Akira wondered if she was just deluding herself. She knew that Sayaka was not planning on calling her father and brother back to the home. And she had not given up on her plan for sending her to the prison-like place she had chosen.

But maybe, she wanted to give her a chance so that she could understand familial relationships. Or, she wanted to prove to her other mother that she could have been wrong about the darkness of blood relationships. Perhaps, all mothers cared for their children.

But even as she tried to convince herself that Sayaka had some positive feelings for her, she knew she was wrong. Still, she wanted to cause herself to be completely disillusioned. She did not want to hold any more hope towards the person.

"Mom, I need to go back to my apartment." She spoke up. "I have some work to do. I promise I will come back tomorrow morning and meet with Dad and Brother."

Sayaka felt like she was on a roller coaster. In one moment, Akira would act as if she believed in her, and in the next minute, she would become the same stubborn girl. It was infuriating. It made her unable to predict her actions and deal with her.

"I have already told you that your father and brother will be back. It would be better if you stayed here for now." Sayaka responded as gently as possible.

"I did not bring my laptop, so I cannot complete my work here. It is not a big deal. Plus, Dad and Brother will probably be too tired later. It will be impossible to discuss anything. Nothing will change before tomorrow." Akira responded.

"You should not take a risk. Right now, you are all over MR Circle. What if some extremist attacks you while you are going back to your apartment?" Sayaka asked.

'Extremists? In Mountain Ridge?' Akira scoffed in her mind.

"Mom, could it be that you do not trust me? Or do you still have plans to take my baby away?" She asked with deep hurt in her cute voice.

Sayaka felt a bit of a cold sweat at the soft voice and clear eyes. She thought she detected a hint of a threat, but she could not be sure. The more she looked at Akira, the more she realised that she could not understand her.

"I am just worried about you." She still responded.

"Don't worry. I can take care of myself. Anyway, I am probably thinking too much about this. Obviously, you cannot take my baby away anymore. You have already seen that my eldest brother here and sister-in-law do not have the right level of stability to be considered a good home for a child." Akira shrugged.

Kazuo and Chiharu were still in a deadlock. Kazuo was looking at Chiharu with disgust while Chiharu was trying to sit as far away as possible from him.

"Mom, since I am going to keep my baby, it does not matter if I leave for now. I will call Dad and explain to him everything so he won't blame you." Akira added before standing up.

She picked her bag and started to walk out. Sayaka stood up behind her with an ugly expression. She did not want things to get to this stage, but it seemed like it was time for everything to fall apart. She could not stop it anymore. Despite her actions, she did not want to alienate Akira completely.

She wanted them to have at least a semblance of a relationship, the kind where they could have coffee or go shopping. But this stubborn mule of a daughter wanted to tear away all pretences. If she just accepted her arrangements, things would not have come to this stage.

It was true what people said. A child not raised by oneself can never be the same as one raised at home.

"Why can't you just be obedient?" Sayaka asked with anger. "If you were a good child, we could be a great mother and daughter pair. Why can't you leave yourself a way for survival?"

Akira turned to look at her mother, but she kept walking out of the living room. However, just as she was about to step out of the threshold of the room, four uniformed guards appeared from the sides and blocked the entrance.

Akira stopped and faced her mother and looked in question.

"I am sorry. But you cannot leave." Sayaka said. "I have instructed them to stop you by any means necessary. You cannot blame me if your baby is hurt in the process. Of course, that might not be a bad thing. After all, I won't allow my daughter to keep a baby born out of wedlock."

Akira smiled a little. "Is that your final decision, Mom?"

"You have left me with no other option!" Sayaka responded.

With a sigh, Akira returned to her seat. "Do you still plan to give my child to Chiharu and Kazuo?"

Sayaka thought that Akira was finally bending to the circumstances. She felt complacent as she sat down and threw a disgusted look at her daughter-in-law. She was not sure about the best approach to dealing with the promiscuous woman.

She did not want Chiharu to be part of the family. But it would be shameful for her son to get a divorce. And if there was no explanation for the baby within the family, tongues would wag. The mess caused by Akira made her dislike the girl more.

If she had the position and ability, she would simply excommunicate Akira from the Yamazaki family directly. But she knew Daiki would never accept such a thing. Even the old man, Elder Yamazaki, was quite close to the stupid girl.

"I will come up with a plan," Sayaka responded.

She picked her phone and texted the Sisters of Divine Repentance.

If she could dispose of the baby, she could claim that Chiharu miscarried the baby due to having too many abortions in the past. This would not only explain the baby. It would also give Kazuo a valid explanation for a divorce.

[Can you organise for an adoption?]

The other party responded after a few moments.

[Didn't you say you had found a family?]

[They are not suitable. Some new things have come to light. So, can you handle it or not?]

[Of course, we can do it. But I will warn you that these days it is not easy to find a good family. The baby could end up in an orphanage or as a labourer in a remote village. It would be best if you could think of other solutions.]

[No. It doesn't matter. Make arrangements as you see fit.]

Sayaka put down her phone and noticed that Akira was also holding her phone. However, she was looking at her with a murderous aura. At least, she thought it was a murderous aura. She had never seen that type of look or felt such an icy chill before.

"I am checking on your father and brother." She spoke up involuntarily.

Akira laughed. "Really? Are you sure you are not checking if you can send my baby to an orphanage?"