6 Chapter six
Gently, her eyes twitched. She turned her head halfway to her right and then returned it. They opened up and now rolled about in their sockets in a strange manner while she remained lying still on the bed.
"It was a dream." She exhaled thankfully. "A nightmare." She added, quickly sitting up while she took her feet down from the bed. She heard careful knocks on her door.
Her head was immediately adjusted towards it making her uneasy.
" Come in." She ordered tiredly.
It was Mr Peterson. He came off ready for work in his fine black suit. He had his hair neatly combed to the side of his head and as he shut the door behind him, he turned to her.
"Hey," He said, "How are you holding up?" He asked her.
"I'm fine.." She dragged her words. She seemed surprised by his show of care.
"Okay," He said, "I wanted to apologise about yesterday." He told her.
"Yesterday?" She asked, puzzled.
"Yeah, the– you–" he sighed. "Nevermind." He told her. "There is so much to say but all in due time." He said,
Rescinding his eyes from her, he turned back towards the door.
"I was wondering.." She let out, Her words had caught his attention and he promptly took his eyes back to her. "If you could maybe..let me..make use of one of the cars." She timidly told him.
"What do you mean? Everything here is yours. You do not need permission." He replied. He could see her eyes show uncertainty and it spurred him to walk over to where she was. He sat beside her. It was obvious he didn't do it often.
"Listen, I understand sometimes we can be a little hard but it is only because it is necessary but you are no prisoner. You are our daughter and we love you." He told her.
She gave him a doubting look.
He exhaled softly.
"I know you think she hates you. She doesn't. She is just mostly more concerned about maintaining balance." He told her.
"Like Thanos?" She gagged. Mr Peterson tried hard not to laugh.
"Just give her time." He told her. "She needs a lot of it." He added. "And besides, where are you off to?" He asked her.
"Uhm..to see a friend." She answered nervously.
"Liz?" He inquired.
"No. Not Liz." She answered.
"Hmm. I see." He said, getting up on his feet. "Take a guard then." He told her as he turned toward the door.
She sprung up at once behind him.
"But you just said I wasn't a prisoner." She voiced, "I just want some time away from everything only for a while. I promise to be back before dinner. My wedding is around the corner, and I have so much to unburden, I need this. Trust me, I'd be fine without being watched or followed. I won't mess this up. Please.Dad.." She said,
His eyes shimmered.
"You–you haven't called me that in years." He confessed to her.
"Oh.." She voiced, nervously. The next thing she felt was a pull. He had locked her in a tight embrace and she could tell he shed a tear.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He said, freeing her from his grip with a smile. For her, it was weird yet she smiled back. "You can do as you want. I trust you." He told her excitedly.
She watched him leave her room like a teenage boy who had had his first kiss. Once the door shut, she began celebrating. She hurried to secure it with the bolt before she continued.
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As the door to the garage slowly wind up, her eyes flickered at the fleet of cars just waiting for her to make a pick. A guard stood behind her. She seemed to have forgotten but now that she recalled, she got into action.
"The red Ferrari. Get the keys." She ordered as she walked majestically toward the car in her fine heels. Her short body-fit black leather gown giving prominence to her figure, made the guard find it hard not to stare. She was gorgeous. Her hair swayed from side to side and so did her hips.
"What exactly are you waiting for?" She asked him once she had gotten to the car. He regained himself and hurried to get the key from the box.
She loved the sound of the engine once she hit the road. It was obvious she loved speed. She kept driving. Flashes of the dream she had the other night came crowding her mind and it was quite disturbing. She somehow pushed it all behind her head and turned on the stereo. The voice of Nicki Minaj could be heard rapping hard lyrics and it seemed to be just her song. She began singing along.
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A door opened up from the inside and a woman could be seen wearing a puzzled look on her face. Her blonde hair was held together behind her head and her big eyes remained in shock.
"Tara?" She wasn't sure.
"Hi, mom," Tara said with a bright smile.
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"How long has it been?" The woman asked.
"A month," Tara replied. They now sat at the table in the kitchen. She had been offered a glass of juice.
"You are so.. Different." The woman said,
"Yeah. New clothes." Tara responded.
"I'm glad to see you like this but it does break my heart to know that I couldn't be the reason you get to be this beautiful." She told her.
"Oh, ma. You did your best raising me all on your own. I am grateful for all of it. I always will be." Tara told her as she held the woman's hand tenderly on the table.
"You were a handful." The woman said with a smile. They both laughed briefly. "You finally got a job?" She asked.
"Oh, yeah, yes I did." Tara seemed to have almost choked on the juice she just sipped.
"That's wonderful. Which is it?" The woman asked.
"I work as a maid for a prestigious family but not a maid-maid, I'm treated like their own daughter. They are good people. Oh, and they pay me well. " She said, rushing her words.
"Well, that's a fine start." The woman stated.
"Yeah, but there is something"
Tara said, her mood seemed to have changed all of a sudden.
"What is it?". The woman was worried.
"Ma.. how possible is it for two strangers to be so identical ?"
Tara inquired.
"Why do you ask that?" The woman looked at her curiously.
"It's just– these people I am living with, they have a daughter just about my age and the other day I was cleaning her room, I stumbled on a photo album and right from when she was just a child up till she became a woman like me, there has been a consistent striking resemblance," Tara said emphatically.
The woman leaned her back on the chair she sat on.
"Up until now?" She asked.
"Up until now," Tara confirmed. "How possible is that?" She asked.
"These people you work for. What are their names?" The woman asked.
"The Petersons," Tara responded.
"I see. Well, I don't know, it could be a coincidence. Know what they say, everyone came in twos." She said,
"Yeah, I guess you are right," Tara said,
"Is that all that troubles you?" The woman asked her.
"I'm not troubled," Tara said, getting up on her feet. She stood looking out the open kitchen window with her arms folded. "Lately, I feel strange."
She said,
"How strange?" The woman asked from her seat.
"I can't explain it but last night something happened–A dream I think. I was right in my room. I heard a knock on my door, it was Mr Peterson. Mrs Peterson had informed me earlier there was somewhere we had to be and so I was getting ready before the knock came and while I intended to reach for the knob, they both forced in. It seemed like they had been arguing or something and in confusion I watched them. Mrs Peterson was about to blow some ash on my face when Mr Peterson turned into some sort of monster and tried protecting me from her. That was all I could remember." Tara narrated and then turned back towards the woman who by now was upstanding with a strange look on her face.
"Did you just say he transformed into some sort of a monster?" She inquired.
"Yes. Why?" Tara asked.
"Their daughter, does she live with them?" The woman asked again.
"She hasn't been around," Tara replied.
"Did you do something improper? Did you see something you weren't supposed to see or be where you weren't supposed to be?" The woman asked creepily.
"What– no ma! you're freaking me out ". Tara said,
The woman took a few steps away from where she stood and now Tara had become even more confused.
" It wasn't a dream. " The woman said,
"What?" Tara voiced.
"In the end, destiny prevails."
The woman stated as she turned back toward her.
