Elena? Was she the same Elena he had hoped to meet?
“Your name is… Elena?”
Old Master Garcia was surprised when he heard her name, and he immediately looked through the photos on his mobile phone. He wanted to have another look at Elena’s pictures that his assistant had sent him.
Even though the girl in the photos was not ugly, her freckled complexion was nothing like the skin on the beautiful girl in front of him.
Did they only share the same name?
“Yes, I’m Elena. Do you know me, Grandfather?”
Elena’s gaze trailed across his hands until she could peek at his phone. When she saw the photos on his phone, she was shocked. “You…”
Why would the older man have photos of her?
Old Master Garcia looked at the photos again, and then at the girl in front of him. Only then did he realize that their foreheads seemed quite similar.
Joseph noticed the resemblance between the two girls, and he immediately asked, “Miss Garcia, is your father’s name Henry?”
Even though the Elena that he had seen in the photos was not an attractive girl, the Elena in front of him must have been the most beautiful woman in the world.
She had such a fair, delicate, and dainty face, and she did not even use any makeup on her face. That must have been her real appearance.
Why did the detective send them such ugly photos of her? Could the photos have been taken after a makeup contest?
If they did not have those misleading photos of her, they would have recognized her the first time they met.
“Yes, Henry is my father.” Elena looked at Joseph in a somewhat defensive manner.
“Don’t panic; we come in peace. Besides, just look at these two fellows…” Joseph pointed at his grandfather and Uncle Ding, who shared similar personality traits with his grandfather. He gestured at them and asked, “Do they look like bad guys?”
Elena did not know whether to laugh or cry. How could someone from the younger generation say that about the elderly in the family? Still, those two older adults did not look malicious in any way.
Ava had made her way toward her new family, and her face froze when she realized what had happened.
“Grandfather, what’s going on? I don’t feel well, let’s head home!” She glared at Elena and immediately tried to drag Old Master Garcia away from her.
Old Master Garcia said, “Haven’t I told you about the nice young lady we met the other day? I didn’t expect her to be your sister.”
The old man grabbed Elena’s arm. She wanted to retract her hand, but he had a firm grip on her.
“Oh my! It’s like I have two granddaughters at the same time! I’m so happy!”
Granddaughters?
Elena looked at Ava, and then at the older man again.
She was always cautious when it was something to do with Ava. “Who… are you? Why did she call you… Grandfather?”
“This has nothing to do with you!” Ava immediately interrupted them. There was sweat on her forehead, but no one knew if it was due to the heat or something else altogether.
“Grandfather, she has a bad temper. I’m worried that she’ll hit you. Let us head home!”
“No, Ava. Elena has a good temper. I like her very much.”
‘But I don’t like her!’ Ava pulled a long face. Why was it so hard to talk sense into that damn old man?
On the contrary, Elena felt a sudden thrill when she saw Ava’s anxious look. She also tugged Old Master Garcia’s sleeve and smiled, “If Second Sister calls you Grandfather, then I shall call you Grandfather too!”
She smiled sweetly in an incredibly lovable manner, “Grandfather!”
Her words sent oodles of sweetness into Old Master Garcia’s heart.
The old man had always imagined Elena as his granddaughter, but he did not expect that he would make a mistake. He felt like he had lost another granddaughter when he met Ava.
He was so thrilled that he felt like his granddaughter had returned to him when Elena addressed him as ‘Grandfather.’ The old man was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly. “Elena is also my granddaughter. You and Ava are my granddaughters from here onward!”
“Sure!” Even though Elena did not know why Ava wanted to get on his good books, Elena did not dislike the old man.
A woman as evil as Ava must have had a purpose when she acknowledged him as her grandfather. Perhaps she had wanted to deceive him. She needed to give them a friendly reminder. She did not want Ava to trick and kind and honest old man!
“Grandfather, how can you acknowledge such a problematic person as your granddaughter?”
Ava was not happy. Elena must not be allowed to address him as ‘Grandfather.’ She would feel guilty if Elena were to call him that.
Old Master Garcia looked at her rather unhappily.
“Ava, how could you say that? She’s your sister, and so, she’s also my granddaughter.”
If Elena’s family had not raised Ava, he might not have had a chance to reunite with her. He regarded Elena’s family as their family’s benefactors. Furthermore, he really liked that young lady. Ava had been excessive with her words when she called Elena a ‘problematic person.’
“I just don’t like it when anyone else calls you Grandfather!” Ava could only harp on the same old thing as she could find a good excuse. The people around them thought Ava had made a big fuss over something trivial.
Old Master Garcia and Uncle Ding looked at each other. The latter smiled and said, “Young Miss, Old Master likes you very much. That’s why…”
They all thought Ava was merely jealous, and they felt it was a natural reaction. She had only reunited with her grandfather, so it was understandable that she did not want anyone else to call him ‘Grandfather’ as well.
Regardless of what Ava had said, she was already about 18 or 19 years of age. Her temper, however, was similar to a little girl. It did not seem as though her temperament matched her age.
Elena shrugged. She was too lazy to entertain that woman, and she did not want to embarrass herself. She looked at Old Master Garcia and smiled softly. “My sister is a bit… mischievous. You’ll have to be careful with this one, Grandfather.”
Conflicts between those two sisters were nothing new. Elena was not afraid if people were to laugh at them.
Ava suddenly blushed in anger. “Elena, what do you mean by that?”
“Time shall reveal a person’s heart. There’s no need for me to explain what I mean.”
Instead of the old man, Elena looked at Joseph instead. “Sir, please take good care of the seniors in your family. Don’t let other people deceive you so easily.”
She still had other things to do, so she did not want to interfere with Ava’s affairs.
Just as he was about to leave, Joseph said, “Your elder sister is a child of our Garcia family. That is why she addresses my grandfather as ‘Grandfather’.”
Elena’s reminder was only loud enough for Joseph’s ears. He was rather fond of the girl in front of him.
Ava, on the other hand, was a little hard for him to accept. Perhaps it was because she had acted like a spoiled and arrogant brat even though she was old enough to behave differently.
“A child of your Garcia family?” What did he mean? Were they also from the Garcia family? If they were relatives from the same Garcia family, why had she not met them before?
“You’re…”
“We’re from City L,” Joseph answered her warmly. “City L’s Garcia family.”
City L’s Garcia family!
There were many families in City L with the Garcia surname, but only one would dare to proclaim themselves as the Garcia family from City L! That family was in the pharmaceutical business! That Garcia family!
Even though they shared the same surname Garcia, they were not related at all!
Elena had learned a lot of drug-refining techniques in her past life. During that period, the pharmaceutical family that she admired most was the same Garcia family from City L. It seemed like they were that same Garcia family.
“Are you saying…” She looked at Ava, and then at Joseph, with a shocked expression on her face. “Ava is a part of your family?”