Chapter 318 Could She Really Be an Illegitimate Daughter?
Susanna spun around to face Aaron. "You sure your bodyguards are solid? They won't just hand Lillian over if someone waves some cash, right?" she asked, genuinely worried.
Aaron shot back, ice-cold, "The bodyguards are good."
"You swear on that?"
"Instead of grilling me, how about we split up and search?" Aaron suggested.
Without a second thought, Susanna started to walk away, but a hand grabbed her wrist. She whipped around and slapped him, but this time, he caught her hand. His eyes were intense. "Leave a number so we can call if we find Lillian."
Susanna calmed down, and they swapped numbers. Aaron's face changed when he saw the number—it looked weirdly familiar. He remembered dialing it before but never getting through. Frowning, he said, "I tried calling you yesterday, but your phone was out of reach."
Susanna thought back to yesterday and said, "The sea was rough, and the helicopter's signal was crap." She hadn't expected Aaron to call. If she had picked up, would things be different now?
Just then, Sam walked up. "Isn't Lillian at the amusement park?"
Susanna shot daggers at Sam and snapped, "You're a lousy dad."
She turned and stormed into the amusement park to look for Lillian.
Sam, feeling wrongly accused, looked at Aaron. "Aaron, if I said I didn't know, would you believe me?"
Aaron frowned. "Let's find Lillian first."
After a quick chat, they split up to search for Lillian.
Sam stood there, rubbing his face, starting to wonder, 'Could I really have an illegitimate kid? No way, I've never met this Nova before.'
The amusement park was packed with kids, their laughter, crying, and screaming all blending together.
Aaron was super uncomfortable with the noise, especially all the kids' voices, giving him a headache.
He'd never have come to a place like this before. But now, things were different. What if something really happened to Lillian?
At the very least, he had to find Lillian and get her back to Susanna safely.
Aaron searched everywhere but couldn't find Lillian, and sweat was starting to bead on his forehead.
Just as his anxiety peaked, Susanna rushed over, looking worried. "Found her?"
"Not yet."
"Where could Lillian have gone?" Susanna was about to lose it.
Seeing Susanna's anxiety, Aaron softly reassured her, "I've got people at all the exits. If she leaves, we'll know. If there's no news, she's still here."
Susanna looked up. "Or maybe she's not even here," she whispered.
Unable to sit still, Susanna declared, "I can't just wait around. I need to go out and search!"
She had only taken a few steps when she stopped, thinking she heard Lillian's voice, but it wasn't clear.
Aaron looked at her, asking, "What's up?"
"I think I heard Lillian, but I'm not sure."
"Where?"
Susanna looked up and pointed. "Over there!"
They walked over together, where some kind of competition seemed to be happening.
Lillian was clutching a box, her eyes all red, and a worn-out bodyguard was sitting on the ground next to her.
Some snooty parents nearby were saying, "Hey kid, the competition needed parents to join in with their kids. This guy ain't your dad, so you don't qualify to compete or win first prize."
"Yeah, the organizers should check this stuff. If anyone can bring in outside help, it's not fair."
"Right, her first prize should be taken away."
Lillian held the box tight, her voice shaky with tears. "But we won first place, it's mine!"
The adults around her glared, demanding she hand over the prize.
"Lillian!"
Seeing Lillian, Susanna was almost crying with joy. She rushed over and hugged Lillian tight. Only when she held Lillian did she feel alive again.
Lillian looked at Susanna, first stunned, then pouted and cried, "Mommy, I missed you so much."
"I missed you too. How could you run off on your own? Do you know how worried I was?" Susanna had been super mad, but seeing Lillian, most of her anger melted away.
She kissed Lillian several times and saw tears in her eyes, asking, "Why are you crying?"
Lillian clutched her prize tightly. "Mommy, we won first place, this is my prize."
"Little girl, that's not right. We told you the rules. You didn't qualify, so your first place is revoked. We are the real winners, and the prize should be ours!"
Hearing this, Susanna stood up and looked at the family of three in front of her.
She noticed they were decked out in luxury brand logos, flaunting their designer outfits. The woman, Thalia, even had a fur coat draped over her shoulders.
She looked them over and said calmly, "But my daughter won first place, so the prize should be hers."
A staff member explained, "Ma'am, our event rules require parents to participate with their children. Your child did break the rules, so we have to revoke her first place and return the prize."
Lillian turned her head and buried herself in Susanna's arms, unwilling to give up the prize.
Susanna's voice turned icy as she confronted the staff member. "If those are the rules, you should have checked and told her before the competition. By allowing my daughter to compete, you basically agreed she could. How dare you take away her first place now?"
Was this staff member under the illusion that they could intimidate Lillian simply because she was unaccompanied by an adult?
The staff member was momentarily speechless and looked at Thalia and Lysander. "This is indeed a tricky situation."
Thalia and Lysander's son immediately started crying, "I don't care, I want the first place."
Thalia adjusted her shawl and sharply said, "I don't care. We are VIP pass holders at your amusement park. This little girl looks like a regular member. Are you sure you want to offend us for a regular member?"
The staff member was in a dilemma, suggesting, "Um, how about this? I can arrange for an additional first-place prize for you?"
"I don't want that, I want the one she's holding!" the little boy shouted.
The situation reached a stalemate.
Lysander stepped forward and looked at Susanna, a greedy look in his eyes as he uttered, "How about this? Let your daughter hand over the prize, and the staff will give you another one."
A cold glint flashed in Susanna's eyes. How shameless!
