CHAPTER EIGHT: ALWAYS JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER
KENTON'S POV
I've been with Fierce for six years and I still haven't gotten a chance to wed her. First, it was Greene's death_ five years ago_ then it was my mother's illness, four years ago. Sometimes I think that all of this has been planned.
True, I'm no stranger to the fact that fate has its weird way with things_ but all that's been happening recently is too bad to be true. The only positive things about my life are: my net worth, my recent projects and, of course, Isabella's coffee.
Speaking of coffee, I should get a cup for myself_ it's been two days since I last drank coffee, highly abnormal for a man like myself.
I hate a lot of things about a lot of people, and four years ago, I found something to hate about Isabella.
I abhor how good she paints herself out to be. Hiring those two, timid and disgusting waitresses was the worst mistake of her life and she's too hardheaded to admit it.
A year ago, she was sinking in a sea of debts and I offered to settle all her debts_ provided, she fires those two brunettes; she refused prior due thought. When I questioned her on her stupidity, she told me I wouldn't understand how precious M. Stevens and M. Smith are because I 'always judge a book by its cover'
Lucky for her, she pulled through. Her father died and left a few thousands of pounds_ they put her right back on her feet and she's been financially stable ever since.
Owing to mom's illness, I had to buy her a mansion and get her a 24/7 nurse. Fierce said I'm dramatic, but I don't really value her opinion of me so…
Mom isn't allowed to have caffeine; however, every once in a while I sneak some of the good stuff to her room without her nurse noticing_ caffeine is our strange addiction.
Today is one of those 'once-in-a-whiles'.
It doesn't take long until I'm at Isabella's. Upon my arrival, I spotted those bitches I detest dearly, but before I could_ once again_ grace them with my insults, Isabella served me and I made my way out.
The drive to Mom's mansion is pretty long; that's why I had Isabella keep her coffee in a vacuum flask_ no good son would give their ill mother some cold coffee.
Security at the mansion is quite loose_ for a mansion, that is. Mom insists that we keep it that way; I couldn't help but agree with her, it's not like a have any enemies out here. I'm a nice guy.
After a two-hour drive, I park my car by the lake at the entrance_ I shan't take long.
It's a bit chilly in this side of the country; I regret not wearing something warmer than the designer jeans and t-shirt I'm in. The wind ripples violently through my clothes. With every step I take towards the house, I lose a great deal of heat to my surroundings.
No sooner had I let myself inside than I was met by my mother spread on the floor like a door mat. Her skin is as pale as paper_ no blood flowing in her cheeks.
She looks_ lifeless.
On instinct, I envelope her in my arms and check her pulse, which seems fine to me. Thank God! Now, where the hell is her reckless and stupid nurse!?
That son of a bitch let my mother faint in her absence. Who told her to leave Mother unattended? Who the hell does she think she is?
I let my anger subside for a while, as I take mom to her room and lay her in bed. I give her a peck on her fore head and hold her wrinkled hand. I fear that soon she will leave me. She's the only person that has ever loved me; she's all I have and I don't think that I'm ready to lose her.
Scratch that, I am definitely not ready to lose her; hence I have Fierce and her team working on a clone of her.
A victorious smile erupts on my face as I anticipate the future.
Pronto, I'm reminded of my anger when I hear Mom stir in bed. Where is that bitch, again? I guess I'll have to find out.
I get out of Mother's room and I call for the nurse.
"Miss Gomez?"
Nothing
"Sarita? Sarita?"
Nothing
"You better show your ass up here, right now, or you're fired!"
Still nothing
I go back to Mom's room to find her awake and sipping the coffee that I'd brought for her.
"Where is your nurse, Mother?" I interrogate her.
"Poor kid, I let her go today, she received a call that told her that her eighteen year old son had been in a car accident; sadly, his head hit a relatively hard surface and he's been diagnosed with amnesia." She tells me_ Sarita's woe seems to have made Mother very… forlorn.
"Does this mean that she won't be coming back?" I question her in a worried tone.
She chuckles for a moment, prior giving me a reply.
"Of course, silly. I promised to give her a full months' salary for three months, even if she'll have to stop working for me. She's one damsel in distress, James, and we are going to do all we can to be of her assistance."
Nods are a sign of approval to all she's saying and she give me a wide smile as a result, but not before telling me how proud she is of me.
I decide to call Fierce and ask her if she knows a nurse who would be willing to nurse a sixty-seven year old woman for three months. Fierce referred me to Isabella who told me that I wouldn't like the candidate(s) she knows.
That woman knows how to push my buttons, but I wouldn't let her take pleasure in seeing me suffer, so I hung up on her; and tried everyone one else I knew; nevertheless, to no avail.
That left my fate in Isabella's hands…
"It's you again, James? How can I be of help, monsieur?" Isabella asked upon picking her phone.
"I'm desperate. Mom's nurse is not here; Fierce is busy; I have a meeting in a few hours and I can't take her with me. Is there anyone you know who could help me out?" I inquire_ mentally rolling my eyes.
She chuckles a bit and goes silent for a while, "You didn't need to prepare a whole speech for that, young Kenton. How does this sound? 'Hey Isabella, I need someone to look after Mom while I run some errands. Can you be of any assistance?' And I would say: 'Sure James."
I sigh and decide to let it slide.
"Since you've said 'Sure James' please send whoever it is over. Make it snappy." That should make up for her disrespectful behavior.
"You're welcome, James." She says and the call goes off.
I'm pre-annoyed_ I haven't been annoyed yet, but I know that I'm bound to be annoyed. In less than three hours, precisely. Especially because she's obviously sending one of those two fools here.
That woman is hell-bent on pissing me off.
Mom has fallen asleep and I gently squeeze her hand before leaving her bedroom.
It's not something I'd say out loud_ especially in Mother's presence_ but Sarita's incompetence has really gotten to my nerves.
Two months ago, she gave Mom a prawn-based snack, knowing exactly well that my mother is allergic to seafood; her excuse was that Mother insisted on it. A fortnight ago she missed a step while in the shower, tripped and broke a leg. She couldn't nurse Mom for three full days because of that gaffe. Five days ago, she invited her loud son over and disturbed my mother's peace and quiet. Now it's this_ she leaves the house without my permission. All because a whole, fucking, adult was in a car accident.
Sarita has definitely incurred my wrath_ all of it, and I'll take pleasure in making her pay.
Ere the nurse's arrival I should keep myself busy with some recreational activities.
In the aftermath of a five minute mental battlefield, I settled for watching a series on Netflix. The Designated Survivor.
The doorbell went off after I gave the security guards by the gate a go-ahead in letting the nurse in.
As I open the door, I'm met by two faces instead of one.
She. Did. Not.
"Uhm- sir, hello?" The girl I remember having M. Stevens on her nametag snaps me out of my thoughts.
"Why are the both of you here?" With a scowl on my face, I ask.
"Isabella said you needed our help, sir. So- uhm, both of us can help. We're in med-school and we've dealt with cancer patients before; hence she suggested us… I think." The other one stutters.
I let them inside and show them around. They're eerily quiet; I'm more annoyed than I'd anticipated. Nobody should be this_ boring, timid, useless, name them all… no one should be this odious, yet they both are.
What beats me is why they're both here. Couldn't Isabella send only one of them over here? Coming to think of it, I've never seen them not together, they're so… inseparable_ it's disturbing.
As much as I abhor these two creatures, there's one thing admire about the both of them: they're both women in STEM, just like my Fierce.
After showing them around and giving them my mother's diet plan and timetable, I leave.
MERIDA'S POV
It's been five good years since I murdered the Greene family.
In these long, yet short years, I've gotten acquainted to Mariam and we've grown to respect and understand each other. One thing I love about her is how seriously she takes her job. We've been in London for four and a half years; she has never acted out of character.
A lot has happened since we got here.
Both Mariam and I have completed degrees in humanities and we both went to med-school afterwards, we didn't let that get in the way of working at Isabella's though.
Our cover is very unlikely to be blown. Almost no one can tell us apart, we're partly identical, save the fact that one of us is M. Stevens and the other one is M. Smith.
Luckily, one of my missions has been accomplished_ Kenton hates us.
Over the years, I've grown to trust Mariam, not too much though. She's made a huge sacrifice for me.
After we both signed the contract to our agreement and she got the first installment of her payment, she paid all her father's medical expenses and she paid for his surgery.
However, a day before her father's surgery, he got hit by a truck and died on the spot. She was devastated and I told her that she was free to leave; we'd terminate the contract and I'd still give her the rest of the money anyway. She, however, decided to stay and help me fight my demons. I value her loyalty.
She still doesn't know much about me and my mission. All she knows is that I want to take my revenge on Kenton because he'd hurt me when I was younger. She doesn't even know about Greene and his family. Like I said, I don't trust her all too much, even though she's literally my right-hand woman.
Soon, very soon, I'll be out of London. I've overstayed my welcome here and so has Kenton and his family overstayed theirs on earth. It's high time they departed, though not faithfully.
Life here is quite expensive, but it's nothing I can't handle. The people here are also overly kind, Isabella being number one on the list. She 'took us in' when we got here because we'd 'escaped from a gang that was involved in human trafficking_ we are… victims'. She gave us jobs as waitresses at her café and she got us 'scholarships'.
We moved out of her house as soon as we 'got back to our feet'.
Not once did I see everything going this smoothly when I drafted this revenge plan. I'm proud of the progress I've made so far. Even if I end up failing_ at any point_ not everything will be traced back to me.
I've leant that everyone has a price. Be it money, family, fame, revenge_ anything. Mine is revenge; Sarita Gomez's is money.
All it took for her to fake an accident was winning a fully paid, two-month holiday in Hawaii. A wise woman would've noticed that the prize was too good to be true. A gambler on the contrary wouldn't see any problem with that prize_ she'd take it, lie to her boss and go on an escapade with her son and lover in Hawaii. Sarita Gomez is one big gambling addict; hence she did what she did.
That being the case, James Kenton is in dire need of a skilled nurse and Isabella is the only one who knows someone who can help. This is where M. Stevens and M. Smith step in.
All they need is time; they'll go through with their plan.
A piece I cannot seem to fit into the puzzle is Fierce_ a South African scientist that moved to London for a reason I can't seem to decipher. She got engaged to Kenton a while after she got here. She's a figure I've been observing from afar and she is rather peculiar. She detests Kenton's presence and tries as she possibly can to avoid him, yet she's engaged to him. She speaks nicely of him, but it all seems so forced. From judging a book by its cover, I gathered all that.
She is one interesting character and I'd hate to put an end to her life too, but that depends on whether she's my enemy or not.