"Boss, you're not going to believe this!" Miranda came into Mr Walters office without knocking so suddenly. Mr Walters almost got knocked off his seat in shock by her sudden appearance.
"Do you want me to get a heart attack?" Mr Walters asked, furrowing his eyebrows. "You should learn to knock first. Hasn't your mother ever
taught you any manners?"
"I'm sorry, Mr Walters," Miranda apologised. "I just came to tell you something really important."
"What is it?" Mr Walters rubbed his forehead with his hand in frustration.
"I don't think it's going to be possible to extract our revenge on those two sisters."
Mr Walters looked up at Miranda who had a look in her eyes he couldn't understand. He sat a little upright in his chair.
"What do you mean it's not going to be possible to extract our revenge on those girls?" This came as a surprise to Mr Walters.
"Just that, Mr Walters. It turns out, the house where those sisters used to live was taken from them by the bank. I passed by their house today and I saw people loading their stuff in a truck," explained Miranda.
"Tell me, did you see Carly or her sister there?"
"No, but I asked one of the neighbours if they did. And they told me they saw Carly come by the house and take some personal belongings. And there was someone with her."
That made Mr Walters very attentive and his eyes bulged with anxiety. "Go on, tell me."
"They said she came with a man. He looked like some rich business man or something."
"Ah, huh," Mr Walters leaned back on his chair and thought of what to say next. "Is the man famous or something? For people to describe him like that, he must be of some importance."
"He must be," said Miranda, taking a seat opposite Mr Walters. "Could Carly have found herself a sugar daddy or something?"
"No, she couldn't have. At such a short space of time and her sister who was badly injured in hospital, no way. He must be someone to her."
"If she did find a sugar daddy, then she is really lucky," said Miranda, with a grin on her face.
"Could you snap out of it," Mr Walters snapped his fingers in front of Miranda's face. "Now is not the time to envy Carly. Now is the time to find her and her sister."
"You don't worry about it. One thing is for sure, those two aren't leaving the country. And besides we still need to find that Leo and his friend too."
"We already know the McDonell family, so finding those two boys wouldn't be a problem. You just find out where Carly and her sister is."
"You got it, boss." Miranda stood up from her seat and left the office while Mr Walters sat in the dark space of his office deep in thought.
He had to find those two sisters now that Angel was okay. Yes, they did almost destroy his entire bar and had almost got them in trouble with the police, but it went way beyond that. The two sisters had just made an enemy. And he was going to do all he could to give them a taste of their own medicine.
The phone on his desk rang, jogging Mr Walters out of his thoughts for revenge. He saw the caller ID and he gave out a smile when he took the call.
"Hello, old friend," said Mr Walters, "I know you called for news. I have good news and bad news. Which one would you pick first?"
***
Angel couldn't hide the look on her face when she first got inside the McDonell household with Eric pushing her wheelchair. The place was amazing. The walls painted white and the white shiny marble of a floor made the place dazzle in brightness. She had never been to such a place before. And the staircase had a rich brown colour of mahogany. The walls had magnificent paintings and Angel couldn't wait to take a tour around the house.
"Wow, Eric, this house is beautiful," said Angel in awe. "It's like a palace."
"Wait until you see the whole house," said Eric, "this house is nothing compared to other places."
"I know, but for a house to live in, it's too magnificent, don't you think?"
"I agree with you," came Amanda, as she was accompanied inside the house with the driver who drove them. "You wait until you look around the house. You'll love it."
"I'm loving it already," said Angel with a bright smile on her face. Amanda smiled back at her. Amanda was glad that Angel had smiled for the first time since they first met minutes ago.
"You have a brilliant smile, Angel," said Amanda. "May you be happy always."
"Thank you," said Angel as her cheeks blushed.
"I'm glad you noticed it, grandma," said Eric. "This smile will always be on her face now that I am here."
Angel continued to smile when Eric said that for the sake of Amanda. She clearly knew that it was going to be difficult now that Leo and her were staying in the same house.
"Hello, hello," came a voice above the staircase. "I didn't know that our guest has already arrived."
Angel turned towards the staircase to see who was there and she saw a beautiful woman who seemed to be in her mid-40's and wearing a beautiful blue dress which reached her knees and tightly held her body showing her curves. Her short dark brown hair stood in curls and she had a smile on her face as she came down the stairs.
"You must be Angel, nice to meet you, I'm Diana, Eric's mother," said Diana, giving Angel a peck on both cheeks.
"Nice to meet you, Diana," said Angel, "now I see where Eric gets his looks from."
"Ya, he really has my looks, doesn't he?" Diana teased. "He should have been a girl instead."
"Mum, thats enough," said Eric. "You're going to make Angel think the same as you do over my looks."
"I agree with your mum, Eric," said Angel. "When I first saw you I wondered if you were a girl in disguise or a guy whose just gone gay."
Amanda and Diana burst out laughing while Eric sulked with his arms folded. The look on Eric's face made Angel laugh out loud.
"Haha, very funny, Angel," said Eric, looking a little pissed off.
"I never knew you were that funny, Angel," said Amanda. "Looks like we will be laughing all day long with you around."
"Angel is not that funny," said Eric, "her sarcastic jokes are way more funnier."
"You're just jealous because she said the truth," said Diana. "Anyway, I like her already."
"What's not to like?" Eric asked staring down at Angel who didn't seem to notice his eyes on her. He had a smile on his face and Diana noticed it.
"You're right," said Amanda. "I bet Leo will like her too."
Angel stopped laughing all of the sudden and Eric stared at his grandmother looking uneasy. Amanda and Diana looked at the other two wondering why their attitude had changed so suddenly.
"Have I said something wrong, again?" Amanda asked.
"No, it's nothing," said Angel.
"Anyway, is Bertha, around?" asked Amanda. "I thought you two went shopping today."
"Yes, we did," answered Diana. "She's in her room taking a nap. She just received bad news and you know how she reacts."
"What's the bad news for our queen to throw a temper tantrum again?"
"You won't believe this, but Leo met Kim and he broke up with her."
"What!" Amanda and Eric exclaimed almost at the same time. Angel just stayed silent. This wasn't turning out well at all.
"I knew it!" Amanda shouted joyfully like a child. "I knew my Leo would change his mind."
"He must have done this because of my sister," Angel thought to herself. "This can't be happening to me right now."
"I never liked Kim in the first place. Not that I hate her or anything," said Amanda. "She just wasn't the right woman for my Leo."
"I knew you would be the happiest one, mum," said Diana. "Don't try to show your excitement around Bertha when she wakes up."
"Oh, please, her anger shouldn't get in the way of my happiness. And how about Leo, where is he?"
"We found him here and he told us the news," answered Diana. "And when Bertha couldn't stand it, Leo left the house."
"Phew. I wasn't going to stand it if he were here," Angel thought to herself.
"Well, when he comes back, I'm going to congratulate him," said Amanda.
"We are going to go through hell for a few days since aunt won't be cool with all this," said Eric.
"She just has to get used to it," said Diana. "She has to pull herself together."
"She won't be the only one pulling oneself together," Angel thought.
"Eric, why don't you take Angel around the house?" suggested Diana.
"Okay, this whole news is nothing but a surprise," said Eric. "We'll be out in the back."
"Okay, I'll let the cooks get our lunch ready," said Diana.
"If you need me I'll be in the living room," said Amanda. "You have fun Angel, okay?"
"Thanks, Amanda," said Angel.
Diana went to the kitchen while Eric and Angel went to the back of the house towards the garden. Amanda looked on as Eric and Angel left and all she could do was smile.
When Eric and Angel reached the patio, Angel couldn't help but admire the beautiful garden ahead of her. Somehow, she was glad she had the opportunity to stay in such a place but the other thing that bothered her was meeting Leo's mother. In a way, Amanda and Diana talked about Mrs McDonell, she seemed to be a whole lot like Leo, but in the worst way. Angel sighed as she thought about it and Eric noticed.
"Hey, are you okay?" Eric asked.
"I don't know whether to be okay or stay angry forever," replied Angel.
"Are you upset because Leo broke up with Kim?"
"The two of us know he did that because of Carly. And the thing is, no one knows that."
"Are you scared that people will find out?"
"And by people, you mean your aunt, then, yes." Angel couldn't help but feel frustrated. "What did those two get themselves into? On one hand, we are hiding the truth that Leo loves Carly, on the other, we have to pretend that we don't know anything about it."
"Don't forget that no one could know about the accident and what really happened."
"I hate that many lies are building up all because of that accident. Sometimes I wish I could turn back time and let everyone know the truth."
"I know. I'm afraid that's one thing we humans can't control. Time."
Angel gave out a sigh of frustration and Eric put a hand on her shoulder. He led her around the garden and by the pool hoping that Angel was having a good time looking around the place. But somehow, it was hard for Angel to block out her thoughts. She wasn't ready to face Leo. With her aching legs, she could pounce on him like a tigress and rip him to shreds at first sight.
***
When Carly and Mr McDonell had arrived at the house before lunch hour, Carly couldn't help but admire the house just like Angel had. She went around the house and found Angel with Eric who were hanging out in the garden.
"Hi, guys," said Carly cheerfully, almost jumping up and down. "I love this house! It's so big, isn't it, Angel?"
Angel couldn't help but nod absent mindely and Carly noticed that Angel was lost in thought. She knelt in front of Angel and took her hand. Angel looked up at her sister, finally out of her thoughts.
"Hey, what do you think about the house?"
"I think it's lovely, Carly," said Angel, in a sad tone. She drew her eyes downward, not willing to look at her sister.
"Well, you seem not to be happy. Is there something wrong?"
Angel didn't say anything, her eyes still downcast. Carly looked up at Eric with a questioning look on her face.
"Eric, whats wrong with her?" Carly asked. "Is she still mad at me?"
Before Eric could answer, Angel answered, "I have every right to be mad at you, Carly Barclay. And right now I think we're going to be in for a whole lot of trouble."
"What have I done now, Angel? I'm already sorry for all that I've put you through. Why couldn't you just forget about it?"
"Forget about it?" Angel almost exclaimed but kept her cool. "Because of you and Leo, I don't think I want to keep up with all these lies anymore."
"What's wrong? Did Leo do something to you?"
"He didn't just do anything to me, but to his entire family. Now that Leo has fallen in love with you, he broke up with his fiancée."
"You're worried because of that, Angel? I thought it was something serious."
"This is serious," said Eric, gladly taking the reins from Angel. "My aunt isn't one who takes things so easily. She is more of a drama queen."
Carly stood up from the ground and rolled her eyes. "So what? It's not like she knows the whole truth, does she? You worry for no reason."
"You clearly don't understand, do you?" Angel asked. "I'm afraid that playing pretend around her is going to be a whole lot difficult for us."
"I agree with Angel," said Eric. "My aunt isn't one person you could easily lie to."
"Well, I'm not that worried. This house is so gorgeous," said Carly turning around to see the beautiful garden. "I could get used to this place."
Angel slapped her hand upon her forehead. Carly could act like a blonde sometimes when she didn't realise the dangerous situation she was in. Angel was her sister anyway. And the promise she had made to her late mother made Angel realise that now more than ever, she had to look out for her sister no matter what.
"Hey, is Leo here?" Carly asked. "I haven't seen him."
"No, he wasn't here the time we came," answered Eric.
"Now isn't the time to ask for him," said Angel. "Remember that we're supposed to act like strangers a little towards him."
"Well, I don't see you doing the same with Eric," said Carly.
"Because Eric has been helping us out while I was in hospital. Unlike Leo."
"Hey, Leo, isn't all that bad you know?"
Angel just sighed ignoring her sister. "Is the luggage here? I hope you packed all my things."
"Ya, ya," answered Carly with annoyance. "I made sure I got everything. Mr McDonell said the rest of our things from our house will come here and be stored away in the basement or something."
"I don't think that will be a good idea," said Angel.
"And why not?" Carly snapped.
Before Angel could reply, an ear-shrieking noise came from inside the house.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS! WHOSE LUGGAGE IS THIS!"
"Because of her," replied Eric.