The Million-Dollar Heart

The chill in the air took everyone by surprise over the next few days.

Vivienne, thanks to her pregnancy, found herself succumbing to sleep more than ever, spending the majority of her day either eating or curled up in bed.

Percival, worried about leaving her alone, stayed by her side constantly.

One afternoon, while Vivienne was deep in slumber, her phone on the bedside table began to vibrate.

Seeing the caller ID, Percival picked it up and stepped outside to answer.

"Boss!" came Draven's voice through the phone.

"It's me," Percival replied with a stern voice. "Vivienne's asleep. What's the matter?"

Draven paused briefly, then quickly said, "Percival, Declan's made another move. But these symbols, only you can decipher them. We think he's trying to send a message out." Percival frowned. "Did the surveillance catch anything unusual?"

Draven's response was firm. "Nothing at all."

Percival's gaze darkened slightly. "Keep an eye on him. Report back with any suspicions. I'll inform Vivienne."

When Vivienne woke up, she turned to see Percival sitting by her side, which warmed her heart. "Mr. Wolf, what time is it?"

Percival looked at her, closing his laptop gently. "You're awake. It's seven in the evening."

Vivienne rubbed her temples. "Why do I feel like I can sleep forever?"

Percival took her hand and massaged her temples gently. "Hungry? I'll whip up something you love."

the night sky and nodded. Her morning sickness had been particularly bad before she fell asleep, leaving her stomach feeling

he handed her the phone. "Draven called. There's been some activity on Declan's end. I've forwarded the details to your phone. Take a

left, Vivienne sat up and unlocked her

message from Draven was already two hours old, containing a surveillance video. She watched it, noting the addition of several cryptic gestures she hadn't seen

Vivienne was puzzling over the phone. "Any leads?" he

"Some of these gestures are

guessing her thoughts, handed her a bowl of soup and said, "I'll have Thomas stick close to

asked, taking

him running errands for the Martinez family. He'll be tied up for a

couldn't help but feel a sense of amusement and sympathy for Leopold, who was unaware that these gestures of goodwill were merely offhand remarks by their mentor. The reputation of Emerald Mountain hinged on such

don't need to rely solely on Thomas," she suggested to Mr.

moment then nodded. "That works. Anna, being a woman, might

and Vivienne even left the

Anna quickly approached and stood

"Are you

Anna responded, opening the

the Watson family has unearthed the Wright family's blueprints. I'm heading there now. Let's meet in half

eyebrow, puzzled by the timing of the

ended the call and instructed Anna, "Turn

executed a perfect U-turn and

estate nearly simultaneously with another car. Matthew,

in acknowledgment and then

where's the

her gaze, sparking a

car with a

loud voice boomed from

roll of blueprints,