C398 Family Bonds

Kelvin looked at Monica and gently smiled. “Monica, your mother went on a business trip. She won't be coming back for a while, but your grandma and I are here. We will look after you, okay?” Monica looked disappointed. “Mother is coming.” She slowly returned to her small seat and sat down. Tracy handed Tristan to Kelvin before walking over and sitting beside Monica. She smiled faintly. “Monica, you don't have to worry. We are here, and your mother will be back before you even get to school.” Monica looked up. “Grandma, I will go to school?” Tracy smiled. “Yes, my child. You will. So you have to improve your drawings so that you can beat all the other kids.”

Monica's eyes suddenly lit up. “Grandma, I will!” She immediately became excited, and for a moment, the sadness on her face disappeared. Soon, Ben returned from his club, looking exhausted. When he saw everyone waiting for him, he went straight to his seat. Dinner began. The meal was unusually quiet. Everyone was still adjusting to the absence of Sarah and Samantha. After dinner, Kelvin asked the maid to take Monica upstairs. Tristan was already asleep in Kelvin's arms. Once the children were gone, Kelvin looked at Ben. “Son, you have to realise that things have changed.” Ben looked at him. “Today, Monica was waiting for her mother to come back. She kept expecting her to walk through that door, but she didn't. And we didn't even know how to explain it to her.”

Kelvin paused. “She never asked about you.” Ben's expression changed. “That means the child has become more attached to her mother than she is to you.” He looked directly at his son. “From now on, you have to start being the father she deserves. She is your daughter.” Ben opened his mouth to argue. “But...” Tracy immediately stopped him. “I know what you're going to say. You're going to say that they chose to go there.” She looked at him seriously. “But that doesn't change anything. She is still your daughter.” Tracy's voice softened. “At least be there for her during these three months.” Ben remained silent for a moment. Then he b.slowly nodded. “Mom, Dad… I understand.” Tracy smiled slightly. Then she looked at Kelvin. “So, how do we plan on sleeping with the children?” Kelvin looked at her. “We will sleep with them.”

Before they could continue, there was a knock at the door. Valeria and David entered. The moment they looked around and saw only the parents, they became disappointed. “Where is Tristan?” Valeria asked. Tracy smiled. “He just fell asleep.” Valeria looked upstairs. Then she looked at Kelvin. Finally, Tracy smiled and said . “We were thinking… since you are the nurse, how about you stay with him?” Valeria's face immediately lit up. “Definitely!” She turned toward David. “Husband, I am staying for tonight. Prepare all my things, and tomorrow we will move in next door.” David shook his head with a smile. “Fine. I'll head off now.” Valeria happily stayed behind. She went upstairs and carefully carried Tristan into Sarah's room. Meanwhile, Kelvin and Tracy took Monica to their room. For tonight, at least, the house would not feel completely empty.

At Gupta Military Base. After spending some time looking around the base, we were exhausted. We decided to sleep. Everyone began settling into their beds. But just before we could close our eyes, Sarah suddenly froze. “Wait.” Everyone looked at her. “I didn't see the bathroom or the toilets. How are we going to wash up?” Chris shook his head. “What you're asking doesn't matter right now.” Sarah frowned. “Then what matters?” Chris looked around the room. “The question is, how can I sleep with my enemies?” Everyone stared at him. “What if they decide to cut my throat while I'm sleeping?” Sarah almost choked. “What? Who would do that?” Chris grinned. “Obviously Pixel and Survivor.” Everyone laughed.

I couldn't help laughing too. “Brother, remember what I once told you.” Chris looked at me. “I don't hold grudges. I accept fate and move forward.” I looked around the room. “You don't have to keep treating them as our enemies. The fact that they came here with us alone means something. We should appreciate each other.” I paused. “We should become one family.” Sarah smiled. “If you really don't hate them, then what about my brother?” I smiled. “He did what he did because he thought it was the right thing to do.” Sarah remained quiet. “I can't say exactly why he did all those things,” I continued, “but I am grateful to him for doing them.” Sarah looked confused. “Grateful?” I nodded. “Yes. And you should be as well.”

Everyone looked at me. “Some of the things that happened cut me deeply. But look at it this way.” I looked toward Samantha. “Your brother took Survivor from me, and she ended up giving birth to such a beautiful daughter. She also went on to become the Vice Director of Wood IT Company, such a big company.” Samantha smiled faintly. “Anyone given that opportunity would have grabbed it.” I paused. “I don't know about the internal battles she had to fight, but I believe in Samantha's capabilities. She was smart back then, and she will be smart again.” Samantha looked down with a small smile. I turned toward Laura. “And Pixel here…” Laura looked at me. “From the young, shy girl I met in the Cybersecurity Department lunch, to the shy girl we saw when we were flying kites and the girl who used to talk about e-games all the time…” Laura smiled.n“Look at you now.”

I smiled. “You're married. The Gomez family gave you a permanent place, a home and a good position.” Laura's smile grew. “When I look back at where you started, when you were scared of your father finding out about us, and compare that girl to the Pixel who fired back during the shooting incident, I can see how much you've grown.” Laura looked down, clearly touched. I then looked at Sarah. “And you, Chipmunk.” Sarah smiled. “You were studying abroad, and if it wasn't for what happened in Paris, you would never have met my brother.” Sarah's smile widened. “You saved him. But look at you two now. You're a perfect family, happily married with Tristan.” Chris smiled. "If what happened in Paris had never happened, I wouldn't have witnessed my brother's bravery.”

I laughed softly. "He went to England for the first time alone. He didn't even know your address.” Sarah laughed. “And the funny thing was that Uncle and Aunt didn't even know where he had gone.” Everyone laughed. “But he did it anyway,” I continued. “And look at you two now. It's almost like you were made for each other.” Everyone smiled. I then looked at Alicia. “And my wife here…” Alicia immediately raised her hand. “Don't start.” Faith became excited. “Tell us, Cracker!” Everyone laughed. I smiled. “If Ben hadn't caused what he caused, I probably wouldn't have married her.” Alicia stared at me. “From the intern who was always talkative and wanted to be independent…” I smiled. “I still remember that day.” Alicia covered her face slightly. “After seeing Big Fat Devil in the corridor and not coming out for lunch, this beautiful woman came to my desk to call me.”

Alicia started laughing. “And then there was that text.” I shook my head. “I remember how awkward that morning was.” Alicia grinned. “Husband, would you shut up?” She covered her mouth as everyone laughed. But I continued. “I still remember how you cried for me when I was arrested.” Alicia's smile slowly disappeared. “I remember how you left everything and went to the police station after me. And how you somehow used your special analyst abilities to gather evidence that helped prove my innocence.” Alicia froze. “You know about that?” I smiled. “Yes. Grandpa told me when he placed that condition on me.” I looked at her. “Look at you now. From that small girl who was good at cooking to the mother of my child and my lifetime partner.” I paused. “Tell me, how can I not be grateful?” Alicia's eyes softened. “We fought through all those circumstances, and somehow, we still succeeded.”

I looked around the room. “We have become one big family.” Everyone smiled. I looked toward Faith. “And you, Kiddo.” Faith smiled. “You were so strict with your HR department from the moment we arrived at Lucia Goods. You showed us that you could be trusted.” I nodded. "I remember you informing me about everything that was happening. You even called Cipher when she was admitted at the hospital just to ask her how was she holding up. "And now you're family.” Faith smiled. For a moment, nobody spoke. We simply sat there, remembering everything that had brought us together. The betrayals. The arguments. The painful moments. The unexpected friendships. The love. The losses. And somehow, through all of it, we had ended up in the same room. Together.

Chris suddenly broke the silence. “Brother, you still remember everything that happened?” I nodded. “Then tell me about that message. Why did Cipher stop you from talking about it?” I laughed. “Brother, that is for another day.” I looked around the room. “Right now, we are forgetting our painful past.” I became serious. “I hope you will stop treating them as your enemies now. We must trust each other completely if we want to survive.” Alicia smiled at me. “I love you, Cracker.” Sarah immediately laughed. “And where did that come from?” Alicia blushed. “I don't know.” She looked at me. “I just felt like telling him.” Everyone laughed.

Then Alicia turned toward Samantha. “Speaking about trusting each other completely…” Samantha immediately looked nervous. Alicia smiled. “Are you two together?” The room suddenly became silent. “And when did it start?” Samantha froze. She slowly looked toward Faith. Faith looked down. Nobody said a word. And suddenly, the room that had been filled with laughter became completely quiet.