Chapter 10 A stranger
VICTORIA
“Thank you so much for inviting us, father," Rose said and flashed a smile at me before picking up her purse from the table she dropped it when we went in to have lunch together a few hours ago.
She was the only one who acted differently from the other women. Perhaps because she wasn't from a well-known, wealthy family like the other brats.
"Ah, you're welcome. Why don't you wait a bit so we can talk?” My father responded.
"No, father, we can't wait. I came to welcome Vikky and make her feel at home after her return before rushing off to work. I have a lot to do at work,” Michael quickly muttered and threw me a sharp glance.
My heart clenched at his response, and so did my fist. I tried hard to maintain the smile on my face even though I was burning inside.
Michael was the one strongly against my marriage to that bastard, and I was sure he hadn't forgotten how I disobeyed him and coldly cut him off from my life. Even if the others easily forgive me and take me back, Michael won't.
Father seemed to notice the coldness in the room as his questioning gaze shifted from Michael's blank face to mine.
“Will you…love to talk with your sister?” He asked. I could tell he was trying to fill the void between Michael and me, but knowing how stubborn he was, he would definitely not agree.
And that was what he did.
“No," he stated firmly.
The smile on my father's face fell, and he sighed loudly, then grabbed the glass of water in front of him.
“Don't worry so much, Father. Mother's remembrance ceremony is approaching soon. We'll have a lot of time to talk then," I muttered, trying to make my father feel better.
“Don't get yourself worked up over this. Besides, I'm sure Victoria can relate when it comes to having a busy schedule and missing a family gathering," Michael said.
The forced smile on my face finally dropped, and my heart skipped a beat. The CID building flashed before my eyes, and my fist clenched.
“That's all in the past now, Michael, you should learn to let things go!” Father growled.
He broke into a fit of coughing, and the glass of water dropped from his hand and crashed on the ground.
Panic set in as I pulled closer to him and gripped his hand in horror while patting his back.
Rose rushed off to get water while Michael moved forward, alarm darting across his eyes.
“Calm down, father, calm down!" I yelled in a cracking voice.
Tears were stinging my eyes, and my body was shaking in fear and anger.
I hoped nothing would happen to him. I hoped he wouldn't let me go like my mother did.
Connor and James rushed into the living room and gathered around, trying to calm him down while Stella and Margaret watched from a distance.
Despite how frightened and focused I was, I still couldn't stop my eyes from wandering around and taking in detail of everything in the room.
“Here!" Rose stretched out her hand towards him with a glass of water in it.
James grabbed the glass before I could and made Father drink the water.
After a few gulps, he calmed down, and the cough ceased.
Relief washed over me, and sighs filled the room as we shifted away from him.
“I'm sorry, father," Michael muttered.
Father threw him a glare and stood up, then ascended the stairs to his room without another word to us.
“What triggered him that much?" James asked while flickering his questioning gaze from Michael to me.
“My husband got into a fight with Vikky," Rose responded.
As expected, all eyes shifted to me, and so did the blame.
“It's barely an hour since she arrived, and the house is already filled with chaos. Seems like father was better off without her after all,” Stella chipped, and Margaret nodded, though she said nothing.
“Shut up, Stella!" Connor snapped, even though I could tell that he secretly agreed with his wife.
“Hey, don't mind her. She's crazy," Connor muttered, and Stella scoffed, rolling her eyes.
I took a deep breath and nodded my head in response.
“I will stay a little longer until father is well, then I'll head over to the house," I muttered with my head bent.
I felt embarrassed to look them in the eyes. Those glares and disappointment would only make me feel worse.
“I'm leaving. Call me if anything happens," Michael said.
I didn't know who he was talking to, but I nodded anyway.
“It's high time you start calling out your sister for her nasty behavior. How long will you defend a grown woman?" I heard Stella say to Connor as he trudged up to her.
“I told you to shut up, didn't I?" He groused in return, and her grumbling followed.
My hand clenched around the edge of the couch, and I released a deep breath that I never knew I was holding.
I thought things would get better when I returned, but so far, I've only realized that things would only get worse.
I wasn't wrong when I saw myself as an outcast while at the airport. I was trying so hard to be myself, like Connor requested, but in the end, it ended up being a disaster. I ended up being stranded after all. An unwanted stranger.
I stiffened when a cold hand gripped my shoulder.
“Hey, sis," James called softly, and I raised my head.
He flashed a reassuring smile at me and plopped down into the couch beside me before shifting his grip from my shoulder to my cold hand.
“I know how you feel right now, but you don't need to be upset. We care about you, every one of us does," he muttered.
Definitely not Stella, Michael, or your pathetic fiancée.
I should have said that to him, but I didn't. Instead, I pulled up a fake smile and rubbed his hand.
“You don't have to worry, I don't let the words or actions of people get to me anymore. I have gone through the worst to worry about what anyone thought of me anymore," I replied.
Anger flashed across his eyes, and his grip around my hand tightened.
“That bastard!" He spat, unable to control the anger.
After I left Simon, I had made my brother promise not to intervene or do anything to him. I guessed that was one of the reasons Michael was still furious at me.
If I wanted Simon to pay, I would do it myself, and that was exactly why I returned.
“Are you sure you don't want us to hunt him down?" James asked.
I shook my head.
“I will punish Simon when the time deems right and I will do it myself," I muttered, and he scoffed loudly.
“When the time deems right? That bastard has three children already, his business is booming, and he's living happily off your inheritance, and you are still waiting for the right time?!" James growled, causing Connor to turn around in our direction.
“Leave her alone, James, let her do what she wants!" He snapped and mumbled inaudible words in anger before marching to the doors that led out of the house.
Stella released a mocking chuckle before trudging after her husband.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you,” James muttered after they left.
"Hey, it's not nothing. I'm not upset over my baby brother yelling some sense into me,” I teased, and the guilt in his eyes faded.
“Baby, shouldn't we get going? All your brothers are gone!" Margaret chipped, and James threw her a glare.
“You can leave if you can't stay a bit longer," he snapped.
She parted her lips to retort back at him, but the moment I swung my head in her direction, her lips slammed shut, and the color drained from her face.
She hissed, spun around, and walked out of the living room.
“Her behavior…”
"I put up with Stella all these years. She'll be bearable too,” I replied.
"So, what are you going to do now?’ he asked after the trail of silence between us.
I shrugged.
“I'm not sure yet."
“If you ever need anything, just let me know," he muttered as he squeezed my arms.
“You should get going, your fiancée must be fuming in the car," I replied.
He chuckled and leaned closer, placing a kiss on my forehead before getting up.
“Tell dad I love him," he blurted out as he began to shuffle to the door.
“He knows that already," I snapped, and he giggled loudly.
When he reached the door, he paused and turned around, his eyes dim and filled with suspicion.
“Sis…” he called, and I raised my brows in question.
“You didn't come back because father asked you to, right?" He asked, and my brows furrowed.
“What?"
“You came back for something else, didn't you?" He asked.
My throat knotted, and I shuddered slightly at the question.
He left the door handle and trudged closer, eyes questioning.
“Did you come back to hunt the killer?" He asked, and my head jerked up in confusion.
Killer? What killer was he talking about?