Can’t Turn Back Time!

Chapter Nine

There was a soft gasp from Lucille at those words.

“Young Miss, don’t say that.” She uttered softly with a coercive smile, “Your dad is not home today and the madam is free. Let her just take you. You haven’t had your mom take you to school in ages.”

All the staff knew the dynamics of the young Langford family.

Aurora was a full time housewife, and the staff somehow knows that the madam can’t appear in public as Ethan’s wife.

So if she was seen in public with Riley, people would assume she was a nanny.

But this does not happen very often.

Ethan does not play with his daughter and as soon as Riley was of school age, he always took her to school and picked her up himself.

It seemed like Aurora had only been involved in the child’s life when she was only a baby. As Riley grew older, she was becoming more and more distant from her mom.

The staff weren’t stupid, too.

They also knew another woman was involved, and while they could do nothing about anything, they thought Ethan was playing a really dirty game. They thought it was lowdown to involve the child in the adult’s business and now, here’s the result.

Riley outrightly doesn’t want her mother near her.

“I said, no!” Riley uttered, stomping her foot once more again, and looking utterly spoiled. She “hmphed”, then crossed her arms across her chest, breathing hard, “Mom never took me to school before! Only Aunt Celeste does! And I like her! She’s so cool! Mom doesn’t like Aunt Celeste! Mom is a meanie! I wish you weren’t my mom!”

With those words, the little girl turned tail and ran out of the house. Outside, the driver held the car door open for her and she slid into the back seat.

The driver closed the door, bowed and then drove off.

“Oh my, oh my,” Lucille gasped in sorrow, “I’m so sorry, Madam. The young miss was never like that…I don’t know why…”

Aurora laughed softly and the old maid trailed off, surprised by her laugh.

“Of course, she wasn’t like that,” she uttered quietly, so quietly as though she was speaking to herself. Her light colored eyes stared directly into the coffee which she held, staring but not seeing, “She wasn’t always like that. Someone made her that way.”

Lucille was unnerved by Aurora’s calmness.

She had worked in the Langford house for years and was there when Aurora was newly married.

This soft spoken woman should have definitely broken down when her child spoke to her that way, but here she was sipping coffee like she had no care in the day.

Hell, she was wasn’t even running after Riley to ask what was the matter, and fussing over the girl’s decision.

She just let Riley go like that.

Aurora really did not feel anything at Riley’s outburst. Since the night Riley had chosen Celeste as her mother in front of the entire ballet school and media, there had been a growing coldness inside of her when it came to the child’s matter.

She loved Riley, and wished only the best for the child but she was not going to be a nervous wreck over her anymore.

Riley was not her entire life anymore.

She thought back to what Riley had said about her being a meanie, and that she didn’t like Aunt Celeste.

She wondered how Riley came to have those thoughts.

Aurora had never been in the same room with Celeste or held a conversation with her in front of Riley.

Celeste had also never come to the house whenever she was around as well, and must have gotten Aurora’s number through only god knows where.

Celeste had been the one always sending messages and pictures and articles of her being with Ethan and Riley, trying to hurt Aurora.

Aurora had never once replied her and whenever she blocked the scheming bitch, Celeste always managed to get a new number to pester her with.

So how did she become the meanie in this scenario?

She laughed bitterly once more as she sipped her coffee.

Celeste must have fed Riley with those thoughts as well, just another ploy to separate Riley from her mother.

And what’s more?

She was sure Ethan approved and must have had a hand in the matter as well.

Aurora had once heard him say Riley looked more like Celeste with her dark hair and active character. Celeste was a medical scientist and a ice skating queen. Riley loved ballet as well. Sharp, intelligent and brave, she had always been an outdoorsy girl.

Aurora, who always stayed at home, visiting the in-laws or taking care of the house, definitely did not seem like the mother of such a brilliant kid.

She stopped drinking her coffee and gently dropped the cup, her fingers tightening around the rim. So hard that the knuckles actually turned white.

At that moment, her cell phone rang with a shrill sound which cut through the air, and interrupted the cold silence in the dining room.

Aurora did not pick up the call. She did not even hear the phone ring.

She remained seated, staring into the distance as a quiet anger settled on her chest and a million bitter thoughts running through her head.

“Ma’am, your cell phone…you have a call.” Lucille uttered tentatively, dragging her from her reverie.

Aurora blinked at those words.

“Oh.” She uttered as she came to focus and reached for the cellphone. Seeing that it was her Senior Caspian, her eyes flashed with eagerness.

“Senior.”

“Aurora, I have the divorce papers ready. I suggest you check them out to see if it’s what you want…”

“That’s okay Senior,” Aurora answered crisply, “Go ahead and file them. I trust that you did a good job with them.”

“Go through them once,” Caspian uttered softly, “We should meet up. So you let me know what needs to be changed.”

Aurora sighed, “Fine. If you believe it’s necessary.”

With that, the call ended and she sat for a long time staring at the back screen in front of her, her face a mask of cold determination.

“Ethan Langford, Celeste Moore, Riley…” she thought bitterly, her eyes as cold as the arctic, “Since you guys want to play the perfect family so bad, I’ll get out of your way. I hope you don’t regret this. Even if you do, you can’t turn back time!”