Christopher Hale frowned slightly, sensing his own physical condition. After a brief pause, he shook his head. His voice was low and cool, steady as ever.
"It's not a cold."
The tension that had been coiled tight in Dylan's chest immediately loosened. He let out a long breath of relief and slouched back into his seat, limbs sprawled in a way that looked far too relaxed for a disciplined soldier.
Beside him, Christopher was the complete opposite.
His hands rested squarely on his knees. Even leaning against the backrest with his eyes closed, his spine remained straight as a drawn blade. Every line of his posture spoke of restraint and self-discipline. Even at rest, he carried the bearing of a soldier—controlled, formidable, unshakably precise.
A model officer through and through.
Dylan, on the other hand, knew he would never match that level of self-control.
"Oh, right, Hale," Dylan began cautiously. "Auntie asked me again to check with you—about that woman you met last month—"
Christopher's long, narrow eyes flicked open, cold and sharp as a drawn dagger.
The look alone was enough.
Dylan swallowed mid-sentence and forced a laugh. "You look tired. I'll… let you rest."
Honestly, this man was practically immune to women.
Didn't his mother understand her own son? Setting him up on blind dates was like trying to strike sparks from ice.
When Dylan finally quieted down, Christopher tilted his head slightly against the seat and closed his eyes again. To an untrained observer, he might appear asleep—but beneath the camouflage uniform, his muscles remained coiled and alert, like a predator at rest yet ready to strike at any moment.
***
Meanwhile, Lily Parker finally hung up the phone at the post office in K Province, her heart that had been suspended in anxiety settling at last.
At least she wouldn't be drowned in gossip and spit from the residential compound.
She crouched down and held Robin's small shoulders gently.
"Baby, the situation right now is a little complicated. Mommy is going to send you to Daddy first. Once Mommy is free, I'll come see you. Okay?"
The moment he heard he would be separated from her, Robin's lips began to tremble again.
"Mommy can't go find Daddy with Robin?"
Lily shook her head firmly.
"No. Mommy has a very important exam coming up. But don't worry—once I'm free, I'll call you. In at most two months, I'll come find you."
Robin tilted his head, confusion filling his wide eyes.
"Two months?"
"Yes." Lily nodded solemnly. "If you sleep beside Daddy for sixty days, you'll see Mommy again."
He didn't fully understand, but he nodded anyway.
After calming him down, Lily led him around to the parcel dispatch area.
The postal worker on duty looked up while sealing a package.
"You want to mail… what?"
When Lily finished explaining, the man went pale and pointed toward the door.
"Miss, see that exit? Straight ahead. Thank you. We're too busy to handle this nonsense."
Lily tried to argue.
"Isn't this the national postal service? 'Deliver anything, mission accomplished,' right?"
"We deliver anything," the man replied flatly. "But we never said we deliver living human beings. Are you here to cause trouble?"
He was a former soldier who had been reassigned to the postal system after retirement. He usually handled long-distance freight transport. Tonight, he would finish loading, and the truck would depart at dawn for A City. His responsibility ended at the central transit station there.
Lily pouted pitifully.
"You didn't say you don't deliver living people either…"
Robin blinked up at the unfamiliar uncle, then at his mommy. Imitating Lily's expression perfectly, his eyes shimmered with unshed tears as he stared at Oliver Steele.
The resemblance between mother and son was uncanny.
Oliver choked on his own breath.
"We didn't say we don't—but that doesn't mean you can actually try to mail a living child!"
"I am not going to put him in a box or anything!" Lily pressed, her almond-shaped eyes glistening as she looked at him imploringly. "Mister, please. I can't take him to the police, because it will only complicate things. And I have to take the college entrance exam soon. There's really no one at home who can help. His father is a soldier protecting the country. I'll pay—just help deliver him this once. When you reach A City, maybe someone there can help make one extra stop at the suburban military camp…"
She was fair and soft-spoken to begin with. Now, deliberately playing the pitiful card, she looked heartbreakingly earnest.
Oliver rubbed his temple, exasperated. He avoided looking at her and instead crouched slightly toward Robin, his voice gentler.
"Your father really is a soldier?"
"Yes, Uncle…" Robin chirped sweetly.
"Yes, yes!" Lily nodded vigorously. "I have less than two months before my exam. Otherwise, I'd take him myself. It's only a dozen hours by train to A City. Once you arrive, just make a small detour. Here's the address of his father's military district…"
Oliver scanned the address.
"I know the camp outside A City," he said after a pause. "Bring the child here at six tomorrow morning."
Then he turned back to his loading work.
Lily's eyes shone with relief.
"You'll really deliver him, right? His father's a soldier, and you're the national postal service. I'll call in a couple of days to confirm he arrived…"
Oliver turned, brows knit.
"Or you could deliver him yourself then? Since you have no trust in our services."
She laughed awkwardly.
"So… how do you charge for mailing a child? By weight? Or by train ticket price? Or… higher?"
He stared at her as if she'd grown a second head.
"We do not mail living people. I just happen to be heading to that camp and have a few parcels to deliver there. I'll take him along because his father's a soldier. That's all. Understood?"
He had comrades stationed there. Since he was making the trip anyway, and the child's father served the country, he couldn't ignore it.
Lily nodded.
"Thank you! You're truly a good person!"
When Oliver ignored her and resumed work, she finally led Robin away.
"Tomorrow, this mister will take you to find Daddy. He's one of his people—you don't have to be scared. Just stay with him until you see Daddy, okay?"
"One of his people?" Robin tilted his head. "Like Grandma?"
Lily's smile froze.
She cleared her throat awkwardly.
"Not exactly. I mean—just like Daddy protects the country, this uncle also helps build it. Just remember him. He'll take you to Daddy."
Robin's eyes brightened.
"I know! Mommy says Daddy is a hero!"
Lily let out an embarrassed laugh.
I am currently not acquainted with your hero father, thank you very much.
Still, once Robin was sent to Christopher Hale, the biggest crisis hanging over her head would be resolved.
Call her immoral if you want, but the world was always more forgiving toward men.
If rumors attached themselves to a grown man, they would fade.
If they clung to an unmarried eighteen-year-old girl in the 1980s—
They would follow her for life.
Robin would leave tomorrow morning. Tonight, he still had to go home with her.
As they approached the residential compound, Lily bent down and whispered, "When we see people later, don't talk. Understand?"
Robin frowned.
"But Mommy likes polite children."
Lily's scalp prickled at the image of him flashing his pearly teeth at every passerby, proudly announcing his name, her name, and Christopher Hale's name.
She stiffened her face and said firmly, "Not this time."