The house was very quiet, as if it were empty.
Umberto came in with his things, his forehead stained with fine sweat, and as soon as he entered, he called out to Macos to help him put things away.
It took several shouts for Macos to come rushing out of the room, his clothes crumpled, dazed and sleepy, and wearing large dark glasses.
When Albina saw him like that, she froze for a moment and could not contain her laughter.
-What happened to you, did you go to someone’s house last night and steal something? Your dark circles under your eyes can be compared to those of a panda.
Macos ran off before slowly regaining lucidity, frowned and rubbed his temples.
-I didn’t sleep all night, I didn’t close my eyes until now…. You’re back.
He looked miserable, so Albina simply let him go back to rest, then called Ariana.
Just after uttering Ariana’s name, Macos interrupted her:
-Albina, there’s no need to shout, she’s gone.
-What?!
Albina was surprised and rushed to look at the room where Ariana was staying, indeed, she was gone, and the bed was tidy, even all her belongings were gone.
-What’s going on here, why did Ariana suddenly leave, didn’t she say she would stay for a while?
Albina hurried to call Ariana.
Macos’ expression also darkened, his face was not as relaxed and smiling as usual, he was rubbing his temples, and his eyes were depressed.
-You left, and soon after, Santiago picked her up.
At first he thought Ariana would not follow Santiago, but she only thought about it for a while before she gathered her things and left.
When Macos thought about this, he felt panic. It was really too suffocating.
He could only watch as Ariana followed the other man, but he couldn’t even say a single word to hold her back. He did not have the right position or status to hold her.
He lost sleep that night, and the more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and he really couldn’t help but want to snatch Ariana out of Santiago’s hands.
Macos could see that Santiago liked Ariana, but he knew that Santiago was not the right person for her.
Albina looked at him and didn’t know what she was thinking with her fingers clenched and her face full of pent up frustration. She patted him comfortingly on the shoulder.
Umberto had been listening to the two of them talk. Because it involved Santiago, he couldn’t interrupt them. At this point, his expression changed and he looked at Macos.
-Ariana’s already gone, and you’re not leaving yet?
I was throwing him out. This person had already stayed at home for a long time. He interrupted him every time he wanted to make out with Albina, and that annoyed Umberto.
If Ariana wouldn’t leave, he wouldn’t leave either. Now that the one he was after was gone, there was no reason for him to stay any longer.
Macos smiled and gave him a depressed look.
-Sir Umberto, I’m in this state and you still want to throw me out!
Umberto threw him a bag of fruit and told him to wash it, while he said very coldly:
-You are nothing to me, so why can’t I not have patience with you. Now that she’s gone, there’s no point for you to stay in my house anymore, I’ll help you pick up the luggage later.
Macos hugged the bag of fruit, looked at him accusingly and turned his head to look at Albina.
-Albina, look at him, he’s too cruel, do you really dare to stay with such a man?
As soon as the words left his mouth, Umberto looked at him sharply, and Macos unconsciously closed his mouth.
Albina looked at Ariana’s number, thinking whether to dial it or not. When she heard his words, she raised her head and said nonchalantly:
-Didn’t you buy a house in our neighborhood? It’s in the neighboring building, very close to ours.
Umberto paused for a moment at her words and looked at Macos.
-Did you buy a house here?
At the mention of this matter, Macos became happy.
-Yes!
-Why did you buy it here? -Umberto asked.
The location here wasn’t bad, but with Macos’ financial resources, he should be able to buy something better, not to mention that the housing here wasn’t very safe. And Macos had experienced being followed by crazy Lila, so he should be more cautious when buying a house.
Macos watched her inquiring gaze and kept his mouth shut, but his eyes held a tinge of excitement and longing.
He didn’t want to tell Umberto.
“This man and Santiago had grown up together, what if I said something to him and Santiago came!”
Umberto observed her gaze and frowned.
-Why is your expression so disgusting? What the hell are you thinking?
Macos, who was called disgusting, was speechless.
-Nothing, I’m going to wash the fruit.
Macos ran into the kitchen, hiding from Umberto’s eyes as he held the fruit and a large pile of ingredients.
Umberto was careful and was especially observant, so he could easily know Macos’ thinking.
Macos thought it best to avoid him.
Seeing him dodge, Umberto looked at Albina.
-Albina, what do you know?
Albina came back to herself, and sensed that Umberto was asking her something, so she said:
-Maybe it’s because the surrounding environment was good and convenient, and all his friends live nearby? That’s all.
What he said made a little sense, but Umberto still felt that he was hiding something from him.
-I’ll call Ariana. Umberto, go manage in the seafood. It’s very hot these days, so it can go bad.
Albina dodged Umberto, ran into the bedroom with her phone and dialed Ariana’s number.
The call took a while to be answered, and Ariana’s voice sounded a little tired.
-Albina?
-It’s me! -Albina answered and, after a pause, asked, “Is Santiago at your side?
-No, he went out.
Ariana guessed what she meant and smiled.
Albina breathed a sigh of relief and immediately asked:
-Ariana, you said you were going to stay with me for two more days, how come you were taken back by Santiago? Are you, are you still…
Ariana stammered, but she understood what Albina meant and spoke softly.
-No, Albina, don’t worry. I’m not the kind of person who acts emotionally.
-Then why did you follow Santiago so easily? -Albina pouted, her voice muffled.
Ever since she found out about Santiago and his first girlfriend, even though she wasn’t sure if they really had any kind of relationship, she subconsciously didn’t want Ariana to be hurt and find herself in such a bad way.
Ariana had had it bad enough as a child. If she was hurt emotionally, how long would it take for her to get over it.
When Albina thought about the always cool and calm Ariana had cried like that that day, her heart clenched, and she couldn’t help but choke a little.
Ariana realized her emotions and hastened to explain.
-Albina, I came back for a reason. If I had stayed at your house, it might have been difficult to find out anything, so I could only go back first to see if I could find any clues.
When Albina heard these words, she was very relieved.
-So have you found anything in the last two days?
Ariana shook her head, but remembering that she couldn’t see it, she said:
-No, she was normal the last two days, but before she left today, she took a phone call. It sounded like something bad happened and I suspect it has something to do with his first girlfriend.
Albina’s heart squeezed.
-So you didn’t follow him?
Ariana smiled.
-I’ve contacted Kevin and he’s been looking for someone to follow him, when Santiago returns, I’ll be able to find out where he went today.
As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she looked a little uncomfortable.
-Albina, isn’t it bad for me to do this? After all, I asked someone to keep an eye on Santiago, I?
She felt a little sad. Before he wasn’t this kind of person, he couldn’t do something like letting someone follow a person. Now she felt like she had become someone different, and she was nervous.
Albina heard her discomfort and pursed her lips.
-Ariana, you have a reason for this. If James had nothing to be suspicious of, you wouldn’t have done such a thing, after all, he didn’t give you enough reassurance.
Early in their relationship, with Umberto’s help, Albina had already told Santiago about Ariana’s insecurities as a child, and had stressed to him countless times that Ariana was very distrustful in relationships and needed absolute security.
At the time, Santiago had promised and vowed to treat Ariana well and to definitely be a good boyfriend and give her enough security.
But what about now? In the past, when he didn’t come home at night and liked to be wild and playful, you could say he was immature, but at least he wasn’t involved with other women, however now, Santagio’s first girlfriend showed up.
He even took care of her for the whole night, and those who didn’t know, would think that person was his girlfriend.
She didn’t even know how to avoid rumors, so how could she not worry?
After being reassured by Albina, Ariana’s heart calmed down a bit. The two talked for a while and when they hung up, Ariana’s voice trembled slightly.
-Albina, I’m a little afraid. I’m afraid of receiving news that I don’t want to accept.