Chapter 2

"But he that dares not grasp the thorn. Should never crave the rose." - Anne Bronte Lennita strolled through the halls of the consulate building in Urberium. The white-tiled corridor meandering around the building to the back of the estate where the guesthouses were located. Five cottages in all lined up the path that was hedged in by pink hibiscus bushes interspersed with short pine trees and every once in a while, the path would break off to reveal an entryway of one such cottage. Lennita walked over to the fifth door and rapped on the door twice. "Ryan!" She heard a groan from the inside, followed by the shuffling of feet and a half-dressed man opened the door, rubbing his eyes like he had been roused up from a very deep slumber. "Ryan! You stink!" "Hi siz" He grinned back at her. Lennita glared back at him and pushed him to enter the cottage. Ryan closed the door behind him and followed his sister back into the room. "Stop smirking at me and put a shirt on this instance!" "Aye! Aye! Siz." he walked into one of the bedrooms and came back out with a polo shirt and a toothbrush in his mouth. His sister had already cleared out one of the leather sofas that had been filled up with his trash and was now sitting down, sizing him up before she said what she had in mind. "What?" He mumbled as he took in her expression. "Mother called," "And?" He shrugged his shoulders ad he settled down on the sofa's armrest. "Katrina is pregnant." At that, he stared at his sister as if she had grown an extra set of eyes. "No way!" "Yes, on a third month I think." "I do not believe it." "Really?" His sister sneered at him. "You better believe it. Now get up and stop moping. I am not ready to lose another niece or nephew because of your own stupidity." His once blank look now mirrored his anger even as he glared back at his elder sister for that last statement. "I was not the one who arranged that marriage !" "True, but how long will you continue to feel sorry for yourself! Katrina is a nice girl. You may even grow to love her if you tried!" They locked eyes, two pairs of hazel, glaring back at each other. Finally, Ryan stood up and walked back to his room where he threw a few possessions into a duffel bag before taking a quick shower. When he walked out, his sister had already left the cottage and on the table before him was a note and plane ticket to the Ueteribus. Thought you would need this Love, Lennita. Ryan found himself smiling despite himself. He then looked at the time stamp on the ticket and then at his watch. "Holy... Thirty minutes!" He folded up the ticket and placed it in his black duffel bag. Swinging it across his shoulder, he turned towards the door and twisted the knob only to come face to face with the Consulate chauffer. "Ferdinand!" The chauffeur grinned back at him. "Mr Thorpe, the car is waiting to take you to the airport." "Thanks man." He patted the chauffeur's back as he followed him back to the waiting car. The car zoomed past traffic barely making it to the airport in time. He sped past customs using his diplomatic ID and bustled past their air attendants just as they were gearing up to close the terminal. A red-haired stewardess showed him to his seat and even attempted to flirt with him, but his mind was too occupied to notice. Eventually, she gave up on him but not without a sour look even as she went back to her seat and belted up. "This is your captain speaking..." A male voice boomed through the public address system and Ryan slipped on his earphones drowning out the voice and the world that was around him. He peered out of the window one more time, appreciating his sister's efforts at managing to get him a window seat. He smiled ruefully, mostly to himself, and then, he closed his eyes to get some much-needed sleep. He would soon be going into the dragon's lair and for that, he needed to be sober and have all his wits about him. ....................................................................................................................................... The flight past Veterum borders and into Ueteribus air space had taken almost five hours. The same red-haired stewardess shook Ryan from his sleep notifying him that it was time to alight. He had slept through the entire flight and the landing too after being exhausted from a night spent drowning out his sorrows in some serious alcohol. It was the least he could do, after losing out to a better man. He had lost her for the second time and all that his son now remembered was a drunken father that had caused him, terror. He thanked the stewardess and retrieved his duffel bag from the overhead compartment. He walked out, not sparing her a second glance. It seemed that she had not made much of an impression and as such, she hanged her head down in disappointment. As he walked out, he ran a hand through his head, attempting to tame his unruly mass of yellow blond locks that lay in a tangled mess. His hazel eyes glittered in the sun despite the slight hangover he still nursed from his night of binge drinking. That is until they came to stop on a familiar-looking black sedan that was packed on the runway. Frowning, he strode over to the car coming to a halt before the middle-aged woman that was standing next to it. "Ryan, it's so good to see you." The woman tried. Ryan acknowledged her only with a nod and maneuvered past her to get into the car that was behind her. "I see, we are still doing that." She mumbled to herself before joining him inside the car. She gave him a sad look but he kept himself busy with his phone and left with no choice, she tapped the driver on the shoulder and he turned to face her. "Take us home Philiph." Ryan looked up from his phone and frowned at both of them. "I am going to my house." The woman and the driver both looked at each other before she turned to address him. "Are you sure?" Ryan gave her a hard look before slowly letting out. "Mother, I said I am going home. To my house!" His mother lifted an eyebrow before turning back to nod at the driver. "Okay Philiph, do whatever he says. Drive us to his house." Mirena Thorpe stared at her son the whole ride to his house and tried very hard to figure him out. He had plugged on his earphones and reclined back on the seat with closed his eyes as if in meditation. She was tempted to reach out a hand and hold on to his but she changed her mind at the very last minute and retracted it. She decided to be content with just looking at him. The car soon pulled into a gated community in the outskirts of the capital and stopped in front of one of the houses. The two-story craftsman maisonette acted as his home as well as his studio. In reality, Ryan was an accomplished artist with several of his works hanging that were hanging in galleries all over the country. His parents had wanted him to join the family business after taking a course in business and finance, but he had declined and had instead immersed himself in his work and was now making a name for himself in the world of art. He had bought this house with the proceeds from the sale of his earlier pieces, turning it into a studio and a refuge from his family and the Maracheli's as well. Ryan got out of the car and stared at the house that was standing before him. "Home at last," He thought to himself before he was rudely interrupted by a wavering voice. "Are you going to be okay?" His mother asked him, peering out from the car's window. "I think so." He mumbled back at her. She annoyed him but for once he had been truthful with his feelings though she did not seem to take notice of it. No, she did not. Just like those other times when he had wanted her to see through his pain and she had let him down magnificently. "See you later then, I'll have your hotel room reservation booked by the time you get there." He turned and gazed at his mother who was now giving him an expectant look. Hazel colored eyes that were full of hope and expectation. Perhaps she is not so bad, he thought to himself before smiling at her. "Thanks mum." With that he turned to walk into the house, pausing at the door to take out his keys. He rummaged into his untidy bag and found them at the bottom. Finally, he managed to let himself in even as his mother's car pulled out of the driveway. Ryan closed the door behind him and walked through the living room to the flight of stairs that led up to the upper parts of the house where his room was located. Taking two steps at a time he finally made it to his bedroom and there he dumped the duffel bag with his dirty clothes in the laundry basket. Locating a suitcase in his closet, he dumped a few jeans and shirts then headed to the adjoining bathroom for another quick shower. He took the time to shave the stubble that had developed on his jaw and combed his hair, feeling the need to look presentable when he appeared before the great Maracheli. Finally dressed up in dark blue jeans and a navy polo shirt, he closed his suitcase taking with him his phone, wallet, and car keys to the silver SUV that was parked in his garage. The suitcase went into the back as he slid the wallet into the inner pocket of his black leather jacket. He gave one more look to his phone, still, there was no reply to the messages he had sent to Katrina. With a heavy heart, he pressed the button to release the doors to the garage and threw the SUV into reverse, pulling out of the garage. It was going to be a long and treacherous journey to the mountains but he had never been one to back up from a challenge.