Chapter 3: The Overprotective Brother
In the current day, Herena didn't even have a chance to see what was happening. She knew that her brother Ismael had many friends, but she would never depend upon these people. For the most part, they hated her in the past, and she doesn't even know why - or anything until she discovers the truth.
She thinks those boys had ties to her brother in the past, and they knew why he was dead. The only thing she got is...
She could not finish her thoughts, knowing someone was giggling at her while lying in the cradle.
'Huh?'
"It seems that my little sister grows from day to day. But that is no more the case. I still want to hug and lift you even though you're getting heavier."
A voice so soft and gentle echoed in the room where Herena was. At first, she's pleased that her brother cares so much about her in the present, but it's a bit insulting for him to say that she's gaining weight because of her swollen cheeks. Now, she wouldn't even look at his face.
"Oh, I take it back. You're still light, Herena."
At that time, the baby was laughing and touching her brother's cheeks as her face and eyes seemed to smile.
"Ashupiltowls"
'I guess I always am.'
What did she have in mind? But because she's still a baby with her baby words, Ismael couldn't stop laughing and shaking his head.
"Alright, alright, looks like my baby sister was hungry. Well, I apologize for this day, Herena. Some of my friends came in, and I never meant for them to see my beloved sister. That's because I'm the only young man allowed to see her at this point, right?"
The sound of her brother saying these words while his cheeks pout seemed so sweet and cheeky at the same time. This made her hold her laugh for a while, but then she could not help it and burst out laughing in front of her brother.
"Beewygooof"
"Does my sister mean something?"
Then he teases her even more by tickling certain parts of her pretty small body. At this point, Ismael's friends returned, but Calus and the rest were about to leave the house. Ismael apologized for checking something without saying that he would check his little sister.
When Ismael played with Herena, he couldn't stop himself from laughing and giggling at the same time with Herena, making his mood a little lighter than before
"Very well, I must leave you for today, little sister. I need to get my friends out of here for a while."
Then he puts her down. He left the bedroom and headed for the place. He was going to close the door when he realized he wanted to keep it open in case his sister needed help so the servants would hear her cry or speak baby words to them.
As he approached the area, he was unaware that someone was already following him behind his back. As Ismael's footsteps faded, so did the young man's steps became known.
Herena, who was in the room, lifted her brows. Even though she was only a baby, she knew it was weird to hear someone walking into her room.
Is brother on his way back? Did he leave anything behind?
She didn't have many thoughts. However, she had no idea who the young man was until he walked to where Ismael had entered earlier. The young man entered the room and saw only a pair of emerald green eyes staring straight at him.
But the young man's forehead folded as he learned that the baby was already shaking. The little one's eyes went wide open, accompanied by her little mouth.
"So you are Ismael's little sister? He seems to appreciate you, doesn't he?"
The manner in which the young man said those words were sufficient for Herena to remember the past —how the little young man looked a lot like his beautiful mature face, which killed her in her previous life. No, she didn't want that young man to murder her again, not this time, so she had to escape the tragic event that happened.
"Ashulewrius!"
She straightened herself. Her eyes were already looking at the young man as she squeezed her crib with her little hands. The little baby's actions made Calus' golden eyes expand. He felt immobile for some time, but he recovered his composure, and for the first time in a very long time - he laughed.
Herena's eyes widened once more as her grip on the cradle became so tight that she wounded her tiny hands, but she didn't care for the moment. All she wanted to do was call the young man a bastard, and she did.
But she was unprepared for the reaction.
What's so funny about it? There is nothing funny in what she said...
Herena couldn't finish what she thought when Calus talked again, and this time it wasn't as dangerous as it used to be. It was sweet this time, and it was the first time she heard his voice in such a way as to release her hands from their grasp unconsciously.
"Well, well, if you weren't a baby now, I suppose I wouldn't laugh like that. So, farewell, for the time being."
"Gr..."
"You know what, little one? You're acting like a cub."
'Huh?'
Then Calus laughed again before exiting the premises.
'What does he mean by cub?'
***
"Calus, there you are. Where did you go?"
Ismael asked Calus. His eyebrows frowned, but the young man opposite his friends laughed instead. It was an eye-opener for the first time as well.
Nobody would expect him to laugh, ever, unless he was with the lady of his dreams - Lady Arianne. This time, however, he appeared somewhat absent.
What's the matter with him? Ismael thought alone, the same as the other three
"You four looked as though you had seen a ghost. Are you going to stop behaving that way?"
The grave and dangerous voice of Calus seemed to return. Staring at them like he was staring at his prey was enough to make them tremble. But not Ismael.
The three faked their coughs and fixed their poses as Ismael stood, his eyebrows gathered until he shook his head and breathed out.
"I suppose you found something within our house, Calus?"
Ismael asked, but his eyes gave way. Calus turned his glance from the three to Ismael to meet his own, and he did not expect to see him smiling as someone who was not at all Calus.
"I know. I think I found a wildcat along the way."
Wildcat? Does the household have any, or did somebody bring a kitten within? Then, Ismael thinks it's just a wildcat gone from nature
Ismael shook his head once more and smiled at Calus.
"All right, I suppose there's a wild kitten around, and I have to tell Harlene. In the meantime, we need to have a conversation."
"Yes, we should talk."
***
Night arrived. Ismael and Harlene spoke about the wild kitten in the house, but nobody knew it existed. Once the four people left, Ismael asked Harlene to look for a wild kitten. They just asked the servants, but everyone else was confused.
Calus, this young man who said he found a wild kitten in the Ferrer household, seemed to lie when there was none. These were the thoughts Ismael had. He was already in his sister's bedroom. It was already dark, and he saw that his sister had slept well. Just looking at her in the cradle with a bottle of milk was sufficient to make the corners of his mouth rise.
From there, he will see to it that his sister is safe and out of harm's way. He will ensure that no man approaches his sister unless she loves him.
He fixed these thoughts coming from him, and it was only in this way that he was able to distance himself from his family and avoid the past. When Herena was not yet born, his life was dull.
As he closed the door of Herena's room, he looked at it one last time, only to realize that for him, she was an angel that was given to him from above. While he was on the verge of abandoning his life, a little savior came to him, and the rest was history.
***
"Well, next week, Lady Arianne will celebrate her birthday at home. You already know what you should do, Ismael."
The young man from the Ferrer family was in his father's workplace. It was already morning. He was about to see his sister when the butler came and informed him of things he had to take to the Duke's office
Then, he took off with a sudden curiosity to discover that everything was about the lady. Who wouldn't if he was to become the rival lover of the crown prince? Is that what his father wants? What's the point?
Herena doesn't know about the old man's plans because she's still a baby. For Ivian, however, he knew that although the crown prince would become the enemy of their house, things would change.
He was well aware of this because he held the most important authority in the Empire. Having used the emperor in the past, it doesn't matter if Calus aspires to rule. When one person deprives the other of his legal authority, it is natural to seek it, and this is what the crown prince has planned.
"Herena will be necessary for this house."
"Duke, I won't do what you told me. I just..."
"If you still want to protect your sister in my house, do as I have told you, or..."
"Is this how you treat your daughter?"
"You two are only treated well because I am the noble duke here. But if I disowned you two, do you think your sister would still live the way she wanted?"
'The old man is insane. '
Then flashes of images came into his head with his sister. He clasped his hands in a clenched fist and looked at his father before speaking the words he would never dare.
"Indeed, I will, Duke Ferrer."
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