Chapter 397 The Beast Would Not Harm Its Own Child
Chapter 397 The Beast Would Not Harm Its Own Child
The caller was none other than Amelia.
When Elise saw the caller ID, she instantly felt guilty for a moment. She exchanged a glance with Daryl and took a deep breath before answering the phone.
"Amelia, what's up?"
"Elise," Amelia explained her purpose on the other end, "I lost a bracelet in your neighborhood, but someone might have picked it up. I asked the property management, and they said the surveillance cameras have been broken for the past couple of days, so they can't check. Since this bracelet has special meaning to me, if you have time, could you please help me ask around to see if anyone found it?"
Hearing it was just about a lost bracelet and that she was only asking her to help inquire, Elise breathed a long sigh of relief.
She was afraid Amelia would return and want to take Sharon for treatment right away.
Then wouldn't the five million dollars in compensation be wasted on Sharon?
Elise collected her emotions and said, "Okay, don't worry. I'll ask in the homeowners' group chat right now, and if I find it, I'll bring it to you immediately."
"Thanks so much." Amelia said, then complained about the neighborhood surveillance breaking down at exactly this time before hanging up.
"What did she say?" Daryl and Garry asked from the side.
Elise relayed Amelia's words to them exactly as they were.
Hearing this, Garry, like Elise, also showed a relieved expression.
But Daryl looked thoughtful, as if he'd thought of an idea.
"What are you thinking?" Elise asked.
Daryl looked deeply at Elise and said, "This might be an opportunity God has given us."
"What do you mean?" Elise asked, puzzled.
Daryl leaned over and whispered his plan in her ear.
Elise was slightly stunned, then her eyes lit up.
"Indeed! Even God is helping us."
"Dad, Mom, what are you talking about?" Garry asked in confusion.
"Nothing." Daryl said, "Go back to your room and play your games now. No matter what sounds you hear, don't come out."
"Okay." Garry obediently went back to his room.
He'd already vaguely heard something just now, but he wasn't curious.
As long as it benefited him, he felt they could do whatever they wanted.
That night, in the dead of night, Daryl and Elise took Sharon out for a so-called "drive."
The two were unusually enthusiastic, but when they were passing by the neighborhood's artificial lake, they tied a heavy weight to Sharon.
"Amelia said you're not in good health, so you need more exercise. This is a sandbag we specially bought for you. Now walk around the artificial lake once, and that'll count as exercise."
Sharon was somewhat reluctant.
"Dad, Mom, my leg just had surgery not long ago. I can't do strenuous exercise."
"Just walking around isn't strenuous exercise." Elise coaxed from the side.
But Daryl had already lost patience.
He directly reached out and pushed, shoving Sharon into the artificial lake.
Sharon struggled and soon sank to the bottom of the lake.
"Let's go quickly!" Daryl and Elise, guilty as thieves, didn't even dare to linger for another second and quickly returned home.
The two didn't notice that right after they left, someone in a diving suit at the bottom of the lake swam over and rescued Sharon.
Sharon coughed up water in big gulps. The feeling of choking on water made her nose and eyes burn.
But watching Daryl and Elise's rapidly departing figures, she didn't feel any pain at all.
Without escaping this family, she would live in pain for the rest of her life.
Though she was only ten years old, she was very precocious and already understood what choices were better for her.
Amelia soon arrived as well.
She got Sharon into the car and changed her into clothes prepared in advance.
She had thought of this plan while learning to dive with Samuel.
However, until just now, she hadn't been sure whether Daryl and Elise would act according to her plan.
After all, Sharon was their biological daughter. Even wild beasts don't harm their own young.
But it turned out just as she expected.
After learning the neighborhood surveillance was broken, they didn't even hesitate much before acting that very night.
The plan succeeded, which should be something to celebrate.
But neither Amelia nor Sharon could feel happy.
For five million dollars, Daryl and Elise could casually kill the biological daughter they had brought into this world.
When they brought Sharon home, Marlowe was already waiting at The Richardson Manor.
Seeing Sharon with wet hair and wet eyes, Marlowe's heart ached so much that her eyes also reddened.
Everyone in the living room felt terrible.
It was Marlowe who spoke again, "Shanice, from now on you are Shanice."
Sharon finally couldn't control her emotions and hugged Marlowe, crying hard.
The next day, Amelia and Samuel took Marlowe and Shanice back to Thornfield together.
It was Shanice's first time in Thornfield, and Marlowe planned to show her around.
The two groups separated.
Since Samuel also had to help Shanice get a new identity, he asked Amelia to return to The Crawford Manor first.
"Then I'll leave this matter to you."
"Don't worry, Shanice and Aunt Marlowe's matters are my matters. I'll come find you once I'm done."
"Okay."
Amelia nodded and got into Byron's car, heading to The Crawford Manor.
On the way, she passed by a supermarket and went in to buy a bunch of things.
By the time she returned to The Crawford Manor, it was already four in the afternoon.
Due to the previous butler's betrayal, almost all the servants at The Crawford Manor had been replaced.
These people were somewhat afraid of Stanley, so apart from necessary communication, no one dared to initiate conversation with him.
Stanley said he was "happy to have peace and quiet," but he was actually very lonely inside.
People aren't islands; they need social interaction.
He planned to follow his original plan and travel around the world.
But as he flipped through the travel brochure, he fell asleep on the sofa.
When he woke up again, he was awakened by the aroma of food.
The huge living room had only one dim yellow lamp lit.
He rubbed his somewhat sore neck and walked toward the kitchen, asking, "Is it dinner time? I don't have much appetite, just something simple is fine."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Amelia busy in the kitchen.
Amelia was making mashed potatoes.
The servants had told her that Stanley had bad teeth and liked to eat soft foods.
Hearing Stanley's voice, Amelia smiled and turned around.
"Dad, you're awake? I'm making the last dish. Samuel will be home soon. You can wash your hands and get ready to eat."
Stanley stood frozen in place, for a moment even thinking he was hallucinating.
He couldn't help but raise his hand to rub his eyes.
He saw Amelia still standing by the stove, looking at him with a smile.
He finally confirmed this wasn't a dream.
Stanley quickly collected his emotions and asked with a frown, "Why are you here? When did you come?"
"Around four this afternoon."
"Why didn't you wake me?"
"I saw you sleeping soundly, so I didn't wake you."
She stopped chatting with Stanley and refocused her attention on the stove.
As if her coming back to visit Stanley was the most natural thing in the world.