Chapter 242: Chapter 242

"Did you need me to come in and deal with the person that you could not handle?" The voice at the other end of the phone remained quiet at this question. This made Avril smile. A cold, wicked smile that had spread when Avril realized that she had allowed herself to be used. She thought long and hard as the person remained silent,

’Avril, you never learn, do you?’ She smirked as she chastised herself but still could not help it but throw her mind back.

"He’s getting married!"

This was the test that she had received a few weeks back from this same number. However, instead of ignoring it like she usually would have done, Avril had replied,

"Who is getting married, and who are you? Why should I care?"

The response: "Oops! HE is already married. You are too late, just as always, in all situations and circumstances involving HIM!"

Even though that response had been vague, and no names had been mentioned, Avril knew. She was treated as one of the Thornston siblings in-house, but like the masses, who did not know that there was an ’adopted’ daughter, the Thornstons themselves did not share such intimate news with her.

It was also partly her fault because Avril knew that if she had kept in touch with her dad, Alex Thornston, she might have been privy to that information from family instead of from a stranger like that.

’Is this why Dad has been trying to get me to go back?’ Avril had asked herself as she finally checked online to find the news of her brother’s marriage to the most beautiful girl she had ever seen in her lifetime. Her heart constricted because Avril could not deny that it was a great pair.

Avril left the carousel pictures in a loop on her computer and kept watching them over and over again, fueling her anger and regret.

The annoying texts never stopped, and soon, Avril found herself in cahoots with the person on the other end of the line. That is what had precisely blinded Avril.

One might wonder why Avril would go to such lengths to link up with an unknown person when she should have been happy that her brother was finally married, but Avril definitely had other thoughts.

Only Alex believed that she was his daughter; Avril never believed in such ’nothings!’

Avril also knew that with Alex’s thoughts and no matter how welcoming he was with her, he would never accept her as his daughter-in-law, so she had to do something to put them in a situation where they could not say NO.

She was not related by blood to the Thornstons, and her only aim in her life was to become the perfect first daughter-in-law to the Thornstons. She had been planning this from childhood and thought she had the extra advantage over all other girls because she lived under the same roof as Ian.

On that, she gave a silent thumps-up to Geneva because the woman had the eyes of a hawk. Most of her initial plans, whatever they had been, had never worked, and Avril suspected that Geneva thwarted them, but Avril could never prove that, and she dared not.

Avril was sadly mistaken because there was Aliya. When Aliya was in the picture, Ian never had an eye for any other girl, sibling or not, so Avril never stood a chance anyway.

When Aliya got engaged to Tyler, it was the happiest day in Avril’s life, but little did she know that this would only fuel Ian’s desire for her despite its futility. At that time, Avril only thought of Ian as a fool, but she never expected him to spiral down after her death, too. Whatever held Ian to Aliya in Avril’s point of view was definitely unfathomable because nothing made sense from the logical point of view.

Well, that was all in the past. The question remained if Avril wanted to let herself be used by this person.

The silence from the other end of the line stretched, and then Avril added as if answering the initial question,

"No, I don’t think I can handle such a little girl as you say. So why don’t you take over the task yourself?"

"I’ll see you today at that soiree you are hosting, and you better keep your end of the bargain!"

The line dropped, and Avril gasped in surprise and annoyance. Whatever bargain that was, Avril was the only one who knew it.

She clenched her hand tightly around her phone and then marched to the nearest restroom. Avril looked at the reflection that stared back at her. Her long black hair was still in the same high ponytail and her black eyes that looked bright.

She splashed some cool water on her face. Avril’s features were not considered that beautiful, but she had a pretty sophistication around her that added some elegance to her being. This was enough for heads to turn when she was around or passing.

She took in long, huge breaths. After this, and when she felt calm enough, Avril made one last stop before she v-lined back to the venue.

Looking at the place, she could not find fault, but Avril still walked up to Ava, who was then getting out of her ’uniform,’

"Why do you have these greasy snacks here? They will overpower the taste buds, and people will not be able to taste the wines properly!"

Avril snapped, and Ava sighed.

Without waiting for Ava to speak, Avril picked out a cracker and shoved it into her mouth, and then her eyes widened involuntarily.

She turned to hide her reactions, but the few workers around had seen it and could not help but smile. Why?

That had all tasted all the delicacies that Ava had personally made that day. The small round cracker that Avril had taken was one that was somewhat tasteless at the start, but that cracker melted in one’s mouth. The taste then crept up on you. It’s a taste that could not be described in words.

It was slightly buttery and nutty at the same time. It was amazing but not overpowering. It just could not be described and that was enough to shut Avril up. Looking around, she saw the other assortments that had been laid out on exquisite platters. There was an assortment of mild cheese, sunflower seeds, walnuts, dried smoked and cut ham, and others, as well as mixed fruits and one more tray of different kinds of cookies.

Avril dared not take another bite of the cookies because she knew in her heart that she would not be able to stop eating if she took another piece. The taste was mind-blowing!

Avril cleared her throat awkwardly and then looked around, she did not have to do anything, none at all. The wines that needed to be decanted had already been done. The rest were resting in a row of ice garnished with fresh grapes that made it look so inviting that she swallowed dryly.

This was supposed to be her event, but Ava had worked more on it than she should have. At the back of her mind, Avril felt a little guilty for having let Ava do everything. In essence, Avril thought that she had set Ava up for failure, but Ava had done so brilliantly that Avril felt shame for the first time in her life. Of course, Avril would never admit it.

She looked around slowly and then glanced at the clock.

"It’s time, everyone, get into place! I’ll go meet and welcome the guests."

Ava lifted the corner of her mouth as Avril assumed the role of the host almost immediately as if she was the one who had been in charge from the days before. Of course, Ava was not looking for a ’thank you’. She knew what to do and worked on it to the best of her ability. Ava had suffered enough in her life not to notice little setups like what Avril had tried to do.

Ava looked up just as the last flowers arrived. She hurriedly took them herself and placed them around. Ava looked around one-handed and then slipped out of the place to the bathroom to refresh herself before joining the occasion.

Ava appreciated this time to work. Hard work meant that she did not have to think. Ava did not want to think of anything! Neither of Josh nor of Rocky, and lately, another person had been texting and calling her.

Ava sighed, entered the bathroom, and closed the stall. She leaned against it and then tiredly rubbed her temples.

Lately, even though she was still upset at Josh’s betrayal, shutting him out and picking up his calls had given her a level of satisfaction. Her mind would invariably move to Rocky from time to time, and Ava could not help it. The ’little’ boy had crept into her heart, and Ava was afraid. She was deadly afraid of what the future would hold for her.

"What should I do now?" Ava whispered in the empty space. She knew that Rocky wanted to give her space to think, but he still texted her daily to find out how she was doing, which was quite lovely.

Just then, her phone buzzed, and Ava brought it out of her pocket a little expectantly, only for her smile to die on her lips. However, she still slid her hand on the green slide with a soft touch and brought the phone to her ears,

"I really cannot help you with anything, so please stop calling!"

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