“What?!” Estelle was stunned.
“Just recently, it struck me that not long after I woke up from my coma three years ago, I received compensation from the airline. It must have been compensation for the puppy’s demise. The cargo compartment can be dark, with fluctuating temperatures and extended travel durations. Maybe the puppy couldn’t adapt to such conditions and the strain of travel,” Cristofer explained.
Estelle bit her lower lip tightly, closing her eyes as a pang of heartache filled her heart.
“Estelle,” Cristofer called out, his face contorted with sorrow. “Our Christina must be lonely on top of Mount Cloud. I want to bring her back.”
Slowly opening her eyes, Estelle asked with tears shimmering in them, “Where do you intend to place her ashes?”
“I’d like to lay her to rest in the Hans Residence garden so we can visit her whenever we want,” Cristofer suggested.
Estelle remained silent, and Cristofer remembered something, adding, “I apologize. I forgot you wouldn’t be residing at the Hans Residence any longer. It’s time we stopped putting on a facade for Grandpa.”
However, Estelle still didn’t respond, and her heart was weighed down. Even though she no longer harbored resentment toward Cristofer, she couldn’t instantly forgive him for the anguish and despair he had inflicted upon her in the past. At least, not yet. Now that she knew he was Mr. Mysterious, she was torn between severing all ties with him and returning to his side.
Cristofer peered into her eyes, detecting her inner turmoil. After a while, he broke the silence, saying, “Mr. Mysterious is just my alternate persona. You can consider him as if he never existed…”
“No,” Estelle interjected firmly. “Um… Everything I’ve learned in these past two days is overwhelming. I need some time to accept them.”
“Okay,” Cristofer acknowledged with a nod.
“I’m heading out now. My mother is at the Hans Residence. We didn’t return home last night, and Grandpa, Uncle Luke, and she must be very concerned about us. I need to return and assure them we’re safe. I’ll call Vincent and have him look after you.”
Cristofer nodded again, saying, “Okay.”
Estelle’s lips pressed into a thin line, hesitated briefly before leaving from the ward without looking back. Once outside the hospital, she hailed a taxi. However, just as she was about to open the taxi door, an enormous hand suddenly covered her mouth from behind.
****
Meanwhile, in the ward, Cristofer heard a knock at the door. “Please come in,” he said.
“Dad!” A child’s voice called out from the doorway, and then Vincent entered the room, pushing Christina in a wheelchair.
“Mr. Hans, Christina insisted on coming to see you and Mrs. Hans. I had no choice but to bring her here,” Vincent explained with a helpless smile.
Cristofer greeted Christina with a warm smile as he gently held her small hand.
“Dad, it hurts,” Christina whimpered, her eyes starting to well up with tears.
“You should lie down on the bed and rest, sweetheart. I’ll ask Vincent to take you back to your room,” Cristofer suggested.
“No, Dad, please don’t send me away. I came to tell you the secret I promised after the surgery,” Christina pleaded, her eyes earnest.
After saying that, Christina tried to climb onto Cristofer’s hospital bed, accidentally causing him a sharp pain in his left arm. Cristofer winced and furrowed his brow.
Vincent quickly rushed over, trying to guide Christina back into her wheelchair. “Christina, come here…” Before he could finish his sentence, Cristofer subtly shook his head at him, signaling him to wait outside.
Vincent, concerned but obedient to Cristofer’s order, hesitated for a moment before leaving the room as instructed.
Once Vincent had exited the ward, Cristofer turned his attention back to Christina. Despite the pain coursing through his body, he made space for her to lie down on the bed comfortably.
“What’s the secret you want to tell me?” Cristofer asked gently.
Christina drew near to Cristofer and whispered in his ear, “I want to tell you that I know you’re not my real father.”
Cristofer’s smile faded when he heard these words.
With a pale face, Christina looked earnestly at Cristofer and said, “But I like you. I want you to be my Dad.”
Hearing her heartfelt confession, Cristofer couldn’t help but smile and ask, “Why do you like me?”
“Because you are good to Mom. I like anyone who is good to Mom and loves her,” Christina explained with sincerity in her eyes.
“I see.” Cristofer nodded in understanding.
“Dad, there are also many other men that treated Mom nicely, like Uncle Derrick. But the last time he treated us to a meal, I could tell that he doesn’t really like Mom, so I don’t want him to be my Dad,” Christina said with a serious expression.
Nodding seriously, Cristofer thought, ‘Sure enough, Dr. Carrey has an ulterior motive for getting close to Estelle.’
Christina continued, “When we were abroad, a friend of Mom called Uncle Eric was also good to her. Yohan said he was a good man.”
“What do you think of him?” Cristofer asked.
“I also think Uncle Eric is a good man,” Christina answered.
“Then why don’t you want him to be your Dad?”
“Because Mom has no feelings for him and just takes him as her friend,” Christina said with a smile. “Hee hee. Mom only likes you.”
Raising his eyebrows, Cristofer asked, “How did you know that? You had never seen me when you were abroad.”
“Mom has a small box with a blue plaid tie in it. One day, the small box accidentally fell to the ground, and the blue tie got dirty. Mom was so sad that she even cried. At that time, I decided that I would grow up quickly and buy the same one for Mom in the future. Dad, you are Mom’s husband. That tie must be yours.”
‘A blue plaid tie… It’s the tie Estelle bought for me before!’ Thinking about this, Cristofer was in a good mood and caressed Christina’s head. Using his hand as a comb, Cristofer gently combed her hair with his fingers as he said, “Christina, you love your Mom very much, right?”
“Yes. I love Mom most!”
“Good girl,” Cristofer was gratified, and a wide smile appeared on his lips.
“Dad, I want to tell you another secret.”
“What is it?”
“Mom is not my real mother…”
Hearing this, Cristofer frowned slightly and held Christina in his arms. “Who told you that? Don’t believe such nonsense.”
Shaking her head, Christina nestled against him and rubbed her head against him, saying, “It’s not nonsense, I know I was adopted by Mom.”
“Christina…”
“Why did my own parents abandon me? Is it because I was seriously ill, and they thought I couldn’t be cured that they threw me away?” Christina asked.