Will kept winking at him. "You came out at the wrong time!"

Theo blinked innocently. "What do you mean? Why do you all look so weird?"

"Thank you," Maeve said, suppressing her explanation. She reached out and rubbed Theo's head. "Good job, little miracle doctor."

Theo blushed shyly. "Even if you compliment me like this, I won't go with you tonight."

"Where do you want to go?" Maeve asked.

"Arcade games!"

Maeve's mouth twitched. "Give money to the claw machine again? Don't you know you lose 99 out of 100 times?"

"Dad, can I go with them?" Will asked Byron.

"Not for the time being. It's not safe outside," Byron flatly refused.

Theo remembered Byron's words and immediately changed his mind. "I suddenly don't want to go now. Let's go home. How about playing games together? I'm an expert. A headshot king!"

Will chuckled. "Headshot?" Will suddenly recalled some unpleasant memories, but to avoid dampening Theo's mood, he nodded. "Alright, let's consider it training."

Theo's expression changed. "Okay, two dollars for one round, and five dollars for two."

Will narrowed his eyes. "What? How dare you charge your brother! And such an unfair price? I'm not a fool!"

Byron, who had been listening, looked at Theo. He felt Will treated this boy differently. He'd never seen his son so patient with any other peer. Byron narrowed his eyes. "Boy, what's wrong with your neck?"

"Huh?" Theo subconsciously touched his neck, finding his hand wet. Perhaps he'd sweated during acupuncture; the foundation on his neck had melted slightly.

Maeve noticed this and quickly pulled Theo in front of her, shielding him from Byron's gaze.

"Let me see," Maeve said, pretending to check Theo's collar. "It's stained with dust from the wall. Did you drill a hole?"

"No idea," Theo said obediently, letting Maeve examine him.

No one knew if Byron believed it, but his gaze remained on Theo. At that moment, Maeve's phone rang.

"Ms. Reese, a guest is looking for you. He says he's your younger brother," Paige said.

Maeve frowned. "Now? I'll be there later."

Maeve hadn't seen or contacted her parents since their scene at the McDaniel family home four years ago. As for Horace, they'd never been close, and that hadn't changed. She didn't know how he found her studio.

Half an hour later, at Dreamspace Studio, Maeve entered the reception room and saw Horace sitting with his legs crossed, playing a game on his phone. He had dark green hair, sunglasses, a black leather jacket, and ripped jeans. He looked like he was trying too hard to be fashionable. There was also a pile of crushed cigarette butts and chewing gum on the floor. Maeve frowned. In just a few years, how had he become like this?

"Horace, why are you here?" she asked bluntly. "Make it quick. I'm very busy."

Horace flipped his phone and smirked. "Oh, you're making big money now. So arrogant. You don't even take your brother seriously."

"Is that what you're here for?" Maeve was impatient and disappointed.

"I need money. Lend me some," Horace said self-righteously. "This studio must be making a fortune. It's been in the news; all your clients are rich. I don't want much, just $100,000." Maeve's disappointment was evident. She'd foolishly thought he was here to catch up. He was only after money.

"I'm your sister, not your mother. I'm not obligated to give you money," Maeve said coldly. "Besides, you've never treated me like a sister. I don't buy this blood-is-thicker-than-water nonsense."

Horace blew a smoke ring. "Think carefully. I have connections. Ruining your business is no problem." He'd done his research; a single wedding dress was worth at least $20,000, so $100,000 wouldn't be a problem.

Maeve sneered. "You'll destroy my studio if I don't give you money?"

"Give it a try," Horace shrugged. "My dear sister, you don't have a man or kids. What's the use of keeping all this money? Give it to me to start a business. I'll pay you back."

"Write an IOU first," Maeve said coldly.

"We're siblings. Do we need that?" Horace refused.

"Why didn't you remember that before?" Maeve stood. "If you can't be sincere, leave. We never had much of a relationship anyway, and you're wearing down what little kinship we had."

Horace kicked the table. "You sell wedding dresses for $20,000 and can't give your brother $100,000? What's wrong with you? Are you still my sister?"

Maeve's face turned cold. "Are you done? Get lost. Don't let me see you again." Horace rolled up his sleeves, looking like he was about to hit her.

"Ms. Reese, can we help you?" Two burly bodyguards appeared, staring at Horace.

Seeing their size, Horace cowered, but still snarled at Maeve, "Just wait!" Then he slunk out.

Maeve wasn't concerned by Horace's threats; she was curious about the bodyguards.

"Mr. McDaniel sent us to protect you," the bodyguard explained.

Maeve was stunned. She hadn't told him who she was meeting. How did he know she needed protection? She put the question aside and went back to work.

However, Horace was serious. On Monday, Maeve nearly had a heart attack finding her studio door splashed with red paint and graffiti. Surveillance footage showed Horace and his men doing it at night. Maeve called the police. Horace was fined and briefly detained but received no substantial punishment. After his release, he and his men smashed the studio's glass door. Paige almost cut herself on the shards that morning. Even with police involvement, they wouldn't be jailed long due to the lack of serious injury or property damage.

The passage has been cleaned up for grammar, punctuation, and clarity. Dialogue is properly formatted, and unnecessary repetitions and awkward phrasing have been removed. The "FindNovel.net" references have been removed as they are irrelevant to the story content.