A few days later, the rain finally stopped. The sun in the deep autumn was pleasant. It removed some of the advancing cold as well as the haze in people's hearts.

Tristan shaved his stubble and said goodbye to his decadent image.

Kate went out shopping as it was a sunny day.

She walked into a baby products shop. She was attracted by the cute and colorful little shoes. She picked them up, compared them, and finally chose a pair of pink shoes. They were soft and comfy, like toys.

She put her fingers into the shoes and simulated the feet walking on the counter, imagining small chubby feet inside the shoes. She laughed to herself.

Later, a pregnant woman with a huge belly walked in. She came to the shelf of shoes too. She looked at the ones on Kate's fingers and said, "Those are nice."

Her voice alerted Kate. Kate turned to see her. Her face looked familiar, curly hair, with faint freckles on the cheeks and a pair of bright eyes that were a little in contradiction with her vulgar bulging body shape. Their eyes met, and the woman blinked at her.

Kate drew her attention back to the shoes.

The woman looked around the shelves and came back to where Kate stood, said with pity, "This is the last pair."

Kate put the shoes in her hand down and said, "I don't want them. You can have them."

And then she moved on to see other things.

From the corner of her eyes, she caught sight of the pregnant woman, who took up the shoes and appreciated them, and then she put her fingers inside the shoes and took out a thing swiftly and shoved it into her pocket. Then she took the shoes to the cashier counter.

Kate looked to the door subconsciously. Outside the glass door, Ed was looking elsewhere and making a call.

She lingered in the shop, checking other things until the pregnant woman left the shop with her husband. She gave a sigh of relief and suddenly lost interest in the cute little things. In order not to arouse suspicion, she tried to cheer herself up and picked two shoes and went to pay for them.

Tristan was about to go home after a day's work when he got a call unexpectedly.

It was from Daisy, who he had not received information from for quite a long time.

Since she had moved into that apartment, she went to work and behaved properly.

Now she was lying in the tub, stirring the rose petals on the bathwater with one hand, and holding a phone in the other hand. "I want to see you…If you don't come, there will be a body here tomorrow."

The one on the other side of the phone didn't buy it and simply hung off without saying anything.

She stared at the phone for a while and then texted him. Then I will have to call my sister. I don't think she could survive the impact based on her conditions now. And then she turned off the phone.

Half an hour later, the doorbell rang. Wrapped with a towel, Daisy went to open the door. There stood an expressionless man at the door. It was his driver. The man passed the message briefly, "Mr. Fox is downstairs."

She changed her clothes quickly and got downstairs. She saw his car, and when she got closer, she saw him making a call with a gentle expression. She bet he was calling her sister.

When she opened the door and sat in, the gentleness faded away from his face, and he looked aloof, "What is it?"

Daisy said slowly, "You used me."

Tristan didn't make any comment but just waited.

"You must have seen through me when I stayed so many days with you. You knew my scheme, but you pretended you didn't know. You indulged me in going on in that way. You wanted to use me to stimulate her. You were not in a good state, and you used me as a catalyst for your love. If I tell her this…"

"You can try," Tristan said indifferently.

"You think I won't? Even if we fight and break off, we are still sisters. In her heart, you might not weigh more than I do. Besides, even without proof of what I say, it will leave some shadow in her heart…"

Tristan interrupted her, "She is your sister. And your scheme to do this against her?"

"I am not doing this against her."

"So you are doing it against me? You are quite brave."

Daisy grumbled, "I just see through your mind on her."

Tristan's expression changed in his eyes. He asked calmly, "What do you want?"

Daisy collected herself and said, "I want to go to study in Europe."

He chuckled, "You could have asked your sister to talk to me. If she doesn't agree, I will go with her decision. But the way you did this," he stopped a second, "jeopardized it. I can give you what you want, but I will not take this accusation. Besides, I hate being blackmailed."

A few minutes later, the car was gone, and Daisy was standing at the place where the car was parked. The cold wind blew against her back, and she was in shock.

She knew she didn't play, honestly. She was born in a family with limited resources. She had to fight for everything she wanted, from food to clothes and pocket money and even her parents' attention. She had got used to this kind of mode of thinking.

The result mattered; the process and means didn't.

However, she still felt scared after he left. This time it was not just some small tricks, it was trying to blackmail the devil. A cold glance of his eyes scared her to death. When she got upstairs, her heart was still jumping wildly.

What kind of a man had Kate met?

Was it a blessing or a disaster for her?

***

The weather was getting colder each day. The city had officially entered into winter.

The baby in Kate was five months along now. Now her bulging belly was pronounced, and she was wearing maternity clothes. Vomiting and other symptoms had disappeared as Kate's body absorbed the nutrition of all the food she took, and her weight was soaring.

In contrast, her spirits were down. She always held a book in her hands while her thoughts were somewhere else.

This evening, she was watching TV absent-mindedly. Tristan handed her a thick file.

She looked up, puzzled, "What is it?"

He sat down beside her, "Your sister came to me a few days ago. She said she wanted to go study in Europe. This is all she needs, including a check…"

Kate was shocked and then frowned, "She went to see you? How could she do that?"

Tristan nodded, "It is not a big deal for me. I want to leave it up to you."

Kate gave him back the file decisively, "No."

Tristan raised his eyebrows. "Is it because you disapprove of her ways, or because you do not agree that she should study abroad, or that you don't want to owe me?"

Kate had not analyzed her thoughts so thoroughly. She gave it a second thought and then said, "She is trying to take a shortcut. It is dangerous to indulge her in this way. If she wants to study abroad, she has to work her own way about it."

Tristan chuckled, "Do you want to hear my thoughts? She is your family. If she is in danger, will you stand by her? I know it doesn't work to indulge her, but it is worse to let her try and find some other shortcut rather than take this one, which is under our control. We can give her some heads-up at an appropriate time. That is what we can do to help."

Tristan put the file on the table as he said that. "You don't have to make the decision now. You can keep these and think it over."

And then he held Kate's hand and pulled her up, "We are done with this issue. Come with me."

Kate followed him upstairs with a heavy heart. They went to the end of the corridor, and he pushed the door open.

She saw the dustless piano in the room. Tristan pulled up a chair for her to sit down, and then he sat on the stool in front of the piano and opened the lid.

Kate was surprised, "You can play the piano?"

Tristan was amused, "You think the piano is for Lucy?"

Kate moved her lips. She thought of "her." He said she was talented. She covered it up by saying, "I haven't seen you play."

Tristan nodded and said half-seriously, "I usually play once every other year." And then he asked generously, "What do you want to hear?"

"Can you play any songs?"

"Of course not, but I can guess all that you know."

"Then play a lullaby."

"Uh, you got me. I haven't played this before. Can you hum it? I want to learn it."

Kate wasn't shy this time. She cleared her throat and started to sing.

Hush, little baby, don't say a word.

Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird.

And if that mockingbird won't sing,

Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring.

And if that diamond ring turns brass,

Papa's gonna buy you a looking glass.

***

This was the song she always heard the auntie of next door sing to her baby when she was a kid. The auntie had a gentle and sweet voice. She sang on and on in the hot summer noon and her voice seemed to drive the heat away.

Kate envied the chubby baby in the cradle and dreamed that one day if she had a baby, she would sing that song for it too.

As she recalled this, she seemed to hear the humming of the insects and the songs of the mockingbirds.

After she finished the song, she raised her head and found Tristan was staring at her. She felt embarrassed and asked, "What?"

"You will be a good mother."

Kate touched her cheeks, and they were burning.

"Listen to hear if this is right." Tristan started to play the piano.

It was slow at the beginning, but then it caught the rhythm and became smooth. "Right? It is simple but sweet."

Kate nodded. Then she heard him start to sing, "Hush, little baby, don't say a word. Papa's gonna buy you a mockingbird…"

It was the first time she had heard a man sing a lullaby, and his deep mellow voice had a different kind of gentleness.

"Forgot the lyrics…" he stopped and turned to her for help, "Why are you crying?"

Kate didn't know there were tears on her cheeks. She touched her face, and it was wet. She wiped her face with the back of her hand.

"Come here." Tristan waved to her. His voice was full of gentleness now.

She didn't move.