Chapter 334: Chapter 331: This Voice, He Would Recognize It Even Turned to Ash (5)

Her body felt like it was about to split open. She gripped his hand tightly, refusing to let go. "Leon—AAAAHH!!"

Leon was panicking inside too, but he kept telling himself not to. "Nora, I’m going to get some warm water. You just lie still."

With that, he rushed out the door.

By the time he returned with a basin of warm water and a towel, a loud, clear cry made a smile spread across his face. "The baby’s here! The baby’s here!"

He quickly set the basin down, averted his gaze, and reached under her skirt. Sure enough, his hands found a soft little body.

The first one was born, and the second followed quickly after.

Nora Ainsworth sat up and told him, "Get some scissors and cut the umbilical cords."

He did as she said. With trembling, excited hands, he carefully cut the cords, sneaking a peek at the babies’ gender as he did.

"Two boys?"

Nora Ainsworth looked, and indeed, they were two boys.

A sense of accomplishment washed over her. She was so blessed to have given birth to two boys.

She couldn’t help but smile. "It really is. Looks like I won’t have a chance to have a girl in this lifetime."

Leon shook his head. "Who says? If you want a girl, we can have one. Even if the next one is a boy, we can keep trying until you have a girl. And I can afford to raise them all."

Nora snorted. "The family planning fines would be the death of you."

"Doesn’t matter. I have more than enough money."

Nora leaned back, her face pale, and said, "Leon, clear out the babies’ mouths, then clear their noses with something, and give them a bath."

He handled the tasks with surprising skill, busying himself with one thing after another.

Finally, he had both babies washed clean and laid them side by side.

The two babies couldn’t move much yet. Leon tied a small string around one of the baby’s right wrists.

Seeing this, Nora asked, "What are you doing that for?"

"The one with the string is the older one, and the one without is the younger one. It’s so we can tell them apart. Nora, look, the older one has both eyes open. The younger one only has one eye open, the other is still shut. They can only stare at us, unable to move."

Little did Leon know that from that day forward, the older twin would always wear a decorative string on his right wrist, from childhood into adulthood, never once taking it off.

Nora gazed at her two children, her heart filled with warmth and love. Her uterus was already beginning to contract as it recovered, sending small cramps through her belly.

"Leon, who do you think the babies look like?"

Leon gently took the younger twin’s tiny hand and chuckled. "I think they look like me."

Nora burst out laughing. "You certainly know how to flatter yourself."

"It’s not flattery if it’s the truth. But there is one part of them that’s just like you."

"Where?" Nora instinctively looked closer.

"Their lips. They’re beautiful. As for everything else... it seems they take after their father." As much as he hated to admit it, the resemblance was painfully obvious.

Nora looked closely and saw he was right. The corners of her mouth lifted into a smile. ’With two sons to back me up in the future, all I need to do now is work hard.’

She was exhausted. She slowly lay back down. "Leon, I’m going to sleep for a bit. Can you watch the babies for a while?"

"Go to sleep. I’m here."

She nodded, closed her eyes, and drifted off to a peaceful sleep.

Leon sat by the bed, watching the two little ones stare with wide, curious eyes at the world. Their adorably dazed expressions were so precious. Meanwhile, their mother had already drifted off to sleep.

Leon was overcome by a fantasy. ’How wonderful would it be if this was his wife, and these were his children?’

’Then, even if he lost everything else, as long as he had them, he would still be smiling.’

But alas, it was only a fantasy.

*

Chloe Marshall hadn’t left her room in a long time. She had chosen to resign herself to her fate.

Her child grew bigger by the day. Her little princess was now over three months old.

She could roll over now and hold her head up on her own.

She was fair and chubby from all the milk she drank, a perfect miniature of her mother.

Mother and daughter were together day and night. Since neither of them ever left the room, their skin was very pale, almost translucent.

Chloe Marshall knew it wasn’t healthy for the baby to go so long without seeing the sun.

But she never again brought up the subject of going outside to Lillian Bancroft. It was useless to ask, so why invite the unpleasantness?

That evening, he returned.

He wore a black overcoat, a matching hat, and sunglasses. He looked travel-worn, and when he took off his glasses, his eyes betrayed his exhaustion.

He sat down next to mother and daughter and held out his arms. "Dorothy, let Daddy hold you." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

The child in Chloe’s arms saw him and began to flail her arms, wanting to be held. A smile filled his narrow eyes as he said frankly, "My daughter is a real Daddy’s girl. The name your mommy gave you truly suits my wishes for you. Dorothy... Daddy hopes your future is full of happiness, full of wisdom, full of everything good. Dorothy Bancroft."

Those last two words made Chloe’s entire body tremble. ’Dorothy Bancroft?!!!’

"Dorothy... Bancroft?" Her face was deathly pale. She hoped he was just saying it casually.

He nodded in confirmation. "That’s right. Dorothy Bancroft."

"Why would you—"

He stood up and rested Dorothy on his shoulder, patting her little back. "I’ve been incredibly busy these last few months," he said. "But it wasn’t for nothing. The old man in the Imperial Palace is on his last legs. This is a critical time, and I must always be prepared. If I manage to take power one day, both Dorothy and you will be officially entered into the Bancroft Family registry. I will never let anyone harm a hair on your heads, and I won’t allow a single vicious rumor to be spread about my... daughter."

Chloe’s emotions were a tangled mess. "Rather than talk about protecting us from others, why not admit that the one who hurts us most is you?"

"I’m the exception."

The corner of Chloe’s mouth twitched.

Seeing her silence, Lillian Bancroft’s voice softened considerably. "I know you’re unhappy, but this seems to be the only way I can keep you here. If you submit to me, I will dote on you and our daughter for the rest of my life. It all depends on whether you’re willing."

"And if I’m not?"

He grunted. "Then you will likely never step outside these four walls for the rest of your life. And our lovely daughter... will probably never see you again—"

A chill of pure terror shot through Chloe. She realized in that moment that if he decided to be ruthless, he would be the type to act swiftly and decisively.

’But even if he controlled her like this, he could never win her heart. No matter how much time passed, no matter how hopeless things seemed, she had never wavered.’

’That corner of her heart was completely filled by one man: Ethan Ellsworth.’

’She couldn’t forget him. Perhaps they would never see each other again in this lifetime. Perhaps they could never be together. But their hearts had never changed.’