[chapter 5. Shopping and Eavesdropping]
Liliana was overflowing with enthusiasm. She resembled an excited kitten. They were going shopping, which was exhilarating, especially when she owned the black card.
"Sweetheart, I am going to spoil you. Buy whatever you want," she cooed to the indifferent girl. Her smile slipped. Then she reminded herself, the girl will not warm up to you overnight. You have fifteen years of memories to fill.
Slowly, Liliana, your daughter will change her mind and open her heart.
Samuel came to a halt as he looked at his mother. "What are you doing?" He inquired. His round glasses reflect the crystal lights. "I'm taking your sister shopping," she disclosed. Samuel clenched his fist.
"I'll go with you," he added.
"No." Irritation flashed in his eyes.
Samuel pouted "I need to buy new things, too," he forced, raising his voice an octave. "You maxed your credit card last month. No more shopping for you, mister," Liliana said, her eyes narrowing as she looked at the bitterness in his eyes.
"But-"
"Don't you have a project to work on?" Samuel heard the authoritative voice speak from behind. "Dad," he whined.
Theodore settled his gaze on his son. That punk. Samuel stiffened and nodded, huffing, "Whatever." His father is the head of the family. He could not say no to his father while he stared at him- daring him to rebel. He would be punished or, at the very least, grounded.
Theodore pecked his wife's lips, tenderly. "Buy whatever you want and be safe," he said, his lips brushing against hers.
"Eww," Samuel gagged, goosebumps over his skin. Liliana stiffened as she acknowledged both her son and daughter were still present. Her face turned red and then warmed up as she noticed a lazy smirk curl on Theodore's face.
After nearly three decades of marriage, her heart still skipped a beat at his actions. She pushed her smug husband away. "Behave," she said, gritting her teeth.
Selena seemed bored by their lovey-dovey behavior. It was a total waste of time.
"Theo," Liliana urged. He could never win against her, the husband grumbled. "You take care," he said to the unconcerned girl.
"Yes." Came her dry reply.
----
Liliana inquired, "What do you want to buy first?"
Selena reflected. She had only brought two pairs of jeans, three hoodies, a couple of T-shirts, and one pair of shoes. "Clothes," she answered.
"Garold," Liliana directed the burly man. "To the Hale Mall." "You are not naturally blonde," Selena questioned, her grip on the cracked phone tightening as she watched the black roots emerge from his head.
"Oh, yes. I dye it to make myself look cooler," Garold laughed, flicking his hair. "I used to have red hair. But it was difficult to keep up," he muttered.
"What color should I dye my hair next?"
"How about blue?" Liliana pondered as she watched the giant man grin with delight. He was more obsessed with his hair than he was with his job.
"All right, Madam," he said with a polite smile, unlike his playful demeanor with Selena. Master would pluck all my hair out if he found out I was flirting with the madam. The thought made him shiver.
The mall workers had been informed that Mariano would visit their establishment. The mall's owner himself came to greet the two ladies. "We have cleared the mall for you. Mrs. Mariano," he said with a smile as he led them inside.
The shop was elegant, with classical music playing in the background and racks arranged with appropriate seasonal high-end clothing.
"Come on," Liliana encouraged. "Choose whatever you want." Selena nodded hesitantly; the shop appeared expensive, as did the clothes.
Her gaze flew to a blue silk gown with delicate swirls of waves, which appeared to be a euphemism for the ocean. Flowy and light. Elegant but effortless. She wanted it.
"My daughter would like that," a shrill, irritating voice from behind said. Selena looked at the two women, both young and old. The younger one scanned her with her ostentatious smile. Then she looked at her with disdain.
"Garold," Liliana said. "Look at how these women entered the mall," she said discreetly to him. He bowed and walked away.
"I liked it first," Selena claimed. "But, we will be the ones to pay for it. It's not like you can afford it," the older woman pointed out. She looked at the young girl, who was dressed in a simple shirt, jeans, and dirty Converse. How did something like this get into the shop?
She had to call the manager to get such a street girl thrown outside.
Before Selena could respond, the younger girl brushed past her and grabbed the dress from the rack. "It's mine now."
Selena didn't let her rage show on her face. She remained composed and collected. But a voice in her head whispered to slap that arrogant girl and knock some senses into her.
Selena was a possessive woman; once she saw something, she knew it was hers, and she liked that dress. Her fist tightened.
Liliana gave them a friendly smile. "Let them have it," she said, stopping her daughter. Selena's eyes met hers coldly. You can't even defend yourself. Selena's perception of her mother deteriorated.
"Hmph, at least that woman is correct," the older woman said as she walked up to the counter with her precious daughter. The young girl smirked as she watched Selena move away.
"145 thousand, Madam," the cashier replied. The woman's face became pale. That's a lot of money for a dress. It appeared plain and uninteresting. It bore a name tag she had never heard. What an outrageous price!
"Mom. Buy it," her daughter urged, feeling pensive as she noticed people's gazes on them. They were looking down at them.
She had a credit card that could easily cover this. "Alright. "I'll take it," the woman said arrogantly, slamming the card on her counter. "Here," she stated. "Unlike others, we can afford the best," she said proudly, looking down at Selena's clothes. Lowlife.
"Ma'am, we need confirmation from the card's owner. Please wait for a moment," the worker requested. When she overheard whispers among the shop's patrons, the woman's face darkened.
"What do you mean the owner of the card?" she exclaimed. "It belongs to my husband," she growled. "Of course, Ma'am," he said calmly, "But we still need to confirm the transaction." She clenched her hand.
Her phone soon rang. "What the hell are you thinking of spending nearly 150 thousand dollars on shopping?" her phone blared. The woman's face turned bright red. "Dear, it's for our daughter," she whispered, biting her lower lip. The young girl gritted her teeth, the smirk disappearing from her face.
The phone let out a scoff. "It's irrational. I am the one who makes money, not her. Come home now," the male voice said sternly.
"However, dear-" "Come home, or I will block that card," he said as he hung up the phone.
"Oh my, how embarrassing."
"And they walked around as if they owned the place."
"Pfft, look at them now. They're dressed shabbily."
The mother and daughter were enraged and ridiculed. They had never been humiliated to such an extent before. "Escort the ladies out," the owner yelled across the shop. The members all bowed in his presence. What exactly was their boss doing here?
The owner bowed and said, "Mrs. Mariano." The manager tensed as he heard the address. Mariano was the name of the woman. He was dead.
"Because of my team's negligence, two people ruined your day. Please allow me to offer you that dress at a reduced price," he said humbly, his gaze fixed on the pale manager. The manager couldn't break the rules just because they were his family. Unprofessional.
Liliana curled her lips downward and said, "We don't need a discount."
"My daughter will not be wearing things that have been sullied by others," she said. Her skin crawled up just thinking about it.
"Of course," he exclaimed desperately. "How about I accompany you to the next store and we can pick out some other dresses?" he proposed. The members were astounded by how humble their boss was. What about your multi-million dollar afternoon conferences?
"Hmm," she thought as she watched sweat trickle down the old man's face. "All right," she said, seeing the hope soar in his eyes.
"However, I want the Manager fired and those two women blacklisted. They offended my daughter."
"Certainly," the owner sighed, relieved.
"B-boss," the manager said awkwardly. "Shut up!" he hollered. "Please," he said to the Mariano ladies.
"She was dressed from head to toe with designer logos screaming out loud. A rookie nouveau riche mistake," Liliana pointed at the daughter who was looking at her in a stupor. "Why should we ruin our mouth and time on these people when they can make a fool out of themselves," she winked.
Selena looked up at the graceful lady, admiration flickering through her eyes.
----
They'd been out shopping for four hours, and her legs were exhausted. Several bags filled with clothing, shoes, jewelry, and makeup were lined up. Liliana Mariano did not know when to stop. The cost was too much for Selena to bear.
"I need to use the restroom," Selena excused. While going about her business, she noticed the same man who had threatened her a few nights before entering a coffee shop.
It piqued her interest. She wished to pursue that man. Unknowingly, her legs moved forward.
Curiosity kills the cat, her subconscious mind remarked.
But satisfaction brings it back, Selena rebutted.
She concealed her presence by standing behind the massive plant decoration as she observed a group of men conversing. Politics, her brow furrowed. She watched the Big Boss sign some papers for a good minute before some of them left.
----
"Always an eavesdropper, aren't you?" the big boss mused, his tone tinged with pure interest.
Selena tensed, coming out of the hiding place slowly.
Alaric hissed, "You again." He was now certain that the young girl was a spy. The second time was never a coincidence in their lives. He was about to shoot the girl right there when he heard his boss say, "Leave."
Alaric nodded and walked away, unconcerned. Big Boss could kill a hundred assassins with a flick of his wrist; a girl like her posed no danger. Why was the boss protecting this lass, he wondered.
"Come here," he said, curling his finger and beckoning her to come closer. Selena flashed him a harmless smile and approached him, her legs trembling. Right now, defying him meant death. And she loved her life way too much.
"S-sir, I didn't mean to," her voice trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes. Her demeanor was submissive. "Oh, Maeve, little Maeve. "Tears do not work on me," he explained. Selena gritted her teeth but acted woefully.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cry," the innocent girl sobbed, tears streaming down her bare cheeks. Her eyes lowered, and her body shook. Her mind was in a whirlwind.
When she heard a low rumble of laughter, her body tensed. She did not look up; there was no way Almighty Big Boss was laughing. He'd die before he could laugh or smile with noble intentions.
Every cell in her body jumped in alarm. She was carrying a dagger tucked behind her waistband. If he dared to hurt her, she would not die without causing him damage.
His hand was tucked in his pockets as he watched her, her head still lowered, concealing her face. "Look at me."
Selena gulped. Her eyes reddened as she peered at him. The olive orbs looked at him in accusation of making her cry, but she didn't break eye contact. His lips twitched, entertainment swirling in his eyes. "Didn't anyone teach you that listening to others without their knowledge is bad?" he questioned, slowly as if talking to a child.
"Tsk, you even got caught. I had high hopes for you," he said, his words sounding almost disappointed.
Her thoughts rushed. What exactly did the scary boss mean by that? Hopes? For me? Her hand ached to grab her karambit and rip open the menacing boss's brain to see what was going on inside his head.
"You will listen to me, right? " He trailed off. His words were merciful like he was giving her a choice. If Selena hadn't known him better and heard the heinous stories of cruor, he wrote. She'd mistaken him for a nice guy who always saved her from trouble.
Both his words and his eyes exuded unadulterated authority. Selena nodded in response to his gaze. "Yes," she said, nodding. For the time being, she added mentally. She would openly defy him once she reached the pinnacle- reminding him she is not the type of woman who can order as you please.
His gaze never left her trembling body, fiddling finger, or tear-strewn face. He sighed and said, "Go." Selena exhaled a sigh of relief. She turned, but her legs stopped responding to the deep, foreboding voice.
"Make sure you don't get caught the next time, Selena."
Her blood ran cold.
"If you did it. I'm afraid you'll live to see another day or not."
~~~~
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