Melody expressed her agreement with a solemn nod. “Indeed, now that we have the address in our possession, it’s crucial that we take immediate action in case any unforeseen circumstances arise.”
“Mom, what’s our next move?” Gretchen asked with a sense of uncertainty.
With a cold and ruthless look in her eyes, Melody responded, “Next, we will make Estelle watch as her daughter suffers and dies a miserable death right before her eyes.”
After two hours had passed, they hailed a taxi and headed towards the Hans’ residence. The rain was pouring down heavily, and as they arrived, they spotted Luke playing with Yvonne in the pavilion of the sprawling garden.
Yvonne was bubbling with energy, constantly reaching out her tiny hands to snatch the fluffy toy from Luke’s grip. Her contagious laughter echoed through the garden, revealing her adorable dimples with each smile.
“That little rascal resembles Estelle so much. It’s no wonder Cristofer adores her,” Gretchen muttered under her breath.
Melody shot a sharp glance in her direction before instructing, “Call Estelle immediately and tell her to come here right away.”
“Mom, the butler is here. If he finds out what we do to the little bastard, he will inform Cristofer at once,” Gretchen said.
“Don’t worry. I’ve got an idea,” Melody replied to her.
As she spoke, she reached out to her bag and took out a milk bottle which was the same as the one hanging on Yvonne’s stroller.
“Change the milk bottle later when you get a chance.”
“Mom, what’s in this bottle? Poison?”
Melody said, “How is it possible? If she’s poisoned, we will be suspected.”
“Then how can we kill that little bastard?”
“That little bastard was born not long ago and is still weak,” Melody said. “Here is some spirit in the bottle, and it is as transparent as water. As long as she drinks it, she will die soon.”
****
After lunch, Estelle took a nap but didn’t sleep well.
A baby had been crying in the corridor. Although the ward was soundproof, she could still hear the noise. And somehow, when she heard the baby crying, she felt a little restless.
Rebecca had something to deal with in the afternoon and had left. At this moment, Estelle was in the ward alone.
After hesitating for a while, she was still a little worried about the baby, so she got out of bed and gently opened the door of the ward.
Outside the door stood a young man who was holding a baby in his arms. He didn’t know how to coax the baby and could only look at the baby anxiously.
Estelle walked over and asked softly, “Where is the baby’s mother?”
The young man was a little embarrassed and said, “She had gone for a check-up. And my son cries when he can’t see his mother. Sorry that we disturbed you, Miss. I’ll take him to another place to wait for my wife.”
Estelle stopped him and said, “You can’t let him cry like this all the time.”
“But I don’t know what’s wrong with him. I fed him the milk, but he didn’t drink it. I can’t pacify him.”
Estelle walked up to them and had a look at the baby. Then she said, “You may check if his diaper needs to be changed.”
The man quickly sat on the bench beside him and checked it. Sure enough, as Estelle said, the diaper should be changed.
As a man who was usually busy with work and seldom cared for the baby, he didn’t know how to change the diaper.
Seeing his clumsy action, Estelle said helplessly, “Let me help you.”
“Well... Thank you very much,” the man said gratefully and felt relieved.
“Look, here is a buckle...” Estelle skillfully changed the diaper for the baby as she taught him how to do it step by step.
After watching the whole process carefully, the man nodded and said, “I see. It’s not as difficult as I thought.”
“Yes, it’s quite easy,” Estelle said with a smile. “In fact, as a father, you should also learn to take care of your baby. You can’t just leave everything about childcare to your wife.”
The man nodded repeatedly and said, “Yes, I also realized this today. Taking care of the baby is really tiring. Thank you for being so helpful, Miss.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“I didn’t expect a young lady like you to be so good at caring for a baby.”
Hearing this, Estelle chuckled. “I’m already a mother of two children.”
The man was a little surprised. “Really? When I saw you just now, I thought you were only in your early twenties. May I ask what’s wrong with you? Do you also suffer from postpartum depression like my wife?”
“I... I have lung cancer,” Estelle said.
“What?” The man was shocked and thought that he had misheard. “I beg your pardon.”
“You didn’t mishear. I have lung cancer,” Estelle smiled and said calmly.
With an embarrassed look, the man didn’t know what to say and had mixed feelings.
“My daughter is just a month old now and is about the same age as your baby.” Estelle tried to change the topic to ease the embarrassing atmosphere.
“Miss, I’m sorry. I don’t know that you...”
“It’s okay. Don’t take it to heart,” Estelle interrupted him and said gently.
“Will your husband come to take care of you after work?” the man asked.
“No. We... We are going to divorce.”
Upon hearing this, the man was shocked and speechless again. Yet, at the same time, he couldn’t help looking at Estelle with sympathy in his eyes.
On the contrary, Estelle looked rather calm. She waved at the baby with a smile and then said to the man, “I’ll go in first. If you need any help, just let me know.”
“Okay. Thank you,” the man said with a nod.
When Estelle returned to the ward, she heard her phone ringing and walked to the bed.
Seeing that the caller ID was an unknown number, she answered the phone with a puzzled look. “Hello?”
“Estelle, if you want to see your daughter for the last time, come to No. 117, Phoenix River Road right now. If you are late, you will only see her body.”
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