When their appeal fell on deaf ears, the Pearsons were filled with despair. Sonya gave them the side-eye. “How dare you lie to me all these years? And now, you still have the cheek to beg for my forgiveness?”The three of them hung their heads, not daring to utter a single word.After a brief yet deathly silence, Sonya turned to leave. “You guys better pray hard!”Samuel finally got back up to his feet a long while later. As he stared at his daughter, who was still kneeling, a pained look flashed across his eyes. “You should leave the country.”Aubree raised her head the moment she heard those words.“That’s the only way out.” Samuel let out a long sigh. “You can save yourself by leaving. Otherwise, we’ll lose both you and our wealth!”A look of hesitation filled Aubree’s eyes.Leave the country… Would Lucian really let me off? More importantly, would he even give me the chance?As concerns filled her mind, Aubree just couldn’t agree to her father’s proposal.In the blink of an eye,
After rea*suring Estella, Roxanne walked up to Lucian with Archie and Benny. “Mr. Farwell, why was this man following Mommy?”Archie, the most vigilant of them, had been scrutinizing Cory while Roxanne was chatting with Estella.Hearing that, Roxanne turned to look at Cory with a frown.She had a hunch that the reason Lucian requested their presence was tied to that man.The only thing she couldn’t figure out was why he wanted Archie and Benny to be there.She looked at Lucian with concern. “Shall we let the children go upstairs to play?”Lucian shook his head solemnly. “This matter involves them too.”The three children deserve Aubree’s apology the most.Hearing that, Roxanne and the children were taken aback.They’re just children. What could’ve happened for Lucian to put on such a grave look on his face?Right then, something struck her. She turned to Lucian and asked hesitantly, “Is it—”“Have a seat and wait.” Lucian gestured for them to sit.Roxanne had no choice but to save he
“Since you have trouble recalling, I’ll let Mr. Zaythrone remind you of them.” All Lucian felt when he saw her tears was disgust. “If he gets anything wrong, you’re welcome to correct him.” With that, he gave Cory a look to signal for him to begin.Acknowledging the cue, Cory cleared his throat and spoke. “Ms. Pearson hired me to keep an eye on Ms. Jarvis. She—”He had barely begun when Aubree lunged at him suddenly.“Shut up! I don’t know you! You’re a madman! I don’t know what you’re talking about. Go to hell!”Even though her outburst caught him off guard, the physical strength between them was just too great.The moment he regained his senses, Cory easily pushed her away from him. “Stop raving like a lunatic, you shrew!”Upon crashing to the ground, Aubree snarled, “You’ll suffer divine retribution for this! Do you think the Farwells will let you off just because you snitched on me?”Cory paid Aubree no heed as he turned to face Lucian and Roxanne with an ingratiating look.“Ms.
Estella’s cries became sharper, and her eyes were filled with terror as she gripped Roxanne’s shoulder tightly. Roxanne instinctively pulled Estella into her embrace and turned around, wanting to take the attack on the latter’s behalf.However, only a muffled thud was heard.The pain that was supposed to follow did not happen.It took Roxanne several seconds before she slowly lifted her head to glance in the direction where Aubree was coming from.To Roxanne’s surprise, Aubree’s hand that held the ashtray earlier was held by Lucian while the ashtray had dropped to the ground.Various emotions could be seen flashing across Aubree’s face.First, there was the mad look on Aubree’s face for the urge to kill Roxanne. Another was her terror for Lucian.“You crazy woman!”Lucian’s grip on Aubree’s wrist was so tight that it could almost crush her bones.It was only then that Aubree snapped back to her senses. Suppressing the pain in her wrist, she apologized frantically, “I-I don’t know wha
Estella, who had yet to calm down, almost burst into tears at the sight of Sonya. Seeing that, Roxanne quickly hugged Estella tightly. She then stood up to look at Sonya. “Mrs. Farwell, please don’t agitate her. Essie’s still emotionally unstable.”At the same time, Lucian walked over with a frown.He thought his mother had finally gotten a clear view of the situation after witnessing the way she had treated Aubree earlier.To his surprise, Sonya had gone looking for Roxanne for trouble after chasing Aubree away.“I’m just worried about my granddaughter. How is this agitating her emotions?”It had been an emotional day for Sonya. She failed to keep her emotions in check, which made her sound displeased when she uttered those words.When she finished saying that, she reached out to pull Estella out of Roxanne’s arms. “Come here, Essie. Let me see if there are any injuries on your body.”Panicking, Estella crawled up Roxanne’s shoulders. “Ahh! I want Mommy! I don’t want Grandma! No!”U
Noticing that Lucian still had a look of guilt in his eyes, Roxanne pursed her lips and held his hand as she added, “Nothing like that will happen to Essie ever again.” “We’ll do our best to protect Essie too!” Archie and Benny chimed in.The look in Lucian’s eyes softened up a little after he heard that, much to Roxanne’s relief.“Maybe I should bring Essie over to my place for the day. She has been through quite a lot today,” she suggested.Roxanne could tell that Estella was still unable to accept Sonya, so she was worried that Lucian’s decision to have Sonya stay over at the manor would affect Estella’s emotional state.Estella wrapped her arms tightly around Roxanne’s neck upon hearing that as she wanted to stay with her.However, Lucian did not approve of Roxanne’s suggestion. “Take her to the bedroom and get some rest. Essie won’t pay too much attention to anything else with you around.”Roxanne was a little hesitant to do so, but Estella nodded profusely in agreement.I’m not
Roxanne was a little worried that Estella would be unhappy that Lucian wasn’t around to dine with them. To her surprise, however, Estella was smiling happily as she munched away on her food. It was as though she didn’t even mind if Lucian was there.Roxanne felt her heart ache when she saw that.Is Lucian really so busy that he barely has time to spend with his daughter? That probably explains why Estella is recovering so slowly…Roxanne was about to bring the kids back upstairs after dinner when Catalina entered the living room and said, “Mr. Farwell is waiting for you in the back garden, Ms. Jarvis.”Having witnessed the incident earlier that afternoon, Catalina was tempted to address Roxanne as “Mrs. Farwell.”However, she chose not to, as she figured it would make her uncomfortable.Roxanne paused and stared at the kids after hearing that.What does Lucian want to see me for? Would it be convenient to bring the kids with me?“We want to go too, Mommy!” Benny exclaimed while tuggi
When Lucian saw that Roxanne was going to retreat, his gaze swept across Estella. “Do you really have the heart to decline? Essie dreams about having a mother. Could you bear to keep her waiting? You’ve already been absent from her life for six long years!”His words left Roxanne totally baffled.She looked down at Estella in shock, wondering what Lucian meant.Is it what I think it is?The two kids had yet to realize what Lucian was talking about and simply looked at the two adults innocently.Roxanne took a deep breath and forced herself to stay calm. Then, she turned to Lucian and asked, “What are you talking about? What do you mean when you said I’ve been absent from Essie’s life for six long years? I’m just…”I was just an outsider to Essie. Why did he say that? The person who has missed out on watching Essie grow up should be her biological mother, no?“Lucian, what has gotten into you?”Sonya never wanted Roxanne to be a part of the Farwell family.Furthermore, since Estella h
Cory’s face was clouded over with disdain. “Obviously, I’m taking a picture of my lovely ex-boss. Aubree was the one who made me who I am today. How can I possibly forgive her so easily?” As he spoke, an ominous aura radiated from him as if he were a devil from hell. There was an imminent chill in the air that seemed to come from his sheer hatred toward Aubree.Frieda couldn’t help but shudder at his demeanor.“Have you gone insane? The Pearson family is already in ruins. How are you still not satisfied yet?”Cory snickered. “I won’t be satisfied until she truly gets what she deserves. Besides, she did this to herself!”He narrowed his eyes and began scrutinizing the people in front of him.“You don’t have to play pretend around me, Ms. Queen. Don’t you want to shut her up for good too? In fact, you’re probably still getting threatened by her, right?”Frieda’s eyelids quivered as she forced herself to look away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”She might have done her best t
Due to Benny’s injury, the three kids didn’t attend their cla*ses at the kindergarten for the time being. As a result, Ophelia didn’t have the chance to make her move.Aubree repeatedly received disappointing updates from Ophelia when she contacted the latter on multiple occasions.Exasperated, Aubree invited Ophelia out once more.“Aubree, there’s nothing I can do either. Who would’ve expected that b*tch to stop the other two kids from attending school after that little b*stard got hurt!” Ophelia uttered helplessly.She thought she could still target Archie and Estella while Benny recuperated at home due to his injury.To her surprise, she received news that all three children had applied for leave the following day.Aubree clenched her fists. Hatred filled her eyes as she spoke. “That b*tch!”The two women grimaced, stumped at the development.While vexed, Ophelia carefully observed the changes in Aubree’s countenance, fearing the latter might get sick and tired of her.After a lon
Because of Benny’s injury, Roxanne took a leave of absence for all three of her children and stayed at home to take care of Benny for the time being. Fortunately, the ointment she had developed was very effective, and when she applied it to Benny, his wound healed up rather quickly.In the past two days, Lucian would often come to visit the kids.While Roxanne was busy taking care of Benny, she was also worrying about the projects at the research institute.In the end, she found out that, except for the project with the Damaris family, all the other projects were progressing smoothly.Due to the previous incident, the project with the Damaris family had to be handled by Roxanne and Roxanne only. As such, the project was stalled the moment she left.Since she was preoccupied with taking care of Benny, it took Roxanne a few days to realize that she had forgotten to give Jack a heads-up on the situation.Just when she was about to make a call to Jack to apologize, the man himself called
Meanwhile, Ophelia stepped out of the kindergarten with a grim expression. Thank goodness I handled the matter fast enough! Who’d have thought Mr. Bauer would launch an investigation as soon as he returned? Gosh. I almost blew my cover! Then again, this must mean that little b*stard’s injury was pretty bad…With that thought in mind, Ophelia curled her lips into a smirk.That b*tch Roxanne has ruined my chances of a happy and comfortable life! She deserves this little payback from me. Ha!Naturally, Ophelia needed to inform Aubree about the incident, so she quickly got into her car and dialed the latter’s number.Fortunately, the call got through after just a few rings.“How did it go? Did you succeed?” Aubree asked urgently.Argh. Life has been incredibly tough on me lately. I need some good news to cheer me up!“I greased the shoes of that Benny boy, and he fell really hard!” Ophelia said with a smug chortle. “Mr. Bauer even made a big fuss out of it when he returned, so I’m sure t
Elias knitted his brows when he saw his wife acting in that way. “I don’t remember any conflicts between the two of you six years ago. Why are you so biased against her?” “Are you saying that I’m unreasonable?” Sonya snapped, turning around to glare at him.The resignation on Elias’ face deepened. “I’m only stating facts. Why are you taking this so personally?”“Then we’ll go to her place to check it out right now! We’ll see if the kid really is hurt! Didn’t she ask us to pick Essie up from her house? We’ll go right now!”Elias knew that she was only saying that because she was furious, so he just drove them back to the Farwell main residence.Sonya was even more irked when she realized where they were heading, and she kept grumbling on their way back.Elias pretended not to hear anything she said.He was already relenting much by accompanying her to pick Estella up from the kindergarten.As Farwell Group’s chairman, he simply could not do something ludicrous like kicking up a fuss i
Roxanne’s heart was lodged in her throat as she made her way to the hospital. She floored the accelerator, on the verge of breaking the speed limit. Archie and Benny might be independent since young, but it was the first time one of them had gotten hurt.Roxanne felt a surge of anxiety wash over her.Upon arrival, Roxanne parked her car hastily and strode into the hospital.Pippa was considerate enough to text her the ward number after Benny was admitted to the hospital.Thus, Roxanne found them without any difficulty.“Mommy!”Archie firmly grasped her hand, squeezing it with such force that it caused her pain.Estella also clutched at the corner of her shirt.Roxanne patted their heads comfortingly before turning to Pippa. “Ms. Ward, what happened?”Pippa answered apologetically, “We’re not sure yet. The doctor at the infirmary said it might be a bruised cartilage. Benny is taking an X-ray inside.”Roxanne felt a stab of pain in her heart after she heard the news.“Ms. Jarvis, we’r
The next game was hopping on one foot. The kids filed to the equipment room to change into their sneakers. After changing into his shoes, Benny felt slightly uncomfortable. He a*sumed that it was probably because he had not worn these types of shoes in quite some time and wasn’t used to the fit. Nonetheless, he didn’t give it too much thought and kept going.Archie and Estella were urging him to hurry up, so he pushed aside the thought of his uncomfortable shoes and hurried over to them, beaming happily.This was an individual game, and Benny’s turn wasn’t until later.After Archie and Estella finished their turns, they stood aside to watch Benny play.“Remember to be careful. Safety comes first,” Pippa told them repeatedly.Ophelia stood aside and acted like she was ready to spring into action and protect the children at any moment.The three children had done a good job in the previous games, so when it was Benny’s turn, their friends cheered him on and watched him expectantly.Ben
Upon seeing that Roxanne was still in a daze, Lucian couldn’t resist lifting his hand and caressing her face. “You…”Roxanne was stupefied for several seconds before she belatedly snapped back to her senses. Mild embarra*sment showed in her eyes.While the man had sneaked up on her countless times when they were in Miralaea, she could more or less postulate the reason after the fact.But this time, I didn’t do anything. Why did he simply kiss me?Innocence was written all over Lucian’s face. “Sorry, I lost control.”At that answer, Roxanne’s eyes went wide in fury. However, she couldn’t really censure him either. All she could do was turn around as though nothing had happened and put the washed tableware aside.The two of them spent some time doing the dishes. When they exited the kitchen, Archie, Benny, and Estella pestered Lucian to play with them for a while.Only when it was rather late did Lucian drive home.Needless to say, Roxanne saw him off with the three children.When they
Lucian didn’t expect his father to be in such a hurry to go and pick Estella up. After hanging up the phone, he glanced at the time. Seeing that it was still relatively early, he wanted to phone Roxanne to inform her about the situation. But on second thought, he snagged his jacket and went downstairs.Downstairs, Catalina had just prepared dinner. When she saw her employer coming down, she hollered, “The food is ready, Mr. Farwell.”Lucian halted in his steps for a fleeting second. “Go on and eat. I’m not having dinner at home.”Having said that, he left in huge strides without waiting for a response from her.Catalina stared at the man’s back, bewildered for a moment. In the next heartbeat, understanding dawned upon her.Aha! Who else could induce such an expression on Mr. Farwell’s face? He must be on his way out to visit Ms. Jarvis once more. Thus, he’s also likely having dinner there!Roxanne had just finished cooking dinner and led the three children to the dining table. They h