Chapter 7

It wasn’t until a week later that Callum finally returned home.

To make it up to Seraphina,he had taken her on a week-long trip out of town and bought her plenty of gifts.

He hadn’t come home all week,but a part of him had still been thinking about Tamara and Tilly.

He had bought Tamara her favorite cosmetics and picked out a set of building blocks for Tilly,knowing how much she loved them.

As soon as he got home,he placed the gifts on the table and called upstairs,“Tamara,Tilly,I’m home!I brought you both some gifts.Come down and take a look.”

He waited.

But even after several minutes,there was no response from upstairs.

Callum’s brows drew together.

Tamara was probably still angry with him over what had happened.

In the past,Callum would have lost his temper by now.

After all,so much time had passed,and he had already been the one to swallow his pride and come home.What more did they want from him?

But then he remembered Tilly’s cries the last time,and a flicker of guilt stirred in his chest.

Forget it.

They were his wife and daughter,after all.As a man,he supposed he could afford to be a little more understanding.

So Callum went upstairs himself.He headed straight for the master bedroom,expecting to find Tamara there.

But the room was empty.

A strange heaviness settled in his chest.

Usually,by this time,Tamara would already have brought Tilly downstairs to wait for him.

Still,considering that her mother had only just passed away,Callum decided not to hold it against her.

It was already late.Surely Tamara was resting in Tilly’s room.

Callum turned and headed there,but just like the master bedroom,it was spotless and empty,as though no one had set foot inside for days.

He switched on the light and immediately noticed a layer of dust on the windowsill.

His irritation flared.

Tilly’s asthma always acted up around this time of year,which was why her room had to be kept practically dust-free.

He had only been gone for a few days,yet the household staff had already become this careless.

Callum stormed downstairs and called all the servants together,his expression stern.

“Tilly gets asthma around this time every year.What exactly have you all been doing?There’s this much dust in her room,and none of you thought to clean it?”

“I’ve only been away for a few days,and this is how you’ve been doing your jobs?”

The servants exchanged uneasy glances before quickly explaining,“Sir,Mrs.Blackwood and Miss Tilly haven’t been home these past few days.”

Callum froze.“They haven’t been home?Then where are they?”

“Sir,how would we know where Mrs.Blackwood and Tilly went?They wouldn’t tell us.”

Callum fell silent.

That was true.

Tamara had always been headstrong.She would go wherever she pleased without explaining herself to anyone.

But Tilly was his daughter too.

For Tamara to take their daughter away without even telling him was a blatant disregard for him.

The thought darkened Callum’s expression.“When was the last time they were home?”

The servants carefully counted the days before answering.

Callum’s brows drew together even tighter.

So Tamara and Tilly hadn’t come home even once since the day he had given Tamara their daughter’s whereabouts.

A heavy frustration settled in his chest.

“She really has some nerve.”

“Call her.Tell her to bring Tilly home before midnight.Otherwise,don’t blame me if I divorce her.”

The servants exchanged another uneasy look,clearly wanting to say something but hesitating.

Judging by the situation,it wasn’t Callum who wanted a divorce from Tamara.

Tamara had simply reached the point where she could no longer stand the sight of him.

But Callum was their employer.No matter how clearly the servants understood what was really happening,they would never dare say it aloud.

In the end,they followed Callum’s orders and called Tamara.

The servant returned a short while later.

Callum gave a cold snort.“Well?Did Tamara tell you where she and Tilly are?”

The servant lowered her gaze,her voice barely above a whisper.

“Mr.Blackwood…we couldn’t get through to Mrs.Blackwood’s phone.”