I Faked My Death—Now I Have to Tame the Crazy Men I Left Behind

Chapter 303 - 301: Who Is the Current Mia Grant?

Aaron paused. "I mean, it’s like she’s a completely different person. It was just one winter break, less than half a month, and her grades skyrocketed. Anyone who didn’t know better would think she’d been replaced."

Aaron thought he had misspoken, but judging by Kian Keller’s expression, he didn’t seem angry. Rather, he looked like he was contemplating something.

’Was there something wrong with what I said?’

He had a straightforward personality and usually just said whatever came to mind.

Kian Keller understood this about him, so he normally didn’t take offense.

"Aaron." After a long moment, Kian Keller suddenly called out to him.

Aaron responded, his spine straightening as he awaited his orders.

"Contact our people back home and find Mia Grant’s school photos. I want them from every stage of her life."

Aaron did as he was told.

Five minutes later, photos of Mia Grant were sent over, spanning from her birth to kindergarten, then elementary, middle, and high school, all the way to her coming-of-age ceremony.

It was clear that the little girl in the photos had been beautiful since she was young. With her delicate features and dresses, she looked just like a doll.

From the pile of photos, Kian Keller picked up the one from her coming-of-age ceremony.

It was the most recent photo.

Mia Grant was wearing a white dress, holding a bouquet of flowers as she stood in the wind. She looked at the camera, her lips curved into a faint smile.

After staring at the photo in his hand for a few seconds, Kian Keller looked down at the pictures spread across the table and finally picked up one from when she had just started high school.

Her features hadn’t changed.

But the feeling the two photos gave off was completely different.

In the one from when she had just enrolled, she was wearing a school uniform, sitting before the camera.

Even though it was a still photograph, you could sense an arrogance radiating from her, from head to toe, especially in her eyes.

But looking at the later photo, there was a trace of unconcealable indifference mixed with her weariness.

Perhaps she disliked having her picture taken, or perhaps she disliked the person taking it.

Aaron noticed this and voiced his thoughts. "It makes sense that she changed in the later photo. That was around the same time Serena Grant was found and brought back to the family."

So, it wasn’t surprising that she had changed.

Kian Keller silently put the photo down.

The Buddha Beads on his wrist slid down his fingers. As he set his hand down heavily, the beads pressed down on the girl’s white gossamer dress, which seemed to flutter in the wind in the photograph.

—

’In this world, can someone’s personality really change so drastically in such a short time?’

’Unless they’ve suffered some great catastrophe. A sudden, traumatic event could certainly do it.’

’So, what did Mia Grant go through?’

’If none of this had happened...’

’Then who is the Mia Grant of today?’

The thick stack of photos was placed in a manila folder and put into a nightstand drawer.

Silas Grant opened the drawer, took out a photo he had treasured in secret for a long time, and placed it on the desk.

With his other hand, he opened a newly bought picture frame and placed the photo inside.

A few seconds later, a framed photo now stood on the desk, next to the monitor facing the man.

A knock sounded at the door, and moments later, someone pushed it open and entered.

His voice preceded him. "The chairman’s office really is impressive. It’s more spacious than both of our old offices combined."

Simon Adler walked in, taking a moment to admire the room. "The view from here is great."

He sat down by the desk and, glimpsing the picture frame, instinctively picked it up for a look. An instant later, the man across from him snatched it away and put it back where it belonged.

The weight in his hand vanished, and his heart sank.

Simon Adler snapped back to reality, retracted his hand, and asked with a smile, "Now that the old man’s gone, you’re not holding back, are you? You even dare to put a picture of you two out on your desk."

"It’s just a photo. Even if he were still here, there’s nothing he could do to me."

Silas Grant picked up a lens cloth and gently wiped an unsightly fingerprint from the frame. It was, by chance, right on the girl’s face.

His brow furrowed, and a flash of displeasure in his eyes vanished as quickly as it appeared, well-hidden.

"What is it?"

"Oh, right." Simon Adler gathered his thoughts. "It’s about that kid, Felix Sinclair."

"What about him?"

"He’s been contacting me for the past few days, very interested in one of the company’s subsidiaries."

"At first, I thought he was representing the Sinclair Family to discuss a partnership. I heard they recently opened several new malls, and I was even planning on selling them that batch of clunky robots as a package deal."

"But as it turns out, he wasn’t here to talk business. He’s here to join this ’family’ of ours."

Simon Adler hadn’t mentioned this to Silas Grant over the past few days.

He had only told Mia Grant first.

But now, he had to say something.

Things were escalating, and he couldn’t hide it from Silas Grant anymore. Given Silas’s temperament, there was no telling how he’d clean up the mess.

He saw that Mia Grant didn’t seem to have a strong reaction, so he decided it was best to tell Silas.

Simon Adler told him everything he knew, especially regarding Felix Sinclair’s intentions. He had even brought a recording, which he played for Silas Grant.

"This is from our face-to-face chat when he came to Portia a couple of days ago. It’s all in here."

"I already gave him my approval."

He was the one currently in charge of that subsidiary.

Silas Grant tore his gaze away from the phone’s media player and calmly looked at Simon’s face.

Simon Adler met his gaze, his expression unreadable. "I have no reason to lie to you."

"I agreed because a self-funded genius like him is really hard to refuse."

Silas Grant said, "His motives aren’t pure."

Simon Adler nodded. "I suspect that too. I just can’t figure out what he could possibly do, even if his motives are impure."

"I’ve looked into his background. Model student from childhood, excellent grades, what you see is what you get. The only thing is, he’s a bit of a dork."

Silas Grant fell into a thoughtful silence.

Across from him, Simon Adler racked his brain for a moment before saying, "Oh, right! I just remembered something."

Silas Grant looked up and sneered, "Why are you always so dramatic lately?"

Simon Adler ignored his comment and continued, "This Felix Sinclair... he was admitted to the hospital during the same summer vacation that Mia Grant jumped into the sea."

"He was there for a long time. And what a coincidence, it was at the one run by the Hughes Corp—the same hospital where Hayes Hughes works."

"So even though the Sinclair Family tried to lock down the news, some records were still easy enough to find."

"And can you guess why he was hospitalized?"

Simon Adler paused for dramatic effect.

Silas Grant played along. "Why?"

"He tried to kill himself."

...

After dropping the bomb, Simon Adler carefully observed Silas Grant’s expression. He didn’t look like he already knew, nor did he seem to be faking his surprise.

Simon Adler continued, "Apparently, he slit his wrists. The wounds were deep. He stayed in the hospital for a while afterward and was then sent to a sanatorium in the capital’s suburbs."

"According to the medical staff who treated him, he was completely dejected and withdrawn the whole time he was in the hospital after they saved him. He wouldn’t speak at all."

"You really can’t tell just by looking at him," Simon Adler remarked with a sigh. "A kid who seems so well-behaved, going to such extremes."

"I initially thought it was due to pressure from his family, but now that I think about it... it feels like it has something to do with Mia Grant."

The glasses, set down on the desk, made a soft clinking sound.

In the vast, quiet office, the sound was sharp enough to startle the man across the desk.

Simon Adler turned to look, sizing up the man who, without his glasses, seemed like a bit of a stranger. "What are you trying to say?"

"Whether he wants to live or die is his own business."

With his glasses off, the man’s gaze was sharp and cold. "Next time, think carefully before you say something like that again."