Something Special

'Then you shall take her with you to Oaktree valley.' Donna suggested.

'We shall talk outside, aunty.' Gina said and walked away.

She was sure that Ansley was going to follow after her and he did.

'Wait, we have gone far enough from your family.' Ansley said as soon as he got outside the gate of Benedict's house.

'Whatever is this game you seek to play?' Gina demanded.

'I know of the shed.' Ansley did not stop smiling.

It was no news to Gina but hearing it again clothed her skin with cold creeps. She looked at the sky and saw that rain clouds had gathered.

'Ansley, what is it you want from me?' Gina questioned.

Ansley looked at the woman before him with lust in his eyes. He had no interest in marrying Gina, for to him, she was no longer fresh.

'You must come to my ranch in four dawns. I have prepared something special for you. It would also be a shame for your uncle to find out about the shed.' He reached out and brushed his hands across her face.

'Whatever is this special thing you have prepared?' Gina moved away from him.

'When you set your eyes on it, you shall show gratitude to me.'

And with those words, Ansley left. Gina however could not stop thinking about what he had said. She knew the best way to keep everything out of her mind was to get busy.

Gina went back into the house and went straight to her uncle's study. She would find him there because Benedict spent most of his day looking through papers in his study.

She knocked lightly on the door that was wide open just to get his attention.

'Gina?' Benedict looked up from the paper he was reading.

'I have come to ask a favor.' Gina walked into the study.

'If this concerns Ansley, you have my blessing.' Benedict smiled and went back to reading the paper in his hands.

'No uncle, this matter is not about Ansley.' Gina walked the length of the room until she got to her uncle's table.

'Where is the young man?' Benedict queried.

'He has gone on his way. He asked for my presence at his ranch.' Gina said.

She looked around the study again and the number of books there fascinated her even more than they did the day before.

'You shall go to see him then. Is that what you need my favor about?' Benedict looked up at his niece.

'No, uncle. I have come to ask you to let me work in the tavern. I must get busy because I shall go mad sitting by myself all day.' Gina looked at her uncle and for the first time, she noticed the small scar on his left temple.

'I gave your father my word. You shall not work for me until two months. You can get busy with Missy. You both can take walks.' He looked at the paper in his hand again.

Gina knew it was his sign that their talk was over, so she left his study.

She knew that if she wanted her uncle to grant her the favor she requested, then she had to work for it. She had to convince Missy to ask for her work at the tavern back.

Gina walked to Missy's room and without stopping to knock, she went in and caught her cousin drawing at her dressing table.

At first, Gina was not disturbed by Missy's sudden movement. Gina was more concerned with the size of Missy's room.

When Gina first moved into the house with her uncle's family, she thought no room could be more significant than the one she was given but that was not the case.

Missy's room was larger than hers. The hangers had better embroidery on them, and her bed was even bigger.

It did not look real to Gina, but there it was in front of her eyes. Even though Gina's father, Edmund was richer than Missy's father, he did not spend his money lavishly.

Edmund believed that a small life was better than a large one. That was the reason he did not pay people to do anything for Gina, instead, he taught her everything she needed to know to survive.

'Whatever is it that you have hidden from me?' Gina questioned her cousin.

Those were not the words Gina wanted to say. She wanted to tell her cousin how striking she thought her room was, but Gina was also prideful.

She did not want Missy to conceive the idea that she did not know what a significant life was like.

'It is nothing.' Missy looked at the paper she had been drawing on and smiled.

'Tell me what it is.' Gina demanded as she walked to where Missy sat.

There was no use for Missy to hide her actions from Gina. After all, there was nothing Gina could do to her for drawing.

'Drawing. My father must not hear of it so do not breathe a word of this.' Missy stood up and straightened the paper on her table.

Gina looked at the drawing and saw Richard's face, but she brushed the thought aside because there was nothing, she did not see Richard's face in. But most importantly, Missy had never met Richard.

'Whoever is that?' Gina asked.

'You must give me your word first. You must not speak of this to anyone. Even my little brother, Marlow must not hear of it.' Missy looked into her cousin's eyes.

'You have my word. Now, you must tell me, who is it that you have drawn so beautifully?' Gina did not lie when she called Missy's drawing beautiful.

Missy had trained herself to draw like a true artist and even though her father never appreciated it, her mother was always there to encourage her.

'It is the stranger who I met at the bar. I reckon I mentioned him during nonmete. I want to remember him and so I decided to draw him.' Missy smiled.

'I remember him. The one who asked you to serve him Mead.' Gina said with disgust.

'Whatever is it? Do you not like the drawing?' Missy asked as she took the paper away from the table.

'The drawing is perfection. It almost looks like someone I know but this fellow hates Mead.' Gina tapped the table.

'I have tasted it. I could not keep it down, I too join that fellow in his hatred for Mead.' Missy laughed.

Gina knew it was not going to be too much work for her to convince her cousin to ask for her work at the tavern back. Missy enjoyed working there.

'I have not yet had a taste of it, but we can go to the bar later and have some.' Gina said.

Missy knew it was a bad idea to drink from the bar. Her father was against it, but she was ready to do anything to keep Gina close.