Precious Gift

More than half an hour later.

Rael, leading a group, tracked the location using GPS and arrived at the scene. But when they got there, all they found was the black G-Class, battered almost beyond repair. Blood stains were splattered both inside the car and on the ground—but Cove was nowhere to be found.

Clear tire marks showed someone had dragged him away.

Rael, always cautious, carefully inspected the scene and then called Leif to give a brief report.

“…We still can’t confirm who exactly rescued Cove. Mr. Vexley, should we keep pursuing this?”

Leif’s voice was calm but firm: “Keep tracking. Whoever took Cove, we must find them.”

Rael frowned. “Is this… for Miss Carrington?”

“Is there a problem with that?” Leif asked.

Rael hesitated. “Mr. Vexley, don’t you think you’re… maybe a little too good to Miss Carrington?”

Too good? More like bending over backward, granting every wish, spoiling her rotten.

Leif didn’t want to discuss it. “Dinner tonight at Wexford Lane. Miss Carrington will be cooking.”

Rael was momentarily speechless, then scoffed. “So what if she’s cooking? Does she think she can win me over with a meal? Like I’m someone who can be bought that easily? Forget it—I won’t be swayed that way. No chance.”

Leif gave a brief order. “Don’t be late.”

Rael snorted. “Can I say no?”

“Do you think you can?” Leif replied.

With a dismissive laugh, Rael said, “Fine. Once I wrap up here, I’ll come. But…” He paused, then lowered his voice, as if recalling some unpleasant memory. “I’m short on cash lately, so don’t expect any gifts.”

He almost said more but swallowed it.

Leif responded coolly, “Handle it how you see fit.”

After hanging up, Rael stood dazed for a moment. His team finished inspecting—aside from tire tracks and blood, nothing useful remained. No point lingering, so he ordered everyone to pull out.

...

Back in Estravia, at Wexford Lane.

After washing up, Raina took a quick nap before starting dinner preparations.

Gale saw her and eagerly wanted to help.

Raina caught sight of him and immediately remembered those little slippers—the awkward feeling from before creeping back.

She wrestled with herself for a moment and then sighed. “Screw it.”

She bit her lip and took out the wrapped slippers. The smaller pair naturally went to Gale.

Clearing her throat, she said softly, “Uh… sweety, these are slippers your dad and I saw at the store earlier. They’re pretty cute, right? I’m giving them to you.”

Gale’s eyes widened, disbelief clear on his face—Raina was actually giving him slippers?

When he didn’t respond, Raina asked, “What’s wrong? Don’t like them?”

Gale shook his head immediately and carefully took the slippers from her, cradling them as if they were the most precious thing in the world, holding them close to his chest.

If he could speak, he’d say he loved them very much—anything from Raina was special.

He couldn’t talk, though. Instead, he tugged on her hand, motioning for her to squat down.

She didn’t know what he wanted but complied. Suddenly, Gale leaned in and planted a soft kiss on her cheek.

Then, like he’d done something forbidden, his entire face, even his earlobes, flushed bright red. He quickly stepped back a few paces, clutching the slippers and sprinting off on his short legs.

Raina stood there, stunned.

She touched the spot where he had kissed her—surprisingly, she didn’t mind it at all.

After a moment, she composed herself and grabbed the pair of men’s slippers.

...

On the sofa, Leif sat upright, a stack of documents beside him. He looked as if he was busy with work, but his attention had drifted long ago—the papers still open to the same page.

Raina hesitated for a while, then shuffled over to him with the slippers.

If she looked closely, she’d see Leif was acting a bit off. His posture was rigid, his back painfully straight, and his hand holding the pen slightly stiff—he couldn’t seem to write properly.

But Raina was nervous herself. The closer she got, the faster her heart raced, so she didn’t notice his unease.

She stood there awkwardly for a moment before softly saying, “Um… Mr. Vexley, well… these slippers… since we already bought them—haha—not really, I mean… I was thinking of giving them to you. But if you don’t like them, you can just throw them away…”

Her words tumbled out fast and jumbled, her expression making it clear she felt like she was handing him a ticking time bomb.

Leif acted modestly, pretending to respond slowly, worried if he seemed too eager Raina might misunderstand. But he put down his pen and accepted the slippers calmly.

“I like them.”

Though his tone was as usual, the single sentence sounded genuinely pleased.

Seeing him take them, Raina breathed a sigh of relief.

“Well… I’ll get started on dinner then. By the way, Rael…”

“He’ll be here,” Leif said firmly.

She didn’t say more, smiled faintly, and turned to leave the room.

Once she was out of sight, Leif’s lips twitched into a small smile, but he quickly suppressed it. His gaze softened as he looked down at the plain slippers.

To some, even the simplest gift becomes precious when it comes from someone special.

Leif stared at the slippers for a long time before raising his right hand to his chest, gently pressing down on something hidden beneath his shirt, his expression quietly lost in thought.

***