THE FORGOTTEN HEIRESS

It was almost time for dinner when Kathleen eventually got back home, and she pretended not to notice the strange looks everyone had on their faces as they stared at her. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

"Mom, we called you several times but you didn’t pick any of our calls." Elvis, who hardly complains about her lateness, finally spoke.

"I’m sorry sweetheart," she ruffled Elvis’s hair as she stared at his face which reminded her so much of that asshole.

The only difference was the innocence in the eyes peering at her from his adorable face compared to the cruel jealousy and bitterness she had seen in the latter’s eyes.

"I was in the middle of something when your call came and I forgot to call back. But I’m here now. Did you miss mummy?"

"Were you with our..." a stern look from Elvis made Eleanor swallow the rest of her words.

"Were you with our Aunt Cheryl? Elvis rephrased, "... because she did not also come to the house today."

"Yes, I was. We had such a hectic day today. As a matter of fact I am so tired that I doubt if I will be able to have dinner with you tonight. I can hardly sit."

Kathleen’s hanging heart relaxed. For a moment she thought they had seen the news which was everywhere and were about to ask if she had been with Shawn.

"Mom, you can’t skip dinner," Eleanor rebuked, her little mouth pressed together in a stern pout. "You always told us that every meal is important and shouldn’t be missed."

Kathleen didn’t know how to face her intelligent children. Why does it look as if those laws she made were now mocking at her.

Mrs Carr was able to observe that something serious would have happened to make her boss too tired to eat, so she suggested,

"Madam, you can go and freshen up, I will serve you dinner in your room later."

"And you must eat it, mom," Eleanor added, still in a reproachful voice.

"Why do I feel like I’m the child here and both of you, my parents?"

"That’s because you are behaving like a child, mom," Elvis answered sternly. "We will personally come to your room to make sure you eat. So go and freshen up."

Kathleen shook her head helplessly as she rose from her seat while saying, "I guess I don’t have a choice in the matter than to obey my three bosses."

"You don’t, mom, and don’t lock your door," Eleanor warned.

Kathleen was speechless. That was exactly what she intended to do as soon as she gets to her room.

"Yes boss." She gave Eleanor a playful glare before escaping to her room.

The events of the day had drained her both physically and emotionally. So when she had said she couldn’t sit for dinner, she wasn’t lying.

She just wanted to shut herself up in the confines of her room and probably think herself to sleep after a quick washing up.

Her home has always been a sanctuary where she would find solace and the brief banter with her family had given her that peace, even the soreness in her heart, arising from her eventful day, has been relieved to a great extent.

She had a grateful smile on her face as she stepped into her bathroom.

Although she had done a good job of fixing up her appearance to look presentable enough, when she undressed to take her bath, some pieces of glass still dropped from her clothes.

Despite her tiredness, she forced herself to carefully sweep them away before anyone would get suspicious or even step on them. Luckily, she had undressed in the bathroom, so she was able to easily sweep them from her tiled floor.

She filled the bathtub with warm water, adding a few drops of her favorite essential oils.

The soothing sound of running water and the comforting fragrance started to calm her frazzled nerves even before she stepped into the warm bath.

Sinking into the water with a deep sigh, the tension in her muscles gradually eased, and her eyes drooped as the warmth lulled her into a state of full relaxation.

As soon as Mrs Carr left to get their mother’s dinner, Eleanor whispered to Elvis, "Do you think Mom has been with daddy all day?"

"He is not your father," rebuked Elvis.

He didn’t know how his sister could always come up with wild thoughts all the time. Even before confirming the identity of that man she had already added him to their family.

"But he looks so much like you," Eleanor said with a pout.

"We are yet to confirm who he is. Until then you can’t call any random man your father," Elvis ordered like an elder giving a younger one instructions.

"Besides, anyone can look like someone else, that doesn’t mean they are related."

"When are you going to start your investigation?" Eleanor was already getting impatient, the weight of keeping such a huge secret was almost crushing her and she didn’t think she would be able to endure for long.

"It’s only been a few hours, why are you so impatient," Elvis scolded. "After we are done attending to Mom, we will meet to make our plans."

"Ok, I will wait," Eleanor reluctantly agreed to Elvis’s relief only for her to complain the next minute,

"Why is Mrs Carr taking so long to get mom’s dinner ready? Let’s go and hurry her up."

Elvis was speechless. ’Who said just now that she will wait?’

As if on cue, Mrs Carr emerged from the kitchen with a tray loaded with their mothers favorite dishes.

Eleanor sprang up at once and followed Mrs Carr as she headed to Kathleen’s room. A composed Elvis, who wasn’t as energetic as Eleanor, joined them on the staircase.

After getting the signal from Mrs Carr Eleanor gently knocked on the door and they all entered after three knocks.

They were surprised to see an empty room.