10. I miss you...

Rory spent some time with her mother at the pavilion after Derek left them. She was able to hug, cry and kiss her mother all she wanted. Hell, she missed her like crazy. They had never been apart for as long as she could remember. Okay she went to a different city when she was in high school. But her mother used to pass by almost five times a week, so it was like they were staying together. They walked through the garden through the numerous flowers; daisies, roses, daffodils, crocuses, crysanthemums, carnations, there were a few she wasn't really familiar with. But her favourite flowers were missing, tulips and baby breaths.

The field was very vast, and the difference in colour variation made the place look so beautiful... Just like that dangerous man, if only he would smile... She wondered how a wicked person had a taste of such beauty.

Her eyes widened at where her thoughts were drifting to...

Get a hold of yourself, Rory, she scolded herself inwardly.

And, wasn't this field too large? It looked like it was for commercial use. They could benefit a lot from it. Or maybe she should ask Esther about it...

She talked with her mother about her stay in the mansion, leaving some details untold. She couldn't tell her she was slapped and dragged on the floor. She knew Charlotte would become angry, and if she did, there was nothing she would be able to do. So it was better left unsaid. Charlotte mostly reassured her and told her she would get her out of this place soon. "I will work hard and pay all the debt, and we'll go back to our lives." She had said. Rory could only smile and nod.

After walking for a while in the flower garden, they made their way back to the main hall of the mansion. Charlotte needed to go back. Rory saw Esther arranging the table for lunch. She knew she wouldn't eat with them on that table, but she wanted to help, at least, because she was nice to her. But she was surprised when Esther told her she would be having lunch with them. With her mother.

And she was mostly scared to share the same table with that dangerous man. How would she be able to eat? She may possibly choke on her food. But then, did she have a choice? She silently made herself comfortable, her mother on her side, as Esther made everything ready. She excused herself to call the rest when a familiar voice echoed.

"I already called them."

Rory nearly choked on air. He was joining them!! Oh no, how...

"I'm sorry, but I won't be able to join you guys for lunch. I have to go now. I had up to lunch time to report back to work." Charlotte said apologetically, looking at the boss, and the shifting her gaze to Rory, who had a "what the hell, mom!" look on her face. Charlotte gave her an assuring smile and looked back at the boss for a response. But Derek just made a humming sound and walked to his seat and sat down, without sparing her a glance.

How rude, Rory thought. But who would be nice and polite to an enemy?

Rory went ahead and walked her mother to the entrance. After some rounds of hugging and kissing, Charlotte left in the car at the yard. Charlotte told Rory she had insisted on getting a taxi when she was coming there, but Derek's men had told her it was difficult to get a taxi at an area like that.

Rory walked back to the table, her eyes down all the while, and sat down. She looked on the table. The meals looked appetizing. There was rice, stir-fried vegetables, beef sauce, and baked beans. The smell was amazing, just as Esther's meals tasted, amazing.

She took a plate and started serving herself after waiting for some few minutes and nobody was serving her. Her hands were slightly trembling, but she bit her inner cheeks to keep herself sturdy.

'You can't spill the food,' she warned herself and she held unto her plate tightly and scooped a bit of the rice and beef sauce and began eating.

She felt someone's gaze on her, and she wondered if it was Esther or Derek, but she was too scared to check. It was just the three of them on the table. She had thought the rest would join them. She was so uncomfortable as she ate. After a long while, Derek got up, and for the first time, Rory lifted her gaze towards him and their eyes met.

Her fingers around the cutlery tightened and she quickly looked away. Those metallic grey eyes of his were scary.

Derek didn't mean to look her way, but guess his eyes had a mind on their own, because they travelled to her face when he got up, and his eyes met those striking blue-green eyes. Clearing his throat and averting his gaze and walked away without a word, not liking what that face did to him each time.

He had surprised himself when he ended up at the dining table when he had already told Esther he wasn't hungry. When Esther left, he decided to move out for fresh air. He strode down the stairs from his from, and made his way to his room at the backyard, but again stopped midway, remembering something. He turned to go to the backyard, to the garden, when he saw some of his comrades walking towards the underground.

"Where are you going?" Derek asked.

"Boss, we want to arrange and clean the weapons. We couldn't do it the last time." One of them said, with his head bowed to avoid his gaze. He had assigned them to clean the weapon room every week, and they did it in shifts. They didn't check so they didn't know they were on duty to clean the weapon room. Now they were afraid of his wrath...

"It's lunch time. You can do it after that." He said as he strolled away from them towards the main entrance. "And called the rest."

He had almost stepped into the hall when he saw Rory and her mother making their way inside. He could see how much better she looked. The first time he had seen her not scared. She looked radiant and had a faint smile on her beautiful round face. She seemed not to be in pain now, as she was walking normally now, not limping and not grimacing. Her long blonde hair was left cascading in waves from a small bun at the top. Her blue-green eyes were now very bright, just that there were slightly visible dark circles. Probably she wasn't having a good sleep at night. Her lips, pink and soft looking, not as chabbed as it was at first...

Wait...

What was wrong with him? Why was he ogling now and seemed to be paying attention to every detail of her body? Shaking his head, his stomach groaned from hunger, and he decided to join them for lunch. He had told the others to join, but they would actually eat at a different table. most of the time, he ate alone, or with Esther sometimes. He read Esther's lips when she was going to call the rest of them when he spoke, letting her know he had called them already.

He couldn't help but glance at her from time to time. Sometimes his eyes lingered a bit longer, and he would see her shifting uncomfortably. She had felt his gaze, how embarrassing. He then told himself not to look at her again, then he hurried with his food to get away from her. But those damn eyes of his had to travel back to that mesmerising face of hers again when he stood to go, and unfortunately, or was it fortunately, their eyes met.

For the first time in his life, his heart skipped a beat. What was that? She had quickly looked away, and he cursed inwardly for getting caught staring at her. He should just leave. So without a word, he strode out of the mansion.

Going to the backyard, into the garden, he ambled with his hands crossed behind him, he stopped at a point. It was an empty bed among the vast flowers. No one would actually notice it afar off because of all those flowers. He looked down at the bed and signed. He remembered there were tulips here.

Esther had made them remove all the tulips from the garden. She noticed those flowers were part of the triggering factors of Derek's compulsion. And Derek did not complain, in fact, he felt relieved, because they were the only flowers he used to see in their home when he was with his parents and sisters. Seeing those flowers each day brought nothing but pain in his heart.

He stared at the empty bed for a long while...

"I miss you..." He breathed.