Lost Souls

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(This book will be written in Lila's perspective).

"YOU'VE become so quiet, Liliann," echoed Elizabeth's voice all around the empty room. "Why don't you join us for our first family dinner in this house?"

It was all a sham; she was trying to look good in father's dictionary and truthfully, she had already succeeded. Perhaps, she just wanted to show the newly bought furniture she had filled the new house with. There was no way I'd eat my dinner with any of them.

I stared at the ceiling, upon which a chandelier, adorned with glimmering glass beads, was hung. There was a time when the chandelier glimmered with flecks of vivid golden and evoked a hue of warmth; but, now it just seemed like a dark, dim yellow candelabra, about to reach its expiration date.

So was I.

"Liliann, answer your mum," the stern voice of my father yanked me away from my stream of thoughts and forced me to glance at him.

My father was the ceo of one of the most well-renowned shopping brands in the world, 'Lamington'; which was why he could afford this huge mansion, situated in one of the most extravagant neighbourhoods in the city.

Being 6 foot and 2 inches, he exuded nothing but ascendancy, authority and power. Regarding looks, his eyes were the perfect shade of grey, which complimented his olive skin and easily scored him shots with other women after my mother. I inherited the same strawberry blonde hair-color from him and my mother's brown eye color.

"She is not my mother," I replied, coldly, turning away from the people in front of me."Nor would I like to have dinner, thank you."

"Liliann."

I ignored his warning and stomped over to the hallway, making sure that the household knew how infuriated I was. After two rows of stairs, I finally reached my room. Once I stepped in, I quickly locked the door and leaned against it and stared at the space ahead of me.

My room was just a typical attic, surrounded with cartons of boxes and suitcases, however, the warmth and comfort I felt in here couldn't be replaced with anywhere else. I felt that connection as soon as we shifted into this house and decided to claim this territory as my sanctuary - luckily, no one came up with an argument.

I sighed. Here's to a new start.

~

IT WAS NOT until an hour later that I decided to step out of my safe haven and walk over to the kitchen to quench my thirst. The house was surprisingly silent at this hour, exhibiting no proof of any sign of life being present. I quietly walked downstairs, cautiously, hoping not to make a sound.

It was strange how fast Elizabeth furnished the house. The walls, colored in hues of cream, exuded nothing, but sumptuousness and a life of luxury.

The kitchen was larger than the previous one; the walls, swirls of rich cream, the kind of hue that casted an iridescent sheen around the entire room and forced eyes to draw upon the ceiling.

After drinking a glass of water, I began walking towards my room. I passed room after room, until I heard some sort of commotion coming from my father's room. I stopped in front of the door and leaned my ear against it.

"How could this happen, Alex?!" I heard my father shout. "We didn't steal their designs. They have no proof and yet they're filing lawsuits?!"

A deafening silence followed, indicating that he was on call.

Wait, what? Lawsuits?!

I paused for a moment to process what was happening. Moments later, the reality dawned upon me.
Leamington was going bankrupt unless father didn't take any action.

"What do you suggest we do? Of course, we will hire the best lawyers for our defense. But our sales are decreasing at a higher rate," I could already envision my father slap a hand to his forehead in frustration.

"Forming an alliance with our biggest threat, Sayuri? How would that solve the lawsuits?"

I stepped away from the door, baffled.

Sayuri, one of the most top-notch fashion brands in the country? Did I hear that correct? I thought. I decided to eavesdrop, once more, just to be sure.

"Everyone knows Hans Fletcher very well. He's not dumb. He'll catch up on everything," father argued. "However, we have no choice, I'll have to talk to him. Call his secretary and book an appointment for tomorrow, preferably early. We need to fix this as soon as possible. We can't afford any losses."

Leamington is in extreme crisis, I reminded myself. The brand, he dedicated years to, instead of on raising me and Adrian.

Good luck, father dearest. I shrugged my shoulders and walked towards the stairs. There was no way I could help him.

Surprise, surprise, I was wrong.

~
any grammatical corrections are appreciated. 🦋

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