Chapter 250

The delivery room was well soundproofed, and Landon, waiting outside, couldn’t hear a single sound. The quieter it got, the more on edge he felt! He started pacing back and forth, asking over and over, “Why is it so quiet? How much longer is this going to take?”

“Landon, take a break! You’re making us dizzy with all your pacing,” Gloria said, rubbing her forehead. She thought, ‘So even my son, who always seems so strong, has moments when he gets nervous too!’

“Yeah, you’re making me dizzy. How am I supposed to hold the baby if I can’t see straight?” Kayla chimed in, complaining.

Landon had no choice but to stop pacing and keep quiet, feeling a bit embarrassed. But less than two minutes later, he was at it again. Gloria and Kayla closed their eyes, put in earplugs, and decided to ignore him.

Finally, the delivery room door swung open, and the doctor came out holding a big, healthy baby boy. “Congratulations, Mr. Landon. It’s a boy.”

Landon reached out, wanting to hold his son, but he had no idea where to even start. He looked so lost that even the doctor couldn’t help but laugh.

“Here, let me,” Gloria said, nudging her son aside and taking her grandson into her arms.

Landon craned his neck, trying to peek into the delivery room. “Doctor, how’s my wife doing?”

“She’s doing great! It was a natural delivery. She’ll be out in a bit,” the doctor replied.

“Thank you, thank you…” Landon said, relief flooding through him. Finally, the weight on his chest lifted. Thank heavens, he was finally a dad!

Without wasting a second, Landon posted the good news on his social media and waited for the flood of congratulations to pour in. Every like and every message of congratulations had him grinning for ages. For the first time ever, he actually thought his friend circle was the best thing ever!

But then he noticed something strange–Daniel hadn’t made a peep. ‘He’s really dropping the ball as an uncle,’ Landon thought. So, he called Daniel. “Amelia just had a baby. Why haven’t you said anything?”

“Oh, I’m just busy,” Daniel replied. He sounded exhausted, like he really was tied up with something.

Landon scratched his head awkwardly. “So, what exactly are you so busy with?”

“Giovanna and I are at the Kyle family’s lab in Dreicean, developing a surgical plan specifically for you and your sister,” Daniel said.

Everyone was stunned. He stammered, “So… can it really be cured?”

“Giovanna says she’s 80% confident now. You and your sister just need to focus on your health and wait for her to come and operate on you both,” Daniel replied.

“Giovanna? She’s going to be the lead surgeon?” Landon blurted out, completely floored. He was shocked again. ‘Wait, isn’t Giovanna into traditional medicine?’ he wondered.

“Bet you didn’t expect that, huh? She’s actually Morgan’s junior apprentice, and she’s even more skilled than he is,” Daniel said.

That was definitely not something Landon had seen coming.

“Alright, I’m really busy here, so I can’t talk any longer,” Daniel said, then hung up.

It took Landon a long time to snap out of it. ‘Man, the Hughes family is really good at hiding their cards,’ he thought.

“Honey, what did you and my brother talk about?” Amelia asked, lying in the warm, sunlit postpartum recovery suite, taking a well-deserved rest. She hardly even got a chance to take care of her own baby! Other than feeding times, the baby was always in Gloria’s arms.

“Giovanna is coming back to perform surgery on me and Kayla. The odds are really good,” Landon said, gazing at his wife and their newborn son, but he started to hesitate. ‘There was still a risk–he really didn’t want to take that chance right now,’ Landon thought.

“Giovanna?” Amelia was stunned. “But why would the Hughes family ever want to help us?”

“The Hughes family has actually been helping us from the very start. They just never let you find out,” Landon explained.

Amelia froze. “All this time, I thought the Hughes family didn’t like me…” She thought, ‘The Hughes family cares so much about their reputation, and I’m just someone whose father is a complete mystery.’

‘If the Hughes family has been looking out for me all this time, then why have they never wanted to meet me?’ she wondered.

“Maybe it’s because they’re still mad at the Zuckerberg family, so they’ve never wanted to meet you face–to–face,” Landon said, taking Amelia’s hand. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“What is it?” Amelia asked, her heart pounding.

‘I just know this must have something to do with the Hughes family,’ Amelia thought, her heart thumping wildly.

“You and Daniel are full siblings,” Landon said.

Amelia’s eyes flew wide open in disbelief, her mind reeling from the shock.

“Porter admitted it himself,” Landon added with a smile.

Amelia felt like she was dreaming. “How could this be…” she murmured, her mind spinning.

“Back then, Joanna poisoned your brother, and your parents were forced to get a divorce. Porter just couldn’t let your mom go, so he faked her death and secretly got her out of Lunova,” Landon explained.

“They stayed together, and that’s how you were born.

“But then something unexpected happened. By the time Porter came back looking for your mom, Walter Edwards had already taken her away.

“The Zuckerberg family was in a really bad spot, and Joanna was relentless in her pursuit. To keep you and your mom safe, Porter had no choice but to leave,” Landon finished, his voice soft.

“To make sure you and your mom could live a better life, he had someone buy up those antique engagement gifts. He never expected Walter would end up tricking your mom out of both her marriage and her money…” Landon said.

The truth turned out to be just that simple…

Amelia’s heart ached so much, she didn’t even know if she should cry or just be angry. She wasn’t some girl with a mysterious father–she was a true daughter of the Zuckerberg family. Her parents truly loved each other, but they just couldn’t outmaneuver Joanna’s schemes. How sad, how pitiful!

“Where is he now?” Amelia asked.

“He’s taken vows and become a monk,” Landon replied.

“A monk?” Amelia echoed, still in shock.

“Yeah. It’s best if we don’t disturb him anymore,” Landon said softly.

Amelia fell silent. If she’d learned the truth back then, she probably would’ve totally lost it. But after everything she’d been through, and now that she was a mom herself, she could finally understand just how hard things must have been for her parents. If he protected her brother, he couldn’t protect her; if he protected her, he couldn’t protect her brother. And either way, it would’ve put her and her mom in danger too…

‘Dad must’ve felt so torn,’ she thought to herself.

‘That’s why, missing his wife so much, he just couldn’t take it anymore. While still in his prime, he gave up everything and left the world behind…’

“Honey, does Daniel know about all this?” Amelia asked.

“He does. Giovanna knows too,” Landon replied.

Amelia had been pretty calm up until then, but when she heard that, she snapped. “So all of you knew, and I was the only one left in the dark?”

“Honey, this was your dad’s decision… It was still too dangerous back then…” Landon tried to explain.

“Liar! How could you lie to me?” Amelia shot back, not listening to a word he said.

But Amelia wasn’t having any of it–she grabbed a pillow and started whacking Landon with it. Now that she had a way to vent, she just couldn’t hold back anymore. She even busted open a goose–feather pillow, sending feathers flying everywhere.

Landon just shielded his head and let her take it all out on him.

It wasn’t until Amelia was completely worn out and her anger had finally faded that Landon wrapped his arms around her and said, “After he became a monk, he stayed by your mom’s grave for a while. But then he was gone again. When he’s ready to come back, that’s when you can finally reunite with him as family.”

“Okay,” Amelia said softly.

After she’d let it all out, Amelia just stopped overthinking things. ‘I’ll just wait,’ she thought. ‘If Dad ever wants to come back, I’ll welcome him with open arms. And if he feels like this is the life that suits him best, that’s his choice too. Parents will always go to great lengths for their kids, planning far ahead for their sake. Right or wrong, it was the best way her dad knew to protect her. She didn’t hate him, and she didn’t blame him either. She just hoped he could let go soon and not let all the regrets and helplessness from his past keep him trapped for the rest of his life.

“Honey, about the surgery… are you okay with me going through with it?” Landon asked carefully.