Melissa

...eavesdropping

Melissa.

She walked round the house taking note of the soft designs on the walls. Before she ventured to the kitchen to see the cool standing there in her apron.

"Hello" She greeted quietly.

"Oh! Ma'am- you- I- what would you like for breakfast?" The woman asked clearly flustered.

She knew that this woman knows her from before she lost her memory. It was moments like this that she felt the jab of her lack of memory.

Because in those memories, she knew them well. Interacted with them in childish innocence but now, they were just familiar strangers.

"Er- whatever you already have" She answered as she watched the woman nod her head before turning to the gas cooker.

"Well, sir had told us you were coming this morning so, we prepared your room and the food you'd have for breakfast" The woman said.

"Okay" She mumbled as she took a seat at the breakfast island in the kitchen.

Nigerian kitchens barely had this- beautiful kitchen islands because for whatever reasons, it wasn't part of their design.

She wondered why.

So it was a bit strange to see one in this place.

"Here" the woman said dropping a plate of jollof rice and fried plantain.

"Hmm" She hummed as she gazed at this food thoughtfully.

She'd noticed that even Ebube had give her a plate of jollof rice as her first breakfast when she came back from the states.

'It must have been my favourite food' She thought as she ate the food quite hungrily ignoring the gaze the cook was giving her.

She looked at the woman from underneath her lashes when the embarrassment of how she'd eaten had finally hit her only to see the woman looking at her with a teary eye gaze.

She pretended that she didn't notice it for both the woman's sake and hers.

She finished the food and the woman immediately collected her plate and dropped a cup of orange juice in front of her.

She smiled at the drink before her.

"Thank you" She mumbled gulping down the drink in a go before she left the kitchen to explore the grounds more. She climbed a few stairs up and found herself on the first floor.

"She has to remember on her own. Don't tell her if not our standing should we go to court won't be strong" Susanna's mumbled voice came.

"But she's incomplete. Don't you see that she struggles?" Atlas voice came.

"Since when did you start caring?" Susanna asked very darkly.

"I- I always did. For both her and- and you" Atlas whispered.

"Yes, you did for me, that's why you took my child from me. Do you know that she only just recently started calling me mother, Atlas?" She asked her voice going higher.

"I-I-" Atlas stuttered.

"Look, just be careful okay. She clearly took your smarts and is like a blood hound looking for a scent and answers. Grandmother clearly was helping her back in that house much to my chagrin. Did it help? I have no idea but please zip it" Susanna instructed.

Her footsteps that was becoming louder showed that Susanna was heading towards her direction.

She knew that she won't make it half way before Susanna would appear in her line of sight so, she'd have to pretend that she was just entering that hallway.

She walked quickly down a few stairs and slowly made it up mustering up all the curiosity she could till Susanna came in her line of sight.

"Hello, mom" She greeted.

The question she'd wanted to ask Susanna sometime ago ringing in her mind. Because she'd gotten the answers from what she'd just heard.

Her father had taken her from her mother and had her here. With Clarisse-

Susanna faltered in her footings but she pretended she didn't notice as she gazed at her mother's eyes. Her mother hummed a response before hurrying away from her- which amused her greatly.

She wondered how her mother had placed herself in her life. Maybe as a maid? She wondered if Atlas had kept Susanna a secret but with the way Altas even after eight years was lovesick he probably didn't do a good job hiding who her mother was.

Although the way he kept his emotions to himself when no one was watching was astounding. She'd noticed that it was just before Susanna and her that her father let his walls down. Well that was what she guessed when she peeped in what was his office.

"You're not as silent as you think, Lisa" Atlas said. She froze before throwing all caution to the wind and entering his office.

"I wasn't trying to be silent" She answered. As she took his office in.

"Then what?" Atlas asked.

"I was simply taking you in. Which is a silent action" She answered- a reprimand in her tone which caused her father to give her a small smile.

"And what did you see when you took me in?" Atlas asked curiosity in his voice.

"I am not Sherlock Holmes" She said but Atlas kept quiet.

'Oh well, there's no escaping it' She thought.

"Well, that you are indeed my father" She answered.

"You didn't believe it before?" He asked clearly hurt.

"Tell me, Atlas-" She drawled his name, she had decided that she was going to taunt him with his name and call Susanna mother ever so frequently but she'd be careful not to show her hand. She enjoyed his wince "-what did you expect my reaction to be?" She asked.

"Well, not calm and collected as this" Atlas answered.

She said nothing further as she continued to study his office. She was immersed in it that a point reached that she forgot that she was in the room with another person.

Suddenly, her ears started ringing loudly

"Sir, we-" someone barged into the room. She whirled round to see a strikingly familiar face.

"Hello, Maxwell" She greeted as her eyes rolled back.