White orchids

"Open the gate!"

The guard yells as soon as he witnesses my car entering. So, they have already memorized it. I park the car right in front of the main entrance of the mansion. "Good afternoon, Miss Verena" A bow from the clan member gets into my sight. "May I help you parking the car at parking lot?"

He asks. But his eyes are focusing on the ground. Why does everyone avoid eye contact with me? "Sure. Thank you" Tossing the car key at the man, I walk past him. Even if he does something to my car, I can just simply come back to murder him. There is nothing to panic over his help.

I head inside the mansion. "Good afternoon" The men greet. "Mhm" I wave my hand as response. The whole attention is on the kid only. I can't bother to hold a conversation with others at the moment. "Ma'am" On the way to upstairs, I encounter Ken. "Hey" I reply shortly.

Ready to walk past him.

However, his query ceases my steps; "Do you know the way of Leo's room?" I freeze. Staring up into his eyes in silence. Is he trying to catch me off guard? "I have already asked someone" My answer earns a slight nod from the man. "May I ask who instructed you to be here, Ma'am?"

Ken, once again, questions. And my jaw clenches. He knows it goddamn well. "I did not have time to ask his name. But he did tell me this is the way to my sister's room" Instead of carrying the lie, I admit the truth. Right. Though Leo is my goal, I have something to take here.

It is hidden in my room.

That's why I am standing right on the stairs, peering up at Ken. "Oh. So, you are aware this is the way to Ma'am Violet's room" He gasps. What? Is that the response? His eyes are doubting me if I am accurate. The way his deep gaze stares through my eyes screams suspicion he holds.

"Excuse me"

Whatever. He can doubt all as he pleases. I am going to continue my attention my current goal. Strangely enough, Ken does not prevent me. He allows me to go on. Maybe he has given up on finding the suspicious hints. Once I reach across the room, I inhale deeply. "Fuck"

A murmur escapes between my lips when I realize about the lock of my room. There is a passcode required to pass through. Although, I am aware of it, I can't type them out. Ken purposely let me go. He is literally testing me. I knew something was off when he's silent.

How come I forgot about the password?! "Let's calm down" Trying to soothe the chaotic mind, I whisper to myself. Panicking is not a good option. What if someone witnesses me? I glance around the surrounding. Not even a shadow can be seen beneath the light. No one is here.

Great.

My eyes peer down at the small lock screen at the door. 281180. The numbers I am oddly obsessed with after that night. But my whole body stops in an instant when the reflection of Ken appears at the back. He does not even try to hide. Just staring under silence from afar.

So, this is how he tries to set me up. I see. I have to play dumb before he catches me. "Shit! That idiotic Violet has changed the password already! I thought it would be our birthday!" Furrowing my brows, I curse out loud as if I am sweating to pass through the door to my own room.

I hope my acting skills can fool all.

"Fuck. It seems I have to go query that man named Ken" A sigh escapes between my lips to express the so-called annoyance. My steps direct back to the stairs, and it is the moment Ken walks out of the shadow from behind. "Are you perhaps searching for me, Ma'am?"

He voices out loud. And I turn around. "Oh. I thought you went to the other way" My right brow raises. Pointing at the end of stairs. To my query, he remains serene. "I dropped something around here. That's why I had to come up with the elevator really quick" Ken explains.

When did he learn to lie beneath that cold face? My lips form into a smile of amusement. I like how he causally makes false statements. "I see. Can you help me with the passcode of the room? Violet must have changed it before I even knew it" If he can lie, why couldn't I as well?

"I fear I can only lead the way inside. Revealing the passcode is forbidden" Ken proclaims. Oh. He still keeps my order in his mind. The only other person than me who knows my room's password is Ken. I had to threaten him to seal his lips about the passcode when he discovered.

I am so glad he knows the rules.

"I bet your dear Ma'am would be gratified to hear you still gatekeeping it" I scoff. It is when Ken's lips curve up into a slight beam. What a rare sight. He can easily smile now even. "Please follow me" He turns around. Heading back to the room. "Could you please look away for second?"

He requests. And I peer at the stairs. It is not like I have no damn idea about the passcode. I am aware. But I have to pretend to be clueless here. For a few seconds, I can feel the stare of Ken upon me. He really is making sure I am not glancing once. "Done" He voices in the end.

The door then unlocks.

"I will be waiting outside. You can take your time as you wish, Ma'am" He assures. "All right" I nod. Walking into the room. Thankfully, Ken gives me privacy. Closing the door behind. Finally, I am alone. The light turns on once I snap my fingers. It recognizes my identity so well.

With a smile, my eyes explore the room. Only to quiet down in next second. The beam drops. The bed, it is full with white orchids. They are fresh orchids also. What the. The one feasible conclusion is Ken. He is the one who knows the passcode of the room. He did this.

Wait. Does that mean he has been placing my favorite orchids on the bed as the respect or some? This is the most unexpected incident to encounter. "Bizarre" A mutter comes up from me in perplexity. As my attention sinks into the orchids, my brain alerts me to gain awareness.

No. I can't lose my focus. The main goal is simple. The guns. Today event at the office has taught me to keep some weapons on me. I prefer the gun over daggers in view of the fact that I was born in the field where guns are easy to get with one snap. "The numbers..." I furrow brows.

Going through the drawers in hurry.

And there is it.

The little notebook I wrote all the numbers down as the information to contact when I need them in the future. Now, they have come to be useful. To be certain no one realizes what I have taken, I lock the drawer with the spare key I made for emergency in the other drawers.

Before leaving the room, I take a glance at the bed once again. Then I leave. "Did you see what you were looking for, Ma'am?" Ken queries and locks the door once again after I step out. "Yes. She has notified me where she kept that" I respond. Lying through my teeth causally.

"I see. Then would you like to head to Leo? I can show the way" He asks. Though his eyes are suspecting me, he continues to help me. "Sure. I am not in mood to get lost in this huge mansion also" I allow him to assist me. As result, he ends up leading the way to the kid from the front.

"He does not speak a lot for your information. It is hard to hold a conversation with him, especially when he is focusing in the mythology about demons" To break the silence, Ken informs me about the kid while I quiet down. The kid is interesting indeed. He isn't mute.

But he rarely voices.

That alone makes my curiosity grows. He seems to be attentive in mythology about demons based on Ken's statement. Hm. I guess I have discovered a way to approach him. Maybe it is not that hard to achieve his trust and affection. After all, he is a four years common kid like others.

"This is Leo's room" As soon as we reach in front of the room, Ken notifies. His hand raises as his eyes peer down. "It is lunch time for him. There will be a maid passing the meal to him in a few minutes. I hope you can use the lunch as excuse and step near him" Ken instructs calmly.

And my brows wrinkle.

He is helping willingly?