"This place is great," Penny remarked as the nun walked her out of the building. They passed several rooms filled with bright, happy children. Their adorable laughter and voices filled Penny’s ears.
The nun chuckled and nodded. "It is. This place has been here for a long ti, after all. We had helped hundreds, thousands of children."
"Oh?" Penny raised a brow. "I didn’t know this place has been here for a long ti."
"It is not as high profile as other orphanages, but it’s been here for ages. I was raised here, Mrs. Granger," the nun said with a hint of pride. "At one point, I was just like these children—abandoned, unwanted. But thanks to the teachers, the sisters, the sponsors, and everyone who gave us everything they could, I decided I wanted to be part of this orphanage’s mission. Many of us grew up here, including so of the teachers you’ve seen today. That’s why we understand the children better than anyone."
Penny tilted her head slightly, surprised by the information. "Sister, you look very young. I think... we’re about the sa age."
"I wanted to be a nun from a young age," she replied. "So, I entered the convent as early as I could."
"I see." Penny’s smile returned, though a part of her remained cautious. Sothing about this place didn’t sit right with her. But she wasn’t sure if the nun was deliberately ignoring her subtle hints or if she truly didn’t pick up on them.
As they stepped outside, Penny suddenly stopped. Her eyes locked onto a group of children playing nearby.
"That child..." she murmured, her gaze fixed on the sa little one who had clung to Jonathan the other day.
"Hmm?" The nun followed Penny’s line of sight and imdiately spotted the only girl playing with the boys. A small smile appeared on her face as she glanced at Penny.
"That’s not a girl, Mrs. Granger."
"Huh?" Penny turned to the nun sharply. "She’s not a girl? She looks very girly to ."
"He has long hair and enjoys dressing up. This place gives children the freedom to express themselves and choose what they like," the nun explained gently. "It’s part of teaching them independence early on. So while he may wear unisex clothing that leans more feminine and keeps his hair long, he’s a little boy. A smart and very sweet one."
Penny’s mouth fell open slightly. ’No wonder they didn’t include him in the selection. I specifically told them I was looking for a girl.’
"Can I talk to him?" she asked.
The nun smiled, but there was a hint of finality to it. "I’m afraid you can’t. Soone has already applied to adopt him. His paperwork is being processed."
"Who?" Penny blurted out before realizing her mistake. The nun raised a brow, and Penny quickly waved it off. "I an, never mind. That’s unfortunate. I kind of liked him. Even though my husband and I were looking for a girl, I thought I might make an exception since he’s so cute."
The nun chuckled. "That’s understandable, Mrs. Granger." She nodded. "I’ll give you a call once I get permission from the principal."
"Yes, thank you."
They exchanged polite smiles before Penny turned and walked away.
---
As soon as Penny got into the car, Mark, in the driver’s seat, glanced at her through the rearview mirror.
"Did you find what you were looking for, Miss Penny?" he asked, starting the car.
"Turns out it’s not a girl," Penny muttered, leaning back against the seat. Her gaze remained fixed on the orphanage through the window. "And the place seems legitimate. But sothing about it feels... off."
"How so?" Mark asked.
Penny didn’t respond imdiately. She kept staring at the building until the car turned onto the road. Then, with a sigh, she looked toward the front.
"It feels like... shopping," she finally said. "Shopping for children."
Silence settled over them. Penny wondered if the adoption process was always like this, or if it was just this particular orphanage that made her uneasy. Even with two lifetis, she had never needed to go through the process of adopting a child—so she had no point of reference.
After a mont, her quiet voice broke the silence.
"Can you sneak into that place tonight?" she asked, watching Mark’s eyes flick to the rearview mirror. "I want every file they have. The kind a basic background check wouldn’t uncover."
Mark remained silent for a mont, his focus on the road. Then, he finally answered.
"I’ll leave the files in the study. You can pick them up in the morning."
A satisfied smile curled Penny’s lips. Slowly, she turned back toward the window, her eyes dark with thought.
’I’m sowhat convinced it’s a legitimate orphanage...’ she mused. ’But I still don’t understand why Jonathan would waste his ti visiting this place.’
There were obvious answers, of course. But Penny didn’t think it was that simple.
At the end of the day, Jonathan was just like her and Finn. Though Finn’s case was different—since he hadn’t cared much about his second life until now—both Penny and Jonathan had dedicated their second lives to winning. Their definitions of winning differed, but Penny would never underestimate soone like Jonathan.
Even though he had been lying low, slaving away in Dean’s departnt, Penny didn’t believe he was as powerless as he seed.
If he were truly that weak, he would have been tied to Finn’s accident. But so far, every investigation—despite Penny and Zoren’s efforts—had led to nothing more than a simple case of drunk driving.
So either Jonathan was ticulous enough to erase his involvent... or he had nothing to do with it.
And Penny knew the latter wasn’t true.
"Sothing tells ..." Penny trailed off, and Mark glanced at her through the mirror again. "...checking the orphanage thoroughly will give at least a hint."
The files Mark would retrieve could either confirm her suspicions or, for the first ti, prove her intuition wrong. But so far, Penny’s intuition has never been wrong. This could be the first... which she doubts.
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