Hidden Secrets

Chapter 100

Slowly, he turned into the small driveway that was his destination.
The little girl in the back seat had been asleep since the ferry ride, which gave him a rare moment of peace.
Eugeal had hardly said a word during the trip, instead spending the entire time typing emails on her phone. Occasionally, she gave him instructions on where to drive. He didn't mind this at all, as it allowed him to ponder his thoughts undisturbed.
Over and over, those blue eyes appeared in his dreams, haunting him and refusing to fade from his memory.

Before leaving, he had managed to speak with some of the staff, and one of the many maids had told him that the picture above the fireplace showed the deceased daughter of the master of the house.
Minako Tsukino had died in a car accident about seven months ago. She couldn't tell him more, as it happened before she began working in the house.
But since she was the daughter of his superior, it was possible that he had encountered her. He intended to investigate this mystery in the coming days.
He had also considered asking Eugeal about it, but his gut feeling told him it was better to refrain from doing so.

He turned off the engine and pushed his sunglasses up. "So, here we are," he said, looking back.
"I think I'll bring our things inside first, and then we can wake her up," he suggested and glanced at his companion.
Eugeal nodded and gracefully exited the car. They met at the trunk, and he felt her warm lips on his. "Here's the key. I just need to make a quick phone call and will join you shortly," she whispered and pressed a set of keys into his hand.

Before he could respond, she was already at the next corner, holding the phone to her ear.
The feeling that something was off had been bothering him for some time and grew stronger with each passing day.

Effortlessly, he grabbed the suitcases and bags and carried them into the small hallway of the house.
The house, a quaint little single-family home with a well-kept garden, radiated a deceptive idyll. He didn't know exactly what Kenji was planning, but outwardly they were to appear as a perfect little family, as Eugeal had already hinted. He exhaled deeply and headed back to the car to wake the little girl, but he paused midway. On the other side of the hedge, Eugeal stood, apparently not noticing him, and was speaking softly on the phone.
Curious but cautious, he listened to the words that drifted through the foliage.

"No... I'm not stupid... of course... yes, I'm sure he doesn't suspect anything... our plan will work... trust me, I've been taking those strange pills for a few days now, but sometimes it takes a bit... there are things you can't speed up... yes, I'll get in touch as soon as I can talk openly or have something concrete."

He quickly stepped back onto the path, and as soon as he stood in front of the car, two small red eyes were already blinking at him from the back seat.
Sleepily, the girl stretched and yawned extensively before she jumped out of the car and curiously examined the new surroundings.
"Uncle Kenji knows really great places. I've never traveled so much in the past few months. It's really nice here... don't you think?" she asked, her little fingers gripping Taiki's hand. He forced a smile and led the little girl into the house to explore the rooms with her.

Shortly afterward, he felt Eugeal's now-familiar arms wrap around his waist from behind. "When the little one is playing in the garden, we could probably test out the bed again. What do you say?" she whispered in his ear.
He inhaled sharply and tried to clear his thoughts.
"I've been driving almost nonstop for the past two days. I'd like to rest for a bit first. Alone," he replied dryly and gently but firmly pushed her away.

The snippets of conversation he had overheard from her phone call still preoccupied him. He couldn't make sense of them, and that gnawed at him almost as much as the memory of those blue eyes. Eugeal looked at him with suspicion as he opened the terrace door and left her standing there.