Jonathan could see that Roxanne was worried, and he could decipher what she was worried about, so he rephrased his words. “Queen Group won’t have a falling out with Farwell Group because of something trivial as this, and I won’t risk Queen Group either. Naturally, I’ve made all the preparations before coming here to talk about this with you.” The hesitance on Roxanne’s face slowly faded away as she stared at his confident expression. However, she still could not stop herself from asking, “But why are you helping me out? Is it just because I cured Old Mr. Queen’s illness?”When Jonathan thought about his conversation with Lucian the night before, the thoughts he had whilst he looked into Roxanne’s eyes changed.However, Roxanne only felt strange as she stared back at him.Half a beat later, Jonathan slowly stated, “My grandpa had been bedbound for years, and it’s all thanks to you, Dr. Jarvis, that he can recover to this point. Moreover, you’ve said before that my grandpa was already
Ignoring their responses, Roxanne proceeded to sit down in front of Jonathan.When Jonathan saw that Lucian was still standing there, he stated quickly, “Lucian, since Dr. Jarvis doesn’t mind, join us. Recently, Dr. Jarvis’ research institute has encountered some problems. You may be able to help her!”Lucian merely frowned before sitting down.Since Roxanne did not run away upon seeing him, he decided to stay on as well.However, Roxanne acted as if Lucian was not there after inviting him to join them. When the dishes were served, she raised her gla*s and remarked, “Thank you for helping me out with the herb suppliers, Mr. Queen.”Jonathan did not make a big deal out of it. Clinking gla*ses with her, he responded, “You’re most welcome, Dr. Jarvis. I’m not the only one who has helped you with regard to this issue.”Upon hearing that, Roxanne frowned, as she did not understand what he meant.Jonathan was about to say more when someone glared at him.Sensing Lucian’s stare, Jonathan act
At the mention of Estella’s condition, Roxanne’s heart clenched. Yet, she couldn’t show it in front of Lucian.Just when she was determined to feign indifference, Jonathan abruptly turned the subject to her. “I remember Essie liked you a lot back when you came to treat my grandfather, Dr. Jarvis. I wonder if her condition will improve if she spends more time with you.”After saying that, he nonchalantly added, “It was the first time I have ever seen her showing such favor for someone else that I was shocked then.”Roxanne’s hand tightened around the fork in her hand. She didn’t know how to tell him that she was the reason for Estella’s aggravated condition.At the side, Lucian agreed with Jonathan and stared at her with a grim look in his eyes.In the past, she’d relent as long as I brought up Essie before her. But this time, it’s painfully clear that she has already hardened her heart to it all.Silence reigned at the dining table, and Roxanne could distinctly sense the two men’s gaz
“Mr. Farwell?”When Cayden saw his employer walking over with Roxanne, he subconsciously presumed that the latter would be getting into their car. Unexpectedly, he saw her getting into the car with Jonathan while Lucian stood outside.After a moment, he decided to call out to the man cautiously.His brows furrowing slightly, Lucian bent down and climbed into the car.Cayden slowly started the car and drove out of the parking lot.Meanwhile, in the adjacent car, Jonathan asked Roxanne for her address and ordered the driver to drop her home first.In response, the driver murmured an acknowledgment.He moved to start the car, but it simply wouldn’t start.It still didn’t work after multiple tries. “The car seems to have broken down, Mr. Queen,” the driver reported helplessly.Upon hearing that, Jonathan imperceptibly swept his gaze over Roxanne beside him. He wore a grim expression. “It was just fine when we came over. Why did it suddenly break down?”A conflicted expression manifested o
Dead silence reigned in the car. One could sense that the atmosphere was entirely different from when Jonathan was present earlier, giving off a sense of an impending storm.Roxanne was sitting straight, her gaze trained right ahead. She tried her best to ignore the man beside her.She wasn’t sure whether she was imagining things, but his piercing gaze seemingly locked on her since Jonathan alighted from the car. It had her tensing up subconsciously.All of a sudden, Lucian’s voice rang out beside her.“Have I offended you in any way, Ms. Jarvis?”Relief suffused Roxanne when she heard his voice. She flashed him a detached smile. “Why would you say that, Mr. Farwell?”Lucian eyed her with a dark look, his voice threaded with displeasure. “If that’s not the case, why are you avoiding me thus, Ms. Jarvis?”Frowning slightly, Roxanne feigned ignorance. “When have I avoided you, Mr. Farwell? Precisely speaking, I don’t have much of a chance to meet you since our work doesn’t intersect.”I
Roxanne made every effort to calm herself down. She met Lucian’s gaze calmly and stated gently, “With you acting in such a manner now, Lucian, I’ll only find you even more of a stranger.”As far as she remembered, he had always been calm and unruffled. In fact, he was rather apathetic.At least, that was his personality six years ago.At present, he had become unfathomable to her.Perhaps that comment of hers worked, for she sensed the grip on her chin seemingly relaxing gradually.She held her breath.A while later, Lucian withdrew his hand and sat back in his seat. He gazed at her with a complex look in his eyes. “What exactly do you want?”That question rang out before Roxanne could breathe a sigh of relief. At once, bewilderment swamped her.It should be me asking him that. I’ve already made my stance clear as day. What exactly does he want?“Never mind that you’re avoiding me, but you’re not even visiting Essie anymore. Are you really this callous, Roxanne?” Lucian pinned a sharp
It was already late in the night when Lucian returned to the Farwell residence.Estella had already fallen asleep a long while ago.Lucian’s heart ached when he was reminded of how Roxanne had completely avoided mentioning Estella just now. He went upstairs to Estella’s room.The little girl had a serene sleeping posture. She lay on her side with half her face covered with blanket, seemingly sound asleep.Lucian’s gaze softened at the sight of his daughter. He lifted his arm and patted her head. Then, he tucked her in before getting up and left.Just when he reached the door, he suddenly heard a sound behind him as if Estella was sobbing.He stopped abruptly in his tracks, turned on his heels, and returned to her bedside. Lucian gently pulled away the blanket covering Estella’s face and saw her brows furrowed, eyes shut, and beads of tears staining her long eyelashes.He wondered what kind of nightmare she was experiencing.Lucian felt sorrowful when he saw her daughter in that state.
After hanging up the phone, Jonathan rang Roxanne right away.Roxanne picked up the phone very quickly and asked, “Mr. Queen, did the medicinal herb suppliers set up a time to meet already?”Jonathan smiled and answered, “Yes. They’re hoping to meet up and discuss the details in two days’ time. However, it depends on whether you’ll be free by then.”The biggest issue the research institute had was the supply of medicinal herbs. Naturally, Roxanne prioritized the meeting and agreed to meet them without any hesitation. “I’ll be free. Please let them know I’ll show up on time.”“You don’t have to prepare anything. Once you’ve arrived, there’ll be someone there to fetch you,” Jonathan answered.In response, Roxanne said, “Thank you, Mr. Queen. Thank you for your help.”Jonathan smiled and replied, “No worries. You’ve done a lot in curing my grandpa back then.”After all, considering the relationship between Roxanne and Lucian, he felt as though it was his duty to help out.At the same tim
Roxanne had long guessed Sonya would treat her with an unpleasant attitude. Although she was displeased, she didn’t show it on her face.“It’s Essie and Mr. Farwell’s wishes that Essie stays here. As you’re her grandma, I have nothing to say if you want to bring her back, but I hope you respect Essie’s opinions.”Sonya frowned in displeasure.I’ve already asked Essie just now. I wonder what sorcery Roxanne has cast on her to make her refuse to go home. That’s why I turned to ask Roxanne, but I didn’t expect this woman to be so tactless!Sonya was livid.Just then, Estella spoke. “Grandma, I don’t want to go home. I want to stay here and play with Archie and Benny.”Estella looked at Sonya pitifully.Usually, when Estella wore such an expression, Sonya would have gone along with her wishes. However, she was filled with rage right now, so Estella’s look only added fuel to the fire.“You have to go home even if you don’t want to. You belong to the Farwell family. How can you stay at some
Ten minutes ago, Catalina had been instructing the rest of the household staff on their chores when she heard the doorbell ring.The moment she opened the door, she saw that it was Sonya.Before Catalina could greet her, Sonya questioned her, “Where’s Essie? Tell Essie to come out. Tell her that her grandma is here.”Catalina was put in a difficult position.Estella had not been in the manor for the past few days.She had thought that the little girl was with Sonya.However, judging from Sonya’s reaction, Catalina knew there and then that Estella was with Roxanne.It was obvious that Sonya must have discovered that, and that explained her anger.As a servant, Catalina did not know how to answer her question. In the end, she replied, “I will inform Mr. Farwell right away.”She was about to go and seek help from Lucian when Sonya stopped her in her tracks.“I want to see Essie. If she doesn’t come down, I will go up myself.”With that, she began to walk upstairs.Catalina had no choice
“Please wait for a moment as Mrs. Farwell is taking a nap. I’ll tell her you’re here.” After inviting Aubree to sit on the couch in the living hall, the butler was ready to go up to call Sonya.Aubree knitted her brows and responded, “It’s okay. I can go up and check on her.”The butler knew Sonya doted on her. He hesitated but eventually agreed to allow her to go upstairs.Aubree responded with a nod. After plastering a smile on her face, she took the stairs and went up.Sonya had just woken up from her nap in the master bedroom upstairs. Upon hearing a knock on the door, she opened it right away.“Mrs. Farwell.” Aubree grinned politely. “I hope I’m not disturbing you.”Sonya, too, responded with a smile when she realized it was Aubree. “Not at all. I just woke up.”Aubree walked up to her and held her arm affectionately. “I brought you lots of gifts. Let’s go down and check them out.”“Aww, you’re too sweet.” Sonya glanced at her. “You didn’t have to do that. I’m happy that you’re h
The search lasted the entire morning.The grim-faced Cayden, who returned with his subordinates in the afternoon, said, “We found nothing, Mr. Farwell.”Admittedly, Cory was an excellent private investigator.Cayden could not help but wonder how he had managed to keep in touch with his employers.Not only did Cayden not find any evidence of how the mastermind instructed Cory to spy on Roxanne, but he also could not find proof that could expose Cory’s identity as a private investigator.Cory began playing the sympathy card. “Mr. Farwell, I told you no one instructed me to do anything.”Lucian waited for half a day but did not get the answer he was looking for. His eyes blazed with fury when he saw the pretentious innocent look on the culprit’s face.“If no one put you up to this, why did you stalk her?” he asked.Cory blinked innocently. “B-Because I find Ms. Jarvis attractive. I wished to snap photos of her since I was trying my hand at photography.”He had felt nervous before Cayden
Meanwhile, Lucian, too, ordered Cayden to investigate the issue.With Farwell Group’s financial capability, the investigation was carried out effortlessly.In less than an hour, Cayden had managed to bring the private investigator to Farwell Group.It was not until the private investigator was led to Farwell Group’s entrance that he realized something was off.“D-Did I do something wrong? Why did you bring me here?”Cayden cast him a cold glance. “Why are you asking me that? I’m not the one who calls the shots here. You’ll find out soon.”The private investigator’s legs trembled when he heard Cayden’s words.The only person who came to mind when he thought of the person who called the shots for Farwell Group was none other than Lucian Farwell.The private investigator had recently been following Roxanne around on Aubree’s orders. During those times, he had indeed seen Roxanne interacting with Lucian.Yet, he paid no mind to that.After all, he was merely doing as instructed. He did no
Upon hearing that, the doubtful Roxanne and Madilyn exchanged glances.They had spoken to nearly all the research institutes that could develop that specific bacterium in Horington, and only that research institute confirmed that their laboratory had previously lost the bacteria.Although it happened half a month ago, the bacteria could remain viable as long as they were appropriately preserved.Madilyn was aware of that and didn’t hesitate to ask, “How did you guys lose the bacteria back then? Do you guys have any findings now?”The person’s answer did not disappoint them. “One of the researchers should have taken it,” he said frankly.Madilyn was filled with confusion when she heard that.“Although we have no solid evidence, we were certain about that. Two days after the bacteria went missing, that researcher suddenly quit. We haven’t heard from her since then,” the person continued.Before Madilyn could speak, Roxanne asked, “What’s the name of that researcher?”The person on the o
At the side, Estella had her head lifted and gazed at Roxanne, looking hopeful.Roxanne’s gaze flickered. Only after obtaining Lucian’s promise did she forcibly suppress the worry within her.“Got it. I’ll take good care of Essie for the next few days.”Lucian indifferently inclined his head a fraction in acknowledgment. Shortly after, he took his leave and left.Roxanne watched as his car disappeared into the distance before bringing Archie, Benny, and Estella into the mansion.All three children were already starving to the point that their stomachs growled incessantly.Without tarrying, Roxanne prepared some quick and easy breakfast to fill their stomachs first.After having breakfast, she had the children play by themselves while she stood up and went into the study.She simply couldn’t sit back and do nothing about the person who used the bacteria on the children.Worse still, Lucian left Estella at her place. Hence, she wanted to catch the culprit as soon as possible to eliminat
“Have you and the kids been here?”Lucian came to a stop under a gigantic tree.Stopping with him, Roxanne looked around before shaking her head. “No.”That tree was located at the edge of the woods.Yesterday, she had been with Archie, Benny, and Estella in the woods or by the waterfall.As such, they indeed hadn’t been to that particular spot.Nodding in understanding, Lucian motioned for her to take a look at the bottom of the tree.Roxanne followed his gaze and took a closer look, upon which she made out a vague footprint.From the looks of it, it obviously belonged to an adult.As the footprints moved toward the edge of the gra*sy area, they grew increasingly faint.Therefore, she had no way of knowing whether the owner of those footprints had gone anywhere near the tent.However, it was certain that someone else was there yesterday other than her and the children.In fact, that person had been watching from the side while she was playing with the children.That realization had a
After Archie, Benny, and Estella had dozed off, Roxanne turned off the small night light in the tent.Consequently, the tent was pitch-dark right then, and she had no idea whether Lucian was asleep on the other side.Well, I didn’t hear any movement in a long time, so he has probably gone to sleep.At that thought, Roxanne quietly got up and left the tent. She sat outside under the moonlight alone and stared blankly into space.The weather had been great for the past two days. The moon shone brightly, but there weren’t many stars in the sky.For safety reasons, Lucian had the headlights turned on, illuminating the tent’s surroundings and rendering it like daylight.As Roxanne looked at the scenery around her, her mind gradually began drifting.Too many things had happened that day.At first, the children suddenly contracted a bacterial infection. Then, she inexplicably ended up in the same space as Lucian.Both of the incidents had her emotions turn into a jumbled mess.While she was