Everyone went dead quiet and all eyes were riveted on them.
Sophia paled and looked around. She knew. Deep inside, she knew. I can flee to Siberia, but the nightmare will stay with me forever, no matter what I do, no matter how much I try to hide. There’s no escape.
“Ariadne, we don-” Alice began.
Sophia raised her hand, placating the anxious mother. “It’s okay, Alice. She’s just curious.” Turning to the girl, she answered, “It’s an old scar.”
“And how did you get it?”
Sophia heard Alice’s breath falter but she kept her eyes on the child’s green ones.
How? I don’t remember. “Some bad men shot me about two years ago.” And they killed my husband, destroying my life, despoiling me of my dreams.
“Why?”
Why? I don’t know. Sophia’s head pounded so much she thought it would explode. “Why?” She smiled sadly at the girl, finishing the girl’s braid. How could anyone explain this? “Ariadne, they were evil men and they didn’t know good from bad.”
From the corner of her eyes, Sophia saw Alice and Leonard shifted uncomfortably.
“Does it hurt?”
“Sometimes, a bit.” Oh, it hurts a lot. Every day I wake up alone. Every night I go to bed on my own. It hurts every single minute of my goddamned life. Only I know how much. Nevertheless, she couldn’t tell this to a child. She noticed that Ethan observed her with a creepy expression.
Ariadne gazed at her, gently. “You know, everyone has a mark, maybe this is yours.”
Sophia shivered at this. “It’s an ugly mark.” She tried to locate Gabriela but couldn’t spot her from where she was.
“Ugly?” Ethan laughed darkly at her. “It’s a hideous scar. It disfigures you.” Yeah, baby, let’s show these guys that you’re not so hot, perfect, and gorgeous.
Sophia gasped aloud. “What has gotten into you, Ethan?”
“Does the truth upset you, darling?”
“Better scarred on the outside than on the inside,” she fired back, through clenched teeth.
“What do you mean by that?” he asked in a menacing voice.
She didn’t answer.
She placed a kiss on Ariadne’s cheek and got out of the pool, with as much composure as she could muster. She grabbed her shirt, yanked it through her arms, and looked for her daughter. Gabriela detested when people talked about Sophia’s scars. The little girl, in Alistair’s arms, watched the scene wide-eyed and sucked her thumb. Alistair’s face had turned thunderously dark as he listened to Sophia and Ethan’s argument.
Oh, damn! She went in their direction, her eyes glazed by the pain in her head, the bitter memories, and Ethan’s words.
Without thinking, Alistair transferred the child to Sophia’s extended arms and cradled them both in his embrace. She put her head on his shoulder, violently trembling.
“Easy, easy,” he soothed. “Calm down.”
Neither of them noticed when Ethan got out of the pool, on her trail. “Take your hands off her.”
Alexander came into Ethan’s path. “There, Ashford. Haven’t you done enough damage for today?”
“Sophia, I think you could use a drink,” Leonard intervened, flinging Alistair a towel to envelop her.
Elena rose from her place, an appalled look on her face.
Sophia and Gabriela left the pool lounge, in Alistair’s embrace, with Elena leading the way and Leonard at the rear, leaving an enraged Ethan behind.
1.53 p.m.
Although the food was delicious, the lunch was a tense affair for Sophia. She hardly ate, pushing the food around on her plate. Even the wine tasted like acid, but, fortunately, Ethan had once again calmed down, as if nothing had happened. Gabriela had her lunch with Alice’s children and their friends. Ariadne and Gabriela were now playing outside and squealing with delight.
Coffee and liqueur were served in the square Blue Drawing Room, which faced the gardens.
Sophia sat between Ethan. Claire and John sat at the other end of the long sofa, in front of a huge fireplace. Next to John sat Alexander. Leonard and Alice were seated in the two armchairs. Elena joined Michael, Alice and Leonard’s son in the TV room.
Sophia gradually relaxed, Ethan’s arm on her shoulders, his hand caressing her arm, no longer bothered by the scar he said he found so hideous.
Gabriela and Ariadne entered the room through the garden doors, each one running to their mom. Behind them, came Alistair, Andrew, and Domitila, with satisfied smiles on their faces.
“Look, Mama, what beautiful flowers I picked for you in the greenhouse.” Gabriela showed a bunch of daisies to Sophia.
“I can make a crown for you with them.” She smiled tenderly at Gabriela. “You’ll be the Fairy Queen. What do you think?”
“All those fairy tales are bullshit.” Ethan said in a severe voice and turned to Sophia. “Don’t encourage such nonsense. The girl has had enough of them already.”
Gabriela stopped dead in her tracks. Blinking, she looked at Ethan, at Sophia, at the flowers, and started to back away.
Immediately, Alistair picked her up in his arms, exclaiming, “Surely you are the most adorable Fairy Queen I’ve ever seen.” Fuck you, Ashford. This is no way to treat a child.
Gabriela put her free hand on Alistair’s cheek, “You’re beautiful, you know?”
Alistair chuckled, “Beautiful is for delightful girls like you. Men are handsome-”
“No,” she interrupted, firmly. “You’re like my Uncle Felipe, beautiful. Because you’re handsome, funny, and kind,” she reaffirmed, in an unyielding and clear voice. “Ethan is handsome but he’s mean.”
You little piece-. In a blur of a movement, Ethan jumped from the sofa, heading in Gabriela and Alistair’s direction like an enraged bull set loose.
Alistair put an arm protecting Gabriela’s little body and stepped back.
“You insolent--”
Oh, my God! Sophia got up as quickly as Ethan, grabbing him by the back of his sweater. “Stop! Stop right there, right now. You can insult me. But never, ever, think of saying a thing about my daughter. She’s a child.”
He spun in her direction. “And you’re my lover. She has to respect me.”
Uh? “Hah! Respect. You don’t know the meaning of the word,” Sophia glowered at him.
A small voice broke into their argument. “Mama, what is a lover?”
Alistair glanced at Sophia and answered Gabriela, “A lover is someone that loves.”
“But my mother doesn’t love him,” she insisted. “She loved my father.”
Sophia’s heart shattered in a thousand pieces and she sighed profoundly. Gabriela doesn’t deserve this. She’s already been through so much. She glared at Ethan, her eyes flashing, daring him to make a move and move toward her daughter.
Picking Gabriela up in her arms, she spoke softly, “Come with me, my angel. I’ll explain it to you.” She looked Alistair in the eye and bowed her head slightly in thanks, and strolled to the gardens with Gabriela perched on her hips.
Alistair’s control was hanging by a thread. He looked away from Ethan and left the room, shaking his head. I need a distraction. Something to take Sophia off my mind.
Sophia had had enough. Ethan’s jealous of his own shadow. I won’t forgive him this time. She left Gabriela in the TV room with Elena and the rest of the children. She climbed the stairs to her room praying she could avoid Ethan. She had a bad headache.
Her iPhone vibrated. Oh, damn. An urgent message from Edward. As if things couldn’t get any worse. She called him back.