Chapter 379: Miss Rhodes

Chapter 379: Chapter 379: Miss Rhodes

In summary, in the world without Arabella Donovan, both families suffered devastating losses.

Of the two brothers who lost their sisters, one was left utterly alone after losing his loved one, while the other lived forever in guilt and regret, unable to escape.

The only one who benefited was the instigator, Cassandra Lynch. It was quite disheartening when you thought about it. The good people weren’t rewarded for their kindness; instead, they were dragged into a mess, while the villain thrived, climbing to the top over their dead bodies.

Arabella Donovan stroked her chin, lost in thought. She had always wondered how someone like Cassandra Lynch could be the heroine of this little world. But now, seeing the story of the Reese family and the Sloan siblings, she suddenly realized that Cassandra’s character inadvertently fit the popular archetypes of "playing the pig to eat the tiger" and the "villainess" from a few years back.

But the kind of villainess the public generally accepted was wicked in spirit but not necessarily in deed. Instead of proactively harming people, they were better at fighting back. They were mentally resilient, always prepared to emotionally devastate everyone on equal terms, and they absolutely refused to let themselves be mistreated.

They might seem reckless, but they actually had a firm moral compass and would never target the innocent.

Cassandra Lynch, however, was not like that. The author of this little world seemed to have gone overboard, crafting a villainess who was pure evil and had lost all humanity. Consequently, everyone around her, friend or foe, met with misfortune. It was as if countless people were being sacrificed just to ensure her ascension.

’It seems this heroine’s success must come from sucking the good fortune out of everyone around her, allowing her to rise steadily. How else can you explain that the closer people are to her, the more terribly they suffer? Only the male lead—who is equally fortunate, saw her true colors long ago, and was never once fooled by her act—is clear-headed enough to keep her in check. Anyone else who gets close to her is just asking for misery.’

The moment Arabella had this thought, everyone in the Lynch Family, as well as Eloise Donovan, shuddered.

And wasn’t that the truth? The woman was a femme fatale and then some. Thank goodness they had already completely cut ties with her. Otherwise, who knows when she might have secretly plotted against them? It would have been impossible to guard against.

"The Miss Flynn you were looking for changed her name after her parents divorced. She took her mother’s surname, Sloan, and is now called Sylvia Sloan. She’s a junior at Norcapital Agricultural University, studying crop breeding."

Mrs. Reese’s eyes widened in understanding. "So that’s what happened. No wonder we couldn’t find her."

"It’s been many years. You want to find her, but she might not want to see you. My advice is to first observe her and her family from a distance. Or you could try approaching them without revealing who you are to get a sense of her impression and attitude toward you. Don’t just march up and announce your identities. That could cause unnecessary misunderstandings and make things unpleasant for everyone."

Mr. and Mrs. Reese exchanged a look and nodded. "Miss Donovan has a point. We’ll handle this with the utmost care."

Arabella Donovan glanced at Sandra Reese’s eyes. After a moment’s thought, she offered another reminder. "Sylvia Sloan has an older brother."

"I know about him." Mason Reese’s expression was complicated. He had clashed with the man before over his sister’s injury.

Looking back, it was all an embarrassing part of his past.

"He changed his name, too. He now goes by Roman Sloan. Although he’s only three years older than his sister, he was a top student who fast-tracked his way through his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate at Norcapital Medical School. Now, he’s a... very distinguished ophthalmologist."

"An ophthalmologist?" The Reese family was far more sensitive to that profession than the average person, especially Sandra Reese herself.

"Miss Donovan, are you suggesting..."

"I’m not suggesting anything."

The Reese family, their follow-up questions dying on their lips: "..."

"I just wanted to tell you all that being kind to others is being kind to yourself. If you put good karma out into the world, you never know when you might receive... an unexpected blessing."

Arabella Donovan couldn’t just come right out and tell the Reese family that Roman Sloan was the doctor who could cure Sandra Reese’s eyes.

The future was full of variables. Cassandra Lynch was on the verge of being put away, and the Reese siblings had come to their senses in time, seeing her for who she truly was and identifying their real benefactor. Their futures were now certain to avoid the disastrous path laid out in the original story.

Besides, according to the original story’s timeline, the next time the Reese family clashed with Roman Sloan was two or three years after Sylvia Sloan had been driven to her death. At present, he was just a rookie doctor. Even with his limitless potential, he might not have the skill to personally perform the surgery that would help Sandra Reese regain her sight.

Arabella Donovan’s ambiguous hint was designed to make the Reese family take notice of Roman Sloan and build up their hopes regarding his medical skills.

That way, with Sylvia Sloan’s status as their benefactor, the Reese family would be sure to treat the siblings with the utmost care and consideration.

Arabella was confident that as long as the Reeses showed genuine remorse and sincerely tried to make amends to the Sloan family, the siblings, who were good people at heart, would eventually be moved. When that time came, even if the Reeses didn’t ask, Roman Sloan—once he was confident in his abilities—would treat Sandra as he would any other patient and, as a doctor, do everything in his power to perform the surgery for her.

The members of the Reese family grew thoughtful after hearing Arabella’s words. Tactfully, they refrained from asking more questions and simply continued to thank her.

Seeing their response, Arabella’s impression of the family improved even more. It was only after she saw the Reeses off that she belatedly recalled something else.

’I almost forgot. As one of Cassandra Lynch’s staunchest supporters, Mr. Reese played a major role when she seized the Lynch Family’s assets.’

The Lynch family, who had been enjoying the drama from the sidelines: "!!!" ’How did we suddenly become the subject of the gossip? Turns out we’re the clowns here?!’

’Speaking of which, that brings me to another mysterious figure.’

A mysterious figure? What mysterious figure? Could it be that besides Cassandra Lynch and her so-called boyfriend, there was another mastermind behind their family’s downfall?

At this thought, the members of the Lynch Family shuddered in unison.

But they quickly calmed down. So what if there was a mastermind? They had their precious Serena, their ultimate cheat code. As long as they knew who it was, they could prepare. Whatever plots and schemes were coming, they would be ready!

Arabella, completely unaware that such high hopes were being placed on her, did not disappoint. She soon revealed the answer.

’The Reese Family was able to help Cassandra Lynch for two reasons. One, their family background is just as powerful as the Lynch Family’s. But the other, more important reason, was that the poor Miss Reese had a bestie she told everything to: Miss Rhodes.’

Miss Rhodes? As in, Caspian’s family? The Lynches were aghast. As if on cue, they all turned to look at Caspian Rhodes, who stood not far away.

The Donovans, who had at some point flocked to Arabella’s side to guard her from a certain someone as if he were a thief, also shot him a complicated look, their eyes full of rejection and disdain.

Caspian Rhodes, who felt like he had just been hit by a stray bullet: "..."