Chapter 8

Right after she left, Kathleen went in to wash her hands. While washing, she frowned suddenly. It felt like she had seen the woman from earlier but she could not put a finger on when and where.

She thought about it but could not recall the memories. So she decided to just let it slide. She went out of the establishment after that.

Once she arrived outside, she found Mark Pattinson waiting outside.

He saw the look on her face, as if she was thinking of something. He asked, “What’s the matter?”

“Nothing. I bumped into a crazy lady,” Kathleen said simply.

Mark Pattinson smiled in a gentlemanly fashion and put it behind his mind.

“Let’s go then.”

Kathleen nodded. She had been with Mark for so long and she knew that there was one rule she must understand—be mature.

Mark Pattinson did not like a woman who caused trouble. That was why she would want to behave well.

The two got into the car and left.

Meanwhile, Lyla returned to her booth, and Abigail immediately turned to her.

“What took you so long?”

Lyla smiled. “Someone needed a free-of-charge lesson in life.”

Abigail arched an eyebrow; not knowing what she meant by that. Lyla sat down and said, “Alright! I’m back! Back to eating!”

Seeing as it was not something important, Abigail forewent asking more about it. The four of them continued enjoying their time eating hotpot together.

…

Early in the morning of the following day, Lyla Lowe brought Hansel and Gretel to the cemetery.

The rows of tombstones made the entire place rather cold and desolated. Lyla walked towards a tombstone and had a good look into the words that were engraved on it.

“Hi mum, it’s me…” she said.

She turned to the other two and said, “Come, Hansel, Gretel. Say hello to your grandmother.”

“Hello, grandmother!”

“Hello, grandmother.”

Both Hansel and Gretel gave their greetings obediently. Usually, they were rowdy but here, in the cemetery, they were exceptionally well-behaved.

Hansel rested a bouquet of flowers and spoke to the tombstone.

“Grandmother, we are here to see you!”

“Grandmother, look! Aren’t the flowers pretty?” Gretel said.

Lyla smiled, as she felt gratified when she looked at her two children.

“Mum, I’m back. I’m so sorry for not coming back to see you all this while…”

She took her time and talked to her mother while both Hansel and Gretel were quiet. In the end, after she composed herself, she said, “All done! Come on, let’s go home.”

“Bye, grandmother! We’re leaving! I promise I will come back more often to see you!” said Gretel.

Feeling even more gratified because of how mature her children were, Lyla smiled.

“Come.”

“Mhm!”

The band of three then left together.

When they got home, Lyla found a school for both Hansel and Gretel. The school was not too far from the apartment they stayed in. After that, everything was finally settled.

The only thing left to do was to go to work tomorrow.

At night, after having a bath, Lyla went into her bedroom.

“The two of you should rest early, alright?” said Lyla to the two children.

Gretel immediately nodded. “Yes, mummy! Goodnight, mummy!”

Lyla shook her head helplessly and returned to her room.

Hansel was sitting at a corner using a computer. At that moment, Gretel tip-toed towards him and lunged herself at him.

“Hansel! I have something I need to tell you.”

Hansel did not even turn his head to look at her. His eyes were still glued to the screen.

“What?”

“Yesterday, when mummy and I went to the supermarket, I met someone who looks exactly like you!”

At that instance, Hansel’s hand suddenly stopped moving. He turned to her and asked, “What are you trying to say?”

“Hansel, you’re smart. I know you know what I am trying to say. It’s a pity that there was another woman by his side or I would have been able to get more answers out of him!”

Hansel appeared pensive, and he looked at her. “Anything else?”

“He said his name is Mark Pattinson. He is very handsome and he looks very rich. Try and look him up on the internet. See if you could dig up some information about him!” Gretel suggested.

Hansel nodded after hearing his sister’s suggestion. He opened a browser. He then keyed in the words “Mark Pattinson” on the keyboard…