CHAPTER TWENTY

Smith woke up to a ray of light pouring in from his window. He rolled to his side trying to shield the light with his back, as his eyes went to his watch stand. It was 11:15am. His body had refused to be cheated this time of the few hours sleep he had missed during the night. 

"Wakie wakie!" 

Smith wondered who would dare barge into his bedroom in that manner. The voice had come from the window area. He repositioned his body again, this time facing the window. Seated on an armchair, with legs crossed casually and a cup of steaming coffee in hand is none other than, his sister, Juliet. She corked her head to one side, as she regarded her brother with keen interest. She wore an angry look on, her index finger making a circular motion on the coffee cup.

"What are you doing here"? Smart questioned.

"Hello to you too big brother", Juliet replied, not batting an eyelid.

"You did not answer my question. Is your school on break?"

"Firstly, I came here extremely upset with you. And right now, all you care about is for me to state my mission. I'm hurt bro. You hurt my feelings".

Smith rolled out of bed in his pyjamas bottom. His upper part bared, as he flexed his muscles. 

"I don't have time for your tantrums this morning. You have no regard for my privacy or who barges into a man's bedroom without invitation". Smith said trying to throw his sister off her game. 

He knew she was acting by script and he had learned a long time ago that the only way to counter that is not playing by her rules.

"Don't worry dear brother, I'm one of those females immuned to your charm", she said, slightly sticking out her tongue.

"Good for you"

"Why have you been ignoring my calls? To make matters worse, I sent you countless messages, just in case you were too busy to attend to your calls. I doubt if you followed it up".

Smith clasped his hands as he exclaimed

"That's right! A very good point Juliet. A very good point", he repeated. "You flooded my mail", he said, laying emphasis on 'flooded'. 

"You should be happy I'm here on a day like this when Patty is off duty. I wonder what you planned eating today"

"Oh, thank you life saver but do I need remind you that today is not a first and I have been managing quite alright without you" 

He smirked at her as he made his way into the bathroom before adding 

"And Patty always store the freezer with varieties"

He closed the bathroom door behind him. Then began prepping his face for a shave. He dipped a face cloth in a warm water to soak the side of his cheeks and neckline, leaving his chin area. He applied his shaving cream, using his shaving brush to create a rich lather. He allowed it sit on his face for a minute before shaving, then rinsed with warm water. He had his bathe, tied a clean, warm towel around his waist. Then proceeded to rub his aftershave lotion on the side of his face to replace mositure and soothe the skin.

He came out of the bathroom and into his room. He saw that Juliet had left the room, probably to disturb the peace of some of his men around. She was well known for that. One of the reasons Smith had always kept a tight hold on her. He had employed the services of two qualified agents to stay in the shadow and keep her safe. Not without her knowledge of course but she knows can't beat them to the game. She had tried a couple of times but it backfired.

Smith went through his closet. He didn't waste time deciding what to wear. They were in abundance, some clothes still have their tags on them. He selected a black prada logo-embroidered track pants and an orange-gold lightweight T-shirt. He went downstairs to the kitchen. His stomach has been rumbling since he rolled out of bed. He knows if Patty was around, he would have gotten a full lecture on the importance of breakfast and the danger in skipping meals. 

A tantalizing aroma wafted his nose. He didn't want to believe his suspicion but when he stepped into the kitchen, it was indeed a pleasant surprise. His sister had decided to put herself to good use, making delectable foods from Patty's storage.

"Wow! Quite remarkable", Smith said approvingly, rubbing the heels of his palms together in sheer excitement. 

Juliet feigned an ignorant look

"I don't understand", she said, raising her eyebrow

"The food. It smells nice"

"Oh, thank you. I had to fix myself something nice to eat before you could claim the kitchen to yourself". 

"Ah, I see. You want me to beg!" 

Smith gave a throaty laughter, throwing his head back. 

"Fine. Have it your way". He said walking closer to Juliet as he casually draped one arm on her shoulder, and whispered into her ears. 

"I cook my food. I pay my bills. We are all adults afterall." He took a step back "What do you say, baby sister?"

All the while, Juliet knew her brother would never beg for anything. Proud, she would say. Knowing his worth, he would argued. He is truly a business man to the core. His mind works around the clock always, making calculative moves that would result in profitable transactions. Not that she blamed him though. Afterall, she knows how to put her brother's fortune to good use. 

"Never mind. I made enough plate to feed the whole town", she replied with a grin

"Now, you are exaggerating. Are you sure you don't mind sharing? I would totally understand if you do". 

"Better grab a seat before I change my mind, because one way or another, you would still be paying my bills"

Smith raised his hands up in a conceding defeat 

"Yes ma'am. You have the floor".

"So, I heard Ella is around." Juliet announced

"Yes. She's out with James."

He pulled out a seat from the dining table, made himself comfortable, waiting for Juliet to serve the food. He opened his mail, saw Douglas message and few others. He opened Douglas'. He went through the attachment. There were pictures of Mary caught on CCTV. Most of which she was in the company of others. Around the hospital, apartment, garden. A particular picture had caught Smith's attention that woke some unknown feelings within him. It seemed one of his investigative team had actually been there in person to take that particular picture. It was a picture of Mary, while she was making her order at a restaurant. She stood, poised at the counter while a guy gawk at her. Openly assessing her curves, his eyes resting on her butt.

"Sleazeball", Smith murmured

"Excuse me?" 

Juliet, who was by now dishing out their meal on the dining, thought Smith was saying something

"I'm famished. Let's eat", Smith had replied instead.

Not convinced, Juliet peaked at Smith's phone, saw a picture of Mary. Without a second thought or warning, she snatched the phone off Smith's as she ran some distance away. She began scrolling through the pictures as it dawned on her that her brother was keeping a close tab on the lady. Juliet noted Mary's exceptional beauty and curvy shape but she could tell she was way below their league. Now, those things piqued her interest as she knew Smith was never one to show special interest in a lady since his tragic experience with Tessy.

"Are you done feeding your curiosity?" Smith said from behind her

Juliet was taken aback. She hadn't heard Smith come behind her. Before she could regain her composure, Smith had snatched his phone off her hands and walked away, leaving an amused Juliet behind. Juliet walked back to the table to join Smith. They ate in silence but not without Juliet occasionally throwing glances at him. Smith was determined to ignore her through it all. Unwilling to feed her curiosity more than he had already done. 

It was already 1pm. He had planned to pay Mary a visit at the hospital but he would pretend to be visiting a family friend, so his meeting with Mary would be totally coincidental. Otherwise, he knew Mary would freak out if she got to know he's been keeping a watch on her and all hell would break loose. 

"A penny for your thought sir", Juliet said, teasing Smith

"That would be a shame to my bank account, don't you think?" He replied, smirking at her.

"Are you into her?" 

Juliet thought she already had enough of pulling and teasing around. That would never get any information out of him. 

"Its none of your business".

Juliet gave him a 'are you for real' look

Smith exhaled. The conversation was beginning to weigh him down.

"It's not what you think. Okay?" He said defensively

"I wasn't thinking anything. I just asked you a simple direct question J.B", she said, calling him by his initials.

Smith pulled his chair back and stood up.

"I need to get some air", he said, leaving an angry Juliet on the table.