Chapter 106
She frantically called over a servant, urgently asking. “Where’s Claire?”
The servant shook her head. “Ma’am, when we woke up this morning, Miss Claire was nowhere to be found.”
Adah was devastated, as if all the strength had been drained from her body. She leaned weakly against the wall.
Ethan came out of the bedroom and immediately noticed Adah’s desolate state.
Concerned, he quickly asked, “Mom, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”
Adah looked up at Ethan, her eyes red and voice trembling, “Claire is missing.”
This time, even Ethan began to worry. “How can she be missing? Wasn’t she home just yesterday?”
Adah collapsed against the wall, tears streaming down like a flood, her body trembling uncontrollably. She covered her face with her hands, sobbing, “It’s all my fault. I drove Claire away. If anything happens to her, how am I supposed to live?”!
Ethan suddenly remembered the call from May the previous night. He quickly pulled out his phone to call her, only to find he had been blocked.”
His expression darkened. “Mom, try calling May,”
With trembling hands, Adah dialed the number, but the result was the same. She had been blocked too.
Ethan steadied himself and said, “Mom, let’s check the security footage.“!
They hurned to the monitoring room, and as the footage played, their expressions shifted from confusion to horror.
On the screen, Claire was seen leaving the house, her body covered in blood, while sixty–year–old May slowly carried her through the pouring rain.
Adah clasped her hands over her mouth, tears spilling down her face. “Claire, my dear Claire…”
Ethan stared intently at the screen, the scene cutting through his heart like a sharp knife.
“May must have taken Claire to the hospital. We need to go find her them
On the way, Ethan drove with urgency, the wipers swiping furiously yet failing to clear the torrential min from the windshield
Adah sat in the passenger seat, staring blankly out the window, her hands clenched so tightly that her nails nearly pierced her palms. She whispered repeatedly for Claire to be safe.
At the hospital.!
Claire slowly regained consciousness, her head heavy, a dull pain throbbing at the back of her skull. Yet, this physical pain was nothing compared to the wrenching ache in her heart.
Her eyes stared blankly at the stark white ceiling of the hospital room, memories of the previous night flashing rapidly through her mind. Especially the moment when Adah, with cold indifference, smashed a heavy ashtray against the back of her head, leaving her heart shattered beyond repair.
Tears slipped uncontrollably from the corners of her eyes, first one, then another until they poured freely, soaking the pillow beneath her. She was Adah’s own flesh and blood, yet why did her life seem so worthless compared to Vanessa, the adopted daughter?
She had long grown accustomed to the Linwood family’s cold and unfeeling nature.
But still her heart ached so profoundly.
Claire took a deep breath, forcing down all her grievances and tears.
There was no point in crying.
They were just insignificant people, unworthy of her tears.
Just as she wiped her eyes dry, the door to the room swung open.
She thought it was May, but as she turned, she found herself face to face with Adah’s tear–streaked eyes.
Seeing Claire, Adah’s tears fell even more fiercely. “Claire, are you trying to scare your mother to death?”
“Why did you leave secretly? The rain was so heavy, the night so cold. Do you know how worried I was? If anything happened to you, how would I live?‘
She rushed forward, trying to embrace Claire’s frall body, but Claire pushed her away forcefully before she could make contact.
Claire’s heart was filled with scom and indifference.l
