Roxanne glanced at Estella, who was now resting in Cayden’s arms. “I wonder how Essie is. She was here for so long. She must be scared out of her wits. She couldn’t stop crying just now.”
Roxanne’s heart ached when she was reminded of the way Estella bawled her eyes out earlier.
Lucian was in low spirits as well. “We can only check her condition when we return.”
Holding Estella in his arms, Cayden uttered sympathetically, “Ms. Estella doesn’t seem to have sustained any serious external injuries. I’m just afraid that…”
Estella suffered from psychological illness to begin with. Cayden was fearful that the unfortunate incident would traumatize her and aggravate her existing condition.
Lucian and Roxanne could guess the rest of Cayden’s unfinished sentence. Their faces darkened at that possibility.
Along the way back, everyone kept quiet as a heavy atmosphere lingered in the air.
After arriving at the hotel, Lucian informed the good news of locating Estella in the WhatsApp group before contacting his mother. Then, he instructed Cayden to handle the checkout procedure while he brought Estella, Roxanne, Archie, and Benny back to the city and headed straight to the hospital.
Inside the car, Archie and Benny eyed Estella concernedly. “Mommy, will Essie be fine?”
Roxanne patted their heads and comforted them, “She’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
Archie and Benny looked up at their mother and said with their hearts aching, “Mommy, you’re losing your voice.”
She smiled at them without saying a word.
Roxanne could not care less about losing her voice as long as she could find Estella.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Lucian gazed intently at Roxanne and the little girl in her arms through the rearview mirror with an unfathomable look on his face.
Soon, the car came to a halt outside the entrance of the hospital.
Cayden got out of the car, received Estella from Roxanne, and hurried into the hospital.
Roxanne was only able to heave a sigh of relief after the doctor confirmed that Estella was fine.
However, as Lucian was still worried, he decided to admit the little girl to the hospital for one night just to be safe.
As it was getting late, Roxanne said, “Since Essie is all right, I’ll take the kids back to rest first. Call me if you need me.”
She turned to leave after she finished speaking.
However, when she walked past Lucian, the man grabbed her wrist, causing her to draw a sharp breath.
“Please examine her too,” Lucian said to the doctor.
When Roxanne heard that, she rejected it at once. “There’s no need for that. I know my condition best. I’m not injured and I just want to go home and rest.”
Lucian refused to let go of her.
Having no choice, the woman walked toward the doctor and rolled up her sleeves, revealing an abrasion on her wrist which Lucian was grabbing a moment ago.
She had sustained a scrape from pulling Estella back earlier on but did not want the little ones to worry about her. Besides, she was intending to treat the wound herself after getting back. She had been bearing with the pain and did not expect the man to notice it.
Lucian’s expression darkened when he saw the abrasion on Roxanne’s wrist.
Archie and Benny were even more worried as they exclaimed, “Mommy, you’re injured!”
Roxanne flashed a comforting smile at the children while replying, “It’s just a scrape. I’m all right.”
After the doctor treated Roxanne’s wound briefly, the group of them left the emergency ward.
Cayden proceeded to settle the admission procedures for Estella.
As Roxanne was still worried about the little girl, she headed to the ward with Lucian.
After Estella was placed on the bed, she woke up and turned around slowly.
Archie and Benny were the first ones to notice it. They rushed to the bed at once. Looking at her excitedly, they exclaimed, “You’re awake! Are you okay? Are you feeling unwell?”
Estella was still feeling groggy. She blinked a few times before she looked at the boys and shook her head.
Even though the two boys sensed something amiss, they ignored the feeling, as they were just too happy that Estella was awake. They continued talking to her by the bed.
Roxanne watched from the side for a while before stepping forward to caress Estella’s face.
Estella responded with a smile while reaching out to touch the bandage on the woman’s wrist.
Noticing the worried expression on the little girl’s face, Roxanne said comfortingly, “It’s just a scrape. It doesn’t hurt at all.”
After saying that, she asked in concern, “Essie, are you hungry? What do you feel like having? I’ll get you something to eat.”
Estella tilted her head and thought for a moment before shaking her head.
Roxanne’s gaze darkened. She turned around to look at Lucian.
Lucian had a grim expression on his face as well as he looked at Estella.
Both of them realized that the girl had not spoken a single word since she woke up. Although Roxanne and the two boys had been talking to her, she did not reply.
Obviously, the incident had affected her.
“It’s getting late. You guys should go back first,” Lucian said.
Roxanne hesitated as a crease appeared between her brows.
She had intended to take the two boys home before knowing about Estella’s condition.
However, after being aware of the situation, she found it difficult to leave.
When Estella heard her father asking Roxanne to leave, she grabbed the corner of the woman’s shirt with a reluctant expression on her face.
“I’ll stay here with you.” Roxanne held the girl’s hand. Then she turned to Lucian and said, “I’ll stay here and accompany Essie. She should be hungry. Can you get someone to bring her some food?”
Lucian agreed and instructed Cayden to get something for all of them to eat.
Meanwhile, having been chased away by Lucian in the afternoon, Aubree arrived at the Farwell residence to look for Sonya.
Sonya thought that there was news of Estella when she saw her and asked anxiously, “Why are you back? Has Essie been found?”
Aubree shook her head dejectedly.
Sonya chided, “Why are you here if Essie hasn’t been found? Why aren’t you helping to search for her?”
Even though she had always favored Aubree, the woman had indeed gone overboard this time.
Aubree answered remorsefully, “Mrs. Farwell, I’d love to help, but—”
“But what?” Sonya asked furiously.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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