"Maria, this way. This way" Cia said, pulling Maria out of her thoughts and when Maria looked up, the scenery was one that would forever be engraved in her heart.
The garden had several flowers laid out; from red roses, to tulips, daffodils and peony. There was a fountain with clear clean water, the stone lane, canopy with several chairs and tables, an outdoor barbeque and a maze crafted from metallic frames and vines with daisy flowers between them. It was a beautifully crafted garden.
"Is this where you want to play?" Maria asked
"It's very beautiful isn't it?" Cia asked
"It's the perfect place to play" Dan said
"So, what game are we playing?" Maria asked while Dan and Cia looked at each other before letting go of each other and running off in different directions
"Before we play...." Dan started
"....You'd have to catch the two of us, first" Cia said before she and Dan disappeared into the garden
"Now I see why they said this was going to be a difficult task" Maria mumbled "Those twins are too mischievous and masters of trickery" she said before running in the same direction as them "Forget it. I've got to find those two before someone gets hurt"
******
It had already been five minutes since the twins got away from Maria. She had managed to find them a couple of times but they always disappeared afterwards. The point was for her to catch the two of them however, now she was lost in the maze.
"I should have listened to Butler Frank and heeded Mr Mark's warning" Maria said as she sat on the floor breathing heavily. She looked around before calming her breathing 'It seems like I've gotten a bit dense since I escaped from that place. Even children believe they can outsmart me' she thought
When her breathing became steady, she took a look at her surroundings before sighing "If they really want to play this stupid game with me. I'm gonna have to step up a level"
She stood up and looked around before staring at the ground and shaking her head "Children, children, children, you picked the wrong adult to mess with" she said in a calm and soft voice before walking off in a direction she picked.
Meanwhile, Dan and Cia were relaxing on a bench near the outdoor pool. The outdoor pool was still located in the garden but it was quite secluded and away from the mansion. If one was to follow the metallic tunnel frames that had veins and daisies wrapped around them, they could find the pool.
"She has more stamina than the others before her" Cia said with heavy breaths
"That's because she's in her twenties. The others were either in their thirties, forties or fifties" Dan said "It seems more like she's an athlete"
"Dad really wants us to 'interact' with others" Cia complained
"As long as we have each other, we can conquer anything" Dan said "Let's go back to the mansion. We'll find Maria tomorrow morning" he said as he got off the bench and was about to leave when he heard a splashing sound in the pool.
Dan turned around only to find out that Cia had fallen into the pool. On a normal day, with a floater, their parents, and them being in the kiddies pool that was built next to the adults' pool, Dan wouldn't have been worried about Cia.
However, there was no floater, their parents weren't around, and Cia had fallen into the adults' pool. Even if Dan was a great swimmer, he wouldn't be able to carry both him and Cia's weight and they'd both drown. Right now, they needed an adult.
"Cia, Cia" Dan shouted and Cia's head surfaced for a while before she was pulled back into the water "Help!!Help!!Somebody help us!!!" he shouted as he rushed to the edge of the pool
"Dan!!!Cia!!!Where are you?" he heard somebody shouting
"Maria, we're here!!!We're over here" Dan shouted back and holding onto the tunnel frame was Maria and behind her, was a maid with short light brown hair and brown eyes
"I finally found you" Maria said with a sigh "I was so worried about...." she paused for a while "....Dan, where's Cia?" she asked
"She fell into the pool" Dan said
"Miss Maria, I'll go get the paramedics" the maid said before hurrying off
"Please, hurry" Maria said as she started taking off her shoes
"Aren't you supposed to wait for them?" Dan asked
"There's no need to" Maria said as she dived into the pool and after sometime, she swam back up with Cia in her arms "If I waited any longer, she would have died" she said before looking at Cia who was coughing out water "Are you alright?" she asked
"Thank you" Cia murmured and Maria passed Cia to her back
"I want you to hold on to my neck tightly. I'm going to swim to the edge and I want you to hold on to it. Okay?" Maria said and Cia nodded while she did what she was told
Maria swam towards the edge and Cia grabbed onto Dan, who carried her out of the pool. Maria soon came out afterwards and began to squeeze on her shirt.
"Both of you are lucky this time" Maria scolded "Never try that again in future. If you don't like someone, grow up and tell them right in the face. Stop trying to make their lives difficult"
"We're sorry" The twins said in unison with watery eyes
Now that Maria looked closer, the twins had hazel eyes and the same light ash blonde hair as their father. Their clothes were wet and they looked adorable even though they were crying.
Maria squat down and hugged them
"No, I'm sorry for yelling" Maria said "Just...never try that again"
"Okay" the twins said
"Young master, Young mistress, are the two of you alright?" the maid who had just come back with the paramedics, asked
"We're fine, Maid Alina" Dan said
"Aunty Maria kept us safe" Cia said
'At long last. The young master and young mistress have opened up to someone' Maid Alina thought with a sigh as she wrapped the twins in towels. Her eyes then noticed that Maria was soaking wet "Miss Maria, your clothes"
"I know" Maria sighed "They'll dry with time. I didn't bring extra clothes"
"You'll catch a cold" Dan pointed out
"You're scolding us but you don't take care of yourself" Cia complained while she was being checked by the paramedics
"I really don't have anything to change to. I also didn't know that a certain pair of troublemakers would make me jump into a pool" Maria said
"Well, please follow me, Miss Maria" Maid Alina said "I'll have one of the maids prepare a hot bath for you in one of the guest rooms. And another will prepare a new pair of clothes for you while she washes and dries your current clothes"
"Oh. Thank you" Maria let out before she was led out of the garden and back to the mansion with the twins.
******
Sometime later, in a private hospital in New York City,
Mark was seated outside the labour room tightly holding his phone and staring at it.
"If you keep doing that, you'll burn a hole through it" a man joked and Mark lifted up his head to see a cup of coffee in his face
"Thanks" Mark said as he took the cup from the man and the man leaned on the wall opposite Mark. Mark glanced at the man before chuckling slightly "If I told anyone the cold-hearted CEO of what's known as the Lion's Den, Gabriel Wayne is my best friend, nobody would believe me" he sighed "They also wouldn't believe that this best friend of mine got the best doctors to tend to my wife during labour"
His words made Gabriel to laugh a bit before sighing "Mark, you're my childhood friend AND a family friend. Naturally, when you're in need, I'll come to your aid" he said
Gabriel had jet black hair in an undercut, a pair of black abysmal eyes and a muscular build with a tall stature.
"Is something bothering you?" Gabriel asked with a raised brow "You've been staring at your phone for a while"
"I left the twins with a babysitter" Mark said calmly
"You did what now?" Gabriel asked "You left Dan and Cia Page with a babysitter?" he asked as though Mark was both a clown and an idiot
"The fact I haven't received a call from home means that..." before Mark could finish his words, his phone began to buzz in his hand. He instantly jumped out of his seat
"Let me guess, a call from home?" Gabriel asked and Mark nodded "Is it Frank?"
"No" Mark said "It's Alina"
"Maybe your kids went overboard and Frank fainted after they did. So Alina has to take over on making the calls" Gabriel said as Mark picked the call and put it on speaker
"Alina, is everything alright? Is there anyone being sent to the hospital? Are Dan and Cia alright?" Mark asked several questions at once
"Master Mark, everything is fine" Maid Alina said "Luckily, nobody's going to the hospital this time. And the Young master and mistress are sound asleep from exhaustion"
"Can you elaborate everything that happened at the mansion today? And also, can you tell us why you called?" Gabriel asked