The Black Scorpion
Ch. 19

"The woman you're referring to is Trix, my cousin," Adrienne said suddenly to the surprise of the two men in serious conversation.

Adrienne was neat with Savannah's t-shirt and trousers brought by Nikolai. Her long hair was curled up and the children's short hair was untangled around her ears and neck making her look sexy.

"And one more. I don't like to be investigated. If curious about my background, simply ask without needing to investigate behind my back. There's nothing I need to hide anyway because I'm not the one involved with the crime" Adrienne added, staring intently at the two men before her.

"All right then. I'll clean up first then we'll have breakfast together and you'll tell me all about yourself without anything being covered up" Aaric said briefly.

Finished saying so, Aaric took the change of clothes that Nikolai brought and headed to the bathroom to clean himself. As long as Aaric was in the bathroom, only silence lay with Adrienne and Nikolai. The two of them did not know where to start talking.

Fifteen minutes later, Aaric had finished cleaning himself and looked fresh with a plain T-shirt with the sleeves of the shirt reaching the elbows and matching coloured jeans. Aaric then invited the two people who were silent for breakfast at the restaurant on the ground floor.

Ting.

The elevator doors opened and the three of them entered the elevator room. Aaric and Adrienne stood at the back with Nikolai in front of their center. Along the way down to the ground floor, only the sound of the hum of the operating elevator engine carrying them down.

Arriving at the bottom, the two handsome men walked in front followed by Adrienne at the back. His heart was still upset but on the other hand he also felt guilty for not taking the time to tell Aaric about himself, especially he who was now taking care of the twins. There must have been some doubt about Aaric's safety if the twins were in his hands. The woman could only breathe.

The three of them immediately took food from the breakfast buffet provided by the hotel. When it was over, Aaric chose a place in the corner of the restaurant. They devoured their breakfast in silence and in the middle of the breakfast, Adrienne knew herself and began her story.

"I'm the only child in my family and my parents spoil me a lot. I lived happily for twelve years" Adrienne said, taking a breath.

Aaric and Nikolai just kept quiet, letting the woman continue her story.

"Just a year?" ask Aaric suddenly.

"Yes. Grandpa and Grandma died of illness. After my grandparents died, I lived with my uncles, aunts and Trix" Adrienne said.

Aaric stopped his eating activity when he heard the angry tone in the woman's voice while Nikolai had finished his breakfast and was sipping hot coffee casually as if nothing else could surprise him.

"They are demons who take on the form of humans. They only gave me food and shelter in order to master the legacy my parents left behind. Instead, I have to do all the work that seems endless. They never financed my school so I had to rack my brains to get to school. Fortunately, my grandparents paid my school fees for up to a year and gave me savings so I could buy my own books and school supplies" Adrienne said, but she tried to be detained.

"The first three months I was able to relax and enjoy my school life, but in the fourth month, those worries began to appear unsolicited. The savings given by grandparents are still enough until the next year but no one can guarantee the next year I can still go to school. At the age of fourteen, I had to start working and save all my work in order to go to school. Thanks to my hard work every year, I was able to send myself to university. I should have gotten my parents' inheritance and money at eighteen, but they never talked about it. Every time I ask, they always argue that the money is long gone and even use their money to support me so they will not give up my parents' inheritance business to me as a form of repayment of the debt I incurred after the money inheritance exhausted. I still want to fight for my parents' legacy but my struggle has to stop in the middle because I heard their talk."

"What did you hear from their conversation?" asked Aaric who had finished his breakfast and sipped some coffee.

"They want to sell me to a rich family as debt relief. It turned out that my parents' legacy business that they managed was on the verge of bankruptcy at the time and they borrowed a large amount of money on a business owned by the wealthy family. Unable to pay off the debts they made themselves, they planned to sell me so that the debt was considered paid off and it just so happened that the boy from the rich family was looking for a wife. It was then that I decided to leave the house and live independently so that they could not demand anything from me anymore."

"What happened after you left the house?" ask Aaric curiously.

"At first it was fine. I could still work and live a normal life but three months after my departure from that house, some unknown people came to me and asked me to come with them, not even reluctant to destroy my place of work so inevitably I have to find another job. But it seems all the same. No matter how many times I tried to escape from them, they could still find me so I had to really hide. I managed to hide for six months but since there was no job which meant no income, I tried to find a job. But the fear of being found again made me look for a job where they couldn't find me. I work as a dishwasher in a small suburban restaurant with a meager income that tends not to be enough. I was almost kicked out of my residence for delinquent a few months of rent. It was then that I was forced to owe it to the people you met just a moment ago. Unable to pay off, I was chased by them and ended up on that fateful night. Good thing you helped me and I'm so grateful for that" Adrienne said with teary eyes.

"Your uncle and aunt never looked for you again?" aaric Fishing.

Adrienne just shook her head and drank the orange ice in front of her to calm herself down.

Seriate...