Chapter Seventeen: An Unexpected Visitor and Emma's Little Scheme
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Just as he was thinking this, the sound of car tires scraping against the ground reached them.
Louis looked up and saw David returning with something in his hands. Following behind him was a little girl carrying a schoolbag.
The girl had long black hair and looked like she would grow into a beauty. Still, in Louis’s eyes, she fell a little short of Emma.
But judging by the way things looked, was she... moving in?
Could it be...
Sure enough.
David brought the girl over to Louis and Emma and announced, “This is Esther. From now on, she’ll be your older sister. Believe me, she’s going to give you quite a surprise.”
A surprise?
Louis glanced at Emma beside him. She certainly looked shocked—the fork clenched in her hand was nearly bent out of shape.
But why had David suddenly decided to adopt an orphan?
At that moment, Esther gave them both a slight bow, a gentle smile on her face. “Hello, Louis. Hello, Emma.”
She then took out the gifts she had prepared: an exquisite-looking doll for Emma and a blunt little knife for Louis.
Louis accepted his gift with a smile. After a brief silence, Emma accepted hers as well, offering Esther a friendly smile.
David, watching from the side, was rather pleased. It seemed he had made the right choice. Esther ought to get along well with Emma and Louis. Besides, Esther was well-mannered and well-read, having read many books at the orphanage. She could also draw, making her perfectly suited to act as an older sister and teach Emma some of the biological knowledge he was not in a position to explain.
Thinking this, David led Esther upstairs to prepare a room for her so that she could officially settle in.
The moment the two of them went upstairs, Emma’s expression turned ferocious. She glared at the doll in her hand, slammed it hard onto the floor, then angrily stomped on it twice, muttering all the while, “Another one! Another one! Another one! Damn it!”
Watching her perform that self-taught little Sichuan routine, Louis could not help laughing.
Emma instantly shot him a vicious glare, only to meet Louis’s cold gaze. She immediately shrank back.
She walked toward her room, each step landing unusually hard against the floor.
Less than a minute later, she came back downstairs. Without looking at Louis, she picked up the doll on her own, lowered her head, and went back upstairs.
“Pfft—hahahaha!”
Louis burst out laughing.
Putting aside her malicious side, Emma was actually rather adorable.
!!!
His laughter abruptly stopped. Louis’s brow twitched slightly. He opened his mouth and removed a needle streaked with a little blood. Tasting the metallic tang of rust in his mouth, he spat.
This thing was surprisingly difficult to practice.
Shaking his head, Louis went up to the second floor and began helping David arrange the room.
Across from David’s room, a room slightly smaller than Emma’s and Louis’s had been prepared. Bedding, a desk, a lamp—it had everything one could need.
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It was obvious that David had made preparations in advance.
Esther helped with the arrangements. When the room was finally finished, David wiped the sweat from his brow, only to find a glass of water being thoughtfully offered to him. It was Esther.
“Thank you, Esther.”
“No, Uncle David. I’m the one who should thank you. Thank you for being willing to take me away from the orphanage. From now on, I’ll be a good member of the family.”
Looking at the sensible and well-behaved Esther, David pressed his lips together, deeply moved. For a moment, he felt that his luck was truly incredible.
Emma had always been sensible and outstanding. Louis, who was staying with them, was a good child as well. And now even Esther was so understanding and grateful.
He really was incredibly fortunate!
Esther opened her arms, seemingly asking for a hug. David naturally did not refuse. He wanted to offer the child the affection of a father.
He bent down, and the two of them embraced.
At that moment, they looked just like a harmonious father and daughter.
But...
Esther’s eyes narrowed slightly as she raised her head. Her tiny nostrils flared, and her expression became intoxicated, as though she were savoring some scent that fascinated her.
She even parted her lips and lightly ran her red tongue around them. On the face of this nine-year-old girl, an unmistakable hint of allure appeared—astonishingly so.
David continued gently patting her back, as though soothing her, completely unaware of what Esther was doing.
Just then—
Thump, thump, thump.
Footsteps sounded on the stairs. Louis, who had gone downstairs to retrieve something, appeared around the corner. The moment he reached the top, he saw the two of them break apart.
Still, Louis sensed something strange. He felt that Esther’s gaze had just been fixed on him. There had been something peculiar about it...
The room was soon fully arranged.
Esther officially moved into David’s home, becoming Louis and Emma’s older sister.
...
Night fell.
A figure began moving furtively through the house.
Carrying a music box, she sneaked into the room.
The depths of night were silent.
Inside the room, Esther stared at the music box beneath the table with an unreadable expression. Then, suddenly, she smiled.
The next morning.
“Ahhh!”
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A scream shattered the silence and woke everyone.
Emma looked close to tears. “Dad, my music box is gone! Dad!”
Her eyes were red-rimmed, tears glimmering faintly in them. She clung sadly to David’s side. David, who had hurried over in alarm, immediately looked heartbroken.
“Don’t worry, Emma. Daddy will find it for you.”
“Perhaps you left it somewhere.”
“Dad, I always kept it here. I really liked that music box.”
“Mm.”
David nodded and began searching.
But they found nothing. Just then, Esther and Louis came over, dressed and ready for the day.
“What happened, Emma?”
“My music box is gone.”
Emma looked at David. “Dad, let’s search somewhere else.”
Her gaze swept casually across Esther.
At that moment, Esther spoke.
“The music box? Emma, didn’t you say you wanted to decorate its casing, so you gave it to me? I finished it last night.”
???
David walked over and looked at Esther, then at Emma.
“Emma?”
The question had now been passed to Emma.
Louis watched coldly from the side. He understood the situation now. The newcomer was clearly no simple girl. Emma had repeated the same old trick, trying to frame Esther with the method she had once attempted to use against him.
Only this time, Esther had turned it back on her.
This Esther was rather interesting. Could she be a character from some movie? If so, which one?
He only regretted that, when he had searched through movies before, he had not paid closer attention or bothered to remember the characters’ names.
At that moment, Emma looked at David and Esther.
“I...”
Should she admit it? Or deny it?
That was the question.
Gulp.
Without changing expression, Emma said directly, “I don’t really remember. Maybe that did happen? I think I only said that the music box seemed a little plain.”
In the end, she chose to muddle the matter with an ambiguous answer while planting another subtle trap with her words.
Now, the question had been thrown back to Esther!
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