Twenty minutes later, the car slowly stopped at the Farwell residence.
Estella did not want anyone to carry her. She quietly got down from the car by climbing down slowly.
Lucian followed right behind and did not utter a word.
The moment the father and daughter stepped into the house, they heard someone calling Estella.
“Essie!” Aubree, who was playing on her phone in the living room, exclaimed when she lifted her head and saw them entering the house.
The moment she saw the child from a distance, she ran toward her and gave her a hug. “Essie, you’re finally home! How could you run away and not tell us? I got the shock of my life when you went missing, do you know that? Are you okay? Are you injured?”
She started inspecting Estella’s body to make sure the latter was all right.
Estella froze for a bit, as she was taken aback by Aubree’s actions.
But the cold look soon returned to the little one’s gaze when Aubree’s voice kept ringing in her ear, expressing her insincere concern.
Does she not know why I ran away? I wouldn’t have run away if she hadn’t told me Daddy wouldn’t care about me anymore.
Feeling disgusted after seeing the hypocrite’s face, Estella recalled the gorgeous woman she had met today.
There was a world of difference between these two women.
Estella absolutely despised Aubree’s pretentious behavior.
She started struggling and pulled herself away from the woman.
“What’s wrong, Essie? Stay still, okay? Let me check if you’re all right.”
Aubree could feel Estella wanted to avoid her. She tightened her grip on the little girl and sighed helplessly in front of Lucian.
Estella started reacting more aggressively, as she was in pain.
Aubree was running out of patience.
When she punished Estella in the past, the little girl would tremble in fear and not make any noises.
This was the first time she fought back!
Aubree would have acted more harshly if Lucian were not around.
But since Lucian was there to observe their interaction, she had to be more cautious not to arouse his suspicion. A hard glint flashed across her eyes, and an idea popped up in her mind. Instead of continuing with this tug of war, she decided to release Estella and fall to the ground.
Aubree then looked at Estella in disbelief. “Essie, I know you dislike me. But I’m really worried about you. How could you…”
She choked on her words as she looked at the little one with red-rimmed eyes.
Upon noticing Aubree lying on the ground after removing his coat, Lucian frowned and pulled Estella aside. “Essie, I know you’re not happy, and you can take it out on Daddy. But you can’t vent your anger like this to others. It’s rude, do you know that?”
Estella refused to admit she was at fault, but at the same time, she felt helpless.
Daddy always sides with that evil woman!
She pulled her hand away from his grip, hugged her doll tightly, and ran upstairs.
Now that Estella was gone, Aubree gradually crawled up from the ground and said gently, “Don’t be too harsh on Essie. We don’t know what she had been through when she was wandering in the streets-”
Lucian interrupted her, “You should go now. Essie is still mad, and she wouldn’t want to see you.”
Aubree’s expression turned stiff for a moment, but she responded with an awkward smile. “All right then. I’ll come and visit her on another day.”
She then lowered her head and walked out of the Farwell residence.
After she stepped out of the residence, Aubree’s expression instantly turned grim.
How did he manage to find that little b*stard! And how dare she behave like this in front of me? Why isn’t she dead! Damn it!
Meanwhile, Madilyn stayed back at Drunken Fairy even after Lucian had left.
When it was about time, she came out of the restaurant and quickly ran to the car.
“Are you all right?” Roxanne asked while opening the door for her. “He left?”
Madilyn heaved a long sigh. “Yes. If only you could see how he stared at me. It’s as if he could see through me! I nearly cracked under the pressure and gave you away.”
Roxanne smiled and expressed her gratitude. “You must have had it hard. Let’s go elsewhere and grab something to eat, shall we? My treat.”
Madilyn waved her hand and turned her down. “No, thanks. I’ve packed all the leftovers. I must enjoy all these dishes from this exquisite private restaurant.”
