Nineteen

"All these were planned?"

Lora asked, devastated, as she stood at the feet of the stairs. Her eyes were already welled up.

"I can explain Lora if you can hear me out."

Austin pleaded.

"Yes Madam, tryna listen to all we've gotta say."

Isha concurred. Meanwhile, the servants vanished from the area where this commotion was taking place to their various apartments, except for Sam who had been in the kitchen hearing all that was said.

"No way! This can't be happening! How could you Nanny? How could you keep such a secret from me without realizing how hurting it would feel when I finally discover the truth."

Lora cried.

"Don't take this the wrong way please."

Isha said.

"So Austin is your grandson?"

"Ye...yes, he's my grandson."

Nervously, Isha said and this got Lora more broken.

"Lora I feel that if you listen to what we have to say, everything will be back to normal. Please, Lora."

Austin convinced Lora, wearing a sad expression and getting closer to her.

"Austin there's nothing here to explain....go away, you fooled me."

Lora yelled but Austin kept coming close to calm her down.

"It's not what you think Lora, hear me out please." He held her.

"Let go of me Austin. How do you expect me to feel that you both planned everything? What makes you think...."

Before Lora could finish yelling, Austin grabbed her by her waist and took her lips into his mouth as he began kissing. While he kissed her, the whole room was quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Isha was extremely stunned by this same as Sam who wondered why the silence then emerged to peep, then gasped.

Lora withdrew herself forcefully from him then.....

paaa!!!

She had forgotten a sound slap on his cheek before anyone could spell Jack.

"How dare you Austin?! Are you outta ur mind!"

"Am sorry, I didn't mean to do that."

Embarrassment flooded him.

"After everything you've done, you still have the got to do this? Or do you expect a kiss to calm my nerves, huh? Yikes! You know what? Leave my house, get out! I don't wanna see you again."

Lora didn't seem to be calming down. In fact, she took off her heels and bag and flung them away in depression as she started running through the stairs up to her room.

"Lora! Lora!"

"Madam Lora!"

They both called out loudly but she was already in her room, sobbing. Lora had misunderstood and taken it the wrong way without waiting to hear all they have to give to clear the misunderstanding. Well, any other lady would have cuz it came as a shock to her.

"This wasn't the right time to discuss this grandmother, and now she's so mad at us. What do we do."

Austin said as he tapped his forehead in total confusion.

"I will convince her, am sure she'll understand," Isha said

"What if it worsens while trying to convince her? Maybe I should do it."

"No son, I will try. You should get going now, it's time for Bill to return."

"Okay..."

Austin walked out of the mansion at a slow pace he wore a sad expression. Then Isha looked up at the stairs leading to Lora's room. It was time to face the angry queen.

Lora's POV

She sat upright on the bed with her knees up then her head and hands on top of it as she cried, lamenting over all that had transpired. She wondered why all this was happening to her. She passed through one pain to another when she hadn't gotten on anybody's toe.

The worst of all was that she had fallen deeply in love with Austin and didn't know if he loved her as well as she does. Today, she was going to confess her feelings to him when they are out for lunch but it had all been ruined because of a secret let out. She felt that Austin never had been using her as an object of ridicule and had categorized him under scum men.

In a jiffy, a gentle knock was heard behind the door as Lora straightened her head.

"Get out! I want to be alone."

She yelled at whoever was behind the door.

"Madam Lora, please open up."

Isha pleaded but Lora kept deaf ears.

AUSTIN's POV

While Lora sat and cried her heart out, Austin traipsed along the tiled streets recalling all that transpired at the mansion. He shouldn't have licked out the secret so soon knowing that the walls have ears but he felt that Lora should know already. He recalled all the happy times they spent today; having meals, making a mockery of themselves, and more... even though they hadn't done much yet.

"I know everything has not been ruined. It's never over. When I get to narrate it to her, I am certain that she will believe me and play along. Bill has caused her so much pain which she keeps hiding from me but he needs to deal with it severely. He will have to pay for all the damages he has caused!"

As all these thoughts ran through Austin's mind, he came across a moving vehicle that wanted to hit him and he was jerked back to reality.

"Looks like you want to end your life!"

The car owner wound down the rear window as he brought out his head from it and said in a husky voice.

"Am sorry."

Austin apologized and the man drove off. In less than five minutes, a cab showed up and he got into the back seat. While he sat, the image of that car owner appeared in his subconscious mind. The face looked familiar and he mumbled to himself.

"Could this be Bill?"

Immediately, he unlocked his phone and scrolled through many pictures. Earlier enough, Isha had given him a photograph of Bill. Finding a lookalike, he compared the stranger's picture with his imagination. It was Bill.

"That was Bill? What would he think when he sees Lora crying now that he's heading home? What if he forces her to bed again upon the pain?Blimey! It's going to cause her more pain. I think I should go back to the mansion to stop him or he would kill her....but wait, Lora's still angry at me and when she sees me again, she might do something crazy. What should I do?" He looked blackly at the picture again. "If Bill touches her one more time, swears am gonna make him pay!!"