Chapter 3: Stepmother
1129 Words
"What are you doing here in my house?" Chleo's stepmother Zenaida asked her the moment she stepped into the dining area of that mansion.
"Ugh! I'm losing my appetite now." Chleo's stepsister Cheska rolled her eyes heavenward and looked at her with disgust.
"Will you two shut up?" Mr. Wilfredo Santillan said he was eyeing his wife and daughter.
Chleo, on the other hand, didn't mind them. Because she is already used to that kind of treatment from them.
"I just came here to ask these two questions," Chleo said, not showing any emotion on her face.
"Who told you that you could talk to us?" Mrs. Santillan is raising her eyebrows.
"Hello, join us for breakfast first. After that, you can ask them anything you want," Mr. Santillan tells Chleo. He looks longingly at his daughter, who he doesn't get to see very often.
"I don't have time for that," In addition, if I ate with them, I might not be able to digest the stuff I'm about to consume," Chleo added, remaining emotionless.
"How dare you say that in front of us!" Mrs. Santillan raised her voice.
"See that, dad? She is so rude and has no manners." Chleo couldn't help but smirk at what Cheska said.
"Look who is speaking?"
"Are you making fun of me?" Cheska got up from her chair and gave Chleo a furious glare.
"How dare you speak to us in our home in such a manner?" Chleo is also receiving a glare from Mrs. Santillan.
"Enough." After warning Mrs. Santillan and Cheska, Mr. Santillan turns to face Chleo and smiles. "Chleo, please take a seat and join me for breakfast."
"I cant. I have to go back to the hospital. My patient is waiting for me. I just came here to ask if these two are behind the attempt to kill me this morning."
"Are you accusing us?" Cheska asked, bewildered.
"Are you for real? You came here to our house without permission to accuse us? I can sue you for this." Mrs. Santillan said, pointing her finger at Chleo.
"What do I expect? Of course you will deny it." Chleo shook her head.
Mr. Santillan was alarmed and asked Chleo, "What happened? Is that why you have a bandage on your arm? Did they catch the assassin?"
"They weren't able to catch the assailant. But I am certain that your wife and daughter were behind it." Chleo responded to her father.
"How dare you!" Mrs. Santillan slams the table angrily as she stands up. "You really have thick skin to accuse us here, huh? Your illegitimate child is really something." She added as she glanced at her husband.
"Shut up, Zenaida. You don't get to say that to my daughter. Chleo is my daughter also, and you have to respect that," Mr. Santillan declared, making his wife shut up.
"But she is accusing us!" Cheska retorted.
"Is that really just an accusation? Or are the two of you really behind the attempt on Chleo's life?" Mr. Santillan remarked.
Cheska and Mrs. Santillan was momentarily taken aback. But they quickly put on their irate facades again.
"They're not going to admit it. I'm just wasting my time going in here," Chleo quipped. "I'll get going now. But rest assured that I won't let it slip again if some innocent people get hurt because of your attempt on my life."
"Are you threatening us?" Cheska inquired and raised her brow.
"No. That's a warning," Chleo responded, then started to walk away.
Chleo can still hear the people she left there arguing, but she doesn't care anymore. She goes back to the hospital, expecting that the police are waiting for her to make her statement about the shooting incident. But instead, Kirko is the one waiting for her.
*****
"Chleo! Where have you been?" Mikuru worriedly approached Chleo when she saw her there entering Kirko's room.
"I am just going somewhere," Chleo answered.
"You are my private nurse, right? You just left me alone after what happened to us in the garden." Kirko's face is crumpled with irritation.
"Are you hurt?"
"What?" Chleo asked that question without showing any emotion, which made Kirko's face crease even more.
"What's your problem? You're not hurt or injured, but I am. So what's the problem if I leave you for a while?"
"Hah! How dare you speak to me in such a manner! Do you know who you are talking to right now?" Kirko inquired, frowning.
As she grinned, "I recognize you, sir. You are Kirko Fuentebella Hanasawa, the most sought-after bachelor, a well-known athlete, and a multibillionaire. Then what? Should I submit to you in a similar manner to the other ladies who worship you as their god?" Chleo added after making a sarcastic remark. "I'm sorry to deflate your bubble. I, however, am not like them."
Kirko was shocked to hear those words from Chleo. It was his first time encountering a woman like her. Women used to admire and worship him.
But the woman in front of him doesn't seem to care about his features as a man or his status in life.
"Chleo! Don't talk to our patient like that." Mikuru rushes to Chleo's side to reprimand her. "Forgive her for being rude, Mr. Hanasawa. She is just like that. But she didn't mean to offend you." She then turned to Kirko and smiled.
"Tsk! I can't believe this!" Kirko is shaking his head in disbelief.
"I'm not being rude, Mikuru. I'm just saying the truth. If it offends him, then I apologize. Now, let's get back to work." Chleo, then check Kirko's chart.
"How can you behave like nothing has happened? What happens in the garden in the mornings doesn't scare you?" Kirko enquired as he amusedly observed Chleo."
"She is already used to that kind of happening," Mikuru awkwardly blurted out.
"What do you mean by that? Why is she used to those kinds of happenings? Is that because you are working here in the hospital?" Kirko inquires, his brows furrowing.
"No. It's not because of our field of work. She was already used to that because she had already encountered several attempts on her life," Mikuru replied.
"What?! Why is that? Who is she to face some danger in her life?" Kirko curiously asked, looking at Chleo.
"Psh! You two are conversing as though I were not present, huh? It's time for your leg therapy. I will get back with the therapist," Chleo announced, then left the two.
"I have to go also, Mr. Hanasawa. Chleo is weird, but she's a nice person. Don't worry." Mikuru said, then left the room also.
Kirko was left there in awe. "Am I really safe here? especially with her?" He asked himself.
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