"What are you doing?" Lana froze, terrified, and turned slowly to see Claudia grinning wickedly at her. She had some flowers in her hand. Lana was trembling so badly that she was unable to respond. It was clear that Claudia was her age, so she scoffed as she walked over.
"I'm sorry, but please don't tell anyone. Please don't tell Uncle Gavin." She begged, fighting back tears.
Lana and Claudia have never been on good terms. Despite her desire to be closer to Lana when they were younger, she detested her because of certain lies her father had told her about Lana. Claudia looked lovely, her Auburn hair flowing down her back, and her eyes were bright and lively. Her yellow eyes looked over Lana's hand.
"And what made you think that I wouldn't tell him that Lana is trying to escape?" With a smile, she brought her phone closer to her chest.
"Claudia, please, if he knows that he will murder me, please don't tell him or anyone else." She begged, tears streaming from her silver eyes.
"Well, that isn't easy. Do you think I will easily accept that you are leaving?" With a loud smirk, she questioned.
"How should I go about this? What do you want, Claudia?" She asked, holding back her tears. Claudia took a moment to observe her, her hands resting beneath her chin as she pointed.
"You'll do anything I say...deal?" With a proud smirk, she asked. Now is her chance to finally witness Lana's misery, as it has always been her desire.
"Alright! Could you please swear you won't tell anyone?" She asked, wiping away her tears and observing her surroundings.
"I won't." She answered, leaving Lana by herself. Lana followed her in silence as she made her way back to the rear door.
"And do not follow unless I ask you to. We won't become friends as a result of this." She snorted and continued walking in the direction she was going.
Fearing that Claudia would be untrustworthy, Lana said nothing. While she was lost in thought, her only desire was to run away. When she looks at her uncle, memories of her traumatic childhood come flooding back. He persisted in torturing her physically and mentally and threatened to kill her, which made her fearful of him.
"Where are you two coming from?" A manly-sounding voice questioned. She turned to see Miguel, her older cousin, standing beside a woman.
"Oh, I saw her picking flowers in the garden already, and I wanted to go pick flowers too. If you believe that we fought, then? No, but I am fine, and we got pretty close." Claudia gave Lana a cunning smile before turning to leave.
To Lana's surprise, Claudia had filled in for both of them. It does not mean, however, that she believes her. Glancing back at Miguel, she noticed his momentary fixation on her before he turned to face the person she believed to be his girlfriend.
"I have met your sister, and who is this lovely little girl here?" She asked, clutching Miguel's arm tightly.
"She's most likely unknown. Come with me to my room." With a hint of contempt, he said.
"No, sweetie, she is extremely cute. I will do the introduction." She said, walking up to Lana, a lovely smile on her gorgeous face. Lana turned to look at Miguel, who was rolling his eyes and making a bitter face.
"My name is Kendra; what's yours?" She asked, blinking so fast that one might think she had too many fake eyelashes on.
"My name is Lana. Miguel's cousin." She stated this, making a nice gesture with her fingers.
"Huh, Miguel never talks to you about you." She tried to say more, but Miguel interrupted her.
"You weren't brought here by me to speak with her. Let's go upstairs." He left with a groan before she could reply.
"I apologize for that. Lana, see you later." With a worried smile, she chased after Miguel. Lana made her way to her room. She kept twiddling with her fingers as she considered her next course of action. She was tired of everything, including the trauma. Her aunt attempted to calm her down, but she was still scarred from her past.
She would frequently have nightmares in which her uncle would repeatedly kill her and her family. She would open and hold the pendant around her neck. It had her family's photo. When it was all over, she was a tiny child.
A few hours later, Lana received word from a maid in her room that Gavin was present. With haste, she stood up and went to the kitchen to help her cook dinner. Every time she attempted to cook, she would inadvertently burn or slash herself.
"Where's that bitch?" She heard her uncle's voice. Her sweaty forehead betrayed her fear. After wiping her perspiring palm on her clothing, she bolted in the direction of his location. He was smirking at her, so she immediately fixed her gaze on the ground.
"I'm here, uncle Gavin!" She shook severely and murmured. After observing her for some time, he moved in her direction. He raised her chin to face him, grinning again. Fear held her hate for him in check, but Lana couldn't help it. Her uncle used to scold her for trivial things and claimed that her looks made him think of her father.
"Bring the food in from the kitchen. Before I return, make sure the meal is prepared and the table is set. Understand?" She nodded in answer to his question.
"Words!"
"Yes sir!" With a broken voice, she replied.
"Good!" With a hiss, he turned to leave her sight. Laura approached her with a sympathetic expression on her face, gave her a tight hug, and sniffed.
"I apologize, honey. I'll see to it that you have help setting the table, okay?" She gave her a quick hug and a whisper before disappearing into the dining room.
She soon found herself observing everyone while they ate. Claudia and Miguel would always send her on pointless errands. She cleared the dining table after they had done eating, standing there the entire time.
She led them into the dining area and did the dishwashing. Following supper, she went to Claudia's room and did the necessary cleaning as requested by Claudia. She followed Claudia's other minor instructions to protect her secret as well.
She went to her room and collapsed onto the bed from exhaustion. Her food was visible on the drawer chest. She grinned as she quickly consumed it until she was satisfied because she was so hungry. She was preparing to leave her room when her door suddenly sprang open, sending her tumbling to the ground in terror.
"So you were planning to escape, huh?"