Chapter Six: The Aftermath

“I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning to sail my own ship.”

- Louisa May Alcott

Isabella shows up in the orchard at exactly two forty-five a.m. She sees Sebastian leaning on the bark of the tree, smoking. Sebastian turns to face her, the smoke wafting to her nose. She coughs and she snatches the cigarette from Sebastian and snuffs it with the sole of her shoe. “Smoking kills. I’m sure Althea already told you that.” She says, earning a scowl from Sebastian. “You don’t have the right to boss me.” He says, pinning her to the tree. Her heartbeat triples as her heart hammers hard on her rib cage. ‘You can do this Isabella, be strong.’ She said to herself. “I’m simply concerned. Cancer isn’t an easily cured disease. And I know your dedication to Althea, you wouldn’t want to inconvenience her. Just think of that and quit smoking.” She says, steeling her resolve against Sebastian. “I’m here to train, and I don’t want my instructor to die in the middle of the training session.” She says, her face straight, careful enough to not let any emotion show despite of her quickened heartbeats.

Sebastian gives her an evil smirk. “This is nice, our petit renard (little fox) is growing her claws.” He then sidesteps and lets her go. Isabella inhales sharply and she walks to the center. Sebastian joins her there. He gives her a mocking smile. “Now, let’s see what you got.”

Althea wakes up, in cold sweat. She glances at the clock. It’s three a.m., far too early for her to be up and all. The low humming of the air conditioning can be heard along with her hurried breathing. She can still feel her heart thumping hard against her ribcage; the blood roaring in her ears. She runs her hands across her hair then presses a button underneath her nightstand. A few minutes later, a series of rapping can be heard, and the door opens. A man familiar to her comes inside and bows slightly. “I’m sorry mistress, if I disturbed you. You… seemed to be in pain, and I don’t see Sebastian and Ignacio anywhere.” He says, carrying a tray of assorted medicine and a glass of water. Althea holds her head. “I’m sorry to inconvenience you like this.” She says apologetically, while she attends to her throbbing head. “Another symptom?” He asks, as he settles the pills down and hands her the glass of water. She takes the pills and the glass of water. “No, just…” She pauses.

“Another nightmare.” He finishes for her. She nods. “I’m trying to be strong, but it still haunts me a lot.” She says and then she downs the water, the cold fluid going down smoothly, and it dampens her parched and dry throat. He stands up. “Wait for me here.” He says and he promptly leaves the room. He comes back with a violin. “Let me play for you mistress.” He says, resting the violin on his shoulders, as his hands deftly slide the bow back and forth, calming music resonating from the instrument itself. Althea slips back into the covers and lets the calming music of the violin ease her weary eyes and soon enough, the sleepiness engulfs her. “Desmond… thank you. I didn’t think I’ll never hear you play the violin anymore. We really grew far apart...” She says, her heavy eyes giving in to sleep. The man continues to play, this time, there are tears in his eyes.

Sebastian gives Isabella a low kick on her shins. She crumples down. “Get up, maladroit (clumsy).” He then gives her a condescending look. “Or are you giving up now?” He says, tauntingly. Isabella, with shaky legs, she stands up. “Again. Do it again.” She says, gritting her teeth so hard as to not feel the pain in her legs. Sebastian shrugs and he attacks her with almost blinding speed. ‘Give up, woman.’ Sebastian thought as he put every ounce of strength he has, and kicks Isabella’s shin again. “Too slow!” He shouts. Isabella stands up again. “DO IT AGAIN!” She shouts, despite knowing her legs were badly bruised already. Sebastian attacks her again, throwing a mock punch towards her face, catching her off guard and he trips her, and she falls flat on her back. She struggles to get up. “A-again.” She says, wiping the sweat from her brow. “Whatever you say.” Sebastian says, as he attacks again.

Black Rose meets the four suits in the dining room. “I made you all breakfast, I hope you don’t mind.” She says. They all shake their heads. Pierrot speaks up. “Hurrah! I missed your cooking so much!” He says elated. Bryton slaps the back of his head again. “You glutton. You shouldn’t have bothered.” He says. Black Rose chuckles. “Nothing less for my four suits. I know you’re not yet done with your tasks, but I need your help.” She says, after removing her apron and she sits on the head of the table. “But before that, please dig in.” The four quickly take their utensils and they started to eat.

Once they were done, Black Rose orders her maids to remove the dishes on the table, and one serves her tea. “Have you heard about the case filed against a company we scouted before?” She says, sipping her tea. The four shake their heads. She stands up and flicks their foreheads. “You all should know what is going on at the very least.” She says, pouting. “I’ll never be able to fully recover if I continue to worry about the company in my absence. They all hang their heads. “Forgive us mistress!” They say, quickly apologizing. She smiles at them. “It’s alright, but I don’t want a repeat of this.” She says. They nod, agreeing with her. “Anyways, all I want you to do is, after the trial, whether the result is a lose or a win, I want you to make sure that company goes down the drain. Show me the fruits of the talents that I have personally honed.” She says, sitting down once more and she sips her tea. “We understand. We’ll do everything in our power to bring him down.” Bryton says, now serious. “Give this task to me and Gallius. We are almost done with your earlier task.” He says, Black Rose gives them a satisfied smile. “How’s your task Desmond and Pierrot?” She asks them. They both hand her an envelope. She was going to open it when Desmond stops her hand. He averts his eyes from her questioning glare. “Don’t read it… unless you’re ready, mistress.” He says. Pierrot looks at her sadly. “Desmond is right. Please, read it, when you feel that you can finally forgive him.” Black Rose sighs and she sets the envelope aside for a while. Silence permeates the room, birthing an uncomfortable awkwardness.

Ignacio watches Ravier closely, waiting for an opportunity to strike. “I cannot fail here. I must not complicate Althea, at all costs.” He thought. He takes note of his schedule and with his special training long before he met Althea, he easily garnered information about him, tailing Ravier without being seen. The man grins at his client and shakes his hand. Ignacio grits his teeth in anger. The memory was just fresh, and he would love to erase the smile on Ravier’s face. “Your time will come. I will make sure, you won’t die an easy death.” He whispers, as he continues to observe.

Althea sighs, as once again, she’s alone in the mansion. She rereads Isabella’s note on the refrigerator.

________________________________________

“Signorina, I have some prior business to attend to. Sebastian insisted he should come, as I might be ambushed by Ravier Trevor’s men. We’ll meet you at the restaurant.”

Sincerely Yours,

Isabella

________________________________________

She gets in the car and drives it to the restaurant. She drives slowly, her window lowered, despite the biting cold. She stares at the view outside. “Right, it was a day like this too.” She thought, as she reminisces that day. She was woken out of her reverie, when she hears a loud honk of a car. She immediately steps on the breaks. The other driver walks out angrily. “If you want to die missy, then don’t drag others into it!” He says angrily. He stops when he sees Althea staring blankly in front of her, as if she seen a ghost. “Missy, are you alright?” He askes worriedly. His worry intensifies as she doesn’t reply and remains dazed. He lightly shakes her, which snaps her out. She panics for a moment, then her gaze focuses on the man. “Are you alright missy?” He asks worriedly. “You almost got into an accident. I’m sorry I shouted, I was a bit harsh.” He apologizes. Althea shakes her head. “No, no, I am at fault, please accept my deepest apologies. Would you prefer any compensation?”

The man shakes his head. “No need, lass. But be careful next time. It’s very foggy right now, and you can get into an accident if you’re not careful.” He then steps away and walks back to his car. Soon enough, he speeds away. Althea sighs, and she starts her engine and drives to her café.

Upon arriving, she sees that café is still closed, despite how late it is. She sighs. She knows almost all her employees are scared of what happened. She opens the café on her own, and she starts to clean up. After cleaning, even though there were many people around, they try to avoid the café altogether. She stares at the empty café. Not even a single soul dared to step on their premises. She plops down on a chair. She was about to take a nap when someone walks into her café. She immediately stands up and greets the potential customer.

“Sir, welcome!” She says cheerfully. The man looks at her awkwardly. “Actually, I just want to ask for directions…” He says. Althea sighs and tells him the directions for the other restaurant a few meters away from her. She looks at the open sign and flips it to close and she quietly sits down on the floor, closing her eyes. “This is just a minor setback. With everything, I know I can prevail.” She whispers, yet she can’t stop the tears falling from her eyes. Despite her experience, it was different, when you see your dream falling apart in front of you, and somehow, you can’t seem to stop it. She covers her eyes with her arm, trying to hide her tears absurdly amidst the quiet café. She never cried out loud before and this was no exception.

Carson walks through the café and he see Althea, her eyes closed and swollen around the sides. He opens the door. “Sir, we are closed.” She says, in a even voice. “That’s weird,” he says, as he stealthily flips the sign from closed to open. “The sign says it’s open.” Althea opens her eyes, and she walks towards the door. She flips the sign to close and smiles at Carson, her smile obviously strained. “Now we are closed.” She tells him. He sighs. “But I am hungry. I was really craving your signature dish.” He says. “Then sir, please come back, when we are open.” She smiles sadly, as she walks back to where she sat before. “Besides, you shouldn’t be here. It will only implicate you further.” Carson sighs but instead of going out, he enters, and sits beside Althea. “Don’t worry much about me, I can get out of my own mess. Besides, I have news for you. I sent my friend to stand in court for you.” He says and hands her a business card. “Call him, I’ve already informed him of your case. Weirdly enough, he said, he heard a client of his as well that has the same case.” He shrugs. ‘That will be good, since it means he knows what to do with your case.”

Althea looks at the business card. She laughs. The name was really familiar. She can’t mistake it. Carson looks at her weirdly. “Is his name that funny for you to laugh? If I known earlier, I would have given you the business card earlier so you won’t be able to retort at me.”

Althea smiles. “I’m just familiar with the name. Your friend, is a really good lawyer. Thank you for recommending my case to him.” He shrugs, his lips curling into a flattered smile. “You’re welco—, wait did you just say my friend is a good lawyer? How come you heard about him, and not me?” He says disbelievingly and sighs dispiritedly. Althea chuckles. “Nonetheless, thank you. I really owe you this one.”

Carson shrugs and he stands up. “I accept food for payment.” He says, holding his rumbling stomach. “I’m really famished.” Althea chortles while she stands up. “Hey, don’t laugh at me, I’m really hungry. I’m really looking forward to the café’s specialty.”

Althea chuckles. “I might not be as good as Tio Cio, but I will make sure that this meal will be worth your palate.” And she stands up, and they both head to the kitchen. She stares at the newly sent produce. “Ducks, hmmm, that will do.” She says, as she deftly cuts the head of the duck and removes the innards, without ruining the skin of the duck. She seasons the duck with salt and pepper. Afterwards, she grabs spring onions, garlic, star anise and ginger. She slices them, and stuffs them inside the duck. She then ties the ends with a thin string, just so the duck won’t lose all its juiciness while it cooks. Althea then takes a jar filed with Chinese Five-Spice, and she proceeds to rub it on the skin of the duck, making sure covered everything, even the wings. She grabs a little bench and settles it inside a small baking pan and she puts the duck on the bench. She preheats the oven and when it’s done, she loads the duck inside.

Carson looks at her, extremely amused. At first, he wanted to ask her about Ignacio and Sebastian’s fighting prowess which he seen while he was reviewing the CCTVs. He knew they weren’t simple. He stared at her while she busily takes care of his meal. It was evident in her face that she was in her element. “Could it be that she knows they weren’t simple? Then does this mean, Althea isn’t simple as well?” He wondered. Time pretty much flew by and Carson, was woken up from his daydreaming with the aroma of the duck. Althea chuckles and she lets it set for good solid twenty minutes. “Have I lost you back their mate?” She says jokingly. Carson shakes away his thoughts and he smiles. “A bit, the smell made me drift to Tra-la land. Or was it because I hadn’t had sleep for days and this is the first time I am walking outside my office?” He says. Then he realizes what he said and laughs. “I have a bathroom inside my office. I washed there.” He says, before Althea could retort.

Althea smirks. “I was going to say that my café has a staff room which is fully equipped with lavatories.” Carson stares at the meal Althea has prepared for him. The plates were wonderfully plated, not to mention there wasn’t a single flaw in the physical perception of the dish. The aroma itself was enticing and due to spacing out, he didn’t notice that Althea didn’t just make roasted duck, but she also made a dipping sauce out of some black substance and salad that he doesn’t know the name. When she sets it in front of it, he can’t help but feel impressed, albeit curious. “Wow, so this is the first time I am actually getting to taste your food then!” He pokes at the sauce and the salad. “What are these?” Althea sets the same dishes for herself. “That is a sauce made from black beans, while that, is a tossed hoisin and cucumber salad.” She says, explaining the whole meal to him. He almost salivates. “Even the aroma itself is already filling.” Althea blushes. “Bollocks, you’re simply quite the flatterer.” She says, diverting the subject.

Carson tastes the duck and he marvels at how crispy the skin of the duck is yet it doesn’t dry the meat of the duck. “Did you enroll in a culinary school?” He asks. Althea shakes her head. “I didn’t go to culinary school. I simply picked it up from watching others cook.” Carson stares at her wide-eyed. “A bheil thu a 'caoidh dhomh an-dràsta (Are you kidding me right now)?!” Althea looks at him a bit puzzled with what he said. “That’s simply quite the monstrous talent!” He says flabbergasted. Althea sheepishly eats her meal, flustered with Carson’s compliment. Carson notices it, and he can’t help but smile at her shyness. Despite that, he can’t help but wonder if she knows about Sebastian and Ignacio.

“Althea,” he says, pausing from eating. “I don’t mean to pry, but how did you meet Ignacio and Sebastian?” He asks her. Althea continues to eat, unfazed with his question. “Well, Ignacio is family for as long as I remember. He raised me as his own. Sebastian was also raised by Ignacio.” She says, as she eats. He stares at her happy countenance and he knows that Althea must be telling the truth, after all, how could someone like her lie? She isn’t even that good at hiding emotions. He wants to believe her, but somehow, he is also hesitant. He sighs. “It’s not their abilities that makes me suspicious of them, but rather with those set of skills, I couldn’t find any record of them in any database, other than their birth certificates and identification papers.” He thought, as he observes Althea digging happily to her meal, while making commenting how she can improve the flavor by doing this and that softly. “Say, they’ve got quite the moves. Where did they train?” He asks her. Althea looks at him bewildered. “Well, I don’t know about Uncle Cio, but one thing is for sure! He taught Sebastian everything he knows about fighting!” She says as she finishes her food.

“He wanted to teach me as well, but my body simply can’t withstand it.” She smiles bitterly. “He only taught me the basics, those that won’t make me faint.” Then she stands up and cleans up her plates. She looks at Carson’s plate. “You said, that it tastes good, yet you haven’t even finished your portion.” She says pouting slightly. Carson breaks his line of thought and he eats quickly, as if he just remembered now that he was hungry. A few minutes later he helps Althea with the dishes. “It’s really good, I’ll do the dishes, it’s thanks for cooking me such a mind-blowing food.”

“I insist doing the dishes.” Althea says, as she takes the dishes to the dishwasher. “That meal was for you recommending me to a bloody good lawyer.” Carson gently pushes her away, and he opens the tap. Before he could get the sponge, Althea grabs it and pushes her away. She miscalculates a bit and she ends up pushing him to the ground, with the sponge soaking his white shirt.

Sebastian and Isabella chose a rather bad time to go to the café. Seeing that it was open, and the kitchen lights were on, Sebastian decided to check in on Althea, who could be cooking whole Isabella goes to the lodgings that she manage. And now, he is treated to such a sight. Sebastian walks towards Althea and pulls her away from Carson. He glares at Carson. “I think non-staff are not allowed here.” He says, with a hint of venom. “Can you please leave?” Sebastian doesn’t even disguise his animosity with Carson. Althea tugs Sebastian’s sleeve. “Sebastian, it’s not what you think.” She says timidly.

Sebastian ignores Althea. “Leave. Before I chase you out myself.” Carson sighs and he stands up, dusting his bottom. Althea wanted to ask for his shirt, but she knew Sebastian would flip if she did that. Carson smiles at Althea. “I enjoyed the food, thank you for your hospitality.” And he leaves the café. It was only then Sebastian pays attention to Althea. “I warned you already about him! He is not safe for you to coexist with!” Althea looks down. “He meant no harm Sebastian.” She tells him. Sebastian grabs her shoulders. “Althea, listen to yourself. You sound—” Althea cuts him off. “Look, I did nothing wrong. I simply treated him to a meal and we fought over cleaning the dishes, that’s why we ended on the floor. You make it sound like I did something so incriminating.” Sebastian looks at her seriously. “Really? Fine. Then when the time comes he asks about me and Ignacio, what will you say? Or maybe he already asked! Althea, you’re a brilliant person and I respect you for that. But him? He brings nothing but trouble! Please, just stay away from hi—” Althea slaps Sebastian, her slap resonating in the enormous kitchen.

“If you respect me, then don’t question me. Do you think I will do that, that I will just give away your identities?” She looks at Sebastian hurt. “I’ve lived with you for seven years and I lived with Uncle Cio for as longer time compared to yours. And if you think that you are not important to me, well, news flash. YOU ARE!” She says, her tears falling down. “Carson never brought me trouble. Instead he found ways to get me out of it. I can understand if you have animosity for him, but what hurts me the most is, with seven years of living with me, you still don’t trust me.” Althea smiles sadly. “I’ll go home first Sebastian. There will be no customers today. Take the day off if you wish.”

“You asked for this. You said, I could be less rigid. Now it’s like this.” He says, with a bitter tone. Althea looks at Sebastian. “It’s not the rigidness Sebastian. It’s your heart. You never truly let us in it. That’s what I want to achieve when I told you to drop your formalities.” She says, as she leaves the kitchen and goes to the car and drives continuously, even missing the turn for the mansion.