Chapter 331

Early the next day, Lawrence ran into Alan in the hospital lobby.

The charming man stood before the reception desk and asked the nurse, "Which ward is Winnie in? She's my girlfriend." The nurse blushed slightly and eagerly gave him directions.

"Girlfriend?" Bryan shuddered as he glanced at Lawrence who was beside him, and saw that his expression had become even darker.

Lawrence stared coldly at the bouquet in Alan's arms. He turned his head, furrowed his brows, and asked Bryan, "Go find out why Winnie is staying in this hospital. She doesn't seem injured." Yesterday, he believed that she had visited Sidney and created problems for Darcy.

Bryan nodded, made a phone call, and went toward the ward. He then reported back to Lawrence, "It seems that Olivia got injured in the underground cave on the night of the kidnapping and she was admitted to the hospital. Winnie is here accompanying her."

"Are you sure it's Olivia who is hospitalized?" Lawrence felt like Winnie was hiding something.

"Daddy, I want a bag of potato chips. Can you go buy them?" Sidney shouted. He feared that if his father didn't believe that it was Olivia who was hospitalized, Oscar would be exposed.

Lawrence turned to Bryan and said, "Go buy a bag of potato chips for Sidney." The man then sat upright on the sofa, casually picking up a document.

"I won't eat the one he buys." Sidney pouted.

Lawrence sternly raised his gaze. Before he could say anything, the little one crossed his arms and said, "If you don't go buy it, I'll ask Mommy to buy it for me, and then I'll go back to her house."

The man dropped the document in his hands and stood up with a cold expression.

Seeing his father leaving, Sidney secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At the vending machine, Bryan hesitated and said, "Mr. Rodriguez, Sidney wants potato chips, but you bought sugar-free chewing gum instead."

"So? Do you have any objections to what I want to buy for my son?"

Bryan remained silent as he inwardly sighed. He did not want to get involved in the war between father and son.

"Nurse, could you please tell me which ward is Winnie in? I am her boyfriend," came a warm, low male voice from the reception desk.

Upon hearing the woman's name once more, along with the mention of a "boyfriend" searching for her, Lawrence angrily lifted his head to find Rock-appearing refined and elegant-standing nearby.

After the enthusiastic nurse pointed Rock in the right direction, two of the nurses who were working behind the reception desk huddled together and gossiped quietly. "Winnie is quite fortunate. Two handsome men came to visit her early in the morning."

"I'm jealous. Having two suitors-one charming and the other gentle. It would be amazing if they both slept together on the same bed with her," said another nurse cheekily.

Suddenly, the table was smashed with a loud bang. The nurses looked up and saw a tall and stern man with an astonishingly handsome face.

Lawrence scowled and couldn't help but get angry. "Is this how your hospital controls personnel? Letting anyone in to visit patients. How can my son rest properly?"

The nurse was taken aback by the harsh reprimand from a seemingly unfazed man. "I apologize..."

He then commanded, "Notify the hospital director to kick out those two random men who just came to visit earlier." Trembling in fear, the two nurses looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression.

"What are you looking at? Tell your director that I am Lawrence." Lawrence exuded a chill from his breath and turned to leave. The nurses stood frozen for a few seconds, gasping in shock.

Bryan couldn't help but sigh as he looked at Mr. Rodriguez, whose demeanor appeared clouded with resentment. Their dynamic mirrored that of divorced couples, with Mr. Rodriguez still holding onto feelings of jealousy towards Winnie.

In a flurry, Alan rushed into the ward, surprising Winnie with his unusually serious demeanor. "Winnie, I came to see you. I heard about your son being kidnapped. How is the situation?" Moved by his concern, Winnie hesitated for a moment. However, the next second, Alan's attempt at reassurance made Winnie roll her eyes at him. "Tell me if there's any difficulty. I'll try to help you with something simple. After all, we have a casual relationship."

"Get lost, Alan."

"Just kidding! You're too tightly wound, lacking any fun or emotions." Alan chuckled and turned to see Oscar's scrutinizing eyes. He paused for a moment, pointed at the child, and said to Winnie, "This little guy doesn't look anything like you. He's a copy of my brother. Ah, who knows what his child, whom he takes care of himself, looks like."

Winnie hesitated for a moment at his words and then quickly looked at Alan. "You knew Lawrence had a child with him, and it was mine too? I've been back to the country for so long, Alan, and you never bothered to mention it to me?"

Alan shimmered and shrugged. "I only heard three years ago that Lawrence picked up a pale premature baby. I haven't seen him and he keeps the information tightly guarded. How would I know if he even raised the child? Besides, how would I know when you don't even know how many children you have?"

"I see. You just have a mean streak and wanted to see me fight with him." Winnie gritted her teeth. It was then that she fully came to grasp the situation that Lawrence had raised a child named Sidney, and it wasn't a secret; some individuals were already aware. Olivia, for instance, was among those who knew. On the night of the kidnapping, it was she who first suspected that there were two children involved.

Olivia noticed Winnie's skeptical gaze and knew she had to explain herself. She forced a smile and said, " Winnie, please don't be angry. It's hard for me to admit, but Alan is right about something. Lawrence kept the news of his son tightly concealed. Interestingly, I learned about it from Laura. It turns out he adopted a baby back then. Laura and I had discussed the possibility, but we didn't dare tell you anything uncertain. Besides, we were afraid it would make you sad if you couldn't fight for custody. It was only when I saw Oscar later that I found out you had given birth to two babies. I should have guessed that the two little ones had been switched, but I never realized it."

Winnie sighed softly, having come to terms with what her own best friend had just told her. She remembered on the day she returned to the country, Rock mentioned it too, that Lawrence had a child, and at the time it was mistakenly believed to be his and Darcy's. It seems it was all just baseless rumors. Luckily, she had already secretly recognized Oscar with Sidney.

As the three were talking, Rock appeared, knocking on the door with a slight smile on his face. "Such a lively scene we have here."

Winnie acknowledged his presence and greeted, "Hello, Rock."

Rock then looked at Oscar. The child was injured, but not in critical condition. It was said that the child with Lawrence was also fine. Darcy had clearly failed this time. A trace of darkness flashed in the man's eyes, rendering him unable to investigate any further. He worriedly walked in and asked, "Is Oscar okay? I heard he was seriously injured and I rushed here to see him."

"He is out of danger." Winnie sighed before turning to Rock. "You also have been dealing with something important and haven't rested, right?"

"Let's not talk about it. I feel guilty for not helping you chase after the kidnappers," he said.

"It's fine. Lawrence rescued them, and that's what he should have done," Winnie said calmly.

"Them?" Rock's eyes darkened.

Winnie nodded and took him outside, confessing, "Rock, it turns out that I gave birth to two children back then and I didn't know Lawrence also raised another one-Sidney. Fortunately, I discovered both of them this time."

Rock's slender hand pressed against his tightly pursed lips as he contemplated Darcy's actions, realizing it brought more harm than good. Despite his thoughts, he could only manage a smile and offer his congratulations to Winnie. "This is really good news, Winnie. If you want to fight for custody of the other child against Lawrence, I'll help you." He was testing her attitude.

Unconsciously, Winnie replied with concern, "For now, I can't take Sidney away because I don't want to expose Oscar. My only option is to stall Lawrence until the revenge is completed."

Rock's gaze darkened.

Suddenly, Winnie looked up and asked, "By the way, how is your search for Jeffrey going? Have you found any leads?"

A shade of sorrow crossed Rock's eyes. "Sorry, we've been searching for two days but this guy seems to have vanished into thin air. He's so cunning!"

It appeared that Rock couldn't find him either. Winnie lowered her gaze, her face turning pale as the incident of her son being kidnapped had preoccupied her for two days, rendering her unable to assist Rock. With events overlapping, she couldn't help but worry, especially since the trial was scheduled for the day after tomorrow, and the crucial key witness was still nowhere to be found.