The Abandoned Wife

Unspoken Tension

Meanwhile. Lucian didn't notice the boys in the car as he strode into the kindergarten, well aware that he was late.The moment he stepped in, he saw two figures by the slide together with Estella, who had squeezed herself into Roxanne's arms by then."Mr. Farwell, you're here!" the teacher greeted respectfully when she saw Lucian.Lucian nodded in acknowledgment as he walked up to them. After throwing his daughter a glance, he stared coldly at Roxanne. "Why are you here?"Sensing his hostility, Roxanne knitted her brows in confusion.The teacher then looked at them in surprise, "Do you know each other?"Just a while ago, she had assumed that Roxanne didn't know Estella.However, considering how dependent Estella was on Roxanne, she figured that it wasn't such a surprise at all.After nodding at the teacher without answering the question, Roxanne shifted her attention toward Lucian. "I came here to pick my boys up. It was your daughter who refused to let go of my clothes, forcing me to stay here with her."The moment he heard the words "your daughter" roll off her tongue, Lucian's expression darkened.How can she say such a thing in front of her own daughter? What a heartless woman!Unaware of what she had said wrong, Roxanne saw a sudden change in Lucian's expression as he turned his attention to Estella."Come here." Lucian reached out his hand grimly.After glancing at Lucian's outstretched hand, Estella raised her gaze and gave Roxanne a reluctant and pitiful look.Just when I finally got the chance to be with her, why does Daddy have to be so fierce?As the seconds ticked by, Lucian's expression turned darker when Estella refused to let go of Roxanne.In the end, Roxanne lowered her gaze and tousled Estella's hair before reassuring her, "Your daddy is here to pick you up, and I have to go too. So, you should go home with him now."After that, Roxanne stood back up, planning to leave the instant Estella released her grip.In spite of that, Estella adamantly refused regardless of how gloomy Lucian looked. Instead, she continued to give Roxanne a pleading look.For some inexplicable reason, she loved staying by Roxanne's side, to the extent of wanting to follow the latter home.As the tension in the air began to build, the teacher felt the need to defuse the situation.Before she could, she saw Lucian making his move all of a sudden.Walking up to Estella, Lucian asserted in an authoritative voice, "Estella Farwell, let go and come home with me."Shaken by his tone, the little girl ended up tightening her grip on Roxanne and leaning closer to her by reflex.As she was already standing by the edge of the slide, she lost her balance while shifting her legs without lookingWith her heart skipping a beat, Roxanne managed to stop Estella from falling by reaching out to catch her.Subsequently, Estella refused to let Roxanne go, leaving the latter with no choice but to hug her in case she fell again.Having calmed her down, Roxanne couldn't help but frown. "Lucian, if you're upset with me, you should just vent your frustrations at me instead of the child."Even though Lucian had seen the same event unfold, he didn't manage to get to Estella in time.Therefore, he retorted upon hearing Roxanne's comments, "How is the way I treat my daughter any of your business? Don't think that just because she likes you, it gives you the right to get involved."The tension between them felt as if it could explode at any moment.In response to his mocking tone, Roxanne's expression darkened as an inexplicable sense of anger swelled within her.After Roxanne's anger receded, she realized how funny the situation was.Indeed, I don't have any rights. In his eyes, I never had any.She dropped her gaze to the floor, concealing the self-deprecation in them. Without saying anything. she forced herself to remove Estella's grip from her sleeve.Estella's little fingers wanted to reach for her again, but Roxanne grabbed it mid-air."Archie and Benny are still waiting for me in the car. I have to go to them. Be a good girl and go with your dad."Roxanne ruffled Estella's head gently and released the latter's hand. With a hurried farewell to the teacher, Roxanne turned on her heels and rushed out the front door without another glance back.Back in the car, Archie and Benny were sitting upright. When they saw Roxanne getting in the car, they asked innocently, "Mommy, what's wrong?"Roxanne sucked in a deep breath before plastering a forced smile. "Nothing. Let's go home."She started up the car and pulled away from the kindergarten.Meanwhile, Lucian was still rooted in place. Shooting a sharp gaze at the teacher, he asked, "Are her sons attending here too?"The teacher didn't know what went on between the two parents but could sense the tension coming off of Lucian. Feeling the pressure, the teacher answered hesitantly, "Yeah. Ms. Jarvis' twins attend our kindergarten-"Before the teacher could finish, he interrupted coldly, "When did they start?""Just... a few days ago," the teacher replied carefully."Inform the head of the kindergarten to remove the boys from the list. If you don't do as I ask, Farwell Group won't be investing in this kindergarten anymore."Lucian's expression turned hostile.Not allowing the teacher the time to digest his words, he carried Estella into his arms and strode to the front door.Upon arriving at the parking lot, Lucian noticed the car parked beside his was already gone.Withdrawing his gaze, he carried Estella into the car without a pause in his step.The minute he got into the car, Estella struggled violently in his arms.Lucian loosened his grip on her, letting her crawl to the other side of the seat.Estella took out her notebook angrily and scribbled something on it with force.A while later, her hand stopped.Estella was furious this time as she turned her notebook around and sat there glaring at Lucian instead of crawling over to him to yank on his sleeve for his attention.Lucian sighed silently and turned his head over to peer at Estella with a frown.The entire length of the paper only had one sentence scribbled across it: Why are you not letting Archie and Benny come to kindergarten?Seeing Lucian finally turn his attention to her, Estella angrily shoved the notebook closer to his face.The crease between Lucian's brows deepened at her actions. He withdrew his gaze and said, "No particular reason. I did it because I could and wanted to. That's the answer I can give if you insist on one."Upon finishing his sentence, he heard movement coming from the seat beside him.He turned and saw Estella angrily throw her notebook to the side and clung to the door. She even leaned her head out of the window. Despite not saying anything, her whole body was exuding an "I-don't-want-to-look-at-you" vibe.