chapter ten: a visit to the Blackwell estate part two

Chapter ten: a visit to the Blackwell estate part two.

Xavier sat in the conference room, staring intently at the information that was being displayed by the projector.

When the man was done explaining the plan, he nervously turned to Xavier sitting at the table head from across him. Well, you don't need anyone to tell you that the guy was frightened.

Truth is, it was actually not the first time he had to redo the entire plan with his team. So, he wasn't the only one feeling nervous at the moment. Some team members also stared at Xavier with anxious expressions on their faces, some had their heads hung low, unable to look at him, while some of them just kept their gaze on the projector, pretending to be in deep thoughts.

Xavier picked up the documents on his table, and after looking through it, he closed it. Glancing at everyone in the the conference room.

" It's okay now. Let's proceed with the project with this plan."

He stood up and left the room, holding his own copy of the project plan.

In the conference room, after seeing Xavier walk out, all of them finally breathed sighs of relief, while the team leader slumped in his chair. He heaved a sigh, and softly gave himself a path on his chest.

" Team leader, you were awesome." A female employee gave a thumbs up to the team leader.

" Yes team leader you were great. I was so scared just now, I almost couldn't think."

" Ahh, finally we can push through with the project. If we had to stay up once again to improve the plan, my eyes might have fallen out." A cute, blonde female employee who wore glasses said.

The team leader let them vent their pent-up emotions and frustrations because he knew the past two weeks wasn't very comfortable and dreamy for any of them.

After a few minutes were gone, the team leader knocked lightly on the table to get everyone's attention.

" Everyone's tried their best these last two weeks, well-done. As you've all seen and lived through, the boss's standards are pretty high.

We must be very careful while carrying out this project. We can't afford any mistakes. This isn't the time to make mistakes, we're to work together so that everything will turn out perfectly. Remember, you're all to look out for each other." After a brief morale boosts, the captain shared with the team a little bit of advice.

They all nod their heads in agreement, whispering a few words to each other.

....

Xavier had just walked into his office, with Mick trailing behind, his gaze focused on the tablet, scrolling through.

Just then Mick, received a message on the tablet. After reading it, he hesitated on how to break the news to Xavier.

" If you have nothing else to do, you can leave." Xavier ordered, not bothering to look up at Mick.

Mick gulped back down the hesitation and reported.

" The madam has been taken to the Blackwell estate."

Xavier's hand froze, he raised his head, staring at Mick, " how did that happen?"

" It was Jack who took her there." He replied.

With a frown, Xavier stood up, picked his jacket and headed out, with Mick following behind him.

" Get the driver."

" Yes sir."

....

Casey stood in front of a very big mansion, her mouth agape.

At that moment, Mr. Brown, the steward walked to her, wearing a tuxedo.

With a bow, he greeted her.

" Welcome young madam. I'm the steward, Mr. Brown."

Casey flinched a little bit, with an awkward smile, she nodded.

Truth be told, she felt strange and awkward. She had no idea what she had to do. Was there a particular way she was to respond. She honestly didn't want to make a fool of herself.

Mr. Brown showed a polite smile, he stepped aside his hand gesturing forward. " Please."

She smiled and walked forward. The steward stood behind her, " young madam, you don't have to be nervous. Just calm down." He advised from behind her, in a whisper.

Casey glanced at him from over her shoulder, " thanks."

They walked through the big living room, to the elevator. Although she hadn't taken time to look around Xavier's house, she was sure that this place was a lot bigger.

With a 'ding' sound, the elevator door opened.

Mr. Brown continued to lead her forward, passing various rooms. Some had glass doors, so she was able to see what was inside. There was the music room, which seemed a bit similar to the one at Xavier's.

Then there was the library, the gym, the gallery, and even a game room. Although, she did wonder for what use was the game room, seeing as there was hardly any one else in the house.

From the moment she stepped into the house, the only people she'd seen were the maids wandering around, doing one cleaning or the other.

While she continued to assess the place, giving her thoughts, they arrived at a door.

Mr. Brown and Casey stood in front of the door. Casey nervously took in silent deep breaths.

After Mr. Brown's knock on the door, their was a few seconds of silence, before the person on the other side of the door, gave his permission to let them in.

Mr. Brown opened the door, once again gesturing for her to enter. Only this time, he didn't follow her, after she had to entered the room, he closed the door behind her.

The room seemed to look like a relaxation room. There were about three couches in the room, then at her left end, was what look to be a bar counter, well couldn't be called that since there wasn't even a single wine there. The only things that could be present on the menu, was, coffee, tea, water juice, and yeah, more coffee.

Well, it kinda made her wonder who she was to be meeting here. Some distance after the bar counter, or the drink counter, there was a snack machine that rested on the wall.

As her gaze swept across the room, she noticed a table at her right end. An old man sat there, playing chess with himself. Seeing this, Casey frowned. She couldn't believe it was actually an old man staying here. Well, somehow, the room didn't say that.

The thought of leaving crossed her mind about a hundred times, in just few seconds, but she couldn't do that, since she had come this far, might as well see it to the end.

Bravely, she took one step at a time, walking towards the old man, until she stood a few steps away.

He saw her coming towards him from the corner of his eyes, but stayed quiet.

" Sir? Patriarch Blackwell?" She called out from the side.

She had no idea how to address him, so she could only address him the same way as the newspapers.

He finally looked up at her, he laughed heartily.

" Granddaughter in-law, you're finally here. Have a seat, have a seat. There's no need to be nervous, come play a game with this old man."

Casey stood still for a while, she hadn't expected this at all. A lot of scenarios about how this moment will play out, but this certainly wasn't part of any of them.

She stared vacantly for a while, before the old man spoke again.

" Why? You're not interested in playing against this old man?" He turned to her with a feigned look of annoyance on his face.

Shaking her head, Casey sat across from him. " How's that possible? I was only surprised, that's it." She explained, moving a pawn of hers.

Well, and so the game begun.

Moving her chess piece, " checkmate."

Old master Blackwell was surprised, he stared at the chess board for a while longer, then his gaze moved up, staring at her.

His hearty laughter echoed in the room.

" Not bad. I didn't expect you to be this good. Good. Another round." He declared.

Few rounds later, Casey stared at the old man. " How was my game this time?"

" You did great." He nodded.

Casey smiled. She didn't feel as nervous as she did before.

" Are you feeling better now?" He asked looking at Casey.

" Ahhh?" A look of confusion settled on her face.

He only chuckled lightly, not saying a word.

Only then did she realize what had just happened. Turns out he was trying to help her get rid of her nervousness.

She smiled in understanding. " Thank you sir. I'm much better now."

" As expected from my granddaughter in-law. You catch up really fast."

" Hmmm.. you can call me Casey sir." She nodded slowly, with a respectful tone.

The old man suddenly looked upset, causing Casey to flinch a little. She went over her every word and expression, wondering if she had said something wrong.

" You should call me grandpa now that you're married to Xavier." He laughed.

Casey's nose scrunched up a bit, not use to that address.

" It's okay. You don't have to rush. You can take your time." He spoke up when he noticed her having a hard time.

" Thank you." Those were the only words that came out the moment she opened her mouth. She had no idea what else to say.

" So, how did you meet my grandson?" He asked, leaning back on the couch. He intertwined his hands together, placing it on his lap, his elbow resting on the couch arm.

Once again, Casey who was just adjusting, was thrown off balance by the sudden change of topic. But she adjusted her self.

" Oh, Xavier? Yes, we met under the rain. At least some couple meters away from the mall in that area. Yes. That's how we met. Just like that, we met." She smiled, picking out a few details from the real deal, she layed out her own story. The nervousness that had left her, suddenly seem to have returned, this time with a twin.

Pops Blackwell nodded, not saying anything about her reply or reaction.

Suddenly, she had no idea what to do. Was this the popular 'you aren't worthy of marrying into my family' business?

What happens if she's told to leave Xavier? Should she?

' Pops if you want me to leave your grandson, I don't mind. Just have him leave my family as well.' as these thoughts crossed her mind, she thought about something else.

' what if the Blackwell's were aware that their little girl had ended up dying because of her mother's mistake?'

' This might not be the classic of taking money and leaving. What if they're even crazier than Xavier, outright killing her and getting rid of her body?'

She shuddered at the thought. There was no way she could relax now. She was going to die any ways, seeing as their wonderful grandson had poisoned her, but that didn't mean she'd watch silently like a sheep to the slaughter, not saying a word. IMPOSSIBLE.

As the craziest of ideas popped in Casey's head, old master Blackwell thought carefully of what questions to ask, unbeknownst to him that his granddaughter in-law thoughts were going over.

" How did he propose to you?" His grandson was after all not someone to be so concerned about the details when it came to relationships.

" Oh, that.. well, he handed me a marriage certificate and asked me to sign it."

" It's been hard on you. Well, as you know, Xavier isn't someone who's very feeling. I hope you're not angry." He tried to explain.

This time, she looked confused.

' What exactly was going on? One minute he seems nice, and then he's questioning me?'

" Grandpa, aren't you bothered that I got married to Xavier without your permission?"

As if understanding her reason for asking, he smiles. " You don't have to worry. I'm not bothered. That rascal's always loved to follow his own book."

" What about my background?"

" What about your background?" He threw her question back at her.

" I'm from a middle class family? My social status isn't on a level that matches your family. Doesn't it, I don't know, bother you?"

Usually people his status always have a problem with the girl, like similar to her situation and she didn't understand why he was being nice.

'What's with the questions? Was he just being curious about the lady his grandson got married to? Or was there some plot hidden behind everything?'

With Xavier setting the example, and knowing the fact that her mom didn't necessarily have a great past experience with them, she couldn't help it. It was almost as if everything had a motive behind.

While she had her thoughts randomly popping in her head, grandpa replied to her earlier questions.

" No. No, it doesn't bother me that my grandson chose someone like you. As for your social status, that's not important." His causal way of speech made her feel affected.

While his replies were being digested by her, he continued, this time his tone a tad bid more serious than before.

" Casey, money and status isn't everything. I do hope you don't let that get in the way of your relationship with Xavier. Maybe some day you'll understand. Someone who's seen the world like I have, would know that such things are not what's important in life. Xavier's my youngest grandson and I want him to be happy.

I'll have you know, although he's cold and aloof on the outside, he's a kind and good kid on the inside.

Due to past events, he turned out the way he's is now, but he's not a bad person." As he explained, one could hear the love the old man had for his grandson.

This wasn't some plot, it was just a grandfather who was worried about his grandson's life, future and happiness.

The more he spoke, she could not only hear the love in his tone, she also felt the sincerity in each words he uttered.

It kinda made her feel bad about her earlier thoughts about him. But that put more pressure on her.

'What if he found out about his granddaughter in the future? How would he take that?'

The more she thought about it, the more she felt sad and guilty.

Her marriage with Xavier, although legally allowed and approved, wasn't what it was. It was just an agreement, a revenge plot for what had happened with his sister.

It wasn't the perfect marriage they expect it to be. It was just one big sham.

So what if they didn't mind the social status, she knew that the happiness the old man desired for herself and his grandson wasn't something that was possible.

Just like the vows of married couples, 'till death part them both' but that wasn't her and Xavier.

Well.. .... Maybe it was, but not the way originally meant in the vow, but because of the poison in her body.

Yet again, the more she thought about it, more unwanted thoughts came rushing in, she felt like she was being suffocated, like there was a stone weighing on her heart.

' calm down, forget about the negativity and focus on the positive. She had no idea on for how long she had to repeat those words to herself before she finally calmed down. Though it was unclear what the positive was.

While she adjusted her thoughts, also listening to old master Blackwell, the door of the room opened and a man walked in.

His green eyes was a tad bit darker than Xavier's, but she could tell the man that approached was definitely related to Xavier.

As she thought of the possible relationship between the two, the man arrived, he stood by the old man's side. Well, she didn't have to guess anymore as the somewhat familiar stranger spoke up.

With a slight bow, he greeted, " father."

' Father??!! So he's Xavier's father? '

Casey exclaimed to herself.

The old patriarch laughed, " Alex, you're here. Come have a sit, that little rascal's been up to quite the mischief recently."

While Mr. Alexander Blackwell settled on the couch by grandpa's side, he was immediately fed with stories from grandpa.

" Just hands over a marriage certificate to be signed? Seems this kid has no idea of how to get a lady's heart." Xavier's father joined the old man, laughing heartily.

' to get a lady's heart' although had an obviously different meaning, Casey read those words literally.

' haha, haha, haha..' Casey laughed sarcastically to herself.

Their words just seemed to transmit a completely different meaning to Casey. At some point, she did wonder if they were discussing about the same person.

Then again, he was facing the daughter of the woman who had caused his sister's death. Guess this was the answer to her question. His sister's death did change him.

After filling his son in on everything that Casey had told him, old Mr. Blackwell and Mr. Alexander returned their attention back to Casey.

With an almost awkward smile, Casey bowed a little, "Mr. Blackwell, it's nice meeting you."

Mr. Alexander chuckled softly.

" Why so formal, daughter in-law? Just call me dad, Casey."

Once again, the same thing. 'Was there at least one person in this family that had the right attitude to her marriage with Xavier? '

The nicer they were being, the more scared she became. She didn't know how they'd react to the whole truth in the future.

The nicer they treated her, she felt uncomfortable. Though it would be a lie if she said she didn't like it. Dealing with Xavier was more than enough for her, this time she could have his family's support.

The poison was going to end her life anyways, so her debt was being paid. Either way, she'd owe nothing more after death. The more she thought about it, the more she persuaded herself that she was deserving of their kindness. After a while, she kind of accepted this reality.

Death was inevitable, and the truth would one day be out in the open, rather than let herself get eaten by the questions in her heart she decided to accept it.

That bridge will be crossed when the time comes, but for now, she wasn't going to reject the happiness from this revenge alliance with Xavier.

With a smile, she called out in a low voice, " dad, grandpa." Both men let out roars of laughter, nodding with a satisfied look on their faces.

She had gained a new family, one that would be her pillar of strength in the future.

Although the future is unknown.

Yet she felt her heart bleed, the truth of Bonnie's death would be out sooner or later. When the truth comes out, what then?

Watching the smiles on their faces, she made a selfish promise to hide the truth for as long as she could.

A sense of belonging she gained from interacting with Xavier's family was a surprise she gained from their marriage.

With Jason, his parents never truly liked her, especially his mom. As for his father and sister, although they didn't really show it much, she knew they didn't want Jason mixing with someone like her.

That's probably her reason for having such thoughts when meeting with the head of a powerful family like the Blackwells.

Just as the three were about to head to the dining room after being informed by Mr. Brown that dinner was ready, they bumped into Xavier.

He glanced at his father and grandfather, before his gaze settled on Casey....

...

Although unexpected, a second family won't hurt, right?

Hahaha.....