Chapter 52
Alaia
“We’ve arrived! Did you miss me?” Tino threw open the door to my office, and my children rushed in behind him, running straight to hug me and Ash, who is with me.
“What a lovely surprise,” I said, kissing my children’s heads.
“We got tired of being at home, so I decided to take them out for a walk. You know, the SUV the bodyguards, the blue sky, and the excuse that kids shouldn’t stay home for too long. I brought the blonde and the hunk, and I can’t decide which one is hotter,” he said, sitting on the couch and crossing his legs like a lady.
“Where’s Loli?” I walked as I walked toward the couch with Ash. The kids opened the door to their playroom and ran around.
“I gave her the day off,” he said, brushing his hair. “By the way, speaking of Loli, have you noticed how she looked at the blonde bodyguard with the face of a boy and the body of a man, who is the boss of all those hunks? It only took me ten seconds of watching her for her panties to hit the floor. I asked her, you know I’m very nosy, and she didn’t have to say a word for me to know I was right. Although I have to admit, the blonde doesn’t even give her the time of day. I’ve told her she looked like the typical high school nerd who no one pays attention to p>
“Don’t be cruel,” I said, hitting his shoulder. He made a dramatic gesture, touching it, and Ash rolled her eyes.
“My bad, but you know if I don’t say it, I’ll explode,” he said, examining his nails.
“We noticed a while ago and proposed to help her, but with the trip and how busy we’ve been, it got delayed p>
“But what are you saying? I’m in! I love makeovers. Let’s turn her into a beautiful swan p>
We were in the middle of the makeover when I received a call from the lawyer asking for some extra details about the case.
I sighed and massaged my temple.
“I don’t understand your ex, well, he’s not your ex anymore, right?” Tino said, looking confused as soon as the call ended.
“What don’t you understand? He’s a jerk who doesn’t want to let me move on with my life like he did,” I said, annoyed.
“The lawyer said the wedding was fake, my dear p>
“He wanted to keep his family’s fortune. During the time we were married, I realized he didn’t receive much help from them. We had what we needed, which was enough for me. You know, when we finish our studies, things will change for us p>
Tino and Ash nodded, looking sad.
“But apparently, it wasn’t enough for him, so he decided to accept the deal with his family p>
“Oh dear, if you didn’t tell me everything that happened until now, I’d find it romantic that my ex–no–ex is opposing my new marriage, assuming he still had feelings for me p>
I shook my head.
“Nick hurt me a lot, and I felt bad for many nights because of him. When I finally could be myself, I made sure to harden my heart so no one could enter and hurt it again,” I exhaled.
“And you succeeded. You’ve left your feelings just for us. I know you care about Cedric, and now I understand your relationship better. The blonde deserves a prize for his patience; he must love you a lot,” said my friend.
I nodded.
“What are we doing this afternoon?” I changed the subject before Tino started an interrogation.
“Let’s go out to eat and shop. What do you say, Tino?” Ash said excitedly.
“You know I love those plans. I still can’t believe I’m in Hollywood,” Tino said, walking to the large window in my office and posing like a diva on my desk. “And now that you mention it, I know a restaurant where celebrities go. We should go there and see if we run into some movie stars p>
“I love the idea,” Ash stood up, and we went to get the kids to go out for lunch.
We arrived at the restaurant and were quickly seated at a table.
“Aaaahh,” Tino screamed, drawing attention from us, and even Noah turned to look at him.
“The Rock! It’s Dwayne Johnson! I’m freaking out!” We look in that direction, and sure enough, the actor is sitting at a table with another man.
After some back–and–forth, Tino finally manages to get us to take some photos with the actor before he leaves.
“If I didn’t have the photo, the spiders wouldn’t believe me,” Tino said happily, looking at his phone. I’m sure we’ll remember this moment for a long time.
My phone rings just before we get into the SUV.
“Miss Russell,” I heard the man’s voice and recognized it immediately.
“Did you find them?” I asked, trying not to get too excited.
“Yes, Miss, we located them in a house more than an hour away p>
“Send me the location. I’ll go immediately,” I asked.
“I’ll send all the information,” he said. I thanked him and hung up.
“They’ve found the girls,” I told everyone, including Tino, and they quickly got into the SUV. I gave directions to Gus and called Ignacio to ask him to send a bus, some people to help us, and other cars to bring them back. The house I bought for them was already furnished. We’ll return today; I couldn’t let them stay in a place that surely belongs to the Garnetts.
The journey felt long due to the excitement I felt about seeing the girls and the children.
After more than an hour of traveling and passing a small town 45 minutes ago, I finally saw the house. It was surrounded by trees and grass that haven’t been cared for in a long time. I felt a pit in my chest that grows larger as we get closer to the house.
The paint on the facade was worn, as is the wood.
We got out at the entrance of the garden, if we can call it that, with only tall and neglected plants. I visited the house with my cousin and Tino.
“Does anyone live here?” Tino asked, impressed, holding Noah while Ash had Alana.
“It seems so. If this weren’t the work of the Garnetts, I wouldn’t believe the girls are here,” I said, taking a step to enter.
“But who could live under these conditions?” Ash questioned, annoyed.
“We have to get them out of here,” I affirmed, and we walked down the stone path to the door.
I knock, and it shooks with the blows.
“What the hell p>
We heard footsteps, and one of the girls opened the door, her eyes widening as soon as she saw us.
“Alaia,” she said, and I stepped forward to hug her. She hugged me back.
“What are you doing here? We assumed we’d never see you again,” she said excitedly, taking my hands.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t think I’d lose sight of you,” I said, caressing her hands.
“It’s okay, please come in,” she invited us in. I look around the house and can’t believe what I’m seeing. The house is very old and in poor condition, although the girls have kept it organized.
“Who arrived?” Alicia came out of the hallway and approaches to hug me as soon as she sees me.
“Alaia,” she said, overwhelmed, and I hugged her tightly.
“My God, it’s so good to see you,” she said, taking my hands. “When they told us you had sent them for us, but we didn’t see you, it seemed strange,” she said, and I felt confused.
“They said I sent them for you?” I asked quickly.
“Yes, the men who came to get us said we should go with them, that you had sent them. I tried to call you at that moment, but one of them took my phone and said you would replace it with another and handed it to one of his companions p>
I couldn’t believe what she was saying. Ash and I exchanged glances.
“Come, I want you to see what we’ve done with the house,” Alicia said, taking me with her. We found the girls and the children one by one. I’m still surprised to see how they’re living and that they were brought here under pretenses.
“We’ve repaired some windows, we have water and electricity. I’m sorry I didn’t try to contact you sooner, but I used what little we had left to make repairs and get food for the girls p>
“Wait, what little you have left?” Ash asked, and I wondered the same thing. Alicia had a considerable amount of money they had collected from organized activities.
“I’m afraid the movers took the box where the money was kept,” Alicia explained.
Those bastards? I look at Ash, and I know she was thinking the same thing.
“I found everything strange, Alaia, but without being able to contact you, I couldn’t confirm anything p>
“It wasn’t me, Alicia, I explained, still shocked by what I was seeing.
“My suspicions were correct, then,” she said, looking at us.
“That’s right. We weren’t the ones who did this, Alicia,” Ash explained.
“But… let’s go, let’s have some coffee so you can tell me what happened,” she said, leading us to the humble and old kitchen.
I began to tell her everything.
“Those Garnetts, sons of bitches, came straight from hell,” a woman cursed.
“Flora,” Alicia scolded her.
“But it’s not a lie,” of course, Tino would say. “But that Nick is one of those who tempt you to sin p>
“Come on,” I scolded him. He’s the only one who would mention that at a time like this.
We went through the house, asking the girls to pack their things and get the children ready. The transport has arrived. I’ll ask for the place to be demolished as soon as we leave. No one should live here.
We helped them pack things into boxes. Luckily, they haven’t finished unpacking. Suddenly, Flora appeared at the door of the room we’re in, coughing.
“The house is on fire,” she said, and my heart stopped.