The Million-Dollar Heart

Karen chuckled softly, squeezing Vivienne's hand before pushing open the grand oak gate of the Perez Mansion.

As the door swung open, Karen's gaze fell upon an elderly figure leaning on a cane, clad in a smart tweed suit reminiscent of a bygone era. Tears brimmed in his eyes as he stood there, looking out as if in disbelief.

With the door now ajar, he stumbled forward a couple of steps, his body trembling, pausing as if unsure whether to believe this was all real.

It had been over thirty years. His little treasure, who had barely reached his waistline back then, was now a mother herself.

Karen stepped forward, stopping a yard away from Jasper, feeling the gulf of years between them - not a chasm of estrangement, but one of deep regret. Thankfully, all was not lost; she had returned.

With a thud, Karen knelt on the ground, bowing her head deeply before Jasper.

"Dad, Sasha's come back."

Jasper could no longer contain himself. He hurried forward, his cane discarded, hunching over as he helped his daughter to her feet.

Slowly, his wrinkled hands reached out, caressing Karen's face gently as if afraid of inflicting any pain upon his cherished daughter.

Every contour of her face, every familiar line and curve, he touched as if reacquainting himself with a long-lost treasure.

"Sasha, my Sasha, oh, my Sasha..."

With a choked sob, Jasper pulled Karen into a tight embrace. "My precious girl."

Meanwhile, Zelda had already sought refuge in Yuri's arms, sobbing uncontrollably, and even the usually nonchalant Maddox was crouched on the ground, wiping away tears. Vivienne stood at the threshold, unwilling to intrude on the heartfelt reunion.

Jasper and Karen held each other for what seemed like an eternity before they finally composed themselves.

Karen, ever the comforter, gently reminded Jasper, "Dad, tomorrow is the ninth of the month. Let's go inside. And remember, no leaving the house tomorrow."

it dawned on him that Vesper, who had once

hardship. Do you have any idea how worried I was when I saw the

to Vivienne, Jasper had nearly rallied a posse to storm

Percival had assured him of

Jasper let her

less of a worry! Always

"Grandpa, blame my mom. She's been 'dead' for so many years. If I hadn't given her this little scare

wonder your master always speaks ill of you!" Karen shot

how on earth did you end up

to a chair and began to

as an apprentice. I went along with it for fun and never officially took the pledge. Eventually, I joined

"No wonder you sent Vivienne to Emerald Mountain. You

"Not quite. He insisted I bring a bottle of whiskey as a token of apprenticeship. I was

No wonder Finnian always joked about her being a lousy deal

could not help but laugh. "Niece, you're not even worth a bottle of whiskey! Come and stay with your uncle.

take offense. Instead, she narrowed her eyes at Maddox, replying, "Uncle Maddox, my mom has been

stopped abruptly as if he had bitten his tongue. He quickly sidled up to Karen, the traces of tears still visible at the corners of his eyes, his voice tinged with concern. "Sasha, were you really with

Though she had been with

didn't realize how deep the connection between her brother and

at Vivienne, who silently nodded

as you suspect - your brother is hopelessly in

chill run down his spine and turned to Vivienne, insisting. "It's

moving closer to Karen. "Sasha, Maddox has been pining over Willa for over a decade. He's beyond