She was obsessed with Buddhism. The moment she was saved, she erected a Buddha statue in her room and started worshipping it. Tessa sat cross legged before the statue and put her hands together as she muttered the mantras under her breath.
“What do you want to talk about?” she said.
I looked at her and answered, “Do you really believe he’ll bless you?”
She looked at me from the corner of her eye and replied sternly, “I wouldn’t be talking to you now if he doesn’t.”
Well, that was one woman far gone in religion. I paused for a moment. “They said you live in A City. Laurel’s going to open up a shop there once we get back. Want to join us?”
“No,” she refused firmly.
I nodded. “I didn’t mean it, you know. I didn’t want to hurt you guys. I really didn’t. I never expected Dante to hurt you like that. I—”
“Enough!” she interrupted me and threw me a dirty look. “Do you really think you’re that noble, Stovall? You keep looking down at us from a pedestal. Has anyone ever told you you’re one heck of a hypocrite?”
I looked at her, stunned.
She sneered. “I don’t think you even realized this yourself, but you’re a cold, selfish woman. And yet you keep trying to make yourself out to be some saint. You come from a privileged background, men fawn over you, and people would help you out no matter what. All you did was sit on your *ss and reaped the rewards. Ask yourself: have you ever gotten something through your own two hands? I knew it.”
I gaped at her, having no retort for that.
She was spurred on by my silence. “You’re just pretending to be a good guy, but you hate me more than they do, don’t you? That’s why you kept quiet when Dante chose me. Because you’d feel less guilty if I was the one who’s hurt. Because you never liked me. Am I right?”
I kept quiet, for I thought she had a point. Humans would tend to be sentimental, and even though I knew some part of her answer was fueled by her own rage, I couldn’t help but feel that I had the same thought at some point too.
I wanted to save them, yes, but I didn’t do my best either. I just went with the flow and didn’t do everything I could. even though I knew Ashton might be looking for me in Venria, I was still staying in Western Europe without a care.
“What? Got nothing to say to that?” She sneered with disdain.
I got up and left without saying anything. Not many people could face their own darkness head on. Me included.
…
The morning sun shone through the glass and covered the bed with golden dust. It was already August before I knew it. Fall’s around the corner.
Everyone gathered in the lobby early in the morning to prepare for the return. We managed to get to Western Europe from Venria without any passport or ID since the security was lax thanks to Armond, but it wouldn’t be so easy the other way around. Fortunately, Nora and the girls called their families and asked them to send the necessary documents over.
Not mine though. I couldn’t call anyone else, since the only number I memorized was Ashton’s. That proved to be a headache for Armond, and he had to talk to a lot of people in power to get the authorization for me.
We came to the airport, and Armond sent his men to take our flight tickets. At the same time, he went to settle his matters, leaving us alone.
Nora and the girls were exhilarated. Nora held my hands. “You can’t imagine how happy I am right now.”
“We can go home! Yay!”
“Yay for me too!”
The girls held each other’s hands, looking excited. Tabitha suggested, “Our flight’s one hour away. Why don’t we buy something to bring home?”
“Sure!”
And then everyone was silent. Laurel said carefully, “But we don’t have money.” Well, that killed the mood.
“Get Scarlett to lend you some then. She’s friends with Mr. Murphy, and the Murphys are rich. I don’t think she’d refuse, would she?” Tessa blurted.
Everyone looked at me. Well, this is awkward. Nora gave me the puppy-eye look and said nothing. Tabitha hesitated before speaking up, “Scarlett. I know it’s a bit much to ask, but can you lend us some money? I really want to bring something home with me. It’s been a while since I left, and my parents must be worried sick. I want to get something for them.”
“Yeah,” Laurel said carefully. “Same here. They must be worried sick. I know they must have searched high and low for us.”
