Chapter 285 Caspian's Mom
Harriet followed Caspian to the second floor, where Mason was lying in bed resting.
She went over to treathim.
As soon as she finished, Caspian knocked and came in. "Ms. Getty, in order to cure my grandfather as quickly as possible, I'm afraid you'll need to stay here."
Harriet turned to look at Tristan. "What do you think?"
"I'll go with whatever you decide."
"Then let's stay." Harriet thought for two seconds before making her decision. "I'll focus on the treatment and try to get back to Emberfall as soon as possible."
"Okay."
Caspian led them through a garden to another villa. "This is where I live. I heard Mr. Lancaster prefers quiet,and not many people come here, so it's perfect. Ms. Getty, there's one more thing I'd like to ask for your help with."
"Let's hear it."
"Please come with me."
Caspian took them up to the third floor in an elevator.
Behind a full glass wall, a woman in a white dresssaton the floor, holding a doll in her arms.
"Her name is Sloane Visconti. She's my mother." Caspian looked at Sloane behind the glass. "After my sister went missing, she and my father searched for herdesperately.Three months later, a car accident took my father's life."
"It was pouring rain that day. My parents heard there was news about my sister and rushed out into the storm. They got into an accident on the way."
"My father saved my mother with his life, but he didn't make it. From that day on, my mother lost her mind."
For some reason, Harriet felt a sudden, sharp pain in her heart.
She thought it might be because she was also a mother and could understand the pain of losing a child, so she could relate.
"Ms. Getty,my grandfather actually wanted to stay in Emberfall,but I begged him to come back and bring you here." Caspian turned to Harriet."I want to ask you to treat my mother."
"That's why I poisoned your tea that day—first, to weed out untrustworthy people around me, and second, to test your abilities."
"I believethat with Ms. Getty's medical skills, you can help my mother."
Harriet collected herself and asked, "What's her current condition? Can she take care of herself?"
"She can eat and use the bathroom by herself, but she's not in her right mind. She holds that doll all day thinking it's my sister, and needs someone to look after her constantly."
"Mr. Romanov, your mother's condition is mental illness caused by trauma. This isn't my area of expertise."
"Don't worry, I'm not getting my hopes up too much. I just want to try."
"Do you think it's necessary?" Harriet methis eyes. "Even if she's cured, do you think she can accept the truth that her husband and daughter are gone? Have you considered that maybe living in her confused world is easier for her?"
"Should I really just let her stay like this for the rest of her life?" Caspian paused. "Maybe she should be brought back to reality and told that her beloved daughter,Della, has been found? After all, that's what weighs on her mind. Even though Lark is dead, knowing the truthis better than not knowing whethershe's alive or dead, right?"
"If you've decided, I'm willing to give it a try," Harriet said. "But you need to understand, treating her isn't part of our deal."
"I understand. This is a separate favor I'm asking. I'm already very grateful that you're willing to help."
"Okay." Harriet glancedat the electronic lock nearby. "Open the door. I'll go in and take a look."
"Thank you."
As Caspian opened the door, he said, "My mother is afraid of strangers. Usually, only the servants who care for her and I come here, to avoid upsetting her. When you approach her, please be mindful of her emotions."
"Okay."
Harriet followed Caspian into the large, luxurious room.
It had once been a nursery.The glass wall was probably added later to watch over Sloane.
Sloane wore a white housedress, her hair falling loosely around her shoulders.Though her face was pale, it couldn't hide her beauty.
Despite being middle-aged, aside from the fine lines at the corners of her eyes, there was littlesign of aging or weariness.
She held the doll, lost in her own world, talking to herself. "Baby, be good... I'll hold you while you sleep... Baby, be good... I'll always be with you..."
"Mom." Caspian walked up first and crouched in front of Sloane. "It's Caspian."
Sloane looked at him, but her expression didn’t change—her eyes remained blank and dazed.
Shesoon noticed someone else nearby and turned to look. When she saw Tristan, she trembled violently and backed away in fear.
"Mom!" Caspian quickly held her to comfort her. "This is a guest in our home. You don't need to be afraid. He won't hurt you."
Sloane curled up in Caspian's arms, shaking.
Harriet stepped forward and said tentatively, "Hello, Mrs. Romanov. My name is Harriet. May I sit with you?"
Sloane slowly lifted her head, and the moment she saw Harriet, she froze.
"Baby..." Sloane murmured in a daze, then suddenly pushed Caspian away, threw down the doll she was holding, scrambled to her feet, and threw her arms around Harriet. "Baby! Don't be afraid! I'm here! I'll protect you!"
Harriet froze.
Caspian looked at the doll on the floor in disbelief, completely stunned.
Harriet came to her senses and gently patted Sloane's back to comfort her. "It's okay. Let's go sit over there, okay?"
Sloane held her tight and wouldn't let go. "Baby, I won't let you go! I'll never lose you again!"
"Okay, let’s go over there," Harriet said softly.
Harriet helped Sloane onto the sofa and held her hand to examine her.
Caspian picked up the doll from the floor and looked at the two on the sofa. "Ms. Getty, my mother treasures her doll. She has to hold it twenty-four hours a day."
"This doll has long been discontinued. I bought the brand to keep producing it. When the doll gets old, I wait until she's asleep and replace it with a new one."
"Today is the first time she's ever thrown down this doll."
Harriet focused on her examination and didn’t respond.
"Mrs. Romanov's body is relatively healthy, just a bit malnourished."
"She's never had much of an appetite. She only eats a few bites, and the servants can't get her to eat more. She only eats more when I feed her." Caspian looked at Sloane with heartache. "I'm busy with work and can't be in two places at once. I really don't have a way to look after her all the time."
"Let's work on her health for now.As for treatment, I need time to think it through."
"Okay.Thank you for your trouble."
Harriet stood up to leave, but Sloane grabbed her arm tightly.
She looked at Harriet with panic. "Baby! Don't go! Don't leave me!"
Harriet's heart ached. She said gently, "Mrs. Romanov, I'm not leaving. I'm just going downstairs."
Sloane gripped her eventighter. "No, there are bad people outside! Don't go out! I'll protect you! We won't go out!"
Harriet sat back down and said, "But I'm hungry now. I need to eat. Babies can't grow if they don't eat, right?"
Sloane seemed to think seriously, then finally nodded.
"So I'll go downstairs to eat, and I’ll come back to keep you company later, okay?"
"No!" Sloane said urgently. "I'll go with you! I need to protect you!"
Harriet looked at Caspian. "She can go downstairs, right?"
"Of course!" Caspian said immediately. "But in all these decades, she's never taken a single step out of this room!"
Harriet helped Sloane to her feet. "Let's go then."
"Okay!" Sloane put her arms around Harriet, keeping her close, and walked forward carefully, muttering to herself, "Have to be careful... there are bad people outside... can't let them hurt my baby..."
When they reached the door, Sloane suddenly stopped, anxiously hugging Harriet tight. "We can't go! It's dangerous outside! Baby can't go!"
"It's okay." Harriet gently patted her back. "I'll protect you too. Don't be afraid, okay?"
Sloane hesitated for a moment, then finally took a step forward.
Caspian was completely stunned. He quickly went downstairs first and had the servants leave to avoid frightening her.
Harriet brought Sloane to the first-floor living room, her hand held firmly in Sloane's.
She felt the warmth of Sloane's palm, and a strange feeling welled up inside her—hard to describe, but warm and subtle.
"Mr. Lancaster, Ms. Getty, I've called for a chef to make lunch. Do either of you have any dietary restrictions?"
"That won't be necessary." Tristan rarely spoke up. "From the looks of it, we won't be staying here just a day or two. I'll bring my own chef. Mr. Romanov shouldn't mind, right?"
"Of course not. I was actually worried about not being a good host. Please make yourselves at home and let me know if you need anything."
"That's good then."
The chef Tristan arranged on short notice couldn't arrive that quickly, so Harriet simply cooked lunch herself.
Wherever Harriet went, Sloane followed, constantly circling around her in the kitchen.
Harriet made a few simple dishes. Seeing that Caspian was still there, she felt bad not inviting him to eat. "Mr. Romanov, would you like to join us?"
"Thank you," Caspian said, "I'll feed my mother first."
Caspian served some food and fed it to Sloane with a spoon.
Sloane ate two bites, then refused to open her mouth again.
Harriet put down her knife and fork. "How about I give it a try?"
"Okay."
Harriet took the bowl and fed Sloane. Unexpectedly, Sloane smiled brightly at Harriet and opened her mouth right away.
Before long, Sloane had finished the entire bowl of food.
Caspian watched Harriet wiping Sloane's mouth, his eyes growing deeper.
After lunch, Harriet took Sloane back to her room and sat by the bed to help her take a nap.
Sloane held her hand. "Baby, lie down and sleep."
"I'm not tired. You sleep first. I'll stay here with you."
"Baby, when I fall asleep, you absolutely can't go out!"
Harriet smiled and agreed. "Okay, I won't go out. I'll stay right here with you."
Only then did Sloane close her eyes with peace of mind, but her hand still gripped Harriet's tightly.
Harriet waited until she was sound asleep before gently pulling her hand back and getting up to leave.
Outside was a small sitting room where the two men were sitting on the sofa talking.
Seeing Harriet come out, Caspian immediately stood up. "My mom's asleep?"
"Yes." Harriet asked, "Do we need someone to watch her?"
"There's surveillance in the room that automatically turns on when she's sleeping. When she wakes up, both the servant who cares for her and I will get an alert."
Harriet nodded. "That's good then."
"Ms. Getty, my mother really likes you." Caspian stated. "For over twenty years, she's been trapped in that room like a prisoner. I once tried to take her out, even carried her away while she was asleep."
"But when she woke up and found herself in an unfamiliar environment, she immediately screamed nonstop and then passed out. After that, I never tried again."
"A normal person locked in a room for over twenty years would go crazy even if they weren't already. Her willingness to go out is a good thing." Harriet said, "Don't worry, as long as I'm here, I'll take good care of her."
"She really connects with you." Caspian looked at her. "After Lark came back, she also came to see my mother, but my mother was very resistant to Lark."
"So I always thought she completely rejected strangers, but I never expected that the first time she met you, she would like and depend on you so much. I think she sees you as my sister."
Harriet smiled faintly. "Let's not talk like that. I don't want to be someone like Lark."
Caspian said apologetically, "Sorry, I misspoke."
Harriet took Tristan's hand. "We'll go back to our room to rest. Call me when Mrs. Romanov wakes up."
"Okay."
Tristan's people had already delivered their luggage to the Romanov Manor.
Tristan took out a black device from the suitcase and turned it on.
"Tristan, what's that?"
"It checks for listening devices and surveillance equipment." Tristan placed the device on the bedside table. "If there's no alarm, the room is safe."
"Caspian definitely knows we'd be on guard. He wouldn't be stupid enough to use surveillance or listening devices."
"I know." Tristan smiled. "I'm checking because I don't want people seeing things they shouldn't. After all, Mrs. Lancaster wouldn't want videos of us having sex leaked out, would she?"
Harriet: "Mr. Lancaster, is there anything else in your head besides sex?"
"Of course there is." Tristan scooped up her waist in one motion, and they both fell onto the soft bed together.
He kissed the corner of her lips, his husky voice seductive. "My head is full of you. If you don't believe me, I'll show you."
But laughter filled Harriet's eyes.
Her slender arms wrapped around Tristan's neck as she gave him a brief kiss.
Tristan held her. "Honey, do you feel sorry for Caspian's mother?"
"I know Caspian is calculating and has controlled Elowen to threaten me, but I don't know why—his mother makes me feel very close to her. Maybe it's because I pity her."
Harriet said softly, "We have to stay here for now anyway, so I'll help her as much as I can. Besides, I've already made it clear to Caspian that I can't guarantee I can cure her."
"As long as you're happy. Just don't wear yourself out with how much she depends on you."
"Okay."