Chapter 32: Chapter 32

Valerie glanced at the mirror, and sighed sadly. The clown attire was so far the most uncomfortable outfit she had ever worn since she was born.

“Are you okay?” The lady tapped her shoulder, and she forced a smile at her, and nodded her head. “I'm fine, ma'am. Let's go”.

Valerie stood on the platform, and Audrey waved at her with smiles all over her face. She just couldn't wait to win the prizes, as she trusted Valerie so much.

Not long after, the dance started. Audrey kept on cheering Valerie. To please Audrey, Valerie started dancing.

It was funny, but the best among the others. Audrey was so proud of her. Even in the clown attire, she was still dancing really well.

A little girl at the other sighted Audrey, and walked up to her. Tapping her shoulder, she asked. “The lady over there. Is she your mother?”

Audrey turned her gaze to her. She felt proud again, and nodded her head. “Yes. Do you have a problem with that?”

“Uhm… No! She's gorgeous, and she dances well. You're so lucky to have such a mother” The girl bowed her head sadly. Audrey narrowed her eyes. She couldn't wrap her head around what the girl meant.

“Don't you have a mother? Why do you sound so sad?” Audrey asked anxiously.

The girl smiled dryly. “Not everyone has a mother who cares about them. You are really lucky, and I wish I were as lucky as you are”.

With that, tears circulated in the girl's eyes. Slowly, it rolled down her cheeks. Audrey felt sorry for her. She quickly brought out her handkerchief, and handed it over to her. “Oh come on! You're a big girl, and girls like you shouldn't cry in public. I apologize for whatever it is that is making you feel sad, but just like me, I'm sure you'll get a mother as perfect as mine”.

“Thank you. I'm Stephanie, by the way”.

“Audrey!”

They were already chatting and laughing when a lady rushed in. She was panting heavily. Rushing to Stephanie, who was having a good time chatting with Audrey, she grabbed her wrist. “Steph, we have to go”.

“What about the competition? I thought I was…” Stephanie was saying when she shook her head. “Forget about that, little one. Let's go”.

Stephanie reluctantly got up, and bade Audrey goodbye before rushing off.

“Weird!” Audrey mumbled. She turned to the platform, and to her greatest surprise, she saw her nanny holding a trophy.

“She won?”

“The winner of today's clown dancing competition is Miss Valerie Watson on behalf of little Miss Audrey Davison” The announcement was made, and Audrey tried to jump in excitement, but her sprained ankle made her sit down immediately.

Valerie rushed to her, and handed the trophy to her. She carried her to the platform, and they were applauded. The prize was given to them, and taken to the car they brought with them.

Meanwhile, Valerie was still dressed in the clown attire. She carried Audrey to the car, and patted her hair. “Audrey, I need to change into a better attire, okay?”

Audrey nodded her head with a smile. “Alright, Miss old-fashioned”. Valerie turned to leave when the driver stopped her.

“I don't think it's a good idea for you to waste any more time. I'm afraid the president might come home before us, and you'll get into trouble”.

“But I need to change into my outfit. I mean… this is only going to make me feel hot” Valerie complained, and the driver bowed his head. “I know, but I'll turn the air conditioner on. You don't know how the President will react if he finds out that you actually took Audrey out, and she sprained her ankle. That's enough trouble”.

Valerie shivered on hearing his last statements. He was right. She was still going to explain how Audrey's ankle got sprained, lastly she still had to explain what she was doing with Nicole.

“Why do I always get into trouble? Now, Audrey's ankle is sprained. We even attended a competition without letting her father know. Is that how much you enjoy getting into trouble, Valerie?”.

“You're right. I'll take the attire off when we get home. I still need to treat Audrey's sprain”.

They got into the car, and they drove off immediately. Valerie tried everything she could just to calm herself down. She just couldn't.

A few hours later, they drove into Davison's villa. Valerie got down from the car, and carried Audrey quickly. Her palms were all sweaty. “Miss old-fashioned, you don't have to be nervous. I won't let Daddy do anything to you”.

Valerie smiled nervously at her, and nodded her head. “Thank you, baby”

With that, she carried her and rushed into the house. The sitting room was dark because the light was turned off. “But why?”

She didn't care much about it, and she had already forgotten that she was still putting on the clown outfit. She headed towards the stairs, tiptoeing.

“Where are you coming from?”

The deep but croaky voice brought cold shivers down her spine. The light was turned on, and she saw the furious looking President glaring at her as though he would shoot her dead with his eyes.

She tripped, and he caught her and Audrey in his arm. Staring into her eyes, he asked. “Are you a clown?”