(Author’s POV)

"We did. Actually~ ... Gunnar did give you a call. But your phone was turned off, so we had no choice but to come here," Chris answered. His eyes travelled to the girl beside Brave, and his orbs contracted.

Myra sneaked a glance in their direction. When their eyes met, Chris’s eyes glinted with something inexplicable, making her jittery all over. He then mumbled, his voice low, "We didn’t know you were here with your~ ... friend. Why don’t you introduce~ .... your majesty and her?" he suggested.

Fabian found it reasonable. After all, Jacob was his only blood family and Myra, his love, so he wanted them to meet as soon as possible, so he said, "Ahh~ ... yeah. Please come. Myra would be happy to meet you. She really admires you." He reached beside Jacob and tried to support him, but Jacob said, "I am not that weak. I’ll walk on my own." Respecting his words, Fabian stepped back, just enough.

The three of them marched towards Brave and Myra, who seemed to be talking amongst themselves. Fabian’s eyes turned cold, but he held himself back.

"If I remember correctly, you are Ms. Myra Miracle?" Jacob said in his usual aloof tone.

Myra’s eyes fluttered, her voice stuck in her throat. She was stunned to know that the CEO of the powerful Larson Group, her benefactor, remembered someone as common as her. She bowed slightly and said, "Yes, Mr. Larson. We met briefly at the Crown Opulence banquet. It’s a pleasure to meet you again." A genuine smile adorned her lips.

She then glanced at the cane once again and asked, her voice filled with worry, "Sir, I got to know about the incident. How is your health now?"

"As fit as a fiddle," Jacob answered. "And~ ... you don’t need to be so formal, Ms. Miracle. You are Fabian’s friend, and he is my most trusted person. That makes us acquaintances as well. He had told a lot about you and your achievements. So, I guess we don’t need such formality."

Myra nodded enthusiastically.

He then added, looking at the bandage gauze on her head, "Uhh~ ... what happened to you? Have you been in an accident?"

"Uhh~ ... nothing major, sir. It’s just a scrape," Myra brushed it off smoothly.

Brave looked at her as Raw mumbled inside his head, ’Rave, this pisses me off to another level. This Fabian and now even Jacob Larson, what’s their deal? Being all chummy with our mate. I don’t like it~ .... I don’t like it at all.’

Not being able to see this any longer, Brave interrupted, "Mr. Larson, you are still recovering. We had better return to the Larson mansion," He then extended his hand towards Myra and said, "Let’s go, Myra."

Myra hesitated. Jacob, getting curious, asked, "Mr. Everests~ .... do you and Ms. Miracle know each other already?"

"Yes, we do. She is my~ ...." he was about to reply when Myra jumped in, "His sister, Nora, and I are childhood friends."

"Ohhh, you were childhood friends, is it like that? Then you two must be pretty close as well," Chris commented, his tone peculiar. He was literally gawking at Myra. He hadn’t taken his eyes off of her for a second.

This time, Brave was quick with his reply, "Yes, we are quite close. In fact, Myra came to Kimberg and stayed at our mansion last year. Mother, father and everyone in our family adore her. She is like a family to us," He shifted towards Myra, in an attempt to stake his claim.

Myra gave a stiff smile. She didn’t know why Brave was giving the additional piece of information, and it was kind of awkward for her.

Before anyone could say anything else, Chris’s phone started to ring. He picked it up instantly. From the other side, Iris said, "Secretary Shadow, did you find him?"

"Yes, thanks to Gunnar. We did," he replied.

Iris exhaled a breath, then added, "His majesty needs to come back to the villa now. Although he had taken the medicine, I need to run some tests on him."

"Alright, we are on our way," with that, he disconnected the call and conveyed Iris’s words to Jacob. Jacob hummed, and then Chris said, "Ms. Miracle, Prof. Stephens, we are sorry to interrupt your time, but we need to head back now. There is something important, Chairman Larson has to discuss with you."

Fabian glanced at his grandfather and could tell that the matter must be of utmost importance for Jacob to come all the way. He clenched his fists, looking at the big partition created by the rock. He then released a sigh and walked towards Myra, standing on the other side, "You all should return. I will send Myra home first, then I’ll catch you all at the mansion." He was almost glued to her side.

"I guess, there is no need for that," Brave remarked. "I will drop off Myra. You should go with Secretary Shadow and Chairman Larson. After all, you have important things to discuss. It would be for the best." 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"No can do. I brought Myra here. So, it is my responsibility to send her home~ ... safely," Fabian was adamant on his stance. Today, he was this close to confessing his feelings. If only they had come ten minutes later. It would be a done deal. At least in his head.

Now, all of this was making him feel frustrated, so he wasn’t ready to back down.

But his resolve was shattered by Myra’s words, "Fabian, I think, Brave is right," she said. "You should go with them. I can go with Brave."

Fabian looked at Myra with a heartbroken expression.

"That’s settled then," Jacob didn’t give him any chance to protest. He had something more important to say to his grandson. So, everything else needed to wait.

Fabian clenched his fist even tighter; his veins were bulging. He didn’t want Myra and Brave to be alone in a closed-up space. But right now, if he didn’t resign, he would look childish, so in the end, he had no choice but to back out.

"Ms. Miracle, until we meet again," Jacob said to Myra and gave a brief nod. Myra, in return, bowed ninety degrees and said, "Wish you a good day, sir. Hope to see you soon," Jacob and Chris turned and started to leave, while Fabian said, "Myra, I am really sorry about today. Our lunch was interrupted." He made a regretful face, his hand now resting on her shoulder.

"No worries. We can do it some other time," she replied with a reassuring smile. Fabian smiled back, ruffling her hair gently. "We surely will. I’ll get going now, hmm." He then turned around and walked away. Myra saw their receding figures. Just when she was about to withdraw her gaze, her brows wrinkled as she noticed something odd.

Chris’s shirt sleeve had rolled up somehow, and on his arm, she could see an inked image. A tattoo she had seen somewhere before. But where~ .... she couldn’t recall. ’Where have I seen this? Why can’t I remember?’ Her mind was doused in her chain of thoughts now. She kept staring in that direction, mangled in her inner monologue.

Brave followed her gaze and couldn’t help but block her vision. He hovered over her and abruptly raised his hand. This sudden action startled Myra. She jolted and closed her eyes.

To Be Continued . . . . . . . .