Cornelia beckoned with a warm smile as she entered the garden and spotted her granddaughters,
"Rose, Alma, you’re both here. Perfect, co over, my dears."
Rosemary had only wandered off a short distance when she heard her grandma call. She quickly returned to Cornelia’s side.
"Grandma Cornelia, you needed to see both of us?" Alma’s face broke into a smile as if nothing had happened earlier.
"Well, my dears, I have a friend who’s a violin maestro, and she’s been on the lookout for a protege.
She ssaged to ask if I knew anyone who might fit the bill. She’s looking for real talent."
Cornelia still held her smartphone, the chat window open, "Rose’s already a master in her own right,way beyond my friend’s skill level, so it got thinking about you."
She patted Alma’s head affectionately, "You’ve loved the violin since you were a little girl, and you even took lessons from Oswald, but he never truly passed on the torch. My friend, she’s more skilled than
Oswald, and I think you could really flourish under her tutelage. Given so ti, you could do great things."
"?" Alma was caught in a bind. She couldn’t admit that she could no longer play the violin.
"Rose here is Jamie Noelle. Since she’s around, why don’t you play sothing for her? Let’s see where you stand. My friend has very high standards, and even if you’re talented and skilled, she might not be convinced."
Cornelia was about to fetch a violin when Alma quickly interjected, "Grandma Cornelia, I’ve decided not to pursue the violin professionally."
"Why ever not?" Cornelia was clearly surprised.
"I’ve set my sights high, you see. I had even thought about studying under Jamie Noelle." Alma revealed with a playful grin as she spoke, "But I’ve realized that’s not really my calling. So I’ve made up my mind. Music and arts will remain hobbies, and I plan to focus on building a different career. But thank you, Grandma Cornelia, for always thinking of when opportunities co up."
Seeing Alma had other plans, Cornelia nodded, "You’ve always been decisive, my child. If that’s what you want, I won’t push. Whatever you both choose to do in the future, I’m behind you all the way."
Relieved, Alma offered a smile.
"Well, then, I’ll let my friend know I don’t have a suitable candidate at the mont." Cornelia was about to leave when sothing else occurred to her, "If you’re ever in need of advice, you can always turn to Rose. When it cos to chess, she’s a Queen, a master of all sorts. For music, she’s both lody and Jamie Noelle; and in dicine, she’s Dr. Bell. Whatever path you choose, Rose can surely give you a few pointers."
Alma, not to be outdone but resigned to the situation, replied, "Of course, Grandma Cornelia."
"But I’ll say this upfront: just a few pointers. Don’t bother her too much. Rose’s a busy girl," Cornelia chuckled as she tapped her screen, replying to her old friend’s ssage, and walked back toward the house.
Feeling a bit awkward, Alma looked up to find that Rosemary had slipped away at so point.
What was with Rosemary, not even wanting to spend an extra second with her? Why the rush?
That bitch Serena used to be around the Collins family all the ti, and Rosemary never seed so put off.
Could it be that she was even less appealing than that Serena?
From a distance, Rosemary spotted the head of the bodyguard confronting a man who had been blocked from escaping. Crossing half the garden, she approached the unfolding scene.
"Ms. Collins!" The head of the bodyguard seed relieved at her arrival, his gaze falling on the uninvited guest with suspicion, "This fellow was lurking around the basent skylight, acting all sneaky."
At the bodyguard’s feet was a skylight that led down to the basent; a glance through it offered a view into a corner of the subterranean space.
Most villas had a similar design: a skylight in the ground floor to let the sunshine stream into the basent. It was a clever way to brighten up the space and improve the airflow down there.
"I had no clue there was a skylight." The man explained with a mix of urgency and helplessness, "The grass is so tall around here, from a distance all I could see was a sea of green. I told you, I’m new here.
I was just looking for the restroom. I saw a small door from afar and thought to check it out. I didn’t know there was a skylight that wasn’t ant to be walked over."
"You were looking for the restroom and you couldn’t ask soone? With all the staff bustling about in this villa, don’t tell you didn’t see a soul," the head of the bodyguard still sounded skeptical.
"I saw that most of the staff were won; it felt kinda awkward to ask, and they all seed so busy."
The man tried to explain further, but seeing no sign of belief from the bodyguard, he turned to Rosemary with a helpless look, "Ms. Collins, I really didn’t know I couldn’t just wander around here. I was only looking for the restroom."
"You think you can fool Ms. Collins that easily? You better co clean today, or don’t bla for not being nice!"
The head of the bodyguard was ready to take action, hand inching towards his tool of authority, poised to apprehend the man.
"What’s going on here?"
Just then, an elegant voice cut through the tension.
The man looked towards the source of the voice as if he had found his savior and quickly explained,
"Madam, I was just looking for the restroom and accidentally went the wrong way. This man is insisting, I’m up to sothing, talking about looking for so basent, so skylight."
Beverly maintained a gracious smile throughout, "It’s a misunderstanding. Harry is a new chauffeur I’ve hired. It’s his first day here, and he’s not yet familiar with our house rules or recent events."
With that, she turned to Harry with a smile, "I’ll handle this; why don’t you go ahead and use the restroom."
"He can’t leave."
As the head of the bodyguard moved to intercept, Beverly’s laugh, light and amused, filled the air,
"When nature calls, it calls. I appreciate your dedication as head of bodyguard, but if it makes you feel better, once he’s done, I’ll have him co back and you can question him all you want."
With things put that way, if the bodyguard persisted, it would make for an unsightly scene. But he didn’t want to let him go either; what if the man destroyed evidence? What would be the point of questioning him after that?
"Changing chauffeurs at the turn of the new year?" Rosemary inquired with a smile.
Typically, as the year drew to a close, people stuck with the staff they had, not making changes lightly.
"Couldn’t be helped." Beverly said, her smile unwavering, "Our forr chauffeur Gene, his wife just had a baby. He wanted to be there for her postpartum period, and with a new addition in their family, he
wanted to spend the holidays together. So I gave him two-month off."
Beverly continued with genteel ease, "I’ve vetted this new chauffeur thoroughly; there’s no issue. But if you’re still worried, feel free to question him further."
"If you say he’s fine, then naturally, we have no reason to hold him."
Hearing this, the head of the bodyguard beca desperate, not wanting to let the man go just like that.
What if he was trouble?
"What are you waiting for? You need thank Ms. Collins." Beverly said with poise, "If it were any other lady, they would have surely held you back."
Harry quickly bowed in gratitude, "Thank you, Ms. Collins. I won’t make the sa mistake again."
Rosemary kept her smile, nodding her head.
As Harry stepped away, the head of the bodyguard was beside himself with anxiety. He couldn’t let this go.
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