Chapter 52

Max's POV

It has been three days since I sent my men to find Nelly in Camptown, but they still haven't been able to locate her. I know Nelly won't give up easily, and I'm worried she might try to harm Priscilla as revenge for what happened at the office. Priscilla only made things worse by helping her. I wish she hadn't put herself in danger.

The sound of a knock on the door snapped me out of my daze. I wondered who it could be, as only Nicolas was allowed in my office without prior permission.

"Come in," I said, hoping it wasn't someone coming to bother me with trivial matters.

The door opened and Nicolas walked in.

"I hope you have good news," I said, hoping for some positive developments. Max walked over to me, pulled up a chair, and sat down opposite me.

"Unfortunately, I only have bad news. Have you seen the news today?" Nicolas asked, placing his tablet on the table. I frowned as I read the trending news. My eyes widened when I saw Priscilla's picture. There were two pictures of her - one taken at the beach, and the other taken at a restaurant where I was carrying her along with a picture where she was wearing dirty clothes. The caption read, "She fell from grass to grace by trapping a rich man with a baby." I clenched my jaw tightly, wondering who could have published such news.

"That's not all. I have found Nelly's location. She is currently in Baytown, apparently living with your Auntie Suzie. I'm sure they are behind this," Nicolas said. I pounded my fist against the table, my anger building up. Priscilla had thought she was doing a good deed by helping Nelly, but now it seemed to have backfired.

"What do you think I should do?" I asked, trying to keep a level head.

"For now, let them be. If you bring her here, Auntie Suzie will undoubtedly come with her, and it won't be good for Priscilla. Just pretend as if you don't know what's going on, we will find a solution in due time," Nicolas suggested, and I nodded my head in agreement.

"I should go and check on Priscilla now. She must have seen the news and must be crying her heart out," I said as I rose from my chair and grabbed my jacket.

"Let me come with you. Priscilla and I are close, maybe she might need a friend to calm her down," Nicolas said, but I felt a twinge of discomfort at the thought of them being close.

"You should go home and rest. I will take care of Priscilla," I said quickly, hoping to avoid any further discussion.

"Max, I told you that Priscilla is my friend, didn't I? That's why I want to be there for her. What's your problem?" Nicolas asked, and I felt a surge of anger and jealousy.

"Nicolas, I had told you to let me take care of Priscilla. Just go home already and stop arguing," I said, hoping to end the conversation.

"Fine, but I will come in the morning to meet my friend," Nicolas said, and I felt my muscles tighten in frustration.

"Tomorrow is Saturday. I don't want any visitors in my house, Nic. Just go home and enjoy your weekend, okay?" I said, hoping to put an end to the matter.

"What! Since when have I become a visitor in your house? Why do I feel like you are trying to keep me away from Priscilla?" Nicolas looked at me suspiciously, but I looked away, not wanting to admit to my feelings.

"Nic, stop it now. Just do me a favor and stay in your own comfortable house. We will meet on Monday, okay?" I said. The elevator opened, and I stepped out, making my way out of the building.

Priscilla's POV

Liz, Lurry, and I snuck into the house. The lights were turned off, which meant everyone had gone to sleep. After Lurry had confided in me earlier today, I couldn't let those bullies get away with abusing Lurry. I had to persuade Liz to come with me to teach them a lesson they would never forget. It's a relief to see Lurry smiling again.

As we made our way to the stairs, Liz whispered, "Everyone's asleep. Let's hurry upstairs before Max comes back. He'll start asking us a lot of questions." But just as we were about to leave the sitting room, the lights were suddenly turned on.

My heart sank when I saw Max sitting on the couch, looking stern. I knew he would be angry if he found out I had gone to beat up someone. "Where have you been?" he asked, his gaze fixed on me.

I struggled to find the right words, my mind racing. "Uh... You know... We..." I stammered, feeling my body freeze in place.

Liz stepped in and saved me. "We went for a walk to get some fresh air. I was feeling a bit down, so I asked Priscilla and Lurry to come with me," she said calmly.

"At this hour?" Max raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"So what? We can go for a walk anytime we want. There's no child here who isn't allowed to go out at any time they want. Anyway, I'm going to sleep. I'm tired, and don't you dare try to question Priscilla," Liz said firmly as she started making her way upstairs, with Lurry following behind her.

I breathed a sigh of relief and started to follow them when Max stopped me. "Don't look at me like that, please!" I pleaded as he followed me up the stairs.

"If you don't tell me the truth, then you are going to sleep all alone in your room."Max threatened me, I stopped in my tracks and turned to face him.

"Max!" I called out his name. He looked at me with a nonchalant expression. "Do you have a problem with me going out? I went out to get some air, that's it. So what is your problem exactly? I don't remember you being my father or my husband. Are you either of those? Tell me, maybe I have forgotten," I asked. I knew that I was in the wrong for going to beat up someone, but there was no way I was going to tell him that.

"Priscilla, I know that you are hiding something from me. Even if you don't tell me, I will find out," Max said, as his eyes scanned me from head to toe. "Why aren't you wearing warm clothes? It's raining outside, but you are wearing shorts. Do you want to catch a fever or something?" I rolled my eyes and ignored him before continuing up the stairs, leaving Max in the sitting room. I hoped he wouldn't find out about what I had just done.

Max's POV

I shook my head and closed my eyes, feeling a sudden release of tension. Priscilla was still unaware of the news, and that was a good thing. I needed to ensure that she didn't see it, or else it would only make her more depressed. So, I decided to go to the kitchen and make a cup of coffee for her. I didn't know where she had gone, but I didn't want her to catch a cold because she was barely dressed.

As I was walking to the kitchen, I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket. I took it out and frowned when I saw who was calling. It was Brian, the person I had assigned to watch over Priscilla. I hesitantly answered the call, bringing the phone to my ear.

"What happened?" I asked, my voice filled with concern, as I spoke on the phone.

"Sir, your girlfriend got into a physical altercation with some schoolboys. It seems they were bullying your cousin, so Ms. Priscilla took matters into her own hands. I was astonished by her flexibility, especially considering she was pregnant. She's quite the force to be reckoned with, like Jackie Chan." Brian's words left me stunned, my mouth agape. This was completely unexpected. Why would she take such extreme measures? Priscilla was truly an enigma to me.

"Make sure the police don't get involved. Keep me informed of her actions," I instructed, my mind racing with worry.

"Um...Sir, there's something else you should know. Dave has been following Ms. Priscilla wherever she goes. I can't determine his intentions, but it seems like he wants to harm her," Brian revealed, his words causing a heavy pit to form in my stomach. The mere thought of Dave causing harm to Priscilla ignited a rage within me. I wanted nothing more than to confront him and protect her at all costs.

"Ensure her safety. I'll take care of Priscilla," I asserted before ending the call. Letting out a sigh, I never expected someone as successful and composed as Liz, who was a lawyer, to be involved in Priscilla's unpredictable behavior. Couldn't they have come up with a different solution?

I made my way to the kitchen, deciding to brew two cups of lemon tea. Minutes later, I carefully carried the steaming cups upstairs, my mind weighed down by worry.

As I entered Priscilla's room, I was greeted by a loud sneeze. As expected, she had caught a cold. Upon opening the door, I saw Priscilla sitting on the bed with only a towel wrapped around her body and her hair still wet. I wondered why she wasn't dressed and why she hadn't dried her hair.

She sneezed again, and I came back to reality. I made my way inside and asked, "Priscilla, are you okay?" She sneezed again, and her nose and face turned red. I wanted to scold her, but seeing her condition, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I placed the cups of coffee on the bed and went to her closet to fetch some warm clothes for her. When I returned to the bed, Priscilla was still sneezing uncontrollably.

"Go and put some clothes on," I told her, but she was shivering all over, and the sneezing made her body tremble. I had no choice but to help her change her clothes, even though it might have repercussions for me.

I carefully laid out the clothes on the bed, assisting her as she slipped on a pair of socks. Despite my racing heart, I focused on the task at hand, determined to dismiss any unnecessary thoughts. Once she had donned a pair of comfortable tracksuit trousers, I removed the towel from her body, relieved to find that she was already wearing something underneath. Swiftly, I helped her into her shirt and pulled up the hood to shield her head. Retrieving a hair dryer from the drawer, I meticulously dried her hair, ensuring a smooth finish. Throughout the process, she couldn't stop sneezing, but thankfully, her temperature remained normal. I wondered if she was even aware of my efforts to dress her.

I picked up Priscilla and carried her to the side of the bed. She sat down with her head resting on the headboard, sneezing now and then. I noticed a cup of tea on the nightstand and decided to offer it to her, hoping it would make her feel better.

"Priscilla, please have this lemon tea. It will make you feel better," I said, handing her the cup. But she quickly pushed it away, and I barely avoided getting burned.

"I'm--" she began to say, but another sneeze interrupted her. "I'm allergic to--" She sneezed again, and the tissues on the floor piled up. I guessed she was allergic to lemon, so I put the cup back on the nightstand and searched through her drawer for cold medicine.

After finding it, I returned to her side and poured a glass of water, offering her the medicine. She took the pills and drank some water, sneezing again.

"I'm cold," Priscilla mumbled, followed by another sneeze. Her face was even more red now.

"Go to sleep, and you'll feel better in no time, okay?" I said softly. I helped her lie down on the bed and tucked her in with a blanket. The medicine seemed to be taking effect because, after 30 minutes, she stopped sneezing and fell into a deep slumber.

I lay down next to her on the bed, pulling her trembling body into my arms. She rested her head on my chest. It was clear that she was really cold, and I just hoped she wouldn't develop a fever.