestial ornaments that seemed to float among the heavens. Tiny points of light twinkled across the room, recreating the splendor of a star-studded galaxy.

Every detail had been carefully arranged to make the guests feel as though they had stepped aboard a spaceship preparing for an extraordinary journey to orbit around the sun.

And at the center of it all was the birthday boy himself.

…

Isobel arrived with Julian, Leanne, Morgan, and Kristine, accompanied by the still energetic twins, who seemed to have lost none of their enthusiasm despite having already attended their own birthday celebration.

Judy and Pierce tagged along as well, adding to the lively gathering.

Sophia, on the other hand, was nowhere to be seen.

She had not received an invitation to Alexander’s birthday celebration.

The exclusion stung more than she cared to admit. Watching the Fosters receive one privilege after another while she remained on the sidelines was bad enough, but being deliberately left out of such an important occasion made her feel as though she had been publicly snubbed.

Her envy on Judy, which now included Isobel, only deepened.