Chapter 107

"An emergency? What's going on?" Evelyn's voice trembled with alarm.

"He... He's threatening to jump from the balcony... Says he doesn't want to live anymore!" The nanny sobbed into the phone. "Ms. Sinclair, please come quickly!"

Evelyn took a steadying breath. "Put him on the phone."

The nanny called out for Alexander.

As Evelyn stepped outside her apartment building, the nanny's panicked voice came through again. "Young Master refuses to speak. He insists on seeing you in person."

"Calm down, he won't jump." Evelyn tried reasoning with the hysterical woman. "Teenagers jumping over exam results? Adults over debts? Sure. But a five-year-old? That's new."

The nanny hesitated before replying, "Very well, Ms. Sinclair. I'll check on him again."

Evelyn ended the call.

"If the little troublemaker acts up again, call his father. Or grandmother. Or grandfather. Or uncle..."

Plenty of responsible adults available.

She'd just extracted her grandmother from Blackwood Manor. No way was she walking back into that lion's den over a child's tantrum.

At Blackwood Manor...

Alexander crossed his arms when the nanny relayed Evelyn's response. "So Aunt Evie doesn't care if I die?" His lower lip trembled dramatically.

"It's not that she doesn't care, it's just..." The nanny suddenly realized how ridiculous this scenario was. What child actually jumps off buildings?

Besides, Young Master had an entire family to handle his dramatics.

Alexander huffed in frustration.

Downstairs, Julian spotted his nephew's antics. "Shouldn't you be in school?" he asked casually.

"Summer vacation, Uncle," Alexander deadpanned, giving him the most withering look a five-year-old could muster.

Julian grinned. "Then why aren't you outside playing? Since when did window-gazing become your hobby?"

Meanwhile, Evelyn had reached the subway when her phone rang again. Unknown caller this time.

She answered warily. "Evelyn Sinclair speaking."

"Ms. Sinclair! It's the Blackwood family nanny again! He's really going to jump! I'll show you!"

Before Evelyn could respond, her screen switched to video mode - revealing Alexander perched precariously on the third-floor balcony railing.

His small frame looked terrifyingly unstable on the narrow ledge.

One wrong move and those tiny limbs would be no match for the hard patio below, awning or not.

"Stay back or I'll jump!" the boy wailed dramatically.

The nanny's terrified face filled the screen. "What do I do? If anything happens to him, I'm finished!"

"Are there no other adults home?" Evelyn demanded.

The nanny shook her head frantically. "After you left, Reginald Blackwood went for tea. Beatrice Lockwood is at her spa appointment. Mr. Blackwood's at the office. None of them are answering! But Young Master only wants you, Ms. Sinclair."

"Give him the phone. I'll talk sense into him."

As the nanny moved forward, Alexander shouted, "No! Don't come near me! She abandoned us..."

Suddenly, Isabella's sweet voice piped up unexpectedly. The nanny gasped - the phone clattered to the ground. Through the blurry screen, Evelyn saw a small figure toppling from the ledge.

The impact sound made Evelyn's blood run cold.

She dropped everything, flagging down the first taxi she saw. Her words tangled as she gave the Blackwood Manor address. Fingers shaking, she kept redialing the nanny's number.

"The number you have dialed is currently unavailable..."

The call wouldn't connect, but she kept trying until the taxi pulled up to the manor gates.

Upstairs...

The nanny peered out the window. "She's here! She came!"

Julian verified Evelyn's arrival before turning to Isabella. "Open wide, princess."

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The little girl obediently tilted her head back.

Infant eye drops made her lashes glisten with manufactured tears.

After dosing his niece, Julian turned to his nephew. "Rub your eyes until they're red. I'm hiding - Aunt Evie can't know I'm here." With that, he ducked out of sight.

The nanny ushered Evelyn inside.

"Thank heavens he only broke one leg," the nanny said as they climbed the stairs.

Evelyn stared at her in disbelief. 'Only a broken leg counts as lucky now?'

Entering Alexander's room, she found Isabella clinging to her brother, face streaked with (artificial) tears, looking utterly heartbroken.

"What did the doctor say?" Evelyn approached the bed, guilt twisting her stomach at the sight of Alexander's casted leg.

If she'd come immediately, this wouldn't have happened.

"Aunt Evie..." Isabella released her brother, arms outstretched.

Evelyn scooped up the "distraught" girl, voice thick with emotion. "Don't cry, sweetheart. This is all my fault."

Alexander had intended to guilt-trip Evelyn further, but seeing her genuine distress softened his resolve. "I'm the one who got hurt," he pouted. "Do you like Bella more than me?"

The unexpected vulnerability shattered Evelyn's composure. Her eyes welled up as she looked at him.

"I'm hungry, Aunt Evie... Want your super cheesy mac and cheese," Alexander added, stomach growling on cue.

"Do you have any boxed macaroni?" Evelyn asked the nanny.

The woman nodded conspiratorially. "Mr. Blackwood bans it, but I've hidden some for their cravings."

Evelyn carried Isabella to the kitchen.

The "injured" boy on the bed grinned, giving the nanny a triumphant thumbs-up.

Evelyn's special cheesy mac technique soon filled the air with rich aromas. The nanny suddenly paled. "Ms. Sinclair... Mr. Blackwood's home. If he finds out about the hidden mac and cheese, I'll be fired..."