Chapter 158: From Today On, I Will Be Myself Again

Chapter 158: Chapter 158: From Today On, I Will Be Myself Again

Estelle Lockwood asked casually, "So, President Lockwood and Ms. Lowell, you want me to follow you two back to the Lockwood home?"

For some reason, Austin Lockwood detected a hint of terror in Estelle’s smile. He shuddered subconsciously, but then reminded himself that the person in front of him was just his daughter. There was nothing to be afraid of.

Austin put on a hypocritical front. "Yes, Estelle. After all, the Lockwood home is your home."

Estelle turned her head with a smile. "And is Ms. Lowell willing?"

Rose Lowell thought to herself that of course she was not willing. She hated Estelle to the core. It was all because of her that her precious Noelle had been exposed as a fake heiress. With Noelle still at the police station, there was no way she would willingly welcome Estelle back. If Estelle wanted to be the Lockwood heiress, she was dreaming!

But Austin pinched her arm hard and immediately smiled. "Of course your mother is willing. Rose, isn’t that right?"

Left with no choice, Rose could only swallow her anger and force a stammering, awkward smile. "Y-Yes, Estelle. It’s good that you’re coming back. We’ve always kept your room ready for you!"

Austin looked at Estelle with a face full of anticipation. Right now, no matter what, they had to mitigate the impact of public opinion on the Lockwood Group. If the Lockwood family didn’t make a statement soon, things would only get worse. But if Estelle returned to the Lockwood home, they could claim this was just a family matter! They could say that their biological daughter had forgiven them, so what right did outsiders have to judge?

Estelle, however, broke into a sudden smile. "As a daughter, I’d like to go back to the Lockwood home with you, too. It’s just a pity that what happened earlier truly broke my heart... President Lockwood, how about this? Why don’t you show me your sincerity?"

Austin almost shattered his teeth from gritting them so hard! He bit the bullet and said, "Sincerity. Of course we have sincerity. Estelle, you are our biological daughter. I will hand the inheritance rights... the inheritance rights over to you.

"From now on, you will be the heir to the Lockwood Group. We’ll announce your true identity to the world!"

Rose immediately wanted to scream, but Austin clamped his hand tightly over her mouth.

Estelle gave the couple a half-smile. After a long while, she nodded slowly. "Then, President Lockwood, I’ll be watching your performance... I don’t have much patience, and I can’t wait too long."

"Of course, of course."

This ’death anniversary’ finally came to an end with Noelle Lockwood and Laura Jennings being taken away in a police car, and Estelle’s grand return. The reporters were asked to leave. Austin and Rose, likely feeling humiliated, hurried away while hiding their faces. For a moment, the scene fell completely silent.

Estelle glanced at her phone. The news, Weibo, and every other platform were flooded with reports about the incident. Almost everyone now knew that the famous designer and international psychologist, Yara Lockwood, was actually Estelle.

Nathaniel Sloan stood beside her, his tone unimaginably gentle. "Now that you no longer need to hide your identity, do you want to change your name back?"

Estelle raised an eyebrow and spoke as a matter of fact. "Of course. Starting today, I’m going back to being myself." Her name was Estelle. It was the name given to her by the grandfather who had adopted her, and it hadn’t changed even after she returned to the Lockwood family. But because of that fire five years ago, she had been forced to hide her true name. Now, she could finally use it again.

Nathaniel’s throat felt as if something was blocking it. Overwhelmed by a bitter ache, he parted his lips. He wanted to tell her that it was great she could be Estelle again. From now on, whether it was getting revenge or repaying gratitude, he would be by her side through it all. But for some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to say the words. Perhaps it was because he owed her too much. In that moment, Nathaniel didn’t even dare to take a step forward.

Estelle leaned down and picked up the ’suicide note’ that had fallen to the ground. "Rose must have forged this suicide note very covertly. How did you find those witnesses?"

Nathaniel lowered his eyes, concealing his emotions. "I investigated everyone in the hospital and eventually found that these specific individuals had become rich overnight."

Amused by the phrase ’rich overnight,’ Estelle let out a light laugh and said casually, "Ah... Then why did Mr. Sloan only think of this now?"

Nathaniel’s fingertips twitched slightly. He didn’t want to make any excuses. It was truly a massive mistake on his part not to realize there was a problem with the suicide note. To bring up that video now would feel like he was just trying to justify himself.

However, Luke White couldn’t help but speak up. "Miss Lockwood... Madam, Mr. Sloan was too heartbroken back then. The video you left behind made him unable to face reality for a long time. Later, he also suspected you were still alive and searched for you, but..."

"What video?" Estelle asked in surprise.

"The one you sent to Mr. Sloan before you left..." Luke replied instinctively.

"Luke, step down," Nathaniel suddenly realized something was wrong and interrupted sharply.

Estelle paused for a couple of seconds. "What video can’t I see?"

Nathaniel remained composed. "At the time, the Lockwood family claimed... that you had lost the will to live. I drowned myself in grief over your death and was depressed for a while.

"In the suicide note the Lockwood family gave me, it used your tone to accuse me of not caring about you, not cherishing you. It said you felt life was hopeless and that you couldn’t go on."

Estelle frowned deeply. "The Lockwood family said that, and you just believed it? Nathaniel Sloan, what gave you the right to think so little of me? Why would you believe I’d seek death over a man?"

She only wanted to leave Nathaniel; she had never once considered giving up her life. Calling Nathaniel to ask for a divorce had indeed been triggered by Noelle, but not for a single moment did she want to die. She had been abandoned as a child, and her grandfather had taken her in, painstakingly raising her. Her life was incredibly important to some people. If her grandfather knew she had died over a man, he would definitely be heartbroken. Therefore, she would never throw her life away for anyone.

Yet Nathaniel actually believed she would voluntarily give up her life.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Estelle frowned, got into the car, and slammed the door shut with a loud BAM. Her voice was icy. "It seems Mr. Sloan still doesn’t know me well enough. I’m a person who clings to life and fears death. You think I’d die for you? Not even in the next lifetime."

As Nathaniel watched the car speed off, leaving behind a trail of dust, his gaze burned intensely. A suspicion began to form in his mind.

After returning to Imperial Crest, he went straight to his study, pulled up the video from five years ago, and sat in front of his computer. He had previously consulted video authentication agencies. The footage hadn’t been edited or synthesized. The ’Estelle Lockwood’ in the video genuinely had her face, ruling out any post-production manipulation. The only possibility was that when the video was recorded, the woman in it had already undergone plastic surgery to look exactly like Estelle.

But what was the point? At that time, besides the identity of Mrs. Sloan, what else did Estelle have that was worth coveting? Was it really worth someone deliberately getting plastic surgery to look like her? This video had caused them to miss out on five whole years...

BEEP BEEP BEEP...

Right as he was lost in thought, Nathaniel’s phone rang. The man gave it a casual glance and immediately raised an eyebrow.

The message was from a good friend he had met in the USA. Back when he was searching for Estelle’s whereabouts, he had traveled to quite a few places. While in the USA, he had lent a helping hand to someone in passing. After hearing about her difficulties, they exchanged contact information. At the time, Nathaniel hadn’t wanted to reveal his real name, so he casually claimed his surname was Lynch.

A few months ago, in her last message, she mentioned she was returning to their home country to handle a matter. And now, she was sending a message...

[Dear Mr. Lynch, I have good news for you. My task has been successfully completed.]

Upon returning to her room, Estelle originally wanted to rest but couldn’t fall asleep no matter how hard she tried. The three little ones obediently refrained from disturbing her, wanting to give her time to calm down. Yet, as everything that had happened rushed into her mind, Estelle found herself feeling inexplicably frustrated. She was desperate to talk to someone about it.

Suddenly, Estelle thought of a certain Mr. Lynch who had helped her back in the USA.