Michelle stood still and felt her breathing constricted, she could hear the rain getting more intense outside.
All colour from her face faded and she looked pale as if she had seen a ghost.
"It's been so long since I saw you, we only met briefly at my wedding." Alec said
Dwane smirked slightly, "You look unusually happy."
Letting out a small chuckle, Alec replied "Speaking of being happy, I hope you remember my wife, El. "
"El, meet my friend.. No, My brother, Dwane. He was there at the wedding but I couldn't introduce him since we left early."
"Hi, Mr. Farehya." El said in a low voice.
"Hi." Dwane coldly replied as his eyes were caught by the hickey mark on her neck.
"I don't remember telling you my last name."
"Uhh.. Ricky mentioned you once."
"Did he?", Alec asked.
"Sure I did." Ricky chimed in from the door.
"Hi Dwane, good to see you."
El was relieved Ricky didn't deny her lies.
"I came as soon as I heard you were here," Ricky said. In reality he was there to check on Michelle.
'You are in a deep shit gold digger' Ricky thought.
Dwane and Alec moved to the dining area while Ricky and El stood still.
"You alright?" Ricky asked.
El only nodded.
"What are you doing standing there, come" Alec called El.
However, El stood still. Observing her anxiety, Ricky gently held her hand and walked towards them.
Alec saw them holding hands, his eyes twitched with agitation.
Patty served breakfast to Dwane and Ricky. While Alec and El only had coffee.
"What brings you to South-hills?"
"To kill Michelle Ford" Dwane said with his eyes full of fury.
Everybody's eyes widened, El started tapping her leg continuously in anxiety. Noticing her Ricky placed his hands on her leg making her stop.
El was so anxious that she didn't notice Ricky was trying to comfort her.
"Do you know where she is?" Dwane asked Alec
"I don't"
"How long does she plan to hide?" Dwane smirked.
"Four years, for four long years I've tried to find her, now I can finally feel that my long wait is over. That whore has done a great job hiding, but not any more." Dwane gritted his teeth.
Alec maintained a plain expression, while El was feeling distressed.
Ricky, who didn't take his hand from her leg, was continuously monitoring her reactions.
'She is going to get her cover blown if she continues to be like this.' Ricky was getting worried.
"Would love to see her struggling ugly face as I strangle her to death" a devilish aura enveloped Dwane as he said these words.
An evil smile crept his face as he continued "But before I kill her, I'll fuck that slut hard making her beg for mercy."
Hearing his menacing words El choked on her drink and coughed grabbing everyone's attention. Ricky patted her back trying to calm her down.
"Here, drink this slowly." Ricky said, offering her water, as he continued tapping her back.
Alec remained indifferent to Dwane's words while Ricky's closeness to El irked him.
Ignoring them Dwane continued, "That slut will pay…
Interrupting him Ricky spilled his coffee on his shirt,
"Oh my bad! El, could you help me with this."
She nodded and led him to a bathroom nearby.
Ignoring his drenched shirt, he looked straight into her eyes and said,
"Don't worry about Dwane's words. To do any of it he needs to find her first and Michelle Ford is not a fool to blow her cover. Understood?" He enunciated the last part of his sentence.
El firmly nodded.
"Go, I'll take care of this" he said pointing at his shirt. El left without overthinking about Ricky's intentions.
"I'm getting late for work honey. I'll be leaving now."
"Have you seen the weather outside? Stay home"
"But.." El objected.
"El" Alec raised his voice but noticed her fallen face. He hated to see her troubled face.
"It's still raining love, it hasn't subsided since yesterday night. The storm warning is still on, please stay home." He spoke calmly.
El nodded, "I'll be in study." she said and left.
"Alec Wilson, saying please. I never imagined seeing this day." Dwane exclaimed.
"Love makes us do unpredictable things." Alec had a pleasant smile as he thought about El.
Dwane smiled back but deep in his expression soured.
As soon as El reached the study she locked the door and lit a cigarette. She then called Mark,
"Mark"
"I saw what happened. I'll find out more about them." Mark said.
"But you, you need to keep a calm demeanor. Stop being so jittery and act normal, we don't want anyone suspecting you."
"Fine." She said and hung up.
Before she could keep her phone aside she noticed a new mail.
'Gather yourself Mish, don't let your fear overpower you. Stay safe. -Brother R'
'Who is this person and what does he want?'
Michelle thought and messaged him.
'Were you warning me against Dwane before?'
Brother R: yes
Michelle: But why do you care?
Few seconds later she received a call on her other phone. 'A private number?' she received it nonetheless.
"Hi Mish,"
Only the guy who sent these mails referred to her as "Mish"
"Brother R?" She asked in shock.
"Yes"
"Why are you helping me?"
"Have you really forgotten, Mish? Is it true that you've lost your memories?
Michelle's face fell as she replied in a low voice, "yes"
"I knew you when we were kids. You called me 'brother.." he stopped himself from revealing his identity.
"Why should I trust you?"
"I'm only asking you to keep your cover intact, wasn't it your plan all along? By the way you aren't doing a great job hiding it today."
"So you won't tell anyone?" Michelle asked.
"No, and neither should you."
"Not even Alec?" Keeping a secret from Alec and lying to him was becoming burdensome to her.
"Not even Alec." He replied firmly.
"But.."
"
You can't risk it Mish." Michelle could feel the affection in his voice.
"You've done an excellent job living as El, don't let your anxiety get the better of you. However, why on earth did you change your name to something so obvious?"
"Izzy did," Michelle let out a slight laugh.
"Isobelle Ford" he said, enunciating her name.
"You know her as well?"
"Not in person. I only knew you, but that's not important now. Now you have to be extra careful and stay calm, understood?
"Yes"
"I'll hang up now, stay safe Little Mish."