The days after the incident in Richmond Ranch, slipped away fast and got lost somewhere in the folds of one afternoon two weeks later; the afternoon that the Little Missus had to leave Hampshire.
The boys spent the whole morning that day packing up her things, making sure she had everything she needed for the trip.
Xhemin on the other hand didn't care about any of those, instead she spent the whole morning scrubbing the cottage floors and cleaning her bathroom unnecessarily. After lunch, she tidied round the kitchen and when she could fool herself no longer that there was anything left to do, she went upstairs to her bedroom. She stared blankly at the two boys who were busy opening up almost every drawer in her closet wondering whether she needed more clothes or so.
"Should I pack up Cryzer too?" Ziggy asked when he caught a glimpse of her favorite animal stuff lying on her bed.
She didn't respond, instead she went to her balcony and observed how the wind was moving the bare trees that bordered the fields and the clouds, as they pasted onto the sky then bulged and heaved.
From her balcony, she saw Ang pulled Summer out from the stables and unto a truck. For the next three months, Summer will be her only companion in Woodbridge that will remind her of the Richmond ranch. Since she will be training in a farm, she had the permission to bring one of her horses.
The afternoon aged but Xhem remained in her balcony, not wanting to leave. But then she knew she had to. She thought about her grandfather's decision to send her away; she hated it, but weighing the circumstances, it was fair enough. Her grandpa was right, they were not children anymore and somehow she need to learn a couple of things outside Richmond Ranch. However, spending a full season alone, without the boys, was a lonely thing to go through. Never did in her entire life she thought that one day she's going to be away from them. Away from the family she grew up into.
Xhemin drowned deep in her thoughts when she felt Huzey's hands on her shoulders. He slipped in a coat in her back and kissed her goodbye.
"Time to go." He said and guided her back to her room and down the stairs. Ziggy was behind them carrying the last luggage he had packed for her.
"Don't be sad lil' thug, it will just be for three months. Besides were just a chat away," Ziggy whispered to her as he planted a kiss on her check and hugged her goodbye.
"Don't forget grandad's tea" She reminded him. Ziggy will be personally training under Dr. Miles in the local hospital, so she left her the task of making the tea for him.
"I won't" He promised and handed her Cryzer. He thought earlier of packing Cryzer in her luggage but decided not to. The trip to Woodbridge is long and lonely; she needs something to hug along the way.
"Bye Grandad" She turned to her grandfather and bowed. She gave him a kiss afterwards. She wasn't angry with him, all these years she grew up knowing it was hard for her grandfather to raise a child on his own. Though their past is a mystery for her, she knew Dr. Miles had a gone through hell to keep her safe.
She stepped into the truck and embraced Cryzer. The corners of her eyes were warming up yet she remained composed.
"Hey…" Huzey came through the truck's window as soon as the engine started. "Check your email"
"Huh?"
"Just open it," He said with a smile as the truck started to move.
Xhemin suddenly went curious. She can't helped but move her head out of the window to inquire more. However, before she knew it, the truck was already few meters away from where it previously was. Seeing her grandfather and best friends standing in the yard and was getting smaller and smaller every second, she waved a hand in the air and shouted goodbye.
It took few more minutes before the Richmond ranch evaporated in the fields of green. Xhemin withdrew back to her seat and grabbed the phone that Huzey slipped in her coat earlier. She tapped it open and went to check her email's inbox.
An unfamiliar email address surprised her. Her mouth fell when she realized who it was.
'Unread message from Darryl Lemmuel Lagdameo'
The beast. The beast emailed her?
----
Darryl stood before a glass window looking to the scenery from the outside. The sun sank and deepened and sky closed over the last of daylight and sucked it in.
He was still in Hampshire and even though such province was not as busy as the capital; Meetings and conferences still filled his day. The L Empire was still stuck in the Staw disease dilemma.
"Young Master, I am sending Farmer Su in" Manager Song announced. His sudden arrival took off Darryl's attention from the beautiful sunset.
"Good evening Young Master," Farmer Su greeted. Darryl heaved the farmer and manager a sign to sit in the sitting area. Both of them settled themselves immediately on the camel back sofa standing elegantly in one corner. The place was intended for formal conversations like the one they were about to discuss.
"Any news?" Darryl started charging his eyes to Manager Song.
"There's not much from our paid experts Young Master," Working two weeks in row side by side with the L Empire's heir, he learned that Darryl is not fond of sugar-coated information. He wants straightforward responses as much as possible.
"Young Master, as you have requested, I checked onto those that has been affected by the disease. I'm afraid to say that they would not live longer than a week or two" Farmer Su immediately spattered the bad news.
"Do you have any news of Mr. Owens?" Darryl inquired without much reaction.
"None young master, the doctor was our last hope." Farmer Su answered.
"However he proved to be useless" Manager Song commented "There's rather odd about that household though"
"Odd? You mean?" Darryl's brows curled into each other.
"One of the doctor's grandchild look exactly like the youngest Montreal" He recalled. The first time he laid eyes to Ziggy few weeks ago, he recognized him instantly. However, because they were in a modest household and were looking for a local doctor, he kind of doubted his identity. He thought it was rather impossible for a Montreal to associate themselves to commoners.
"He doesn't look like the Youngest Montreal, he is the youngest Montreal" Farmer Su replied. At first, he himself was appalled about the doctor and the youngest Montreal's closeness. However, when Ziggy started appearing in the doctor's clinic every now and then, he realized that the young sire was into medicine. That probably was the reason why he was close to the humble doctor.
"Are you certain about that? If what you said is true, then the other boy was the Diamond Prince right?" Manager Song inquired further as his interest grew.
"Yes he is. The children were close ever since" Farmer Su replied confidently.
"That's unbelievable! I can't believe the Montarini's and Montreal's elders allowed that kind of friendship!"
Darryl who knew these facts remained quiet. These facts sank into him and he realized that Manager Song's incredulity was natural. There was indeed something off about the two heir's relationship with the doctor. He knew the Montarini's don't care much of social gaps, but the Montreal's aren't. Are they aware of Ziggy and Xhemin's closeness? How about the fact that Ziggy stays in a commoner's ranch?
Darryl thought about it and a notion teared into his mind. Reckoning the situation, his suspicions dragged his interest to a pike.
"Possible..." Darryl murmured.
"Young master? You were saying something?" Manager Song asked when he heard him.
"Nothing…" He replied shaking his head "Farmer Su, you said that Dr. Dugmoch is not originally from Hampshire, right?"
"Yes, young master"
"And that such doctor was very generous. You mentioned he put up a local clinic?"
"Yes young master, that is true"
Darryl's suspicion was turning real. Could he be right?
"Manager Song, served Farmer Su some tea. I need to make a call," he said lastly before he stood and went out the room in haste.
He dialed some numbers in his phone. A minute after, someone from the other line welcomed him.
"Hey, send me anything you can find about Dr. Miles" Darryl instructed.