425: 8.25 Ella's Diary

8.25 Ella's Diary

Ozzie plopped her butt on top of the table and carefully flipped through the old paper using the pad of her paw, keeping her claws in so as to not damage the delicate sheet. It was more than half-filled. Sometimes, Ella forgot to write down the date, but from the available ones, Lu Yizhou could tell that she had been writing it for years.0

Her writing had started as a messy scrawl typical of a child who had just learned to write, and then as years passed, it became smoother and more graceful. Sharing the same sight, the two of them started from page one and entered Ella's mind.

[Blue is the sky's color. Why is the sky blue? I want to draw it pink. Mommy laughs when she hears me.]

[My dolls are named Bianca. Mommy asks why I name all of my dolls with Bianca. I don't know. I just really like that name. It's the most beautiful name in the world!]

'Daddy…' Ozzie's trembling voice echoed in his mind. 'Does Mommy remember me?'

Lu Yizhou was also surprised, but he quickly regained his bearings. It was just a guess, but it might be his lover's soul that was resonating with each other. In the rest station, Zeke was already strong enough to regain consciousness and remember bits and pieces of himself so it was not strange for him to affect the others too. He mentally tried to convey reassurance and comfort to the little feline and said softly, 'I hope so, Ozzie.'

The first few pages were filled with a similar tone. Ella was a very curious and bright little girl. She asked questions that people wouldn't have thought of before and then she would always jot down 'Mommy laughs when she hears me.' Just from Ella's words, they could see that Madam Knox was a gentle and affectionate mother who spoiled and teased her daughter a lot. Their relationship sounded very harmonious.

Another flood of nostalgia overwhelmed him and Lu Yizhou couldn't help but smile. He was right, Ella really reminded him of the young Ren Zexi in terms of their childish curiosity. 

They continued to flip through the pages and gradually found some interesting entries. Counting the years, Ella must be around seven or eight years old.

[I hate medicine. Medicine tastes so bitter and it makes my tongue feel numb. Mommy said that we only drink medicine when we are sick. But I am not sick. Why do I have to drink medicine?]

[It hurts. After my last protest, I thought they would finally give up. But they started to use needles. It hurts and I always feel so awful after that. Mommy says it's for my own good. I hate Mommy! Only Sister stays by my side and hates everyone the same way I do. Sister understands me the most!]

[Sister says that everyone is a bad guy and she is here to protect me. I like Sister! She is beautiful, kind and brave. I want to be like Sister when I grow up later!]

From then on, 'Sister' became a common word in Ella's diary and in exchange, 'Mommy' was becoming less and less. From Lu Yizhou's understanding, it seemed like Ella and Madam Knox's relationship became strained ever since she started to consume medicine. The way she said that she was not sick bothered Lu Yizhou. 

From their short interaction, he could see that Ella was everything but a liar. She wouldn't lie if she was unwell, instead she would definitely vent into her diary. She kept insisting that she was not sick, but Madam Knox said that it was for her own good. From then on, Ella's grievance kept building and building. The sentence 'I hate Mommy!' and 'Only Sister understands me best' repeated a few times over. 

She sounded very fond of her Sister. So Lu Yizhou was right. The one who had inflicted fear on Ella couldn't be her.

Lu Yizhou and Ozzie continued reading.

[For some reason, Mommy doesn't like Sister. Whenever I mention her, she will cry and lock herself up in the room. I don't understand. Sister is the best, why doesn't Mommy like her? Sister says that it's natural that she is unwanted, after all she is everything that Mommy and Daddy fears. I don't understand. I really don't understand…]

[Daddy told me that if I mention Sister one more time, he will lock me up inside my room for three days. I refused and he slapped me. This is the first time I have ever been slapped... I HATE DADDY! I HATE DADDY THE MOST!!!]

Lu Yizhou almost felt blood on his throat from the boiling rage and he had to close his eyes for a second to keep himself in check. That insolent man… how dare he hit her?! This was the person that Lu Yizhou cherished more than his own life, and in a place somewhere he did not know, someone was making her sad, forcing her to do something she did not want, and even hit her! And now… she was dead! Redness crawled to the corner of Lu Yizhou's eyes and he gnashed his teeth. 

He needed not to wait until he knew the cause of Ella's death. Just from this alone, Lu Yizhou would make sure to torture Luca until he regretted every single day he was alive!

'D–Daddy, wait!' Ozzie cried out urgently. Nobody but her (and 666) knew how terrifying her Daddy would become when it was related to Mommy. Hadn't she seen the perfect example in the previous world? She put on a flattering tone, 'Daddy, quell your anger a bit. We have to finish reading this, okay? Oh– look! There's still something under this entry meow!'

Lu Yizhou took a few deep breaths and shoved his fury to the back of his mind. He would let it shimmer quietly first then took it out when it was on the verge of exploding. One thing for sure, Luca Knox wouldn't be able to escape from the brunt of his wrath!

On that entry page, the ink was smudged on a few spots, no doubt that Ella was crying when she wrote it. As Ozzie had said, the entry did not end there. As it turned out, there was someone who was equally furious as Lu Yizhou.

[This is the first time I have ever seen Sister get so angry. Usually when Mommy and Daddy talk bad about her right in front of her face, she always accepts it with a smile whilst holding my hand. But today, when I returned to the room with my cheek swollen, she was so angry that she was shaking! She pats my head and tells me not to worry because she will have a serious talk with Daddy. I trust her. I hope Daddy will understand me. Us.]

'Wow…' Ozzie quietly exclaimed. 'Why do I feel like Master Knox will not end well?'

Lu Yizhou hummed. Something about the diary entry screamed 'strange' to him. It was as if he was missing one big link that would connect everything. Why did Master and Madam Knox dislike Ella's sister to the point of insulting her and not including her in the family painting? Would he be able to find out if he kept reading? Lu Yizhou had just wanted to tell Ozzie to turn the page when his ears suddenly caught the sound of footsteps. He snapped his eyes open and sharply turned to the direction of the sound — it was coming from outside the door. 

'Ozzie, stay low,' he warned.

'W–What's wrong, Daddy?' Ozzie was in the other room, thus she could not hear the footsteps. Apparently sensing that something was not right, she complied obediently and held herself still.

Lu Yizhou quietly crept toward the door and stuck himself to the wall beside it, his breath slow and light. These steady and firm footsteps… he would recognize it anytime after what happened tonight. 

It was Baines.

A series of knocks landed on the door. "Miss, this is Baines. I seemed to have heard something earlier. May I come in to check?"

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A/N: Thank you for the 2000 privi unlocks! You guys are awesome <3 expect a huge mass release on 1st September ;)

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