Chapter 14 I’ll Wait For You

“Hold on, I’ll get you a fork,” Daphne replied.

…

After handing Nicholas a fork, Daphne made another bowl of noodles for herself, brought it to the dining table, and inhaled her food.

She hadn’t had anything to eat all day. She was famished.

“Is that how you normally eat?”

Nicholas’s cold voice suddenly sounded. Daphne lifted her head to look at him.

She had chosen the seat furthest away from him, which put quite a distance between them. She was forced to squint her eyes to look at him, as she wasn’t wearing any glasses again.

“You don’t have a computer. Are you so broke that you can’t even afford a pair of glasses?”

Nicholas’s taunting voice rang aloud.

Daphne was taken aback. She lowered her head and continued eating her noodles. “It’s not that,” she answered carelessly. “I have glasses. I just don’t wear them very often.”

She only used her glasses during study time. Usually, Daphne didn’t have the time to enjoy the world in clear view.

Nicholas ate his noodles with the utmost grace. He glanced at Daphne and asked, “Have you found a place to rent?”

This question raised Daphne’s spirits. She nodded and replied, “Yes, I’ve even found a new job!”

Her beautiful little face was alight with rosy cheeks behind the steam. Her lips were tilted up into a small but sincere grin. Nicholas tightened his grip around his fork.

“A job? How much do you earn in a day? You only have a week. Will that be enough to pay me back?” Nicholas spoke dismissively.

Daphne was dumbfounded. Her eyes flashed with a dim light. After a pause, she lifted her head, looked at Nicholas, and said, “I’ll do my best to earn that money!”

Despite how uncertain her chances were, she was the kind of person who refused to give up, not even at the last minute.

“I’ll wait for you.” Nicholas glanced at Daphne secretively.

Everything was quiet at the dinner table for a while, except for the soft sound of cutlery against their bowls.

Daphne’s departure from Nicholas’s villa was smoother than she had expected. She was even sent away by car.

Daphne told the chauffeur to stop at the side of the road after it had arrived on the Third Ring Road.

“You want to get down here, Miss Montgomery?” Lucas, who was seated in the front seat, turned around and asked Daphne.

“My last name is Blythe.” Daphne corrected him.

Lucas was surprised. He frowned at Daphne, unable to comprehend why this girl was confused with her own last name.

“The place I’m renting isn’t too far off from here. It’d be inconvenient for you to stop the car there. I can get there on my own. Thank you for dropping me off. Goodbye.” Daphne said, then opened the car door and got down.

Actually, her new home was still pretty far away from this road. However, Daphne didn’t want them to find out where she lived, afraid that they might tell Nicholas.

Lucas stared at her unyielding figure, as she dragged her luggage along, outside the car window in astonishment. He chuckled and shook his head, then said to the chauffeur, “Let’s go, Master Nicholas is waiting for us.”

The black Rolls-Royce drove past Daphne before she could walk too far.

Daphne finally heaved a sigh of relief as she watched the car going further and further away from her. Then she turned around and walked in the opposite direction.

She had set up a plan. She wasn’t walking toward the direction of her new place at all. This action may seem unnecessary, but… There was nothing wrong with an extra layer of precaution.

Daphne’s new home was located in a tiny, old neighborhood. She had to go through a small alley to get there.

The small home had two bedrooms and one living room. The rent was not cheap, but Daphne took it anyway, as it was near the supermarket and ten minutes away from the clinic.

Daphne put her luggage in her room, cleaned it up a little, then sat on the bed and called Joan.

Joan soon answered, whispering “Miss” very softly. She was obviously hiding somewhere in order to answer Daphne’s call.

“Joan, it’s me! I’ve got a new place now. Come on out. I’m coming to pick you up!” Daphne eagerly announced.

“You’re picking me up? Why do you have to pick me up?” Joan sounded apprehensive.

Daphne’s heart thumped. ‘Why did Joan say that? Was Olivia next to her?’

However, if Olivia were listening in, Joan wouldn’t be whispering.

“Have you forgotten, Joan? We’ve agreed. I’m taking you with me once I’ve moved out!” Daphne rose to her feet anxiously.

Joan was acting as if she didn’t remember their agreement when they had only discussed it yesterday!

“You’re taking me? Miss, are you taking me with you?” Joan sounded surprised.

Daphne frowned. Something didn’t feel right. However, she nodded anyway and answered, “That’s right! I’m taking you along to live with me. You don’t have to live in that house anymore!”

“Okay! I’ll leave with you. I’m going upstairs to pack at once, Miss. Where do I meet you?” Joan’s voice was immediately filled with excitement and glee.

Daphne headed to the doorway as she said, “Listen to me, Joan. You don’t have to bring a thing! Try to sneak out alone when you get the chance. I’ll wait for you outside the villa’s residential area!”

Olivia wouldn’t let Joan off so easily if she left with her luggage.

“Alright, I’ll do as you say, Miss,” Joan replied.

“Then it’s agreed!”

Daphne opened the door and walked out.

Daphne had a good estimate of how long it would take for Joan to slip out. Every day after lunch, Joan would take out all of the rubbish from the villa. That was her only chance to sneak out.

Once Daphne had arrived outside the villa, she hid in an obscure corner. Soon, she saw the hunch-backed Joan walking out and looking all around.

Daphne hurriedly approached her. “Joan, over here!”

“Miss!” Joan grabbed Daphne’s hand excitedly.

“Let’s hurry. We’ll talk once we get home!” Daphne hailed a passing cab and stuffed Joan into the car.

The process of sneaking Joan out was surprisingly smooth. Joan was still feeling anxious when they arrived at the ground floor of Daphne’s apartment.

“Miss, do you think they’ll call the police, with me running off like this? What if you get into trouble?” she asked.

Daphne led Joan upstairs, smirked, and replied, “Don’t worry. Olivia’s not that nice!”

‘Olivia might curse Joan into running into some sort of accident once she noticed that she had gone missing. But would she call the police? No way!’

Daphne opened the door and led Joan into the house. She turned to Joan with a serious look on her face and said, “You don’t need to worry about a thing, Joan. Just stay here and live in peace! Escaping that house wasn’t easy. Do you really want to go back?”