My Four Miraculous Treasures

Why would Hailey talk about her mother, on television?!

The little girl mentioned that her mother had gone missing four days ago... could she possibly mean Willow?!

Hailey's voice issued from the television set, adorably earnest: "My mother's name is easy to remember. It sounds sweet and lovely."

Willow felt as though her soul was ready to depart from this world, so imminent was the peril...

Hailey was about to reveal that she was Willow's own daughter.

And here, right in front of her, was Jasper in all his chilling menace, slender fingers clutching her jaw in a vice grip, handsome face glaring balefully at her, cold as ice.

She was being pressed down onto the executioner's block. Her nerves were being stretched to breaking point.

"My mother's name is..."

Pow! Just before Hailey could speak Willow's name aloud, she was cut off when the television screen switched off abruptly-along with all the lights in the living

room.

Willow heaved a long sigh of relief. Her hair and back were all sodden with sweat.

It was late in the afternoon, on the threshold of evening. There was no longer as much sunlight available, so the sudden loss of electrical lighting plunged the whole room into gloom.

However, Jasper was nevertheless able to observe every detail on Willow's face. When he said that he wouldn't be giving her any children, fine beads of sweat had actually broken out upon her forehead.

Holding her jaw in his grip, he pulled her closer... close enough that he could feel each ragged breath she was taking.

Teeth gritted, he regarded her coldly. "So you'd like to have my children, huh?"noveldrama

Willow had barely been able to relax for a moment, but now she was all tensed up once more. In the limpid pools of her eyes, terror floated up, too great for her to hide.

"I've taken birth control pills!" she stammered nervously. "So I can't get pregnant, don't you worry! I know you don't like kids. I won't get any ideas."

He'd asked her if she liked kids, and she'd said that she did. Then, he'd declared that she wouldn't be getting any from him...

It had taken her until now to get what he'd meant by that. It was only when she'd detected the coldness in his tone that she was finally able to understand:

Jasper had no intention of getting her pregnant, nor would he allow her to have any children by him. He didn't like kids, and there was no merit in him letting Willow Nason become the mother of his children.

Willow understood completely-and yet, her heart throbbed with pain, in spite of herself. The agony was a swirling, flailing sort of sensation, tearing away at her very soul.

What about her four children...?

What about her...?

Jasper was sort of pleased to hear such agreeable terms from her. With a curt harrumph, he let go of her at last.

Then, the lights came back on in the living room-along with the television. However, instead of that show from earlier, they were now looking at the television's main menu.

Leon hurried over, and explained nervously, "Master, a fuse was tripped, and so the power went out for a moment. The problem's been fixed, now."

Jasper waved him away. Leon bowed and withdrew.

Willow was beside herself with glee. What were the odds that a fuse would trip at just that exact moment? If not for that miracle, she shuddered to think what might have happened next...

Willow risked another peek at Jasper, beside her. His usual cold expression seemed quite a bit milder, at the moment.

He must have been very pleased by her words, indeed.

So that was how much he hated the idea of her becoming the mother of his children...

This gave Willow cause for some melancholy but she wasn't completely.deflated. Capitalizing on his more agreeable mood at present, she spoke up to say, "Sir, may go home today? My mother hasn't seen mein days. She must be worried sick. If she doesn't hear from me soon... what if she calls the cops?"

Jasper turned to glare at her, cold and menacing. "I hope she does. I wonder what

she'll say when she sees what you've done in my private gallery."

That reminder instantly caused Willow's heart to flop. Realizing her defeat, she

fidgeted anxiously in her seat, eyes wandering all over the room in fright.

Smiling sheepishly, she said, "I'm so sorry about all that! I was hallucinating from food poisoning you see... so I imagined it was all food, since I was near-death from starvation. Your butler informs me that the total damages amount to ten billion..."

Ten billion! Willow's throat seized up.