Chapter 590: Epilogue (17)
The people behind them couldn’t stop laughing. The mix of screams and laughter created a strange atmosphere.
The girl sitting in front turned around angrily, snatched the wig out of Quentin Grant’s hand, and put it back on. This time, she clamped both hands on her head to keep it from falling off again.
Before the roller coaster had even finished a single loop, Quentin Grant threw up. He now understood that the ‘porridge’ that had rained down from the sky earlier was something that simply couldn’t be helped.
He broke into a cold sweat for the sake of the crowd below.
When the roller coaster came to a stop, one thought surfaced in Quentin Grant’s mind: ‘For the rest of my life, I’m never setting foot in an amusement park again.’
As soon as they got off the ride, the woman in the wig marched up to them and yelled, “What are you laughing at? Never seen a beautiful woman wear a wig before? You’re all blind.”
Elmer Grant tilted his head up and replied in his soft, innocent, little-kid voice, “Ma’am, are your boobs and face fake, too?”
The woman glared at him. “Why you little brat! Is this how your mother raised you? Don’t you know you’re supposed to be polite to adults?”
“But from what I can see, your hair is fake, and so are your boobs and your face. So I’m not sure about your gender, either.”
The woman flew into a rage. “Whose kid is this?!”
“He’s mine,” Quentin Grant said.
“Is this how you normally teach your son to behave?”
“That’s right. I often teach my son that telling the truth is a virtue.”
“…”
The woman was left speechless. She turned and stormed off.
**
That evening, Nora Ainsworth lay in bed and looked at Quentin Grant beside her. “I’m craving some coconut juice.”
“Do we have any at home?” Quentin Grant asked, sitting up.
“I don’t know. Go check.”
Quentin Grant looked around but found they were out. He had to go out and search several streets before he finally came back with a case.
He opened a few cans, warmed them up, and brought them upstairs.
“Honey, here’s your coconut juice.”
Nora Ainsworth quickly sat up, took the glass, and had a couple of sips. “Is there any more in the house?”
“No, I had to go out and buy this.”
Nora Ainsworth glanced at the clock. It was already past eleven. She wrapped her arms around Quentin Grant’s waist. “Honey, you’re the best.”
“If a husband isn’t good to his wife, who will be? Drink up. There’s plenty more downstairs. If that’s not enough, I’ll have A buy dozens of cases to keep stocked at home.”
“We don’t need that many. The craving just came out of nowhere.”
Quentin Grant placed a hand on her belly. “That just means our little girl was thirsty.”
Nora Ainsworth finished the large glass and lay back. “I remember when I was pregnant with our two treasures, I really loved eating tomatoes. To me, they seemed so sweet and delicious. Leon said they were very sour at the time, but they tasted perfectly sweet to me.”
“Let’s get some sleep. Tomorrow’s Monday. Some of us have work, and some of us have school.”
“Okay. Good night.”
“Good night, honey.”
While this side of town fell asleep, the Lynch household was anything but quiet.
Mrs. Lynch was anxious to go out today, but she had no money. So, she clung to Mr. Lynch, pestering him for cash.
Mr. Lynch paid her no mind, ignoring her completely.
Her phone rang nonstop until midnight, but Mrs. Lynch wouldn’t answer it. Instead, she said to her husband, who was lying in bed, “Look, Mrs. Hughes and the others are calling me for a game. Am I supposed to tell them I can’t go because I’m broke?”
“Give me your phone. I’ll tell Mrs. Hughes.”
Mrs. Lynch sat up in bed, fuming. “Fine, don’t give me any then!”
She got out of bed and left the room.
She went straight upstairs and knocked on her son’s bedroom door.
Leon Lynch and Holly Wood, who were already asleep, were woken by the noise. Standing at the door in his pajamas, Leon asked, “Mom, it’s the middle of the night. Why are you still awake?”
“Leon, give me ten thousand.”
“Mom, give up on that idea. I could give you a thousand, but forget about ten thousand. Dad gave the order: we’re cutting you off from mahjong.”
“Holly Wood! Get out here!” Seeing that her son was being stubborn, Mrs. Lynch shouted for her daughter-in-law.
Holly Wood threw back the covers. Her pregnant belly prominent, she came to stand beside Leon Lynch. “Mom.”
“Go get me ten thousand. It’s an emergency.”
“Um…” Holly Wood hesitated. “Mom, Leon is in charge of our finances. All I have is a little over a thousand in allowance money. I can give you that, if it helps.”
Mrs. Lynch was choking with anger, convinced Holly Wood was doing this on purpose. “Oh, wonderful. So the two of you are siding with your father, is that it?”
“Mom, please just go to bed instead of playing mahjong,” Holly Wood said, her eyes heavy with sleep.
“Since when do I need you to tell me what to do?!” Mrs. Lynch shoved the bedroom door open and barged inside.
Leon Lynch frowned as he watched her rummage through the drawers. “Do you have any idea what you’re doing?” he asked, his voice sharp with displeasure.
“Looking for money.”
Leon Lynch stood still, and Holly Wood, after a glance at him, also remained silent.
They remained that way until Mrs. Lynch pulled a thick wad of cash from the wallet in Leon Lynch’s trousers.
Ignoring the two of them completely, she walked out of the room.
Leon Lynch quickly threw on a pair of pants and a shirt and started to head downstairs.
“Leon, where are you going?”
“I’m going to see exactly where she goes to play. To be this addicted…”
“Wait, I’m coming with you.” Holly Wood hurried downstairs after him.
The pair got in their car and followed Mrs. Lynch’s car from a distance.
The car stopped in front of the Spring Blooms Game Room.
Seeing her go inside, Leon said to Holly, “Let’s get out.”
“Hold on,” Holly said, grabbing his arm. “Let’s not go in right away. Let’s wait a bit.”
The two waited in the car for over ten minutes. Just as they were about to get out, Mrs. Lynch came out again.
“Did Mom lose all the money that quickly?”
Leon Lynch disagreed. “You can’t lose it all in one game. There was over thirty thousand in my wallet. There’s no way she could have lost it all in such a short time.”
“Then where is she driving to?”
“I don’t know. Let’s follow her and see.”
So the two followed Mrs. Lynch’s car once more, only to find she was driving toward the outskirts of the city. The car pulled over on the side of the road, and she got out with her purse.
Leon Lynch helped Holly Wood out of the car. Holding her hand, he quietly followed Mrs. Lynch into an alley. There were no lights in the alley, so they stood and watched by the moonlight as she stopped before a door, went inside, and the door was abruptly locked from within.
The couple walked up to the door. Leon Lynch gave it a push but found it wouldn’t move. Peeking through the crack, he could see lights on in the few single-story buildings inside.
“Leon, what is Mom doing here in the dead of night? Does your family have any relatives here?”
Leon Lynch shook his head. “No relatives, no friends. As far as I know, none of our acquaintances live around here.”
“Don’t tell me it’s…” Holly Wood stopped herself, not daring to say the rest.
Leon Lynch understood what Holly was implying. His expression grew impossibly dark as he stood there. A moment later, Holly whispered, “Leon, the lights inside went out.”
Leon Lynch looked and saw she was right. His fists instantly clenched.
“Holly, you wait here. I’m climbing in.”