Chapter 607 It’s Been Nine Years
Although there were nannies taking care of the children, they were new, and the children were unfamiliar with
them. Therefore, I coaxed them to sleep before letting the nannies take over.
Caring for children was a labor, and I felt exhausted. I saw Kevin playing games inside the living room when I came
downstairs. From the extra wide television screen, it was a familiar game from my childhood.
I went over and sat beside him. "I know this game. Leon and I used to play it a lot, but he never won."
Unconvinced, Kevin challenged me. "Oh? Are you saying you're good at this game?"
"Let me play one round to get the hang of it. Then, we'll have a duel!"
Twenty minutes later…
"This is getting boring. Why am I always the loser?"
"I told you I'm good at this."
"Ray, can't you let me win just once?"
The way Kevin was complaining was adorable. He threw away the console and sprawled on the couch listlessly. Just
as I was about to tell him I would go easy on him the next round, I received a message from Eilam. It was then that
I remembered what I asked him to do before he left and quickly opened my WhatsApp.
He had sent me a picture of a man in a black coat that reached just below his knees. The hem of the coat swayed
with the wind, revealing a small portion of the man's long legs. He was standing on a flat, elevated spot; a lush
black forest and a bright starry sky were in the distance. Also, the glossy white moonlight was gently shining down
on his well-defined face!
The opaque forest, twinkling stars, moonlight, and the man's cold side profile… Also, I could only see his right eye.
His pupils were dark and deep as he stared into the quiet and far distance.
"Shawn is so handsome!" I felt like I was about to get a heart attack from his handsomeness. Oh, for Pete's sake… I
know Shawn is handsome, but this picture makes him even hotter.
More importantly, he was not deliberately posing for a picture and was even unaware of it!
"Ray, what's with the yelling?"
Kevin sat up from the couch and took away my phone. When he saw Shawn's picture, he was as surprised as I was.
"As I would expect from Sunny! If only I were brave enough to bend him back then!"
Taking back my phone, I announced, "Shawn's mine."
"Hey, I was just joking! Do you think I would dare to have any ideas about him? In all the years I've known Shawn,
this is the first time I had that brief thought! Sh*t. How dare I think that? Am I tired of living? That's a suicide
mission! I'm going to a church tomorrow to light a candle and say a prayer!"
After he was done muttering to himself, I happily saved that picture and posted it on Instagram.
The caption I attached was 'My Dear Makur.'
Diego was the first to comment. 'Flaunting your love life this late at night?'
Kevin replied, 'You think it's a flaunt cause you're single.'
Diego retorted, 'Aren't you single too?'
'I haven't broken up yet!'
'Hah! Keep telling yourself that.'
I was at a loss for words when I read Kevin and Diego's argument in the comment section. Then, I saw a comment
from Aria. 'He's very handsome.'
'Thank you!' I replied.
Later, May copied my caption. 'My Dear Makur. Hehe.'
'What's wrong?' I asked.
'I'm jealous.'
I rebuked, 'Don't you also call Sir Larson your dear?'
At that moment, Rudy commented, '...'
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtHis comment was rather redundant. He was merely trying to tell us that he noticed our interactions and wanted us
to tone them down. So, May stopped replying after noticing his appearance.
A few minutes later, Sir Larson appeared and did something unexpected. 'What? Can't my wife call me 'dear'?'
Why is Sir Larson suddenly commenting on my post? Does he follow Rudy's Instagram? Is he doing this deliberately
to show Rudy? If that were it, then Sir Larson is quite bold. At the very least, he's good at attacking his love rival.
Meanwhile, Kevin and Diego were in a heated argument in the comment section. As the comments gradually
increased, I grew tired of replying to them. Suddenly, Kevin shared the picture with our WhatsApp group.
I asked him, "What are you doing?"
"I'm going to compliment Sunny and see if he replies!"
I was speechless.
He began flattering Shawn and even tagged him. In the end, Shawn seemed to take pity on Kevin and replied with a
voice message, "Haven't you seen my face before?"
After receiving Shawn's reply, Kevin began another round of flattery, but Shawn did not react. Moments later, Kevin
and Diego were at it again. I looked at the person sitting beside me resignedly, asking, "Kev, I don't recall you two
ever fighting with each other. Are you going to hold a grudge against him forever because of one lie?"
"He's the one who made me work for nothing."
I was at a loss for words again.
Although there were nannies taking care of the children, they were new, and the children were unfamiliar with
them. Therefore, I coaxed them to sleep before letting the nannies take over.
On the other hand, the helicopter had been flying low for half an hour. After passing the forest and the sea, they
would be in another country.
Kevin tagged Shawn in their WhatsApp group. When Shawn saw the picture, he stiffened but remembered Renee
pulling Eilam to the side before they left and spoke with him for a few minutes. It seemed like this was what she was
up to back then.
At first, he did not intend to reply to Kevin, but he wanted Renee to know he was safe, so he sent a voice message.
After doing so, he closed the application and habitually opened his Instagram to view her post. He did not download
this app for any other purpose besides following her. Also, he would check her profile whenever he was free to see
if there was anything new.
"My dear Makur?"
Smiling, Shawn immediately liked the post. He then put his phone down and closed his eyes to rest while Eilam
quietly sat opposite him. His nap lasted about three hours, and when he opened his eyes, he asked, "Are we there?"
"There's still another hour, Mr. Xenos."
Shawn was more carefree before Eilam, so he rubbed his eyes and asked, "Were you scared earlier?"
Shaking his head and then nodding, Eilam answered, "You were there."
With a faint sigh, Shawn asked, "You were not afraid because I was there with you?" After a slight pause, he
continued, "You can't make that a habit, though. After all, I have no plans to let you rely on me forever." Eilam's
eyes widened when he heard Shawn continuing, "In the future, you'll need to try and solve your problems and
conquer your fears. Eilam, you're still young, so you might not understand what I'm saying. I won't overexert on you
these couple of years, but you still have to get used to this life because you're gonna get involved sooner or later."
Hearing that, Eilam suddenly uncovered a target and seemed to know what he should be doing. He hesitantly
asked, "Will Skyler experience these as well?"
"Skyler is my biological son. I would only be stricter with him, so you should be lucky you met me at your age."
A shocked Eilam asked, "What do you mean, Father?"
"He will be introduced to my world long before he turns eleven."
Eilam hesitated again before asking, "Where are we going now?"
"Since we're already here, we'll deal with everything in one go."
Shawn did not disclose the answer to Eilam blatantly because he would witness whatever happened next anyway.
An hour later, the helicopter landed at the top of a building. When Shawn came down from the helicopter, his eyes
were filled with contempt as he looked at the people waiting for him. "Is the hypocrite one of you?"
Though he owned this building, the interior was a mess. The middle-aged man standing in the front was trembling
when he saw Shawn's cold eyes and stammered, "Mr. Xenos, my son, he—"
Taking over the conversation, Shawn interjected, "Betrayed his own?"
The spies he planted inside the enemy's base were captured because he had a traitor on his side. Therefore, he
could not forgive the traitor because he had overstepped the boundaries.
"N-N-No, Mr. Xenos. It's my fault for not educating him. He's my only son. Please spare him. I'm willing to be your
servant…"
Ignoring the man, Shawn looked at the bound young man. He looked to be in his early twenties, which was the age
when people were generally impetuous and had no regard for the consequences of their actions. Even at that
moment, that young man was fearlessly staring at him.
Shawn was intrigued by his attitude and asked, "Why did you betray me?"
The young man accused him. "Because you're a tyrant!"
An unfazed Shawn repeated. "A tyrant?"
"My apologies, Mr. Xenos. My son is still young and insensible—"
Shawn hummed in response. "You're right." Then, he questioned the young man, "Your father knows what kind of
person I am, but I have a question. How are you sure the people you side with aren't the same? You're still young,
but—"
"Please, Mr. Xenos, spare my son!"
"Three months of confinement, and he'll start from the ground up."
The middle-aged man was shocked. "Start from the ground up…"
The Xenoses had an extremely strict hierarchy and starting from the ground up meant taking away all the benefits
the young man had. Plus, he was not to get any help from his elders and would have to get back to where he was
alone.
He was now the second in charge of this building, so it would be difficult for him to get back without receiving
external help. Moreover, starting from the ground up meant Shawn had abandoned him.
Only people with exceptional talents would be able to successfully start from the ground up, and only a few had
done it in the past. This punishment was exceedingly severe to those with power and status as their luxurious life
depended on Shawn!
"Mr. Xenos, this punishment—"
"You should feel lucky that those spies are safe. Or else, your son won't… I think I've said enough." What Shawn
meant was that he did not want to hear any more excuses from the middle-aged man.
"Yes, Mr. Xenos."
Shawn ignored the middle-aged man, but just as he was about to leave, he saw a familiar figure among the crowd.
He stopped in his tracks and articulated in his low voice, "Seth, it's been nine years since we met. Right?"
The familiar figure emerged from the crowd and respectfully answered, "Yes, it has been nine years. Mr. Xenos, you
mentioned you'd set me free when we meet again."
Frowning, Shawn asked, "Did I?"
It happened so long ago that he could not recall ever saying that.
Seth Zander was shocked at first but then replied firmly, "Yes, you did."
While looking at him with his quiet eyes, Shawn asked, "So, you've been waiting for nine years?"
"Yes, Mr. Xenos."
"In that case, continue working for me for another three months. Once the time is up, you and the Xenos Family will
not owe each other anymore."
Seth calmly replied, "Yes." At that moment, he was elated. After nine years, he could finally leave this place!
"Eilam, he's yours now."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmThe startled kid inquired, "Father, who is this?"
Shawn knew Seth's abilities fairly well and thought he would be the best candidate to mentor Eilam. "Your
bodyguard, Seth Zander."
The figure stiffened while murmuring to himself, "Mr. Xenos, you still remember my name?"
Shawn did not bother about it and got into the helicopter without hearing Seth say, "Thank you, Shawn Xenos."
…
Later, Seth abandoned everything he had in the building and followed them onto the helicopter. He sat on the
farthest corner of the chopper, watching Shawn go through the documents. After nine years, Seth thought Shawn
seemed more mature, and the way he dealt with things seemed more resolute.
He sat there like he was nonexistent, while Eilam waited until Shawn finished perusing the documents before
asking, "Are we going home?"
"I'll be heading to the company, but you are." Shawn gave him a simple reply.
Eilam stayed silent and looked toward his new bodyguard. When Shawn noticed that, he explained, "Seth, from now
on, you'll be personally giving the young master combat lessons."
"Yes, Mr. Xenos." Seth was an obedient bodyguard. He had to be if he wanted to go home.
The helicopter landed on the top floor of Xenos Solutions' headquarters. Shawn descended the chopper before
taking a rose from Waylen and giving it to Eilam, instructing, "Eilam, give this to your mother."
Before arriving, he had texted Waylen, telling him to prepare a rose as a gift for Renee.
"Yes, Father."
After Shawn left and the helicopter took off, Eilam asked Seth, "Have you and Father known each other for nine
years?"
"Yes. I used to be Mr. Xenos' bodyguard."
Seth used to be one of the bodyguards beside Shawn and was also one of the three that he ordered to kill. He was
grateful that Shawn decided to spare him and even gave him a promise, which Seth exchanged for saving a life!
"Father said you're going to give me combat training."
"Yes, Young Master Eilam."
…
Nicholas agreed to marry Aria, but he specifically mentioned that it was not out of love. His exact words were, "I will
treat you with respect and care, but you should know… I already have someone I love."
Nonetheless, she was not upset by his words because she had gotten what she desired. "Yes, I understand."
So what if our marriage isn't out of love? At least I love him, and he's willing to respect me as his wife. That's all I
need.
At that moment, Aria was taking care of the drunk Nicholas. He had been drinking a lot recently and seemed to be
upset. When she tried to decipher why, he had to be upset about losing her. Suddenly, he grabbed her wrist. "Ree."
She is the person occupying his heart.
She replied gently, "I'm Aria."
However, he repeated. "Ree."
This time, she did not try to correct the drunk man. After putting him to sleep, she grabbed her phone and just
happened to come across Renee's post. Renee was happy with her current life, so Nicholas did not want to interrupt
that. Deep inside, he also wished she could be happy. His desire for her to be content in life overcame his
possessiveness.
He had been changing his ways for her, but no one knew about his efforts.
With a soft sigh, Aria wished him. "I hope things will pass with time, and everyone can be happy. I also hope that
everything will settle down soon."
She loved Nicholas, but her feelings for him were never selfish. While loving him, she was also forgiving,
understanding, and empathetic. That was why he chose to marry her.
"Nicholas, I promise to stay with you forever."