The Silver Lining

EIGHT

LISA glanced through the window. She stared through the darkened surroundings and outlines of some trees and nearby houses.. Though her sight observed what seemed like a sleeping city, her mind kept her wide awake.. Her brains constantly attempted at figuring out the answers to why and how.

These few days had made Lisa accustomed to plathora of information.. but it was just that... information.. not to mention the chaos surrounding that information!

Lisa was finding it difficult when it came down to processing that chaos and identifying the connection.. that common thread that tied all that information in to one relevance.

She heard a knock on the door that broke her chain of thoughts and observed her grandma walking through the door.

"I somehow knew you wouldn't be asleep!" Grandma patted Lisa on her shoulder and pulled a chair up to the edge of the bed. "What are you thinking, honey?"

Lisa sighed heavily before blabbering out her thoughts. "What is going on, grandma? Ash is missing, my first ever client is mysteriously dead, my boss is laying unconscious in hospital, our house has been searched by some random armed people..." Lisa glanced up at her grandma and noticed the similar confusion in her eyes. "..Not to forget the fact that I found a weird drive in office of my boss which contains heavily encrypted folders. One even has photos of crime scene where my mother had her last breath. Nothing seems relevant anymore."

Grandma sat there knowing exactly what was going on. She was just too afraid to put her baby to any risk. She was afraid that she would lose the only reason of her very life. Moreover, she was afraid that if they survive this and Lisa learns the facts, Lisa might misunderstand a lot of things including intensions of her own grandma.

"Tell me, honey..." Grandma Hall glanced at Lisa with confusing yet determined glance. " Do you believe that sometimes some things just happen to you... without any reason... and then those things don't even leave behind any traces or as you may say.. evidence?"

"You tell me grandma," Lisa cleared her voice while turning her face back towards the window. "I am a student of Law, so evidence becomes essential for me. You sound like a believer, though!"

"I knew my baby will never go weak when it came to her beliefs and principles!" Although Grandma Hall was shocked by Lisa's words, she definitely knew how to keep secrets and smartly avoided to reply to Lisa's question.

She had expected acceptance of a tiny tiny possibility from Lisa... Just to ensure her own self that Lisa may not be ready for the facts...THE REAL FACTS.

While Grandma had her own dillema, Lisa was lost in her own thoughts when it came down to finding relevance in all the events that had recently occurred.

"So..." Lisa shifted her gaze again towards Grandma Hall. "Are you now going to tell me why our house was searched and multiple gunshots were fired and why am I here....in Ash's room.. hiding from people?"

"There is nothing to tell, Lisa.." Grandma avoided the subject at her best but Lisa already knew the pretence too well. "I think you should get some sleep." Grandma Hall abruptly wrapped up her visit to her granddaughter and walked out of the room.

Lisa knew her grandma far to well to know that she and Ash's father knew a lot of things and would discuss in low voices whenever they could. So, she waited.. until she heard the voices from the kitchen.

She walked upto the kitchen and stood behind the slightly open door, making sure that she doesn't leave any shadow around. Lisa could clearly hear the voices where her grandma and Mr. Cooper were having it a go.