Julia smiled widely at him and furious breaths continuously fled from his nose.
"What is your problem?" He scowled at her and she shrugged with no tinge of care visible on her face.
"Well, I just wanted to see what was going on, that's all. Hmm looks like I came late anyway."
She shook her head in disappointment, and before William could utter a word, she turned around and began to walk back to her room.
William gazed at her disappearing back, and his face clenched in anger. "I will deal with you someday!"
_________
Diana arrived back at the apartment and pushed the door open.
She stepped inside and stiffened on seeing Lisa pacing back and forth with an apprehensive expression on her face.
"Lisa..." She called her in a gentle tone, and Lisa instantly halted.
She turned around and directly rushed up to Diana.
She pulled her into a warm hug and embraced her tightly.
"Gosh! I was so worried that something might have happened to you." She drew back from the hug and smiled widely at Diana.
Diana chuckled softly at her expression and playfully flicked her forehead.
"Haish, you worry too much." She clicked her tongue, and Lisa rolled her eyes.
"Well, you can't blame me. After all, you would have been in grave danger if you got caught. "
She shrugged, and Diana cackled.
"You're right, I can't blame you. I would have been worried as well if I was in your shoes."
She said as she walked towards the mini table.
She grabbed Lisa's phone and quickly made a call.
The bearer of the number responded almost immediately, and Diana proceeded to speak.
"Hi, I have got everything I need, so... we are ready." She said, and the person on the other side of the phone responded.
"Alright. You will be picked up in an hour." She cut the call shortly after these words, and Diana kept the phone back.
She sat down on the couch and patiently waited for the person to arrive.
....
After an hour, the sound of a car resounded from outside, and Diana quickly got up from the couch.
Along with Lisa, she took her things outside, and they boarded the car.
Without uttering a single word to them, the driver, who was a young lady, started the car engine and sped off down the road.
They stayed silent throughout the ride, and finally, after an hour plus a few minutes, they arrived at the huge mansion.
The security guards pulled the gate open for them, and the driver drove them inside.
She smoothly parked in the parking lot, and Diana pushed the door open.
She stepped down and turned to look at Lisa, who had also gotten down.
"Follow me." The female driver said to them, and they began to follow behind her while the female bodyguards helped pull their luggage for them.
They walked into the building and the maids assisted them towards their room.
They settled in and Lisa, who felt somewhat exhausted, plopped down in the quite soft bed.
"This place looks pretty nice." She commented, and Diana slowly nodded her head in agreement.
"It does look fine. though not better than my father's house." She chuckled softly, and Lisa agreed with her completely.
A deep breath fled Diana's nose, and she pulled her leg to her chest.
She buried her face in her knees and Lisa, who immediately felt that something was wrong, moved closer to her.
"Hey, Is everything okay? " She asked, and Diana raised her head to look at her.
"It's nothing. I just thought about my mum." She replied, and Lisa pulled her in, then had her rest her head on her shoulder.
"What memory of her did you think about?" she inquired, and a low breath fled Diana's nose.
"Well, I just kind of recalled those times she would protect me endlessly from my father whenever he tried to hit me. She would always take all the beatings and just pretend like nothing happened. I had wanted us to run away then, but she would say, "Run away to where? How would we survive and even if we do, he would find us in less than a day."
She chuckled pessimistically and slightly shook her head.
"I thought my mom was just being a coward then, but now I realize how much of a brave woman she was. She was my hero even though she left me in this fucking world to suffer at his hands."
"It hurt so much then when he continuously hit and tortured me every single day for no reason. It hurts when I see him show Eric and Julia so much love, but me, he treated me like an animal for reasons I can't tell till today."
"I realized how much he despises me when he burned these scars on my arms and told me it was to always remind me never to underestimate him or even think of going against him. It was extremely threatening, but I still went against him."
"I know he wanted to finish me off in the hospital that day, just like he promised, but I was eventually saved by a miracle... I guess."
She chuckled cynically, and the tears that already welled up in her eyes fell onto her arms, which were filled with engraved scars. It was one of the reasons she always wore clothing with long arms.
The scars didn't look like burns, but they had been engraved onto her skin by the use of an iron tool and fire.
"Hey! Please don't cry. Not now."
Lisa shook her head and smiled at her as she wiped her tears away.
"Even if everyone had left you, you know you still have me here, right? I will always be with you and will never leave you, okay."
She ruffled her hair, and Diana chuckled softly.
"Thank you."