The Princess and the Pauper (Arabella)

Chapter 1469

Last night, Bard had taken a few of his trusted subordinates to check out the scene, including a forensic expert. But the clues they

found pretty much lined up with what Bella had said - death by mechanical asphyxiation, ruling out any pathological factors.

"Once Serena calms down a bit, I'll have a chat with her." Bard mentioned casually, "Maybe she's forgotten scrucial detail, or

perhaps a conversation might reveal something we hadn't caught before."

Just then, Darren, yawning, sauntered over and grumbled, "What's with all the secrecy around here? What are you all plotting? Poor

Serena got so spooked last night, and she insisted on resting with her granny. | ended up moving to the spare room."

Darren hadn't expected this. Finally he reunited with his partner, and yet now he had to vacate his own bed.

"I heard the kid woke up screaming a couple of times, saying she was having nightmares."

Eunice immediately pounced on this, "Did she say anything in her sleep? Any sleep-talk?"

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"I wouldn't know; | wasn't the one sleeping next to her." Darren replied with a deep sigh, hands clasped behind his back, "Eunice,

Bard, don't mind an old man's meddling. I've never interfered with your decisions or actions, even though I'm often in the dark

about them. But | wholeheartedly trust your judgment because | know you both have your heads on straight."

Bard and Eunice knew what he was hinting at, but they remained silent, choosing not to interrupt.

"Bella's finally cback to this family, and we ought to make it up to her. But Serena's grown up under our watch too. Even if

she's made a few small mistakes, there's no need to lash out and terrify the kid. You've never been that harsh with her before."

Darren thought Serena had just slipped up on strivial matter, earning a scolding from them.

He continued, "We've always said that we should treat all the kids equally."

"What if someone hired a hitman to kill Bella?" Eunice interjected sharply, her gaze piercing.

"What? What are you saying?" Darren clutched his chest, gasping for breath, the shock too much for him to handle.

"Easy, Dad. I'm just asking." Eunice quickly moved to pat him on the back.

"You're suggesting someone wanted to hire a hitman for Bella? And the scolding last night, do you suspect it's connected to her? Is,

is the kid involved in something behind our backs?"

Maybe because the information was overwhelming, and Darren's heart couldn't bear it. No amount of clutching at his chest could

ease the pain.

Ever since his heart surgery, his own kin had upset him tand again. The last tsomeone falsely accused the Ar-BI-Clear

Group of selling defective products, which had left him similarly distressed.

Yesterday, Arabella had reminded him during his check-up that he needed to keep his emotions stable and avoid any extreme

upset.

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But Eunice's words had caused his heart to clench tight, like a fist squeezing hard.

On one hand, there was the child he'd dearly loved for eighteen years, and on the other, there was the darling girl who had

returned to them after a long absence, having saved his and his wife's lives, and who had won his affection with her contributions

to the family.

Both were dear to his heart, but Eunice's words were like a knife twisting in it.

Seeing Darren's pallor, Eunice quickly reassured him, "It's nothing. | was just asking. | mean, do you think if Serena was involved in

something as serious as hiring a hitman, that would justify the severity of last night's scolding? If it was a minor mistake, there's no

need to dwell on it, right?"

Darren, breathing heavily, took a while before nodding, "Eunice, tellstraight, what exactly happened last night?"

Considering his fragile health, Eunice applied directly, "Nothing serious, really. Serena just stumbled upon speople | was

keeping in the basement and got scared. | gave her a good talking-to, and told her to stop wandering around like that again."

Darren had long been aware of the people cooped up in the basement. His two sons, Bard and Sampson, needed to be tough and

resourceful to survive the cutthroat world they lived in.