Mend My Heart

Chapter 7

By the time I was done explaining how I unfortunately ended up in said Ice Castle of Great Britain, Ann and Matt had already finished a dishful of popcorn, both of them sitting opposite with less than shocked expressions. Ann tsked, licking the saltiness of the popcorn from her fingers. “Hm, that sounds about right. Not at all flabbergasted by that,” she voiced calmly, making me look at her in confusion.

Was my story really not that bad? I personally thought it was nothing short of scandalous but here I was, conversing about it with two people I just met and think it’s nothing out of the ordinary. I was beginning to wonder if I overreacted earlier and this was indeed not a big deal.

The hell it isn’t!

Matt burped so loudly that I was pretty sure the people in Zimbabwe heard it too. “Sorry about that,” he smiled sheepishly. “And, Ann’s right. It isn’t so surprising that Mr. Duke would do something like that given that he was in the company of that gorgeous she-devil Yolanda. She’s a rather bad influence; that, and the fact that out employer is very impulsive.”

My face turned. “You actually know Yolanda?” I asked and they both nodded. For the wrong reasons obviously.

“She’s been here a couple of times. We all loathe her, well, except the boss’s mother of course. She happens to adore Miss Heinz and thinks her son ought to give her a chance someday,” Ann elaborated further. For some odd reason, her last statement made a sudden pang reverberate in my chest. Now, where the hell did that come from?

Shaking off the unprecedented feeling, I cleared my throat. “So, you are saying that Mr. Duke normally does impulsive things? Surely what he has done in the past isn’t as insane as bringing a total stranger into your own home, is it?” I prodded sceptically and they both laughed. Matt rose from his seat and began to clear the table.

“Darling, you don’t really want to know. There is more to Mr. Duke than what meets the eye. He never does impulsive things that don’t end up somehow having a huge impact on his life. Let’s see how you will play into the equation.”

Just as he finished his statement, Meredith entered the kitchen once more. Matt and Ann immediately went quiet and resumed their work as though the conversation we had just had hadn’t happened at all. Meredith observed them through slit eyelids, until her hawk like gaze landed on me. I wasn’t at all surprised by this now that I knew she was Mrs. Duke’s minion. The two were virtually the same person, only that Meredith was younger and had black hair and brown eyes instead.

“Follow me,” she practically commanded and swerved out once more. I shared a look with Ann and Matt, before I stood up and did what I was told. By the time I was out the door, I only caught a glimpse of the direction she had taken. Damn, she moved so fast that I was starting to wonder if she was related to the Flash.

I rounded the corner which led who knows where, but again got quite the fright when I found her standing by the gran double staircase in the foyer. Her facial expression was impassive, not giving a single hint of what she was thinking. Although she looked slightly intimidating, Meredith was actually quite beautiful. I doubt she was a day over thirty. 

She cleared a throat and placed her clasped hands in front of her crossed legs. “Since it is still unclear as to what exactly Theodore has requested your presence in this house for-,” Okay, so she was on first name basis with Mr. Duke? How interesting. “I have been informed that as of right now, you’ll be mainly helping in watching over the children. This will require a certain level of seriousness, and failure to do so will certainly have some consequences,” she told me with a flair of arrogance.

Certain level of seriousness? Hell, they made it sound as if I was supposed to be taking care of a pair of endangered species or something. I inwardly laughed at the sheer absurdity of her words and even did a mock bow in return. Narrowing her eyes, she moved closer to me. Meredith was taller than me by a couple of inches but I refused to let her towering height throw me off course. I am a confident young woman, and I won’t let anyone screw with my dignity.

“Be careful, dear. When Theo isn’t around, you’re just a nobody at the wrong place, at the wrong time,” she growled lowly, her eyes turning a shade darker.

I smirked at this. I loved it when people were threatened by me and by the looks of it, dear Meredith had a small notion that I don’t easily cower. And from the aggression in her voice, I could easily tell that she undoubtably had some feelings toward Mr. Duke. Given that my IQ is quite high as well, the two definitely have some history too.

“Don’t worry about me, Merry. I won’t be here for too long,” I countered saucily in a feigned British accent. “If you would be so kind as to point me in the direction where the kids are, I’d like to start fulfilling my duties with immediate effect.”

She snarled at me before telling me they were in the screening room upstairs. With a stiff nod and a wicked eye wink, I bounded up the stairs and made my way over to the screening room. Yes, the house had a freaking movie theatre in it! Next thing you know, I’ll be hearing there is a bowling alley as well. If there actually is one…

Setting my meandering thoughts aside, I entered through the curtains into the spacious room with numerous seats and a large screen at the end. Aiden and Brianna were both seated in the front watching… The Witcher? Wait a second, they are definitely not even old to watch that! I don’t even think I am old enough to watch it. 

In a fast pace, I walked over to the front, grabbed the room and pressed a random button before the nudity and coarse scenes began to play. Both of them whined and shot me hard glares, that I might have found intimidating if it wasn’t for the fact that they are so cute.

“We were watching that, you twit!” Aiden bellowed and threw a handful of popcorn at me. I stepped back just in time before any piece landed in my hair.

I crossed my arms. “Well, you aren’t old enough to be watching that in the first place. In fact, why were you watching The Witcher? Don’t say it’s because of Henry Cavill because that would be an insane lie.” I know damn well that the reason why most people watch that damned show is because of him but I digress.

Brianna’s stone face didn’t waver. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business, American,” she snorted derisively at me. The hostility in these Dukes knows no bounds. First the father, the grandmother and now the children. And American? What’s wrong with being American?

“You’re not our mother or babysitter, so do not concern yourself with matters much too out of your hands,” she added snarkily and Aiden smirked.

Oh, two can play that game. “Firstly, yes I’m not your mother otherwise I’d have done a better job of raising you. Secondly, I am actually your babysitter for the time being and lastly, I wonder if your grandmother knows about this fetish you have with adult shows,” I trailed off and the colour drained from their faces. It was now my turn to smirk.

I took a step forward in a predatory fashion. It was high time these high-handed brats got brought down to earth, and I was the perfect candidate. By the time I was done with them, they’d be sweet and pious little humans. Damn, I’m guaranteed to be the next Nanny McPhee. 

I leaned down until I was face to face with them. “Now, I’m going to give you’re the remote but only under the condition that you watch things that are rated family or PG. Freaking Teletubbies for example. If I catch you not doing that, I’ll not only tell your grandmother but your father as well. Understood?” They nodded their heads in acknowledgement. I grinned like Mr Krabs in a pool of cash. 

I should have known that dealing with these kids wouldn’t be as simple. 

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Hi guys. How was your weekend? Mine was pretty peaceful. I hope you had fun reading this chapter. Aiden and Brianna are quite the handful...

I wonder what they did to Maya judging by that last statement 😂😊

Keep reading to find out!

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~Deetronite