Chapter 178: Offensive

President Lee had long ago noticed that his nan had not been in her best condition. Aside from the incident involving Mina, the woman had made several other small mistakes within the household. One of those mistakes was bringing on new staff when Mina was still a 'guest' in his home. While the blunders were not consequential, they were uncharacteristic of his nan's high standards.

Ian sat on the dark leather chair behind his desk and casually crossed his legs as he filled his sister in about their Nan, and he asked her to refrain from leaning on the old woman for the time being.

To prevent further gaffes from happening, Ian planned to have Ellie convince her mother; Ruby, to fully hand over the position next year, but he suddenly felt that Ellies help would be needed much sooner. If he did not have the bargaining chip of Bressaw and Samuel, Ian would have had to forcibly keep Mina locked up.

Ian did not want to do that, but the idea of letting Mina roam freely without knowing for sure if she were in danger was one that he would not entertain. Not just for the sake of his family, but for the sake of hers as well. Right now, whoever had set Mina up was either biding their time, or working toward a bigger ploy, but Ian was certain that Mina was still useful to either party.

"I thought I was imagining things," Luna said in response to her brother, but the truth was that their 'all knowing' nan was finally showing her age. Luna asked her brother what their next move should be, and he informed her that Ellie was already on her way to Pan.

Ian had arranged for his nan's family to take a two-week vacation. If his nan showed no improvement upon her return, he and Ellie had already agreed that she would give up on her current career path and focus on taking care of her mother. This, however, did not mean that he would not be putting Ellies skills to use every so often.

"I haven't spoken to you about nan because you were busy doing your own thing," Ian said 'and because anytime I speak to you, you only want to talk about Lisa,' he thought. It's not that he didn't care about Lisa, it's just that he needed his sister to care about him too!

----

Mina slept fretfully, the voices of her parents echoed in her mind and only served as torture for her. When she had agreed to trade her freedom for the two Lee guards, she did not really feel like she had much of a choice. President Lee was clearly unwilling to let her go, and despite his promise, she knew that in three months' time, another deal would be struck. It was the early hours of the morning when Mina's eyes finally became heavy, but just as she drifted into sleep, her door was flung open and a shrill and familiar voice sounded through the room. She turned in bed, only to see the same maid who had unceremoniously handed her a small janitorial kit and informed her of the new duties she was expected to complete. Although Mina did not blame the woman for doing her job, there was something about the maid that irritated her, but Mina could not put her finger on what.

"Good Morning!" Carmen said loudly in mock cheerfulness. "President Lee has placed me in charge of seeing to your needs. First, I would like to inform you that all your meals will be taken in this room. You will no longer eat with the family. Second, you will be required to air out your room at least once every four days."

"Why?" Mina asked.

"President Lee finds the odor in here offensive."

"Offensive?" Mina questioned. She had noticed President Lee sniff the air when he wheeled her into her room, but he didn't seem offended to her.

The truth was that President Lee had inquired about the fresh scent of Mina's room and questioned his staff about their competence. He was aware that Mina had been doing her own chores, although he thought it was by choice, and he accused his staff of cutting corners while cleaning. His exact words were 'if it's too much for you to handle, please have yourself replaced.' That gave Carmen her own reason to dislike Mina.

"If you have a problem with it, you can always take it up with President Lee, but I am just following orders," Carmen said.

"No, it's fine," Mina replied. It seemed like President Lee was already breaking his promise of no more rules. She wanted to kick herself for being foolish yet again.

Carmen watched a series of complicated emotions display on Mina's face. Had it not been for the fact that Miss Lisa had kept her paid well, she would have almost felt guilty toward the girl. She knew that Mina was in no way out to snatch president Lee or his wealth. By just looking around the guest room, she could see that no new additions had been made. Other than the clothes that were brought in from an unknown source, Mina did not ask for a single item.

"Is there anything else?" Mina asked, clearly crestfallen.

"Your breakfast will be brought to you at dawn, your lunch an hour before noon and dinner at six. You need not concern yourself with coming down, I will bring it to you daily," Carmen replied.

Mina looked at the clock to the side of the bed and saw that it was twenty minutes to dawn. She lifted the blanket to get out of bed. Her ankle pain had lessened, but the bottom of her feet felt like she was pressing a bruise with something sharp. She managed to limp her way into the wheelchair, and she maneuvered herself toward the small table in the room. Mina did not know how long she could take living in the Lee mansion. It seemed like President Lee had a thing for mental torture.

----

Mina stared down at her simple breakfast. It consisted of one boiled egg, a bowl of lukewarm oatmeal and two strips of pork. For some reason, it reminded her of her parents, and Mina felt a smile crease her face as she began to eat, the pleasant memories of family always put her in a good mood.

Carmen, who had been waiting for Mina to protest about the insulting meal, was surprised by the woman's silence. As soon as she left the room, she reported back to the future wife of her employer.