“Auntie Cassie,” Mia timidly began, “can we go for ice cream? You promised…”
Last week, Daddy had bought Auntie Cassie new jewelry. In a moment of happiness, she had nudged
the two children on the floor and said she would take them for ice cream later.
But Cassandra didn’t even turn her head, impatiently saying, “Can’t you see I’m busy?”
“But…” Leo plucked up his courage, timidly starting,
“You said last week you’d take us…”
“Stop being so annoying!” Cassandra suddenly whirled around, lipstick leaving a glaring red streak at the corner of her mouth.
“All you ever do is eat! Look how fat you’ve gotten!”
The two children cowered together.
Ever since Mommy left, they hadn’t felt Auntie Cassie’s care.
Her once gentle, amiable smiles were gone, replaced by a perpetually annoyed frown and sharp reprimands.
“Go back to your rooms!” Cassandra pulled out a wet wipe to clean her mouth, scolding them with a
frown.
“You two just annoy me!”
Mia’s eyes welled with tears, but she didn’t dare to cry out loud.
Last time she cried, Auntie Cassie had pinched her thigh and threatened to throw away all her favorite toys if she told Daddy.
Today, Dominic had, quite unusually, announced he would be home for the night.
When he arrived home that evening, the children were already asleep.
Cassandra, in a silk nightgown, greeted him. A faint perfume lingered around her, and her meticulously cared-for skin looked incredibly delicate.
“Finally done with work, willing to come home for once?” she cooed softly, taking his briefcase.
3:50 pm & D
<
“There were some issues with the merger a while ago, but I’ll be able to come home more regularly now.” Dominic loosened his tie, looked around, and suddenly asked,
“Where are the children? I haven’t seen them in a while.”
“They’re already asleep. Don’t worry, I’ve taken wonderful care of them.” Cassandra smiled, linking her arm through his, and cooed,
“Dominic, there’s a charity gala tomorrow, and I’m missing a matching necklace… Could you…?”
Dominic didn’t wait for her to finish, absently nodding. “Go pick one out yourself. Just use my black
card.”
At breakfast the next day, he finally saw the two children come down to eat.
However, what puzzled Dominic was that Leo and Mia were unusually silent.
Looking closely, both children seemed to have lost some weight recently, their chins now sharper.
Dominic put down his coffee cup, frowning. “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”
“N-no!” Hearing him ask, Leo immediately shook his head frantically, his hands trembling slightly, the spoon clinking against the bowl.
Cassandra emerged from the kitchen, carrying a fruit plate. She glanced at them, then smiled softly. “Dominic, don’t worry, the children are fine.”
She bent down, affectionately stroking Leo’s hair, her tone incredibly gentle.
“Right, Leo?”
Leo stiffened, softly replying, “Mhm…”
Dominic’s phone suddenly rang.
He looked at the caller ID and rose from the table. “Something at the company. I’m leaving now.”
After the door closed, Cassandra’s smile vanished immediately.
She snatched the milk cup from Mia’s hand, an impatient look on her face. “Drinking so slowly, want
to be late? Eat faster!”
3:50 pm & D
<
“Now that your dad’s back for a few days, you two better go to school and not cause any
“Otherwise, don’t blame me for being unkind.””
trouble.”
The threat was highly effective. Mia flinched, quickly stuffing bread into her mouth, but accidentally choked, her face turning bright red.
“Useless thing!” Cassandra frowned in disgust, not even sparing her a glance, and snapped,
“Truly worthless, just like your pathetic mother!”
In his office, Dominic was handling business. The next moment, his phone vibrated-it was Mrs.
Gable.
“Mr. Thorne, young master has a fever, 103.1°F. We’re truly worried something might happen…”
Dominic’s brow furrowed deeply. “Did you call a doctor?”
“We did, but Ms. Sterling said there was no rush. She… she went out to a party!”
“What?” Dominic’s expression suddenly changed, his voice tinged with surprise. “I’ll be right back. Have the family doctor check on him first.”
When he rushed home through the rain, he indeed found Leo flushed with fever, his small body trembling uncontrollably.
The family doctor was giving him an IV, his face grim.
“How did it get so serious?”
“Mr. Thorne, the child’s high fever has lasted for four hours. Any later and it might have led to pneumonia,” the doctor said in a hushed, grave tone.
“The child has a weak constitution to begin with; he should have been treated sooner.”
Dominic’s chest tightened.
He remembered…
When Elara was around, she would notice the slightest discomfort in the children.
1:50 pm D
<
Often, without even a thermometer, she could accurately gauge their fever.
“Where’s Cassandra? Why haven’t I seen her?”
