How many lies should I say to cover up one lie?

"Fine. But, even if you are staying at the boutique, you should have called me once to inform me about that. Also, why did you not pick any of my calls yesterday?" Kara asked.

"Mom, I …" Dina didn't know what she should say anymore.

She blinked her eyes and racked her brain for a good excuse. 'What? What should I say now to my mom? I could say that the phone was put on silent mode and I didn't see her calls until now. But then I would have to say one more lie. So, how about I just end the call to stop saying any more lies?' Dina wondered.

She didn't want to come up with any lame excuses. So without thinking much, she hurriedly said, "Mom, I think I just got an idea for my cloth design. I will call you back later. Bye..."

As Kara knew how important this fashion week for Dina, she did not question her anymore; Until she heard the announcement made from the other side,

'Next stop ADN mall'.

Kara immediately understood Dina was lying to her till now. Dina could not believe what had just happened. 'Of all the time, they just had to announce my stop right now!' She growled inside her mind.

She tried to mute the phone, instead, she put it on speaker mode. And the angry shouts of her mom were heard by all the passengers on the bus.

"Dina, where are you right now? And where did you go last night?" Kara angrily inquired.

The bus was slightly crowded and everyone turned around to look at her in annoyance. She bowed her head and apologized to them all while still trying to remove the speaker mode on the phone.

"I came out to get some cloth samples. Mom, hold on a minute," Dina lied to her mom again that day.

She could not believe that she had to say so many lies to tell her mother to make her believe that she did not spend a night with some random guy.

'Will I ever succeed in deceiving my mother? How many lies should I say to cover up one lie?' She wondered and finally managed to remove the speaker mode.

"Mom, I will explain everything later. I have to get down from the bus now," Dina said.

"No. Explain everything to me right now. Doesn't Mike do all those work usually? Moreover, which store would be open at this time of the day for you to get the samples?" Kara asked.

She once again almost caught her lying but the clever Dina had an answer for that too with a simple excuse.

"Mom, I need to go! This is my stop. If I don't get down right now then, I will have to walk back from the next stop. I am already too tired of staying awake overnight and I do not want to faint while walking on the road. I love you and miss you. Once I come back tonight, I will explain everything to you in detail. I promise," She stated and disconnected the call.

Dina jumped down from the bus and wiped the imaginary sweat from her forehead.

...

"Dina, Dina... I warn you! Do not try to act over smart in front of me. I am your mother, I know everything..." Kara shouted on the phone.

But all she could hear was the beep sound indicating that the call had ended long ago. It made her realize that Dina had escaped from answering her questions.

'What will I do with this girl?' She held her head and leaned against the backrest of the couch.

"When will she grow up? How could I make her understand at this age, that hitting people is very bad? On top of that… her drinking habits… I am worried about you, Dina…" She looked at her phone and shook her head in disappointment.

But did not have the heart to call her daughter once again and scold her. So, she let her be for the time being. She stood up to go meet Mike. First, she went to the kitchen and packed some food for Dina and Mike.

When she was about to go out of the house, she saw Mike coming back home.

"Mike, did you come back just now?" Kara asked.

"Yes… I mean… No… Is there something you want, aunty Kara?" Mike asked.

"I just spoke with Dina and she said she stayed in the boutique to finish the design drafts for the fashion week," Kara said and started to analyze the facial reactions of Mike.

'Did she?' Mike wondered and gritted his teeth in his mind.

But he didn't show any changes on his face. Instead, he smiled and said, "I am sorry, aunty. I make her work a lot. I would like to share those works but you do know I can't draw well and my creative power is slightly low."

"That's ok. Don't be harsh on yourself. You do every other work and she always takes you for granted. At least, she is doing such a small task. So, please don't you ever put yourself below her." Kara patted his shoulders to comfort him.

Mike smiled and looked at the bag in her hands. When Kara noticed his eyes traveling to the food she was holding, she said,

"Oh! This… It's your breakfast. I couldn't sleep all night and waited for Dina to come back. So, I prepared this early, thinking that she may come in the morning. But, as today is the last day for submitting the designs to fashion week, she said she would not be back until late evening. So, I packed breakfast for you both."

She handed the bag to him and said, "Please take care of Dina. Right now, Emma is also not here and you are the only one who could control Dina a little bit."

"Don't worry, aunty Kara. I will take care of her well. I am sorry about yesterday. I should have called and informed you that she was planning to stay back. It's my mistake… I was busy with something and completely forgot to inform you," He apologized and felt bad for lying to Kara, so early in the morning.

He cursed at Dina but was thankful that she was well and safe.

"It's ok, Mike. We already know who was the irresponsible one here. Just make sure that she eats properly on time and gets enough sleep. Work is important but not so important compared to our health," Kara said.

"Yes, you are always correct, Aunt Kara. I will make sure that she eats everything in this box. I am getting late for work. Bye, Aunt Kara. I will see you later tonight," Mike waved at Kara and rushed inside his home.

He opened the basement door and descended the flight of stairs in a hurry. He went deep into the basement and opened a secret gateway. It brought him right in front of the ADN mall. He hastily walked inside the mall towards the boutique they owned together.

He didn't have to search for long before he spotted the tiny figure that resembled the monster, Dina. He followed her without making any noise.