“Hello, Mr. Queen. As soon as Jonathan stepped into the house, Catalina greeted him with a troubled look. “The children are upstairs. I have no idea what happened these two days. Mr. and Mrs. Farwell haven’t been back, and the children are in a bad mood.”
Of course, Jonathan was aware of the reason for their bad mood. He looked up at the second floor, only to feel worse. For a moment, he did not know how to break the news to them.
However, time was of the essence. He had no time to hesitate. Nodding at Catalina, Jonathan said, “Tll go upstairs and check on them.”
Catalina murmured a response in acknowledgement. Jonathan strode upstairs. At that moment, the three children were sitting in the bedroom, looking dejected. Estella cast Archie an uneasy look. “Archie, I’m scared. What happened to Mommy? Why isn’t she home yet?”
Archie knitted his brows and comforted her, “Don’t be scared. Mommy said she’s just having a fever. Besides, Daddy will take good care of her. Don’t you trust Daddy?”
A look of hesitation flashed across Estella’s and Benny’s eyes. They trusted Lucian. However, Roxanne did not look like she was having a fever. Moreover, they had not been able to contact her for the past few days.
Taking in his siblings’ worried faces, Archie pursed his lips and racked his brains for a solution. He had promised Lucian he would take good care of Benny and Estella, which included their physical and emotional health. While his mind was racing, a knock sounded on the door.
Archie got down from the bed and opened the door, only to feel dejected at the sight of the person standing there. “What’s the matter, Mr. Queen?”
Jonathan’s heart sank with worry when he saw how crestfallen the children looked. Regardless, he still feigned nonchalance and said to Archie, “I have something to tell you. Come, take a walk with me.”
Vaguely sensing it had something to do with Roxanne, Archie nodded without hesitation and walked out.
“I want to go too!”
Both Benny and Estella hopped off the bed and ran up to the door. “You two stay at home. I just need Archie to help me with something.” Jonathan said, looking troubled.
“I’ll be back soon. Stay at home, okay? What if Mommy comes back later?” Archie chimed in. Unfortunately, the other two were unconvinced.
Benny and Estella stared at them indignantly. “No! We want to go with you! What if you leave and never come back like Daddy and Mommy?”
Jonathan’s heart skipped a beat. He parted his lips, but he could say nothing to refute. Archie frowned and turned to Jonathan to seek his opinion on the matter. Meeting the three children’s pitiful gazes, Jonathan said in resignation, “All right, I’ll take all of you out.”
Hopefully Lucian’s at the research institute by the time we arrive. I really can bear to tell them the truth, let alone lie to them.
When the four of them went down the stairs, Catalina approached with a huge thermal container. “I’ve prepared some food, Mr. Queen. It’s late. Bring this over and have it with Mr. and Mrs. Farwell.”
Jonathan’s eyes grew teary. He nodded silently and accepted the container.
