In Love & Chaos

Chapter 5

 Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt 
Sun Tzu

Now

4 missed calls from the lawyer, how much does she charge per hour on Sundays? I stare at the missed calls with the lump in my throat growing bigger by the second. I don't like talking to her, she wants my help for dad's sake.

The problem is that I don't know if I want to help him. My dad has had his demons during my entire childhood. I know something's wrong with him, but he refuses to seek help.

He was the parent that stayed when mom left. But even though he stayed he wasn't really present. Something broke inside him when she left. Max was his friend, I've seen pictures of them together. Maybe it was worse because it was Max she left him for. With a sigh I put the phone away. Not ready to deal with the lawyer yet.

The guests have gone home, well for the most part some are still left. They're comfortably seated in the lounge part of the salon. The lighting is dim and intimate just like the conversations seems to be. I'm missing one of my bags. I try to sneak downstairs as quietly as possible.

"Excuse you, what are you doing?" I whisperyell at Gideon. He has my bag open and apparently has no problem searching through it. He gives me an amused look.
"Just making sure that you're not bringing anything inappropriate" He says as if it's the normal thing to do.
"This is inappropriate" I snatch my bag.
"You being here I highly inappropriate" He smirks.
"You're fucking inappropriate"

"Such a charming vocabulary little sister" He says with demeanor in his voice. His blue eyes twinkle as if he enjoys putting me in place. "Now, you were hiding before, from whom?"
"I don't see how that's any concern of yours"
"Amuse me" He insists. I think about the pros and cons of telling him the truth. The best thing would probably be to not lie where I don't have to. Lying is easy, it's keeping track of your lies that's the predicament. I don't want him to catch me in a lie either.

"Leo" I admit. A wrinkle appears between his eyes.
"That cockroach?"
"Yeah" I sigh. Gideon watches me closely.
"What did he do?"
"Nothing, I walked away"
"Stay away from him"
"I didn't think you cared" I say and start to walk back to my room. I see Helena in the corner of my eye. She's standing by the grand piano with Pandora. She looks upset, making gestures with her hands as she speaks while Pandora nods. Is it me they're discussing?

I want to move closer so that I can hear them, but I can't afford to make a scene. I don't want to be kicked out before I've had a real chance of doing some damage. I must play my part of the daughter that desperately seeks her mothers love and approval. I hurry back to my room.

The phone beeps beside me on the bed. I'm back in my room impatiently waiting for Nasrin to reach out. I've been waiting for days now to see if she's okay. She left me three weeks ago, I've barely heard from her since. The message is short, just stating that she's okay and will call me later. Thank God.

We got a message on Instagram about a month ago from a woman claiming to have met Nasrins sister. In Abu Dhabi. I didn't want her to leave, she's the closest to a sister that I've got. The mere thought of her finding her real sisters scares me more than anything else.

I'm scared that she'll leave me for good. I wanted to travel with her, but dad's arrest happened and after that all our bank accounts were frozen. We only had cash for Nasrins ticket.

I realize that she belongs with her family and she not seen them in a decade, that she had to go now when there was something real to grasp after. But it does leave me all alone.

She writes that her sister's not left at the hotel but could possibly be in a village close by. I can't imagine the disappointment she faced when she arrived at the hotel just to find her gone.

'Please be careful' I respond. I'm about to write more but a knock on the door interrupts me. Is it Helena?
"Is the room to your liking? Frans asks me.
"It's very good" I try to smile.
"Helena wants to meet you for coffee in the morning, 10 o'clock" He smiles. It's not a warm smile, it's the kind of smile you give someone you pity. I don't want his pity.
"Ok"

"Do you want me to show you around?"
"Yes Please" I follow him. The guests are gone now with the exception of two men talking to Max in the salon. Frans takes me through the downstairs letting me know facts about the interior as well as where everything is. We make our first stop in the kitchen at an isle covered in white Carrera marble.

Everything is spotless, clean and perfectly presented. It's all very different from the house I grew up in.
"Please help yourself to anything you might need in the fridge when you're hungry. You can also find snacks and fruits in the pantry" He opens the door to a small room in the corner of the kitchen.

The room has shelves and cupboards. Jars containing grains, snacks and other produce are carefully placed on the shelves. It looks like a mini store, one of those organic types with a display fridge for fruits and vegetables.

I want to eat it all. At once. I'm hungry and haven't had a full meal in days. But I don't want to do it in front of Frans so instead I close the door and follow him out of the kitchen. We hurry up the stairs.
"There's a toilet here, if the others are taken" He points to another black door. "And over here is the bathroom closest to your room, I'm afraid there's no one closer to your room"

"Ok" I say while I stare at the beautiful bathroom inside. It's all in white with a small crystal chandelier decorating the space. I don't want to stare too much so I close the door and take a few steps forward.
"Whose room is that?" I ask pointing at the door opposite of mine.
"Ares" He answers. It furoates me because it's right next to mine meaning that he could easily have picked his own room for the making out session he had before. It's literally right here! It also complicates things, it will be harder to avoid him for starters. Distant moaning noises reaches me from inside the room. Frans smiles apologetically.
"Let me know if you need anything else"
"Thank you"