"Hey, William, I've noticed you and Susanna seem tight. Why don't you tag along with Kane to the party?" he probed cautiously.
Kane took a sip of his milk. Like father, like son. He could tell his dad was getting suspicious.
"lI only bumped into them a couple of times during Kane's chats. | remember Susanna, but she probably doesn't even remember
me," he said, forcing his tone to be calmer than he felt. This wasn't his first rodeo posing as William.
Leopold shot him a knowing glance. "Sonline friend from abroad, huh? Kinda risky for your mom to take Kane over there
without knowing them well. | think I'll head over, get to know Susanna’s family, and suss them out a bit."
Kane's heart skipped a beat. If his dad went there, the jig would be up, wouldn't it?
How could William keep having fun then?
"Uncle Leopold, Kane's a whiz with computers. He's dug up everything there is to know about them already. No need to worry."
Skyler stroked his chin, concern etching his features. "They aren't associated with Geoffrey, are they?"
Kane felt dizzy. "They've got nothing to do with Geoffrey. Let's not jump at shadows, okay?"
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt
He picked up his knife and gently scored the sunny-side-up egg on his plate, puncturing the delicate yolk and letting it spill over
the white. Then he cut a bite and popped it into his mouth.
Skyler caught the subtle move.
That wasn't William's way of eating eggs. He had a habit of eating the whites first, saving the runny yolk for last.
But Kane liked to burst the yolk, let it cover the white, then eat it all together.
"William, you're eating your egg like Kane today," Skyler observed.
Kane trembled his hands ever so slightly, realizing he'd given himself away. His face paled, but thankfully the mask he wore
concealed his expression.
"I'd try Kane's way today to see if it tastes any good."
"And? Is it any good?" Skyler pressed.
"It's decent," Kane nodded, racing his heart. Pretending to be someone else was never easy. Even if you looked identical, everyone
had their habits. To an observant eye, those could give you away in an instant.
Skyler smacked his lips. "Well, | might just try that too."
Leopold took another sip of his milk, deepening his gaze.
Something was off about William today. He wasn't talking back, being too compliant, definitely not his style.
And he was quiet and hardly spoke. Usually, he was the one starting conversations, chattering away like a sparrow.
After breakfast, as Leopold stood to leave, Kane's voice cfrom behind, "Uncle Leopold, you heading to the office?"
"Yeah, why?" Leopold arched his eyebrows slightly.
"Just asking," Kane shrugged nonchalantly. If his dad wasn't heading to Mom, there was nothing to worry about.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm
Then Mira piped up, "William, should we visit Grandma's today, play with Chirpy?"
That was the last thing he could afford.
Chirpy was too sharp. The pet would sniff him out as an impostor in no time.
"Let's wait for mom and Kane to get back tomorrow. Plus, my uncle might cover then."
"Okay," Mira agreed, nodding.
After breakfast, the kids spilled out into the yard to play.
"William, teach us to build a model plane today, the kind that can really fly!" Nina exclaimed.
Kane broke out in a cold sweat. He said, "How about we stick to Legos instead?"
"Didn't you say Legos were too easy and no longer a challenge?" Nina countered.
"This isn't your ordinary Lego set. Once we're done, we can transform it into a robot," Kane explained.