Looking at Denise, Anthony sighed in resignation.
It's pointless to say anything now.
As he remained silent, Benjamin piped up, “Although we didn't see what happened inside, we could hear that there seemed to be some sort of conflict between them, as if something had vaguely transpired. Daddy also promised Nat that he won't allow anything untoward to happen to her.”
That caused Anthony to furrow his brows.
Coupled with the conversation between Kenneth and Spencer, he knew they must be keeping a secret for a certainty; it was no longer just a mere suspicion of his.
“What happened afterward?” the boy then asked.
“Spencer is still in Thalia's room right now. The housekeeper went to the room to tidy up some things a few moments ago, but she hasn't come out yet,” Benjamin informed.
Anthony listened with a thoughtful look on his face.
His younger brother eyed him. “Do you know something?”
Anthony looked upward to meet his eyes, then nodded.
“What do you know?” Benjamin immediately pressed on.
After taking a deep breath, Anthony told his siblings about how he had followed their father earlier that day and heard the conversation between Kenneth and Spencer.
Benjamin knitted his brows tightly after hearing the divulgement from Anthony. “Based on what you've said, we can be a hundred percent sure that they're keeping something from us,” he reasoned.
“But despite all we've heard, we still can't figure out what it is!” Denise chimed in.
Benjamin deduced, “They probably did that on purpose. Maybe they communicated in that manner because they were worried that we would find out. After all, they didn't have to be overly explicit to understand one another.”
Anthony nodded. “Yes. We can't rule out that possibility.”
“What should we do, then?” Denise asked. “Just what is it that we cannot know?”
He froze momentarily before murmuring, “I'm just afraid that it's something bad...”
“Something bad...” The incident of Natasha fainting flashed through her mind. On second thought, that's unlikely. If it had something to do with Nat, Daddy would've long been restless, and he wouldn't be as calm as he is now.
At that moment, Anthony piped up, “Based on what we've heard, we know that Daddy will certainly take action, but as to when that will happen, it remains unclear. For now, we shall stick to the plan—we'll split up and ask to see if we can find out something.”
Benjamin and Denise nodded in unison.
“Come on. Let's go and visit Thalia now,” Anthony suggested. “Perhaps we can still find out something if we head there now.”
In response, his siblings bobbed their heads again.
While Anthony was the most perverse of the three, he was also the best at solving problems, so with him taking the lead, Benjamin and Denise naturally did not have to think as much.
With that, the trio set off together.
“We'll just pretend that nothing is going on, and we just came to play with Thalia as usual,” Anthony said.
“Acting is what I'm best at,” was Denise's response.
Benjamin merely stated, “I'll just keep my mouth shut.”
“Mm. You seem to know yourself quite well,” Anthony commented.
“You simply can't go without insulting me, can't you?” Benjamin retorted.
Anthony replied, “That's not true. I'm just used to it.”
At that, Benjamin found himself at a loss for words.
Subsequently, he cast his brother a side-eye and said no more.
Just as they were approaching Thalia's room, they bumped into their parents.
“Daddy, Nat,” Anthony greeted.
A grim look flashed across Kenneth's eyes when he saw the trio. “What are you three doing here?”
Frowning, Anthony responded, “We came to see Thalia, of course... Is there a problem?”
With his eyes cast downward, Kenneth stated, “Spencer is examining Thalia now, so it's not convenient for the three of you to go in. Head back to your room first.”
“Is that so?” Anthony queried, a small frown creasing his forehead. Then, he looked toward Thalia's room and continued, “How long will it take for the examination to be completed? We can just wait here.”
Words eluded Kenneth.
Anthony is determined to oppose me.
Staring at the boy, he was about to say something when Natasha beat him to it. “If that's the case, stay here and wait then.”
Stunned, Kenneth tilted his head and stared incredulously at her.
“They won't stop worrying if you don't let them wait, so just leave them be,” she remarked with a faint smile.
Since she had already put it that way, he could only go along with it. He then turned back to the children. “All right, then. Be quiet so that you don't disturb Spencer.”
“Got it,” Anthony responded.
Right at that moment, Kenneth directed his gaze to Natasha. “How are you feeling? Are you tired? Do you want to go back to the room to rest?”
“No need for that. Spencer should be almost done, so let's just wait a little longer,” she replied.
With his eyes trained on her, he nodded.
Hence, the family of five stood outside Thalia's room and waited.
The three children occasionally peered inside and shuffled their feet bit by bit in that direction to observe what was happening.
They dared not be too overt, though, as Kenneth would cast a glance their way from time to time.
After what seemed like forever, Spencer's voice came from the room.
“Thalia, are you awake?”
When Natasha and Kenneth heard his voice, they exchanged glances with each other before striding toward the room with the three children following closely behind.
Inside the room, Thalia was lying on the bed while Spencer stood at the side, watching her nervously.
The mess on the floor had long been cleaned up, so it was impossible to tell what had happened there.
Just then, Thalia opened her eyes and directed her gaze at the family of five in the doorway.
Natasha approached her as soon as she entered the room. “How are you feeling, Thalia?” she asked.
At the sight of the worried faces before her, Thalia quirked her lips into a smile. “I'm fine!”
Seeing that she was still smiling, Natasha began, “Thalia, I'm really sorry...”
“What are you apologizing for?” Thalia uttered. She then glanced at the three children standing at the side as though she was giving the other woman a hint. “No one apologizes after saving others.”
Natasha looked at her without saying another word. Only they knew what they were communicating with one another through their gazes.
At that moment, Anthony was observing from the side. Although he could not make out anything from their exchange, he swept his gaze across the area and noticed the marks on the bathroom door lock as well as the damaged stool. After taking everything in, he shot Benjamin a meaningful look.
The latter had already noticed those things when he entered the room. He just did not say a word about them.
Having exchanged glances with Benjamin, Anthony piped up, “What happened to you, Thalia? Haven't you recovered two days ago? Why are you in bed again?”
“I...” Thalia wanted to say something, but her voice faltered in hesitation as soon as she began her sentence. After looking around and noticing that no one was planning on speaking on her behalf, she soon caught on to the situation. “How can I recover quickly with so many injuries?” was what she said a beat later.
“Then—”
“It's nothing. I'm just a little weak.” On the surface, Thalia still looked like her usual carefree self.
Even though Anthony did not believe it, he still nodded in response.
Just then, Kenneth, standing at the side, spoke. “All right. Since we've already seen her, if there's nothing else, let's head back and give her some space.”
His words were directed at Natasha as well as the three children.
Naturally, Natasha understood what he meant, so she nodded.
Anthony scrutinized Kenneth for a moment, but ultimately, he could only go along with it and agree with the latter's words.
“We'll take our leave, then. Spencer, I'll let you handle things here,” Kenneth said.
Spencer nodded, a trace of solemnness flashing across his devilish features.
“Let's go.” With that, the family of five walked out of the room together.
“How did the bathroom door end up that way?” Anthony inquired abruptly the moment he turned around.
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