Chapter 58 There's No Place for You in My Heart
Lucas's words were like a curse.
They kept looping in William's ears until he walked back to the hospital room and saw Sophia helping James and Michael with breakfast.
When Amelia came over carrying Emily, William stood at the doorway watching the people inside, his gaze deep and inscrutable.
Seeing Emily, James and Michael got very excited.
"Emily!"
Emily climbed down from Amelia's arms, walked past William at the door, and ran toward them, throwing herself into Sophia's embrace.
"Mommy, hold me."
Sophia sat Emily on her lap. Emily held her bottle, drinking while waving at James and Michael.
"James, Michael."
The children hadn't seen each other for two days and were very affectionate.
As James and Michael's health gradually improved, there was a large lawn downstairs for the children to play on. Sophia accompanied them.
William had stayed at the ZN lab for a week. Normally, family members weren't allowed to stay this long, but his special status made an exception possible.
Today was his last day at the lab.
Before leaving, he wanted to talk to Sophia, but she cut him off before he could speak.
"I got you the contact. If the meeting didn't work out, that's on you."
"The person I met wasn't Professor X, it was Lucas."
Surprise flashed in Sophia's eyes. She had asked Amelia to contact her senior, who was also an internationally renowned doctor without borders.
She hadn't expected Lucas to be the one who showed up.
She looked at him warily. "You know someone from the Wood family?"
The wariness in Sophia's eyes was like wet paper plastered on his face, like some ancient torture, stealing his breath and making him feel suffocated.
William said coolly, "I've met him, but we're not close."
His answer made Sophia's heart grow heavier, reminding her of Lucas's lifeless appearance when she first brought him back.
"William, if you dare reveal Lucas's identity, I definitely won't let you off."
This was the first time Sophia had threatened him.
For another man.
"Sophia, just how big is your heart?"
"Just from what I know—first love, husband, lover—how many men do you have in your heart?"
Sophia didn't care to explain his imagined scenarios.
She just looked at him with a faint smile. "William, don't worry."
"No matter how many parts it's divided into, none of them are yours."
In the sunlight, her skin was delicate, her bright eyes sparkling, yet every word she spoke was like an ice blade formed from winter frost.
William tried to find dishonesty in her eyes, but discovered she was genuinely indifferent, her gaze frank and open.
His heart felt squeezed tight, numbness spreading to his limbs.
The two of them, one standing and one sitting, were surrounded by an invisible atmosphere of subtle tension, finally broken by the children running over.
"Daddy, the kite got stuck in the tree."
"Hold me on your shoulders, I'll get it."
Michael pulled William's hand toward the tree with the kite, eager to get it down himself.
William's throat bobbed as he swallowed the words on his lips and carried Michael to retrieve the kite.
James brought Emily over to Sophia for water. She wiped the light sweat from James and Michael's foreheads and gave them each some water.
When Sophia went to find Michael with his water bottle, he was sitting on William's shoulders, reaching for the kite in the tree.
But then! The next second!
Michael's whole body suddenly tilted backward!
"Watch out!"
She rushed forward, reaching out to catch the falling Michael.
William also reached back to grab the child.
Their hands met on the child's body, a shock-like sensation traveling from their fingertips to their brains.
No time to think, no time to hesitate—both moved to protect the child.
In the end...
Sophia caught Michael.
And she and Michael were held tightly in William's arms.
It happened so suddenly that all three faces showed lingering panic.
She gently patted Michael's back, soothing him tenderly. "Michael, don't be scared, it's okay, Mommy caught you."
Focused on Michael, she hadn't yet realized she was also in William's embrace.
By the time she sensed the stiffness beside her, William had already let her go first, looking down at Michael in her arms.
James and Emily had also seen the dangerous moment and ran over to comfort Michael.
Michael blinked, his gaze moving back and forth between Sophia and William. The feeling of being held by both of them made him reluctant to separate.
...Mommy and Daddy's embrace felt equally warm.
Since James and Michael had just recovered, Sophia worried they might overdo it and suggested returning to rest.
But Michael was still excited.
"Mommy, let go of the kite."
"Daddy, run faster, the kite's falling!"
To accommodate the children, the two had to set aside their earlier unpleasantness and fly kites with them for quite a while.
Every scene on the lawn.
It was watched by Lucas from upstairs.
William hadn't played with James and Michael like this in a long time.
His gaze fell on James and Michael's faces.
In the sunlight, their similar faces were tinged with a faint blush from running around, their laughter ringing out, their eyes full of joyful smiles.
They got tired of the kite.
The children started playing blind man's bluff.
Michael's personality was becoming more and more lively.
He bounced over to William, pointing at his tie. "Daddy, can I borrow your tie?"
Getting the tie, he ran to Sophia.
"Mommy, use this as the blindfold."
She looked at the blue tie in Michael's palm, pressing her lips together, hesitating.
She was about to say she could go back to the room for her own scarf, but seeing the hope in Michael's eyes, she took it.
It was rare to see Michael so happy—she didn't want to disappoint him.
It was just a tie, no big deal.
Five minutes later.
Sophia had William's tie wrapped around her eyes. James held Emily, hiding not far away, and Michael ran even farther...
Emily couldn't contain her laughter and was quickly caught.
James, holding her hand, was caught too.
Now only Michael remained, making no sound. He carefully moved his feet, avoiding the direction of Sophia's reaching hands.
The air was filled with the scent of flowers.
A breeze blew past, and she caught the children's scent, curling her lips as she walked in a certain direction.
Sophia reached out. "Michael, I caught you."
The moment her hand touched something, she immediately sensed that something was wrong.
The cool sensation felt like a wheelchair.
Still blindfolded, she felt upward, touching a cool hand with distinct knuckles and long fingers.
Then the wrist... thin enough to feel bony.
Sophia slowly stood up and pulled off the tie from her eyes. The first thing she saw was Lucas's bright, smiling eyes.
"Sophia, look who he is?"
Her gaze slowly moved down to meet a pair of amber eyes, crystal clear and translucent, as distant and cool as always.
Behind her, William held Michael with a cold expression, his thin lips pressed into a tight line, his unfathomable eyes now cold as deep pool water, staring fixedly at the person in the wheelchair.
Sitting in the wheelchair was actually...