The Ex and Her Riches novel (Gwendolyn and Maverick)

Charles opened the door and saw Nico and Benedict staring each other down with their arms crossed. It looked as

though the two just had a fight as well.

Charles felt a little better when he saw that Nico wasn’t having it any easier. With a calm look on his face, he

carried Zendaya into the ward and asked, “What’s going on here? What’s with this tension in the air? Also, why are

you two still awake at this hour?”

Both Nico and Benedict turned around and shot Charles a hostile glare.

“Shut up! You’re still awake, too!” they snapped at him in unison.

Nico then shifted his gaze back toward Benedict and remained silent while trying to suppress his anger.

Benedict let out a defiant snort and exclaimed, “What are you, Uncle Nico, and Daddy doing? Why leave me and

Zendy at the laboratory? Is it because Daddy and Mommy want to spend some time together? Is that why they’re

leaving us behind?”

Nico was on the verge of fainting from anger at that point.

F*ck! Why won’t Benny just listen to reason?

As he glared at Benedict, who was curled up in his blanket on the bed, he found himself at a loss for words.

After the two had been arguing all night, Nico realized that Benedict’s statements were far more logical and

persuasive than his.

Zendaya struggled in Charles’ arms and motioned at him to put her down on Benedict’s bed.

Charles understood what she wanted and helped get her shoes off before gently putting her down on the bed.

Zendaya then threw herself at Benedict and wailed, “I had a bad dream earlier, Benny! I dreamt that Mommy got

injured and didn’t want us anymore!”

Benedict’s face grew pale as he listened to the details of her nightmare.

Feeling uncomfortable due to his sickness, he pressed his hand firmly against his chest as he replied, “I had the

same dream when I slept for half an hour earlier…”

Nico and Charles exchanged surprised glances when they heard that.

They say children are connected to their mother by blood. I-Is that theory actually true? Could something terrible

have happened to Gwendolyn?

Both the men had solemn looks on their faces as they stood there on the side.

Benedict’s face grew increasingly pale as he struggled to breathe. Noticing that his condition was worsening,

Charles quickly gave Joshua a call.

Nico patted Benedict on the back in an attempt to help relieve his pain.

Zendaya wanted to help out as well, but she didn’t know what she could do, so she simply stomped her feet in

frustration.

Since it was late at night, all the professors had gone home by then. Joshua was probably fast asleep with his phone

on silent as he didn’t answer Charles’ calls.

Charles got incredibly anxious when he saw that Benedict’s condition showed no signs of improvement. “I’ll call an

ambulance and get him to the hospital!”

“Okay!”

“No, I don’t want to go to a hospital,” Benedict protested.

He then gritted his teeth and endured the pain as he continued, “Ordinary hospitals can’t treat me. Go and get Mr.

Eugene instead. He’s staying in room 304 in the office building next to us.”

“I’ll go and get him right away!” Charles replied and ran out of there as quickly as his legs could carry him.

He then returned in less than two minutes with Eugene in tow.

Eugene was feeling annoyed at first, but the sight of Benedict in severe pain snapped him out of it. He then quickly

grew serious and stepped forward to check Benedict’s pulse.

“His body has always been in poor condition because his heart isn’t able to pump enough blood, so he cannot

withstand stress. What did you guys say to him? How did he end up like this?”

Charles and Nico exchanged glances and lowered their heads in silence.

Eugene rolled his eyes at them before retrieving the equipment for Benedict’s IV drip.

He returned shortly after with the tray and IV drip, but Benedict refused to let him administer it.

“Take me to either my daddy or my mommy. Otherwise, I’d rather die from the pain than receive a transfusion!” he

said while glaring at Nico.

The latter tensed up and flashed him a conflicted look as he recalled Cedrick’s orders. “It’s raining outside, and

your body is very weak right now. What if you end up catching a cold? Also, it’s very chaotic in Salinsburgh lately, so

your dad needs to stay up all night just to get his work done. He left you two here in this safe laboratory because he

feared he wouldn’t be able to look after you two. Now, will you please be a good boy and listen to me, Benny?”

Benedict shook his head stubbornly, much to Nico’s dismay.

“I won’t receive a transfusion unless you take me to my parents!”

Eugene clicked his tongue and said, “There’s no way a five-year-old child would be able to sleep well after being left

here by his parents.”

Nico and Charles fell silent at the same time.

Eugene added, “Even if their father is busy at work, you could bring the kids over and not disturb him at work. That

way, the children would feel more at ease. What problems could arise from that?”

Meanwhile, Benedict clenched his fists tightly, his arm muscles tightening. He was adamant about not receiving his

treatment.

Eventually, Nico gave in and said, “All right, all right… I’ll take you two to your parents once you’re done with your

transfusion.”

Feeling happy after getting what they wanted, the two kids sat down obediently on the bed.

Zendaya remained silent as she kept Benedict company by his side. Eager to see their parents, Benedict had

Eugene increase the speed of the IV drip.

This was the first time the two kids had been without their parents, so they wanted nothing more than to see them.

About an hour later, Cedrick heard a knock on the door of his office.

Nico then opened the door slightly and glanced about as he asked, “Hey, Cedrick! Are you here?”

Huh? Is no one here? I asked the police officer on duty when I arrived, and he told me that Cedrick hadn’t left his

office after returning earlier, so he should be in here…

With that in mind, Nico asked a little louder, “Cedrick?”

The next thing he knew, the lights in Cedrick’s office came on all of a sudden. After taking a second to recover from

the shock, Nico squinted his eyes to adjust to the sudden increase in brightness and saw Cedrick seated at his desk.

His handsome face looked incredibly weary, and his office was filled with a sense of dread.

It pained Nico to see that Cedrick’s eyes were bloodshot. “Have you been drinking, Cedrick?”

He gasped in shock when he saw six cigarette butts on Cedrick’s desk.

“I thought you quit smoking, Cedrick! Why did you end up smoking so much? Did something happen?”

Cedrick remained silent and continued pouring himself another glass of wine. His face looked slightly red as he was

under the influence of alcohol. “What are you doing here? Didn’t I tell you to look after Benny and Zendy at the

laboratory?”

“Well… Benny and Zendy were getting a little out of hand. They insisted on seeing you. Charles and I tried calling

you on your phone, but it was switched off, so we had no choice but to bring them over…” Nico replied with an

awkward expression.

Cedrick froze when he heard that. “Benny and Zendy are here?”

“Yes! They’re in the hallway. I had Charles watch over them while I checked if you were in your office,” Nico replied

while pointing outside the door.

Zendaya’s clear voice could be heard from the hallway outside. “Are Daddy and Mommy in there? Here I come!”

Nico turned around to glance at Zendaya before shifting his gaze back toward Cedrick’s office. The next thing Nico

knew, Cedrick had run up to the door and shoved him out of his office.

Bam!

Nico watched in shock and confusion as Cedrick slammed the door shut in his face.

What happened to Cedrick? Why did he respond so aggressively? It’s almost as though he did something wrong and

didn’t want anyone to find out!

After staring blankly at the door for about two minutes, Nico knocked on the door again and asked, “Hey, Cedrick!

Are you going to see them or not?”

Benny and Zendy are already here! He’s not going to just shut them out, is he?

A few minutes later, Cedrick opened the door from the inside.

His short hair was slightly wet, and he had also changed into a casual outfit. Even the wine bottle and ashtray on

the table were nowhere to be seen.

In just six minutes, he had removed the smell of cigarette smoke from his body and used some air freshener to

mask the odor in his office.

Nico was so shocked by what he saw that his jaw dropped on the spot.

Cedrick narrowed his eyes and shot Nico a displeased glare as he said, “Say that again, Nico. I dare you!”

Huh? What is he even talking about? I don’t get it at all!