Chapter 97: Chapter 97: I’m Running Out of Brainpower
The Donovan family’s birthday party couldn’t be described as grand, but it wasn’t exactly low-key either.
At least, some business partners hoping to get closer to the Donovan family heard the news and took the initiative to call Mr. and Mrs. Donovan to ask if it was true.
Although Mrs. Donovan had promised Arabella to only invite some close friends and relatives, they couldn’t very well turn people away now that they were calling on their own initiative.
And so, on the day of the birthday party, the scene outside the Donovan’s main gate was exceptionally bustling. All sorts of luxury cars had filled nearly every available parking spot in the area.
Meanwhile, Arabella and Eloise were still in the dressing room on the second floor, having changed their clothes and finished their makeup, waiting for Mrs. Donovan’s final say.
Arabella and Eloise wore pink and blue knee-length skirts, respectively. The two dresses looked quite similar, yet they perfectly matched the girls’ personalities. The dresses made Arabella look even more youthful and adorable, while Eloise appeared even more cool and composed. One could tell at a glance who was the older and who was the younger sister.
Looking at her two daughters who resembled twins, Mrs. Donovan felt her heart swell. She stepped forward and pulled both girls into an embrace, one on each side.
"My two darlings, after today you’ll both be eighteen. Time passes so quickly. It feels like you’ve grown up in the blink of an eye."
Hearing this, Arabella couldn’t help but think about how Holly Wagner had swapped her at birth. By the time they met again, she was nearly eighteen. ’Talk about growing up in the blink of an eye.’
But she didn’t expect that this casual inner thought would make the other two in the room freeze.
But the thought of the party downstairs made Mrs. Donovan quickly compose herself. She took a deep breath and released the two girls.
"Alright, let’s save the sentimental talk for later. My two birthday Little Princesses, it’s time for us to go downstairs. You’re the stars of the show today, and we can’t keep our guests waiting."
With that, Mrs. Donovan turned and held out her arms for the girls to take, one on each side.
When Mrs. Donovan descended the stairs with the two sisters, the floor below was already crowded with mingling guests.
Seeing the trio descend, some who had already caught wind of the situation immediately started whispering to those around them.
Even the guests who weren’t whispering were silently trying to figure out the Donovan family’s intentions, scrutinizing Arabella’s and Eloise’s attire for clues about the family’s attitude toward each girl.
The Donovan Family, however, paid no mind to what anyone was thinking. Seeing the trio descend, they quickly gathered around them.
Mr. Donovan glanced over their dresses, jewelry, and light makeup, then nodded in approval. "Serena and Eloise, your outfits are very fitting for today."
Justin followed suit, offering a concise review: "Looks good."
Hector Donovan was dressed in a flashy, bright red suit. Such an extravagant color might have looked tacky on someone else, but he pulled it off effortlessly.
Hearing everyone’s praise for the two, he said, quite pleased with himself, "Anna is one of the best stylists in the business. If she couldn’t even handle a small thing like this, wouldn’t she be tarnishing her own name?"
That’s right. Arabella’s and Eloise’s outfits, hair, and makeup today were all arranged by Hector’s personal stylist.
This renowned stylist was not only in Hector’s employ but was also a friend of many years; otherwise, it would have been nearly impossible to book her for such a minor job.
How could Arabella fail to notice her second brother’s little ploy to curry favor and claim credit? She proactively went up, linked her arm in his, and praised him, "Sister Anna may have handled the styling and the dresses, but *you’re* the one who helped pick out our jewelry today. They go perfectly with the clothes and makeup, complementing each other beautifully. And what does that mean? It means your eye for these things is just as good as Sister Anna’s. You have great taste."
"About time you showed some appreciation." Flattered by Arabella’s barrage of compliments, Hector felt utterly delighted. He raised his chin like a preening peacock, looking impossibly smug.
He was completely oblivious to his family members nearby, who were all wearing strange expressions and finding it hard to watch.
"Alright, it’s time to greet our guests. Eloise, there are a lot of people here tonight. Stay close to Serena, and don’t let anyone bother her."
Mrs. Donovan gave Eloise a meaningful look, and Eloise nodded, understanding in an instant. "Okay, Mom, don’t worry. I won’t leave Serena’s side for a moment today. I absolutely will not give anyone the chance to... offend her."
Although Arabella thought her family was being overly nervous and making a mountain out of a molehill, she didn’t say anything. Instead, she simply enjoyed the preferential treatment they were giving her.
The Donovan Family breathed a collective sigh of relief upon seeing that she hadn’t grown suspicious. After Lillian Donovan and her family visited that day, the Donovans had gathered once again to discuss the problem of Arabella’s inner voice.
Their final conclusion was that the people who could hear Arabella’s inner voice must be those who were related to her and held good intentions toward her.
However, the definition of "related" wasn’t especially strict. For instance, Eloise, who had no true blood ties to Arabella but accepted her as family and treated her like a real sister, could also hear the thoughts.
Then there was the "good intentions" part. When Sean Donovan and his companion had visited before, they had been hostile toward Arabella. Yet, despite that, both of them could still hear her inner voice.
Julian Croft, on the other hand, had acted humbly and politely from beginning to end and wasn’t aggressive toward Arabella at all, yet he couldn’t hear a thing.
So, did "good intentions" refer to someone who personally held no ill will toward Arabella and was not fundamentally a bad person?
And as for someone like Julian Croft, no matter how harmless he seemed on the surface, he couldn’t conceal his malicious intent to destroy her entire family for the sake of Lillian Donovan’s family fortune. So naturally, he wouldn’t be blessed by Lady Luck?
But ultimately, this was all just the Donovans’ speculation. With so many relatives visiting the Donovan estate today, it was both a risk and an opportunity to test their theory.
In any case, their top priority was protecting Arabella, especially ensuring she didn’t notice anything was amiss.
Thus, the family had unanimously decided to have Eloise stay with Arabella for the entire event, making it easier to deal with any sudden incidents.
The Donovans exchanged a few more words among themselves before turning their attention to the numerous guests in attendance.
"Thank you all for taking the time to join us for the 18th birthday celebration of our two daughters. Today is not just our girls’ birthday; it’s also a joyous occasion for the Donovan family, as we have found our younger daughter, Arabella, who was unfortunately lost to us for more than ten years."
The moment he said this, the crowd erupted in an uproar.
Mr. Donovan’s explanation was vague. He only stated that Arabella was their daughter who had been lost, but he didn’t elaborate on how she was lost in the first place, nor how she was found.
Many people were filled with questions and wanted to ask for more details, but they discovered that Mr. and Mrs. Donovan were already busy introducing Arabella to their relatives.
This was truly the first time in her life that Arabella had been surrounded by so many relatives. Everywhere she looked, there were Donovans.
After only a few minutes, she felt her head starting to spin.
’Help, I never knew there were so many Donovans all over the country, and they’re all my relatives! Crap, was that last guy an uncle from Dad’s side or Mom’s side? Aaaah, what do I do? My brain’s starting to short-circuit!’
