The Abandoned Wife

Lucian furrowed his brows. He could not help thinking of Roxanne.

How did she manage to make Essie speak gradually?

He was at his wit's end while facing the same problem.

Noticing that Estella only seemed to respond to the mention of Roxanne's name, Lucian inquired again, "Essie, did you want to see Ms. Jarvis that much?"

Estella nodded vigorously and gazed at Lucian expectantly. She seemed to think that he had a way to let her meet Roxanne.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

When Lucian saw Estella's hopeful expression, his gaze darkened slightly. He silently averted his gaze. "She likes you very much, Essie. Maybe she's been busy with work lately. Hence, she didn't have time to pick up the boys. Don't worry."

Not receiving the answer she had hoped for, Estella cast her eyes downward dejectedly. She nodded weakly in response.

No matter what Lucian said, Estella only responded by either nodding or shaking her head. She also fumbled around her bag for a notebook, intending to write down her reply for him.

Only the mention of Roxanne could evoke a more noticeable reaction from Estella.

The more Lucian tried to persuade her into talking, the more helpless he felt.

A while later, Lucian could not hold himself back from asking Estella. "Can you tell me why you're willing to talk at Ms. Jarvis' house? How did she teach you to speak up?"

That question could not be answered with a nod nor a shake of the head. Estella frowned, feeling troubled.

Estella became even more distraught at the thought of her time at Roxanne's house.

I want to stay with Ms. Jarvis a little longer.

Taking out a pen and paper, Lucian handed the items to Estella. "If you don't want to talk, you can write it down for me."

Lucian did not want to let Estella stay silent for long. With his current relationship with Roxanne, he could not send Estella to her. Therefore, he wanted to see if he could learn from Roxanne's method. Accepting the pen and paper, Estella wrote slowly: Archie and Benny will ignore me if I don't speak up.

A surprised look flashed across Lucian's face when he read Estella's reply.

So, the two boys are the reasons why Essie started speaking?

At first, Lucian thought that Estella would only relax when she was around Roxanne due to her affection for the woman. Therefore, Estella slowly began to talk.

However, he never expected that Archie and Benny would play such big roles in improving Estella's condition.

Arching his brows, Lucian asked, "Do you like Archie and Benny very much?"

Estella nodded firmly in response.

Archie and Benny have been nice to me ever since our first meeting. They also protected me in kindergarten. With the two of them around, the other kids didn't dare to bully me anymore. I feel like a princess o kindergarten now!

Estella's eyes gleamed whenever Lucian mentioned the two boys.

He felt conflicted upon seeing Estella's hopeful expression.

Still, it's easier to let Estella interact more with Archie and Benny than to send her to recover at Roxanne's house.

Thinking of that, Lucian felt relieved. "Since you like Archie and Benny so much, you can ask Catalina to prepare more snacks before going to school in the future. Then, you can share with the boys," he suggested.

Estella tilted her head, unable to comprehend Lucian's words for a moment.

Stroking Estella's head, Lucian added, "You should be nice to Archie and Benny and play more with them since they have been treating you so kindly."

Thinking of how kind the boys had been toward her all this while, Estella quickly nodded in response.

I have to treat Archie and Benny better so that they will play with me.