Search hunt

Ella was going through the CDs in her room after ensuring she was locked in her old room with strict orders of not disturbing her as she felt too weary. She could have gone to the guest room, but the player for the CDs were present in the drawing room hall and in her room. Undoubtedly, she would choose her room to be the safest option.

Without bothering to change from her clothes she just unbuttoned the shirt and dragged out the clutch she had attached on her stomach. With her shirt left open from the top it helped her breathe better from her recent escapade which she thanked the lords to make it a lucky one for her. Going through the videos she was presented with the same things and same faces sitting at the same places; which made the work for her become quite boring. The meetings were dated as on September 5, September 25, September 27, October 9 and 25, November 8 and 22 and lastly December 4 and 24. The last meeting for the year being the day after her birthday.

She looked through the videos one by one serially, where she found that that the members looked annoyed in the video of September 27, maybe due to another meeting kept in the same month. Ordinarily it's usually two meeting per month but it can also be increased by more than two if there is a matter of urgency requiring a meeting to be affixed. Similarly, the people looked mortified and restless in the December 24 video, which she didn't need to guess why.

What caught her attention and raised too many questions in her mind was the video of September 27. She narrowed her eyes at the irregularity and was angry that Roy thought of mentioning this part out. She got so angry seeing it that she threw the remote in anger and left the room the way it was. Two maids who witnessed their Mistress were shocked with their mouths wide open to find her walking out of the room in this attire where her shirt was left open from the top till the tucked part inside her skirt, with only her bra left bare to see. As they were strictly ordered to not discuss anything about the affairs of the house, they hurriedly jerked their mouths to be shut and continued with their work after hearing the bang of the door being closed with the Mistress in another room that was the guest room allotted to her.

Little did Ella expect that the outcome of making noises in this house would straight away land to the owner, who was expectantly sitting with his legs outstretched on the chair across from her bed.

"Took your sweet time, darling?"

Ella didn't answer anything and just imagined the various ways of killing the figure sitting in front of her who was playing around with her for months. The anger turned to sudden awareness of her being in half naked form in front of him. But didn't make any move of rectifying that as the anger was slowly crawling back up. God she was so furious; she couldn't believe that she thought of trusting this man!

"Thankfully I have maids here. Would have costed me employing another replacement in case a male had seen you like this," Roy said while grazing his eyes from her face to her neck to her exposed breasts covered with her bra and her stomach which was moving up and down with her panting.

"What are you doing here?"

"What were you doing in the parlor?"

"Sightseeing."

"Same here."

Ella told herself to calm down and closed her eyes taking deep breaths; all the time Roy's eyes never leaving hers.

"If you have nothing else to say, I shall take a bath," saying that Ella headed to the bathroom. After her long and peaceful bath, she came out clear headed than before. She thought he would be gone by now but he was still there with the only movement of standing at the window of the room. Knowing he would be glancing at the garden; she headed the closet for a change of clothes.

"I had a thought of the mangoes very recently. I should taste them soon before the season goes out of hand," Roy spoke with his back to her. By that time, Ella had managed to change in a loose t-shirt and half pants.

Drying out her wet hair she replied, "Good luck with that."

"I don't need a luck to eat my own property!"

"I wasn't talking about the mangoes, but the owner of them."

Roy turned back to her with squinted eyes and said, "Mr. Walker? Ah, I'll handle him."

"Sure." She was sure that the man would rather poison every mango presented to Roy than let him have one. Since they were young Mr. Walker had always resented him to be around anywhere near the garden or most importantly his trees. Once he had posted a restraining order to Roy with a strict announcement of not entering the garden premises.

Roy walked towards her and turned his direction around her to sit back in the chair. Comfortably sitting in it he asked, "So? What were you searching for?"

"Evidence."

"Regarding what? No one is getting accused here." Roy stated.

"Though everyone is betraying here."

Roy waited for her to continue with her curiosity which he could see pouring out from her eyes and her controlling them at the bay.

"What did you discuss on the night of September 27 two years back?"

The question changed the demeanor of Roy Knight which Ella witnessed for a moment until it was gone in a flash.

"Same as you would have found in the records. By the way who gave you the authority of entering the Records Room."

"I am the heir of the Kings'. You think a simple automated lock will stop me from reaching my goal."

"I should have fired that receptionist long back." He muttered unhappily.

"It's not her fault. I stole it from her. Now, let me rephrase my question, what were you discussing with Nick Brooks that night?"

The surprise in his eyes was the answer to her theory. "I'm sure he was not a member back then to have anything to discuss."

"Answer me Roy or I leave this place and this proposition of yours forever."

"You can't. You know it."

"Try me! I did succeed two years back, didn't I Mr. Knight?"

"You are ready to put your ancestral rights in jeopardy because of a man."

"I am merely asking the questions I deserve to know the answers for." She argued and continued, "Weren't you the one to say that you will answer my questions if I ask correctly?"

"I feel very proud of you now, my pupil," he smiled. The audacity!

"I was only having a friendly chat with him," he said to which Ella narrowed her eyes and looking at her he continued, "until the chat turned to an opportunity for him to pass."

"He was planning to enter the politics; I saw it as a mutual benefit for the both of us and offered him a proposal. For him to form a party and solve our business problems and for us to influence it to the top. That way it would have been easier to gain control over the many activities surrounding the whole Europe."

"Smart." Ella acknowledged.

"Your father said the exact word after I succeeded in that," he grinned.

"Then why isn't he seen around with a political party around the city?" That question dimmed his smile to a disappointed one.

"You see he did have everything, the backup of the Kings', his uncle's influence, friends like me," Ella rolled her eyes at that phrase, "etcetera etcetera but lacked in the prime aspect of running a party- The Voice. A politician, however unfaithful is able to rule over as long as he has the Voice of making any False thing to True, or turning a bad rumor about himself to a good one… Hence he was replaced with his uncle with a sorry excuse to train before handling a massive responsibility." He said so feeling sorry but one look at his charade and Ella knew he was faking it all.

"Of course he bought that."

"Of course."

"Just like what Papa did to me." She said quietly.

"That was planned out to put you away from direct shotgun's eyes." His voice changed to a genuine one.

Looking away from his eyes she came back to her question, "You could have done the same tactic with Mr. Brooks from the start, then why drag Nick into it?"

"Feeling sympathy for him, dear?" he asked mockingly.

"Not even close."

"My, my what have you discovered?!" He exclaimed with his twinkling eyes at her speedy success of finding something.