Chapter 134
Theo lost it.
Right then and there, he snapped-face flushed, eyes burning red. He pointed at Matty and shouted, “What did you say?! Say it again!”
Matty blinked, startled. “Theo… w-what’s wrong?”
Theo grabbed a fistful of Matty’s sleeve, completely unhinged. “Mom would never-never-abandon me! You’re the one nobody wants! You’re the bastard!”
His outburst caught the attention of the other kids around them.
Voices hushed. Heads turned.
The teachers, hearing the noise, rushed over.
“What’s going on? What happened?”
Matty’s eyes went red in an instant. Tears welled up, and he said softly, “Yeah… I know. I am the bastard no one wants. Theo, I know I don’t have a mom. And my dad’s always too busy with work to be around. That’s why I asked Sharon to do the performance with me.”
Theo’s voice broke into a near scream. “No! I won’t allow it! She’s my mom-mine! Give her back to me!”
The teachers rushed to separate the two before they could come to blows again. Theo and Matty were already flagged as high- priority kids at the kindergarten. The staff had barely turned away to organize the signup forms, and the two were already at it again.
Even in a kindergarten like this-a top-tier private academy-the teachers had never seen children go at each other like this.
They could only sigh and reach for their phones. Again.
It was time to call the parents.
Carter had just landed when he got the call.
He turned to Simon, who was driving. “Head to the kindergarten.”
Simon adjusted the wheel, taking the next turn smoothly. From the rearview mirror, he glanced at Carter’s reflection, choosing his words carefully. “Sir… did something happen again with Theo?”
Carter leaned back in his seat, fatigue etched into his face. After several days of intense work and a sleepless flight, his weariness showed.
“He got into another fight. With a classmate,” he said, rubbing his temple. His tone was tight with frustration. “Why is he becoming such a handful?”
Simon offered gently, “Mr. Biggs, kids at this age go through a lot. My sister’s boy is just a year older-she’s constantly running to school.”
Carter’s voice was cold. “He didn’t used to be like this.”
Simon coughed lightly, lowering his voice. “That’s because Mrs. Biggs always handled everything. She never let it trouble you.”
It was only about six months ago that Theo’s health had stabilized enough for him to enroll in this kindergarten.
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Before that, he’d fallen sick constantly.
There were a few close calls-serious ones.
When Carter’s phone couldn’t be reached, Sharon would call Simon directly. Just from her voice alone, Simon could sense her desperation, her panic spiraling into chaos.
Theo was Carter’s son. Simon never dared take the calls lightly.
If Carter was in the air and unreachable, Simon would immediately mobilize the medical team and start emergency care for the
boy.
By the time Carter called back, Theo had usually pulled through.
As for minor issues-disputes with classmates, parent-teacher meetings-Sharon never bothered Carter with those.
Carter had been raising his child like a cloud-owner raises a pet-remotely, with no real effort-and had come to believe that parenting was simple, that children were easy.
Now, with work still unfinished, he was being pulled out again-this time, for the third time in just a few days-over calls from the school.
A dull frustration began to settle in his chest.
He picked up his phone and dialed Sharon.
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