06

~ANGEL~

The unfinished work on my canvas was far from perfection but I had thought of a last-minute remedy.

The back door creaked, but I kept my eyes on the art. Drawing provided me with an escape that nothing else could offer. It soothed my troubles and gave me peace, it was all I needed at the moment.

“Mr. Axton.” A timid voice called and I knew it was the maid. She had let herself in and approached me.

“Strip. Come closer to me.” I instructed, my eyes still glued on the canvas. I had to get exactly what was missing and the addition of a real-life figure to the hue of colors may just account for a thrilling finishing touch.

The maid obeyed without another word; she stepped out of her uniform, remained naked, and got on the bed. Then she inched closer to me and struck a position that made me frown. Her presence was perfect, but her stance… not exactly.

I needed something closer to wild, yet subtle; a commanding position not a seductive prey.

I was just about to make my point practical when I noticed the maid stiffen. Her scared eyes glanced at an object behind me. She scrambled off the bed and immediately found her dress.

A whiff of vanilla circled through my nose.

Not an object. A person.

My hold on the brush tightened, my irritation barely contained. Had my instructions to the staff to keep off the left wing fallen on deaf ears?

“I’m so sorry. Wrong room.” A smooth female voice declared. But the shabby apology didn't keep my muse. Instead, the scared lady disappeared just as stealthily as she had come, through the back door. I knew she was scared that her double job as my life model had been discovered since our agreement was a private one.

“I would.. uhm.. just turn around and take my leave now.” the intruder spoke up again.

From her firm tone and dismissive excuse, I knew that I was a stranger to her, just as she was to me. The maids in my home would have been too clumsy at such a sight to give decisive responses.

A wandering stranger in my family’s large mansion; How amusing. I heard her turn to leave and I stiffened.

“Get back here.”

She halted and shuffled around.

“I already apologized for intruding, Mister. I lost my way. it was not intentional….”

There it was again. That sharp response that only a stranger could provide.

“I wondered what maid had dared to walk in… but you ain’t no maid, are you?.”

I put the canvas away and swirled my wheelchair around to look at her.

I noticed the ghost of a frown on her face which immediately faded when our eyes met. She was averagely tall, with high cheekbones and a pretty face. Her black hair was swept back tightly to the back of her head in a sleek ponytail, showing off her decent forehead. On her body was a fitted office suit and skirt, which showed off her perfect legs despite her attempt to hide behind the fabric. Or was it deliberate?

“Miss Chantel?” A voice shouted from the hallway and I noticed her frown once more.

“Miss Chantel!” The same voice called again and the door flew open with one of the maids rushing in. She seemed relieved to find the intruder but her face paled when she noticed that I was also present in the room, watching them.

“Mr Axton…” The maid stammered.

The stranger’s eyes widened, finally realizing who I was.

The maid, on the other hand, appeared to be having a panic attack as she struggled to explain the intruder's position to me. “She’s the new nanny, sir. I directed her to the right wing. I swear! I will help her get to her room right away...”

Fuck. I almost forgot.

Elena Chantel. It suddenly made sense.

Mrs. Lopez had briefly mentioned a nanny replacement for Eva, but I had been too immersed in my art to give the matter my full concentration or know that she had already resumed.

I raised my brows, studying her once more.

“So you are Eva’s new nanny.”

“That’s all I’ve been trying to tell you... sir. I’m Elena Chantel, the new hire and I apologize once again for barging in and introducing myself in such an unusual… manner.”

Unusual?. I gave the flushed girl my full attention and my lips couldn’t help a smirk. “There’s nothing unusual about painting a woman, Elena.”

She squinted and bit down on her lower lip to hold back words. I knew she had a lot of “unusual” things to say but was merely holding back in front of the maid.

How disappointing.

Closed lips would do her no good. Her smart mouth suited her better.

I glanced at the canvas, which was now facing the wall. “The only problem is my work remains incomplete, Elena. You’ve scared off my muse and someone would have to replace her.”

Elena's face paled, her face contorting into a more serious frown.

The maid stood confused, but I knew Elena knew exactly what I had meant to insinuate.

The noisy sound of a helicopter hovering somewhere in the estate disrupted my fun and reminded me of more pressing duties I’d rather not face. Like being an uncle to a rebellious fifteen-year-old.

“This conversation isn’t over, Elena.“ I said and made a move. Reaching the door, I turned to stare at Elena once last time. She looked like she wanted to laser a dozen holes through my body with her eyes but I did not care.

“Uh and, you can put up with the formalities with Mrs. Lopez. I’m Angel. Just Angel.”

~

My smile slipped the moment the door closed behind me and Eva’s bodyguards approached with their tails between their legs in shame.

“Mr. Axton.” One of the bodyguards greeted and handed a photograph over with shaky hands.

My eyes dimmed as I saw its content. It had captured Eva, my only niece and ward as she conversed with a group of her good-for-nothing friends at an airport terminal. It was difficult to identify her with all that make up but her haughty smile could not be missed.

“Mr. Axton?.” Mrs. Lopez called out as she hurried in with a maid behind her. I ignored her, my eyes refusing to leave the photographs.

Eva was all I had left of my sister, Camille. In the earlier years of Camille’s death, Eva had only been ten. I could remember her being quiet as I broke the news to her. It had taken almost a month to have her speak a word to anybody. Eva had been slightly difficult to deal with. As each nanny arrived and left, she only worsened.

“Is it the school? Homeschool had worked better.”

I asked and glanced at Mrs. Lopez. When Eva’s disturbing character had emerged, she had assured me that my niece’s stubbornness was a phase, that it would pass, but I don't see Eva getting any sane-headed anytime soon.

She whispered to the maid who immediately excused us and let out a sigh. “Eva deserves to be around kids her age Mr. Axton, maybe not her current flock but better… I heard you’ve met with Miss. Chantel. What do you think of her?.”

“Elena.” Her name rolled off my tongue easily, her face still clear in my mind like a painting.

Just like the twenty-one nannies before her, She looked professional enough to handle Eva; but unfortunately, I’ve come to terms with the fact that looks can be quite deceiving.

“I’ll see how she fares,” I responded. There were other photographs of Eva and her friends and each one of them sullied my mood.

The door creaked and a familiar vanilla scent hit my nostrils just before Elena walked in. Our eyes met for not longer than a second before she approached the housekeeper

“Mrs. Lopez? You called for me.”

“Yes. To meet your ward, Miss Chantel.” Mrs. Lopez responded just before a knock came on the door.

“Come in,” I ordered, knowing who it was.

The men whom I had ordered to keep Eva from trouble came in and approached me.

“Sir!”

“The young miss was found at the Rotana airport with some friends. They were bound for Las Vegas but we were lucky to apprehend them in time. She’s safely home and we apologize for our misguided mistake. We would be more careful next time…”

Next time? I tilted my head.

“There would be no next time, Raymond, or you would have to contend with Salvatore.”

“Yes… Sir!.”

“And where’s Eva?.”

"Stuck in fucking Rotana because you refused to turn a blind eye this time. Dear Uncle."

My anger was yet to simmer down and Eva’s arrival only made it worse. It was not her first time scheming to run off to a city with her scrawny friends for their many mischievous pranks.

And deep down, I knew it wouldn't be her last attempt.

She locked gazes with me, daring me to do my worst.

Any other kid would have been scared off their wits. Not Eva. The little daredevil wasn't a teeny bit sorry.

Her mischievous anger made me nostalgic. The too-familiar habit, a painful reminder of fleeting memories that I could never bring myself to let go of.

I loved Eva like she was my own, but It didn’t help that they were so unbearably familiar.

“I already have enough on my plate without your foolishness, Eva. Cross me one last time and we will have a rethink about schooling altogether.” I breathed out in a rush and hurried out of the room.

Away from Eva and the fragments of Camille.