Chapter 422

Before Kelsey could say a word, Seb hit the floor with a loud thud.

Kelsey quickly opened the door, letting Bradley and Siena rush in. Bradley took one look at Seb and said, "I need to treat him. Step out, Ms. Jose," as he pushed Kelsey out of the room.

Siena, with a frosty tone, added, "Ms. Jose, please leave and don't come back."

Kelsey was taken aback, then let out an angry laugh. "What gives you the right to tell me to leave? Siena, do you truly consider yourself the mistress of this house?"

"Right now, I'm the only woman here. Doesn't that make me the lady of the house?" Siena replied smugly, as if it was obvious.

Kelsey shot back, "But the lady of the house is still being shut out."

Siena's face turned red with anger.

Kelsey made a face at her. "This is still Seb and Isabella's home. You're just an outsider; you will never be the lady of this house!"

Siena clenched her fists and declared, "No! One day, I will be!"

"Keep dreaming. Anything's possible in dreams," Kelsey retorted with a disdainful look, then turned and walked away.

Late at night, by the cliff behind the Black Mansion, a small flame flickered in the wind.

As Esme crouched beside the fire, the flickering light was mirrored in her eyes, and large tears streamed down her cheeks.

The surroundings were silent.

Esme wiped her tears and murmured in a voice only she could hear, "Lova, please don't blame me. I know you'd understand why I did what I did. Rest in peace. I'll pray for you every day."

Her voice was so soft that only she could hear it.

Footsteps crunching dry leaves came from behind. Esme turned around, startled, and saw Quentin, then she quickly wiped away her tears.

Quentin glanced at the candle on the ground and asked, "Are you praying for Isabella?"

Esme nodded. "Yes."

Quentin bent down, picked up a small candle, and lit it from the flame, then he placed it beside the other candles.

Quentin looked at the candles and said, "Isabella, rest in peace. I'll make sure we get a priest to give you a proper send-off."

After lighting the candle, Quentin and Esme stood in silence for a moment, their heads bowed in respect.

Then, they walked back together.

The night in the mountains was exceptionally cold, and the wind felt even chillier than usual.

After walking for a while, Quentin said, "Mom, I need to go to Nyxonia tomorrow. I'll be back in three to five days at the latest. While I'm gone, can you take care of Lova for me? Please, make sure she's alright."

Esme paused and asked, "I heard from Mr. Black that there's news about Wade?"

"Yes," Quentin nodded. "Once Wade is back, Lova will get better, and our family can finally be reunited."

Yet Esme was far from delighted.

When she married Bruno, he already had two sons. The eldest son, Wade, was born to Bruno's late wife.

Quentin was the second, and he was adopted, so he didn't have the Black Family's blood.

Esme didn't like either Wade or Quentin because both of them were vicious people.

Thinking about what Wade had done to Lova, Esme even felt a strong sense of physical disgust.

The peaceful days were likely to be disrupted by Wade's return.

Isabella had been out cold for three days.

When she finally opened her eyes, her mind was a blank slate, and for a moment, she was too weak to move.

All she could see was a sea of white, and the air reeked of medical disinfectant.

She tried to move and felt a sharp pain in her chest. She touched it and felt soft white gauze.

The gauze was wrapped around her chest, and when she pressed it lightly, it felt like there was a deep wound underneath, almost as if it reached her heart.

A nurse walked in and, seeing Isabella awake, said with some joy, "Ms. Black, you're awake!"

She quickly pulled out a walkie-talkie from her pocket, pressed the button, "Tell Mrs. Black that Ms. Black is awake."

Isabella was confused. She asked, "Why are you calling me that?"

The nurse came over, stood by the bed, took her temperature, recorded various data from the instruments, and replied with a smile, "You've always been Ms. Black, the Black Family's Ms. Black."

"The Black Family?" Isabella was slightly dazed, then shook her head. "You must be mistaken. My last name is Miller. I'm Isabella Miller."

Maybe it was because she had slept too long that Isabella felt she couldn't process everything immediately.

At that moment, the door to the ward opened again, and Esme walked in.

Esme said, "Lova, my dear, you're finally awake!" She almost ran in, then she reached the bedside and grabbed Isabella's hands tightly.

Esme's excitement and happiness didn't seem fake.

Isabella frowned. "I'm not Lova; I'm Isabella."

Esme was stunned, then laughed. "Lova, are you still groggy from sleep? You are Lova. How could you be Isabella?"

"Nonsense!" Isabella retorted. She pulled her hands back.

Although her mind was still a bit blank, she remembered that Esme had chosen to sacrifice her to save Lova in the most critical moment.

Isabella hated Esme more than ever.

Isabella got out of bed, pulled out the IV, and walked out.

"Lova, where are you going?" Esme called out, chasing after her.

Esme and the nurse blocked Isabella at the door.

The nurse reminded, "Ms. Black, your hand is bleeding."

Isabella didn't care about her hand. She frowned and insisted, "I'm not Ms. Black. I'm Isabella.Miller. Move, I want to go out!"

"Lova," Esme grabbed Isabella's arm and coaxed, "You just had surgery and need to rest. Be good and go back to bed."

Listening to Esme constantly call her Lova, Isabella was already on the brink of madness.

Isabella forcefully shook off Esme.

The movement was too big and sudden, pulling at her wound and causing Isabella to gasp in pain.

She gritted her teeth as large beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. "Are you all crazy?  I'm not Lova! What did you do to me?"

The pain in Isabella's chest felt like it was tearing her apart.

Blood was already seeping through the bandages, looking very alarming.

Esme took a step back and she suggested softly, trying to calm her down, "Lova, you just had a heart transplant. You mustn't get too emotional."

Isabella's mind buzzed, and she almost lost her balance.

She grabbed onto the edge of a nearby table for support. "What did you say?" she stammered, her eyes wide with disbelief. "A heart transplant?"