Chapter 155: The Unreachable Son
The moment Sophia saw the message, she called Joe back.
After learning that Emily had gone to the Peace Group to find James and Michael, she quickly wrapped up things at the lab and rushed home to be with Emily.
When she got home, Emily had just returned from the amusement park, still holding a little balloon. She ran over happily to hug Sophia when she saw her.
"Mommy, Mommy."
Sophia carried her into the house, with Joe following behind, holding a bunch of bags filled with toys he'd bought for Emily.
Emily snuggled tiredly in her arms and said in a low voice, "Emily misses James and Michael."
Sophia kissed Emily's cheek and said gently, "Should we call James and Michael then?"
James and Michael's phone watches wouldn't connect. With no other option, Sophia had to call William to ask what was going on.
A deep male voice came through, tinged with exhaustion, "Sophia?"
Sophia wasn't impulsive. She asked calmly, "Why can't I get through to James and Michael's phone watches?"
She had gotten them phone watches to make it easier to stay in touch.
William glanced at the current time and explained, "Grandpa really cares about James and Michael. He arranged several new teachers for them. They've been in classes all day."
He leaned back in the car seat and continued, "I'm almost at the Smith Manor. I'll ask about the phone watches when I get back."
The phone was on speaker, so Emily heard what he said, too.
Though she didn't fully understand, she could tell James hadn't ignored her call on purpose, and the unhappiness in her eyes instantly disappeared.
William heard the rustling sounds on the other end and asked intently, "Is Emily with you?"
Sophia's gaze fell on Emily, who was lying on the table staring at the phone, and she let her answer.
Hearing her name, Emily mumbled, "Yes, I am."
Thinking of the surveillance footage from earlier that day, William explained gently and told her to come find him directly next time.
Emily pouted, "No."
Her refusal was immediate. Having to make an appointment with Joe was just too much trouble.
She'd only gone to see James and Michael in the first place.
William fell silent.
With her worry gone, Emily rubbed her belly and said sweetly, "Mommy, I'm hungry."
Sophia coaxed Emily to go find Joe, "Okay, you go eat with Mr. Watson first. Mommy still needs to talk to James's daddy."
Emily nodded, got up, and ran toward Joe, calling out happily as she ran, "Mr. Watson."
Joe was bringing out dishes. He quickly crouched down to catch Emily's momentum, scooped her up with one arm, "Come on, let's go eat some meat."
He was a great cook. Whenever he was there, he'd take over all the kitchen duties.
Once Emily was out of sight, Sophia immediately dropped her smile, got up, and walked to the balcony outside the living room.
The call was still connected. William could clearly hear her breathing, and he'd also heard how much Emily liked that man.
Sophia looked at the night outside the window and suddenly asked, "William, are you tired?"
William was momentarily stunned, "What?"
Sophia had chosen to stay in Empire City for James and Michael.
Though the temporary lab in Empire City was well-built, many things weren't as complete as the ZN lab in Seraphim, which was better suited for her artificial womb project research.
William knew this, too.
"I'm pretty tired, William."
"Every time you take the kids back, I have trouble reaching them."
"First it was Alice, now it's Grandpa. What's going to come up next?"
William frowned, "Sophia, do you have to fight with me? The kids lived with you for so long. I just brought them back to the Smith Manor for a few days, and you can't handle it?"
Did the kids need to take off their phone watches for class?
Last time Sophia went to discuss custody with him, he'd pulled that stunt, and things had to be put on hold.
Now, she didn't want to delay anymore.
"Let's be straight with each other. Have you ever actually considered giving me custody?"
William was silent.
Even though Sophia now had the ability to raise James and Michael, compared to the Smith family and Peace Group, she still fell a bit short.
This wasn't to say she wasn't capable or strong enough now.
The Smith family had a hundred years of foundation, and Peace Group was in the hands of a smart and ambitious man like William. It wasn't something she could surpass in just a few years.
She'd thought deeply about the situation with James and Michael.
Right now, custody was with William, and there were no more scheming women like Alice around him.
If William could wholeheartedly care for James and Michael, and if they were more willing to stay with him, Sophia had considered not fighting for custody.
As long as the children were happy and well provided for, she, as their mother, would be at peace.
"Let's ask what the kids want and see if they're willing to come with me."
The fact that she could barely reach the kids whenever they went back to the Smith Manor was exhausting for Sophia, too.
She proposed changing from sole custody to joint custody, with an agreement on when the kids would be with him and when with her.
With a man like William, you couldn't go head-to-head.
Both of their careers were in busy phases, and the kids needed companionship. Working together was the best solution.
William caught the key information in her words, "Where are you planning to go now?"
His whole body radiated powerful pressure. The driver up front's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly raised the partition to give them privacy.
These past two years, Sophia had been going back and forth between Rain Village and Seraphim, and now Empire City was added to the mix.
She didn't answer but asked instead, "That's my business. We're talking about arrangements for James and Michael going forward. Are you free tomorrow? Let's talk in person."
The veins in William's neck were already tense. "I'm not free."
Sophia fell silent.
She lazily looked up at the flowers in the yard outside the window, "Fine, then you pick a time. I'll work around you."
William immediately stopped talking.
The call ended, and William's figure sank into the darkness of the car.
Sophia looked at her phone after ending the call and still felt that keeping him on the blacklist was more reassuring.
But because of James and Michael, she couldn't do that.
The balcony door was knocked. Joe leaned against the wall and said, "Sophia, if you don't come, Emily won't eat."
Hearing this, Emily immediately called out "Mommy" several times.
Sophia smiled, "Coming."
When William got home, he immediately asked about James and Michael's day.
The butler reported honestly that Holden had arranged calligraphy, chess, piano, and other skill classes for James and Michael today.
Just thirty minutes ago, they'd finished their piano lesson.
Hearing William's car, James and Michael immediately rushed out to ask if they could go see Mommy and Emily tomorrow.
William looked at their bare wrists and asked, "Where are your phone watches?"
James immediately spoke up, "Ms. Murphy said we needed to focus in class and told us to take off our watches to practice piano."
As he was speaking, a woman came out from inside the house.