Chapter 43: Chapter 43

I wouldn't stop trying to annoy him until he says yes to my easy request.

"Okay. Enough! You will hide under my table. Don't make any noise let alone any other mess." He understood my reckless-self too good.

Like a puppy I nodded obediently.

Entering a large room, I prepared to hide. The table was quite large or Jazzlin's body was simply too small. I didn't feel cramped, but comfortable in there.

"Bring them in." Haytham ordered his men to let Jake and Ronald in.

I listened carefully to their heavy footsteps slowly approaching until they stopped some distance from where I was hiding.

"Wow, what a pleasant day isn't it? Finally, see you two coming here." Haytham returned to his cold character. He seemed to be accustomed to plastering his face with this mask. When he realized who I was, his attitude wasn't like that anymore.

"We come here, firstly because of one thing I'm sure you know it." Ronald said formally followed by Jake.

"You know who we want." Jake sounded more bitter than Ronald.

"Don't play riddles with me. I don't know who you want." Haytham straightened his position, his feet immediately entered under the table making me gasp. It was like he was sending me a code so I didn't mess around, "Why don't you say it clearly and loudly?"

There was the sound of someone pressing the trigger gun. I wonder who did it.

"Are you still playing dumb with us?" I think Jake did it, because his voice seemed more oppressive.

Of course, there was the next trigger being pressed sound, which I expected from Haytham's men.

"No, we have no intention of violence here." Ronald continued speaking in a calmer tone than Jake.

"Then tell your friend to lower his fucking gun." Haytham ordered, realizing this was his realm.

A moment of silence.

"We are here in good faith. Since you said you would stop all fighting and enmity between us, we are here to kindly ask you to return Jazzlin to us."

Haytham began to stomp several times, "On whose orders?"

"Of course the Ainsley."

"Then why didn't he come here himself and ask me directly?" He emphasized the word 'he come here himself'.

"He can't come." Jake snapped.

"I'm sorry for my friend's impudence." Ronald immediately said, "He's got other business."

"Isn't Jazzlin the most important woman for him? Then why isn't he there?" Intrigued was clearly heard in his voice.

What does he mean to ask kind of a question like that? My heart was beating very fast, even twice as fast.

Silence once again enveloped this room. Ronald did not speak nor did Jake speak to this question.

"Ah, I know." Haytham sounded like he was concluding something without their explanation. Me too, I felt that Barra had been ignoring me anymore, just because of my one mistake that accidentally hurt him.

I remembered Mr. Sumedh's words, he said regarding Barra's trust in me. I shouldn't have broken that guy's trust, but that was what had happened.

It was not my fault, but the real Jazzlin for hiding all this. And here I got all the consequences.

"Tell you what, I'm going to hand over Jazzlin at Niki and Sean's wedding which will be held soon. How about that? Oh yeah one more thing, I want Barra to come there."

"How dare y-" Ronald cut Jake's off, "No don't."

"So, what are you saying?" Haytham sounded like he was enjoying how he managed to make Jake pissed off.

"We'll let you know as soon as we reach a decision." After saying that their footsteps began to move away from my existence.

Haytham breathed a sigh of relief before helping me out of my hiding place.

"Your friends get angry very quickly." He chuckled, "I was just kidding."

I shook my head as my eyes rolled, "Are you kidding or making fun of them?"

"Both?" He smirked.

"Niki and Sean are getting married soon?" I remembered again about Mr. Salvatore's relationship with the man in front of me.

"Yes, in a few days. But, there's no definite news." He walked out of the room followed by me, "Any question?"

He knew very well I would keep asking questions until I got all the answers.

"You and Mr. Salvatore... Are you two involving in mafia?"

"Yes." As usual the answer was simple. I couldn't see how he reacted other than his shoulders which immediately straighten as if he was getting tense at my out of the blue question.

"So it's true." I spoke to myself not to him but he stopped and looked back. His eyes were on mine.

"Do you know the reason I joined them?" His voice sounded strange.

I was certain I saw something in his eyes. They stared down as if gathering the courage to say it.

"For you." He said seriously.

I gulped, "Me?" Reality patted me. Everything he had done all this time was just his revenge for my death.

My conversation with him still concerned me. After my last question, he just walked away. He seemed so tired from all this drama and conflict.

Our life used to run smoothly without the most confusing twists like this. Now everything was not that easy.

I never imagined that now I could return to Haytham and Alia, but I still felt emptiness in my heart. Someone was missing from there, and it was killing me every day.

I wanted him. I needed him.

At that time I only asked one person, had no idea since when he had become an important part of my life.

He protected and saved me at the most critical times in my life. He was just there without demanding anything, kept watching then giving me a sense of peaceful while with him, but now he was also not by my side.

Currently I was accompanying Alia in her room. The room was filled with items that were mostly in pink color. She liked disney princesses so much, she even said that my face was as beautiful as them.

Jazzlin was really that beautiful. Even so, she wished to see my real face at my current age.

She and I had been telling stories with our bodies lying on the soft mattress.

She also shared the story of how Haytham adopted her after he had thoroughly prepared himself.

He covered everything up to Alia's tuition fees. Unfortunately, because Haytham's enemies were everywhere, he didn't let Alia go to public school but homeschool.

Alia still had friends while Haytham accompanied her to places where kids were playing there. She easily made friends. She told me the names of her friends. They were good friends, she said.

She missed the orphanage, but Clarissa was no longer there. I was surprised to hear the news that Clarissa had moved from there for a long time.

My death left deep scars in the hearts of some people. Clarissa felt she had failed in taking care of the children at the orphanage. She blamed herself for letting me go that day.

No one clearly knew where she moved. She kept her departure in secret and also where she was headed.

Clarissa was the one I loved the most. She taught me many things and gave knowledge in any matter. She was a mother figure to me, even though she was busy with the other children, but she still gave her attention to all of us unconditionally.

Many things I didn't know happened at the orphanage, but now I knew.

Haytham was the biggest contributor as well as being the person in charge of everything there. He still loved all the kids like he used to, it was just that he had never been there now. He thought he would be a danger to the children there.

His men were deployed there only for guard, making sure the children were safe.

Alia knew all this because as usual she was eavesdropping. She knew that Haytham wouldn't possibly tell her, so she was using the mouse path.

Gunshots, violence and others were often heard by this little girl. She was getting used to it even though she was badly traumatized at first.

Alia looked tough. I never thought all these things happened to her. She was still a kid, and she had been through it all.

The first time I saw a gun I was already terrified and imagining every nonsense things, moreover she was too innocent.

In the middle of her story she started yawning, I think it was time she fell asleep. Time already showed nine o'clock in the evening and we had been talking since this afternoon.

"It's time to sleep Snow White." I woke up and tickled her. She laughed instantly with her two hands trying to push my hands away.

"Thank you, Janielle." She smiling after stopped laughing. I replied with a faint smile before wishing her goodnight.

"Sweet dreams." I kissed her forehead then turned off the light and left the room.

I let my breath out before going to my room. I looked at Haytham's room, wondering if he was asleep. However, there wasn't the slightest sound there, so I returned to my room.

Before my eyes closed, I was praying to God. I prayed that everything would get better. So that everyone would no longer have dangerous conflicts like yesterday. All my hopes were filled mainly with his name, Barra. I love him.