Rhénee paced up and down her room as she went through the plan she and the others had made the previous day in her head. They had planned to go to the house in the forest in the middle of the afternoon. She had to stick to the plan and if there was any case of an emergency, Malcom and Kevin who would be waiting outside as she and Greta would look inside the house.
She couldn't lie to herself. Going there was dangerous, but she didn't have much of a choice when she knew that the man she had talked to over the phone might have a gun to her head. Miss Marie was right when she said taking such a step would be dangerous.
Miss Griselda wasn't up for the idea either, but she didn't have much of a say when the four young adults were planning. She simply just left them to it as she went to make them a quick lunch. She didn't want to be part of the plan. All she wanted was for Rhénee and the others to be safe.
A knock came at the door and Rhénee almost jumped in fright when she turned to look who was there. Miss Griselda was looking back at her through the open door. Rhénee hadn't realised that she had left the door open.
"Did I frightened you, dear?" Miss Griselda asked as she slowly entered the room. "The door was open."
"Oh, no, I'm fine actually," said Rhénee as she lightly scratched her right cheek with her left index finger.
"You look to be lost in thought."
"Ya, I was going through the plan. It's been taking up most of my mind all morning."
"Looks to me that it might have been the whole night. I want you to come down to the kitchen. Breakfast is ready."
"Okay."
Miss Griselda started to turn around to leave when she went back to looking at Rhénee. "You know, if you think all of this is a bad idea, you shouldn't go with it."
"And what about the man over the phone?"
"If he wants to harm you, he has to go through me first."
Rhénee put up a small smile. Miss Griselda would do anything for her and she knew it. She would put her life on the line for Rhénee without any hesitation.
"I know," said Rhénee. "I'm glad that you've my back."
"Okay, now can we meet downstairs for breakfast?"
Sophie, the cat, had been on Rhénee's bed the whole time. It suddenly jumped down from it and started to walk out of the room. The two women looked on at the cat as it left.
"Looks like Sophie is the only one serious with breakfast around here," said Miss Griselda.
"Ya," said Rhénee. "Let me just put on my gown and I'll find you in the kitchen."
Miss Griselda nodded her head as she turned around to leave the room. Rhénee went to fetch her purple gown on her bed and just as she had put it on, her phone on her bed started to ring. She paused as she looked at the phone. She went over to see who was calling, fearing it was a private number. She sighed when she realised it was her mother.
"Morning, mum," said Rhénee as soon as she picked up the call.
"Morning, sweetie," greeted her mum on the other end. "How are you doing?"
Now wasn't the right time for Rhénee to tell her mother what she was up to. It would give her a heart attack.
"Oh, I've been great," Rhénee replied. "How are you?"
"I'm good. Just missing you a lot, dear."
Rhénee slowly started to make her way out of the room so as to go downstairs.
"I know, I miss you too, mum. But don't worry about me. I'm perfectly fine."
"For you to say that, then Miss Griselda is taking really good care of you."
"Yep, you guessed right," said Rhénee as she soon reached the stairs.
"Just like your late grandmother, you were also Miss Griselda's favourite. Pass on my greetings to her."
"Nah, I can't say that." Rhénee made her way down the stairs. "Speaking of how you're doing, how are Zoey and Ryan?"
"They are doing fine. Just like me, they are missing you a lot."
Rhénee didn't even want to ask how her father was as she soon reached the bottom of the stairs and stood there. It seems her mother wasn't going to say anything about him either as she continued:
"Home isn't quite the same without you."
"Mum, you're going to live on without me just fine. You know that, right?"
There was a long pause on the other end of the line. Rhénee knew she had to say something quickly before her mother bursts into tears.
"So, I'll be going to my new college pretty soon," Rhénee continued. "But I'll have to wait for the start of the new semester which won't be long."
"Oh, that's good. Do you remember Madison pretty well?"
"Not really. I met a few people I can remember. Like that bakery we used to go to. I went there and Mr. and Mrs. Smith still remember me."
"It's nice to know that they are still around. I bet they gave you some of their chocolate cake for free since they haven't seen you in a long time."
"Ya, they did."
"Okay, I better go do my errands, dear. It was nice hearing from you."
"You too. Take care of yourself and send Ryan and Zoey my love."
"I will. Love you, dear."
"Love you too."
As soon as Rhénee cut the call, she placed her phone in the pocket of her sleeping gown and went into the kitchen.
"I made some pancakes today," said Miss Griselda.
"Mmm," muttered Rhénee as she approached the kitchen counter where her food had been set. Sophie was on the floor beside her bowl, drinking the milk in it.
"I heard you talking on the phone," Miss Griselda said. "Was it your mum?"
"Yes," Rhénee replied as she sat on the kitchen stool. "She was saying hi by the way."
"Thanks. Did you tell her about what's been going on?"
Rhénee grabbed the fork that laid beside her plate filled with pancakes. "She would've a heart attack and she would send the whole U.S army to come get me out of here."
Miss Griselda looked at Rhénee with an eyebrow raised. "Can that really happen?" she asked.
"My mum and dad are friends with some important people in the army. Ya, they would." Rhénee poured some syrup on her pancakes.
"How is your father, anyway?"
Rhénee didn't know how to answer Miss Griselda's question. She put bits of pancake in her mouth with a fork.
"I didn't ask," she answered after swallowing.
"Mmmm." Miss Griselda soon laid a glass of milk beside Rhénee's plate. "Still not talking to each other, huh?"
"I prefer it stays this way. I bet he doesn't want to talk to me either."
"You know that's not true. He cares about you a lot."
"A lot not to tell me what was going on with my grandmother?"
Miss Griselda didn't say anything as she took the empty pot and pan into the kitchen sink. Rhénee waited for her to respond as she continued to eat her breakfast.
"There must be a good reason why he did what he did," said Miss Griselda as she turned to look at Rhénee.
"I still don't get it. She was my grandmother and didn't I deserve to know what was going on?"
"You had every right to. You still do. But maybe something between them made your father do what he did."
"That doesn't justify him though. If something did happen between them, why keep it all a secret?"
"I think it was all for your protection. So, don't worry a lot, dear. All that is over. You came here and all you have right now is your grandmother's memories."
Miss Griselda went on to wash what was in the sink and Rhénee for a moment stopped eating her pancakes as something came to mind.
"Do you know what happened?" Rhénee asked.
"Know what?" Miss Griselda asked without turning to look at her.
"Do you know why they fell apart? All that seemed to have happened when I was like ten years old. You must know what happened to them."
Miss Griselda dropped the pan she was washing back in the sink as she fell silent. Rhénee continued to look at her back, hoping that she would tell her something.
"I never thought you would ask that question," Miss Griselda said in a low tone.
Rhénee knew she might have just hit the jackpot, but that's if she could get an answer out of Miss Griselda.
"As I was growing up, I've asked my mother several times why we never visited our late grandmother whenever we wanted to," said Rhénee. "She never gave me an answer. And whenever I asked my dad, he would just simply chase me away. Ryan and Zoey also tried to find out, but they got the same cold response. You have lived with my grandmother longer than anyone else who has ever worked here. You must know something."
"And what if I don't?" Miss Griselda's tone suddenly changed that Rhénee grew curious.
"How could you not know? You were closer to my grandmother. You were almost like her best friend."
"But even best friends never tell you what's wrong sometimes," said Miss Griselda, her hands now on the edges of the sink.
"What do you mean?"
"For your grandmother not to tell me about that house in the forest, then there are a lot of things she never got to tell me no matter how much I asked."
Miss Griselda turned to look at Rhénee with red teary eyes. Rhénee knew Miss Griselda was upset. She shouldn't have asked the question if she knew that it may affect Miss Griselda like it did.
"I didn't mean to upset you," said Rhénee.
"I know." Miss Griselda sniffed. "You were bound to ask the question sooner than I thought. But I'm afraid just like you, I never got the answers I needed."
"Mmm, seems like both her and my father were two peas in a pod."
"Very much."
"So, I bet she never told you about what happened, didn't she?"
"I wish I could tell you that that wasn't the case. But I'm afraid it is."
The kitchen door soon flew open and Kevin walked in. Miss Griselda tried to rub off the tears in her eyes as she turned around to wash what was left in the sink.
"Hello," said Kevin.
"Hi, Kevin," said Rhénee as she went onto eat her breakfast.
"Morning, Miss Griselda," said Kevin as he came to the kitchen counter.
"Morning," said Miss Griselda, her voice sounding a little groggy and she had back towards Rhénee and Kevin. "Your breakfast is right next to the stove. I'll be back. I have to make an important call."
Miss Griselda was done with what she was washing and she quickly strode out of the kitchen. There was silence between Rhénee and Kevin as they looked at each other.
"Did you say something to Miss Griselda?" Kevin asked as he grabbed a kitchen stool and sat across from Rhénee.
"Did I?" Rhénee asked as though she was confused.
"Don't say that. She looked upset and I bet it's because of what you two must have been talking about before I came in."
"Well, ya. I asked a question which I now realise I shouldn't have asked."
Kevin continued to look at Rhénee. She looked back at him then shrugged her shoulders.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing. I thought it was about us going to that house in the woods. Seems to me like it was a family issue."
"Ya, it was. I also have family problems."
"Don't we all? It's just that some seem deadly serious than others. I hope yours isn't like that."
Rhénee looked up at the ceiling with one eye shut as she playfully thought about it with a smile. "I guess not. It feels serious, but when I think about it, it's not really that bad."
"Good." Kevin smiled and he soon got off his stool to get his plate of pancakes that was next to the stove right behind Rhénee. He then went back to his seat.
"So, are you ready to go there?" Kevin asked as he took in a piece of pancake on the fork into his mouth.
"I guess so," Rhénee replied. "It's going to be scary, but I just have to go there."
"Don't you worry. You won't be alone in all this."
"Thanks." Rhénee smiled. "I better go and take a shower."
"Sure."
Rhénee stood up from her stool and she drank all her milk within seconds. Kevin just looked on, surprised that she drank it that fast. Rhénee caught him looking and she soon put the cup down and wiped her mouth with her sleeve to remove any trace of milk.
"What are you looking at?" Rhénee asked him.
"Nothing," Kevin looked at his plate and he continued to eat.
Rhénee looked at him and smiled even more. She was glad that he didn't see her smiling. She went on to look at the floor and realised that Sophie wasn't near her bowl. Rhénee looked around and concluded that the cat might have left the kitchen.
"I'll see you later, Kevin," said Rhénee as made her way out of the kitchen.
"Alright, see you," he said as he watched her go.
Before Rhénee could pull the door open, she stopped as she turned around to ask Kevin a question.
"Hey, is Mr. Cowell around?"
"No, he isn't. He called and said he wasn't going to make it today. That leaves me to do all the garden work."
"Okay. Well, see you."
"Sure."
Rhénee left the kitchen and instead of going upstairs to her room, she went to the living room in search of Sophie. She was one cat who liked to move around.
"Sophie, Sophie!" Rhénee called out as she went to look behind the couch and behind the curtains. There was no sign of the cat anywhere.
Rhénee also checked in the dining room and the sitting room, but still no sign of the cat. She thought of checking in the garden because the place had become the cat's playing ground since they came here.
Using the sliding door in the dining room, Rhénee soon found herself outside. She went to the garden and she blew out a sigh of relief when she saw Sophie near the greenhouse chasing a butterfly. It was the second time this week that the cat was found chasing one. Rhénee smiled as the cat jumped in the air and ran around just to get the yellow butterfly. Rhénee turned around to head back into the house when she heard an ear splitting scream coming from Miss Griselda's room upstairs.
"Miss Griselda!" Rhénee called out as she started her run back into the house. Sophie hurriedly followed. Just as she entered the dining room and passed the sitting room, Kevin rushed out of the kitchen. He had also heard Miss Griselda scream.
They both ran up the stairs with Sophie already at the first door at the top of the stairs which was Miss Griselda's room. Kevin had got to the door and he got hold of the door knob. He swung the door open and he and Rhénee went inside the room.
They found Miss Griselda on the floor screaming and covering her head as she look frightened. Rhénee was quick enough to kneel beside her and hold her shoulders.
"Miss Griselda, are you okay?" Rhénee asked as she looked at Miss Griselda who had stopped screaming after seeing Rhénee.
Miss Griselda didn't answer as she soon broke down and cried. She placed her head upon Rhénee's shoulder and Rhénee held on to steady her.
"Tell me what happened? Why did you scream?" Rhénee continued to ask.
Kevin looked around the room as Rhénee continued to comfort Miss Griselda. He noticed Sophie at the door of the bathroom which was partly ajar, looking into the bathroom. Kevin went there and drew the door wide open.
"Rhénee, you aren't going to believe this," said Kevin.
Rhénee didn't want to let go of the crying Miss Griselda, but she had to see what was going on. So, as she slowly tried to break away from Miss Griselda, her arm was soon caught in Miss Griselda's clutches.
"No!" Miss Griselda warned as she looked at Rhénee with wide teary eyes. She was very scared. "Don't go in there! Please don't go in there!"
"I'll be okay," said Rhénee. "I'm just going to take a look."
"I'm begging you, please, don't."
Rhénee turned to look at Kevin and hoped that maybe he would object. But he didn't. Rhénee was really curious but at the same time, worried for Miss Griselda.
"Okay, come with me, let's go to my room," said Rhénee. "I won't go in there if you don't want me to."
Miss Griselda nodded her head as she tried to gather herself. She was taking in deep heavy breaths as Rhénee helped her to get up from the floor.
"Come, let's go," said Rhénee as she walked out of the room holding Miss Griselda who seemed fragile at the moment.
Rhénee threw Kevin an apologetic look before she went out through the door with Miss Griselda. He nodded his head, fully understanding Miss Griselda's condition. Besides, Rhénee could easily come back and see what he had just seen in the bathroom herself.
After the two ladies left the room, Kevin and Sophie remained in the room looking into the bathroom. Kevin thought he had to call Malcom and Greta before they could carry out their plans to go to the cottage in the woods. With what's just transpired, Rhénee wasn't the only one facing a threat.
***
Eugene was walking down the hall of the law firm, heading to Mr. Sinclair's office. He had to deliver some company documents because Mr. Sinclair was going to represent the companies' representatives in court next week over some legal matters. Eugene was told by Mr. Sinclair to personally deliver the papers in the early hours of the morning. Eugene knew that at this time, Mr. Sinclair was in his office. He was always an early bird.
Just as he approached his office, Mr. Sinclair's secretary was at her desk outside her boss' office. It looked like she had just come in for work because Eugene saw her settle her handbag that was hanging from her shoulder and placed it on to her desk. She settled down behind her desk and bent over to switch on the computer's CPU.
"Morning, Mrs. Clarks," said Eugene as he came to her desk. Mrs. Clarks looked up at him.
"Ah, morning, Eugene," she greeted him back. "You're early, I see."
"Mr. Sinclair wanted me to bring him something," said Eugene as he motioned to the file in his hands. "Is he in?"
"Surprisingly, he's not," said Mrs. Clarks as she looked around her desk, checking to see if everything was in order.
"He's not?" Eugene couldn't quite believe it that he looked at the time on his watch. It was rare for Mr. Sinclair to be so late. Amongst the top senior partners who worked in this law firm, he was usually the earliest. Even way earlier than his secretary.
"Trust me, I'm also as surprised as you," said Mrs. Clarks. "Maybe he's caught up with something. If he was calling in sick, he would have sent me a message."
"Does the man ever get ill?" Eugene joked as he rolled his eyes. "He never misses a day unless he's called for a meeting somewhere or has some family issues to deal with."
"Speaking of family," Mrs. Clarks, leaned in towards her desk to look up at Eugene, "how's his wife doing?"
"May I ask why you're asking me this question?" Eugene looked sternly at her.
"Just curious. He never gets to tell me the full details of her health or with anyone else... well, except you. You're the only one who knows a lot about his personal life since you two are pretty close."
"That's because I work as his associate and nothing more. Besides, he doesn't talk much about his personal life."
"But you guys go out and have coffee."
"That's when we are working on a case. Coffee helps him think sometimes."
"You see!" Mrs. Clarks exclaimed, pointing her index finger at him. "That's a personal fact about him."
"A personal fact that you already know. You make him coffee every day. Though he likes the coffee that they make in that café next to Mr. and Mrs. Smith's bakery way more."
"Are you trying to tell me that my coffee tastes awful?" Mrs. Clarks look became a little grim.
"I never heard him say that, honestly."
"You lawyers get on my nerves. You always know the truth but you try to bend things to your own advantage."
"It's called finding loopholes, Mrs. Clarks. Anyway, I really need to hand this file over to him. But since he isn't here, can you do it for me?"
Mrs. Clarks raised her eyebrow at him before looking at the file in his hands.
"I'll give it to him personally," said Mrs. Clarks. "But on one condition. Tell me..., does the man really hate my coffee?"
Eugene laughed. "For a second there, I thought you were going to ask me about his wife."
"It's pretty obvious that she still isn't doing well with that awful condition she's in. She's not as old as most of the old folks around here and she's already suffering from such a-"
"I wouldn't go there if I were you. It's not right to talk about his wife like that."
"Okay, okay. Back to the coffee. Does he hate it?"
Eugene thought of whether to say anything. Then he shook his head.
"Nah, that, you will have to find out for yourself."
"Dang it! Then I won't hand in the file. You'll have to bring in the file yourself when he gets here. And news flash, I'm not going to call you when he does."
Eugene heard footsteps behind him and he knew who they belonged to. Mrs. Clarks looked behind him and her face fell in anguish. She looked up at Eugene who was smirking at her.
"I'll so get you for this," said Mrs. Clarks, in a tone only Eugene could hear.
"We will see about that," he said. "But it isn't going to happen anytime soon."
"Good morning," said Mr. Sinclair as he reached the secretary's desk with a black briefcase in his hand.
"Good morning," Mrs. Clarks and Eugene replied.
"I have the file you asked for," said Eugene.
"Thank you, Eugene," said Mr. Sinclair. "Can you come into my office for a minute?"
"Sure."
"Should I bring you your coffee, Mr. Sinclair?" Mrs. Clarks asked as she stood up from her seat.
"Yes, coffee will do me some good this morning, thank you."
Mrs. Clarks went round her desk and gave Eugene an eye before leaving him and Mr. Sinclair. Eugene tried to hold his laughter because he knew he had pissed off Mrs. Clarks, especially over the coffee.
Mr. Sinclair unlocked the door to his office with his keys and he went in with Eugene behind him.
Eugene never got over the feeling he always felt whenever he entered Mr. Sinclair's office. The place was grand starting from the mahogany table that was his desk and his high black office chair where he sat to the lovely Persian red carpet that covered the entire floor of his office. He had a shelf next to the wall in line with the door where he put up books portraits of his honorary degree in law and other achievements he had had over the years, including a PhD. There were also antique little statues some made of marble and wood on the shelves. As Eugene looked at the shelf, he always wondered why a picture of Mr. Sinclair and his wife wasn't there. As far as he was concerned, he had never seen the picture of the two since he started working at the law firm.
Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair never had children and they had been married for twenty years. As far as Eugene could remember when he was a kid, the two were a very happy couple and Mrs. Sinclair was very jovial. He remembered when he would be invited over to their house for tea together with his family sometimes. That was when his family were happy together, even before Albert was born.
Those where the good old days. He wished he could go back to the days when everything was normal and not complicated as it is now. He wondered if Mr. Sinclair ever thought so too. He and his wife were a happy couple. But over the years it seemed like the ideal couple had fallen out of love themselves. Issues started to rise between them they became the gossip of the whole town. Eugene was there through it all. Then, Mrs. Sinclair fell terribly ill to a point where she was barely seen by anyone, except from a few family members and close friends. "She's in bad shape," one of her closet friends would say. It was horrible because her illness had made her bed ridden. Mr. Sinclair took care of her as the loving husband he is. People thought Mrs. Sinclair's illness may bring them back together, to fight it through as one. But it turned out to be the opposite. Even when Mrs. Sinclair was never seen, you could see through Mr. Sinclair that things still weren't all that well between them.
Eugene went on to look at Mr. Sinclair as he settled behind his magnificent desk, placing the briefcase in the floor next to his chair.
"You were late today, sir," said Eugene.
"I had a little complication at home," Mr. Sinclair replied, as he was looking around his desk for something.
"Was it Mrs. Sinclair? Is she okay?"
Mr. Sinclair stopped his searching as he went to look at Eugene. He seemed a little startled that Eugene had asked such a question. He never liked talking about his wife's condition with anyone, not even Eugene whom everyone considered to be closer to Mr. Sinclair than anyone else. Mr. Sinclair leaned back in against his chair.
"She's fine," Mr. Sinclair replied as he cleared his throat. "Her condition is still the same, but she's fine."
"That's good to hear," said Eugene as he tried to smile but ended up giving out a little chuckle, which came out pretty wrong. He knew that immediately as he saw Mr. Sinclair's demeanour change. "I mean, umm, I thought her condition worsened, so, I'm glad she's still fine."
Mr. Sinclair relaxed a little and gave Eugene a firm smile. "She's fine. The family doctor always comes over to check up on her and the nurse takes good take care of her."
"Alright," said Eugene. He so much as wanted as to leave the office, feeling embarrassed for what he did there. He even forgot that he didn't get the answer to the question he asked before of why his boss was late.
"Here's the file you asked for," he said as he stretched his hand to hand over the file to Mr. Sinclair.
"Ah, the file, thank you, Eugene," said Mr. Sinclair as he took the file and put it on his desk. He went back to doing what he did the first time he got to his desk, searching.
"Are you looking for something?" Eugene asked, wondering what Mr. Sinclair was looking for.
"Looking for my pen," Mr. Sinclair answered. "It's one of my favourite pens, you know. And I realised when I went home yesterday that I didn't have it with me."
"Maybe you left it in your drawer."
Mr. Sinclair checked the top drawer of his desk on his left hand side. He searched with his hand until he found what he was looking for. He drew out a black and gold Armando Simoni fountain pen. It was a lovely luxury pen and Eugene had never seen one quite like it. Eugene noticed words in gold on the barrel of the pen. He tried to look at it and see if he could read it. Something wasn't quiet right with the words. Eugene was sure he saw that the words on it wasn't the brand name. Before Eugene could read them, Mr. Sinclair turned it around in his fingers.
"I have to go somewhere," said Mr. Sinclair as he pocketed the pen in the pocket of his jacket. He soon stood up from his seat.
"Where are you going?" Eugene asked. "You just got here."
"Are you worrying about me already?" Mr. Sinclair asked as he smiled at Eugene.
"A little," said Eugene as he thought of what Mr. Sinclair said about worrying over him. "You were late today which is highly unusual. Then, all of the sudden you just want to go out somewhere. Where are you going, anyway?"
"Just going to pick up something from a friend, that's all."
"But someone can do that for you. I can do it for you."
Mr. Sinclair placed his hand on Eugene's shoulder as a sign to show that he really appreciated what Eugene was willing to do.
"Thanks, but no thanks," said Mr. Sinclair. "I have to meet with this person. We haven't had a good conversation in a long time."
"This person must be some friend, huh?"
Mr. Sinclair smiled. "One of a kind. I'll be back before you know it."
Eugene nodded his head. Mr. Sinclair gave Eugene a pat on his shoulder before he went past him. With his car keys in his hands, Mr. Sinclair made his way round his associate and headed for the door.
"Uh, Eugene," Mr. Sinclair called out before walking out of the door. "You wouldn't mind helping Theodore with that lawsuit his client is facing with? You know, just to keep you busy while I'm gone."
"Sure," said Eugene. "Why not?"
Mr. Sinclair smiled at his associate. He opened the door and left the office. Eugene was heading for the door when he saw Mrs. Clarks come into the office with a cup of coffee in her hands.
"Where is he going?" Mrs. Clarks asked. "He just walked past me without even thinking that he had to take his coffee."
Eugene walked out of the office and he saw Mr. Sinclair already at the far end of the corridor heading for the elevator. He couldn't help but feel something was off with his boss this morning.
"He said he's gone out to meet someone," Eugene answered Mrs. Clarks who was also just as confused as he was.
"Do you know who?" Mrs. Clarks asked as she went round him and to her desk, settling the coffee on the table.
"He didn't say. He's acting weird, isn't he?"
"For him to reject my coffee this morning, ya. He definitely isn't himself at all."
ns 15.158.61.21da2
