Family Reunion

Chapter Four – Family Reunion

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"Penelope, where the hell are you? Are you in Fairlyn? Why the hell are you not picking our calls? You are such a coldblooded creature. Not only did you bring disgrace upon the Everhart family, you also degraded yourself by sleeping with men! Why!? Just come back and pay a visit to Sullivan, he wants to see your ugly face and the products of your disgraceful actions. You are a shameless and ruthless lady! When are…" Brinley flared up like a displeased customer when Isabelle cut the call on her. She clenched her fists and cusswords flowed from her mouth.

After she kicked her stepdaughter out of the family, she wanted her eldest daughter, Beatrice, to be married to Nathaniel. They both got married, had a boy named Javier Pius Sinclair and now Beatrice was pregnant with her second child. In spite of this, Nathaniel made it clear to them that he was still anticipating Penelope's return and change of mind.

"Mom, what is it? Who made you angry?" Beatrice gently asked as she massaged her mother's shoulders. Brinley relaxed and breathed a long sigh of relief.

"It is Penelope. She doesn't want to come home to see our family and your husband. She wants to frustrate us." Brinley's voice rose an octave higher and Beatrice could feel the suppressed emotions in her mother's voice.

Beatrice's jaw clenched and she quietly boiled like an earthquake. She traced her memory back to when she bumped into Penelope in Aurora Island. After Penelope wrote that note, Beatrice allowed her to take the babies and she returned back to Fairlyn City with the note with high hopes that Nathaniel will be convinced when he sees Penelope's note. She never expected her plans to be greatly thwarted because Nathaniel still believed that Penelope will change her mind and come back to him. The only option left is for Penelope to return and personally convince Nathaniel to move on with his life and focus on Beatrice.

"Don't worry, mother. I will take care of this issue. Penelope must agree with our decision whether she likes it or not." Beatrice assured her mother. Brinley became calmer. She trusted her eldest daughter. Beatrice was an ambitious person, she had a do-or-die attitude. If she does not get what she wants then nobody gets that thing.

"But what about Nathaniel? Is he still proving stubborn?"

"He is proving stubborn but I am not giving up." Beatrice whined and sat on the nearest sofa.

Brinley could feel her daughter's pain and she could only offer words of encouragement. She also did some pretty work by badmouthing Penelope and singing praises about her daughter to Senior Mr. Sinclair and his wife. She gave them the note written by Penelope and prompted them into accepting Beatrice as their daughter-in-law.

"Of course you are not giving up. We have devoted everything we have into making this a big reality and we are almost there. Penelope will see your father and give a sure go-ahead to Nathaniel…and Nathaniel will be yours to keep. Don't give up or else Penelope will take advantage of it and laugh at us. Everhart family can never lose, we always triumph!" Brinley advised and Beatrice mustered courage again.

"Besides, Penelope already has children out of wedlock and which man on earth will like to settle down with a woman saddled with baggage? Of course no man will like to do that, not even a mentally unwell person will think of doing that."

"Okay." Beatrice mumbled with a worried look. "But what if he does not agree with all these? What if he insists on marrying Penelope…even with her baggage? Nathaniel can be very obstinate."

Brinley glowered at her daughter. To her, Beatrice was just being paranoid for nothing and was imagining things that can never ever happen.

"That is not possible. The Sinclair family love to protect their image and this high-class family will do anything to maintain their high-class image and honor, for that reason, Nathaniel marrying Penelope is a totally impossible thing. The Sinclair family requested for a true daughter of the Everhart family and Penelope is an unfamiliar person, she is no longer a member of the Everhart family, remember? Moreover, Penelope doesn't like the Sinclair family and it is very obvious."

Beatrice thought carefully as her mother spoke. What her mother said was the truth. The Sinclair family were very cautious in matters related to their image and the marriage bond made by them states that they want a daughter of the Everhart family to be secretly married to their eldest son. Penelope was already out of the scene and the person eligible was her. Her cousin, Lindsey, was out of the city studying her so-called 'dream course'.

Thinking about getting married to Nathaniel made Beatrice happy and sad at the same time. She always had her eyes fixed on him ever since they were adolescents, and her love for him bloomed into unwavering obsession when Nathaniel wanted an arranged secret marriage with her stepsister.

After an hour of waiting, Beatrice couldn't be patient anymore and she left the house to visit an acquaintance. Ten minutes after she left, Isabelle came into the house.

Brinley felt that someone barged into the living room and she became edgy like a cat on a hot tin roof. She forgot to lock the door as her mind was preoccupied with dealing with Penelope. She quickly walked to the living room and saw a lissome figure. The lissome figure was very beautiful, fair-skinned and had cute dimples when she smiled. Her straight hair was glossy and was tied in a high ponytail. Her glistening hazel eyes were perfectly aligned and had the specter of aloofness and wild allure in them. Her nose was pert and elegant. Her cupid-shaped lips were thin, soft and cherry-red in color. Her skin was supple and smooth like top-quality porcelain. No amount of words could describe the lady's nice looks.

'Who is this gorgeous lady?' Brinley inwardly asked herself as she scanned Isabelle with her sunken eyes.

"Who are you?" Brinley found her voice and asked the lissome Isabelle. She felt like she had seen the lady somewhere and she had no other option but to conclude that she could be one of Beatrice's classy friends. Nevertheless, Isabelle looked like a rich lady who came from a family full of A-list celebrities even though she wore a casual outfit. She wore an oversized white tee shirt and a pair of frayed boyfriend jean trousers, a denim jacket with spotless boot-like sneakers.

"Oh…" Isabelle softly murmured as she stared at the agile Brinley. Seven years had passed like a gust of wind and Brinley was still robust though there were eye bags and dark circles underneath her eyes, some strands of her brown hair turned gray and wrinkles had gradually began to form on her thin face.

"I am Isabelle White." She said to Brinley.

Brinley was sure she had seen the young lady somewhere or somehow but she could not pinpoint where and how. She racked her brain to know of any lady with such name but she couldn't come up with any hint. Brinley dismissed her contemplations with the thought that old age was catching up with her, hence, her frequent forgetfulness. Besides, there were so many young ladies with the last name 'White'.

"Beatrice just stepped out to meet a friend. Why don't you come back later?" She told Isabelle who faked a surprised look. The truth was that Isabelle had been at the Everhart residence for more than two hours but she didn't enter the house until Beatrice stepped out.

"There is no need for that. I will wait for her to return." She said and sat on the loveseat sofa.

Brinley's eyes stealthily searched for Isabelle's ring finger to confirm whether she was married. Realizing that she had stared too much to be caught, she briskly walked into the kitchen to get some refreshments for her guest.

"What would you like, young miss?" She asked Isabelle from the kitchen.

"Anything light." Isabelle reflexively responded.

Few minutes later, Nathaniel strode into the Everharts' house. The aura around him reeked of gravitas and his eyes narrowed in enthusiasm. He was eager to meet Isabelle. He remembered telling Isabelle to get married to him but the girl rejected him on a whim. After that, Brinley had badmouthed Isabelle to him. She told Nathaniel that Isabelle got pregnant and ran away from the house to stay with her lover and he was forced to believe it after Beatrice showed him a written note from Isabelle and photos of the twin babies when they were six months old. The babies looked so much like Isabelle.

"Hi." He stopped to greet the young lady who was in a denim jacket. Isabelle who was chatting with her children and housekeeper through her phone peered through her long eyelashes and saw a smiley Nathaniel.

"Hi." She replied, not sparing another glance at him.

"I am Nathaniel Sinclair and you are…?" He briefly introduced himself with a winsome smile and that made Isabelle's tummy churn.

"Isabelle White." She hesitatingly replied. Nathaniel who stood there racked his brain to know of any beautiful damsel with such name. He dismissed his doubts with the thought that Isabelle was a young lady from a rich family who kept a low profile. After all, there were so many ladies in and out of the nation with the name 'Isabelle White'.

"I reside in Aurora Island and I work as an impresario over there so you won't know much about me." She added when she saw the creased brows of the man's face.

"Aurora Island?"

"Yeah, Aurora Island." Isabelle replied to Nathaniel and turned to look at Brinley who came in with a glass of smoothie.

'When last did Brinley Everhart prepare smoothie for me?' Isabelle asked herself as she stared at the glass tumbler that was filled with fluffy pink liquid. Then again, she didn't bother to take a sip. 'Of course, she was fond of depriving me of food. She has never made refreshments for me, talk less of a homemade smoothie.'

"You are from Aurora Island? And you work as an impresario?" Nathaniel interrogated. He was captivated by this new piece of information. Aurora Island was not listed among the notable islands because it was typically inhabited by middle-class individuals. It was mostly considered as one of the insignificant places one could find in their nation, who would have thought that this insignificant place was the abode of a pretty fairy like Isabelle White?

"Yes, any problem?" She replied with a small smile, she looked beautiful like the radiant sun.

Nathaniel became curious and mystified and his eyes shifted from her beautiful face down to her slender fingers [particularly, her ring finger], Isabelle knew that Nathaniel's stare would shift to her fingers so she had hooked her left hand in her jacket's pocket.

To Nathaniel, it wasn't much of a surprise to him. He assumed that the beautiful young damsel could be unmarried or betrothed or secretly married to a big shot.

"Miss. White, would you like some cakes or biscuits?" Brinley asked Isabelle. A sliver of surprise swooshed through Isabelle's visage but she was quick to compose herself.

"Certainly not," She quickly answered. "Smoothie is fine."

Brinley nodded submissively. Her calm expression cracked like an egg immediately she entered the kitchen. She couldn't believe that the lady she was entertaining was actually trying to entice Nathaniel, her son-in-law. She needed to warn her daughter, Beatrice, of the type of friends she hung out with. And just as the mother wished, her daughter came into the house.

"Mom…! I'm back…!" Beatrice squawked the second she entered the house. She did not notice Nathaniel and Isabelle who were watching her.

"Hey…" Nathaniel welcomed the young lady and Beatrice was already beaming with smiles. She instantly tried to hug her husband but Nathaniel quickly avoided that by introducing Isabelle.

"This is Isabelle White, an impresario," Nathaniel said in a chivalrous manner which was rare of him. "She is from Aurora Island."

'Aurora Island?' Beatrice asked herself as she gazed at Isabelle. To her, she had never met the beautiful being in front of her. She could not help but admire Isabelle White in her heart.

"I am Beatrice Sinclair, Nathaniel's wife."

"I know." Isabelle replied.

"You know? That is okay." Beatrice mumbled with curious eyes and Isabelle nodded.

"Not really." Isabelle said and elegantly stood up. "I am here to fulfill my words. Do you remember what happened seven years ago?"

Beatrice's eyes that were fixed on Isabelle's pretty face dilated and she could feel the tires in her head screeching to a halt. She didn't know when she impulsively muttered the word, 'Penelope…'.

The matter couldn't get any better as Sullivan entered the house. It was as if they were having a family reunion.

"Penelope?" Nathaniel heard his wife mutter something and his eyebrows puckered. He stared at Isabelle and tried to recollect how Penelope looked like seven years ago. Out of the blue, Isabelle was the transformed and well-nourished version of the then Penelope. In the past, Penelope was never given the opportunity to shine like her stepsister but now, Penelope also known as Isabelle was more beautiful, outstanding and hotter than all the ladies he had met put together. All the splendors and nice looks of all the superstars he knew joined together could never amount to a quarter of Isabelle's beauty.

"Penelope isn't here yet? Why is she wasting our time?" Brinley yelled when she heard her son-in-law utter the name. "Why is she keeping us waiting?"

Beatrice and Nathaniel stared at Brinley who was oblivious of the fact that Isabelle was Penelope.

"Mom, Penelope is here." Beatrice said to her mother in a hushed voice.

"She is here already. I can't wait to give her a thunderous slap. Just because she ran away and…" Brinley was stopped by her daughter.

"She is the one." Nathaniel said to Brinley, pointing at Isabelle. "She is Penelope, she is here already."

"What a stupid joke! She cannot be…" Brinley was interrupted by her husband, Sullivan.

"Penelope!" Sullivan called out when he saw Isabelle. He had stayed by the side, monitoring everything that was happening. He walked towards her but he was stopped by Nathaniel.

"I am no longer Penelope but Isabelle White." She said in an aloof tone and everybody gasped in shock.

"Where are your children?" Beatrice asked as her eyes searched stealthily for the twin children. She was not going to allow Isabelle to take the upper hand in this situation.

"At home." Isabelle replied without looking at her fake stepsister. "Thanks for your concern, Beatrice. They are doing very great, greater than before."

Beatrice clamped her mouth shut. She clearly understood Isabelle's words. Huh…greater than before!?

'So she really has children?' Nathaniel thought as he stared at Isabelle. If Isabelle was this pretty, then her children will also be beautiful and they looked very much like her. He found himself wanting to take care of Isabelle and her children. He was even marveled at his thought. Deep inside of him, he was not happy. He wanted to marry Isabelle and make her his own. He jolted out of his thoughts when he heard a thud. Brinley fainted.

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FORTY-FIVE MINUTES LATER

Still at the Everhart family's house, Brinley later woke up. It was as if the Everhart family members were in total disarray, it was as if judgment had befallen upon them and it was true.

"Mr. Nathaniel Sinclair," Isabelle called out and Nathaniel involuntarily straightened his back.

"I told you something before I left, I never knew it would take this long…seven years." She muttered the last two words with a bittersweet smile.

"It doesn't matter at all to me, it is just seven years." Nathaniel said with a warm smile, trying to make the atmosphere lively.

"As a matter of fact, it matters. Seven years is not seven months, seven years is not seven days, and seven years is not seven seconds." Isabelle said with deep profundity and looked at Nathaniel in the eyes. "Seven years is seven years. It is such a long and short period of time."

Nathaniel felt like air was stuck in his lungs. The Penelope he knew was no longer the Penelope now. It was as if she had undergone a drastic powerful change and he just could not adapt to it.

"Let us not worry about my side of the story, I am here to give you my final answer," Isabelle finalized and Nathaniel's heart started to race. He was becoming nervous as it his heartbeats increased. His throat became parched and sweats gathered on his forehead.

Isabelle silently sighed and said, "Right here and right now."