Dad visited me that evening. He was shaking with suppressed anger. I avoided his gaze.
I didn’t like seeing him so mad at me, but I understood why. Just last night, I had sent Japen off to who knows where, and now Skylar had visited me. Maybe he was blaming me for both incidents.
“Azora,” he said sharply. He had a piercing look in his eyes. “Who is Skylar Angeles?”
I looked away. “Just a schoolmate.” Then I looked back at him. “You should ask Simmy about him. Skylar is her nephew.”
He squinted at me. “Simmy?”
“What, Dad? You don’t know who Skylar is or how he got here? Didn’t you think about how he got into the mansion? How he got inside this room? We both know who’s capable of letting a stranger in. Even if I called him here, do you think he could enter the mansion on his own?”
Dad’s shoulders rose and fell as he took a deep breath, clenching his fists. He tried to control his anger, and when he looked at me again, the furrow in his brow had lessened.
“What did he do in here?”
I shrugged. “Nothing. We just talked.” His frown deepened, so I cleared my throat and decided to tell the truth since lying wouldn’t get me anywhere.
“He admitted that Simmy is his father’s sister. They just recently met, and Simmy contacted him to visit me. Since I haven’t been able to attend classes these past few weeks, he came here to check on me. And…” I looked him straight in the eye. “…we talked about the University. He asked me when I would attend classes.”
I suppressed the wild beating of my heart. I didn’t dare let him see through my facade, that I was nervous.
It was best not to mention Simmy’s true motives. I’d only invite more trouble if I let that slip. If Dad was determined, he could investigate Skylar and find out about his connection to Clasiso. I wanted Dad to figure out Simmy’s motives for inviting Skylar over on his own.
And I knew Skylar would never tell the Clasiso. He wouldn’t let Simmy get any satisfaction. For me, telling the Clasiso wouldn’t change anything. It was useless.
“You know what happened last night, right?” I asked him.
His brow shot up, and he stared at me. “You were locked here with Japen,” he said indifferently.
“Yes.” I gulped hard and looked away. “I also sent Anya to take care of him. Now that there’s no one with me, can you promise to spare them? It was my wrongdoing in the first place. I invited Japen here to comfort me, and yet Simmy locked him up. I didn’t have the chance to let him go because I knew you had your men inside and outside this mansion. I don’t want him to be hurt because of my selfishness.”
“And Anya?” he asked.
I bit my lip guiltily. “She’s my friend, but I had to send her with Japen. I instructed them not to come back here, so please spare them.”
He stared at me for too long before taking a deep breath. “You’re not attending face-to-face classes anymore, Azora. I’ve arranged for online classes for you. You’ll start next week.”
I bit my lip at what he said. He would spare them, right? But then, online classes? My expression soured. “You plan to detain me here that long? Dad, you’re unbelievable!”
His brow raised at my remark. “Don’t forget that you went out of this room without my permission last night. I will never let you out unless you learn your lesson, young lady!” Then he turned his back on me and walked out of the room, slamming the door shut and locking it from the outside.
I drew a deep breath. I didn’t know what to say to him anymore. He would never let me out, and I knew it. This situation would get worse because of what I did last night.
I sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. A servant had brought my dinner earlier. When I looked at the wall clock, I saw that it was past eleven in the evening. I lay under the quilt and stared at the ceiling. I reached for the remote control and switched off the light.
The soft glow from the nightstand was the only light in the room. The wind howled outside the balcony, and a soft, cold breeze came into the room through the light curtain. The curtain danced in the breeze.
I drew a deep breath and smiled softly. The stillness in the room gave me a sense of calm. I closed my eyes but then opened them when I remembered something.
I reached for my cellphone under the nightstand and looked for Japen’s number in my contacts. But his number was out of reach, so I called Anya instead.
A few seconds passed before someone picked up the phone. “Miss Azora!” I heard Anya’s excited greeting. “I’m glad you called! I didn’t know if I could call you, so I waited for your call.”
I chuckled. “How’s Japen?”
There was silence before Anya spoke. “He’s okay. Robert took him to the hospital, and the doctors took care of him immediately. The doctor said the surgery went well. We’re just waiting for him to wake up.”
I released the breath I was holding. “Okay, let me know when he wakes up. How are you?”
“Uh, I’m fine, Miss.”
“How about Robert?”
“He’s fine too.”
Then silence again. I heard faint background noise on Anya’s line. I gulped and said, “You can call me late at night, not midnight, if there’s any problem. Alright?”
“Mm. Are you okay there, Miss?”
“I’m… okay.”
“Alright, Miss. Uh, am I not coming back there?”
“No. Don’t come back. Just take care of Japen, and also call Mang Selyo to inform him about Japen’s recovery. I gave Robert the money. It should be enough to pay the bills and for your needs.”
“Ah, yes, Miss. I called Mang Selyo earlier. He said he would come to the hospital tomorrow morning. Robert went home, so I’m here alone now.”
“Alright. Stay safe.”
“Okay, Miss.”
Then I hung up. I drew a deep breath again and placed the cellphone back on the bedside table. I stared at the ceiling before closing my eyes.