CHAPTER 33: My Beloved Sister

Henry's POV.

I woke up to a series of knocks on the door of our bedroom, and my temper flared when I saw that it was only one in the morning. I was sure to hold whoever had the nerve to wake me accountable.

I tried to cautiously get out of bed to avoid Ellaine from waking up, but because of the continuous knocks, Ellaine eventually woke up.

"Who is it?" I heard Ellaine ask, her voice still sounding sleepy.

"I don't know yet, but this better be important," I answered.

I quickly put on my robe and angrily walked towards the door, where the knocking still continued.

"What the..." I suddenly stopped talking when I finally opened the door and saw that it was Atilla who was knocking.

She appeared helpless and desperate, one of the maids was stopping her from knocking again.

"Don't you know what time it is?" I asked him in anger, but she didn't even flinch, just staring straight at me.

When I didn't hear a response from her, I decided to make her wait in my study room, and when she left, I went inside to get dressed.

"Who was that?" I heard Ellaine ask as she leaned against the bed's headrest.

"It's Atilla, she appeared to be distressed about something," I answered as I got dressed in front of my wife.

I didn't feel embarrassed dressing in front of her, at my age, I maintained my physique and no young men would dare to tell me that I neglected my body.

"Would you like me to come with you?" She asked.

"That's fine, just wait for me," I said before leaving her for a bit, after that, I exited our room and went straight to the study room, where I found Atilla looking at a picture of our late father hanging on the wall.

I remained quiet as I watched my sister's back, remembering the day I first saw her. I was thirty-seven years old at the time, while she was only twelve. I had just returned from a business trip and was surprised to find my father facing a scruffy-looking child. I thought it might be another of Dad's schemes since he was planning to run for senator.

To be honest, I didn't know why he needed to run for senator, especially since he was already busy with our family's numerous businesses.

"What nonsense is this? Why are you insisting that I am your father?!" Dad angrily shouted at the frightened little girl, who had retreated at the sudden upsurge in his voice.

I quickly entered and saw my father's angry face as he glanced back and forth between the paper in his hand and the little girl in front of him.

"Dad, what's going on here?" I asked seriously.

I noticed the surprise on his face when he saw me. A few moments passed before he handed me the piece of paper he was holding.

I suddenly gritted my teeth when I read what he was angry about. It was a letter from our former housemaid, whom Dad had taken advantage of twelve years ago.

"What's your name?" I asked in a cold tone, which seemed to scare the poor child even more, so I tried to calm myself.

"Shei... Sheila Mae, sir," she replied, trembling.

"Okay, Sheila, where is your mother, and why are you the only one facing us?" I asked curiously when I noticed she was alone.

"My mother passed away last Tuesday, sir," she replied sadly.

I couldn't help feeling sympathy for my younger sister, but I tried to suppress that feeling.

"Get rid of that child. She's not my daughter, and I won't let that child ruin my chances in politics!" Dad strongly objected.

"Did you really get a good look at her? I can see a resemblance between you two, but to put your minds at ease, let's have her DNA tested," I said.

Compared to my appearance, I look more like my mom than my dad. And based on the looks of the little girl, I can say that she resembles our father more.

Although I strongly suspected that she was my sibling, we still had her DNA tested, and as expected, she turned out to be my father's child with our former maid.

I faced the little girl again in our study room. Dad wanted to send her to an orphanage, but I disagreed because she's still a Cervantes. However, to assure Dad, who really wants to run for a position, a decision was made.

"We already accept you in this family, Sheila, but you cannot claim that you're Daddy's daughter. Do we understand each other?" I told her seriously.

She just nodded, and as I wanted, we enrolled Sheila Mae in a private school, and Dad pretended she was his scholar.

No one knows that she's dad's child except me, Sheila, and dad.

Days turned to months with Sheila staying in our house, and although I tried to hold myself back, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her as Dad was always hard on her. As time passed, I saw how she excelled in her studies, which I admired, so one day, I asked her how she was doing.

"How's school? Are you having a hard time with your lessons?" I asked her seriously without looking at her directly.

"I'm doing well, thank you for sending me to school," she replied, feeling embarrassed.

"That's nothing, you're still a Cervantes, and I won't let you grow up ignorant," I said before letting her go, but before she completely left, I called her name.

"Sheila, do you have a friend in school?" I asked.

"I already have a close friend, and because of him, I think I can handle everything," she said before finally leaving.

Months passed smoothly as planned, and Sheila continued studying without anyone knowing her connection to my family.

Dad ran for senator, and I was in a meeting when my secretary interrupted me, which I specifically asked her not to do.

"Didn't I tell you, Ms. Perez, not to interrupt me when I'm in a meeting?" I whispered as she approached me.

"Sorry, sir, but there's an emergency. Your dad's scholar got hit by a car," she explained, and my heart filled with fear for my sister. I felt love for her, which I tried to suppress.

I immediately canceled all my meetings for the day and called my dad, who was on a campaign trip in Pampanga.

"Hello, Dad. Sheila got hit by a car," I said worriedly after he answered my call.

"You called me just because of that little girl?!" He angrily said before ending the call. I couldn't believe it as I stared at my cellphone in my hand.

I immediately had my driver take me to the hospital where Sheila was brought. My heart felt like it was going to explode from extreme worry. No matter how hard I tried to suppress my love for Sheila, it would always surface, especially when I saw how hard she worked.

When I arrived, I found out she was in the operating room, and she needed another operation. So, I decided to take her to the US for the procedure. When she woke up, I also decided to change her name to Atilla Salvador. However, my dad still did not allow her to use the old man's surname.

"So, what do you need, Atilla, that can't wait until tomorrow?" I asked, but I was surprised when he suddenly knelt in front of me.

"What are you doing, Atilla? Get up!" I scolded her, but she remained kneeling.

"Please, Henry, nullify my engagement with Ram, but please help them," he pleaded.

My heart melted seeing the sadness in Atilla's eyes. I couldn't understand why she loved a man like Ram Santiago so much.

"Why are you doing this, Atilla? Why are you lowering yourself because of a man like Ram Santiago?" I asked, confused.

"Because he was my strength to get through everything that happened in my life. He was the young boy who became my closest friend. I only felt love and importance with him," she sadly replied.

I couldn't believe that Ram was the boy she saved and who became the reason she had an accident. Now, I understood why Atilla loved Ram so much. He was the only one who valued my sister during those times when she was alone when my dad didn't accept her, and when I disregarded her.

I couldn't do anything but watch as Atilla remained kneeling.

I took a deep breath before speaking again. "I promise, Atilla, that I will cancel your engagement with Ram, but I will still help that person," I promised. She finally stood up and, after thanking me, said goodbye.

I immediately grabbed my phone, and my secretary answered after a few rings.

"Samantha, find out all of the Santiagos' debts, and I want to pay them all," I said before ending the call.

For my dearest sibling, I would do anything to help Ram Santiago, even though I didn't think he deserved my beloved sister.