Raynald gently acknowledged and then walked to the bedside. He leaned slightly towards Chloe and softly called her name. Staring blankly ahead, Chloe slowly turned her head upon hearing Raynald's voice. Upon seeing his face, she burst into tears. Raynald sat down by the bedside and gently patted her arm. "Chloe, you must be strong now." Tears streamed down Chloe's face. In pain, she cried out, "My hand... Raynald... my hand is ruined!" Raynald tried to reassure her, "You're young, and you can recover." "I can't recover! The bones are shattered, pieced together bit by bit. My life is over!" Chloe cried in despair, her heart seemingly torn apart. Watching Chloe sobbing pitifully, Raynald couldn't help but recall the heartbreaking expression on Arabella's face when her fingers were broken. He gently wiped away Chloe's tears with a tissue. "Don't cry now; try to stay positive." "I can't be positive! Ah..." Chloe's wails continued. Raynald wasn't sure how long he had been trying t
Arabella pursed her lips slightly and looked at Eva, gesturing for her to explain.Eva quickly recalled, "Madam was quietly sitting and reading, and Mrs. Jones suddenly barged in, cursing at her and wanting to hit her. I intervened at the beginning, but she kept hurling the most vicious insults at Madam—even me. I couldn't stand it anymore, but Miss Arabella patiently listened calmly for quite a while before finally erupting."Reginald's expression instantly chilled. He commanded Olivia, "Apologize to Arabella."Olivia was greatly surprised, thinking she must have misheard. "Reginald, I'm the one who's been hurt. If anyone should apologize, it should be her. Look at the force with which she hit me! She must have also sent someone to break Chloe's hand!"Reginald's expression became serious. "Your extreme pain for Chloe is understandable. But without evidence, you can't casually accuse Arabella. Physical harm is harm, but so is emotional harm. You insulted Arabella, so you must apologi
Arabella took out her phone and called Cosmo. "Mr. Cosmo, do you know Chloe?" After a brief pause, Cosmo replied, "I seem to have heard that name somewhere. What's going on?" "Someone smashed her hand with a sledgehammer last night." "Oh," Cosmo exclaimed, "Do you want me to help her find a doctor?" "No need, it's already taken care of." Arabella ended the call. It was evident that Cosmo was not involved. Arabella looked at the photo again, racking her brains. Since marrying Reginald, she had been living a secluded life, introverted and reserved. Her social circle was indeed limited, let alone having close male friends. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't identify the figure in the photo. Outside, Reginald smoked half a pack of cigarettes to calm his emotions. Entering the room, he found Arabella anxiously sitting on the bed, still holding the photo, her brow deeply furrowed. He paused for a moment, sat down, and gently smoothed her wrinkled forehead. His focused gaze
"Seeing Raymond, Margaret lifted her eyelids slightly and asked expressionlessly, 'Is there anything I can help with?' Raymond softly replied, 'Mom, Arabella has been discharged. Do you know where she went?' Margaret simply smiled. 'You're her husband, and you don't even know where she went. How would I know?' 'She misunderstood me and is upset with me. She's gone somewhere, and I have no idea where. A young woman wandering alone with an injury is very dangerous. Please tell me where she went so I can find her.' His tone was polite, but there was an undeniable air of command in his words—a born arrogance. Margaret sensed the subtle arrogance in his demeanor. She pulled a chair and sat down, looking at him contemptuously. 'For those two years, you had a bad temper and poor health. She took care of you day and night without complaints. But now, she's gone, and she must have suffered a lot.' Raymond's lips curled slightly as he coldly said, 'You're busy; I'll continue searching for
As she looked at the grave with tears in her eyes, her slender figure swaying in the wind, Raymond's protective instinct kicked in, diffusing his anger. He pulled her into an embrace, speaking gently, "It's okay, I won't pursue it anymore, please don't cry." Arabella buried her face in his shirt, crying silently, quickly soaking the fabric, her narrow shoulders trembling as she held onto him tightly. Raymond comfortingly stroked her back, his tone a mix of indulgence and insistence. "Next time before you disappear, you have to let me know, understand?" Arabella didn't respond. Suddenly, a distinct rumbling sound echoed in the silent wilderness. Raymond chuckled softly; he'd been running around since yesterday afternoon and was only now feeling the pang of hunger. Arabella took a while to understand the source of the sound and then looked up at him. "Is that your stomach? Are you hungry?" "Yeah, I haven't eaten since yesterday noon, no wonder I'm hungry," he said with a slightly
Reginald put his hand into his pants pocket and took out his phone, glancing at the screen. His expression changed ever so slightly.Arabella looked over curiously, catching a glimpse of the name "Chloe" out of the corner of her eye.Her heart sank. "Aren't you going to take that call?" she said.Reginald gave her a look. "Aren't you upset?"Arabella thought, if I get upset, he won't answer it.The phone kept ringing. "Go on then, don't keep her waiting," she prompted indifferently.Reginald gazed at her intently for a moment before accepting the call. "Chloe? What is it?"In the phone, Arabella could hear Chloe's feeble, pitiful voice. "Reginald, where have you been? You didn't come visit me at all yesterday. Will you come today? If you don't, I can hardly eat a thing, I'm so distraught..."A wave of disgust rose up within Arabella, revolting.Rising on her tiptoes, she leaned toward the phone, mimicking Chloe's tone. "Darling, I've already taken all my clothes off. What's taking you
Raynald watched Arabella standing there until his car disappeared from view.She had an indescribable feeling, a bit of emptiness, as if she had lost something precious.The wind rustled the leaves, causing them to twirl at her feet.After a while, Arabella turned and headed back into her grandfather's home.She took the keys, entered a room—it was her grandfather's restoration workshop, where she had spent most of her childhood.The room hadn't changed at all. Two waist-high red wooden tables stood in the center, covered with tools of the restoration trade—milling pens, carving tools, woolen cloths, and more.The tables were covered in dust, as no one had cleaned in several days. As Arabella thought of her grandfather, who had passed away due to illness, a wave of sadness washed over her."So, this is where you honed your skills?" Cosmo's voice came from behind her.Arabella nodded. "Yes."Cosmo approached, running his hand over the table. "Impressive indeed. When I was a child, my g
Chloe choked back sobs. "Three years ago when Reginald was injured, I wanted to stay by his side and take care of him, but my mum sent people to forcibly take me abroad and had bodyguards watch me 24 hours a day. I missed Reggie so much, I felt extremely depressed.""I loved him very much, but we were cruelly separated." When I heard he got married, I cried for three whole days, utterly devastated."She stood there with tears brimming her eyes, head bowed, looking exactly like a wounded puppy. Anyone would have felt sorry for her.The old lady's expression softened a little. "When the doctor pronounced three years ago that Reginald would never walk again, I understand why you left. After all, that change was too huge for most people to accept." Whether you left voluntarily or were forced to, you had already broken up, and Reggie is married to someone else now. If you try to ruin their marriage, that would be your fault, you know?"Chloe wiped her eyes. "I didn't ruin Reginald marriage