CHAPTER 39: SLEEPLESS NIGHT

Two days passed in a blink. During this time, Shelby never went back to Ian’s room. She was also distressed in a slightly different way. After her talk with Ava, she now had a bit of a different mindset, but her underlying worries were still present, especially when Geneva’s words came to mind.

First, she knew that she had no mind being angry or jealous about being compared to the dead Aliya. Nonetheless, she just could not curb the wave of irritation that had started to settle on her whenever this name came up. Imagine being upset by a dead woman. Who do you even vent your emotions on?

Within those two days, she had spent time trying to distance herself from the Aliya persona as much as possible. Even after what Geneva had said, she was inherently adamant about any commonalities between her and the dead woman. In so much as when she was asked to make any request, she requested to Suzie,

"Get me a new type of shower product that is not Jasmine-scented."

That request sounded foolish even to her ears, but that was the only thing she asked for. In the Thornston residence, she had no funds to spend, and she couldn’t even step out of the estate to make this purchase herself. Her little savings were still in the bank but she had no way of accessing it. Besides, that was reserved for a rainy day.... A very rainy day! Geneva still ’banned’ her from going out of the residence. The excuse was that she needed to pay attention to the task at hand.

Her second issue was that she knew that she had no place to fight for Ian’s affection, especially when he was obsessed with his dead lover. To be frank, she felt slightly jealous!

Ridiculous right? Shelby could not help it. After their kiss, she felt a bit possessive over him in a way that she did not understand. At this time, when she thought of Ian, she did not relate him to the ’contract signed’ but had started to think of him as her real husband!

Despite all the strange happenings in the Thornston estate, she still thought this way.

She spent the two days painting throughout the day. Painting relaxed her, and she loved it! When Geneva did not confiscate her materials, she assumed it was okay to continue to do that one thing she loved to bits.

Frankly, despite all her experiences in the estate, she felt as if she was on vacation, especially if she did not have to see James at all. At the end of the second day, Suzie had already stopped dropping hints for her to re-visit Ian. Shelby did not even go sit in front of his room anymore. But anyone with a discerning eye, could see that, Shelby’s slight high-spirited look had dimmed significantly. She now had dark circles under her eye that were not there previously.

In her head, she also kept replaying the kiss in her mind. It was like a TV show on replay in her head, driving her crazy!

"Mama Shelby, are you not well?"

"Huh?" She turned from her task to Gabriel with a smile. Gabriel had been her constant visitor, and she rather enjoyed his company. Her efforts to get closer to the girls were not going as well as she had wished but that was for another day.

"Why would you ask that? I am very healthy,"

"Murray says you have not been sleeping well, and I also see you absentminded now. You are not painting the beautiful pictures anymore..."

The ’Murray’ person was a constant part of their conversation after Gabriel introduced him to Shelby. But by mutual agreement, they only talked about him and to him if there was no third-party at the scene.

"Murray watched me sleep too, huh? I don’t know how I feel about that..." she muttered, smiling at Gabriel as if to reassure him.

"I am very well. I just have a lot to think of."

"You promise?"

"Of course!"

"You’ll tell me if you’re going to leave? You will not leave me like Mama Aliya did, right?" his mouth scrunched up.

Shelby dropped the paintbrush and bent to hug him, "I am not going anywhere!"

Gabriel’s utterances like those hit her straight in the heart. To imagine his bottled-up sentiments to speak those words spoke volumes about his experiences in the short four years he had lived.

Gabriel returned the hug just as Shelby asked, "Where is Murray right now?"

"Behind your painting,"

"Is he looking at me?"

"Yes."

Shelby released Gabriel and kissed his cheeks; walking to her painting, she looked right ahead and spoke low as if talking to herself so that Gabriel would not hear her words,

"I don’t know who you are or why you seem to be by me all the time, but stop scaring the kid!"

Gabriel watched as Murray slightly bowed.

"Mama Shelby, he bowed!"

Startled, Shelby turned to look at Gabriel,

"...So you can hear me too?" She said in the same tone. She was very perplexed about this person that only Gabriel was seemingly able to see but tucked that curiosity at the back of her mind.

However, she could not help but let her eyes hover over the empty space where he was supposed to be, looking for any indication that would prove to her that he was there. She saw not even a shadow of anything.

"Sit still, Gabriel; I will be done soon, then we can go back for some dinner,"

"Mama Shelby?"

"Yes, Gabriel,"

"When will we go see Daddy again?"

Shelby froze and lowered her eyes, ’When indeed!’

However, after another bout of sleepless night, Shelby found herself at the door of the opposite room early the next morning. Like the last time she had entered, immediately she hovered her hands on the knob trying to decide whether she wanted to go in or not, a small click sounded, and the door creaked open.

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