"Lana? Finally! Where have you been? I have been calling you."
Lana extricated her iPhone from her ear and saw the seven missed calls icon at the top of her screen. Sheesh, she thought, raising her perfectly carved eyebrows.
"Sorry about that. I was rounding up at a board meeting. It took quite a lot of time than expected."
Lana stepped into an empty elevator and it closed behind her. She did not have to push any floor button because the elevator only went one way- up to her office on the top floor.
Magdalana Naomi Battel was the eldest daughter of the owner of the largest law firm in North Carolina. The charismatic Coughlan Battel was her father but she worked for him as a legal practitioner. Lana had dedicated her whole life, readying herself to be his successor, resulting from the fact that her mother, Ruth Battel-Castle had borne no son. Lana had attended the best of schools, secured honor classes as she progressed and had graduated as the valedictorian of her set, bagging a 4.9 G.P.A.
People were afraid of offending her because she had an irritating ability to notice the slightest faults about them. She dressed as professional and rigid as a school teacher, her hair tightly piled at the top of her head in a neat bun, her Italian suits ironed till it was paper thin and small kitchen heels which she deemed "sensible-looking." Her aristocratic nose constantly in the air kept the employees in check. Her elevator was off limits to all persons except her father, of course.
"You never take any time to rest, Lana. You need a holiday from all this work you do or you'll get sick," Lilith, her younger sister admonished. Lana pinched the bridge of her nose in meditation as the elevator hummed soothingly.
Lilith, you would not understand, she thought, you are but a child.
Lilith Abigail Battel , seven years younger than her strict older sister, was larger than life. Pampered and provided for by her parents, she literally had nothing to worry about. Lana, taking up most of all the responsibilities, right from their childhood was also a plus for her. While growing up, their playmates had tagged Lilith 'Miss Hot' and Lana 'Miss Cold' because of their contradictory mien. Lilith usually had to brainwash Lana on most occasions to get her to play Pretend with her and the latter would do so with so much reluctance that the purpose of playing was defeated.
Lana would rather be more comfortable, sitting at her father's knee, listening to him resolve issues over the phone. Sometimes, he would let her carry his file to court where she would sit happily with the rest of the court, watching him argue cases which he won most of the time. Lilith would remain home with her mother, talking about the boys who wanted to sit next to her in the school bus. As a result, Lilith felt that Lana had lost out on her childhood by trying to be an adult too early.
Presently, Lilith was in Africa, on a modelling tour with her agent, Andrea. They meant to hit major African countries during the tour to sensitive people about the killer disease called malaria. A pharmaceutical company had asked her to be their brand image and her stay there for six weeks was to be sponsored by the company.
"Oh, Lilith, sometimes I forget how young you are. Nevertheless, you also are not on holidays. You are in Africa to work, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah," Lilith replied, thinking lightly of Lana's words. "I know but at least I'm getting around, meeting new people unlike you, just sitting at a desk all day long. I really wish you could just live a little, Lana."
The elevator gave a little beep before sliding aside. Lana stepped out and turned her office keys in the lock. With a gentle nudge, the door gave way to usher her into her private space, the only place that made total sense to her. It was painted in a motley of beige and cream and it suited her sense of serenity.
"I do have a life, Lilith and it's here in North Carolina. My work is my life and I would have it no other way," she declared, examining her desk with a quick glance. A small smile lifted her lips briefly before they assumed their usual grim line.
"But Lana...." Lilith whined. She disliked her sister's frigid mien and stiff fashion sense. She often wondered how a person could be content with living a life such as Lana's.
"How's your tour going?" Lana interrupted, giving Lilith something else to yap about. The latter, unlike the former, loved talking about her latest adventures. Lana on the other hand, was not one to brag and would rather sit in silence for hours. She was a powerful woman nonetheless and her presence made waggling tongues cease, backs got straightened and idle hands were put on deck immediately. Words were superfluous when she was in the room. Once, Lana had made a grown woman cry with only as much as a disapproving frown.
"I had worked long and hard on this," the woman had pleaded when Lana had dumped her case evaluation literally in the trashcan.
"Not good enough, Marina. Leave my presence," commanded Lana, her voice calm, never yelling but carrying the necessary authority behind it. She was a no nonsense dictator, a business empress, second only to her father and her words were considered as law.
Immediately Lana made mention of her charity tour, Lilith forgot her earlier complaints and went with the flow:
"It's going great! I met with the President of Liberia yesterday. We had lunch together and the people there are so hospitable. I was taken to the animal farm, the arts exhibition hall...."
As Lilith rambled on, Lana connected her iPhone to her earpods so she could work with her hands. The files awaiting review on her desk were piled up in stacks and she had to start off immediately. She grabbed her inkpad and slipped her ballpoint pen out of her clutch. She lifted the topmost file and began to read through the typed document.
"... and Andrea said we will be heading to Cameroun next week as our next spot for the malaria awareness campaign. What do you think? Hello? Lana? Lana?! Hello?"
Lana was jolted out of her reading frenzy by the voice repeating words in her ears.
"Yes, you were saying?"
Lilith sighed in disappointment. Once again, she had been talking to a wall. "Never mind. It's nothing important. I'll call you at a later time. Enjoy your day."
Lana felt guilty, hearing her sister's sad voice. Before she could reply, Lilith had cut the call, leaving her hanging. Her sister was easily hurt since she decided to wear her heart on her sleeve. She was also girly to the minute of cells in her system. Lana had tried to make her tougher by taking her under her wing. She would take Lilith to see a wrestling match, climb a mountain or even say Hi to a male counterpart without giggling but so far, Lilith had been her only failure.
"You too," she murmurred, although Lilith could not hear her. Soon enough, she was engrossed in another eye-catching part of the contract she had been reviewing earlier. Fun was for idle people, not for Magdalana Battel.