Airalin

The Gifted[CLOSED]

In the light of day, even Eva's backpack was heavy, and she barely owned anything.

Although she was passing quiet, pleasant looking houses, she could already hear the zooming of passing cars in the distance. It wasn't much farther now. As soon as she reached the bus stop, her ordeal would be over. Just a little bit longer!

It was lucky that the only other people around were the homeowners tending to their yards and the occasional passing jogger, because if anyone looked too closely at Eva, they were bound to laugh at her expense. Even she couldn't deny how pathetic she was in the daylight. She had only walked a few blocks, and she was already running out of breath! Her cheeks burned beneath the sun despite the fact that the day was a mild one. Why the hell did she have to end up with a "gift" that made her weaker in most environments?

There was no use in bemoaning her bad luck, no use in contemplating the sunburn she was practically guaranteed to get. She had been forced to go without her hoodie for the duration of the journey; it would have looked way too suspicious on such a nice day.

At length, she arrived at her destination and took a seat in what little shade the small roof covering her seat had to offer. She was tempted to rub at her left eye to try to relieve the irritation being caused by the contact within, but that could cause way more trouble than it was worth. Better to just wait patient for the bus. It should stop really close to the hotel she was planning to spend the next few days in.

With a sigh, Eva slumped down in her seat, allowing her heavy limbs a well deserved rest.

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

The Vivian thing is a voice message, right?

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

I blinked the sleep out of my eyes, astonished. Had some servant just woken me up? As a child, that had been a common occurrence, of course; Father had been in charge. But I was supposed to be the master of this house!

I sat up on my bed, and my stomach reminded me that the servant had a point. The last thing I needed was to needlessly make enemies in my own home. I would just politely ask him to wait for me to wake up in the future. That would be more than enough. But it could wait.

"Chocolate chip pancakes," I said, deciding to allow myself a bit of indulgence. After taking a quick shower, I donned some casual clothing - a lavender sundress and sandals - and shared one of my insincere smiles with the mirror. It was odd... ever since I had received my inheritance, I had felt like I looked much better! My scars were inexplicably fading, and something about my expression seemed just a smidgen more genuine. I would have expected the opposite, given all the stress I had been going through. Maybe it was the necklace; the thing was quite beautiful, regardless of Mother's opinion. After a moment's reluctance to stop admiring myself, I tore my eyes away from the mirror and exited my room.

The halls were filled with landmarks, so the second trip to the kitchen took much less time than the first had. Upon arriving, I sat down at the head of the table, acutely aware of the absence of Mother and my guards. I frowned as I recalled the emails they had sent the previous day; Mother really didn't have any right to deny me my protection in my own home. I would have to speak to her about that, though I had to admit that I preferred the privacy. Perhaps I would be safe enough here.

As I awaited my meal, I check my email using my cell phone, ignoring the second and third messages sent by some of my relatives. The school president had personally sent me homework... what an asshole! I had no intention of doing it. I no longer needed to.

Before I knew it, I found myself typing the email address that had been given to me all those years ago into my phone. Frantically, I erased it. Why was I still thinking about contacting him? Father was already dead! But...

The threat remained. That boy from the restaurant... Christian. He had to be up to something. I would hire a private investigator to learn about him. If he was up to something, he needed to be dealt with, and quickly.

The moment my food was placed before me, I stabbed my fork into it, a bit surprised by my own ferocity. It must have been born of a combination of hunger and anger at Christian. Careful to exert the proper restraint, I cut my pancakes into small pieces daintily, only eating any once the task was complete. Being in charge of the mansion would require me not to be so lax about etiquette. That, however, was the least of my worries. Between the break in, the attempts to bribe my guards, and Mother's behavior, something was definitely going on. I couldn't allow myself to become complacent.

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

I know, right? I just wanna play games and stuff! As it happens, I'm a pretty lazy person. =p

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

Just so you know I have work I need to do, so for the next few hours my post will be slow if they appear at all.

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

The mansion was absolutely beautiful.

I scurried from one master bedroom to the next. They were all immaculate, really; I would need to find out who had lived in each of them before making a selection. I wanted to avoid living in a room someone had died in, if I could help it, but it was possible that each room had seen its share of death. This was an old house, after all.

I chose a room at random and locked the door behind me. This one would have to do for now. I slipped off my sandals, letting my toes sink into the wonderfully soft carpet. This room alone had to be the size of my whole apartment! It was such a relief that the house hadn't fallen into disrepair the way the grounds had. Throwing myself onto the curtained bed, I sighed. I deserved a moment of relaxation after everything I had been through over the last day!

There was really no point in going back to school. I had no intention of getting a job, anyway, and all the guys I met were only interested in my money and my body. Previously, the point of my "studies" had simply been to get myself away from Father, but now that he was dead, that was no longer a concern. Here, I should be safe.

It was a relief that my security team would remain loyal to me despite the offers they were getting. As for the renewal of their contract, that was no concern. I would easily be able to outbid any opposition. As long as they did their jobs well, I was willing to give them billions if that was what it took.

I fetched my laptop from the suitcase that had been left here for me and powered it on. Sitting cross-legged on the bed, I browsed through my email account. I had received many recent messages, of course, most from relatives congratulating me and wanting to stay in touch. Those could all be ignored, of course. The intentions of their senders couldn't be more obvious.

It had been a relief to not have to send a message to that man. Just the thought of talking to him again was probably what had given me so many nightmares. He would have probably been able to dispatch of Father with no issues, of course... he had infiltrated Father's citadel once before, after all. Why not again?

With a sigh, I returned to my feet, wandering over to the tall mirror along the wall. Mother had noticed my new necklace, of course... I was a bit surprised she hadn't liked it much. She was right about one thing, though. I really ought to treat myself a bit. Perhaps a pair of diamond bracelets to replace the golden ones I usually wore?

As I stood, admiring myself in the mirror, I was interrupted by a rather rude noise - the noise of my stomach growling. I hadn't eaten since breakfast, and even that had been brief! I left my room, wandering off to find Mother and figure out what would be for dinner. It might be nice to catch up with her a bit... now that Father was gone, she could live freely, say what she wanted to. Our conversation could be quite refreshing!

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

My smile faded the second I saw it.

Why... why hadn't I realized I had been giggling? The reaction was perfectly natural, of course. I had wanted Father to die for so long, and now he was gone. My only regret was that I hadn't been behind his death! But why had it been subconscious?

No, I had more important things to worry about. I had slept poorly, and was stressed out by my new situation - it was only natural that I would have strange reactions. I needed to focus on keeping myself safe while I was at home.

It only took me a few minutes to pack. I didn't need to bring much in the way of spare clothing; I already had a ton of that at home. My laptop, pills, and a few other things would be more than enough. I took a quick shower, fixed up my hair, and dressed myself. I would not be wearing black today; there was no reason for me to mourn. Instead, I wore a green dress that matched the emerald in my necklace and my nicest pair of sandals. I was gorgeous, as usual; my makeup completely concealed the pale scars on my arms and legs. But I felt so very vulnerable. I didn't really understand what was going on around me... not at all! I might end up following in father's footsteps...

No use dwelling on that.

I opened my door a crack and peeks outside, confirming the presence of my guards, the nearest of whom held out his hand to take my suitcase. "I'm ready," I said, inwardly cringing at the faintness of my voice, "Take me to my jet, please."

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

I snapped awake at the pronouncement of Father's death.

How... how could that have happened, the night I had planned to take matters into my own hand? "Mom, what happened to him?" I asked, sincerely concerned. Between the search someone had done on my room and Father's death, something was seriously wrong. It was clear that someone was after me, or something I owned... but the papers had been left untouched, as had the $2.7 million stipend. That meant the intruder had been after one of two things: the necklace or my life. Could it be that it was more than some trinket?

Either way, I would be wearing the necklace at all times going forward.

As for Mother's request... I would have to obey her. I would just look weaker if I ran now. I couldn't imagine Mother trying to kill me; she was too gentle, had always let Father make the important decisions. But he had died even before I could begin taking the steps to have him killed. Had someone anticipated my plans and beaten me to the punch? Could it have been that boy, the one from the restaurant?

I had to find out, no matter the cost!

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

Okay! =)

The dark heart +18 mature/viloence/language

Yes, I meant the dorm. "He" is not Dad. =p