They closed in on Keen, surrounding him from all sides.


    Watching the scene unfold on the security monitor, Haynes''s brow furrowed in concern, while Mrs. Ayers looked as if she might faint from shock.


    Even through the grainy footage, it was obvious that Sheldon and his two friends weren''t here for a friendly chat. The way they cornered Keen was practiced- clearly, this wasn''t their first time.


    Haynes''s dark eyes grew colder by the second.


    Then Sheldon''s voice cut through the tense silence in the room.


    "A few days ago, I heard my mom say your mom barely finished middle school- she can''t even read properly, not like us kids at fancy private schools."


    "I bet none of these other kids know just how pathetic and embarrassing your mom is, do they?"


    Heughed, a sharp, cruel sound. "Well, even if they don''t know now, they''re about to. We''ll make sure everyone hears about it."


    The sudden hush in the air was suffocating. No one else dared to speak. Only Sheldon''s mockingughter echoed from the speakers.


    Haynes''s icy gaze slid to Mrs. Ayers.


    She shrank under his stare, trembling as if she wished she could disappear.


    It was one thing for her to gossip about Ste behind closed doors, to look down on her in private. But saying such things out loud-deliberately humiliating someone-crossed a line.


    And from Sheldon''s words, it was clear this was no isted incident. He''d been bullying Keen for a while now.


    Thinking back, Ste''s expression darkened as well. She had never realized Keen was facing this kind of torment at preschool.


    The cruel remarks made it painfully clear: much of the bullying was because of her.


    Suddenly, Ste remembered a period when Keen had seemed withdrawn and sad. She''d asked him what was wrong, but he''d refused to talk.


    Not long after, Deanna had suggested Keen stay with her for a while, saying she wanted to tutor him personally. He ended up spending an entire month at her house.


    Ste visited whenever she could, but Deanna never let her stay the night. Her time with Keen was limited to brief dinners, and on weekends, Keen was busy with lessons and hardly saw her at all.


    Looking back now, Ste realized that''s when Keen''s attitude toward her had started to change—he''d grown distant, almost cold.


    At the time, she''d med it on Rachel. Now, she saw that wasn''t the whole story. That must have been when the bullying began.


    Everyone watching quickly pieced together what had happened. Marvin''s outburst made sense-it was Sheldon''s insults to Ste that had pushed him over the edge.


    For a child so young to speak with such malice, it was obvious he''d picked up those words from the adults around him.


    It was one thing for Sheldon to have witnessed Ste''s embarrassment at the party. But details about her education? There was no way he''d know that unless the grown-ups had been talking.


    Haynes''s lips pressed into a hard, thin line, his handsome features set in a chill as cold as ice.


    He turned to Keen, voice calm but edged with frost. "When did this start?"


    Keen stared at the floor, unable to meet Haynes''s eyes. "It started... after Mom was embarrassed at my birthday party."


    "Why didn''t you ever tell me?" Haynes asked quietly.


    Keen''s reply was barely above a whisper. “Grandma said you were too busy, that I shouldn''t bother you with little things."


    Haynes''s tone softened only a fraction. "Then why didn''t you tell your mother?"