chapter 1

Mandy’s voice was calm even though this was a sorrowful topic.

Susan was silent.

This was her family affair after all. She did not know how to advise her or even if she was going to.

Mandy chuckled when she noticed Susan’s silence. “You don’t have to take pity on me. I am the one who abandoned them for a man first. How can I blame them for abandoning me after having my brother? An eye for an eye. I probably won’t be able to go back in this lifetime. My only wish is to meet Luke one more time. Then, I will be satisfied.”

Susan’s lips quivered as she looked at Mandy. She wanted to say something but she did not know how to start.

She did know where Luke was, but given how dangerous the situation he was in was, two more people would be in danger if Mandy and Lucas got involved. However, if she let them leave like that… Mandy and Lucas would probably not see Luke for the rest of their lives given how they were doing now.

Susan was sympathetic after all. Although she had not been on good terms with Mandy and they even shared a grudge, after so many years had passed and the toll these years had taken on Mandy, the resentment had faded a long time ago.

“Okay, have fun, you guys. I’m leaving with Lucas.” Mandy picked up Lucas. She was about to go in the car when Susan spoke up hesitantly. “Leave me your number.”

“Okay.” Mandy told her the digits. “It’s easier for you to look for him than it is for me. Please don’t forget to let me know if you have any news about Luke.”

“Sure.” Susan saved Mandy’s phone number.

“Miss… Are you still going to hit him?” Chesney looked up at Mandy when she realized that she knew her parents.

Upon looking at Chessie’s bright clear eyes, Mandy smiled. “No, I won’t.”

“That’s good.” Chesney cracked a grin.

Lucas peeked at Chessie from Mandy’s embrace, looking slightly dumbstruck. He thought that the girl looked pretty when she smiled, much prettier than the most beautiful flower he had ever seen.

By driving the used car, Mandy and Lucas vanished from sight shortly.

Susan could not help the mixed feelings that she felt.

Who would have thought that Mandy Ainsley, who had been coddled and had never had to do a thing on her own back then, would push herself to this state just to look for Luke?

Susan could not imagine how Mandy could persevere and refuse to go home when she was already struggling like this.

Love could really change people.

She pitied the boy, Lucas, however… Susan sighed.

“Susie, if you pity them, let them reunite when Luke’s issue is resolved,” Julian advised her.

Without replying to Julian, Susan walked away with Chessie in her arms. Julian stroked his nose out of embarrassment before he followed them stubbornly.

After meeting Mandy and Lucas, Chessie’s mood seemed worse as well.

She tugged on Susan’s sleeve in worry. “Mommy, will that missus really not hit the boy anymore? He looked pitiful.”

“I don’t think she will.” Susan comforted her softly by stroking her hair.

“Mm.” Chessie hummed and asked naively, “Mommy, why didn’t the missus let the boy dress up nicer? He looked dirty like that.”

Chessie had grown up in a privileged environment. Most of the kids who played with her came from affluent families too. In fact, this was her first time meeting a kid like Lucas Jenkins.

“Chessie,” Susan said gently. “That’s because she needs to buy him nice clothes. Daddy and mommy work hard to make money so we can buy nice clothes for you, but not everyone can make so much money. That missus could probably earn only three to four dollars by selling a serving of fried chicken and French fries. Perhaps, she wouldn’t be able to afford one of your clothes even if she worked for over 10 years. There are plenty of people in this world who have to live like the little boy you just saw.”

Chesney looked like she was caught in a dilemma. After a long time, as if she had made a huge decision, she said, “Mommy, let’s sell my clothes! We’ll make money and give it to that boy, okay?”

Susan could not help chortling when she saw how conflicted Chessie looked. The girl had always been vain, so it was rare that she was willing to sell her beloved clothes.

Susan patted her hair. “Chessie, you are still very young, so you don’t have the ability to help others yet. Leave this to daddy and mommy for now. When you’re capable in the future, you can help out on your own.”

Chesney nodded, but who knew if she had fully comprehended what she’d been told?

Susan did not say anything else but she pecked her daughter with a smile.

Meeting Mandy and Lucas had troubled Susan a little, but she temporarily tucked the matter away in the corner of her mind, thinking that she would let the family of three reunite once Luke was out of danger.

The Locke Award 30-to-10 qualifying round began as stated. Like in the last round, the contestants were required to make an interior design sketch for a mysterious client. Unlike the castle design last time, the interior that they were to design now was only 18 square meters. The difficulty level of designing such a small space was higher than last time.

They had to make sure to maintain a sense of space and meet the client’s aesthetic standards and requirements. The mission was incredibly challenging.

The more challenging it was, however, the more excited Susan got.

When the assignment was released, she dove into another bout of work, disregarding the passage of time.

Julian was a little anxious when he saw her work state. He knew that Susan would not listen to him at all and could only send Chessie to act cute and plead with her so she at least reserved some time to rest.

Soon, Susan completed her draft and submitted it.

After the initial 100-to-30 qualifying round, Susan had barely made it as the last qualifying participant. This time, she managed to guess the client’s aesthetic sense and ranked fifth.

When Mr. Reed saw the contestants’ drafts published on the internet, he made a point to call Susan.

“Your design feels like a hit of inspiration. If subjective factors were excluded, you could at least rank among the top three.” It was rare for Mr. Reed to make such a direct compliment.

“Thank you,” Susan said, quickly perking up.

When she’d submitted the design draft, she had thought that it would work out well too. The mysterious client this time was actually an impoverished person. That was why the 18 square meters needed to be utilized fully. Susan had just met Mandy and Lucas, so she was filled with a lot of sentiment. Her design this time was no doubt the piece of work she had been the happiest with in the past few years.