Whenever Boswell tried to take the other path, the bear would stop him. Eventually, the boy realized the animal wanted him to follow it.
Despite the fear of being eaten by the bear, Boswell followed it into the thick forest. He walked for a few minutes straight until he came across a dark cave. Its entrance was illuminated only by the moonlight. Noticing they were headed there, Boswell thought this should be where the bear lived.
After the animal walked inside, Boswell didn't dare to run away as he was afraid it might anger the bear. So he waited at the entrance.
A moment later, another bear crawled out of the cave. No, no, no. It was not a bear.
It was actually a human toddler dressed in rags. The child looked even younger than Boswell. With its long and messy hair, it was notorious that the kid had been living out in the woods for a long time.
Boswell also noticed its face was dirty, and its body was wrapped in a strange animal fur when it followed the bear out of the cave.
In the dark night, the child's big black eyes stared at Boswell curiously.
Although Boswell couldn't tell if it was a boy or a girl, he was still excited to see another human. He tried to greet the toddler in front of him. "Hi!"
The toddler stared at him blankly, without saying a word or making any move.
At that moment, the bear sat down near the cave, and the kid settled next to it as if the animal was its family.
Boswell didn't feel he had another choice but to sit down too.
Throughout the night, the temperature in the forest dropped sharply. It was probably only a few degrees out there. When a gust of cold wind blew, Boswell couldn't help but shiver. He quietly glanced at the other kid wrapped in a piece of fur. It didn't seem to feel cold even though its shoulders and legs were still exposed to the cold wind.
Boswell thought for a while and took off his coat. It was slightly ripped due to the tree branches he had come across in the woods, but the boy stood up and walked over to put it on the toddler, anyway. "I'm wearing trousers and a sweater. I won't feel cold," he explained.
When he got closer to the toddler, Boswell realized it had a strange smell. Perhaps because it hadn't taken a shower in a long time. Holding his breath, Boswell put his coat over the kid's shoulders and then went back to where he had been sitting.
They remained quiet in the forest for a while. The bear looked
Looking back and forth between the leaving bear and the silent kid, Gifford made a decision. "Let's take the kid with us!"
After all, the forest wasn't a place for a child. Gifford decided that he would send the kid to an orphanage then.
However, he would be lying if he said it didn't cross his mind to bring the child back to the Li family and ask his parents to raise it. It was probably a terrible idea, though, since it could destroy his parents to raise another child that had no blood relationship with them. Afraid of that, Gifford decided it was for the best to send the kid to an orphanage.
When it was three o'clock in the morning, Gifford and his group came out of the woods with the two children.
Many people gathered at the entrance of the forest, looking forward to seeing the Huo brothers.
The moment Matthew saw the children Gifford brought with him, he strode over and called, "Boswell!"
"Dad!" Recognizing his father's voice, the boy burst into tears.
Matthew took the dirty boy from Gifford's arms and held him. Wiping his tears, he comforted his son in a soft voice, "It's all right. You're safe now."
Boswell leaned on his shoulder and nodded.
Meanwhile, Wesley came over and looked curiously at the kid that was still in Gifford's arms. "Why is Damian's hair so long? This is strange. He seems shorter too..."
Hearing his brother's name, Boswell turned around and asked, "Where is my brother?"
Gifford didn't know whether to laugh or cry at his father's words. Instead, he explained, "Dad, are you out of your mind? This isn't Damian. I picked this kid up in the woods."