On the other side, Samuel fell asleep in Dolores’ arms as they returned to the villa.
One side of his face was still red and swollen. Dolores felt a wave of distress, wanting to touch him but also afraid of causing him more pain.
She remained silent, not uttering a word, silently wiping away her tears from time to time.
Samuel had never been hurt before; this was the first time.
As they say, when a child is hurt, the mother feels the pain.
Matthew glanced at her through the rear-view mirror. He wanted to comfort her, to ease her distress, but when he opened his mouth, he found himself at a loss for words.
He had never been a parent before, and he couldn’t fully understand the depths of her emotions.
It didn’t take long before the car came to a stop in front of the villa.
Matthew stepped out and opened the door for her. Holding Samuel while getting out of the car would be inconvenient for Dolores. He reached out to take the child in his arms. “Let me hold him.”
“No, I’ll hold him myself.” Ever since Samuel was rescued, Dolores couldn’t bear to let go of him.
She clung onto him, refusing to let anyone else take him.
Matthew looked at her for a moment, unable to tolerate her demeanor. This was her child, and it was understandable that she felt hurt and loved him, but constantly blaming herself and believing it was all her fault was difficult for him to accept.
“It wasn’t your fault; you don’t need to punish yourself.” He stubbornly took Samuel into his own arms. Dolores resisted, asking, “What are you doing?”
“If you don’t want him to wake up, be quiet!”
Dolores lowered her voice and whispered, “He has a head injury, please be careful.”
She was afraid that Matthew might inadvertently hurt Samuel.
Being a big man with no experience in holding children, Matthew responded with a soft hum.
Dolores was familiar with the villa since she had lived there before. It hadn’t changed much; it was just as she remembered it.
After the events of the day, Simona was either very frightened or simply exhausted. As soon as Abbott brought her to the villa, she had fallen asleep and was still sleeping.
Coral had met Jessica and Simona once before, so when Abbott brought them, she was initially surprised but quickly grew acquainted with Jessica.
Abbott didn’t disclose the reason for their arrival, and Coral didn’t inquire. She knew that Abbott was Matthew’s right-hand man and must have been acting on Matthew’s orders.
Since seeing the two children last time, Coral had sensed their resemblance to Matthew when he was a child. In order to see them again, she often went to the supermarket, hoping to catch a glimpse of them and gather information about their mother and father.
But even if she went every day, she couldn’t meet them.
Unexpectedly, they had come to her on their own.
Coral took this opportunity to learn more about the two children.
Jessica might have guessed the purpose of this visit, but she chose not to reveal much about her daughter. She merely stated that they were her daughter’s children, avoiding any further details.
Coral couldn’t uncover anything significant.
“Why don’t you have a seat?” Coral stood up and intended to show Jessica a picture of Matthew, but just then, the front door of the villa swung open.
Matthew walked in with Samuel in his arms, and Dolores followed closely behind. As if by habit, she opened the shoe cabinet and retrieved Matthew’s slippers, placing them in front of him.
Matthew lowered his gaze and glanced at her. “You still remember.”
Dolores paused. She had only stayed at the villa for less than a month, yet she still remembered his shoes.
With a composed demeanor, she looked up and replied, “I remember everything I see.”
Jessica rose from the sofa and briefly glanced at Matthew before finally fixing her gaze on her daughter.
Coral saw them both enter, Matthew with Samuel in his arms and Dolores by his side. Her mouth fell open, and she looked at Jessica. “This is your daughter?”
Jessica nodded.
In an instant, Coral seemed to comprehend everything. She found it odd why Jessica had been evasive about the children. It must have been because her daughter gave birth to the children after a divorce, and Jessica must have felt anger towards the father of the children for leaving her daughter. Thus, she avoided discussing the matter.
In Coral’s mind, Dolores’ children were Matthew’s.
Coral reminisced about six years ago when she was pregnant.
Although they had separated initially, they had shared a room on the first night of their marriage.
Moreover, her calculations seemed to match, and the children were now around five or six years old.
The downstairs room belonged to Matthew. After Dolores left, he continued to use it but didn’t spend much time at the villa afterwards.
“I’ll take him to his room to sleep,” Matthew stated.
Dolores let out a sigh in response.
“Lola,” Jessica couldn’t contain her impatience and called out to Dolores.
Dolores stood in the hallway, hesitating to enter the house. “Let’s go outside and talk.”
“Okay.” After all, this wasn’t their own place, and there were others present.
Jessica changed her shoes at the door and followed Dolores.
The front yard of the villa was adorned with a spacious lawn covered in soft, green grass. There was a rockery nestled among the plants, with water flowing through it. Below, a pool shimmered with ornamental fish-strange-looking green fish with long tails, reminiscent of rare and valuable species.
At the front, there was a round table, four rattan chairs, and a parasol.
Dolores pulled out a chair for Jessica.
Jessica took a seat.
“What on earth is going on? Why did Dr. Herbert suddenly kidnap us, and why are you still with him? You two are divorced and no longer connected. Did Dr. Herbert discover this and become resentful, leading him to do all of this?” Jessica fired off a series of questions, expressing her thoughts.
Dolores shook her head. “No.”
She had previously told Sampson that she was willing to give their relationship another chance. But later, due to his sister’s interference, she had made it clear that they couldn’t be together. Not only was there no love between them, but his mother and sister also created insurmountable obstacles.
“Why is that?” Jessica suddenly had a realization. “Did you tell him about his mother’s inquiries?”
“No.” Dolores clenched her fists, unsure of how to reveal to Jessica what he had done to her.
It was an extremely difficult thing to disclose.
“Then why?” Jessica couldn’t fathom how a person could change so drastically. She was baffled.
During her journey to the villa, she had been pondering this question incessantly.
But she still couldn’t grasp why he had transformed in such a manner.
“Mom, you know that I don’t like him at all.” Dolores’ fists tightened, and her palms became sweaty. Only now, at this point with Sampson, was she able to reveal the truth.
She divulged to Jessica the horrifying intentions Sampson had towards her.
In shock, Jessica rose from her chair. “What?”
“How could he do such a thing?”
Dolores herself had struggled to believe it at first, but upon careful reflection, she had come to understand.
He desired her, while Maria had feelings for Matthew.
If he destroyed her, Maria would have a chance to be with Matthew.
For his sister’s happiness, he was willing to stoop to such depths.
Jessica sat back down, stunned for a long moment, then uttered, “It’s true that we can know a person for years and still not comprehend what lies in their heart.”
As the saying goes, the depths of one’s heart are truly unknowable.
“And what about you and Matthew?” Jessica asked once her emotions had settled a bit. She gazed at her daughter. “Don’t you like him?”