The Ex-Wife They Begged To Keep - Chapter 21: Chapter 21

Serena gently told Alyssa a story about the little bunny, her soft voice echoing quietly in the room.
Alyssa's eyelids began to droop, her breathing gradually slowed. In the end, she fell asleep in Serena's arms.
Keith stood silently nearby, his clenched fists slowly relaxing. He hadn't expected Alyssa to fall asleep so peacefully in Serena's arms.
Henry was also standing at the doorway. Through the narrow opening, he saw the scene inside and sighed inwardly, 'When Alyssa has an episode, even I can barely get close. How did this woman manage to gain her trust in such a short time?'
Henry said, "Alyssa seems to really trust Ms. Gray. Maybe she could spend more time with Alyssa. It might help her recovery."
Keith turned to look at Henry, his brows drawing together slightly. He already felt guilty for troubling Serena so many times.
But over the past few days, Alyssa's emotions had been completely unstable and she'd rejected everyone who came near. Only in front of Serena would Alyssa lower her guard and sleep so soundly.
When Serena saw that Alyssa was finally asleep in her embrace, she carefully shifted her aching arm. She was about to pull down Alyssa's rolled-up sleeve when she suddenly noticed a bruise on her delicate arm.
Serena thought, 'When did she get this?' She looked closely at the bruise. The dark purple mark looked exactly like it had been caused by a hard pinch.
She mused, 'Alyssa's such a sweet and well-behaved child. There's no way she would hurt herself like this. Could it have been Keith?'
With that thought in her mind, Serena gently tucked the blanket around Alyssa and stood up, walking to the door.
When Keith saw her approaching, he leaned forward a little and instinctively rubbed his hands together. "Seri, there's something I'd like to ask you."
Henry subtly adjusted his glasses, hiding the surprise in his eyes. He hadn't expected Keith to call Serena by such an intimate nickname. It made him wonder if there was more between them than he had originally assumed.
Before Keith could finish what he wanted to say, Serena cut in, "Mr. Brannon, I actually have something to ask you too."
"What is it?" Keith asked, puzzled.
Serena questioned, "What happened to the bruise on Alyssa's arm?"
At those words, the ease in Keith's expression disappeared, and his brows instantly furrowed. He turned toward the bed where Alyssa was sleeping and quickly walked over, carefully lifting her sleeve to reveal the glaring bruise.
"When did this happen?" he murmured, his fingers trembling slightly as he gently touched Alyssa's arm.
Serena didn't respond. She just stood there, watching Keith quietly, the suspicion in her eyes unwavering. She noticed the panic in his expression, and it only confirmed her doubts.
Seeing the suspicious look on Serena's face, Henry quickly stepped in to explain, "Ms. Gray, please don't misunderstand. Keith cares a lot about Alyssa."
Keith softly laid Alyssa's arm back down, tucked the blanket around her, then walked over to Serena. "Seri, I've been swamped with work lately. I haven't spent much time with her, but I would never hurt her."
His voice was low and hoarse. "More than anyone, I want her to grow up safe and happy."
Serena looked into his eyes. What she saw was pure guilt, nothing fake about it. She thought of how attentive Keith had been with Alyssa before and slowly let go of her suspicion.
"I'm sorry," Serena said quietly. "I just panicked when I saw Alyssa was hurt."
Keith shook his head gently. "I get it. You care about her too." He then added firmly, "I'll find out what caused that bruise. I won't let Alyssa get hurt again."
Serena nodded, and the tension between them gradually eased. She remembered Keith had seemed like he was about to say something earlier, so she asked, "Mr. Brannon, you mentioned needing my help. What was it?"
"Seri, I was hoping you could spend more time with Alyssa when you're free." Keith's elegant fingers absentmindedly rubbed at his cuff. He continued, "Alyssa really trusts you. Only when she's with you does she relax and act like a normal child."
Serena thought of how kind and mature Alyssa was, yet always burdened with things she shouldn't have to carry.
Seeing the bruise on Alyssa's arm earlier had hurt Serena more than she could explain. "Alright. I'll visit often, keep her company, play with her, and tell her stories," Serena replied.
Keith looked into Serena's gentle eyes gratefully. "Thank you, Ms. Gray."
At Powell Villa, Leon was playing blocks with Oliver when suddenly Oliver's block castle collapsed.
Oliver pointed at Leon. "You knocked it over. You're mean."
Leon looked completely baffled. He hadn't even touched Oliver's blocks.
"What happened, Oliver?" Eliza asked.
As soon as Oliver saw Eliza, he became even more certain in his accusation. "Mommy, it was Leon. He knocked down my castle."
Victor heard the commotion and came over too. Seeing the scene, he assumed it was just kids fooling around and didn't think much of it.
When Leon saw Victor coming, he immediately ran over, like he'd finally found someone who'd take his side, and threw himself into Victor's arms with a tearful pout. His voice was shaky as he said, "Daddy, I didn't touch Ollie's blocks. They just fell."
The moment Victor arrived, Eliza didn't even ask what had happened. She immediately began lecturing Leon. "Leon, how could you lie? If you did something wrong, you should admit it, not blame someone else."
"I'm not lying. I really didn't knock over his castle," Leon sobbed.
Eliza replied, "I believe you didn't do it on purpose, Leon, but lying isn't something a good boy should do."
Leon wanted to explain, but didn't know how. All he could do was cry louder.
Seeing him like that, Eliza continued to coax him, "I want you to be an honest boy, okay?"
Since she didn't believe him, Leon clung to Victor and kept crying.
After hearing Eliza's words, Victor was convinced Leon had done something wrong and didn't dare admit it. He scolded sharply, "Leon. Stop crying. If you made a mistake, you need to own up to it."
Leon was crushed. He shook his head hard. "I didn't do it. Daddy, why don't you believe me?"
Victor, irritated by the sound of Leon's crying, pulled him out of his arms. "Leon, stop arguing. If you won't apologize, go to your room and think about what you did."
Leon sniffled, stubbornly stayed silent, then turned and ran back to his room. The door slammed shut behind him with a loud bang as he locked himself in.
At the design firm in Glonia, Erika Cornett walked over to Serena's desk and slammed a thick stack of documents down with a loud thud. "These are for the afternoon meeting. Organize them. Don't screw it up."
Serena looked up and met Erika's disdainful gaze. She immediately understood. Ever since Erika found out that Stacey didn't like her, she'd been coming up with ways to make things hard for Serena.
Staring at the towering pile of documents, Serena gave a bitter smile. She thought, 'This isn't about organizing files. It's like she's trying to bury me alive in paperwork. But I guess it's better than sitting around doing nothing.'
But when the meeting began in the afternoon, Serena discovered the files she had organized were missing.
In front of everyone, Erika snapped at her, "Serena, where are the files? We need them for the meeting. What have you been doing?"
"I already organized them this morning. They were saved on my computer. Someone must have touched it," Serena explained.
"Organized? I don't think you prepared anything at all. You can't even handle something this simple?" Erika pressed on. "Who would touch your computer? Sounds like another excuse to me."