"Please, call my uncle and tell him Valerie is here."
The police called the number on the paper and the person who came rushing in was Tom, the Ross family's lawyer. As soon as he heard the name, Valerie, he knew something was wrong and left everything to get here.
"Valerie?" He called and Valerie, who was sitting on a high stool, turned her head.
As soon as he saw her eyes, he knew for a fact that that was Valerie Ross but... Why did she look like that? What was she wearing and why were there so many bruises on her?
He approached and asked,
"Valerie Ross, is that really you?" He asked and the officers paid attention to the case in front of them. Did they hear Ross?
"Yes, Uncle Tom." Valerie responded.
"How... Why are you looking like this? Why do you look so haggard, so worn out, and... different from when I last saw you?" He placed his hand on her shoulder. "You didn't look like this the last time I saw you. What's going on?"
"Uncle Tom, the last time you visited, one year ago, you gave me your contact to call if I needed anything."
"Yes, but..." A realization suddenly hit him as he stared at the emotionless kid in front of him. Her eyes looked like they had seen everything, they showed anger and she said,
"Uncle, what you saw was a lie." This caused him to flinch.
"What?"
"When Aunty and Uncle knew you were coming to visit, they made the maids wash me and wear me a dress they bought that same day and lied that I was staying in the same room with Lucy because they felt it was too much for little girls to stay in a room alone. I didn't say anything then because I thought they were going to let me live there from then on but as soon as you left, they took me back to the shed that's dusty and filled with spiders. It's so creepy there but they let me live there anyway."
"They made you live in a shed?" Tom asked with anger in his eyes. "How dare they?"
"They also make me work and hit me when I say I'm tired. They don't give me enough food and most times the bread is moldy." She sniffed. "And today, I asked Aunty why I had to work when my cousins do nothing but play. Why do I have to wear rags and why do I have to live in a shed? But... but she hit me."
Valerie stretched out her hands, showing the bruises on her body.
"She took a cane and beat me, uncle." Her eyes teared up and she cried. "It hurts uncle. It hurts so much so I came to the police."
Tom hugged Valerie. He couldn't imagine how much this little thing had to suffer at the hands of those vicious people. She was barely five years old and her body was so small so how did they even see a spot to hit?
They didn't feed her well. It was no wonder she was still so little at the age of four. He thought she was just growing differently from other kids but it turned out she was being maltreated, malnourished, and abused.
It was also his fault. How could he not have noticed anything? If she hadn't come to the police station this time, who knows how long this act would've lasted? This abuse.
He hugged her tightly and apologized.
"I'm sorry. I should've paid more attention to you. I'm so sorry for putting you through this."
Valerie's lips curled up, knowing her plan was in motion.
"Valerie, don't worry. I'll deal with this."
She retained her painful expression as she faced him, rubbing her eyes with her palms and said,
"Please, uncle. It hurts everywhere."
The officers expressed sympathy for this little girl with the expressions on their faces and were already dispatching squads to raid the Ross mansion. How dare they do this to the only heir and such a little kid at that?
They had already broken too many rules with their abuse.
Valerie's bruises were treated and she wore a new set of clothes. There was no way they would want the only heir of the Ross group to dress like a beggar.
The press has been informed of this case and alongside a long line of police cars, news trucks followed suit, all escorting the little lady to the Ross mansion.
At that moment, Valerie's uncle, Bernard, just returned from his business trip and stepped out of his car, only to hear police sirens approaching the mansion. He turned his head, wondering what was going on.
Victoria came out to welcome her husband back from his business trip only to see the crowd of police cars outside the mansion gates.
And then, the guards at the gate opened the gates, allowing the police and the reporters in. They were stunned because, without authorization, the guards were not supposed to open the gate.
"Who allowed those fools to open the gates?" Victoria barked. "And what is the meaning of this?"
The cars surrounded them and the first one to alight the car was Tom carrying Valerie in his arms.
As soon as they saw Valerie and the angry expression on Tom, they knew their secret had been exposed. Of course, they refused to admit they were the ones who inflicted those bruises and every other claim Valerie made.
...
"Miss Valerie," Frankie called and Valerie opened her eyes. One call was all it took to wake her up. "The sun has set." She said and Valerie sat up, touching her head.
She looked at the sunset on the horizon, reflecting on the sea and creating a beautiful scenery.
They were on the beach, Miami Beach.
They arrived at this beach over a week ago. It was a place she wanted to go to for the longest time. Not just because it had beautiful scenery and was a popular vacation spot, but it was also the place where her parents met and fell in love.
To others, it must've been a dumb reason. She hardly knew her parents and the only memory she had of them was when they used all they had to protect her in the accident many years ago.
The anguish and fear on their faces was all she could remember from that fatal night. She was so young, so it was understandable that most of her memories of them were gone. But she wished to feel what they felt when they strolled through this sandy and beautiful beach. Happiness.
She rubbed her arms, and then folded them on top of her folded knees, still staring at the horizon deeply.
Known to no one, she was actually lonely.
Then, Frankie draped a cloth around her, and knowing it was done by Frankie, she did not turn her head and kept her gaze on the horizon.
Well, what was the use of dwelling on this now? This loneliness was one she created with her own hands.
She slowly dropped her legs on the sand. It was wet from the rising and falling tides of the sea water She got up from the deck chair and stretched her arms.
"Let's go." She said and Frankie followed from behind.