My Second Marriage with the Mafia Kingpin-Chapter 49: Child Care Team

The servants and Nolan—who was supposedly "away"—stood in the room while the in-house doctor checked on Primo. The young master’s temperature was quite high, but being ill was not the only concern weighing on them.

It was the fact that whenever Primo got sick, he was difficult to console.

"We’re still checking what’s going on..." the in-house doctor remarked, as the fever had come on abruptly.

Primo hadn’t shown any signs beforehand, but that was because the little boy kept things to himself. Until he suddenly passed out in Ashley’s arms, no one had known he wasn’t feeling well.

As Nolan, who was in charge of the young master’s care, discussed the situation with the doctor, those outside — the maids — were already whispering among themselves.

"Of course, it’s her fault!" one of the maids intoned. "Why do you think the young master suddenly got sick? It’s because she kept forcing him to play in the dirt all day!"

"This is exactly what we were talking about a few days ago! The young master has been doing well, but she just exposed him to so many germs. He couldn’t even stand dust in his room, but that woman kept dragging him out."

Another one sighed heavily. "The master already knows the young master is sensitive, but he’s just letting that woman do whatever she wants."

"Not only is she wasting resources, but look at what she’s done!"

Of course, these whispers stayed among them. However, Ashley wasn’t too far away to miss the buzz.

Betty ground her teeth, glaring at the maids at the end of the hallway.

How could they blame all of this on the madam?! The Young Master has always been sickly, even when he doesn’t go out!

Frustrated, her eyes fell on her boss just to see if this affected her.

Ashley was leaning against the wall, staring sharply at the door. The usual smile and the bright air around her were gone. What Betty saw was... nothing. She couldn’t read Ashley or predict what was going on in her head at the moment.

However, it didn’t seem like Ashley cared about the growing whispers.

"Madam," Betty called quietly, but as expected, she received no answer. "The young master will be alright."

Ashley remained silent, ignoring everything else as she waited for Nolan to come out. Unfortunately, she wasn’t allowed inside because, according to Nolan, it was best if Ashley didn’t "catch" whatever flu or virus Primo had contracted.

But everyone knew that wasn’t the real reason.

She couldn’t go in because Primo was at his worst whenever he was sick. They couldn’t even get him to take medicine. So usually, the doctor would put him on IV, depending on the severity of the illness, or they would resort to the old method of wiping him down and praying to the heavens that he would recover.

If everything failed, then Lucian would have to sit down with his son.

Why did he get sick this time?

Ashley couldn’t help but recall her memories from the previous timeline.

He got sick all the time in my previous life, but I don’t think he got sick around this time. Or was I just not aware?

Just like how she hadn’t known Isabella had come a week earlier in her previous life, because Ashley had locked herself in her room. On top of that, she hadn’t really cared about the boy—it was part of her marriage agreement with Lucian: not to care for Primo.

And she did just that.

Ashley’s thoughts halted when the door opened from the inside. She straightened and pushed herself off the wall, looking expectantly at Nolan and the doctor.

"How is he?" she asked before they could even close the door.

The doctor offered her a small smile. "We’ll still have to monitor him for now since the fever just started. Fever is usually just a symptom, so we don’t know the real cause yet. But since his fever is high, someone has to wipe him down to bring his temperature down."

"Madam, don’t worry about the young master," Nolan added politely. "Getting sick is normal for children. The young master will need to rest first."

"Why did he get sick, though?" Ashley asked almost immediately.

The doctor and Nolan exchanged glances before offering her reassuring smiles.

"Like the doctor said, we still don’t know yet, Madam," Nolan explained. "But we’ll let you know tomorrow. The doctor has already prescribed him some medicine to lower his temperature."

Ashley darted her eyes between them, knowing they were simply being polite. It was clear they suspected Primo’s recent activities had something to do with it.

"I see..." she nodded in understanding. "I’ll look after him, then."

"About that, Madam, it’s alright," Nolan quickly replied. "There’s a child care team the master hired for situations like this. They’re a group of professionals whose sole purpose is to take care of the young master whenever he’s sick. They can handle it."

"But—"

"Madam, it’s best to leave this to the child care team," Nolan cut in, firm but still polite. "I know you mean well, and I’m sure the young master would appreciate it greatly. However, whenever he’s sick, he becomes... a little different."

Like a little possessed demon—that was what he truly meant. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Primo was just like Lucian, difficult to nurse.

Primo’s temper, whenever he wasn’t feeling well, was the worst, and everyone knew it.

Nolan let out a short breath and offered Ashley a small smile. "Please, Madam. I’m sure the young master would prefer if you didn’t trouble yourself with this."

"How could I not?" Ashley took a step back, muttering. "Fine, then."

With that, she glanced at the door once more before sighing heavily and walking off. Betty pressed her lips into a thin line, darting her eyes between Nolan and Ashley before following after her.

"Madam, wait—"

Meanwhile, Nolan and the doctor watched her retreating figure until she was out of sight. Then, the doctor turned to Nolan.

"Sir Nolan, I don’t want to overstep, but... I think you should let the madam try to look after the young master," the doctor said respectfully. "The child care team was formed because of how severely he fell ill the last time. However, we both know how his temper can be. Considering their relationship seems better nowadays, it’s best if she’s by his side."

Meaning, even the doctor wasn’t convinced the child care team would make much of a difference.

Nolan nodded. "I understand what you mean, but that’s exactly why I can’t let the madam near him." He sighed, glancing in the direction Ashley had gone. "For one, their relationship has been improving, and I’m not sure if the madam has that much patience."

"I don’t want to force her into something this difficult and risk straining what could have been a good relationship," he added.

Silence fell between them before the doctor nodded in understanding. "I see. Then I’ll stay on standby in case the child care team needs help."

Oh, how quickly those words would come back to haunt the doctor.

Hours later, the child care team Nolan had assembled, the doctor, Nolan himself, the maids, and even Lucian would all have to work together—some even resorting to prayer—just to make Primo take his medicine.

But to no avail.

The little demon in him had awakened, and he would rather die than take that bitter poison.