Chapter 85: Undeserving of Forgiveness

Mina had busied herself by exploring President Lee's beautifully decorated mansion and soon stood in the foyer of the home. From where she was, she could see that the main entrance was just a few feet away. She looked at the large wooden doors and admired the craftsmanship and detail put into their creation. She had not noticed it when she arrived, but every doorway had an elegant hand carved design. Before Mina's mind had a chance to process anything else, her arm was roughly gripped.

"What are you doing?" A familiar and sinister voice growled in her ear. Mina did not need to look back to see who it was, but it took her another second to realize where she was standing. The color drained from her face and she began to tremble. She knew what it looked like and she was afraid the man would not accept her explanation.

When Ian saw the expression on Mina's face his grip loosened. He hadn't meant to scare her, but after ten minutes of searching every room in the mansion, he was beginning to think she had gone to jump, she had brought it up many times, and he felt she was serious about it. Luna had told him that Mina asked her to try and change his mind about her staying in his home. Ian, however, was under the impression that Mina had come to terms with the new arrangement. He even brought his work home so he could help her acclimate to her new surroundings. He wanted to be available if she needed anything.

It goes without saying that when Ian returned from his office, he immediately went to find Mina. He wanted to make sure she did not misunderstand the things he had ordered for her. He knocked at the door for a long time before he opened it and saw she was not in the room. Ian decided to look for her downstairs, where he found Luna and Zane in the sitting room, sans Mina. Ten minutes later, there was still no trace of her. They all thought she had taken the opportunity to escape; it was not inconceivable. From where Zane and Luna sat, they would not have been able to see her walk out of the front door, and his staff wouldn't have known to stop her.

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Caught by President Lee, Mina struggled to find her words. Only when she began to feel his grip loosen did she remember how to speak. At the same time, Luna walked into the foyer, her face was flushed as if she had been exercising.

"Mina where have you been?" She asked. Mina shook herself free of President Lee's hold and answered Luna's question.

"I… I went to the kitchen; I didn't know it wasn't allowed."

"For how long?" Luna asked. Mina did not want to get the kitchen staff in trouble, so she did not answer Luna. Instead she asked a question of her own.

"I don't know how to get back. Can you take me?" she asked, and Luna laughed.

"Okay, okay, the house isn't that big, I'll show you how to get back to your room." Mina smiled in response. She followed Luna out of the foyer, and they ran into Zane along the way.

"You troublemaker!" He shouted playfully. "We thought you ran away. Where did you go?" He asked.

"I went to the back kitchen," Mina replied honestly, and Zane smacked his forehead. As the three of them, himself, Ian, and Luna, seldom went into that area of the mansion, they had not thought to check for Mina there. He followed the two women up the stairs while making small talk. He told Mina that in the future she should leave a note behind. Mina found Zane amusing. He really knew how to make her laugh, but she did not know he had intentions that required him to get close to her.

Once inside her room, Zane made a show of checking the windows and locks on the doors. Mina laughed and the pleasant sound triggered Ian's memories. He was standing at the top of the stairs, unsure if he should dampen the calm atmosphere with his presence. He knew, Mina would not even look up if he were anywhere near her. Their budding romance had grown full bloom and then withered in just one night. Had it not been for the camera's audio capability, he probably still wouldn't have known that night was filled with sweetness.

At that time, Mina had abandoned her fear of him, and Ian had even promised to overlook her sneaking into his room, but now the mere sight of him caused her to shake in terror. He felt better when he did not know, but he was contented by the fact that only his ears would ever hear what was on that drive. How he coaxed, lied, and cheated Mina out of her clothing to fulfill his selfish need to claim her.

Pitying himself, Ian decided that he would not interfere in whatever relationship developed between his best friend and Mina. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that he did not deserve her forgiveness. Ian was about to head to the sitting room when he heard the comforting sounds of familiar footsteps. He forced a smile on his face before turning around, but his nan was no fool. She knew when he was pretending to be okay.

"Nan, when did you get home?" Ian asked as he draped his arm around the old woman's shoulders.

"Only just now, is everything okay with you?" She really wanted to know, but Ian just shrugged as he led his nan into the sitting room to rest.

A short while Later, Zane and Luna joined Ian and his nan. Upstairs, they had been helping Mina come up with a cover story to tell anyone who asked her why she was staying in the Lee mansion. Luna suggested that Mina pass herself off as an old friend of hers. She wanted Mina to distance herself from Ian as much as possible to avoid having anyone probe deeper into her story. Zane, on the other hand, felt that Mina should pass herself off as one of Ian's personal assistants. He wanted her to stick close to Ian for protection. While his suggestion made sense, he had an ulterior motive.

In the end, they decided on a combination of the two stories, with Mina posing as an old friend of Luna's who was now by chance working with President Lee on a personal project. They did not bother to get Ian's approval and as soon as his nan left the room, they filled him in on the details. He was not totally opposed to their suggestion, but it also meant that Mina would have to eventually accompany him to his office, and he was not sure she would be willing to do so. Ian did not openly express his concerns, but Zane could see a change in his friend's demeanor. He was about to question him when Miss Ruby came back into the room to announce that dinner was ready.