Crises in Love (Zora and Jaylan)

As Ronan's words hung in the air, a twinge of guilt tugged at my conscience. I sneaked a glance at the other two who seemed like they didn't hear anything, standing off in the distance like they were admiring

the view.

Was I overthinking it?

Yet the implication stung, and I did have a brood of kids.

Caught in my hesitation, Ronan looked back and called out, "Come on in."

Logan cleared his throat and shot me a meaningful look, "Get in here, and why play the stranger in your own house?"

I was at a loss for words. To argue felt wrong, yet to stay silent seemed to admit to some hidden truth.

Screw it! I marched inside with no time for pretense.

The villa's interior was a testament to opulence, glittering at every turn. I barely had time to admire it before plopping down on the sofa and eagerly rifling through the items I'd brought from the bank. I fixated or the property deed, scrutinizing every detail.

Handing it to Logan, I said, "Can you have someone check out this address? See what's up and who's living there. Hazel left this to me with a strange look in her eyes. I never understood it. Now that I think about it, she should mean something. From what I know about Hazel, she only likes big new houses and would never buy a 70-square-meter house like this on purpose. I smell a rat."

Logan took the deed from me, nodding as he studied the address before snapping a photo with his phone and sending it off.

Hannah fished out an old cell phone from the pile and turned it over in her hands, "Boss, got a charger for this thing? Let's juice it up and see what's inside. It's weird that she treasured this old thing among her valuables, and she always had the best of everything."

Ronan pointed to a drawer under the coffee table, "There should be one in there."

Hannah dug out the charger and plugged in the phone.

I turned to Logan, "My youngest is about three months younger than Carl. From that video you showed me, he would've been five months old at the time."

When I said this, my eyes misted up again and I lowered my eyes, adjusting myself before continuing, "The deed shows the house was bought less than a month after he was born. My youngest son might've only been with me for a month before he was swapped."

"Were you ill at the time?" Logan asked.

Ronan watched me thoughtfully, staying silent.

I furrowed my brow in recollection, "I can't quite remember. As for the bedrest, I had no real sense of time. Everyone said I wasn't well, and the Dawson family hardly visited me after the birth. Maybe because o the number of kids..."

As I broached the topic, I instinctively glanced at Ronan. Our eyes met, and I quickly looked away, "Perhaps because of the kids, they didn't pay much attention. So after my youngest son was born and they cited my poor health, we didn't even have a proper celebration. Now it seems there was more to it."

Hannah cursed, "At the end of the day, it's Jaylan who's the real piece of work. He doesn't deserve to be a father. He thinks he can just say he didn't know and that's the end of it. He better hope I never see him again."

"I was so blind," I continued, gripping my fists tight, "I remember once, after the baby turned a month, I looked at him and said to Zora how did he end up so ugly? The doctor said he was cute. Cute? He looks like a little monkey. Not nearly as cute as the other babies."

Zora's displeasure was evident as she retorted, "Ugly? All babies look like this. He'll grow into his looks. I think he's beautiful!"

Now it's clear. Her reaction was a mother's instinct, and no mother likes to hear her child called ugly. At the time, I thought she was just trying to please me.

"I was such a fool."

"Don't blame yourself, and it's not your fault. Dwelling on the past won't help. The priority is to find your son," Ronan comforted me.

Hannah, still huddled by the coffee table, had managed to power up the old phone. It chimed to life with the sound of its startup melody. Logan waved the deed in front of me and said, "I'll hold onto this and get someone on it right away."

As he spoke, Hannah gasped.