Chapter 454: Chapter 454: It’s Almost Estelle’s Birthday
Laura Jennings was taken away, and the farce finally came to an end.
Nathaniel Sloan was not an illegitimate child of the Sloan family, but the legitimate son of Miranda Lancaster and Ethan Sloan. He had been swapped at birth by the mistress in a classic bait-and-switch, leading to this tragedy.
Although many people harbored doubts about Theodore Lancaster’s true identity, the Lancaster family put a hard stop to the matter, ensuring no one could bring these suspicions to light.
In the end, it was said that Chairman Lancaster left with a furious expression, harshly reprimanding Ethan as if some grand scheme had ended in failure.
Estelle Lockwood scoffed. It certainly was.
Originally, they had planned to use the excuse of Nathaniel being an illegitimate child to force him to hand over Evernight International today. Now, not only had their plan fallen apart, but the Lancaster family was also deeply mired in a public relations nightmare. It would be a miracle if they could still smile.
Curious, Estelle asked, "You had Laura call the police. Do you think she’ll confess to something else?"
Estelle had no doubt that if Laura fell into the hands of the Lancaster family, she would most likely end up dead. But if she was prosecuted and went to trial, there was a chance she might give someone up in exchange for a reduced sentence.
Nathaniel’s expression remained calm. "Laura is someone who clings to life and fears death.
"After living such a life of luxury in the Sloan family for so many years, sending her to prison and stripping her of everything would be a fate worse than death to her.
"Under these circumstances, who knows what else she might say? Even if she doesn’t expose Theodore’s true identity, the Lancaster family probably won’t come out unscathed."
Estelle hesitated for a long moment before saying, "Don’t you think there’s something strange about Laura?"
Nathaniel’s eyes sharpened. "Yes, I’ve thought about it. I didn’t understand it before, but looking back now—"
"Where did you manage to get that drug?" Estelle’s eyes flickered slightly. "Or let me rephrase—if you know about that drug, wouldn’t the Lancaster family know about it too?
"I’ve always found it strange... It’s normal that Laura disliked you since she knew your true identity, but why did she hate Liam so much?
"Whenever Liam showed any ambition, or whenever he got good grades, Laura would fly into a rage. Is that how a normal mother behaves?
"Even if Laura didn’t want him to inherit the family business, what’s wrong with her son being exceptional? Liam is her biological son. How could she not even spare her own flesh and blood?
"Both Theodore and Liam came from her womb, fathered by the same man. Liam was even raised by her side since childhood. Did she truly have no affection for him at all, reserving all her motherly love exclusively for Theodore? She even went as far as suppressing her other biological son for Theodore’s sake. Does that make any sense?"
Estelle paused, then voiced her guess. "So, I think that perhaps Laura also inadvertently ingested that drug. It altered her mindset, making her dedicate herself entirely to Theodore.
"You were an obstacle to Theodore, and Liam was an even bigger one.
"She wouldn’t allow anyone to stand in Theodore’s way, so naturally, she tried everything she could to suppress him."
Nathaniel lowered his gaze. "I had the same thought."
Estelle raised an eyebrow. "So even if Laura is at the police station, she won’t confess to anything. She’ll only do her utmost to protect Theodore."
"However..." Estelle looked out the window. "Even without Laura, Theodore is probably having a hard time right now."
Indeed, Theodore was not having an easy time. After fermenting overnight, public opinion had practically set off a tidal wave in Crestfall’s high society.
People woke up to the news that Mr. Sloan was Miranda Lancaster’s legitimate son, not a bastard child, and the evidence was irrefutable.
Then what about Theodore?
The Lancaster family had offered an explanation, but who would actually believe it? Theodore’s current status was incredibly awkward, and he couldn’t produce any compelling evidence to prove his legitimacy the way Mr. Sloan had.
The Lancaster family’s affairs were truly complicated.
The moment Theodore arrived downstairs at the Lancaster Group building, he was swarmed by a group of reporters.
"Young Mr. Lancaster, are you Miranda Lancaster’s son?"
"Did you know about Mr. Sloan’s true identity?"
"Did you do this on purpose?"
"Since Mr. Sloan is Miranda’s son, has the Lancaster family considered letting you two compete fairly?"
"Young Mr. Lancaster, do you think you can outperform Mr. Sloan in the business world?"
The questions were sharp and grating, causing Theodore’s face to turn an ugly shade. His assistant blocked the reporters, allowing Theodore to seize the opportunity to slip inside the building. But before he could even catch his breath, he was met with the strange, scrutinizing looks of the Lancaster Group employees.
Theodore was speechless.
Even if they didn’t say anything, he could tell exactly what they were thinking!
He stormed upstairs to prepare for a routine meeting. As soon as he entered the conference room, he was greeted by more than twenty faces bearing meaningful expressions.
Theodore was so furious he was losing his mind!
Estelle was highly satisfied after hearing about Theodore’s humiliating ordeal. In a great mood, she went to draw a bath.
Glancing inadvertently at the calendar, she noticed that tomorrow was July 16th. The date felt somewhat familiar, but for a long moment, she couldn’t quite remember what day it was.
In the study, Nathaniel was polishing something.
Zane Grant sat to the side. Looking closely, he asked, "Oh, what’s this? A jade carving? You know how to do this?"
"I dabbled in it," Nathaniel replied.
Zane clicked his tongue. "The outside world is going crazy right now, and Theodore is about to die from anger because of you, yet here you are carving jade."
The corners of Nathaniel’s lips curled up slightly. "Estelle’s birthday is coming up."
Zane glanced at the calendar and frowned. "But didn’t you say she doesn’t like celebrating her birthday...?"
Nathaniel raised an eyebrow. "That was in the past."
In the past, Estelle used to celebrate her birthday alongside Noelle Lockwood. Or rather, she hadn’t really had a birthday at all—because her birthday had been hijacked by Noelle.
Even though Estelle claimed she had stopped caring a long time ago, and Nathaniel was slowly trying to make it up to her, what had happened could not be undone. It was an undeniable fact that his past arrogance had caused him to neglect her.
Zane naturally knew when Estelle’s birthday was. The password to Nathaniel’s phone and computer was 0716. At first, Zane mistakenly thought it was Noelle’s birthday—and indeed, Noelle’s birthday fell on the exact same day.
But late one night five years ago, Nathaniel had told him with utmost seriousness, "This is my wife’s birthday."
So Zane had committed the date 0716 to memory. Looking back on it now... Nathaniel had always cared deeply.
He fell silent for a long moment, his expression complicated. "Nathaniel, it’s already 10 PM on July 15th. Her birthday is in two hours. Do you even have time to prepare? Where’s the cake? The surprise? What about the birthday banquet? You haven’t even sent out invitations. Do you want me to help you send them right now?
"Although, anyone attending Estelle’s banquet right now would probably just be coming for the gossip after hearing about you and the Lancaster family..."
Nathaniel merely gave a soft chuckle. "It’ll just be us celebrating."
Zane was taken aback. "Huh?"
Nathaniel’s tone was incredibly calm. "In reality, Estelle... probably doesn’t even remember what day tomorrow is.
"She hasn’t celebrated her birthday in a very long time."
Zane was getting confused. "That just proves she doesn’t like celebrating her birthday. So why are you still..."
"It’s not that she doesn’t like it," Nathaniel interrupted. "It’s just that she used to pretend she didn’t care."