Chapter 321: This Score Will Be Settled Sooner or Later
Wren Sutton gripped her phone, her fingertips turning white.
The bone-chillingly cold voice from the phone, devoid of any emotion and laced with the provocative air of a declaration of war, still echoed in her ears.
Wren Sutton instantly felt a chill seep into her bones, affecting her mood.
She stood by the dining table, stunned for several seconds, her brow tightly furrowed.
The feeling of being followed on the street and in the mall during the day suddenly flooded her mind.
’Is the gaze from the shadows and this bizarre phone call just an unrelated coincidence?’
"What’s wrong? Who was that on the phone? You don’t look so good." Mrs. Sutton noticed her daughter’s strange behavior. She put down her bowl and chopsticks, looking at her with a worried, caring tone.
Mr. Sutton also stopped picking up food with his chopsticks and looked up at his daughter, his kind face showing a hint of inquiry.
The originally warm and happy atmosphere in the house instantly faded.
Wren Sutton’s heart tightened. She quickly suppressed the unease and panic in her heart, forced a natural smile, put down her phone, and sat in her seat.
"It’s nothing, Mom. Just a spam call. They didn’t say anything important after I picked up. It was just weird. There are so many of these spam calls nowadays, don’t worry."
Wren Sutton’s tone was light as she deliberately spoke with an air of nonchalance. She picked up a piece of fish with her chopsticks, placed it in her mouth, and chewed slowly to hide her true feelings.
Her explanation was flawless and logical, so Mr. and Mrs. Sutton believed her without a second thought.
"If you get a spam call, just block the number so it doesn’t bother you."
"Your father and I get them sometimes, too. They’re all telemarketers. So annoying."
"Okay, I will, Mom." Wren Sutton nodded obediently. She chatted with her parents for a bit longer, trying to steer the conversation back to the children and daily trifles.
But the eerie feeling from the phone call hung over her heart like a dark cloud, refusing to disperse.
After dinner, once the table and kitchen were cleaned up, Mr. Sutton wanted to play Go, so Wren Sutton accompanied her father to the study.
Mrs. Sutton watched TV in the living room, looking after Owen and Nina and playing with the children.
The study was quiet and elegant, with a warm yellow light spilling onto the wooden Go board.
Mr. Sutton set up the game pieces and sat in the rattan chair opposite her. His face wore its usual gentle and kind expression as he gestured for his daughter to make the first move.
Wren Sutton forced herself to focus. She pinched a white stone between her fingertips, but her mind was consumed by the cold, anonymous phone call and the lingering feeling of being followed, leaving her thoughts in a tangled mess. She couldn’t concentrate at all.
She randomly placed a stone, her gaze wandering. All of her usual focus during a game was gone.
Watching his daughter, Mr. Sutton’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. He didn’t say anything, however, and just quietly placed a black stone.
In just over ten minutes, Wren Sutton had made several bad moves in a row. She either made blunders or focused on one area while neglecting another. The entire game was a mess. Anyone could see she was distracted; her eyes were on the board, but her thoughts had already drifted miles away.
Mr. Sutton slowly put down the stone in his hand, pushed the game box aside, and leaned forward slightly to look at his daughter with concern.
"Wren, you need a calm mind to play Go well. You’re distracted today, constantly losing focus. Let’s stop for now."
"Be honest with your father. Did you run into some kind of trouble?"
"Dad, I..." Wren Sutton started to speak but trailed off.
Mr. Sutton reached out and gently patted his daughter’s hand, which was resting on the edge of the table. The warmth from his palm was solid and comforting.
"You are our daughter. No matter what happens, big or small, don’t try to bear it all by yourself. Home will always be your refuge, and your mother and I will always be your rock. You can hide things from others, but never from your parents."
Wren Sutton looked up and met her father’s gaze, which was full of affection. Suddenly, her nose tingled, and her eyes welled up.
"Dad, I’m fine, really. I’m just feeling a little down, I can’t seem to cheer up."
"Isla had an unexpected miscarriage, Sean Sterling has broken ties with his family, and Adrian Lancaster has a cold and a fever. It’s just a pile of bad news all at once."
She deliberately omitted the part about being followed and the strange phone call, not wanting her elderly parents to worry. She only mentioned the troubles she could talk about.
After listening, Mr. Sutton let out a long sigh and stroked his daughter’s head, comforting her just as he did when she was a child.
"In life, not everything can go smoothly. It’s common for troubles to pile up. Don’t push yourself too hard."
"As for Isla, spend some more time with her when you can, help her take her mind off things. That’s all you need to do as her best friend. Some things can’t be forced."
"Regarding Sean Sterling’s situation, that’s the path he chose. It’s kind of you and Adrian to want to help him, but don’t take on everyone else’s problems as your own. That’s a tiring way to live."
"And as for Adrian being sick, it’s just a common cold and fever. He just needs to take his medicine and rest. He’ll naturally get better in a couple of days, so don’t worry too much."
"You’re a mother now. The most important thing is to take care of your own health and take care of your children. As for everyone and everything else, just let nature take its course."
Her father’s simple yet heartwarming words dispelled the gloom in Wren Sutton’s heart.
Looking at her father’s kind face, she felt her eyes grow warm. She nodded forcefully, and the weight pressing on her heart seemed to lighten by more than half in that moment.
Even though the unknown shadow had not yet dissipated, with her family’s unconditional acceptance and protection, she gradually found the courage to face it.
"Dad, don’t worry. I will definitely take good care of myself."
...
On a new day, morning light streamed through the window, spreading a golden warmth across the floor.
Outside, the sky was clear for miles. There wasn’t a hint of wind, and even the air was wrapped in a sweet gentleness. The beautiful weather was enough to brighten anyone’s spirits.
The aroma of breakfast drifted from the kitchen. Mrs. Sutton had cooked a soft and sticky millet porridge and fried golden-yellow eggs, served with refreshing pickled vegetables and small flower-shaped buns.
After breakfast, Mrs. Sutton suggested, "The weather is so nice today, and there’s no wind. Let’s take Owen and Nina to the park across from the complex to get some sun. It’s good for children to get more natural light."
Mr. Sutton nodded in agreement and immediately started packing, meticulously putting all the necessary baby supplies for the outing into a bag.
Mrs. Sutton pushed over a double stroller and placed the still-playful Owen and Nina inside.
"Grandma and Grandpa are taking you to the park to soak up the sun and look at the flowers, okay?"
The two little ones seemed to understand. They babbled happily, waving their little hands and pointing toward the door.
"My little darlings are so smart, you even know where the door is." Mrs. Sutton’s voice was full of affection. "Come on, let’s go."
Wren Sutton looked at her parents’ expectant eyes and her children’s innocent, happy little faces. Suppressing her worries, she said softly, "I’ll go with you."
After changing their clothes, the family took the elevator downstairs.
The moment the building’s entrance door opened, warm sunlight rushed in to greet them.
Wren Sutton instinctively looked up, and her gaze accidentally met that of a woman in casual clothes standing by a flowerbed not far away.
The woman gave her a slight nod, her gaze firm and steady, exuding the crisp efficiency of someone well-trained.
Wren Sutton’s heart skipped a beat. She subtly scanned her surroundings.
She noticed that besides this woman, a man in a tracksuit stood under a nearby tree. He looked like he was doing morning exercises, but his gaze was gently yet firmly fixed on her and her family.
At an intersection on the other side, a woman carrying a shopping bag, dressed like an ordinary passerby, was walking in their direction.
On a bench a little farther away, a man in a hat sat quietly reading a newspaper, radiating a calm and composed aura.
Four people, two men and two women. All of them stood tall with sharp eyes. A single glance was enough to tell they were highly trained professionals, likely skilled in martial arts.
They were spread out around them, discreetly and in perfect coordination, forming a protective circle around the family without being obvious or disturbing anyone else.
Wren Sutton understood instantly. These four people were the bodyguards Adrian Lancaster had arranged.
With this thorough protection, her steps became much lighter. Her mood brightened, and she was no longer afraid of anything.
Mrs. Sutton was in front, steadily pushing the stroller at a leisurely pace, occasionally leaning down to coo at Owen and Nina.
Mr. Sutton walked on the outside, carrying the baby bag, reminding his wife to watch her step and protecting his grandchildren.
The group crossed the crosswalk at the entrance of the complex and reached the park across the street in just a few minutes.
Along the way, the four bodyguards followed, neither too close nor too far. Each performed their duty with covert precision, leaving no openings.
The park was bustling with activity. Seniors were practicing tai chi, children were rollerblading, and others were singing, playing jianzi, badminton, or line dancing...
Wren Sutton followed her parents to a sunny spot on the edge of a lawn and sat next to them on a bench.
Owen and Nina were half-reclined in their stroller.
Their little faces were flushed from the sun, and their bright, dark eyes darted around, full of curiosity about their surroundings.
They clutched their rattles, refusing to let go, waving their little hands and kicking their little legs from time to time, letting out crisp, adorable laughs.
From the moment they left the house to their arrival at the park, Wren Sutton no longer felt that uncomfortable, prickly sensation of being watched like she had yesterday. Everything around her was peaceful and wonderful.
With the sound of her family’s cheerful laughter in her ears and the silent yet reliable protection nearby, Wren Sutton leaned back against the bench, faced the sun, and soaked in its warmth, savoring this rare moment of peace.
In a high-rise apartment building next to the park, behind a crack in a tightly drawn curtain, a pair of high-powered binoculars was set up by the window, the lens locked tightly on the heartwarming family scene by the lawn.
The hand holding the binoculars gripped them so tightly that the knuckles turned white.
This person stood in a dark room, a cramped corner untouched by the warm sunlight from outside, shrouded in an impenetrable gloom.
Through the lenses, their gaze fell clearly on the double stroller beside the bench on the lawn.
The two children were adorable and delicate. The little boy, in particular, had the same spirit in his eyes as his father. The little girl inherited her mother’s beauty; she would definitely grow up to be a devastatingly beautiful woman.
But this beautiful scene brought no warmth to the watcher’s eyes. Instead, an intense, overwhelming hatred churned in their heart.
Their eyes were bloodshot, like poison-coated daggers, wishing they could pierce through the distance and tear the two swaddled infants to shreds.
The watcher ground their back teeth, their breathing growing ragged as unwillingness and resentment surged in their heart.
Why!
Why did Wren Sutton get to have such a peaceful, happy life, with loving parents, both a son and a daughter, and bodyguards protecting her in secret?
While I have to hide in this dark corner like a rat that can’t see the light of day, forced to watch her enjoy everything, unable to even get close?
After an unknown amount of time, the watcher lowered the binoculars and leaned against the cold wall. Their mind raced with calculations, their expression growing even more venomous.
’Adrian Lancaster arranged bodyguards to protect Wren Sutton, so I can’t make a move in the short term. But this debt will be settled, sooner or later.’
"Wren Sutton, I won’t let you live in peace."