Once they had settled in, they brought up serious matters.
"I heard from him that there is a spy in the organization, but we don't know who." Flora had only heard about this from Matthew.
The person opposite her nodded: "I asked our brother about it last time, but he didn't say anything.
His demeanor seemed... rather upset." He sighed after speaking, then quickly changed his tone: "But don't worry sister-in-law, once your and brother's happy event is over, we'll investigate the organization.
Sooner or later, that spy will expose himself."
This matter nagged at Flora's heart.
She couldn't understand how Selena had the capacity to manipulate Matthew's subordinates.
According to Matthew, she was merely a pawn in Daniel's game.
Who was Selena leveraging? Or rather... who was secretly assisting her against Matthew?
"Ah... It hurts so much!" A sudden scream from outside in the flower garden startled Flora.
She hastily ran out to see Matthew's two brothers, whom she knew, fighting.
More accurately, the older one was pinning the younger one to the grass, relentlessly punching him.
"Brother, spare me... I know my mistake... It's all my fault... I'm the damned one..." The one getting beaten pleaded incessantly.
The older one, perhaps having punched till his hand hurt, gripped the collar and violently jerked his reckless younger brother up: "You really are a damned fool!"
"What's going on?" Flora arrived just in time.
The older man growled: "The Boss trusted you so much and you betrayed him.
Did you forget who saved you during all those near-death experiences, not caring for his own safety?" His voice was a mix of anger and disappointment, coarse and heavy.
"Stop!" Flora yelled, interrupting their confrontation: "What's going on? Both of you, explain to me!"
The older man clenched his teeth, as if struggling to control his emotions.
His veins bulged prominently on his forehead.
His eyes gleamed with a dangerous crimson hue.
He released his grip on the collar of the man he once considered a brother: "Sister-in-law, this... this ungrateful wretch betrayed the Boss... We grew up with him, faced life and death situations together countless times.
Yet, he betrayed the Boss for that wretched woman, Selena... We only discovered today that he's been ensnared by her for a long time... colluding with her... The Boss and you almost lost your lives because of it, how could he... be so cold-blooded towards those who consider him a brother?"
"Brother..."
"Don't call me brother! Damn it, I don't have a backstabbing brother like you!" The older man growled, leaving these words behind and walked away.
He was afraid that if he stayed a second longer, he would lose control and kill the man he once called a brother.
Left alone, Flora quietly watched the man kneeling on the ground, tears streaming down his face.
He was still young, barely over twenty.
Flora remembered him always smiling and talkative the previous times they met.
She could hardly believe he was the spy who had been feeding information to Selena.
This was one of the men Matthew trusted the most.
No wonder Matthew was devastated to find out who the traitor was.
"Sister-in-law... I'm sorry... It's all my fault... you can punish me however you want..."
"No." Flora shook her head: "I'm not the one you betrayed, I don't have the right to punish you.
Wait for Matthew to return, let him handle this... First, go treat your wounds." His bruised and battered body was a pitiful sight.
His so-called good brother must have been quite angry to have beaten him so harshly.
The young man nodded heavily: "Yes, sister-in-law.
I know I am guilty and will wait here for the Boss to return and pass judgement... Don't worry, I won't die before the Boss returns."
With that, he used his hands to prop himself up from the ground, gritted his teeth and rose to his feet, then staggered step by step into the house.
Flora watched his retreating back, marveling at the resilience of the men Matthew considered his brothers. Despite being beaten to such an extent, he could still walk into the house on his own.
However, she had no intention of helping him dress his wounds.
Reminding him was already a big stretch for her.
After all, he was the one who betrayed Matthew, nearly pushing Matthew, her, and their son into death's doorstep.
A sudden headache made her feel dizzy, and she quickly went inside the house.
This time, when Matthew left for the island from the mainland, he learned his lesson and was very careful to inform her of his itinerary. He even told her when he would land on the island, so she wasn't worried, she was just anxious to meet her husband and son.
"Hurry back... Matthew... These matters... need to be dealt with by your own hands..." It involved his brothers, no one else had the right to handle it for him.
Two hours later, the plane that many people, including Flora, had been eagerly awaiting, landed near the beach.
Matthew, carrying his daughter, slowly descended from the plane and walked directly towards Flora.
Upon seeing his mother, Paul cheered: "Mom!"
"My princess! Mom missed you so much!" As Flora ran closer, the child had already escaped from her father's arms and rushed into her mother's.
Flora hugged her little girl tightly, tears welling in her eyes: "Mom missed you so much..."
"Huhuhu... I missed mom too..." Paul started crying as soon as she was held by her mother.
Everyone around them smiled.
After so many trials, the family was finally reunited, of course, they had to smile.
Mrs. Smith looked at her daughter holding her granddaughter and frowned: "Your eyes are no different from a panda's! You don't take care of yourself, do you? You worry too much..."
"Mom, don't blame sister-in-law, it's Matthew's fault.
All of this is his fault! He made her sad and worried, you should scold him instead!" Grace immediately defended Flora, pushing her newly recognized older brother into the storm.
After finishing her sentence, she even made a face at Matthew.
Once Grace spoke, Flora was reminded of Matthew's faults.
She let her mother hold Paul, ran to Matthew, and pulled his ear, gritting her teeth: "How dare you go get our daughter alone without telling me! Do you even consider me? If something happened to you, how are me and the kids supposed to live?" It was so hard for the family to be together, she didn't want him facing danger for no good reason.
It goes without saying that Paul's discharge day was momentous, but in her heart, his life and safety held no lesser significance.
Matthew wrapped his arms around her, his voice softened: "My love, I was wrong... I promise not to repeat it... Will you forgive me this once?... I swear, it won't happen again..."
His dulcet baritone, murmuring these words, melted Flora's frosty countenance.
She huffed: "This is just to save you some face in public. Wait till we get home and see how I deal with you."
"I have no objections!" Matthew winked at her: "Once we're home, in our room, do as you please."
"Get your dirty thoughts out of your head!" Flora's face turned crimson as she shoved Matthew away and scurried toward their children.
In their unique way, the children greeted one another, their version of hello filled with warmth and familiarity.
Paul, Charlie's twin brother, looked smaller and thinner due to his recurring illnesses.
The child gazed at his beautiful siblings and exclaimed: "Ah, Charlie! Sister Anna!"
He did not know Sister Anna but had heard from his father that Charlie had a tail that wagged around all day long, a beautiful and adorable tail named Anna.
Thus, he instantly recognized the beautiful girl standing before him as Sister Anna.
Anna embraced the little one joyously: "I'm thrilled! I've always wanted a younger sister, and now I finally have one!"
"What are you talking about? This ugly stuffed bear is my sister." Charlie stood aloofly, pulling his sister towards him, asserting his claim.
Anna pouted: "Whatever, Charlie! I want a sister!"
Paul joined the chorus, turning to his twin: "Charlie, I really wanted a sister too... don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about you, but having a beautiful sister is quite nice." He grinned at Anna: "Sister, shall we go play?"
Charlie's face darkened: "What about your real brother?" He emphasized 'real,' but it seemed that nobody cared about his issue.
By the time he finished speaking, the girls had already run off to play.
The children played happily together, much to Flora's delight.
Once they got back to their room, Flora made Matthew shower, washing off the day's grime.
As for herself, she stretched out on the bed, reveling in the comfort of the sheets and mattress.
"Tired?" Matthew, robed in his bath towel, toweling his hair as he sat down on the bed, sinking the mattress slightly.
Flora exhaled: "I'm exhausted! Next time, you try staying at home waiting, while I'm out all day and see if you don't drop from fatigue."
Matthew helplessly tossed the towel aside and massaged her feet: "I told you to rest but you wouldn't listen..." He sighed: "You got news of me last night, why didn't you get some sleep?"
"How can I sleep without seeing your annoying face by my side? Even if I did sleep, it wouldn't be sound!" Truth be told, she had slept, but nightmares had frequently woken her up until she finally dozed off at dawn, only to be awoken by the sound of an airplane.
Her thoughts drifted: "Yesterday, there was a heavy storm, they say a hurricane is coming. Is the weather on the island always like this?" She worried that such frequent bad weather would not be suitable for the children to live in.
Matthew shook his head: "Not very often, mostly during hurricane season. Oh, and sometimes when the tide is high, the humidity is quite high, it's pretty cool, would you like that?"
His anxious question mirrored a grown boy hoping the love of his life would like his house, his anticipation palpable.
Flora gave the standard reply: "As long as I'm with you and our children, I would like any place." She clarified: "My question about the hurricanes was due to my concern over the children's living conditions. If it's not frequent, then I'm relieved."
Matthew nodded, his hands never ceasing their motion, massaging her calves, occasionally shifting from serious kneading to a lazy, affectionate stroke.