Billionaire's Regret: Losing Me And Our Son - Chapter 209: Chapter 209

I wasn't surprised. The overwhelming negative publicity had already caused Maple Media's stock to hit the daily lower limit.
With Ben being the only son of the Smith family, his arrest naturally made York the current head of the company.
"York, you've been working so hard these days," Shirley said softly. "If there's anything I can help with, don't hesitate to ask."
After a moment's thought, I added, "I can help too—just let me know what I can do."
I was not exactly sure what I could do—but with the Smith family in trouble, I felt it was only right to lend a hand.
York gave a wry smile and said seriously to Shirley, "Mom, it's time to make a choice. We have two options: either give up on Maple Media and liquidate our assets immediately—which would mean huge losses for us, and I'm afraid we won't be able to justify that to Uncle Lee and the others."
The Lee family originally made their fortune in the auction house business.
When Ben and Shirley got married, my maternal grandfather, was still alive.
As a wedding gift, he acquired a 10% stake in Maple Media at a premium, making the Lee family one of its shareholders.
After he passed away, the Lee family business was now managed by Shirley's older brother, Arthur Lee.
Shirley rarely mentioned him—it seemed the siblings weren't particularly close.
I remember seeing him at Grandma's funeral in Sea City—stern-faced and unsmiling, he clearly wasn't someone easy to get along with.
York must know Arthur better than I do—that was why he was so concerned.
Shirley frowned and said hesitantly, "We really can't explain this to the Lee family. York, you said there were two options—what's the second one?"
"Convince Uncle to acquire Maple Media," York said without hesitation.
York explained to Shirley, "Maple Media is in crisis now, but given its solid foundation and resources, a revival isn't out of reach. If the Lee family invests in acquiring it, there's a strong chance to turn things around."
Having worked my way up in Madden Group for so many years, I could tell York's analysis made perfect sense.
But the risks were too high. One wrong move, and not only would we fail to revive Maple Media, but we might even drag the Lee family down with us.
"Mom, this is no small matter. We need proper planning before making any decisions," I reminded.
Shirley nodded, glanced at me, then at York, and said with concern, "In a few days, it'll be your Grandma memorial. I'm planning to go back to Sea City, and while I'm there, I'll try to have a word with your uncle."
"Alright," York replied. "But I'm tied up with Maple Media these days, so I'm afraid I won't be able to go back and visit Grandma."
"She would understand," Shirley smiled. Just as I was about to speak, she stopped me. "I'll go back by myself, Natalia. You don't need to come with me. Benedict's at that clingy age now."
That was what a mother's love was—always putting her children first.
Since she said that, I decided not to push further.
After dinner, I watched some TV with Shirley for a while, then got ready to head home.
I drove away from the villa, only to find it was raining.
Dusk fell, and streetlights cast their glow along both sides of the road. Maybe it was just the usual Friday night, but the streets were packed with traffic.
I was stuck on the main road—the cars ahead weren't budging an inch. Who knew how long this traffic light would take?
Bored out of my mind, I instinctively turned my head to look out the car window.
At that very moment, I spotted a man standing by the roadside.
He stood drenched by the streetlight, rain pouring down, his eyes vacant and unfocused.
I froze for a moment, then suddenly rolled down the window. After confirming it was really Aiden, I called out, "Aiden!"
He didn't respond to me.
Maybe the downpour drowned out my voice.
I grabbed my phone and called Aiden. After a few rings, someone finally picked up—but to my surprise, it was Rose's voice: "Hello?"
"Rose?" I widened my eyes in surprise and asked suspiciously, "Why are you answering his phone? Is Aiden with you? I could've sworn I just saw him..."
"Where is he?" Rose exclaimed anxiously. "Natalia, look after him! Tell me the address—I'm coming right now!"
I froze, unable to comprehend what Rose meant, but my gut told me something was seriously wrong with Aiden.
Outside the car window, Aiden swayed unsteadily into the distance.
I quickly gave Rose the address. Hanging up, I flung open the car door and dashed toward Aiden through the pouring rain.
"Aiden!" I finally caught up to him.
I grabbed Aiden's shoulders. He froze, then slowly turned to face me, his expression utterly bewildered.
"Aiden, what's wrong?" My heart skipped a beat—I'd never seen such a vacant stare in his eyes before.
Giggling, Aiden stared at me for a few seconds before suddenly breaking into a wide grin. He started dancing around in front of me like a child, calling out, "Sister... big sister... let's play hide-and-seek..."
He didn't seem to know me.
My heart wrenched in pain as I gasped, the pouring rain blurring my vision.
Aiden kept giggling childishly in front of me. "You caught me! Now it's your turn to hide..."
The rain intensified into a torrential downpour.
Without thinking, I pulled Aiden toward the car. "Aiden, you're soaked to the bone! You'll catch a cold out in the rain."
Aiden couldn't understand a word I was saying. When I grabbed his arm, he instinctively pulled back like a startled child.
Just then, a cab pulled up to the curb.
Rose rushed over to Aiden, holding a large umbrella over his head to shield him from the rain.
I looked up at Rose. Her eyes were red-rimmed, her face streaked with what could be tears or rain.
With tear-filled eyes, Rose gazed at Aiden, her voice trembling as she said, "Do you have any idea how worried and terrified I was when you suddenly ran away from home?"
Aiden froze for a moment. He probably couldn't understand what Rose was saying, but the sight of her tears startled him.
The next second, Aiden suddenly reached out, his fingertips lightly brushing Rose's cheek. Pouting, he murmured, "Don't cry, I won't play hide-and-seek anymore..."
Stunned by Aiden's strange behavior, I turned to Rose and asked, "Rose, what's wrong with Aiden?"
As the words left my mouth, a chorus of angry car horns blared from the road.
My car was still stuck in the middle of the road, and the frustrated drivers behind me were already honking impatiently.
Rose didn't answer me directly. Instead, she pleaded, "Could you please take us home first? Aiden isn't very strong, and getting wet like this might make him sick."
I nodded and quickly ushered them back into the car.
Before long, we arrived at Rose's apartment.
Rose had a male caregiver at home, and she instructed him to help Aiden get cleaned up.
Then, she glanced at my soaking wet hair, tossed me a towel, and said flatly, "Dry your hair, or you might catch a cold."