Tears streamed down her cheeks, one after another, as if a string of pearls had snapped.
"Mario, sweetheart, it''s Mommy. I''m so sorry-I didn''t protect you. These four years... you''ve suffered so much..."
Her words came out broken, choked with sobs, her voice trembling and tumbling over itself in confusion.
Tears blurred her vision. Briony tried desperately to see her son''s face, blinking hard to clear her eyes, but her sight kept swimming in and out of focus. Again and again, her emotions overwhelmed her; she couldn''t control herself.
Little Mario looked up at her, then slowly lifted his small hands. Gently, he reached out and wiped the tears from Briony''s face with his tiny fingers.
That simple gesture broke Briony even more. She wept harder, repeating over and over, "I''m your mom, Mario-I''m your mom..."
Atst, something seemed to click for little Mario. In a small, careful voice, he called her, "Mommy."
The moment Briony heard him say it, all her restraint shattered. Four years of pent-up grief spilled out in a flood of sobs.
"Thank you—thank you for being alive..."
Carol, standing nearby, dabbed at her own eyes. "Ms. Kensington, it''s all over now. You found each other-that''s what matters. Don''t cry anymore, or Mario will start worrying."
He was still so little. Maybe he couldn''t quite understand why his mother was crying so hard just then, but he knew tears were never a good thing.
He wasn''t like little Nina, with her sweet words and ready reassurances. But Mario he was thoughtful in his own quiet way.
Seeing his mom''s tears wouldn''t stop, he pulled a few tissues from the box and patiently wiped them from her face. One after another, the tissues grew damp, but still her tears kept flowing.
Mario''s small brows knitted in concern, his dark eyes wide and helpless as he watched her.
After a long moment, he finally managed to squeeze out a few words: "Mommy, don''t cry."
Briony froze in surprise.
Afraid she hadn''t heard him, Mario repeated, "Mommy, don''t cry."
James spoke up, too. "Bryn, look-your son''s worried about you now."
Briony sniffled, gazing at her remarkably mature boy. She wiped thest of her tears away and managed a shaky smile. "I won''t cry, sweetheart. I''m just so happy—I finally have you back."
Mario looked into her eyes, studying her for a long moment, and then-hesitantly at first-he smiled.
Briony caught the spark of his smile and, despite everything, found herself smiling right back.
...
Meanwhile, one of the men waiting at the
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him know that Brione taken off safely.
Carl ryed the news to Stewart.
Only then did Stewart finally let out a breath, feeling the tension leave his shoulders.
He turned to Garry, his expression calm. "Garry, what''s it going to take for you to hand over thest dose of the medicine?"
Garry looked at Stewart, his mouth twisting into a cold smirk. “And what if I said I wanted your life in exchange?"
Stewart narrowed his eyes. "We both know you wouldn''t dare."
At that, Garry shot to his feet, yanking a pistol from his waistband and leveling it right at Stewart''s forehead.
"Stewart, do you really think I wouldn''t kill you if I wanted to?"
Stewart''s lips curled into an ironic smile.
My life only exists because Randolph traded his own to save me."
Randy don''t think you would
The mention of Randolph hit Garry like a nerve. He clenched his teeth, ring.
"Garry, I I
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do. I don''t have time to y roulette with you, but if you else, name it."
Garry nced at his bodyguard.
The bodyguard pulled out abat knife and handed it to Stewart.
Stewart nced at the gleaming de, then at Garry.
Garry''s smirk deepened. "If you won''t give me your life, at least show me a little sincerity."
Stewart lifted his hand and took the knife.
Carl gasped. "Mr. Wentworth-!"