Chapter 94 Unwise To
Provoke Her
“Not at all, Mr. Mitchell. It’s just a misunderstanding,” Orlando said, forcing a tight smile.
His wife, however, wasn’t backing down. Her face remained hard as she asked, “Honey, what’s going on here? Who is this man? Do you know him?”
“Shut up!” Orlando snapped, his tone colder than before. He then turned back to William, still trying to mask his unease with a smile. “Mr. Mitchell, please ignore her. She’s just a woman and doesn’t know better. What happened today is just a minor conflict between the two boys. How about this? I’ll have my son apologize to your son right away. Jimmy, come here.”
William wasn’t fooled. His gaze shifted to Ryland, who was still clutching his stomach, seething with anger. William had never been fond of Ryland, but given the man’s friendship with Renee, he just
I let this
slide.
“Ryland,” William said coldly, his voice carrying the weight of authority, “tell me. Is this a misunderstanding?”
Ryland, still hurting from the two brutal kicks, glared at Orlando, his face contorted with frustration. He sneered. “Misunderstanding? Hell no! Those people are
unreasonable! Their son took Felix’s toy, and instead of correcting their own boy, they
slandered Felix, accusing him of hitting their kid.”
As Ryland spoke, his anger boiled over. He pointed to the staff member and the amusement park manager, his voice rising with fury. “And these two! They saw the truth and still lied through their teeth. The second they found out this guy was the Chief Inspector, they just played along with his lies! I demand to see the surveillance footage. Let’s see how you’re going to explain yourselves now!”
The outburst left Orlando and his wife speechless, their faces flushed with humiliation.
The manager, visibly sweating, stepped forward with an obsequious smile. “Sir, we’re truly sorry for the misunderstanding. How about we offer you some compensation? I hope we can clear this up.”
Orlando, still trying to salvage the situation, nodded along. “Yes, of course. We’ll apologize and compensate. Mr. Mitchell, what do you say?”
Meanwhile, William was holding Felix, comforting him with an air of indifference to the drama unfolding around him. His focus was solely on the child.
“Are you hungry, Felix?” William asked softly. “Want me to take you somewhere to eat? Tell me what you like, and I’ll buy it for you. Why don’t you call your mommy, and we can eat together? Just us, and we’ll enjoy some time together.”
“Mr. Mitchell…” Orlando hesitated, his voice betraying his uncertainty. He couldn’t help but wonder if Felix was really William’s son. The tenderness with which William spoke to him made Orlando doubt what he thought he knew.
William turned to give Orlando a cold, almost disdainful glance. The intensity of it made Orlando falter, his legs threatening to give way.
But, putting on a brave front, Orlando asked, “Mr. Mitchell, do you think this solution is acceptable?”
“Not at all.”
The voice that responded wasn’t William’s, but a clear, commanding feminine voice.
At the sound of the voice, Ryland’s eyes lit up with recognition. He practically jumped
from his seat, shouting, “Renee!”
Renee emerged from the crowd, her presence commanding attention. She quickly scanned Felix and, relieved to see no visible injuries, felt a wave of comfort wash over her. However, the sight of him nestled so comfortably in William’s arms stirred something in her–annoyance, perhaps. She couldn’t quite place it.
Her gaze shifted to Ryland, who looked battered and bruised, a bit of blood smeared at the corner of his mouth. Her frown deepened as she asked, “How did this happen? Who did this to you?”
Ryland, looking like a child seeking protection, pointed at Orlando and whined, “Him! That Chief Inspector!” His act was almost childish, but the venom in his words was
clear.
Orlando’s face darkened, but with William standing nearby, he couldn’t afford to lash was Johnny’s out. He recognized Renee–if he remembered correctly, she granddaughter, and William’s ex–wife. The air around her was different now. She was someone powerful in her own right.
Felix, calling William “Mr. Mitchell,” only added to Orlando’s confusion. Was Felix really their son, or was there something else going on here?
Orlando hesitated, trying to piece things together. He knew the rumors about Renee severing ties with the Carter family, but if she was still connected to William, he knew it was best to tread carefully. He decided it would be unwise to provoke her further, not when there were so many unknowns.
