Briony shot to her feet in the side lounge, her eyes riveted to the security monitor where little Mario''s face appeared.


    "How can it be..." James was just as stunned. "Little Mario?!"


    Briony''s eyes turned red, brimming with tears, as she stared at the boy cradled in Marlene''s arms. Memories of the first time she met little Mario shed through her mind-she''d felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity, a connection she couldn''t


    name.


    She didn''t need any more proof.


    Right then and there, Briony was certain: little Mario was her son.


    Tears streamed down her cheeks. Without thinking, she turned and rushed toward the living room.


    She had to find her boy.


    "Ms. Kensington." The secretary stepped into her path. "You can''t go in there yet." Briony frowned, looking at the woman in frustration.


    James quickly got up and joined her, lowering his voice to soothe her. "Wait. Let''s see what Garry is nning first."


    Although she was desperate, Briony knew the truth-this was Garry''s territory. If he didn''t give his consent, getting her son back wouldn''t be so simple.


    She forced herself to sit back down next to James, trying to rein in her anxiety.


    On the monitor, at that moment, Stewart reached out and took little Mario into his


    arms.


    To everyone''s surprise, little Mario didn''t resist. In fact, once Stewart was holding him, the boy reached up and gently touched Stewart''s face.


    There was no audio on the footage, but the lounge wasn''t far from the living room. Briony could just make out the childish voice calling out-


    "Daddy."


    Briony froze.


    Little Mario had called Stewart "Daddy"-and had done so on his own.


    What was going on? Had little Mario and Stewart already recognized each other as father and son?


    Watching the way little Mario leaned into Stewart, Briony was overwhelmed by a surge ofplicated emotions.


    So her son hade back looking for her long ago, but she had failed to recognize him.


    He was actually the older brother, yet he was so much smaller than Little Nina.


    Without a mother''s care, his speech had developedte-he''d nearly bepletely withdrawn.


    The thought of it cut Briony to the core.


    She hadn''t protected little Mario. She owed him more than she could ever repay.


    Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the living room was fraught with tension.


    Garry, for one, was not happy about little Mario calling Stewart "Daddy."


    He''d raised the boy for four years, after all. He''d done everything to keep him alive, spent more money than he could count, and yet with just one visit, Stewart had managed to win the boy''s affection?


    But what Garry didn''t realize was that ever since Stewart learned Mario Shared his aversion to


    potatoes, he''d been paying t


    attention to the boy.


    He''d had Carl secretly investigate, but kept things discreet, not wanting to tip Garry off.


    Stewart understood: if Garry really had switched the children, it was part of arger n.


    Until Garry confronted him directly, Stewart couldn''t make any sudden moves.


    So long as Garry believed Stewart was in the dark, little Mario was still safe.


    ΟΛΕ


    Carl''s findings, along with Stewart''s own observations of how Garry treated the boy, reassured him that, for now, little Mario was being well cared for.


    That''s why Stewart bribed Carol, keeping tabs on everything that happened to


    little Mario from the shadows.


    It wasn''t until two weeks ago that Garry finally came clean.


    Stewart pretended not to believe it, insisting he''d take little Mario for a paternity test himself.


    So, he personally made the trip to Westermar, taking little Mario to the hospital for the test.


    Once the results came back, Garry named his price.


    He wanted Irwin.


    Stewart said he''d think it over.


    But in truth, the day before, he had already received the results of Irwin''s kinship


    test with Randolph''s father.