He Gave Me Hearing, Then Taught Me What Silence Really Means novel Chapter 357

Master Alaric gently held Josie's fingers and inspected them closely. "The child must have interacted with this person frequently and suffered a great deal of trauma because of it. Keep them apart at all costs, or the consequences will be unimaginable."

Lydia looked deeply concerned and took a sharp breath. "Understood. Thank you, Master Alaric."

The master offered a few more vague warnings, but the core message was clear: someone was actively cursing the Saint family's luck.

As soon as the master left, Lydia hugged Josie tightly. "Josie, you're going to stay home for the next few days, okay?"

Josie acted like a lifeless marionette. She wouldn't speak, wouldn't look anyone in the eye, and seemed entirely devoid of her soul.

Lydia squeezed out a few tears and cradled the child. "Mommy will take good care of you."

The old man slammed his hand on the table and turned to his staff. "Notify the guards. The Saint family will not be receiving any outside guests for the next few months."

The staff nodded and immediately went to relay the orders.

The old man rubbed his temples, looking deeply conflicted. "Your grandmother just mentioned Juniper to me recently. I'll give it two more months. If our family's luck doesn't improve, I'll have someone handle her. I have to give your grandmother that much respect."

Lydia felt a pang of resentment but maintained her worried facade, clinging to Josie. "I know, Grandpa. My heart just breaks for Josie."

Josie was the absolute favorite of the Saint family.

The old man stood up, walked over, and gently ruffled Josie's hair. "Let her rest at home for a while. She clearly isn't in the mood to see anyone right now."

"I will."

Lydia took Josie back to their residence. The moment they got into the car, she stared at Josie in dead silence.

She couldn't tell if Josie was genuinely traumatized or just acting out.

There was no driver; it was just the two of them. Lydia was behind the wheel.

She reached over and roughly rubbed Josie's head. "Josie, from now on, you're going to tell everyone that you absolutely hate Juniper, do you understand?"

Josie sat in her seat, silent, her head bowed in that same lifeless, hollow daze.

A venomous glint flickered in Yvonne's eyes. She patted Josie's back and sighed.

If Juniper dared to ruin the Saint family, Yvonne would make sure the little tramp lost every single person she cared about!

A vicious plan had already formed in her mind, and a smug, triumphant smile spread across her face.

That very evening, Yvonne drove straight to Walter Lane's hospital.

There was no one guarding Walter's room. His daughter had nearly drowned the night before and had just been discharged, his son was crippled, and his wife was dead.

During his fleeting moments of lucidity, he would stare at the ceiling, remembering Juniper's words.

Beatrice Lane was gone.

Neither Walter nor Beatrice had much education, and they certainly didn't understand the concept of romantic love. In their generation, marriages were arranged by parents. He was five years older than Beatrice, dirt-poor, and only managed to scrape together a living by learning carpentry from Beatrice's father.

That was how they ended up together. Both sets of parents died early, and when they first got married, the foundation of their wooden shack was so crooked it looked like it would collapse at any moment.