Switzerland, Europe
Aren Wayne's Villa
It was a luxurious villa located far away from the bustling city and pretty much secluded from other houses. It had a very large garden one could easily get lost in, with tall trees and flowers in full bloom, but what stood out the most in the garden, was the small pond housing small fishes and salmon. It also had a grand swimming pool which was closer to the main residence with other small buildings around, and a stable where horses were kept.
Within the main residence were, nine bedrooms with nine and a half baths, two living rooms, one study, kitchen and bar area, and one dinning room. The most surprising thing about all this, is the fact that only two people lived in the main residence; Aren Wayne, and his niece, Crystal Daniel. They rarely did anything themselves as there were twenty three servants living in the servants quarters, nearby.
"Crystal, are you still awake?" Aren asked as he knocked on one of the bedroom doors. There was no answer for a while which made him frown. 'Is she ignoring me?' he wondered, but then, his phone buzzed in his pocket and as soon as he took it out, he found a single message, [Go away. I'm busy]. "You know that's no way to reply to your very nice Uncle, Right?" he asked with a raised voice, and waited a while, before the door was suddenly opened
The person who opened the door, had blowout burgundy hair, sapphire eyes and heart-shaped lips. She had supple ivory skin and a very innocent look to her despite being seventeen. And wore a white pajama dress shirt with baby pink pajama shorts.
‹Come in› the girl mouthed and Aren entered inside the room with her before she shut the door behind her
Crystal's room wasn't like every other normal girl's room. The walls were peach with a white ceiling to match the white curtains, a small nightstand with a large bed, a large closet, a large desk with a single chair....and several clothing designs littered on the floor and her desk.
"Would you like to explain, young lady?" Aren asked as he didn't go any further into the room. Due to him not wanting to ruin any of the designs she kept on the floor.
Crystal lowered her head and didn't dare to look at him which made him sigh. However, Aren's eyes caught a glimpse of one of her designs near his feet. What stood out about the design was the fact that, it was the first male wear he had seen her design in three years. Before he could even pick it up, Crystal beat him to it and hid the design behind her
"Seriously? Haven't we passed this stage?" Aren asked while looking at her with a raised brow
‹It's not finished yet› Crystal mouthed
"Crystal, anything you design is beautiful. Complete or not. Can't I just have a glance?" Aren asked and she shook her head "Is it really that bad?"
‹I don't have the inspiration for it› Crystal mouthed and Aren had a slightly disappointed look on his face
'I just got a little excited when I saw she started designing men's wear again' Aren thought as he stared at her "Crystal, I know you're trying very hard for our sake, but you'll have to do things at your own pace. Don't force it, okay?" he said and Crystal looked at him with warm eyes before nodding "Have you packed your stuff? We don't have much time until Saturday"
‹I was so busy I forgot to pack› Crystal mouthed and Aren pinched between his brows
"How about this, you pack first thing tomorrow morning. Or, when we arrive in New York, you visit the boutiques and pick out whatever you like"
‹The second option sounds fun›
"Good night" Aren said, as he pat her head before leaving the room
Crystal took out the design and stared at it. She had already drawn the male figure and was already drawing the top half of the clothes, but stopped halfway. She had wanted to make something for Gabriel and Aren, however, when she picked up the pencil to draw, her hands continually shook and the past came back to her like a crushing tide. And at last, she gave up.
Crystal looked at the other designs on the floor and slowly began to pick each one up.
******
Mill Neck, New York
Page mansion
Eight in the night
Maria woke up from sleep with a smile. However, her smile turned into a look of surprise as she realised she was already in her bedroom
'I'm sure I fell asleep outside. What am I doing here?' Maria wondered as she immediately got out of bed "What's the time?" she picked up her phone and after realising how much time had passed, she bolted out of her room and went downstairs "Gabriel" she shouted when she saw the man sitting in the living room with his laptop
"I can see you slept well" Gabriel said "But I suggest you quiet down, so as not to wake the children" he added as Maria walked over to him and saw Kali sound asleep in his arms "You have no idea how much I suffered to get them to fall asleep. Do you have magic hands?"
"You took care of them while I was sleeping?" Maria asked and Gabriel stared at bandaged wrist before looking away
"I'm also responsible for them" Gabriel said as he carried Kali and dropped her in the basinet beside him 'I was there when Vivian gave birth to this child, I was also there when she and Mark went for the test. However, this uneasy feeling like there's something I don't know, is pissing me off. Because this child looks a lot like Maria'
Maria sat next to him and let out a sigh before poking at his forehead "You're going to get wrinkles on that handsome face of yours" she said "What were you thinking about?"
"It's nothing" Gabriel said coldly as he got up from his seat "Shall we have dinner?"
"You didn't eat dinner with the kids?" Maria asked
"I was working. I didn't have the appetite" Gabriel said as he looked down on Maria. Her small frame really made her look insignificant when compared to his large frame. "Shall we go eat?"
"Sure" Maria said before walking ahead of him and towards the dining room. Gabriel didn't mind this attitude of hers at all as he followed after her. On his way, he spotted Butler Frank and told him to take Kali to her room before entering the dining room.
Both Maria and Gabriel sat at the table to have a meal together. It was a quiet meal and even surprising to Gabriel, he was less tense around her. However, remembering how she had reacted each time she encountered him, a frown etched on his face
"Maria, by any chance, have you been maltreated by someone?" Gabriel asked and her hand paused just above her bowl of soup
'No. It couldn't be. He doesn't know anything' Maria thought with fear as she gave Gabriel a glare "What are you insinuating?" she asked
"I'm asking if you're mentally unstable. It isn't the first, nor is it the second time I've experienced a sudden change in your actions" Gabriel said "I'm worried about the children. If your mental health is at risk, it is..."
"Just stop it" Maria shouted as she slammed her hands on the table and stood up "Enough of all this, Gabriel. Is this fun to you?" she asked as tears fell down her eyes "Is judging me all you know how to do? Attacking me at every corner just because you dislike me"
"I don't...."
"I...am sick and tired of this" Maria said as she excused herself from the table and left
'Is it safe for me to say that recently, everyone in this damn mansion is acting strange?' Gabriel wondered, as Butler Frank entered inside the dining room
"Mr Gabriel, Miss Maria is a very delicate person. Even if she has suffered mentally, nobody dares to bring it up because she has lived normally so far and is trying to forget" Butler Frank said and Gabriel turned to look at him "Please, trust in the Master's investigation on Miss Maria"
"Honestly speaking, I'm trying to do that, but too many weird things keep happening" Gabriel said "I didn't know she'd react like this....and I shouldn't have dug up old wounds that are trying to heal. However, she needs to talk about it with someone if she truly is fixated on moving forward. Or else, all that pent up pain will leave scars" he stood up and left the dining room
'But Mr Wayne, you aren't a therapist' Butler Frank wanted to say, but he keep it to himself before clearing the dining table
******
Wednesday
Maria and Helen's Duplex
Helen got out of the hot shower at around six in the morning. She gently dabbed her hair with a towel as she went to sit on her bed, with a leg crossed over the other. She looked down and saw the scars around her thighs before tracing a couple of them. She immediately got up and tossed the dabbing towel on the bed before getting dressed in a knee-length, navy blue camisole dress, a white duster coat and scarf, black heeled boots, and a pair of pearl stud earrings on her ears.
Grabbing a white handbag, she tossed her phone and some books she had been keeping on the table, inside. She did some simple makeup and brushed her hair, before grabbing her ID pass from her drawer. Helen took a look in the standing mirror
"Now, to knock some sense into that department" she said, as she left the room. She called for an Uber as soon as she got outside, before heading straight to Wayne Corp.
******
Page Mansion
Gabriel came down the stairs, in a white dress shirt and black pants. He had the sleeves folded up his forearm and left the first two buttons of the shirt, unbuttoned.
Down in the living area, Butler Frank was mopping the floor when he noticed Gabriel and stopped what he was doing
"Good morning, Mr Gabriel" Butler Frank greeted "Are you leaving, now?"
"Yeah. Frank, inform Maria that I've already left when she wakes up" Gabriel said
"Will you be coming back to the mansion?"
"Naturally" Gabriel said as he walked towards Butler Frank while searching his pants pocket "I'll have my people watch the mansion whenever I leave...just in case of an attack. If something happens, either you call me, or they will. I'll be back a bit late today" he said as he took out a small piece of paper and stuffed it inside the breast pocket of Butler Frank's suit jacket "Give that to Maria when she wakes up. Don't give it to anyone else or even think of reading it"
"Mr Gabriel, you know me well. My lips are sealed and my eyes have seen nothing" Butler Frank said in a serious tone and Gabriel sighed, before patting him on the shoulder and exiting the mansion
As soon as Gabriel left, Maria came down the stairs in her sleeping gown and robe. She looked tired as she let out a yawn
"Butler Frank, did Gabriel just leave?" she asked between her yawns
"Good Morning, Miss Maria. Shouldn't you sleep a little longer?" Butler Frank asked
"I'll go back to sleep later. Anyways, about Gabriel..."
"Mr Wayne has already departed. You just missed him"
"I see. Did he have breakfast before leaving?"
"Not at all. He just up and left" Butler Frank said as he made his way towards her "But he did tell me to give you this" he said as he took out Gabriel's note from his jacket's breast pocket, before handing it over to Maria
Maria let out a smile and said, "Thank you, Butler Frank"
"It's not a problem, Miss Maria" he replied back and Maria headed back up the stairs
Once she was out of sight, Butler Frank reached into his jacket and pulled out a small white envelope. He carefully opened the envelope and pulled out the paper inside before reading through its contents.
The first thing that came to mind, was the fact that the piece of paper was actually a DNA test result. The second, the name of the hospital, as well as the name of the doctor and the day of the test, were never stated in the test result. What was even more intriguing, was the list of participants....
[Participant I: Helen Ashley]
[Participant II: Maria McKinley]
[Participant III: Mark Page]
He couldn't understand the rest of the information given on the test result until he reached the last three lines
[Positive]
[This is to prove that the three participants listed above, are related]
[Recipient: Vivian Page]
Butler Frank sighed, before closing the test result and stuffing it back inside its envelope. He made his way towards the kitchen and took out an ashtray and lighter, from one of the kitchen cabinets.
'My lips are sealed and my eyes have seen nothing' he chanted in his head as he set the envelope ablaze and tossed it inside the ashtray.
'My loyalty belongs to the master of this household' he thought while watching the envelope burn 'Master Mark must have his reasons for keeping this a secret from everyone else. If he chooses to share this secret someday, I will respect his decision. If not...' He left the kitchen after the envelope had been burnt to ashes '...Then I will take this secret to the grave with me'
"Such is the loyalty of the Page family" Butler Frank said as he immediately went back to mopping the floor.