10. Evie

ten

Sophie stared at the drawing sheet blankly. It was time for her to draw. But unlike other days when she’d draw random shapes, she did nothing.

It’d been this way for exactly twenty-four minutes. Yes, I was counting. I was studying her reaction. She had none.

Suddenly, she started to draw. Releasing a deep breath, I gently stood up. “Sophie, I’ll be back, okay.”

She ignored me and focused on her work. I exited the playroom and set out to find Virginia. I hadn’t seen her since I started Sophie’s routine. On the other hand, I’d seen Joseph. With a deadpan face and a little bit of sass, he greeted me. I did the same.

I still couldn”t understand why he was mean. I never really knew him.

Perhaps Virginia was cleaning the study? Or even his bedroom? My heart skipped a beat as I ascended the stairs.

Mr. Thorne surely wasn”t at home. I knew he’d gone to work. Grandma Thorne, too, left early this morning. Still, I couldn”t help but feel his watchful eyes here… on me.

Today was Friday. I”d only attended the office twice this week. My first day and the day of the meeting. Somehow, he’d made the meeting quite uncomfortable for me.

I didn”t need to look to see that he was staring at me. Before the meeting, during, and after. But I was proud of myself for how I handled it. I handled it like a pro. Like, I didn”t give a shit.

Internally, I was screaming, struggling to maintain composure each time I felt his stare on me. But I didn”t spare him a glance.

It was what he wanted. Little interaction. I”d given him that. Heck, I’d give him no interaction if he wanted.

I was his daughter’s therapist. It was against ethical considerations to be involved with him. I couldn”t risk my professionalism for someone like him. He wasn”t worth it.

And this was only the beginning.

“Virginia.” I turned in the direction of the study. His bedroom would be the last place I”d check. Slowly, I pushed the big doors open. This would be the second time I was disobeying orders.

Well, the first time wasn”t my fault.

I quickly walked to the shelves when I didn”t spot her in an open area. As I glided through the shelves, I wondered why I was searching for her.

Honestly, I just wanted to know if she was doing okay. I couldn”t trust Joseph to ensure his fellow employee’s well-being. Or maybe Joseph had even—

I sighed when I spotted her between a shelf. She was kneeling, back turned to me, and hands busy dusting the books.

“Virginia.”

She jumped out of her skin— something sort of the Tom and Jerry movie. “Jesus fucking Christ, you scared me.”

I narrowed my gaze on her.

“I’m sorry. I didn”t mean to scare you.”

She shook her head, returning to her activity. “It”s fine… I was just too in my head.”

Only after she said that did I notice the lag in her movement. “Are you alright?”

There was a beat of silence before she spoke. “I”m fine. I really am. I”m just…” She heaved.

“Just what?” I urged gently. Something was definitely wrong.

“It’s… it”s nothing, really.”

I frowned. “Is it Joseph?”

She froze before clearing her throat. “It”s… It’s none of your business, Evie.”

I eyed her warily. I”d known Virginia for just a short time. But it was enough to know she didn”t have any bone of disrespect in her. If she did, she’d use it against Joseph.

Except… the bullying was deeply rooted.

“I”m sorry. Please forgive me.” She quickly stood up to bow.

Now, this was all getting weird.

I decided to cut her some slack. “It”s alright, Virginia. Sometimes things happen, and we’re not ready to share.”

She nodded. But I was still going to ask a question.

“Do you by any chance know why Joseph acts… out of line to me?”

Her free hand clasped her other elbow. “Joseph has been here long before me. Eight years. He worked for Mr. Thorne long before he got married. He was there to witness the wedding…” she trailed. “The issues and the aftermath.”

“Issues?”

She nodded. “Mr. Thorne and his wife had issues. It started to get recurrent and…”

“And?” I urged when she trailed.

She looked like she wanted to say something else before subtly shaking her head. “And then the incident.”

This was a new revelation to me. I never knew Mr. Thorne and his wife had issues. Dad never told me.

Could the issues be related to the incident?

“Joseph knows what the boss was like before, during, and after all of this. He holds the boss very dear to his heart, and because of that, he gets defensive…”

“…He thinks you”d be like the rest. He thinks you’ll leave without doing Sophie any good. He thinks you’ll raise the boss’ hope just to shatter it again. It”s why he”s uptight and seems to be out of line.”

He doesn”t like me because he thinks I”m no good for the father and daughter. I was determined to prove him wrong.

“But I can promise you that Joseph is a good man.”

It wasn”t intentional, but I shot her a side-eye. Then why does he order you around like your master?

“Maybe.”

“Please excuse me. I have these shelves to dust before he returns.”

Who? Joseph or Mr. Thorne?

Instead of asking, I settled for a nod and turned towards the exit. There was definitely something deeper in these stories. Between Joseph and Virginia.

Somehow, I felt he had leverage— something to use against her that obliged her to his silly requests. Or was it that he was the head worker? Was he leveraging on his longer stay?

That aside, what issues could the boss and his wife have? Did those issues directly lead to the incident? Or was that coincidental?

My head spun with questions I didn”t have an answer to. I doubted if Dad would tell me if I asked him. I mean, if he knew and didn”t bother to tell me, how likely was it that he would now?

The low buzz of my phone suddenly interrupted my thoughts. Emma’s caller ID was displayed on the screen when I found it.

A much-needed distraction. I picked it.

“Girl, you won”t believe what happened to me today.”

“I”m sure I would, but spill anyway.” I started heading back to Sophie.

“I fucked two brothers.”

I paused and almost choked on my saliva. “What?”

Emma was always uncouth. Free-spirited and liked to explore. I didn”t know it had gotten to this.

“That”s not so…ethical?” I wasn”t a prude, but dear God, brothers were overboard.

“That”s what I”m saying,” she cried. “I didn”t know.”

I began to ascend the stairs. I was sure my brows touched my hairline from how far I lifted them. “How so?”

“Twins. They’re identical twins… I was drunk, and it all just sorta happened.”

Ah, that was complicated.

“And the first one is my boyfriend.”

Shit. That was complicated.

“When did this happen?”

“Last night.”

Goodness…

I reached the end of the stairs.

“But the thing is, I enjoyed the other one’s wood more.”

These are the issues.

“Now, that would definitely put your relationship at risk.”

She’d understand what risk was. She worked in an accounting firm as an accountant.

“I know, but…”

I finally reached the playroom. Sophie was still in the same spot. After taking my seat, I sighed.

“I don”t think there are buts here except you”re willing to put your present relationship at risk. And I also want you to consider how the twin feels. Does he think it”s a one-night thing? Or does he have other plans?”

“Right.” Her low voice depicted her sadness.

“El que la hace, la paga, Emma. (He who does it, pays for it).” I sighed. Then briefly glanced at Sophie. I instantly froze at what I saw.

A smile. Sophie had a smile on her face. It wasn”t huge, nor was it small. It was just the right size for blood to rush through my veins.

What?

“What language is that?” Emma asked.

I remained still, staring at Sophie. What made her smile? Something I said?

“El que la hace, la paga, Emma,” I repeated my words. Her smile widened.

I gasped. Language. She was thrilled by my language.

“Yes, I heard you the first time, Evie. I asked…”

“I”ll call you back Emma.”

Once I dropped the call, her smile dropped. And like nothing happened, she returned her attention to the paper. I quickly moved to her.

“Sophie,” I started when I crouched beside her. But something caught my attention. It was a drawing. Sophie had drawn on her sheet. But this time, it wasn”t just shapes. It was a combination of curves, circles, and lines.

It was a bird. And right in front of its beak were tiny circles between lines that sprouted upward. Suddenly, it seemed very familiar. The circles were food. The picture was of a bird eating remains from grass.

I gasped when I started to see it. It looked exactly like the one she’d been staring at on the day we went to the park.