CHAPTER 128: URGENT MATTERS

I felt my entire body freeze when he suddenly sensed our presence and his eyes flickered towards us. Bennett’s expression transformed into a warm smile immediately the moment that his eyes landed on us. All the frustration and stress vanished completely behind a forced mask of ease. He ended the call without saying anything further, before turning to us with a forced smile.

"You’re back, my dears," he said smoothly, as if nothing had happened.

I wanted to grab my mother’s arm and take her to my bedroom, but my mother quickly stepped forward towards Bennett. I thought it was better that she didn’t find out what was going on, but clearly, my mother thought otherwise.

"Is something the matter?" my mother asked with a frown on her face.

Bennett let out a soft laugh before he waved his hand dismissively.

"Darling, it’s just work. There’s always something going on and sometimes you need to deal with a few bumps along the way. But don’t worry, I’ll take care of it," Bennett replied calmly.

My mother began to relax almost immediately at his reassuring words, but his words did nothing to calm the twisting sensation in the pit of my stomach. I couldn’t help but wonder if the business that he was discussing was something shady and illegal. There was a part of me that wanted to ask and push for answers, but another part of me warned me to remain silent because I knew better. Bennett was not the kind of man who would give us honest answers freely just because we happened to ask for them.

I decided to stay quiet, but my mind wouldn’t stop wondering. Bennett had acted in a way that we had never seen before, and I began feeling that perhaps this was simply the start of an oncoming storm.

...

A few days later, I found out that the disturbing feeling in the pit of my stomach was right.

What my mother and I had just witnessed a few days earlier when we returned to the mansion was simply the calm before the storm.

During dinner, Bennett and Raphael announced that they would be leaving together for a business trip. My mother stared at both of them with clear shock and a worried expression on her face.

"There’s nothing to worry about. It’s the usual. We’re going on a business trip together for a couple of days and that’s it. There are some matters that we need to handle personally," Bennett explained smoothly.

"Are you sure that everything is all right?" my mother asked as her eyes flickered from Bennett to Raphael and then back again.

Raphael, who had not been so engaged in conversation up until now, only nodded his head before telling us that it was absolutely necessary. I couldn’t stop staring at his face, but it was such an unreadable mask that I couldn’t tell what he was thinking, let alone feeling.

"Trust me, I wouldn’t want to be apart from you for even a second, but there’s no helping this one. It seems like we need to go out there and sort things out," Bennett explained regretfully.

"We should hurry up and get this over with," Raphael told his father as he stood up from his seat.

My mouth dropped open at how abruptly things were developing. I had no idea that they were leaving so soon, and they hadn’t even told us where exactly they were heading to. I wanted to scream and ask what was really going on because something told me that it could be dangerous. What could happen in the business that would require both of them to leave at the same time to deal with it?

Raphael shot me a warning look as if to tell me not to press him for answers, and that made me decide to hold my tongue.

"I hope everything works out. Stay safe and safe travels," I said in a small voice before forcing a smile.

"We’ll be back soon. You two ladies take care of the house," Bennett said with a radiant smile.

Just like that, my mother and I stood side by side as we watched the two of them leave swiftly without any further explanations.

...

Later that day, my mother and I sat in the living room as we pretended to enjoy watching the television together. However, I knew that just like me, my mother had difficulty focusing on anything now that Bennett was gone.

Perhaps, just like how I was so worried about Raphael, my mother was even more worried about Bennett.

My mother let out a long sigh, and I had already lost count of how many times she had sighed since Bennett left the mansion with his son.

"Try not to worry so much," I told her after deciding that there was no point pretending any longer.

"How can I not be worried? I’m so worried about them. I don’t even know where they are and what they are up to," my mother began complaining non-stop.

Now that she no longer felt the need to pretend that she wasn’t worrying about Bennett and Raphael, she began ranting and complaining instead.

"I understand how you’re feeling. I have to say that I’m worried about them too. But I guess that whatever is happening, they have it all under control," I replied.

"I don’t know, it’s just that I’ve never seen Bennett so stressed before. And now suddenly the two of them are going away together? It just makes me feel like something serious is happening," my mother said, echoing my own worries with her words.

I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat while thinking that if only she truly knew how serious things were or could be.

Instead of telling her, I forced a reassuring smile before reaching for her hand and patting it slowly.

"Don’t worry. I’m sure that they’ll be fine and that they’ll come back soon," I said.