Chapter 10
As Robert rushed Chloe into the hospital, a strange anxiety gripped him, and his eyelid twitched uncontrollably. A sense of panic surged through his chest, and his heartbeat was dramming loudly in his ears.
He couldn’t explain why he suddenly felt so uneasy and chalked it up to overthinking. He was hurrying back and forth with Chloe in his arms, leaving no time to consider it further.
Only after the doctor examined Chloe’s ankle and fell silent did Robert finally find a moment to check his phone. Two new messages from Enola awaited him. He opened them quickly and froze in shock.
One was a money transfer, and the other was a short farewell. The words hit him like a bolt of lightning, leaving his mind completely blank. His eyes fixated on a few key phrases that stood out like burning scars.
Money for raising her? She was leaving? What did she mean by paying him back for raising her? And where exactly had she gone?
A thousand questions raced through his mind, and an impulse to find Enola and demand answers nearly overtook him.
Chloe noticed his distraction and immediately switched her expression to one of tearful confusion. “Robert…”
The doctor observed Chloe quietly, studying the CT scans on the computer screen before gently pressing on her supposedly injured ankle. He finally announced, “It’s nothing serious, Even if you’d arrived any later, she would’ve healed completely on her own.”
Chloe’s face instantly froze as soon as the doctor said this, and Robert stiffened at the doctor’s words.
“What do you mean by that?” he asked sharply.
The doctor pointed toward the door with a subtle smile. “I mean, she’s perfectly fine. You can both go home now.”
Robert lowered his gaze, taking in Chloe’s panicked expression. At that moment, everything became painfully clear.
His jaw clenched as a silent fury rolled off him. The atmosphere turned oppressive as tension radiated from him in waves, yet he said nothing.
Noticing he was about to leave, Chloe panicked. She couldn’t understand why he’d reacted so harshly–it was only a sprained ankle which she’d exaggerated a little.
Seeing him already striding away, she forgot about her delicate act and hurried after him. “Robert, wait for me!”
Robert slammed the car door shut behind him, leaving Chloe’s frantic shouts echoing outside. It took him several deep breaths before he finally regained control of his emotions.
Just as the anger subsided, Chloe caught up, breathless and visibly distressed. “Robert, what’s going on? Why are you acting this way?”
She reached out cautiously, trying to lean against him, but he felt no desire or affection–his mind was preoccupied entirely with Enola’s abrupt farewell.
The car started moving without him giving any response. Chloe stiffened at his silence, noticing his foul mood, and wisely chose not to pursue further conversation.
Soon, they arrived back at the villa, but when they stepped through the door, they found only the usual housekeepers going about their tasks. There was no sign of Enola.
“Where’s Ms. Enola?” Robert stopped a passing maid to ask.
The maid paused, looking puzzled for a moment before answering carefully, “Ms. Enola came home about half an hour ago, but she left immediately afterward with her suitcase. Didn’t she inform you, sir?”
Half an hour ago?
Robert froze.
The hospital visit alone took almost four hours. How could Enola have just returned home half an hour ago?
Unable to hold back, he asked this aloud.
The maid, knowing they had gone to visit the cemetery earlier in the day–a tradition they had followed every year since Enola was nine years old–saw no reason to hide the truth.
“Ms. Enola didn’t manage to catch a taxi. She walked all the way home on foot. When she returned, her feet were covered in blisters and bleeding badly.
“I suggested she rest and take care of her injuries, but she refused, saying she didn’t have enough time.”
Hearing this hit Robert like a blow to the chest. A heavy sense of suffocation filled him, making it hard to breathe.
Meanwhile, beside him, Chloe fel a secret sense of triumph, thinking what a fool Enola was for walking all the way home.
But she didn’t dare voice her thoughts. Instead, she feigned concern and sighed dramatically. “Oh, Ennie, why would she hurt herself this way? No matter how upset she was, she shouldn’t punish herself like this.”
If it had been before, Robert would’ve lashed out at such a comment. But at that moment, he said nothing. Instead, he slipped into a deep, unsettling silence.
Chapter 11
