Estelle took a deep breath and smiled, “Mr. Roberts, I’m not pitiful. I made the decision, and I don’t want others to pity me.”
Realizing that his words were somewhat hurtful, Tim patted his mouth remorsefully and quickly said, “I didn’t mean that… Alas, I really mean no offense. I… I saw your two children before. They are very cute, and I suddenly wanted to be their father. Do you understand what I mean?”
“What?”
“Don’t play dumb. You know what I mean.”
“Never mind. We can discuss that later. For now, I’ll drive you to Mount Cloud,” Tim responded, his voice tinged with resignation.
As he had foreseen, the evening had already set in when they eventually reached the top of Mount Cloud.
Although the clock struck seven, darkness enveloped the surroundings due to the early onset of the night during the winter season.
Regrettably, the weather proved unfavorable tonight. The sky remained shrouded in clouds, devoid of stars.
Having parked the motorcycle, Tim turned his attention to Estelle and observed her squatting on the ground a short distance away, engrossed in some activity. He noticed the box she treasured positioned at her feet.
Tim strode over curiously and then found that she was digging a hole with bare hands.
The top of Mount Cloud was a small open space with several trees under which were weeds. The ground was paved with gravel, and only a small area of soil was exposed.
Some small stones were sharp, and soon, Estelle’s fingers were blistered and bled.
Witnessing her actions, Tim immediately pulled her arm and stopped her. “Estelle, could you tell me what you are doing?”
“I… I’m looking for something.”
“What are you looking for?” Tim asked, frowning deeply.
“I remember there used to be a big tree here. But now I can’t find it,” Estelle said, raising her head dejectedly and looking around.
“The wind is always strong at the top of the mountain. Maybe it was snapped by the wind.”
Hearing his words, Estelle was disappointed.
“… Is that so?”
Seeing her reaction, Tim was distressed. Then he grabbed her wrist and yanked her to her feet.
“Can you tell me what you are going to do? Tell me, and I’ll help you with it. Look at your hands. You’re a designer, a genius in sketching! You can sketch jewelry as precisely as a computer. But what are you doing now? For a box, you are destroying your hands! What’s in that box that makes you so desperate?”
“Is it Mr. Mysterious’ relic? I’d like to see how valuable it is!” Tim said and then directly unwrapped the package.
The moment he saw the item in the big box, he was stunned.
In the big box was a rectangular, black urn.
“This is… Mr. Mysterious?” Tim asked in surprise.
Estelle shook her head and said, “I was abroad when Mr. Mysterious died. I don’t know whether he was buried or cremated and where his grave is.”
“You’re unaware of his burial site? Weren’t you deeply in love? How come you don’t even know where his grave is?” Tim inquired.
Estelle smiled bitterly.
She harbored the same curiosity. She yearned to visit his grave, yet circumstances barred her from doing so.
Back when she had questioned Nelson about the location of Mr. Mysterious’ grave, he responded with icy detachment, “He might have had a promising future if not for you. If you have any conscience left, let him rest in peace!”
She persistently contacted Nelson many times, but Nelson refused to talk to her.
Faced with limited options, she resorted to reaching out to Geoffrey. However, his response was far from what she had hoped for. He retorted, “It’s best if you don’t inquire about it any further. Remain overseas and refrain from coming back here.”
****
Seeing her remain silent, Tim sighed helplessly, “Just forget my question. You want to dig a hole here, right? Move over. I’ll do it for you.”
Tim took her arm and pulled her aside. Then he picked up a hard branch and began to dig the hole.
‘The urn is not Mr. Mysterious’? Then whose urn is it?’ he wondered.
‘Estelle, your father passed away many years ago and was buried in the cemetery. Your mother is alive, and your two children are both fine. Who else could it be that makes you distressed?’
Thinking about this, he turned his head and saw Estelle walk over.
Squatting down slowly, Estelle kissed the urn gently and didn’t raise her head until after a long time.
Then she murmured something.
As the wind was whistling on the top of the mountain, Tim could only vaguely hear a few words such as “Dad,” “loneliness,” “accompany,” and “star.”
With the help of the branch, Tim quickly dug a hole and then put the urn into it.
Estelle stroked the urn and sprinkled a handful of soil on it.
“Estelle,” Tim called her name gently.
Without raising her head or replying to him, Estelle focused on burying the urn and didn’t stop until it was fully covered.
“Um…” Tim looked at the flat ground and asked hesitantly, “Who… Who is it?”
Estelle didn’t answer him.
It was not that she didn’t want to answer his question, but that she didn’t know how to answer it.
The wind on the top of the mountain was getting stronger and stronger, and it soon began to rain heavily.
Tim pulled Estelle to the motorcycle, picked her up, and put her on the motorcycle seat. After that, he buckled her helmet quickly and said, “It’s raining heavily. We have to go down the mountain as soon as possible.”
“Wait a minute…”
“What are you waiting for? The mountain road is slippery on rainy days. We are at the top of the mountain. It will be dangerous if it thunders!” Tim said.
Boom!
When Tim finished his words, a lightning bolt crackled through the sky, and thunder exploded deafeningly overhead.
Regardless of Estelle’s objection, Tim directly straddled the motorcycle and sat behind her. Then he started the engine and rode down the mountain with Estelle.
The rain poured down heavily. The mountain road was steep and slippery, so Tim didn’t dare to ride the motorcycle too quickly.
They were completely soaked when they finally reached the mountain’s base and found a spot to escape the rain.
Tim glanced at Estelle and noticed she was silent, her lips pressed tightly together, and her face pale, almost colorless.
Seeing her like this, Tim felt frustrated as he grabbed her arm and said, “Estelle, can you please stop acting like this? You were perfectly fine when I saw you two days ago. Why did you change so suddenly after receiving this package? Whose Urn is it, anyway? Can you tell me his/her name?”
Estelle shook her head and replied softly, “I don’t know her name.”
“You don’t know?”
“No.”