Valerie glanced at her wristwatch as she climbed the ladder to her room. She knew her Dad would be waiting in the living room. So, she had decided to use the back instead. She wasn't ready to face his questions.
She eventually got into her room and slipped into her closet. She had to call Liam. "He would know who Francis really was." she thought. She dialed the number many times, but none went through.
She gave up and retreated to her bed. As she did, she knocked over a vase and it crashed to the floor revealing her presence. She heard footsteps rushing to the room and rushed to hide under the bed
The door opened and Dad walked through with a military dagger in hand. "Whoever you are, come out immediately!" he yelled as he carefully looked around the room.
He spotted her bag on the bed exclaimed. "Val is that you?" he asked with a croaky voice.
She gasped and quickly came out of hiding. "Fine fine, you got me. Now can you leave me alone?" she asked taking of her hoodie.
"Cara mia, can we talk?" he asked in a pleading voice. She stared at him blankly and rolled her eyes.
"Sure, what is it?" She sat on the bed and crossed her legs. He got the hint and sat next to her trying to hold her hand, but she ignored him
"I am sorry, I know I shouldn't have done that, but please understand your old man. I did it for you, for us." he said with tears in his eyes.
"You lied, you lied to me. How do you expect me to forget this... It's been fifteen years, and I don't even know who my mother is!" she said bursting into tears.
He couldn't help but watch her cry. it was like his worst nightmare. He got up and left, not wanting to cause further damage.
She wiped her tears and stepped into the bathroom. "I have to do something. I need to know who my mother is." she muttered under her breath. "But how?" she wondered.
THE NEXT DAY, later in the evening
"Of all the places to meet in this city, why here?" Liam asked as soon as they reached a secluded area of the abandoned train station.
"It's not important. That is not why I called you here." she said sitting on a concrete slab.
"What is it.?" he asked sitting down too. "You made it, why?" she asked absent mindedly. "Of course I did. As I said earlier, you are really absorbing." he replied with a faint smile.
"Now tell me what is bothering you"
"I need you to find my mother." she said with a sigh. "Your mom? why didn't daddy tell you anything about her?" he asked with a confused look
"Yes, he did but..." she rose to her feet standing, akimbo. "I feel he's not being sincere. I want you to get me more information." she added
"How much for that?" he asked with a devious smirk.
"We'll discuss that later, for now, please do your best." she said with a pleading tone. "Okay, but be rest assured, I will come for my money." he said with a chuckle.
He tucked his hand into his pocket and walked away. She stared at his receding figure in the distance and sighed.
She sat down again and brooded over the matter. She knew her quest to finding the truth automatically meant making a pact with the devil, but he didn't care. She had to do it.
She walked out of the place and boarded a bus which was bound for Newcastle city. She had never been there before. She had found the location in one of Dad's drawers. She felt a tinge that it had something to do with her mother.
She sat at the rear end of the bus and silently sobbed. The bus was half empty, no-one would really notice
TWELVE O'CLOCK MIDNIGHT.
The bus reached the bus stop at eleven fifty-three pm. At this point, she knew she was far away from home. She looked at the piece of paper again. It was 37 Lombard Street, Hse.No. 108. She folded it back into her pocket and continued her journey.
She passed by many houses until she reached the street. Its environment and scenery were spectacular. There was nothing but rows and rows of mansions and villas.
She gasped at the sight of it. It felt weird since everywhere was oddly quiet yet gleaming due to the abundance of streetlights.
She reached house number 108 and rang the doorbell. She looked through the glass gates, there were about three to five dogs chained on a leash. At least that was what she could count. She felt scared but her eagerness to know the truth kept her moving on. They noticed her silhouette and began to bark loudly at her.
In Dad's diary, he hinted that he was the only one who knew the actual truth, the truth about her mother. She needed to see this man.
A fine-looking gentle man probably in his sixties came out to open the door. He shushed at the dogs and they all became quiet in an instant.
He found her appearance to be baffling, she did not look like any of the residents.
"Hello young girl, how may I help you?" he asked with a disgusted look
He wore a dark solid color suit, a white long sleeve dress shirt and a waistcoat vest over a pair of black trousers and a shiny mirror shoe. His hand was enveloped with white shiny gloves, and he held something which looked more of a remote in his hand.
He was obviously not the man in black she was looking for.
"I need to see your boss, Mr. Moreno." she replied with a straight face. His expression was quite intimidating, but she ignored and still looked on with avidity.
"And you are?"
"An old friend." she replied. He giggled a bit and sighed. "Well, if you must know, Mr. Moreno isn't really doing well with his health lately. Oh right, you are his friend, you should know that." he said attempting to close the gate, but she blocked him
"I need answers concerning my birth. He is the only one who can give it to me. Please... help me." she said with a pleading voice that was difficult to resist.
"What is your name?" he asked with a questionable look. "Valerie. Valerie Madenbury." she lied. He glared at her and ground his teeth with annoyance. "I hope you know the time lady. Make it snappy." he said opening the door wider for her to pass through.
She walked past the dogs which were oddly quiet and stuck out her tongue to them. The glared at her and responded with a low growl. He led the way and opened the door to let her in.
She breathed in heavily and walked in gingerly, about to decide her fate.