The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Gavin only needed a glance to know what was on his mind, and he could barely suppress a scoff.

He hadn't realized before that Harrison, the lad, was quite the schemer.

But, after all, Harrison was his chosen one, not to mention his son-in-law, definitely closer to him than Kipling could ever be.

Although displeased, Gavin's irritation dissipated quickly. After all, marrying Victoria off to Harrison wasn't because of Harrison's seemingly honest face. "Relax, the Grimshaws will have someone to assist you. After all, if you mess up, our ancient warrior lineage plan might just get blown wide open. And then, we'd be in real trouble." Victoria rolled her eyes, clearly impatient, "You got him here to set up a lab, so why draginto this? I could be sleeping right now." Her casual demeanor fanned the flames of Gavin's irritation. He glared at his daughter coldly, "Can't I call you over if there's nothing urgent? Look at yourself, ever since I stopped involving you in our affairs, you've been lazing around. If it weren't for your earlier failures, would the Grimshaws have to resort to this method? Half of this mess is on you!" Victoria slouched in her chair. She had intended to slack off and ignore Gavin's scolding, letting it in one ear and out the other. But his last statement made her eyes snap open, "What do you mean I'm also responsible?! Every idea about Kaitlyn was yours, how is it my fault if things didn't work out?" She couldn't stand Gavin's way of shifting the blame. Always wanting someone else to take the fall for him. Dream on! Clearly infuriated by Gavin, yet aiming to maintain her image, Victoria didn't mince her words, "You pushed everyone away fromto makemarry Harrison, all so I could dedicate myself to your cause, didn't you? Which of your orders haven't I followed through the years? Every tyou wanted to target Kaitlyn, wasn't I the one playing the villain? And now, when things don't pan out, you blme? Kaitlyn's lawsuit is a result of your overbearing actions!" She wasn't the least bit intimidated by Gavin's fierce glare.

Facing Harrison's gaze, she found joy in every word that hit Gavin's sore spots, "If you hadn't dredged up past affairs, causing the Littletons such distress that they ended up in the hospital, would Vivienne have stepped in to help Kaitlyn? She probably didn't even know the extent of your previous deeds! Now that your plans have failed, you're looking for a scapegoat? Sorry, but I, Victoria, won't be taking the fall for this!” Her entire demeanor radiated anger, "You've cornered yourselves, and that's on you! Don't try to pin all the blon me. If anyone's at fault, it's you for going too far!" "You! You!" Crack! The table under Gavin's grip split in two, crashing to the ground along with the cups scattering all over.

The sound of the breakage lingered for a long time.

Water splashed onto the floor, creating waves and staining the ground with a mess.

The servants outside, hearing the commotion, didn't dare peek inside.

Even the butler hesitated to clean up.

At that moment, Harrison's eyes flickered, his doubts dissipating with Victoria's final words, "Dad, calm down. Victoria, Dad only wants what's best for you, how can you talk to him like that?" "How I talk to my dad is none of your business!" Victoria's cold retort was laced with sarcasm.

Seeing Harrison struggle to maintain his facade of good temperament in front of Gavin brought her immense satisfaction.

Gavin, furious, pointed at her and scolded, "Ungrateful! Harrison is your husband, and despite his frequent defenses of you, look at yourself. After all these years, you've shown no improvement, you...' "Dad!" Gavin clutched his chest, groaning in pain.

"She's had enough breaks..." "Sir, sir! It's urgent, Emrys is missing!" Before he could finish his thought on Victoria's ample rest, a bodyguard rushed in from Emerald City, panicked and breathless.

Without assessing the situation, he fell to his knees, "Sir, Emrys and his entire family, including Cormac, have vanished!" Gavin was taken aback by the news. Struggling to breathe, he coughed violently.

Harrison, feigning concern, patted his back until the old man gasped for air, "You're saying Emrys is missing?" The messenger nodded, "I went to Emerald City yesterday as you instructed, only to find their door wide open. The house was covered in dust, indicating they've been gone for a while. The villagers said the same, claiming that a group cand took Emrys' family away days ago!" Harrison's right eyelid twitched uncontrollably at that moment, "It must be Vivienne! They must have taken them!" The Perez estate.

Vivienne and Percival arrived just as the Perez family was waking up from their siesta.

After a period of rest and the wellness treatments Vivienne had been providing, Maddox and the crew were feeling significantly better.

The moment Vivienne walked through the door, everyone's faces lit up with excitement.

"Vivienne, chere, darling," Jasper cheerfully called his granddaughter over. "Your mentor, Finnian, is here today too. It's been ages since I've seen you. I've missed you terribly." "Grandpa, we just saw each other two days ago," Vivienne said, linking arms with Percival and sitting down next to him, mercilessly exposing her grandfather's attempt to gain sympathy.

Finnian burst into laughter. "Oh, give it a rest, old man. Playing the sympathy card won't work on Vivienne." He shook his head, understanding his apprentice well. "She's so busy these days. If she's cback, she must need something from us." Vivienne offered a wry smile. "You seem to know quite a lot. Been browsing the intea lot lately?" "I don't need the internet," Finnian retorted with a playful arrogance. "Jerry toldeverything when he cby. What are you up to, really? Stirring up trouble on purpose? What's your plan?"