Chapter 15

*AURORA* Was it because people worshipped the ground he walked on? That man was so arrogant! I took a deep breath, I’d have to ignore his arrogance because I really needed to secure this project for the Sullivans. I was still fuming when I suddenly got splashed with red wine. I gasped in shock then looked up to see Isobel. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Aurora. I just wanted to go make a toast to Mrs Dumont but I tripped when I was passing by this table.” Who was she kidding? She did it on purpose! Isobel always wanted to humiliate and hurt me whenever she gets the chance. I looked around, seeing people’s attention was already getting drawn to us. I glared at Isobel, as I tried not to lose my temper. My mom, or rather, Hannah, Isobel’s mother walked up to her. “Mom, I…I didn’t mean to. Oh God, her dress has gotten messed up because of me.” Hannah slung me an unbothered look. “Don’t feel so bad, Isobel. It was a honest mistake. I mean, Aurora has enjoyed everything you were supposed to enjoy since she was a baby, so she has no right to be mad about something as minor as this.” After saying this, Hannah held Isobel’s arm and led her away. As they left, Isobel glanced back and smirked at me. My teeth clenched as tears filled my eyes. I recalled the day we got back the DNA results. Hannah had slapped me and began to hit me as she fiercely said to me. “You…how could your father do such a thing?! You do not carry the Diaz blood in your veins but you grow up in this house while my daughter grew up in poverty! No wonder I never felt a tight connection to you! Die! You should die! You don’t deserve anything good in this life!” It’s been almost four years and every time I think about that day, it still hurts, it hurts so much. I blinked back my tears, refusing to break down in public especially hearing people’s pitiful voices around me. “I think Isobel did that on purpose!” “Why does Hannah suddenly hate Aurora so much?” “I can’t understand it, either. I get it that Aurora isn’t her real daughter but she had raised Aurora for so many years, more than twenty years, you can’t blame someone for something that happened when she was a baby, doesn’t Hannah have any conscience?” Some young ladies who had taken my contact earlier gathered around me. “Aurora, are you okay?” I nodded.”It’s just wine, I’m going to go to the restroom to take care of it.” “But you got so much of it on you. I think you should change.” “No, it’s…” “Come with me, Aurora. I’ll get you a dress to change into.” I looked up and saw that the one who had just spoken was the red-haired. Mrs Dumont’s granddaughter. Before I could refuse, she held my hand. “Come upstairs with me, you can comfortably clean up and change.” I felt touched by her kindness and so I stood up. “Thank you, Miss Dumont.” I followed her up the stairs. As we ascended the stairs, I looked around the hall and my eyes caught sight of the main table, Mr Dumont was no longer there. Maybe he’s left. Miss Dumont and I walked down a large hallway and then she opened a door. “Wait here for me, I’ll go get you some clothes.” I nodded and walked into the room. The room was massive, I stood near the door and admired the room from there, I didn’t want to touch or break anything. I wasn’t a clumsy person though, I was just very cautious around the Dumonts. Who wouldn’t be? Not long after, she came back. She was holding a small yellow tank top, and a pair of baggy jeans. “I am so sorry, Aurora, I couldn’t find a dress. To tell you the truth, I hate dresses, my mom forced me into this one.” I laughed.”Thank you for this, Miss Dumont, I really appreciate.” “Oh please, stop calling me Miss Dumont already, I’m Janelle. You can call me Elle.” She was so nice. “Alright, Elle.” She smiled. “I’ll leave you to clean up and change now. Don’t worry, this room is always unoccupied. Plus, outsiders can’t come upstairs without permission so take your time.” “Thank you.”I murmured. She nodded and walked out, closing the door. The room was a bit dark so I turned on the light and started to undress. Even if she said I could take my time, I just wanted to change quickly and go home. As soon as I took off my dress, a sound came from the door. I turned around to see the doorknob being bent. Was that Janelle? Not wanting to assume, I quickly picked up my dress and covered my body with it, haphazardly. A man walked in, I looked up and gasped meeting his dark eyes. He equally looked surprised to see me. Manuel Dumont. “Aurora?” He then shut the door behind him.