Chapter 92 Something Fishy
Emily gasped in shock. "What are you doing?" All her carefully prepared picnic food had been swept to the ground.
Everyone gathered around at once.
Grace and Max heard the commotion and looked toward Liam, their expressions surprised.
Alexander had been on a phone call, but hearing the disturbance, he quickly hung up and walked to the RV, only to see the mess scattered everywhere.
What happened?
He looked toward Emily, who stood frozen in place, fists clenched, trembling all over.
Suddenly, Liam bent down, picked up a rock from the ground, and hurled it at Emily with all his might.
Gasps of alarm rippled through the crowd.
Fortunately, the rock missed its target.
Several parents protectively pulled their children closer. "Why is Liam being so violent?"
"He's only seven, but look at that vicious expression on his face."
"Look at his eyes—it's like he wants to kill someone."
"How terrifying... They say he's special needs. If he acts like this at school with other children, if he hurts someone, he wouldn't be legally responsible, right?"
"Shh! Don't say that—Mr. Hayes is coming!"
Alexander approached Liam and grabbed his wrist firmly. "What do you think you're doing?"
His grip was strong.
Liam winced in pain, his hand loosening as the rock he'd just picked up fell onto the grass.
"Did you do this?" Alexander stared at the scattered mess, demanding sternly. "Did you throw all this food on the ground?"
Liam pressed his lips together, saying nothing.
"Answer me!" Alexander's voice was cold. "Liam! Look at me!"
Liam lowered his head, refusing to meet his eyes.
"Why did you throw rocks at someone? When did you become so violent?"
Liam bit his lip angrily, feeling wronged and trying to break free from Alexander's grip.
As Alexander questioned him, Liam stubbornly raised his head and glared back, his small body trembling but standing straight, staring into Alexander's eyes without a trace of fear!
Their hands remained locked in a tense standoff.
Grace walked over, gently pushing Alexander aside and pulling Liam into her arms. "Don't blame Liam."
She trusted that Liam was always well-behaved and wouldn't hurt someone without reason.
It must have been Emily—she must have said something to provoke him again.
Grace looked suspiciously at Emily, who was now cowering in a corner like a victim, her face pale and dejected.
Alexander turned toward Emily. "Emily, get in the RV."
Emily looked up at Alexander, then glanced at Liam, managing a helpless smile. "Alexander, don't blame Liam. He's just young and doesn't understand..."
"Get in the RV," Alexander interrupted.
"Okay." Emily said nothing more and climbed into the vehicle.
Liam watched her warily, like a small lion keeping a vigilant eye on dangerous prey.
Suddenly, a small hand landed on his head, gently ruffling his hair in comfort.
Liam turned to see Max standing beside him, stroking his hair while saying softly, "Easy there."
Liam immediately calmed down, grasping Max's hand as his emotions visibly settled.
"Want to come have some barbecue?" Max asked, taking Liam's hand and leading him toward Grace's tent.
Grace looked at Alexander, glancing around before saying calmly, "Don't be so quick to blame Liam. He doesn't hurt people without reason. His emotions have always been stable—something must have triggered this."
"He's never been this violent before," Alexander replied. "What could have triggered him?"
"I don't know. I wasn't with him just now—Emily suddenly carried him away... Maybe you should ask what Emily said to him?"
Alexander looked down at the scattered picnic remains and instructed his driver, "Clean this up."
"Yes, sir." The driver immediately began clearing the mess.
Alexander told Grace, "Go take care of the children."
Grace nodded. "Will do."
Alexander turned and entered the RV.
Inside the RV.
Emily was wiping away tears pitifully. When she saw Alexander enter, she quickly crumpled her tissue in her palm and looked up at him. "Alexander, I'm sorry."
"Why are you apologizing to me?"
Emily lowered her head. "I tried my best. I had no idea Liam had underlying violent tendencies. Could it be from growing up in the orphanage? Maybe the other children there were a bad influence on him?"
Alexander frowned. "What?"
"You know what those environments are like," Emily continued. "Those children have no parents, and some might even be the offspring of criminals, born with violent genes. Maybe Liam was corrupted at the orphanage—he just never showed it before."
"Liam has always been well-behaved. He's never shown violent tendencies."
Emily shook her head. "Parents don't always know their children as well as they think. In my opinion, maybe we should have Liam see a therapist. These violent tendency issues are better addressed sooner rather than later."
Alexander remained silent for a long moment.
He asked, "Did he hurt you?"
Emily shook her head. "He's only seven—how much damage could he do?"
"What did you say to him?"
"I only asked him to eat something so he wouldn't go hungry. He seemed to dislike the picnic I prepared and suddenly lost control, trying to hit me with that rock. I've studied child psychology extensively—this kind of illogical violent behavior usually develops from early childhood and needs immediate intervention."
"Just calm down for now." Alexander closed the RV door and looked out the window.
The other parents had dispersed but were still clearly shaken.
They were all afraid that Liam had violent tendencies and wouldn't let their children play with him.
They must be worried that since Liam was special needs, he wouldn't be held legally responsible if he hurt someone. They were probably also concerned that since Liam was Alexander's son, Hayes family blood, even a serious incident would be covered up by Alexander's influence. Therefore, none of them dared let their children near Liam.
"I'll have someone prepare food for you."
"I'm not hungry," Emily replied. "You should check on Liam first—make sure he doesn't hurt anyone else."
Back at the campsite.
The water in the hanging pot had come to a boil.
Grace prepared a cup of oatmeal, adding a little sugar and milk, and handed it to Liam. "Here, Liam. Have some oatmeal."
Liam clutched the cup, staring blankly at the steaming pot, still in shock, his shoulders trembling occasionally as if he'd been badly frightened.
Max placed strips of beef on the grill, where they sizzled in the butter, filling the air with delicious aromas.
Max couldn't shake the feeling that something was fishy about the whole situation.
Liam had been fine just moments before. He'd only been with Emily for a short while—how had things gone so wrong so quickly?