With all the disastrous incidences taking place one after another, I find my tears invincible.

After a long time, I hear a knock at the door. I did not bother to address the incomer as I was dwelling in my own sorrow. Aunt Gabriella came in and brought me to a tender hug moving her hand on my back in a soothing way. Her motherly love brought an outburst of tears that I had indulged to stop after a lot of effort. I cried obstreperously letting out all my emotions. She allowed me to cry and pour my heart out whispering sweet nothings into my ear.

When I was in a pool of misery and in her embrace I saw Alex's uncle coming in through my tear-stricken eyes. He sat on the other side and  ran his hand lovingly on my head. "Why am I experiencing all sorts of sadness at the same time, uncle Alex?" I ask him unable to withhold my pain.

He gently rubbed my arms in consolation and whispered "From today onwards you will call me dad. I raised my head to look into him in question and he looked at me full of endearment nodding his head. Aunt Gabriella joined us and hugged me from the other side. After a lot of pursuation and the parental counseling from them I recovered a little and ate my dinner that night.

Chapter 9

Ana's Pov

After I came back to bed I was back to my thoughts. I lost my dad and the suspense is killing me about who is the person that is responsible for his death. I saw my father as always a friendly person and wonder if he could ever have such a big enemy who wouldn't hesitate to even end his life.

I tried to enquire him several times after he was shot about who is his killer. He knew the answer but he never replied me. The only answer which I used to get from him was -Ulrick will take care of everything. It sometimes felt like he was waiting with bated breath only for Ulrick to arrive so that he could tell him the truth and leave the world.

Dad trusted Ulrick so much that it sometimes angered me and at other times got me happy. Angry because I was jealous that probably dad loves him more than me and happy because I chose the right man as my husband.

The whole scenario in the room changed between the ten minutes that I took to bring food for dad. My family pampers me too much. But what they do not know is, I may be childish but I am not stupid.

With the prevailing atmosphere in the room and daddy's talk to me in parables, I could clearly note that there was something Dad confessed to Ulrick that I did not know. Did he give Ulrick his murderer's address? With the behavior of Aunt Gabriella and Uncle Alex, my misery multiplied because I could perceive I'm the only one in darkness here.

Why is my family hiding things from me? Am I a fool incapable of handling situations?

It's already ten past ten but Ulrick hasn't reached home yet. I am worried like hell. My eyes go red because of a lack of rest. Aunt Gabriella persuaded me to sleep. But I couldn't even leap an eye. The greater I thought about dad's death, the more cryptic it felt. And my family members behaved like it was a territory I wasn't allowed to step in.

What if Ulrick too was in some kind of threat that uncle and aunt are hiding from me? Calm down, Anastasia. Ulrick is busy with some important work - I pat my racing heart doing a self-talk.

After dinner Alex uncle and Gabriella Aunty were exchanging glances at each other speaking with their eyes. I doubt they already know the reason why Ulrick is late. Uncle tried consoling me that he is always late from work and I should go back to sleep but little did he know I wasn't a kid anymore to believe in their false stories. What sort of work is it which keeps him busy till so late in the night? Also his office is at Miami and not Denmark?

I assimilate there are many things in our families that are encrypted. Thinking in various aspects about why he could be late my eyelids drop and unknowingly I sink into the warm comforter placed in the drawing room.

Somewhere in the middle of the night, I hear the opening of the main door. I panicked who it was this late in the night and hid behind the sofa to check on the person. It was Ulrick. I relax and come out of my hiding place hugging him tightly. The shyness in hiding my attraction towards him took a back seat. He was back and that is all that I wanted. In the process my masked emotions came to surface.

Ulrick trailed his hand on my back to comfort me and asked "Doll shouldn't you be to sleep?" I dropped my head down playing with the hem of my nightshirt. Am I caught? There was no use hiding my love for him anymore. I mumbled meeting his eyes. "I was waiting for you to come home."

He chuckles and raises my chin to peck the cheeks and my body goes placid dissolved by his touch.

His coat was gone and his white dress shirt was folded to his elbows. His thick black hair became messy as though he had run his hands on it several times and then suddenly I noticed something. There are blood stains on his shirt. My eyes start welling and my voice goes numb in trepidation. Did somebody try to harm him just like it happened to dad? I started grieving. Holding his hands my eyes start inspecting his body with my tearful eyes. How couldn't I notice this earlier?