Replacement

The maids help Nilsa in preparing dinner for her elderly sister and father, about one hour the dishes were ready, both her family's and the servants dinner was prepared with the help of the maids who were in the kitchen with her, she quickly and neatly set up the dining table with cutleries and foods in a beautiful way making the meal look more appealing and appetizing. She also brought out the desert which she prepared out of the freezer .

She took Katherine's and Raymond's own and set it down on the dining table before going back to the kitchen and distributing the rest to the workers in the Manor.

Nilsa ate her dinner in the kitchen with the maids. After that she helped them in cleaning up the kitchen, the maids told her to go and have a shower when she refused, they gently persuaded her and in the end she couldn't help but walk herself to the comfort of her bedroom amiss their persuasion.

She knew that being in the Walker family is not bad at all because not everyone hates her or are uncomfortable around her and she is very glad she has people who care about her even though they're no family but sometimes bonds which are made without blood relations.... are stronger than bonds with blood ties and she's a witness if that fact. She's always going to be grateful for the few wonderful people in her life because their care and love gives her the a strength to fight forward and that's exactly what she needs.

Opening the door to the room at the end of the corridor upstairs... Nilsa walked in and closed the door behind her slender figure, she made her way towards her closet which was behind her bedroom door, pulling the door to the closet opened... she took out her white towel and went to the other other door adjacent to the closet pushing the the doors open she slipped inside and closed it.

After ten minutes she came out with her towel wrapped around her with her face hidden in the dark, she only switched on the bedside lamps so the rest of the room has little bit of darkness.

She went to the closet and pulled out a comfortable cotton pijamas which she quickly slipped on, she took her towel off and put it on the door to the bathroom. Just as she was about to slide under her blanket to take some rest... there was a knock at her door, she quickly took a cap and a mask, slipping them on before opening the door to see her father at her doorstep, seeing him here baffled her a lot .

He has never personally come to her before so she was really shocked looking at him , Raymond has an expression on his face that confuses her more ...

" Can I come in please....?" Raymond asked his daughter politely and this again left her bewildered .

" Where did this Raymond come from...?" she asked herself inwardly whiles she opened the door wide enough for him to enter after some hesitation, she knows that he wouldn't be here himself if what he's about to say is not a matter of importance.

Raymond entered the room quietly and heard the door being closed behind him, he sat on Nilsa's bed looking around the room.

From the floor tiles to the small table at the right side of the bed which have books pack neatly on it with a single wooden chair, the walls were painted in dark colours with a few sprinkled of white paint making the room look mysterious, behind the door to the bedroom is a small double closet and an adjacent door beside the left side of the closet which he believes is the bathroom, all in all, the room looks simple but mysterious just like his second daughter.

She is simple but mysterious in ways that even he is unaware of, this is the first time in the fifteen years that he brought her to the Manor that he has seen what her bedroom looks like which says only one thing, he Raymond Walker has failed as a father and a guardian .

Realizing that she was still standing a few feets away from him he pated the bed he was sitting on signaling that she should take a seat beside him.

Nilsa quickly but stiffly took seat beside her father within an arms length. Raymond's heart tightened when he took notice of her reactions towards him. He never knew that this was how uncomfortable she feels around him but he knows is because of the way he has treated her throughout the fifteen years she has been here with him.

He has never shown her a father's affection, he doesn't know her likes and dislike, he has never considered her as his daughter in the first place, he has always turned a blind eye to things concerning her, weather or not she's happy or sad didn't mattered to him for those past couple of years but looking at where she takes her rest ... his emotions were just completely out of control.

Nilsa looked at her father from under her cap quietly. His behavior this evening is very confusing and he looks funny with many expressions on his face, Raymond is not someone who shows his emotions in the presence of people he doesn't care for.

Raymond took sometime to restrain his emotions from getting the best of him.

After getting his complicated emotions under control he turned to look at Nilsa.

" Eermm , I came here to ask you for a favor and I hope you can help me ," Raymond said, stating the reason why he was in her room which made Nilsa give him a weary look, she hesitated for a while before giving him a nod indicating that he should continue with why he was here in her room.

"I want a collaboration with the Black's company but they asked your elder sister to marry their son in return and... Kathrine refused, you know the kind of carrier she has chosen to do... so it only reasonable for her to deny the marriage, she suggested that you marry in her place because this is the only opportunity we've got to boast our business well, so I came here to ask you this favor. You can take it as doing it for our family's future and your brother whom I will hand the company to when he's back from his business trip,"Raymond continued without funning the fire.

Nilsa gave her father a petrified look, how can a father throw her daughter under the bus just like that? She wanted to ask him why she should get married to someone who Kathrine doesn't want.

Why should she be the one? but then again those questions will sound like she was spouting nonsense in front of him because it wouldn't change his mind .

If Raymond was able to come to her room to request this of her himself then it means he wouldn't take "No" for an answer, now she's being used as a sacrificial lamb for the family business.

She had never thought she would become one of those women..... families uses as a stepping stone for their businesses but what's the use of refusing to comply with him....?, even though the man sitting before hasn't been a father to her.... he's still her father who sheltered her, enrolled her in the best schools and fed her as well.

Nilsa looked at her him quietly for a moment before getting up , she walked towards her wooden bedside table to pick up her phone , she quickly typed something on it before giving it to him .

"Who am I suppose to marry in place of Kathrine..?" she asked looking at him from under her cap. Her question made Raymond's guilty conscience kicked in immidiately, how was he supposed to tell her the man she is to get married to is a crippled and blind at the same time....? but thinking that she is doing this for the family and solely not for him was enough for him to master up his courage to tell her without batting an eye .

" It's Lucian Black ," Raymond reply looking at her to see if she would react like Kathrine but to his surprise she gave him a calm nod, she took her phone from him and slipped under her blanket closing her eyes in boredom .

At this point Raymond just sat there looking at his daughter who have covered her face with a cap and a mask , she has never let down her guard around him, Kathrine or even his wife but who could blame her for doing so?

He sat there until her breath evened out before he got up slowly and walked towards the side of the bed, sitting down quietly beside her.

He took her hand in his before caressing it lightly, he sat in that position about ten minutes before bringing her hand to his lips, kissing the back of her hand lightly he whispered in low tone; "I'm really sorry ,trust me I am, after that he left for his room closing the door behind him gently not knowing that the young lady on the bed heard his every word.

This is the first time Raymond has apologized to her, to be truthful to herself .... this new side of him was confusing for her .