CHAPTER 10:UNWANTED VISITORS

MAYA.

As I stepped out of my last class for the day, a knot of anxiety twisted in my stomach. My best friends, Eric and Sasha, were engrossed in an animated conversation about a supposed legendary party that was rumored to take place over the weekend. But I couldn't afford to indulge in their excitement, not with the weight of Mrs. D's text message lingering in the back of my mind. Her simple yet ominous request to meet her at the Villa after my classes today had left me on edge.

Eric's voice snapped me back to reality, his fingers clicking in front of my face.

"Halloo...earth to Maya!" he teased, his eyes sparkling with amusement. Sasha's expression, however, was laced with concern.

"Are you okay, Maya? You've been spacing out for like...the whole day," she asked, her brow furrowed with worry. I swallowed hard, trying to dislodge the lump that had formed in my throat.

"I'm fine, guys," I replied, forcing a reassuring smile onto my face. But my friends' skeptical gazes told me they weren't buying it.

I cut off my friends' conversation with a hasty "Sorry guys, gotta drop by the Villa real quick. See you guys later" before making a swift exit to my car. As I drove, my mind began to wander, consumed by questions about Mrs. D's unexpected summons. Why had she asked to see me out of the blue? Did I do something wrong?

I chuckled wryly to myself, thinking about my propensity for getting into trouble. Yikes, indeed! If anyone knew me, they'd realize that I was always getting into some kind of mischief. It was as if trouble had a personal vendetta against me. But, I rationalized, the better question to ask would be: did I do something wrong that I was not aware of?

A sudden jolt of anxiety shot through me as I recalled the hideous-looking, yet ridiculously expensive, flower vase I'd accidentally broken the other day. Oh no, please don't let it be about that! I thought, my heart sinking at the prospect of facing Mrs. D's wrath over my carelessness.

"No, no, no! It couldn't be," I muttered to myself, my mind racing with the possibility that Mrs. D had discovered my secret. I had bought a replica of the vase with her Mastercard, thinking I'd gotten away with it. But now, my conscience was eating away at me. How did she find out? Did that sweet old housekeeper betray my trust?

I let out a string of frustrated curses, banging my head against the steering wheel in exasperation. The car horn blared to life, startling me, and I quickly shut off the engine, stepping out of the car to collect my thoughts.

As I walked away from the car, I tried to concoct a convincing lie. "Remember, Maya, you only took the credit card to buy a vase to replace the one Andrew broke," I told myself, attempting to sound believable. But the words rang hollow. I was not only a thief, but now I was a liar, too? The weight of my actions settled heavily on my shoulders, and I couldn't help but wonder: who had I become?

I stood frozen, my ears perked up as I eavesdropped on the hushed conversation coming from inside the visitor's room. Mrs. D's voice was firm, yet laced with a hint of exasperation.

"I don't understand why you came all the way here without informing me first. I explicitly told you she would hear everything from me first, before anyone else."

Her words were tinged with a sense of warning, and I wondered who she was addressing. Her husband? And what was it that I needed to hear from her first? A shiver ran down my spine as I contemplated the possibility of being sent to one of those notorious reform schools for troubled teens.

But before I could spiral further into panic, a familiar yet strange voice responded, sending my mind reeling. "I couldn't help it any longer. I've waited so long to see her. I just couldn't wait another day." The voice was low and husky, with a hint of desperation that made my heart skip a beat. Mrs. D sighed, her frustration palpable.

"Trust me, I'm trying to understand how you feel, but this is not how I wanted her to find out about any of this. And I care more about how she feels. The fact that you are here right now jeopardizes everything." Her words were laced with a sense of urgency, and I felt a growing sense of unease. Who was this mysterious person, and what did they want with me?

I must have pressed too hard on the door while peering through the keyhole because it creaked loudly, and both adults swiveled their heads towards me, their eyes wide with surprise. My heart skipped a beat as I took in the identity of the mysterious voice, and I didn't hesitate – I turned tail and ran.

"Shit, shit, shit," I muttered to myself, my feet pounding the pavement as I desperately tried to put distance between myself and the Villa. I knew I had a bad feeling about this, and now it was too late to turn back.

"Maya, Maya!" the male voice called after me, his words echoing through the air.

"Sweetie, please wait!" Mrs. D's voice was laced with concern, but I wasn't stopping for anything. I kept running, my lungs burning, as I frantically tried to escape the Villa's sprawling grounds.

But no matter how fast I ran, the male voice seemed to be gaining on me. "Let me talk to you, please!" he pleaded, his breathlessness evident. I shot back, my voice laced with venom.

"Don't you think I would've picked up your calls if I wanted to talk to you?" Mrs. D's voice cut in, her tone surprised, "You've been calling her?"

I needed to get out of there, and fast. The male voice was relentless, his words tumbling out in a desperate bid to get my attention. "I just want to talk, hear me out, please!" I laughed dryly, my eyes flashing with anger.

"That ship sailed a long time ago, don't you think?" I spat, my gaze locking onto his, the air thick with tension.

For a moment, we just stared at each other, the only sound of the heavy silence between us. His eyes, seemed foreign than I'd imagined it to be, and I felt a shiver run down my spine. "Maya..." he began, his voice low and husky, but I cut him off, my heart racing with a mix of fear and adrenaline.

My voice trembled with rage as I cut him off, my words spilling out in a venomous torrent. "Don't! Don't you fucking dare say my name! You have no right to say my name, not like that!" The intimacy of his tone, the gentle way he'd spoken my name, was like a punch to the gut. He nodded, his hands raised in a placating gesture, and said,

"Just hear me out, please." I scoffed, the sound tearing from my throat as I wiped away the traitorous tears rolling down my cheeks.

"You wanna talk? Okay, fine! Let's talk," I spat, my words dripping with sarcasm. "Where have you been all these years? Why did you leave her? Were you aware she had a child while you were off starting your new family?" The questions poured out of me like a dam breaking, each one a razor-sharp accusation.

He looked at me with a sad expression, his eyes filled with deep regret. But I wasn't having it. I raised my hand, cutting him off before he could speak. I didn't want to hear his excuses, his justifications for abandoning me and my mother. I didn't want to hear about how his absence was for the best, or how he'd been thinking of me all these years. I just didn't want to hear it.

My words hung in the air like a challenge, each one a razor-sharp accusation. "Were you also aware she died after you abandoned her with nothing but a child to raise on her own? And that child was left without so much as an idea who her other parent was, all these years?" His bottom lip trembled as he nodded, his eyes welling up with tears, but I felt no pity. Only a deep-seated anger and resentment.

I laughed, the sound breathless and unhinged, like the cackling of a mad woman. It was a laugh that sent shivers down my own spine, a laugh that seemed to come from a place deep within me, a place where pain and anger had simmered for years.

"This fucker!" I spat; my words were venomous.

"Right! Okay then. That sums up everything that happened while you were away building your brand-new happy family. There's nothing more for us to talk about, so please do the world a favor and crawl back into whatever hole you came from. Because you're not needed here." I turned to walk away, but he tried to stop me, his hands grasping for my arm. I shook him off, my eyes blazing with fury.

Just as I thought I'd have to physically fight him off, a deep voice intervened. "Doesn't seem like she wants to talk to you, man. I think you should let her go."

My heart skipped a beat as I recognized the voice. Andrew. I'd never been so happy to see him, and I didn't care that it was a dumb move – I took advantage of the distraction to make a run for it, dashing past Andrew as he stood there, his eyes fixed on me with a mixture of concern and curiosity.

As I sped away from the Villa, I could hear my so-called father's angry shout echoing through the air. "Don't teach me how to talk to my daughter, young man!" The venom in his voice was palpable, but I didn't look back. I just floored it, my tires screeching as I peeled out of the driveway.

I needed a drink, or something stronger, to numb the emotions swirling inside me. Something potent enough to knock me out for a whole year, maybe longer. And I knew just the place to go – a dingy little bar on the outskirts of town, where the whiskey flowed like water and the patrons didn't ask too many questions. It was the perfect place to escape, to lose myself in a haze of booze and anonymity.