Christian’s words seed to have left Michael feeling shaken and helpless. Christian laughed out loud. He then continued, "My brother, I’ve been waiting for you to be fearful of for years."
"Don’t be too happy too soon. You won’t know who the final winner is until the end."
Michael took a deep breath as his hands clenched the steering wheel.
"Oh really? Then enjoy your ti sitting in the car thinking about how to turn the tables around. I shall not disturb you further." With that, he opened the door and got out of the car.
Michael watched Christian walked away. His expression of fear and helplessness was gone. In its place was a smirk. Christian thought that he was winning, hence his arrogance instead of his usual passive attitude. But soon, he would know the true winner of this ga.
Michael leaned back into his seat. Although he was slightly more relaxed than before, he couldn’t let his guard down. He was still worried for Wendy and the twins.
Michael intended to send more bodyguards to protect them discreetly in case Christian decided to harm them when he found out that HG was in trouble. Christian could take extre asures when forced into a corner.
As Michael was pondering over all these, his cellphone rang. He tilted his head to see the display screen. It was from the mansion. Michael frowned but he answered the call right away. "Yes, Grandma."
"Michael, co back for lunch today," Mrs. Lucas’s warm voice ca from the other end. "I’ve asked the cook to prepare your favorite dishes. Co back now."
"I’ve had my lunch. I won’t be coming back." Michael had no reason to go back to the mansion and he was trying to avoid Mrs. Lucas in case she asked about Wendy.
He wouldn’t have an explanation for her if she really asked. He would rather not let Mrs. Lucas worry about them.
"Just co back like I told you to." When Mrs. Lucas was talking to Wendy, she acted pitiful and sickly to get her sympathy. But to Michael, it was as if she was commanding him.
"Grandma, I..." Before Michael could complete his sentence, he heard the dial tone. Mrs. Lucas had hung up on him. He heaved a sigh as he was left with no choice. He started the car and drove towards the mansion.
....
When Wendy and Todd got into an Uber, she asked him, "There’s a mall up front. I’ll drop you off there?"
"Okay." Todd wanted to say no, but he resisted himself since he had no reason to object to Wendy’s suggestion.
The car ca to a halt in front of the mall and Todd alighted. He bent over and spoke to Wendy through the window, "Co back as soon as you can. Not sure if Christian would do anything if he finds out that you are there."
"Okay. I’ll contact you later." Wendy waved at him.
Initially, Wendy wanted to pick a gift for Mrs. Lucas at the mall but it was already late. Wendy didn’t know what to buy either. Mrs. Lucas was probably waiting for her to arrive before she started eating so she asked the driver to continue with the journey. The car went past a fruit stall and Wendy asked to stop so that she could choose a few seasonal fruits.
She alighted with a bag of fruits when she arrived at the mansion. Mrs. Lucas had tasked so attendants to receive Wendy at the gate.
Upon seeing Wendy arrive, Margaret, the housekeeper, imdiately smiled and took over the bag of fruits from Wendy. She said, "Mrs. Lucas has been waiting for you.
She has been coming out from ti to ti to check if you’re already here. She would be elated to see you."
Wendy chuckled as she nodded and followed Margaret into the mansion. As if pre-empting Margaret, Wendy reminded her, "Don’t call Mrs. Lucas, okay? The current Mrs. Lucas is Yonina Collins." Margaret had been serving Mrs. Lucas for a long ti. She had always addressed Wendy as Mrs. Lucas as well.
"At the mansion, I follow Mrs. Lucas’s house rules. If Mrs. Lucas regards you as her granddaughter-in-law, you will always be Mrs. Lucas," Margaret replied respectfully.
Wendy wanted to say sothing but decided against it. It was just a formality. No point forcing it onto Margaret.
"Wendy. You are finally here!" Mrs. Lucas broke into a huge smile and stood up from the couch once she saw Wendy. With her cane, she walked towards Wendy to welco her.
Wendy quickened her pace and walked forward, holding onto Mrs. Lucas’s forearm to support her. She said caringly, "Grandma, slow down."
"I’m okay," Mrs. Lucas gave Wendy a warm smile. She pulled her along to the couch to have a seat.
Mrs. Lucas reached over and gently patted Wendy’s hand. "You have not co back to visit in a long while. If I haven’t pestered you to co back, you probably wouldn’t have the intention of coming over. Wendy, do you not take as your grandmother anymore?"
"Grandma, don’t say that. When I ca back to Lake City, I was intending to co visit you. For real," Wendy added the last two words to show her sincerity.
"Really?" Mrs. Lucas laughed heartedly. "I’m happy even if you are lying to ."
"I’m not. I’m telling the truth." Wendy had intended to extend her stay for a few days in Lake City.
Mrs. Lucas saw the bag of fruits in Margaret’s hands. She pouted on purpose. "Look at you. You even brought fruits. It’s thoughtful of you but this is sothing only an outsider or soone who is not close to would do. I am your grandmother. Next ti, just bring yourself when you co visit ."
"I happened to pass by a fruit store on my way here. The fruits looked fresh, so I bought so for you." Wendy held on to Mrs. Lucas’s hands and said, "Don’t worry, Grandma. It’s just a coincidence."
"Coincidence or not, you are forbidden to do so in future," Mrs. Lucas insisted.
"Okay." To think that Wendy initially wanted to get a gift for Mrs. Lucas. Thank goodness she didn’t do so because of the ti constraint.
Wendy observed Mrs. Lucas carefully. She seed healthy with no hint of any cold symptoms. Wendy heaved a sigh of relief. During the call earlier, Mrs. Lucas had coughed a few tis. Although Wendy had guessed that Mrs. Lucas was playing the pity card, she wanted to be sure.
She laughed and asked, "Grandma, I thought you’re not feeling well? Your cough sounded pretty serious over the phone earlier on. I bought these fruits because I thought they would boost your immune system a little. Should we call the house doctor for a quick check-up? Or I can send you to the hospital?"
Hearing Wendy’s words, Mrs. Lucas lowered her head in guilt and did not dare to look at Wendy in the eye, "The house doctor ca earlier. It is no big deal, so don’t worry about it."
Mrs. Lucas added a few coughs at the end of her sentence.
Wendy played along with Mrs. Lucas and gave her a few pats on the back. "You aren’t young anymore. We should be more cautious about your health. I think I should still send you to the hospital for a check-up."
"It’s fine. I am really okay." Mrs. Lucas laughed awkwardly.
Wendy did not insist further as it would not be a good idea to expose her white lie.
After all, all that mattered was that Mrs. Lucas was well. However, Wendy noticed that Mrs. Lucas kept looking out of the window.
...
Wendy looked in the direction where Mrs. Lucas was staring at. She asked, "Are you expecting soone else?"
When she asked the question, she had a guess in mind.
"No. I saw soone who looks like Jeff walk across the lawn." Mrs. Lucas was quick to think of an excuse. She laughed as she said, "You’ve not t Jeff, right? He’s the new helper I hired. He has green fingers. Yesterday, he was telling that there was a new variant of orchid at the orchard. I asked him to buy a pot back, not sure if he has done so."
Mrs. Lucas waved at Margaret and said, "You can ask him later when you see him."
Knowing that Mrs. Lucas had fabricated the whole story out of nowhere, Margaret simply nodded and went to look for the fictitious ’Jeff’. She had been with Mrs. Lucas long enough to know what was in her mind.
"If he managed to get it, you can co have a look with after dinner." Mrs. Lucas smiled as she told Wendy.
Wendy nodded, "Sure, Grandma."
"Are you hungry yet? Let’s have dinner now." Mrs. Lucas guessed that Michael should reach soon. They could eat while waiting for him. If Mrs. Lucas had delayed dinner, Wendy would get suspicious. Mrs. Lucas had a reason why she called Michael thirty minutes after her call with Wendy. She wanted Michael to reach later. Ladies usually took more ti to prepare before an appointnt. As for Michael, he could get going after changing his outfit. If Michael reached earlier than Wendy, Wendy would think that Mrs. Lucas had intentionally arranged for both of them to co at the sa ti. So she thought it would be best for Wendy to arrive first.
"Okay," Wendy said. She got up and helped Mrs. Lucas over to the dining table.
Wendy stared at the table that was full of her favorite dishes. She was touched beyond words. Mrs. Lucas indeed treated her like her own granddaughter.
"Co, Wendy. Sit beside ." Mrs. Lucas sat down and reached her hand out to Wendy. Wendy did not decline.
Once they were settled down, Mrs. Lucas put a serving of salad on her plate. "You should eat more. Look at you, you are too thin. I know you are always busy at work, but take care of yourself too."
"Okay. You should eat well too." Wendy placed a tender piece of chicken onto Mrs.
Lucas’s plate.
"Where’s Grandma?" Wendy heard Michael’s voice as she finished her sentence. She frowned. Her hunch was right when she saw Mrs. Lucas looking out of the window.
She had guessed Mrs. Lucas had asked Michael to co back too. Mrs. Lucas was the saddest when Wendy and Michael broke up.
Soon, Michael ca into the dining area. "Grandma, what’s so urgent that you had to..." Michael paused mid-sentence when he saw Wendy.
Mrs. Lucas heard Michael and got a shock. Afraid that he would let the cat out of the bag, she quickly added, "Michael, why didn’t you ntion you were coming back? If you had told earlier, I could have gotten them to prepare your favorite dishes."
Michael frowned as Mrs. Lucas spoke. This was not what Mrs. Lucas said on the phone. But now that he had seen Wendy, he understood why Mrs. Lucas wanted him to co back.
He would not expose Mrs. Lucas though. He looked down and said, "It was a last-minute decision. Didn’t you always nag that I don’t co back often enough?"
Michael looked over at Wendy and continued, "But seeing that you have a visitor, I’ll co visit you another ti."
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