Chapter 4: He Didn't Lie to Me

"Sister… these past few months. You must've suffered," Reid Quinny said, staring at Destiny Quinny with a look that hurt to see. The moment Destiny remembered the last year, her face crumpled. She burst into tears. "Bro… after Mom and Dad were taken, they kicked me out of the house." "I didn't have money for food, so I went to wash dishes at restaurants. They pressured the owners to throw me out, then forced me to beg." "I kept hiding and moving around, but they kept following me everywhere." "I couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to jump into the river and end it. Before I died, I just wanted to come home and take one last look… I didn't expect to run into you." Reid's fist tightened in silence. Thank God he had kept waiting at home. Thank God he had come back when he did. If he'd returned even two days later, he might never have seen his sister again. "It's over," he said, voice low but steady. "I'm back. From here on out, I'll protect you." "Mm." Destiny nodded obediently. With Reid there, she finally had something to hold on to. "Bro… what about Mom and Dad?" Reid lifted his gaze toward the window, to the night beyond. "Tomorrow, I'll take you to the Imperial Capital. We're bringing them back." "But… the ones we'll be facing are the Looske family, the head of the Four Super Clans of Homelands!" Destiny blurted. "They'll have tons of bodyguards!" "Can you really beat them?" Worry tightened her voice. Reid's mouth curved. "Relax. Forget the Looske family. Even all the nations on Earth are nothing in my eyes." "Go back to your room and sleep easy. Tomorrow, we're going to the Imperial Capital." "Mm." After Piper Warth bought the Celestial Spring Water Reid was selling, she rushed back to Eastown overnight. Inside a luxurious villa, the bedroom light still burned. A formidable-looking middle-aged man sat at his desk, reading through a document. "What time is it already? You still won't rest?" A well-kept middle-aged woman strode in, snatched the document from his hands, and tossed it onto the sofa. "What are you doing?" the man barked. She didn't back down. "Divine Doctor Lyson just left, and you're already burying yourself in work again. Did you forget what Divine Doctor Lyson told you?" "With your condition, you need rest. Keep this up and you won't even have a life left!" "Are you trying to make me a widow?" Her eyes reddened, and she started crying in grievance. "Oh, cry, cry, cry. That's all you do," the man snapped, slamming the desk. "I still have a mountain of things to deal with. How am I supposed to sleep?" Piper had just gotten home. Before she even stepped inside, she heard her parents arguing and felt her chest sink. "They fight every day… It's been a year, and they're still fighting. When are they ever going to make up?" That was Piper's private misery, her parents' constant conflict. They argued daily. A few times, it even escalated to the point of talking about divorce. It had haunted Piper for over a year, and she was sick of it. Worse, family shame wasn't something she could parade around, so she couldn't bring herself to tell anyone else. All she could do was try to fix it on her own. She'd read in novels that couples might quarrel at the bedside, but they made up before morning. Once, she'd tried to probe her mom indirectly, only to find out her parents hadn't… done that… for a full year. She wanted to help, but she was too embarrassed to walk into an adult shop on the street. So when she saw Reid selling Celestial Spring Water, she decided to take a chance. To make it "more effective," she'd poured all three bottles into one. She glanced at the bottle in her hand. "Please… let this work." Piper pushed the door open. Seeing her mother crying, she bit down hard, as if forcing herself to be brave. "Dad, don't be mad. Have some water. Cool off a little." Angelo Warth took the bottle. "This isn't your business. Go back and sleep." If she didn't see him drink it, how could she leave with peace of mind? "Dad, just take a few swallows. I'll leave after I see you calm down." Angelo never would've imagined his own daughter would harm him. He was also genuinely thirsty. He twisted the cap off, tipped his head back, and gulped, gulped, gulped down more than half the bottle. "Alright, Piper. Go sleep." "Mm." Watching her father drink the Celestial Spring Water, Piper left with her heart full of hope. Back in her room, she left her door cracked open and secretly watched her parents' bedroom through the gap. After the light in their room went out, she hurried to their door and pressed her ear against it. She heard her mother complaining, "Hmph. Even our daughter knows how to care about you, but you don't know how to take care of your own body. Are you trying to piss me to death?" Then came her father's cold retort. "I know my own body. I don't need you meddling!" "Angelo Warth, marrying you was the worst luck of my life!" Vincenzo Zimmerman kicked the bed leg in anger. Bang! Angelo shouted, "If you can't live with it, then divorce me!" "Y-you… what did you say?" Vincenzo's voice shook with fury. "You heartless bastard. You want to divorce me? I'll fight you!" A burst of crashing sounds came from inside. They seemed to have started fighting. Piper's heart lurched. "What's going on? Hasn't it kicked in yet? Why are they still fighting?" She kept listening, tense and breathless. As they struggled, it sounded like they ended up on the bed. The headboard kept slamming against the wall in a steady rhythm. Thump, thump, thump. It went on for more than ten minutes, and the impact only grew harder. Piper panicked. "Oh no… they're fighting even worse!" She lowered her head, devastated. "So… I really was fooled." She turned away, face heavy with disappointment. Early the next morning, before Piper even got out of bed, a knock on her door jolted her awake. "Piper, get up! I need to ask you something important!" Vincenzo's voice called urgently from outside. Piper sat up. Her cute pink cartoon bear pajamas slipped off her smooth shoulder. "That's weird," she muttered. "I was clearly worried sick last night, but I slept so well…" Vincenzo's voice came again, more insistent. "Piper, are you up yet? Hurry. Your dad has something urgent to ask you!" "Okay, I'm getting up!" Piper threw on her clothes, washed up, and headed to Angelo's room. "Dad, you wanted me?" she asked, yawning. Angelo sprang up from his chair, strode over, and grabbed her arm. His face was flushed with excitement. "Piper, that water from last night. Where did you buy it?" "Huh?" Piper blinked, then her heart dropped. Oh no. Don't tell me the water was dirty and Dad got sick from it… "Um… um… the water…" She forced a smile. "I bought it from a street stall. Is something wrong?" "Which stall? Tell me. Right now!" Angelo demanded, his hands trembling. Piper's thoughts spiraled. It's over. Dad definitely got diarrhea and wants to go settle the score. But if the guy was a scammer, there was no way he'd still be waiting around to get caught. Where was she supposed to find him? She swallowed and said guiltily, "Dad, I bought it yesterday when I went to Greenveil to see Aubriella. I grabbed it off a stall on the way. If we go looking for him, we probably won't find him anymore…" Angelo's expression fell into regret. "What a shame. A divine physician like that, and I didn't even get the chance to meet him." "Wait… Dad, what did you say?" Piper stared at him, confused. "Divine physician?" Vincenzo, standing to the side, cleared her throat and explained, "Piper… after your dad drank the water you brought back, last night he suddenly became… very impressive…" As she spoke, her cheeks turned bright red, and she couldn't bring herself to finish.