Chapter 65

Magnus smiled as he watched the twins play, his grandmother sitting next to him with a proud look on her face. “Look at them, Magnus,” she said, her eyes twinkling. “They’re such little angels!”

Magnus chuckled. “Yeah, they are little angels, alright… but sometimes they act more like tiny demons.”

Grandma laughed with him as they both looked at the kids. At that moment, Vivienne was sitting nearby, but she seemed distracted. Her eyes were fixed on her phone, and her grip on it was so tight that her knuckles had turned white.

Something seemed off about her. She wasn’t just casually scrolling—she looked worried, maybe even scared. Magnus couldn’t help but wonder: Was she still in touch with Elena? He remembered how she had barely put her phone down ever since they got back from Canada the night before, only to use the bathroom.

Magnus knew that Vivienne would never cheat on him. She was way too honest and loyal for something like that. Still, her behavior was strange. He wanted to ask her what was wrong, but he didn't want to upset her like he did before in Canada. That hour of being ignored had crushed him, and he didn't want to go through that again.

"Daddy, look at me!" Jayden called out from the bouncy castle. "I can jump higher than Jayla!"

He stuck his tongue out at his twin sister, who pouted before jumping higher to try and beat his record.

"See, Nana? I jumped higher than Jayden!" Jayla shouted, her face glowing with pride.

“You’re both amazing,” Grandma smiled at them. "Let me know if you get tired, okay? I’ll make lunch for you both."

“Okay, Nana!” they both shouted in unison before bouncing over to the swings.

“Come and push us, Mommy! Daddy, you too!” Jayla called out.

Magnus stood up, ready to go over and help, but Vivienne didn’t move. She stayed in her seat, staring blankly at the phone in her hand.

"Vivienne, the twins need us for the swings," Magnus said softly, tapping her shoulder.

Vivienne didn't look at him right away. Instead, she slowly placed her phone on the stool and stood up, avoiding his gaze.

They walked to the swing set together, but there was a noticeable distance between them. Magnus couldn’t help but feel uneasy. Vivienne had always been close to him, so why was she pulling away now? He had a sinking feeling that it had something to do with Elena.

He was worried. His heart ached because it seemed like Vivienne wasn’t telling him something, and the thought that she didn’t trust him enough to share whatever was going on made him sad.

"Are you alright?" Magnus asked before he could stop himself. He didn’t mean to sound so concerned, but it slipped out anyway.

"Yeah," Vivienne replied with a weak smile as she gave Jayden a push on the swing. "Why wouldn’t I be?"

Magnus smiled back, though he wasn’t as convincing. “Just checking in. You know you can talk to me about anything, right?”

Vivienne nodded, but the tension between them didn’t go away. Something wasn’t right, and Magnus couldn’t shake the feeling that Vivienne was hiding something from him.

"Good," he said. "I just want you to remember that."

After a while, the twins announced they were tired. Vivienne and Grandma went inside to start lunch, and Magnus offered to help, but Grandma shook her head.

“No need,” she said with a wink. "I don’t think we need a firefighter around here.”

Vivienne gave Magnus a quick smile before heading inside with the twins and Grandma.

Magnus noticed Vivienne left her phone behind. He considered checking it, but his gut told him not to. Instead, he pulled out a small chip Shelton had given him the day before and inserted it into Vivienne’s phone. He had never done anything like this before, but something told him he needed to keep an eye on her.

He didn’t want to be sneaky, but he also wanted to make sure she was safe. If he was wrong, he’d tell Vivienne the truth and hope she could forgive him for it.

Vivienne came back to the veranda a little while later, looking flustered. When she saw him, she managed a small smile before grabbing her phone.

Magnus watched as her face turned pale as she stared at the screen. She quickly pocketed the phone and turned to him. “I need to go to the hospital,” she said. “There’s an emergency, and the other neurosurgeon is unreachable.”

Magnus nodded, trying to mask his concern. “Alright. We’ll meet at home later.”

“I’ll see you soon. Love you,” she said, leaning in for a kiss.

“I love you more,” Magnus replied, brushing his lips against hers.

Vivienne quickly left, and Magnus stayed outside for a few minutes before heading inside. He found the twins sitting on the floor, working on their homework.

"Have you eaten yet?" he asked them.

"Yes!" they replied in unison, causing Magnus to smile as he ruffled their hair.

“Where’s Grandma?” he asked.

“Dining room,” Jayden answered.

Magnus nodded and walked to the dining room. Grandma was eating dumplings.

“Want some?” she asked, offering him a bite.

“No, thanks,” Magnus replied. “Actually, something came up at the company, and I need to handle it.”

Grandma raised an eyebrow but didn’t ask any more questions. “Take care, then.”

Magnus kissed her forehead before heading out. Once outside, he pulled his phone from his pocket and opened the tracking app.

Within seconds, he saw Vivienne’s location. According to the map, she was about 25 minutes away. He could still catch up with her if he drove fast enough.

Determined, Magnus jumped into his car and sped off toward the road. But the traffic was terrible, and he soon found himself stuck in a jam. His phone showed Vivienne’s location moving, and she was now at an oriental restaurant about 30 minutes away.

“Damn it!” Magnus cursed as he stared at the screen. He needed to act fast.

His mind raced for a solution. And then it hit him.

He quickly dialed Shelton.

“Hey, Shelton, you know where that oriental restaurant is?” Magnus asked.

“I do,” Shelton replied immediately. “I’ll inform the team right away.”

Magnus sighed in relief. At least now someone was on it. But he still felt a sense of dread as he glanced at the time.

Vivienne was still somewhere out there, and he needed to find out what she was doing before it was too late.