Chapter 38: Chapter 38: Mr. Sloan, Please Take Care of My Yara
Henry Kendrick’s face darkened, but Estelle Lockwood simply smiled.
It had always been like this. Noelle constantly claimed she didn’t care about her status as the Lockwood family’s heiress, yet she never missed a chance to show it off. She always flaunted that she was the wealthy Lockwood heiress, that everything in the Lockwood family belonged to her, and no one else had a share. Even Estelle, the true daughter of the Lockwood family, supposedly needed Noelle’s "pity" just to put food on the table.
Five years had passed, yet she was still flaunting her status as the Lockwood heiress. Did she truly have nothing else to brag about?
Then there was Vivian Lowell. In the past, Vivian loved weaponizing luxury brands to humiliate Estelle, treating her like an ignorant country bumpkin. A large reason why Estelle used to feel so alienated from the Lockwood family was Vivian’s relentless mockery. Every other day, Vivian would sneer at her inability to afford expensive things, declaring that she was only fit to wear Noelle’s cast-offs—that this was simply her lot in life.
Estelle was ready to return every bit of that humiliation tenfold.
She looked Vivian up and down. "Miss Lowell, you are wearing an out-of-season dress from DL. Your bag is a three-year-old Tissenvi design, and your necklace and earrings are from a collection Evernight International discontinued last year. Furthermore, your clothes don’t even fit properly, and the color of your bag clashes terribly. Let’s not even talk about the jewelry—one of the diamonds is completely chipped off. It’s quite obvious that you’re dressed head-to-toe in Noelle’s unwanted hand-me-downs."
Vivian’s expression instantly froze.
Estelle gave a half-smile. "While I don’t see the point in comparing wealth, Miss Lowell... at least I can afford to pay a million on my own. Can you?"
"Shut up!" Vivian shrieked, looking as though she had been stabbed in a sore spot. "You bitch, you’re asking for it!"
"I’m only stating the facts. There’s no need to get angry, Miss Lowell," Estelle said coolly. "Next time you try to mock me, please use your brain first."
Estelle tilted her chin up slightly, her gaze turning icy. "Noelle, reel your dog in. Don’t just let her off the leash to bite people!"
As Noelle bit her lower lip, Vivian let out an enraged scream. Her face flushed a furious, beet red. "How dare you call me a dog! I’ll kill you!"
Vivian lunged forward, ready to strike. However, Estelle didn’t even need to lift a finger. Henry clamped a firm grip around Vivian’s wrist, causing her to let out an agonizing squeal like a slaughtered pig.
Only then did Noelle step in, her voice weak and pitiable. "Dr. Lockwood, Vivian is merely outspoken. Aren’t you taking this a bit too far?"
Estelle did not mince words. "Miss Lockwood, please don’t confuse being outspoken with being obnoxious. Furthermore, I find it much worse when someone instigates others to fight their battles while they safely watch from the sidelines. Don’t you agree?"
Hearing a mockery that practically called her out by name, Noelle’s eyes welled up with tears. She stumbled back slightly. "I didn’t..."
"Yara, what the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Vivian fumed, her blood boiling.
Here in Crestfall, Vivian was used to throwing her weight around. She relied heavily on her status as a relative of the Lockwood family and the fact that Noelle was the future Mrs. Sloan. This was the first time she had ever been subjected to such severe humiliation!
Exasperated, she whirled around and screamed at the store clerks. "Do you even know who she is? She’s a homewrecking mistress! If you dare sell that pen to her, you’re finished!
"Listen up, everyone! This bitch moved into someone else’s house and hijacked another woman’s husband and child! My cousin had a tiny misunderstanding with her son, and this homewrecker swooped in, sowed discord between them, and even got my cousin kicked out of her own home!
"Noelle wants to buy Nathaniel a fountain pen, and now this woman is trying to buy one too! Her intentions are completely despicable!"
As her voice echoed through the store, a few onlookers finally recognized Noelle and began to whisper among themselves.
"Wait, isn’t that Noelle Lockwood?"
"I read online that she allegedly abused Young Mr. Sloan... Could it really just be a misunderstanding caused by that other woman’s manipulation?"
Hearing the murmurs, Noelle felt a wave of satisfaction and subtly curled her lips into a smirk.
Vivian felt thoroughly vindicated. Striking a high-and-mighty pose, she asked the clerks disdainfully, "Well? Are you still going to sell your products to a mistress?"
The store clerks stammered, too intimidated to speak up.
Noelle feigned helplessness. "Dr. Lockwood, since things have escalated to this point, why don’t we just drop it? Please don’t make things difficult for the staff..."
"So, Miss Lockwood, you’re suggesting I just accept the title of ’mistress’?" Estelle asked abruptly.
Noelle shook her head, her eyes glistening with unshed tears as she let out a deliberate sigh. "Actually, that’s not what I meant. But it’s true that you and Nathaniel have been getting far too close..."
"Miss Lockwood, just because you’re a mistress yourself doesn’t mean you should view every other woman in the world as one," Estelle said, casually brushing a strand of hair back. "But I understand you. Those of you who play the mistress are always terrified of having your man snatched away. After all, if a man can cheat once, he can cheat again. Since you haven’t even successfully secured your position as his wife yet, it’s only natural that you’re paranoid.
"However, you’re overthinking things. I am here to buy a gift for my child. I don’t have the slightest bit of interest in your precious Nathaniel, so stop barking at every woman you see. Do you understand?"
A tear slipped down Noelle’s cheek, adding a layer of sorrow to her gentle expression. "Dr. Lockwood, why must you mock me..."
Before she could finish, a small greeting card fluttered to the floor. A bystander picked it up and read the words written on it: "Happy Birthday, Zachery and Mia! And a very Happy Birthday to Christian too!"
Estelle scoffed. "Miss Noelle, you spend all day declaring to the world that you are Young Mr. Christian’s biological mother, yet you don’t even know that his birthday is coming up? You’re completely indifferent to your own flesh and blood, but you’re more than happy to corner me and hurl false accusations because you’re so terrified I’ll steal your man. It seems that your ’precious biological son’ means absolutely nothing to you."
The store fell into a dead silence.
It took a long moment before someone finally murmured, "So it really is a gift for a child... Then why on earth was Noelle attacking her like a mad dog?"
"Exactly. Young Mr. Sloan’s birthday is coming up, and Noelle—his supposed birth mother—didn’t even bring it up. She probably forgot her own kid’s birthday!"
"She only cares about keeping her man. Barking at everyone she meets over a guy... How pathetic."
Estelle withdrew her gaze and handed a sleek black card to the store clerk. "Swipe this, and please wrap the pen for me."
"Y-Yes, ma’am. Please wait a moment."
Estelle smiled as she looked over at Noelle. "Miss Lockwood, why aren’t you paying? Weren’t you about to buy that three-million-dollar fountain pen for Nathaniel? I’m sure he would be deeply moved to receive such a gift from you."
Noelle’s face alternated between flushed red and a sickly pale.
Unable to swallow her anger, Vivian opened her mouth to shout another insult, but Noelle violently grabbed her arm. Taking a deep breath, Noelle forced her gentle facade back into place.
"Dr. Lockwood, we are at fault today. Vivian is still young; please don’t take her harsh words to heart. Vivian, let’s leave for now. We can come back to shop another day."
With that, Noelle dragged Vivian out of the store without looking back. As the onlookers continued to point and whisper, Noelle’s eyes turned red with sheer fury. She would remember this humiliation!
After purchasing the gifts, Henry accompanied Estelle to the kindergarten. They picked up the three kids and drove them all back to Imperial Crest.
The moment they arrived, Henry noticed a tall, slender man standing right outside the gates of Imperial Crest.
Zachery leaned in and whispered, "Mia, look. Doesn’t our scumbag daddy look like a lovesick maiden waiting for her husband?"
"...Watch your phrasing," Mia retorted softly. "Let’s be accurate here: he’s a lovesick husband waiting for his wife."
Nathaniel stepped forward, just about to speak, but Henry’s eyes darted slyly. He immediately rushed up and enthusiastically grabbed Nathaniel’s hand. "Mr. Sloan! Thank you so much for taking such good care of our Yara."
Henry silently vowed to annoy this ex-husband to death for letting that vicious woman bully Estelle.
Nathaniel immediately frowned. He wondered why Henry was here as well. First he had to deal with Jasper Kingston, and now Henry Kendrick had shown up too?