?


    Mason nodded. "I know. That''s the money I earned myself."


    "You earned?" N repeated.


    The couple stared at Mason in disbelief. How could a five-year-old possibly earn that kind of money?


    Damon frowned and crouched beside him. "Buddy, do you know there''s 1 trillion dors in that ount? Do you understand how much that is?"


    Mason shook his head. "No... but it really is the money I earned."


    Damon asked, "Then tell Daddy, how did you earn it?"


    Mason hesitated, his expression conflicted. "Daddy... can I not tell you?"


    He had promised the person who helped him earn the money that he wouldn''t reveal anything about it.


    "Buddy, if you don''t tell us, we can''t be sure if this money is really yours," Damon replied gently but firmly.


    Mason thought for a moment before shaking his head again. "I can''t say."


    Damon was about to push further when N ced a hand on his arm, stopping him.


    She turned to Mason, smiling softly. "Okay, if you don''t want to tell us, we won''t force you. Go back to ss now, and Mommy will pick you up after school."


    "Okay... Mommy, you''re not mad, right?" Mason looked up at her, his eyes wide with concern.


    Seeing his anxious little face, N smiled. "No, sweetheart. You''re a big boy now. If you don''t want to talk about it, that''s okay. Mommy and Daddy aren''t mad."


    She nudged Damon with her elbow as she spoke.


    Damon forced a smile and nodded. "Daddy''s not mad either. Go back to ss, okay?"


    Reassured, Mason nodded happily. "Okay! Bye, Mommy! Bye, Daddy!"


    As his small figure disappeared into the school building, Damon turned to N. "Why didn''t you let me press him further?"


    Thinking of the 1 trillion dors on the card, he felt restless.


    How could a child have this much money? If it weren''t for Prospectus Technology''s bankruptcy this time, who knew how long it''d take him to find out about it?


    "If you kept pressuring him, do you think he''d have told you?" N countered. "Sometimes, forcing a child to talk only backfires. He''s clearly not ready to tell us  S


    n


    "Then what now?" Damon asked.


    "Try to trace the origin of the money in that ount. If it''s legitimate, you can use it to save thepany. We can figure out the restter," N answered.


    Damon frowned. "N, even if it''s legitimate, this kind of money tied to a child isn''t normal-"


    She interrupted him. "First, find out where it came from. That''s the priority."


    "Fine. I''ll start now. You head back home," Damon relented.


    "Alright. I''ll wait for your update," N replied.


    Back at the office, Damon contacted Falcon to look into the money''s origins.


    Before long, he had results.


    The funds in the ount were all transferred legally and deposited in increments over the past two years, almost monthly.


    "Boss, the money came from an overseas bank. Monthly deposits-regr and consistent. The most recent one is fromst month," a Falcon member reported.


    Damon asked, "Can you trace where it''s from in particr?"


    The member hesitated. "It''s linked to the Nixons'' bank ount from Meristate. Beyond that, I can''t dig deeper there are no recorded names in the system."


    Upon hearing the Nixons, Damon''s expression darkened further. He remembered the connection to Drake, who had worked for them.


    "Keep digging into Drake," he ordered.


    "Yes, sir," the member answered.


    Hanging up, Damon tightened his grip on his phone.