THE MEMORIES OF HER

"I see, he moved fast…" River clicked her tongue. Dylan must have come to his sense to be able to block her card, but she had predicted this day to happen. "Fine."

River shrugged her shoulders and pulled out her other card, the one that she made by using Ranon's money. The one that had nothing to do with Rose family, so none of them could control her.

It was so true when people said that; when you have money, half of your problem disappeared.

After River got her cash, she went to get a taxi for her. "Imperial Restaurant." River would meet with Ranon there. She checked her watch, she was early by five hours.

Because she didn't think she could get out of that house this fast, she agreed for a dinner there.

"Oh, I missed their lamb chop," River mumbled to herself. She stared at her reflection on the glass window of the car and the person, who looked back at her was this unfamiliar face.

Even now, River still had a hard time to see herself in the mirror. She felt foreign in this body. Probably because she was unable to accept this weird twisted fate that happened to her.

It was not that she was being ungrateful. She was very grateful for this second chance to exact her revenge, but…

"Probably, I need to start to refer myself as Hazel…"

"Yes?" The taxi driver asked, he stared at her through the rearview mirror. "Did you say something, miss?"

"No." River smiled, shaking her head. She closed her eyes and used this opportunity to fall asleep for a while.

============================= 

"Father has been very anxious. He has been looking for her everywhere, but no one could tell where she is. I was so afraid when father looked at me in the eyes and asked whether or not I involved in River's disappearance."

Aubrey looked so grim, she sat in the shotgun seat, inside Arlo's car. Patted her tears carefully, so it wouldn't ruin her mascara.

"What should we do now? I don't think father believed me when I said I have nothing to do with this." Aubrey turned her head to look at Arlo. He didn't have any reaction to her distress, sometime, this side of him was really irritated her. "You need to find River's body first, we need to retrieve the bullet from her body. Father will know that the bullet came from my gun."

Still, there was no reaction from Arlo. He drove the car, as if he was alone and Aubrey didn't exist.

"Arlo!" Aubrey finally snapped because she didn't get the reaction that she wanted from him and even so, he only glanced at her and talked curtly. "Do you know how scared I am?!"

"That's why you need to think first before acting recklessly."

"We agreed to kill her!"

"You are the one, who suggested that. I said nothing."

Aubrey felt like she was going crazy. With Arlo, when there was no reaction, it meant he agreed, but he always used this habit to twist the story.

But, before Aubrey broke down crying, Arlo stretched out his hand and held hers. His demeanor changed. He talked to her gentler. "I will add more people to look for her body. You don't need to worry. As long as you play along and act innocent in front of your father, everything will be fine."

Arlo was not sure, whether he wanted to find River's body or not. Finding her dead body would make thing very real for him that he had lost her, that she didn't make it.

She was the best assassin in their organization, how come she couldn't make it? She should have survived, right? That's why they still couldn't find her body.

Arlo unknowingly clung to that hope.

"Where are we going?" Aubrey asked, they had gone away from Aspen city and passed two cities, but Arlo still didn't say anything about their destination.

"Imperial Restaurant in Talbar city."

"Hm? Imperial Restaurant is also open in our city, why we need to go three cities away?"

Once again, Arlo didn't say anything. He drove silently, but his mind was not as quiet as he was. He couldn't help it, but chase her shadow in every corner that she had touched…

Imperial Restaurant was her favorite restaurant, especially in Talbar city, a year ago, they went there and she loved their lamb chop so much.

Obviously, Aubrey didn't know about this, because she had never paid attention to her half sibling and also because not everyone knew anything about her. That woman was very secretive and Arlo found the joy to discover small thing about her…

=============================== 

"How did she get your private phone number?" Lucian touched his chin, seemingly perplexed with Hazel's skill. "Hey, are you sure that you got the information about the right person?"

Ares threw him a glare. "You check on her background too." He reminded him.

"It doesn't make sense." Lucian clicked his tongue. "Why did she call you?"

Ranon glanced at his phone. It was a surprise for him too that Hazel knew about his private number, but it made him more attracted to her. He wanted to know more what this woman was up to.

Actually, Hazel called him to inform him that she had arrived in the restaurant and would like for him to open a private room for them to have a discussion later, since she had to wait for five hours, she chose to stay in the restaurant.

Hazel didn't want to open the room in her name, just in case her brother found out, since this fancy restaurant had a rule to give your personal information to book a room and make a down payment first.

She was being cautious.

"We have a meeting," Ranon said curtly and then walked away. He needed to cut short this meeting, so he could go. It was not polite to let her wait for long.