Chapter 3: Give Me Three Minutes

The album had been scorched to ruin the last time Kevin Letherdale burned it. Yet somehow, it had returned to pristine condition, not a single mark left behind. The old man took it out and admired it for a long while, his eyes burning with hunger as he traced every page like it was a treasure beyond price. At last, he tucked it away with painstaking care, already planning to pass it on the next time Kevin returned. He believed it with all his heart. Once Kevin possessed this treasure, he would grow faster. Stronger. … More than two hours later, the car pulled up outside the civil affairs office. On the way over, Kevin finally understood why Faye Sowden had dragged him into a marriage. The Sowden family ran a medical business in Jermon. They had money and influence, enough to stand tall for years. But in the past two years, competitors had hit them hard. Their business slid off a cliff, and the company was already staring at the edge of bankruptcy. Not long ago, their rival, the Lashbrook family, sent someone to the Sowden family with a marriage proposal. The Lashbrook family's third young master had taken a fancy to Faye. If she married him, the two families would cooperate, and the Sowden family would stop getting squeezed until they bled. To protect the business and keep the family's status from collapsing, Faye's grandfather agreed on the spot. Faye refused. She knew exactly what kind of man that third young master was. Arrogant. Tyrannical. A regular in the nightlife scene, the sort who'd hollowed himself out with booze and women before he'd even hit his prime. With her family pressing harder by the day, Faye had been on the verge of panic. She drove out to the mountain outskirts to clear her head, ran into Kevin by chance, and, to avoid marrying into the Lashbrook family, hauled him straight in to register a marriage. Kevin was a few years younger, and he looked like he'd stepped out of the dirt with the mountains still clinging to him. Still, he was handsome. Clean him up and he would not lose to any idol actor on a poster. He'd lived in the mountains for years, too, which made him… simple. Uncomplicated. Even if he carried himself with a stiff, shameless kind of earnestness, he was still far better than that snake from the Lashbrook family. But the moment they arrived at the civil affairs office, Faye went speechless. "I really didn't expect this," she said, staring at him. "You're undocumented." Kevin did not have an ID card. He did not have a household registration booklet. He'd lived on the mountain his whole life, only coming down occasionally with Zane, so Zane had never bothered to get him registered. "Then help me get one, sis," Kevin said. "Fine." Faye pinched the bridge of her nose, already calculating. "You're underage anyway. I'll have someone handle it and bump your age up to twenty-two." She made a call, stated her requirements, then hung up and had Kevin stand against a wall. She snapped a white-background photo and sent it over. Even if the Sowden family's business was falling apart, they still had connections. Before long, someone pulled strings to set up a standalone household registration for Kevin and rush his ID through. Not even an hour passed before a same-city courier delivered the booklet and ID straight to the civil affairs office. Faye took the documents, then exhaled as if she'd finally come to her senses. "Kevin," she said quietly, "have you thought this through? If you back out, you still can." Only then did she feel the weight of what she was doing to him. It was not fair. She had already laid out the terms in the car. She could pay him, but once they registered, he would have to face her family's pressure. Her relatives would definitely reject him. And the Lashbrook family might retaliate. Kevin's smile stayed bright, his expression solemn in a way that made him look almost heroic. "You're generous, and you're gorgeous. I won't regret it." What he did not say was that he had to register with her. Only then could he legitimately get close enough to see her chest and confirm whether that mark was the Saintess Mole. As for family pressure and threats from the Lashbrook family, he did not care. In the face of absolute strength, threats were a joke. Faye watched him, so sincere and so guileless, and a flicker of reluctance tugged at her. She did not want him to bear the consequences for her. "Come on," Kevin urged, taking her hand. "Let's get this done before they close." Before she could hesitate again, he pulled her to the window. The paperwork went through. A short while later, Faye held the marriage certificate in her hands, her mind floating as if she were walking through a dream. She still could not believe she had registered a marriage with a man she'd known for less than a day. She did not feel happy. She only sighed. "We're really married," she said. "There's no turning back. My family will come down hard, and the Lashbrook family is dangerous. But if you cooperate with me, I can at least make sure you stay safe." "You're worrying too much," Kevin said, utterly unconcerned. "There aren't many people in this world who can threaten me." He kept smiling, then tilted his head as if remembering something important. "Sis, we got the certificate. So… you transferring the money?" "I'm not greedy," he added quickly. "I just came down from the mountain. I don't have a cent." Faye did not waste time. She took out her phone. "Give me your bank card. Or your WeChat. I'll send it." "I don't have either," Kevin said, shaking his head. Faye blinked, then understood. Of course. He'd only just gotten an ID. "I don't have extra cash on me," she said, glancing at the time. "Let's go. I'll buy you a phone and get you a bank card. In today's world, you can't live without them." They stayed busy until evening. By the time everything was done, she had even picked up some daily necessities for him. Then she brought him home to meet her parents. Even if the Sowden family was close to collapse, they still held status in Jermon. After hearing Faye's introduction, Kevin gained a rough picture of the family. Her grandfather still ran things. The old man had two sons and a daughter, and their names alone made it obvious how much the Sowden family loved money. The old man was Chandler Sowden. His eldest son was Grey Sowden. His second son was Chandler Sowden. His daughter was Serenity Sowden. Faye's father was the second son, Chandler Sowden. They each had their own homes in Lakehaven Estates. That night, Faye brought Kevin back and told her parents about the registration. Bang! In the living room, Chandler Sowden slammed his palm onto the coffee table. "Outrageous. Absolutely outrageous." When he learned his daughter had grabbed some stranger off the street and married him, veins bulged on his forehead. His anger came off him in waves. "Do you have any idea what the consequences are?" He wore black-framed glasses, his face set in stern fury. "Dad, I know," Faye shot back. "If I married Zeke Lashbrook, it might save the business, but it would ruin the rest of my life. So I had no choice." The Zeke Lashbrook she mentioned was the Lashbrook family's third young master, the one who wanted to marry her. "You…" Chandler Sowden clenched his jaw. "Your grandfather already promised the Lashbrook family you'd marry Zeke Lashbrook. After what you pulled, they'll crush us. The Sowden family is already in this state. Do you think we can fight the Lashbrook family?" At the mention of the Lashbrook family, fear flashed through his eyes. Otherwise, they would not have been forced to sacrifice Faye's happiness for a partnership. "All right," a woman's voice cut in, cool and controlled. "You two are going to scream at each other like this and let people laugh at us?" Faye's mother, Skyla Zimmerman, had spoken. She took care of herself well. Her skin and figure were in excellent shape, and her features resembled Faye's enough that anyone could tell they were related. Both were strikingly beautiful, though their temperaments differed with age. They were dressed formally. Faye wore an off-white blouse that hugged her curves, showing a pale throat and the faint suggestion of collarbones. Her knee-length pencil skirt wrapped tight around her hips, outlining a firm, full silhouette. Sexy, but with a cold edge. Skyla wore a simple qipao that traced her figure with effortless elegance. It was sensual without being vulgar, and she still carried the lingering charm of her prime. If someone did not know better, they might have mistaken Skyla for Faye's older sister. She looked that young. After speaking, Skyla studied Kevin and asked, "Kevin, where are you from? Are you working?" Kevin scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. "Ma'am, I'm an orphan. I grew up in the mountains with Zane. I just came down, so… no, I'm not working yet." "Huh?" Skyla froze for a beat, sympathy softening her gaze. Chandler Sowden only frowned deeper, his disdain sharpening. A mountain boy like this, and he dared marry his daughter? "Ma'am," Kevin said, looking at Skyla again. "Did you hurt your foot?" "Oh, yes." Skyla looked surprised. "I twisted it doing yoga a while back. It still aches. Wait, how did you know?" Kevin did not explain. "I can massage it for you. It'll feel better right away." "Really?" Skyla's interest flared. "You can do that?" The young man's clothes were plain and worn, but his looks were hard to ignore. He was tall and lean, his face sharply defined, his eyes deep and steady. The only issue was that he looked too young. Skyla lifted her foot onto the sofa without hesitation. "All right. Let's see what you've got." She meant to use the chance to test whether he actually had skill or was just talking big. "What kind of nonsense is this?" Chandler Sowden snapped. "You're going to let a strange man rub your foot?" Then he stared Kevin down, voice turning icy. "Get out while I'm still holding my temper. Otherwise, whatever happens next is on you." He already disliked Kevin to the extreme. Not only had this kid registered a marriage with his daughter, he came into their home and tried to put his hands on his wife? Chandler Sowden considered it restraint that he had not stormed into the kitchen for a knife. Kevin kept his face open and earnest. "Uncle, you don't want Ma'am to keep hurting, do you? Give me three minutes. If I can't fix it, I'll leave." He said it like a promise. He needed to stay. Only by staying could he find the chance to confirm whether the mark on Faye's chest was the Saintess Mole. He could also tell Skyla was fairly satisfied with him, so he planned to show a little ability in front of her and lock his footing in this house. But the words "three minutes" landed in Chandler Sowden and Skyla's ears with an entirely different meaning. Three minutes? Was this little punk doing it on purpose? Especially Chandler Sowden, because he really did only last three minutes. Before he could explode, Skyla spoke first, calm as ever. "Let him try. It's just my foot, not anywhere else." As she said it, she shot Chandler Sowden a sharp look, as if to say: If you're that sensitive about "three minutes," that's your problem. Don't blame the kid.