Chapter 669 Fever
Pearl had no clue where Lila was from, so she just grabbed a bit of everything. "Give it a try and see what you like. If you find something you love, go back for more. Just don't waste it, and you can have as much as you want."
"As long as you picked it, I'll like it," Lila said, and she meant it.
She cleaned her plate, not even leaving a drop of sauce.
Once they were stuffed, Oscar drove them to the amusement park. Lila was a bit shy at first, but after a few rides, she started to loosen up. "Christopher, I really love the carousel. Can we go again?"
"Last time, I rode the big horse and you took the small one. Let's switch it up this time," Christopher said, grabbing her hand.
They were still young, so the more intense rides were off-limits. They had a blast in the kids' area and eventually joined Oscar and Pearl on the Ferris wheel.
At the top, Lila clasped her hands together. "I heard if we make a wish at the top of the Ferris wheel, it'll come true. I wish to live with your family forever."
"It will definitely come true," Pearl said, her eyes full of warmth.
A family of four was great, but a family of five would be even better.
After the amusement park, Oscar drove them back. They took a detour off the highway to pick up Emily before heading home.
Emily hadn't seen them in two days. When she saw them, she reached out her little hands, babbling.
"Lila, look, this is Emily. She's super cute," Christopher said, bringing Lila over to Pearl, who was holding Emily.
Lila carefully extended her finger to Emily's mouth. Emily, thinking it was something tasty, stuck out her tongue to try and nibble on her finger.
Oscar quickly scooped Lila up. "You can't let Emily eat your finger."
Fingers had too many germs, and Emily was so tiny. If she got sick, it wouldn't be good.
But he didn't say that out loud. Lila, being new, was already nervous. If she thought the family didn't like her, it wouldn't be good.
Lila nodded.
On the way home, she kept staring at Emily. "Christopher, she's way cuter than my siblings."
"Of course, she's the cutest sister in the whole world," Christopher said, standing a bit taller.
Pearl smiled, saying nothing.
As long as they got along, that was enough.
Once home, Pearl and Oscar went to work, leaving Emily with Christopher, Lila, and their new nanny, Calliope, who lived nearby.
"Calliope, I'm really hungry and craving something sweet. Could you bake a custard tart?" Lila asked, gently tugging her arm while Christopher was in the bathroom.
Calliope agreed right away and reminded her, "If Emily wakes up and cries, come get me. I know how to calm her down."
"Don't worry, I'll keep a close eye on her," Lila replied earnestly. But as soon as Calliope left, Lila pulled out a small clear vial from her bag and dropped a few drops on Emily's lips.
She glanced at the remaining liquid, tempted to add more, but the bathroom door creaked open, and Christopher was coming back.
She quickly stashed the vial away, trying to act casual as she sat on the floor.
"Lila, I'm back. What were you up to?" Christopher asked, ready to play.
Lila, only six years old, wasn't a great actress. She avoided his gaze and turned her head, closing her eyes. "Nothing, just feeling a bit sleepy. I want to nap."
"Then you should sleep now. Where's Calliope?" Christopher asked.
"She went to make dessert. I was a bit hungry. Let's talk after I wake up," Lila said, pulling a blanket from the sofa to cover her face.
Christopher adored Emily. If he found out Lila had hurt her, he'd never speak to her again.
But if she didn't do this, she'd never see her family again.
After all, she hadn't hurt Christopher's parents or him.
As for Emily, she was so young and couldn't even talk yet. If something happened, her parents could always have another baby.
Soon, Calliope returned with the baked custard tart.
"Lila's asleep. Let's save the tart for later and let her eat it when she wakes up," Christopher whispered, not wanting to wake Lila.
Calliope nodded.
For the next half day, Christopher read a book while Lila, who had been pretending to sleep, eventually dozed off for real.
By evening, Calliope noticed that Emily hadn't woken up yet, which was unusual. She went to check on her and exclaimed, "Emily has a fever!"
"What? How's Emily?" Christopher asked, looking up in alarm.
He was so worried that he didn't care about waking Lila. He just wanted to check on Emily.
"Christopher, stay here for a moment. I'll go find Mr. and Mrs. Brown," Calliope said.
If it were Christopher with the fever, it wouldn't be as serious. But Emily was just a few months old, and a high fever could be life-threatening.
Hearing the commotion, Oscar and Pearl rushed downstairs. One grabbed the car keys to go to the garage, while the other took Emily from Calliope. "When did she start having a fever?"
"Mrs. Brown, I just noticed. She didn't cry or eat all afternoon and slept deeply. When I touched her forehead, it was burning hot," Calliope said, almost in tears.
She regretted sitting on the sofa for so long and not checking on Emily sooner.
Pearl was focused on saving Emily and didn't have time to worry about anything else. "Take care of Christopher and Lila. I'm taking Emily to the hospital."
Then she hurried out with Emily.
The commotion woke Lila. She watched Pearl's back, feeling a pang of guilt.
She had hidden the vial well, and no one would go through her bag. No one would know she did it.
So she wouldn't be kicked out.
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