Chapter 4

Kill

Tatiana was astounded at what was outside the door of her room. There were a total of seven doors in the hallway. There were three on the left, the same with the right. And one at the end. The room she slept in was the first one at the right side, near the grand staircase. 

While she was holding  Serena, she used her other hand to feel how smooth the bannister was. She felt like a queen walking down the stairs to announce about her princess, Serena. She also saw how the hanging chandelier shone and shimmered through the living room. 

"Maida, please let Serena sleep in the crib," Athena ordered to one of their maids. 

"Yes, ma'am." Maida bowed a bit and went to Tatiana to get Serena. 

Tatiana smiled. "Thank you," she said. 

The maid smiled at her, too, then went to the living room with Serena in her arms. 

They just got downstairs. They were now in the dining room. She could not believe that her best friend had this kind of house. 

"Sit down, Tati."

She heard Athena. She looked at her, who already pulled a seat. She sat and turned to the lady. "Thanks, Athena."

"No problem!" She beamed. She pulled a seat for herself and sat down. 

The dining table was big for the three of them. It was like a table for royal parties. There were also lots of food lined up on the table. Fried rice, sunny side up eggs, hotdogs, and bacon. There was also a loaf of bread with an apple jam jar beside it. 

Tatiana almost drooled. Her stomach suddenly grumbled. Her face turned into a tomato. It was loud enough to be heard by the people in the hall. She looked at Athena who was showing her perfect white teeth at her and to the man at the edge of the table. 

His face was covered with newspaper. There was also a cup of coffee beside him. 

Tatiana sighed in relief. He did not hear her complaining stomach. 

Athena scoffed. "Shall we eat?" She asked them. 

Tatiana nodded. She could not help but to glance at Hades who had taken down his newspaper and was now getting his food. She wanted to look at those emerald eyes again. But when those eyes took a glance at her, she stiffened for a while then looked down to her plate. 

"Tss." He hissed. 

She grabbed tightly at her spoon and fork. What the heck was she thinking about? Why could not she mind her own business instead? What if Hades found her disrespectful or somewhat creepy for staring at him? She sighed. She felt crazy battling with her mind over a hiss. 

"Is something wrong?" Athena faced her. She was worried. 

She shook her head and gave Athena a sheepish smile. "N-no. I-I was just thinking of something," she said, lying. 

"Care to share?" 

She waved her hands. "No. It was nothing important. Just random thoughts." She laughed nervously. She saw how her best friend's eyebrows arched as if she was not convinced with what she had said. She could feel her sweat starting to form. She prayed in her mind that she would let this one pass. She knew Athena as a person who was curious about everything. And once she was curious, she would not stop digging until she got the answers she was looking for. 

"Okay," she said in defeat.

'Phew.' Tatiana was mentally relieved. Maybe Athena had changed somehow after the years had passed. 

"How's college by the way?" Athena started asking after she munched her food. 

"Oh." The food that Tatiana was about to take was stopped mid-air. "I stopped," she answered, then she took her food. 

"What? Why?" Athena's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Because I got preggy. You know?" It sounded like it was not a big deal to Tatiana but it was. She was just hiding it. She could not afford more pity from Athena anymore. She felt like the more pity they gave her, the deeper her feet were buried below the ground. 

"Oh c'mon! You could've continued. What's the purpose of home study?" She rolled her eyes.

Tatiana drank water from her glass before she spoke. "You know Aunt Adel won't waste money on me. And also, my pregnancy was so sensitive. I could not handle more stress," she emphasized.

Athena cut her tongue. How insensitive of her? Why did she forget about her best friend's evil stepmother? "I-I'm sorry." She felt guilty. 

"No. It was fine. It was no big deal by the way. And I can return to college once I can stand on my own." She took another spoonful of food. 

A moment of silence had passed. 

Tatiana was blinking fast for several times to stop her tears from falling. She was stopping her mind from thinking of her problems because she did not want to worry Athena. And also, she had Serena now, she must be strong. If not for herself, then for her beloved daughter. 

Athena, on the other hand, was still arguing with her mind. Sometimes her curiosity was a disadvantage. Look at what she did to Tatiana. Tatiana may have seemed not bothered but she knew her too well. She knew whenever she was lying. Because her dazzling amber eyes would tell everything she could not. 

"Why is Serena's surname Ramirez? Where is her father?" Before she could stop her mouth, another stupid question came out of her mouth. What a wench!

"Athena…" Hades warned her. All the while, he was silently listening to the two ladies. He did not have a plan on talking around Tatiana. But Athena's mouth was unstoppable that made him involve himself in the conversation. He noticed how her sister could not stop to feed her curiosity. 

Tatiana was stunned. It was not because of Hades' voice. It was because the night she made that mistake flashed in her mind like a hologram. The night that changed her supposedly peaceful life. If she did not go to the bar that night, her life would have not been messed up. Maybe she had continued living her normal student life.. And probably, she was about to graduate now. And they would not find out that she was not her father's legitimate child. 

She was on the verge of fully regretting what happened. But she realized something. If it did not happen, Serena would not be here now. How could she regret all of that? If that was the reason that she found a new reason to live. 

Athena put down her spoon and fork. She faced the teary-eyed woman apologetically. "I'm sorry I could not stop myself. You do not need to answer that. It's fine, Tati."

Tatiana looked up at the ceiling then blinked continuously. When satisfied, she fixed her posture and chuckled. It was hard but she felt like she owed Athena an answer as her best friend and as the one who saved them last night. "N-no. I also need to tell you. You're my best friend," she started. Her nose turned red. She sniffed before she grinned at Athena. "I was drugged that night. I don't know who did it. And I don't plan on finding out. I don't want my Serena to grow up learning that her father was a rapist. Whoever he was, I don't care anymore. Serena might be a fruit of a crime but I love her. She's my child. And I'm going to protect her from everything and everyone that will hurt her. I just hope that her father will not show up one day claiming her. Because I swear I'm gonna kill for her." There was a sudden fire in her eyes. 

Athena could not help but to get goosebumps. It was like it was not Tatiana who was talking. 

Hades' expression, at a distance, darkened. He gripped hardly on the glass of water he was holding.