Chapter 795

Cecilia suddenly fell silent for a moment.

Rachel had worked with her for so many years, and they were also close friends in private. How could Rachel not understand the meaning behind that silence?

But Rachel still held on to a shred of hope.

“Cecilia, say something. It’s nothing serious, right? Don’t scare me.”

Cecilia took a deep breath.

“It’s liver cancer. Mid-to-late stage. A while ago, I kept noticing my complexion looked yellowish, but I didn’t think much of it. I figured I just wasn’t getting enough rest. But then a couple of days ago, I started feeling pain around my liver, so I went in for a checkup. And, well, here we are.”

Rachel gasped. It felt as if something heavy was pressing down on her chest, and the pain was suffocating.

She knew that what mattered now was helping Cecilia pull herself together. She couldn’t let herself drown in negative emotions.

She quickly gathered her thoughts and forced a smile.

“Don’t worry. This is just a small hurdle. Medicine is so advanced now, and we’re not short on money. I’ll take care of everything. Listen, when I was overseas, I met a brilliant doctor. I’ll reach out to her. For now, put aside all your work. We’ll focus everything on your treatment.”

Cecilia’s voice was calm, but that calmness only made Rachel even more uneasy.

“Rachel, honestly, I’m not afraid of dying. Death is the easiest thing in the world. What I can’t stop worrying about are my two kids. I’m all they have left. If I’m gone, what will happen to them?”

The more Cecilia spoke, the lower her spirits sank. Her voice began to tremble.

Rachel comforted her gently. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. The doctor didn’t say it’s untreatable. Don’t draw conclusions too soon.”

Not wanting to spread her despair to Rachel, Cecilia cut herself off.

“I’m fine, really. Don’t worry about me. I’m old enough to handle this. Besides, we should look on the bright side. Luckily, you helped me settle the housing issue before this happened. Otherwise, with me being this sick, I might not even have a job right now.”

“That’s the right way to think. I’ll make time in the next couple of days and go with you to the hospital again. For now, just focus on resting at home. I can’t talk more right now,” Rachel said softly.

“Okay.”

After hanging up, Rachel drove straight to the Lloyd family estate.

The moment the maids saw her, they looked at her with the same stunned expression as always. Rachel thought of how they reacted like this every time she came back, and smiled bitterly.

She asked directly, “Where’s my dad?”

“In his room, miss. You’re finally back. Could you spare some time to stay with him? His health is getting worse and worse. Every day, it’s just him and Mr. Gerald at home. The place feels so empty and lifeless.”

One was a terminally ill patient, while the other was an elderly man well past his prime. Neither spoke more than a few words a day. Even the housemaids didn’t dare make a sound. The entire house was blanketed in suffocating gloom.

Rachel’s tone turned cold. “They’re like this because Yvette hasn’t come back yet.”

“That’s not the whole reason. Mr. Gerald and Mr. Jim still worry about you, too.”

Rachel forced a smile. “I’ll go upstairs first. If there’s anything else, we’ll talk later.”

The maid nodded.

Rachel walked upstairs and paused outside Jim’s door, hesitating for a few seconds before finally knocking.

“Come in.”

The voice inside was weak and frail.

Rachel frowned immediately. Hadn’t he been receiving treatment all this time? Why did it sound like he was only getting worse?

She pushed the door open. The curtains were tightly drawn, leaving the room in darkness, weighed down by a suffocating heaviness.