Where Petals of Vengeance Bloom novel Chapter 33

Claire awoke once more in Ethan's room.

As she opened her eyes, she saw Mary, sitting by the bedside, gently applying ointment to her swollen face with a cotton swab, her expression filled with concern.

When she noticed Claire was awake, she quickly asked, "Miss Claire, are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere else?"

Claire stared vacantly at Mary's moving lips, tears silently falling.

Mary's eyes reddened with worry, "Miss Claire, what's wrong? Did I hurt you?"

Claire could hardly hear what Mary was saying.

Nathan's slap had further impaired the hearing in her already weakened right ear, leaving her only able to catch faint sounds.

However, she had learned to read lips and understood what Mary was saying.

Before prison, she hadn’t known how to read lips.

It was only after she lost hearing in her left ear and struggled to understand the orders barked at her that she was subjected to even harsher punishments. To avoid more beatings, she forced herself to learn lip-reading, so even if she couldn’t hear clearly, she could still grasp what they were trying to convey.

Suppressing her bitterness, Claire forced a smile, "Mary, I'm fine, just... really hungry."

Recalling the unpleasant events of the morning, Mary felt indignant on Claire’s behalf.

Miss Claire was so kind and understanding; how could Mr. and Mrs. Linwood, along with their eldest son, not see it?

"What would you like to eat, Miss Claire?"

"A light noodle soup."

"Okay, I'll make it right away."

Claire nodded, sitting up against the headboard, her eyes blank as she gazed out the window.

Time passed, and the door opened again.

Claire assumed it was Mary, but to her surprise, it was Adah.

Adah met her indifferent gaze, feeling a pang in her heart, but she didn’t retreat. Instead, she sat beside her.

Adah likely had no idea of the special significance that light noodle soup held for Claire.

A simple bowl of noodle soup had warmed her entire winter.

Years later, she still remembered clearly the first time Mary made her a bowl of noodle soup during her freshman winter.

On a dark, snowy night, she cycled home against the wind and snow.

The entire Linwood mansion was shrouded in darkness, with no lights left on for her.

The Linwoods had already eaten and gone to bed early, while Claire, shivering with cold, could only eat the leftovers to fill her stomach.

That night, her stomach churned painfully until she vomited everything she'd eaten.

It was Mary who discovered her illness during the night, took care of her, and made her a steaming bowl of noodle soup.

From that day on, Mary would always leave a light on for her and prepare light meals like noodle soup, mini dumplings, and nourishing porridge that were easy on the stomach when she came home from school.

Everyone in the Linwood family knew Ethan had stomach issues, but no one realized that Claire, since returning to the Linwood family, had developed the same problem.