Chapter 374 Only the Obedient Are Safe

While Sierra and Johnathan were talking, Quinn was also questioning Dora.

“What did she say to you yesterday?” Quinn asked.

Dora looked at her blankly, showing no reaction at all.

“I’m asking you a question!” Quinn’s voice rose, but Dora still didn’t respond—only her eyes showed a flicker of fear.

“Speak. I know you can talk,” Quinn snapped again, clearly losing patience.

Even though she believed Dora wouldn’t mess things up, Quinn had always been thorough.

If it weren’t for the fact that having a child nearby lowered people’s guard and invited sympathy, she would never have brought Dora back at all.

Dora seemed frightened, stammering out, “Asked… me… was I scared?”

Dora had once been able to express herself clearly, but after everything she’d been through, her speech had clearly suffered.

She’d had so much she wanted to say to Sierra yesterday, but couldn’t find the words.

Seeing her finally speak, Quinn’s eyes narrowed. “What else?”

In that moment, she was nothing like her usual gentle self. She looked more like a demon.

“N–No more,” Dora stammered.

Quinn nodded in satisfaction. “That’s better. You know what happens to bad children, right? You don’t want to be punished, do you?”

At the word “punished,” Dora’s eyes filled with terror. She shook her head with all her might.

Pleased, Quinn patted her head and said in a falsely sweet voice, “Then be a good girl. Only obedient children don’t get punished.”

With that warning delivered, Quinn went back to her room.

This was how she always operated. When no one was watching, she completely ignored Dora.

All that talk about companionship—nonsense. To her, Dora was nothing more than a test subject.

Dora sat with her head down, her small face full of fear. She missed Sierra terribly.

Unable to hold back, she crept back to her room and quietly called Sierra.

She’d never called Quinn once—but every day, she had contacted Sierra.

She hadn’t reached out since returning, but tonight, she just couldn’t resist.

Sierra was just about to sleep when she suddenly received a video call from Dora. She was a little surprised.

“Dora?”

The screen was pitch black. Sierra looked again—it was definitely a call from Dora, but she couldn’t see anything.

“…Mm.”

Dora’s voice came through.

“Why is it so dark? Is your watch broken?” Sierra asked.

Dora didn’t answer. She was hiding under her blanket so no one would hear.

Sierra, already used to Dora’s inconsistent responses, gently asked what had happened. She didn’t expect an answer this time either—until Dora quietly said, “I want you to tell me a story.”

Sierra was about to ask why her mom didn’t tell her one, but then something clicked—and her expression shifted.

“Alright. I’ll tell you one. What do you want to hear tonight? The little mermaid or the monkey story?”

Johnathan came out from his shower just in time to hear Sierra softly telling a story into her phone. He listened closely. Only Dora could make Sierra do this.

He stood nearby, quietly listening as Sierra’s voice grew softer. When she finally heard the steady breathing on the other end, she ended the call.

“Mr. Yaeger… I’m worried about Dora,” Sierra said.

She had already found Dora’s behavior toward Quinn odd. Back then, she hadn’t known about Quinn’s background, so she hadn’t thought too much of it.

But if Quinn wasn’t innocent—what did that make Dora in her eyes?

Sierra wanted to get Dora away from her, but had no idea how. On the surface, Quinn hadn’t done anything wrong. It was all still just suspicion.

“I’ll think of something,” Johnathan reassured her.

Those words alone were enough to ease Sierra’s mind.