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Chapter 203
Chapter 203
Sharon froze, staring at the tiny girl who barely reached her thigh.
The child looked so small, she could barely walk straight.
“Rosie, what are you doing?”
Elise’s voice carried a hint of panic. She had no idea if Sharon liked kids or not–and since this was Sharon’s first visit, the last thing she wanted was to leave a bad impression.
“I brought cookies. I made it myself,” Rosie said in her soft baby voice, holding out a few misshapen cookies in both hands.
“Thank you,” Sharon said, reaching out to take one. She gently patted Rosie’s head. “I’ll just have this one, okay? You can eat the rest.”
“Okay!”
Rosie’s eyes lit up. Blushing, she turned and dashed off with excited little steps.
Elise exhaled in relief.
Thank goodness–Sharon didn’t seem upset.
Sharon took a bite. It was very sweet, but she politely finished the entire cookie.
Then she calmly picked up her cup and took a sip of coffee to wash away the sugary aftertaste.
Walter glanced around the room before finally speaking, “This is probably the first time most of you have met someone from the main family. According
to Vance tradition, the branches have always stood beside the main line, putting the family’s interests first.”
It had always been that way. The main house, in turn, was supposed to look after the branches.
But Roxanne had only ever enjoyed the privileges–never the responsibilities.
Sharon glanced at Richard. She wasn’t quite sure what to say in a situation like this.
Richard stepped in smoothly, “We’ll follow tradition, of course. Whatever our grandfather in place back then, we’ll honor it the same way now.”
He made a point of completely skipping over Roxanne.
Walter let out a breath of relief. “Good: That’s very good.”
Ever since the news broke that the Vance family had a new head, Walter had been watching the nine siblings closely.
They hadn’t made any bold moves yet–especially with regard to Oriston Academy, where they hadn’t blocked the side families from enrolling their
children.
It had become clear they were nothing like Roxanne.
In the end, it looked like he’d made the right call.
Walter nodded at his butler, who stepped forward carrying a tray with a neat stack of documents. “This is our little gift to Ms. Vance,” Walter said. “A token of congratulations.”
Sharon glanced at the stack. It looked like property deeds, checks, and a few other high–value assets.
She had only come for lunch. She hadn’t expected to walk away with anything, especially not gifts from the branch families. A flicker of discomfort
crossed her face.
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This feels wrong. I don’t need money!‘
As head of the family, she was supposed to protect the branches–just like a big sister looking after her younger siblings.
“How could I possibly take their money?‘
She stayed quiet.
Richard glanced through the documents, then set them down in front of her, and murmured, “Your call.”
“Is this a tradition?” she asked.
“More or less. If you accept it, they’ll feel reassured.”
‘Oh…
Sharon then looked up at Walter. “Alright, thank you. From now on, we’re family.”
“Family–yes, that’s a good thing.”
Walter echoed her words with a heavy sigh.
He had once believed the Vance family would never rise again. But now… there was hope.
He slapped his knee. “No business talk today. We’re all here as family, to eat and enjoy each other’s company. Elise, Merrick, why don’t you show Ms.
18 Vance around?”
“Yes, Grandpa,” Elise said, nearly bouncing with excitement. Any chance to spend more time with Sharon was a good one.
“Just call me Shari,” Sharon said with a small smile. “I’m still young. I’ll be relying on all of you.”
“Then I’ll call you Shari from now on,” Walter beamed.
“Sure, that’s fine.”
Sharon stood and followed Elise out of the hall. The lawn outside was wide and open, and at the far end, it seemed to lead to a lake.
The view was beautiful.
“Ms. Vance,” Elise began, “this place used to be a regular villa complex. But when Grandpa saw how nice the area was, he had the whole community bought out. That’s how we all settled here.”
The entire development?
‘No wonder.‘
Now it made sense why everyone seemed to know each other and get along so well. Walter really had vision–not to mention deep pockets.
The sun was warm, and a bunch of little kids ran around nearby, laughing and playing, clearly trying to get Sharon’s attention.
As they walked, Sharon noticed a dense patch of trees nearby. “What’s beyond those woods?”
“That’s Silver Hollow Reserve. It’s a nature preserve. There are wild animals in there.”
Just as Sharon was about to suggest they check it out, a young boy came running out of the trees, his clothes stained with blood.
Elise rushed over. “What happened? What’s wrong?”
“Help, Elise! There’s a monster! It’s eating people! Puffy got bitten and died!”
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Chapter 203
The boy’s voice trembled, his whole body shaking in fear.
“What kind of monster?” Elise asked urgently.
“A giant lizard! A really, really big one!”
Sharon narrowed her eyes. ‘Velvyn.’
What was something like that doing here?
