IN the early hours of the morning, before the sun even rose high in the sky, Thomas was suddenly called by his father to the study. He had just woken up when the butler came to his room and informed him that his father wanted to talk to him. Despite feeling a bit confused, he didn’t ask much and just went there.

He walked down the corridor of the manor. Because of eating dinner here yesterday, they decided to stay for the night. Cassius planned to leave after dinner, but Nicol insisted that he stayed. Probably because Astrid Townsend had already rejected the invitation of staying overnight, Cassius couldn’t bear to disappoint Nicol any further, and thus, he agreed.

It had been a while since the four of them stayed in the same house for the night. Well, it might not have mattered much, since the manor was so big that it would be easy to avoid people if they just wanted to. It’s probably also one of the reasons why Cassius agreed to stay.

Because with a house this big, the other could just avoid meeting with their father. Or even Thomas, for that matter. Which he was sure Cassius would do. As evidence of how, whenever his younger brother visited the main mansion, he could still find ways not to meet their father.

Not that he could blame Cassius. If he was in his position, he would probably do the same. But since he was the same sinner as their father, acting all high and mighty now, after all he had done, would just be too hypocritical. Maintaining this kind of status quo was enough.

Thomas’ thoughts then wandered back to why his father suddenly called him this early in the morning. Could there be something wrong with one of their territories? Or did those blasted Lancasters up to no good again? Either way, it’s probably something serious if his father couldn’t even wait for them to have breakfast before telling him.

Soon, he arrived in front of the study. He knocked on the door. “Father, it’s me.”

“Come in.”

Thomas furrowed his brows. It’s because his father’s voice sounded very grave. Did something serious really happen? He shook his head. Instead of wondering about here, it’s better to just ask his father directly.

He opened the door and walked in. There, he saw his father standing in front of the floor to ceiling window with his back to him. He couldn’t see the other’s expression, so he couldn’t tell directly what was wrong.

“You called me?” he started.

“I will send a file to you,” his father said instead of telling him directly why he was called here in this early hours of the morning. “Read it.”

A file? Before Thomas could ask what he meant by that, his Terminal rang. The notification sound indicating that he received the said ‘file’. Full of confusion and curiosity, he opened the file and read it.

Gene Matching Test Result

Testing Company: Grimaldi Genetics Lab

Test Type: Parentage DNA Test

—

Participants:

– Sample ID: Mother-001

– Name: [Emmaline Beatrix Grimaldi] S~eaʀᴄh the nôvel_Fire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

– Sample ID: Grandson-001

– Name: [Astrid Townsend]

—

Thomas’ face immediately crumpled when he read the first part. Why would his father order a gene matching test for Emmaline and Astrid? What would prompt him to even do this? No, obviously, this meant that he suspected Astrid was Emmaline’s son. But how could that be possible?

Just from appearance alone, no one would suspect those two were related. Especially if one considered that Emmaline ended up marrying that soldier.

And where did he even get a sample of Astrid’s DNA? The answer quickly appeared in his mind. The dinner last night. With the cutlery Astrid used, it was easy to extract his DNA. This made him frown even more. Wasn’t this an obvious violation of privacy?

Why would his father do this? Did the guilt of what he did to Emmaline become so overwhelming that it drove him slightly crazy?

As if knowing what he was thinking, the other’s voice sounded in front.

“Stop analyzing things for a second and just continue reading.”

Reluctance rose from his heart, but Thomas still continued reading.

—

Results:

The DNA analysis conducted at Grimaldi Genetics Lab has determined the genetic relationship between the individuals listed above. Based on the comparison of their DNA profiles, the following findings have been obtained:

– Probability of Parentage: [99.9%]

– The probability that Emmaline Grimaldi is the biological mother of Astrid Townsend is 99.9%.

– This result indicates a high likelihood of a biological relationship between the tested individuals.

—

Thomas’ whole body shook when he read the result. He once again looked at the number – 99.9%. How could this happen? Could there have been a mistake? But he immediately denied that. This was done in their family’s genetics lab.

There was no way it could be a mistake.

Then what did that mean?

That Astrid was really Emmaline’s son? Then he remembered that Astrid had a twin brother. So, the two were Emmaline’s children?

No matter how much he wanted to deny it, the result in front of him was telling him otherwise.

He raised his head to look at his father. “Why did Father order this gene matching test?” he asked, not even realizing that his voice was shaking.

“…It was a hunch,” his father answered, still not turning his back. “I just didn’t expect it to be true.”

A hunch? Because of a hunch he ordered a gene matching test? This was not something the father he knew would do. But the fact that he did this mean that he felt a certain connection towards Astrid, to the point that he would even suspect that the other might be Emmaline’s son.

Was this what people call ‘blood connection’? Because even he felt an inexplicable fondness for the twins when he first met them.

Thomas took a deep breath, trying his best to calm himself. “Knowing that they’re Emmaline’s children, what do you plan to do now?”

After he asked that question, the door to the study suddenly opened. Thomas looked back and saw Cassius. The other’s expression was full of confusion, but also underlying anger.

“‘Emmaline’s children’, what do you mean by that, Tommy?”

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