Chapter 206: Nathaniel Sloan Might Actually Be Miranda Lancaster’s Child

Chapter 206: Chapter 206: Nathaniel Sloan Might Actually Be Miranda Lancaster’s Child

Estelle only mentioned she was thinking about a problem, but she didn’t specify what it was.

She observed Timothy’s expression for a while, said nothing, and had him taken away. Timothy and Rose were biological siblings. Therefore, as Rose’s "biological daughter," she should be blood-related to Timothy.

But, what if she wasn’t?

Since the paternity test results with Rose had been less than ideal, she might as well try a different approach. Estelle stared at the strands of Timothy’s hair in her hand, lost in thought.

"Daddy!" Christian’s voice suddenly interrupted Estelle’s thoughts. She looked up to see Nathaniel walking briskly toward them, bringing with him a gust of crisp, cold air.

Inside a certain villa.

Old Mr. Lockwood looked at his guest, who had traveled a long way, and asked cheerfully, "Lancaster, how many years has it been?"

Old Mr. Lancaster laughed heartily in return. "I hadn’t planned on returning to Crestfall. It’s all for that boy, Theodore."

Old Mr. Lockwood’s eyes darted around before he sighed. "The reason I invited you over this time is to ask for your help, my old friend. My granddaughter seems to be suspecting a few things. Lancaster, we agreed back then that if I helped you accomplish that matter, you would let Estelle remain my biological granddaughter forever. You haven’t forgotten, have you?"

Old Mr. Lancaster was clearly reminded of the transaction from over twenty years ago. His expression grew meaningful. "It doesn’t matter. Even with suspicions, she won’t find out anything. Nathaniel has also been suspicious for so many years, but does he have any evidence?"

Old Mr. Lockwood chuckled. "Drink your tea, drink your tea."

Inwardly, he thought, "Old Mr. Lancaster is much more ruthless than I am!"

After all, Nathaniel was Old Mr. Lancaster’s... Ah, well, whatever. Who could blame him when Old Mr. Lancaster never loved his eldest daughter who had died young? In fact, to prevent the secret from being exposed, Old Mr. Lancaster had simply set a fire, burning all of Miranda’s belongings, photographs, and portraits until absolutely nothing remained.

He was someone who had met Miranda in the past. He had to admit, Miss Lancaster and her true biological son bore a striking, eighty-percent resemblance.

No wonder Old Mr. Lancaster wanted Miranda to vanish from the face of the earth completely...

Dewdrop Garden.

Nathaniel walked against the wind. It was only when he saw Estelle that his tightly knit, handsome brows finally softened.

"I had them prepare dinner." Nathaniel gently patted the heads of the three little ones. "You’ve been wronged today. You did great, Christian. Let’s go eat first."

The manager had already prepared a new private dining room. There was a classical garden inside Dewdrop Garden, and the new room was situated there. Usually, no one else was allowed to enter except for Nathaniel.

The waiter led the three kids to the private room first. Because Estelle had to see a client earlier, she was running a bit late, and Nathaniel stayed behind to accompany her. However, they spotted several luxury cars at the entrance of the manor.

Estelle was curious. Didn’t they say this place was only open to Nathaniel? Could there be other people?

Nathaniel led her down a bamboo-lined path. To their surprise, they actually ran into guests from another private room. Estelle had no intention of eavesdropping, but they were speaking so loudly that their words inadvertently drifted into her ears.

"Dewdrop Garden is truly a wonderful place. If you ask me, Mrs. Sloan is the reasonable one. She knows all these things should belong to Theodore, so she handed Dewdrop Garden over to him early on. Otherwise, we never would have known that illegitimate son, Nathaniel, had hoarded so many of Theodore’s good things!"

"Hearing the people outside calling him ’Mr. Sloan’ this and ’Mr. Sloan’ that makes me sick!"

"I saw Nathaniel’s car earlier. Could he be here too?"

"So what if he is? Our Theodore is the true, legitimate eldest young master of the Sloan family. He should feel ashamed of his own inferiority when he sees Theodore."

After they finished speaking, a middle-aged noblewoman’s voice slowly chimed in. "It’s enough that we know these things among ourselves. Don’t go spreading it outside, or people will think our Theodore lacks magnanimity.

"Besides, our Lancaster family has already buried the hatchet with the Sloan family. Back then, it was my sister’s own fault for failing to keep her husband’s heart, which gave my brother-in-law the opportunity to cheat. You can’t blame Mrs. Sloan for that. As long as Nathaniel is willing to surrender the Sloan Group and return everything that rightfully belongs to Theodore, we won’t stoop to bickering with a junior like him."

Estelle recognized this as the voice of the Second Miss Lancaster, Yvonne. She almost sneered out loud!

Mrs. Kendrick was absolutely right. Regarding Miss Lancaster’s death, the Lancasters didn’t blame the scumbag husband, nor the mistress, nor Yvonne who was originally supposed to enter the marriage alliance, nor Old Mr. Lancaster who favored his illegitimate daughter. Instead, they blamed Nathaniel.

Besides... was Nathaniel really Laura Jennings’s son? In other words, was Theodore—whom the Lancasters had gone to great lengths to prop up—definitely Miranda’s son?

Yvonne was jealous of and loathed Miranda, the legitimate heiress. Would she suddenly discover her conscience after Miranda’s death and raise Miranda’s child? Who would believe that!

"Let’s go," Nathaniel said. His tone was as calm as if he weren’t the topic of their discussion, looking entirely unfazed.

He casually raised his hand, and Luke White immediately understood. "Mr. Sloan, I will warn Ms. Jennings."

Dewdrop Garden was Nathaniel’s property. Laura claimed she was giving it to Theodore and even opened its doors wide for the Lancasters? Who gave her the audacity to do that?

Estelle pursed her lips and suddenly asked, "Nathaniel, have you never doubted your own parentage?"

Nathaniel’s footsteps came to an abrupt halt. Then, he chuckled and looked back at her. Slowly lifting his gaze, he tucked a stray strand of hair behind Estelle’s ear and said nonchalantly, "Mrs. Sloan, whatever you can figure out, I can naturally figure out as well."

Laura’s hatred and disgust toward him since childhood were completely contrary to how a mother should behave. Moreover, Laura had successfully secured her position by relying on Nathaniel, her "illegitimate son." Even if she had to fake it, she should have at least pretended to love her son. But Laura hadn’t faked it at all. She wasn’t even afraid of Ethan confronting her about it.

And then there was Old Mr. Sloan... In Estelle’s memory, Grandpa Sloan was always amiable and doted on the younger generation. Yet, when Nathaniel was young, he had tacitly allowed Laura to abuse and torment him. This meant that Ethan, and even Old Mr. Sloan, were fully aware of Laura’s actions and, to some extent, had indulged her.

The Sloan family kept insisting that marrying Laura was entirely for the child’s sake. They claimed they couldn’t bear to let the surviving illegitimate son grow up outside the family. Therefore, they were willing to offend the Lancaster family and marry the mistress into the household while Miss Lancaster’s bones were still warm.

But what was the reality? What kind of life did the child—the one they claimed they did everything for—actually live in the Sloan family? Had it not been for Iris’s strong personality and her ability to protect him, Nathaniel would likely be dead by now.

As for the Lancaster family, Old Mr. Lancaster’s first wife had passed away long ago. Miss Lancaster, Miranda, had been isolated and helpless in the family. From top to bottom, Yvonne was the one calling the shots. Old Mrs. Lancaster, the mistress who had ascended to the position of the official wife, was Yvonne’s biological mother. She hated Miranda’s existence because it prevented her own daughter from being the legitimate eldest daughter. Yvonne hated Miranda because Miranda outperformed her in every aspect. Old Mr. Lancaster hated Miranda because, after his affair, this daughter no longer remained close to him.

The Lancasters despised Miranda. How could they possibly raise Miranda’s son!

Nathaniel could tell what Estelle was thinking. He slowly shook his head and said, "Is Mrs. Sloan suspecting that I’m actually Miss Lancaster’s son?"

Estelle’s lips pressed into a tight line. Her speculation was so shocking that if she voiced it, people would probably think she was crazy. But at this moment, that was exactly what she believed in her heart.

Who would have expected Nathaniel to nod nonchalantly? "Mhm, I think so too."

Estelle’s head snapped up in shock!