บททั้งหมดของ From Trash to Titan: บทที่ 171 - บทที่ 180

His enthusiasm almost made Maxwell laugh. The kid had known him for less than twelve hours and was already treating him like a trusted adult. Maxwell didn't take that lightly.They walked to the elevator together. Theo's hand found Maxwell's instinctively, his small fingers wrapping around two of Maxwell's like it was the most natural thing in the world. Maxwell looked down at their hands for a second but didn't pull away.They rode the elevator down in comfortable silence. When the doors opened to the parking garage, Theo's eyes lit up."The fast car!" he said."The fast car," Maxwell confirmed.He opened the passenger door and helped Theo climb in. He buckled him in carefully, adjusting the strap again, and walked around to the driver's side.Maxwell started the engine. He was about to pull out of the parking spot when a small voice spoke up from the passenger seat."Maxwell?""Yeah?""I'm hungry."Maxwell stopped. He turned and looked at Theo. The boy wasn't complaining. He was jus

Maxwell had helped Theo wash the syrup off his hands and face, which had turned into a minor production because Theo insisted on doing it himself but couldn't reach the sink properly. Maxwell ended up lifting him up while Theo scrubbed at his own cheeks with the determination of a surgeon.They sat back down. The plates had been cleared by the waitress while they were gone. Only Maxwell's half-finished coffee remained.Maxwell looked at Theo. The kid looked better now. Fed, cleaned up, and significantly more alive than the trembling boy who had stood frozen in front of a McLaren last night."Alright," Maxwell said. "Should we get going? We've got a Miss Kate andCamille to find."Theo nodded eagerly, already reaching for his red ball. "Let's go!"Maxwell stood up and fished his wallet out to leave cash on the table for the tip. Theo slid out of the booth and stood beside him, bouncing lightly on his toes the way kids do when they're full of energy and have nowhere to put it.Maxwell pl

There it was. The question that had been sitting on the tip of her tongue since the moment she saw them through the window.And honestly? She had every right to ask for it. What kind of person finds a missing child and doesn't immediately contact the authorities? That was the first thing anyone should do. It was the obvious thing. It was what every public safety guideline, every missing child protocol, every ounce of common sense demanded.Call the police. Report the child. Let the system do its job. And the fact that Maxwell didn't do that was really suspicious. Or maybe it wasn't and Camille was just letting her dislike for him control her.But the truth was that she had been to that same police station herself. She knew the system was broken and slow and infuriating and she could understand why someone would not want to deal with them.'Still, still, it's better for Theo than being looked after by this guy over here.' Camille said to herself, trying to stop herself from thinking Ma

Hazel straightened up behind his desk, clearly caught off guard by his early arrival. She smoothed the front of her blouse and clasped her hands together like a student who had just been caught somewhere they shouldn't be."I know what you're going to say," she said quickly.Maxwell didn't say anything. He just stood in the doorway, looking at her, then at the perfectly organized desk, then at the steaming coffee, then back at her."You told me to take a break," Hazel continued. "And I appreciate that. I really do. But I was going to lose my mind sitting at home doing nothing."Maxwell studied her for a moment. She looked better than the last time he had seen her. The bruise on her arm from Bron's grip was hidden by make-up and the color had returned to her face. She looked like someone who had made up her mind about something and wasn't interested in being talked out of it."Alright," Maxwell said simply. Since she was ready to work again, who was he to deny her that, when he needed

Before either of them could say another word, a knock came at the office door.One of the orphanage workers, a young man named Marcus, poked his head in. "Sorry to interrupt. The couple that's been asking about adoption? They're here. They're waiting in the front room."Kate looked at Camille, then back at Marcus. "Tell them I'll be with them in a few minutes."Marcus nodded and left, pulling the door shut behind him.Camille frowned. "What couple?""The ones who want to adopt Theo," Kate said. "They've been through two rounds of interviews already. Background checks are clean. Home study came back perfect." She paused. "And actually, this ties into what we were just talking about."Camille looked at her. "How?""They've offered to make a donation to the home," Kate said. "Separate from the adoption entirely. They want to help support the other kids. And it's not a small amount, Camille. We're talking enough to keep the lights on for a long time."Camille sat up straighter. That chang