Chapter 287: Face-slapping Thea York and Laura Jennings

Chapter 287: Chapter 287: Face-slapping Thea York and Laura Jennings

So... the savior he had been searching for all this time was Estelle? Had it been her all along?

Nathaniel Sloan floated above the dreamscape, watching the young girl care for his unconscious self on the hospital bed. An indeterminate amount of time passed before he saw the girl slowly turn around...

"Nathaniel!" Zane Grant suddenly exclaimed.

Nathaniel’s sharp eyes snapped open, only to be met with the pale ceiling of a hospital room.

Zane stepped forward. "You’re awake. Don’t move, let me give you a checkup."

Nathaniel shielded his eyes from the harsh overhead light. Once he adjusted, he glanced at the time—it was one o’clock in the afternoon. "How long was I unconscious?"

Zane sighed. "Three days. The poison in your system had already been suppressed, but for some unknown reason, it flared up again. I’ve prepared your medication using the old formula."

"Where is Estelle?" Nathaniel asked.

Zane’s body visibly stiffened. He averted his gaze and forced a casual tone to change the subject. "Are you hungry? You’ve been on IV nutrients for the past three days..."

"Where is Estelle?"

Zane braced himself. "Luke White had Ms. Riddle keep some porridge simmering for you. You should eat a little."

Nathaniel’s gaze darkened as he repeated the exact same question. "Where is Estelle?"

Zane fell silent. He truly didn’t know what to say. He opened his mouth several times to speak, but upon meeting Nathaniel’s eyes, he closed it again. Nathaniel’s eyes were brimming with an unspoken sorrow. Afraid of triggering an emotional outburst, Zane didn’t dare utter a word.

However, Nathaniel’s gaze remained resolute. "Tell me."

"Estelle..." Zane squeezed his eyes shut. "Nathaniel, you were alone when we found you. Luke brought his men to scour the entire area, but there was no sign of her."

Nathaniel’s hands clenched into tight fists.

"But don’t worry, there were no bloodstains in the vicinity. She must have been fine at the time. Luke has already deployed more men to search for her!"

Nathaniel slowly closed his eyes. The agonizing spasms in his chest were nearly unbearable.

Five years ago, Estelle Lockwood had left him just like this. And this time, she vanished without a goodbye once again. It felt as if his entire world had gone dark. His moon was gone.

But now was not the time to wallow in despair.

The man’s eyes hardened with fierce resolve. "What’s the situation outside right now? How are Christian and the others?"

"Luke and I have covered up your injury and Estelle’s disappearance," Zane hurriedly replied. "No one in the outside world knows a thing. The three kids are... staying with Old Mrs. Sloan."

Zane recalled his visit to Imperial Crest that night. Afraid the children would worry, he had consulted Old Mrs. Sloan and decided to conceal the truth for the time being. They had to keep it a secret from the children, the public, and the rest of the Sloans.

When Zane arrived at Imperial Crest, he told the children that Nathaniel and Estelle had to leave on an urgent business trip and would be sending them to Old Mrs. Sloan’s estate for a few days. He originally thought the three perceptive kids would object, refuse to go, or spot the gaping holes in his lie.

Yet Christian had simply stared at him quietly before agreeing without a fuss. "I understand, Uncle Grant."

Still, that calm, piercing look was enough to send an inexplicable shiver down Zane’s spine.

Had the three little ones figured it out?

"Nathaniel, who could have abducted Estelle?" Zane asked, steering the conversation back to the present.

Nathaniel coldly uttered a single name. "Theodore Lancaster."

"Theodore Lancaster..." Before Zane could say another word, a sudden commotion erupted outside the door.

"Mrs. Sloan, Miss York, you can’t go in there! The patient is resting. Mr. Sloan really isn’t here..."

"There’s another patient in this room! Mrs. Sloan, if you barge in like this, we’ll have to call the police!"

"Mrs. Sloan, no! You can’t go in!"

The frantic nurse chased after the two women, but Thea York shoved her aside as Laura Jennings pushed the door wide open.

Zane’s expression instantly darkened.

Upon seeing Nathaniel, Laura rolled her eyes and immediately unleashed a torrent of abuse on the nurse behind her. "What is wrong with you? You’re lying through your teeth! Nathaniel is right here, yet you tried to trick me into thinking he wasn’t? Well, aren’t you something! Are you deliberately trying to drive a wedge between Nathaniel and me?"

The nurse covered her face, anxiously trying to explain. "N-no, I wasn’t..."

Laura planted her hands on her hips. "No? Then what did you mean? Are you trying to say that Nathaniel deliberately shut me out? That he purposefully hid his hospitalization from me? That he doesn’t trust his own biological mother?!"

The young nurse was terrified, her legs nearly giving out as tears streamed down her face. "I didn’t..."

Laura scoffed coldly. "Still trying to deny it? Just you wait. I’m going to have the hospital director fire—"

"Ms. Jennings, this has nothing to do with her." Nathaniel interrupted her with a flat tone, his gaze icy. "It was my order."

Did Laura really think he couldn’t see right through her passive-aggressive accusations?

Laura hadn’t expected Nathaniel to be so blunt. The words died in her throat, leaving her stammering, "You... you..."

However, she quickly pivoted, pushing Thea York forward.

"Nathaniel, Thea was so terribly worried when she heard you were hurt! See? She insisted on coming to take care of you. Moved by her sincerity, I brought her straight here!

"You don’t have anyone around to tend to your daily needs. Thea is such a gentle, meticulous girl. Having her look after you puts my mind at ease!"

As she spoke, Laura shot Thea a knowing look. Thea bit her lower lip and stepped forward, looking every bit the shy, bashful maiden. "Nathaniel..."

"Miss York found out about my injury and came specifically to take care of me?" A cold sneer curled Nathaniel’s lips.

Thea saw this as the perfect opportunity. If she stayed by Nathaniel’s side as his personal caretaker, and the lines began to blur between them, wouldn’t she finally have what she wanted?

Before she could finish the thought, Nathaniel’s voice turned freezing cold. "However, I’m extremely curious. My hospitalization has been kept strictly confidential. The public knows absolutely nothing about it—" The man slowly raised his gaze, enunciating every word. "So tell me, Miss York, how exactly did you find out?"

Zane helped the terrified nurse up and gestured for her to leave before letting out a dry chuckle of his own.

"He’s right. Knowing the massive fallout if news of Nathaniel’s injury leaked, Luke and I locked down all information. We ordered the hospital staff to maintain absolute secrecy. That’s why the nurse insisted Nathaniel wasn’t here.

"Even his own children and the company’s top executives have no idea he’s hospitalized. How is it that Miss York is so well-informed?"

Nathaniel offered a calm hum of agreement. "I’ve been trying to find the mastermind behind the attack. Since the news of my accident was never made public, anyone who knows about it is highly likely to be the culprit."

He fixed a tepid yet suffocatingly oppressive gaze on Thea. "Miss York, how on earth did you find out? Or are you, in fact, the mastermind behind it all?"

The sheer weight of his accusation shocked the entire room into a dead silence.

Thea’s pupils dilated in terror as a bone-chilling cold shot up from the soles of her feet. She instinctively looked toward Laura. "It wasn’t me! I didn’t know anything about it at first!"

"Is that so?" Nathaniel asked calmly. "Then tell me, Miss York, who broke the news to you?"