Chapter 392

Chapter 392

Sterling's voice rang out, low and heavy.

"She called me earlier." He said. "On the phone, I heard a man's voice."

Matthew didn't think much of it. "Maybe it was someone from Mrs. Spencer's relatives' household."

With Maria there, she wouldn't directly place Willow in danger.

Sterling said, "I don't think so."

Matthew looked at Sterling. "I understand your concern, but Mrs. Spencer is even more worried about Willow than you are. She'll take good care of her."

Sterling's expression was cold and grim, clearly not agreeing with his view. "Where are they?"

Matthew frowned. "If you're not at ease, I can call and check."

Sterling said nothing, accepting his proposal.

So Matthew immediately took out his phone and called Maria.

She answered quickly.

"Matthew, what is it?" Maria's voice came through the phone.

Her tone sounded completely normal.

Matthew relaxed slightly, glanced at the silent Sterling, and asked Maria, "Nothing much. How are you and Willow doing lately?"

Maria said, "We're doing well. We're staying with relatives. You don't need to worry."

Matthew had the call on speaker, so Maria's voice also reached Sterling's ears.

Hearing Maria say this, Sterling's expression still didn't improve.

Matthew thought for a moment and added, "What about Willow? Wasn't her graduate school interview today? I wanted to ask how it went."

The other end was silent for a few seconds.

A moment later, Willow's voice came through. "Matthew."

Matthew asked, "It was today, right? How did it feel?"

Willow said, "Should be fine."

Matthew acknowledged this and glanced again at Sterling.

Sterling was staring intently at the phone in his hand, as if he could see Willow through it.

"Nothing unusual lately?" Matthew confirmed again.

Willow didn't want him to worry and only said, "Everything's good. My great-aunt takes very good care of me."

"Great-aunt?" Matthew was just learning who they were living with. "Is there anyone else?"

"Just the three of us," Willow said.

Matthew frowned.

Just the three of them, so where had the male voice Sterling heard come from?

"Does your great-aunt have other family members?" He asked.

Willow's voice sounded quite ordinary. "Yes, she has two sons and a grandson who come to visit occasionally."

Matthew understood. What Sterling heard must have been the voice of Willow's great-aunt's family members.

Willow's tone didn't sound unusual, so he didn't think much of it, feeling that Sterling was making a mountain out of a molehill.

"As long as everything's fine." He ended the call briefly. "If you need anything, call me. I also know people there who can help you."

Willow agreed.

After hanging up, Matthew and Sterling both looked away from the phone.

The two men made eye contact.

Matthew said, "Can Mr. Lancaster rest easy now?"

Sterling asked the same question. "Where are they now?"

Matthew sighed helplessly. "Since Willow has already contacted you on her own, if she wants you to know, she'll find a way to tell you."

"Matthew." Sterling's expression was displeased. "If it were Elaine who had disappeared, could you just keep waiting?"

Matthew fell silent.

Sterling said coldly, "I've never commented on what's between you and Elaine because I believe we're all adults capable of handling our own relationships. Between Willow and me, we don't need others interfering either."

Maria was an elder Willow respected. Sterling accepted her displaced anger.

But Matthew's position didn't give him the right to interfere this much.

Sterling studied Matthew's expression, and seeing him waver, added, "You know very well that Willow has feelings for me. If you truly care about her, shouldn't you respect her wishes?"

Matthew remained silent.

Finally, Sterling slowly added another line. "Moreover, she's currently carrying my child. If something happens to them, Mr. Scott, can you take responsibility for that?"

At the mention of the child in Willow's belly, Matthew's expression finally cracked.

A lawyer from the firm returned from outside.

Seeing Matthew, the lawyer came over to greet him. "Mr. Scott."

Then he noticed the person opposite Matthew. "Is this... Mr. Lancaster?"

Neither of them responded.

The lawyer belatedly sensed the subtle atmosphere between them and laughed awkwardly. "Did I interrupt something? Sorry, um... I'll head inside."

With that, he turned and escaped into the law firm.

Only then did Matthew speak slowly. "I only know that Mrs. Spencer took her to some obscure small county town."

He had ultimately been convinced by Sterling.

Sterling also withdrew his hostility. "Where?"

Matthew gave him a place name. "As for the specific address, I don't know. My people only took them to the local bus station."

Sterling's eyes darkened again, a hint of displeasure showing in his gaze.

He didn't speak, but Matthew seemed to already hear his question—if he didn't even know their specific address, how could Matthew claim to be able to help them?

"This was Mrs. Spencer's intention. She probably guessed you would come looking for me." Matthew explained.

Sterling didn't give him a pleasant look. "Elaine is working hard, raising a child alone. You should go see her more often when you have time."

Leaving those words behind, Sterling turned and got in his car to leave.

Matthew gave a bitter smile, then quickly adjusted his mood and called Elaine.

The work that had piled up during his illness was too much. After being discharged, he had been accompanying Maria to care for Willow, and he had indeed neglected Elaine.

After returning, Sterling immediately had Blake begin an investigation.

To find Willow as quickly as possible, Sterling also notified Henry, mobilizing the Brown family's resources to search together.

The county town Matthew mentioned was remote and quite underdeveloped. Trying to find someone in such a place was like finding a needle in a haystack.

Willow knew nothing of what was happening in Majestic City.

Whether or not Maria had sensed something, after that day, she had been keeping an eye out for apartments.

Within a couple of days, she had found a suitable complex, almost on the opposite end of the county from Brooke's place.

After discussing it with Willow, they quickly decided on it.

Maria told Brooke about moving that very day.

"Everything's fine. Why the sudden move?" Brooke still couldn't let go of what happened that day and asked Willow, "Did Billy bully you that day?"

Willow only said, "My grandmother and I always planned to find a place once my injury healed. We can't keep troubling you."

Brooke felt somewhat sad.

She had finally had company, and now they were leaving again. She felt a bit unaccustomed to it all at once.

Willow smiled. "The county is only so big. It's just a forty-minute bus ride. Grandma and I will come visit you often."

Brooke sighed softly. "Then let me see you off."