The General's Wife Wants to Leave-Chapter 53: Broken dam

The de Lara’s family doctor was an old, senior doctor in Barasca. He was also the one who had examined Mr. Powel when he was still alive.

Because of the message left by the former Duke, who was Joanna’s grandfather, to ask the doctor to keep on attending to the medical needs of Mr. Powel until his last breath, he strengthened himself to go to the mountain despite his depleted vitality, even though he was always escorted by Barasca knights on horse riding.

However, when Mr. Powel had rested for eternity, it was definitely impossible to ask him to treat another patient in the Powel Orphanage.

Aside from the fact that his residence was in the city, which was about six to eight hours from West Lane Mountain, without a long prior notice, particularly a sudden call, it would only result in a decline from the senior doctor. And Joanna could not blame him for that, recalling the effort he had made to treat Mr. Powel.

Meanwhile, regarding the case of Liam, the boy who was sent to find a doctor would try to find one as soon as possible. Thus, he would seek a doctor who resided around the mountain area which did not have any connection with the de Lara. Hence, the rejection would be highly possible as Mrs. Powel had never used the name of de Lara to seek any help from others.

Duke John de Lara had offered to assign a doctor to stay in Powel Orphanage, as no one could know what would happen in the future. Sickness was part of the mystery too. But Mrs. Powel turned down the offer as she reasoned that she had owed too much to de Lara.

She felt that since Mr. Powel was no more, she had no reason to add her debt to de Lara, as there was nothing to bind their relationship anymore. The Powel lineage had stopped because of her, so it meant that she had nothing to give to de Lara. Even the current butler in the de Lara mansion was not a Powel.

She was grateful that de Lara was still willing to provide the logistics for them. Furthermore, the young lady de Lara had regarded them as family, and it was more than enough for Mrs. Powel. Hence, she tried her best to refrain from using the name of de Lara for her or the orphanage’s benefit.

As for her, if others wanted to do kindness, then they would do so regardless of the background of the person they would share the kindness with.

Knowing that there would be a low probability of a doctor coming to the Powel Orphanage, Joanna tried to lessen the pain of the little boy. She was not sure if it would work, but she would at least give it a try.

She gently touched Liam’s stomach, which caused him to cry out in pain. It was likely a sickness due to food poisoning, thought Joanna in her mind.

"Do you have ginger, Mrs. Powel?" asked Joanna.

"I do, my lady. I always keep some in the kitchen. If you need more, I have planted it in the backyard garden," answered Mrs. Powel.

At the relieving answer, Joanna asked Lucy to make a salty congee and boil water for ginger tea, to which Lucy hastily proceeded with the orders that were given to her.

While waiting for Lucy, Joanna helped Liam to lie down on the bed as the vomit seemed to subside at the moment. She hoped it would not come again.

Watching the little boy curled in the bed while holding his stomach with his eyes tightly shut, Joanna felt her eyes burn and her heart squeezed but she held the tears from escaping her eyes. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com

As if attempting to ease the pain, Joanna brushed the platinum hair of the little boy, feeling the soft, silky hair brush her palm. It was the same feeling as when Joanna brushed the hair of her son in the dream.

Joanna bit her lower lips once again as tears pushed the dam of her eyes more strongly this time.

It was then she heard Mrs. Powel talk to her, which was helpful to shift her thoughts from the fragments of the dream that slowly surged up in her mind.

"I got an anonymous letter six months ago, telling me to pick up a boy under the Stonewell Bridge. I thought it was only a scam letter but I was somehow curious, wanting to prove if the letter told the truth. Then, I went down the mountain, heading to the bridge." Mrs. Powel paused, stunned when she met the bloodshot eyes of the woman before her. Setting aside the puzzle wandering in her mind, she continued narrating,

"The information in the letter was true as there was a boy under the bridge, full of bruises in thin clothes, sitting on the cold ground alone as if waiting for someone to pick him up. When he saw me, the first thing he said in a low and weak voice was I will be good and obedient. Please don’t throw me away."

Hearing such a heart-pricking story, Joanna, whose emotions had been unstable since she saw Liam, had the dam of her eyes broken, tears flooding her cheeks. And she did not bother to hide it from the older lady who had her eyes on hers.

Diverting her gaze from Mrs. Powel to Liam, who was still curling in the bed, she heard the older lady continue her story.

"And he has proved himself to be a good kid, being diligent and obedient. He is also a quiet kid, not talking a lot, only speaking when he is asked something. But it is what made the kids adore him. He is loved by all the kids here."

Joanna moved her eyes back to look at Mrs. Powel, after wiping the tears away with the back of her hands this time. She found a soft smile crossing Mrs. Powel’s face as if feeling proud and relieved about saving the little boy.

A good and obedient boy. It was the personality of Joanna’s son in the dream.

Before she could recall another fragment in the dream that she had seen regarding her son, Liam raised his upper body to sit, seeking the bucket in a hurry. He vomited again.

Joanna could not bear the sight as Liam was throwing up nothing and he whimpered as his stomach seemed to be cramped. It should be stopped soon. Otherwise... No! She would not let this poor little boy die like what happened to her son in the dream.