Chapter 2 The Case of a Faulty Conscience Part 1

The Lenton residence was a rather large estate. It was one of the bigger homes this side Urberium, a prime area east of the capital that was the Megalopolis of Urberium. The estate consisted of a three-story mansion on ten acres of prime land outside the city. It boasted of three equally large separated guest houses. It had a courtyard infinity pool, extensive servant quarters, beautiful green lawns, and a meadow on its east side. All the buildings on the property were of a remarkable white stone. The white stone had also gone down to build its pathways ned with well-manicured hedges of white rose bushes and trimmed yellow and green Durantas. The widest of these pathways was the driveway. Made of white marble, it stretched out from the main house to the main gate and down to the highway that connected Urberium Prime to the rest of the city and its suburbs. This driveway was not just long but wide also. It was lined on either side by a line of tall cypress trees, and at one point, the driveway crossed a little stream where white Peking ducks and Snow geese swam under a white masonry arch bridge. With all the planning and the landscaping that had gone into it, the estate was all breathtaking. Malisha slipped through the small space left behind by the still moving gates and came into view of the three green hammers packed in a row behind the gates. Several military men were attending the vehicles. These were the soldiers meant to be guarding the gates while the rest of them were out in the field patrolling the grounds. The most common feature among these two groups was probably the assault rifles slung from their arms and shoulders. Outside that, their outfits were vastly different. This group by the gates was spotting their full military regalia. The rest patrolled the grounds in just camo wear. Normally and usually, Malisha would have been invisible to the soldiers, but not today. The present state of her dress could not allow it. And as the nearest soldier turned to look at her, a look of utter surprise transformed his features, turning the glazed disinterested look in his eyes into a look of astonishment. He stared, and then he blinked. He rubbed his eyes and stared again as if he could not believe what his eyes were seeing. The man gave her a once over, then another as his eyes roamed unabashedly over her body. However, not in the suggestive way that one would presume. No. As he took in her appearance, his expressions began to change as well as his once shocked appearance melted away only to be replaced by a gloating smirk. “My Lady,” the man chuckled as he bowed down in mock reverence. My Lady??? She bristled at the salutation. One by one, the rest of the soldiers turned to stare at her with an amalgamation of shocked stares, chuckles, and even loud laughter. How amusing she must have seemed, standing there in her yellow sundress and a red denim jacket all caked up with mud. It irked her to know that she was the center of their attention, but what more could she do but remind them that she was but a lady. A haggard-looking one, but still a lady nonetheless. And so, she rounded upon the unsuspecting group of gentlemen and speared each one of them with a glare. Finally, she collectively regarding them with a menacing look of her own. That was before she stomped away, limping down the driveway and towards the main house with a broken heel and one missing shoe. Despite what anyone of them thought, Malisha was quite aware of my appearance. Even without a mirror, she knew that her dress was no better than the state of my feet, for it was full of mud beyond recognition. Her usually black hair could only be described as a brown rat nest and her face. Well, she could not even begin to imagine how that looked like without a mirror for reference. The truth, though, was that she looked like a clown. If wearing mud was the standard for clowns, coupled with green splotches of grass littered all over her dress from when she had tipped over and fallen into the meadows by the lake. To think that she was not able to retrieve the scarf that was responsible for her present misery? “What a waste!” She seethed as she trudged up the front steps. Taking the stairs two at a time as her single loosened heel clomped up against the shiny white marble to cause a racket that traveled up into the big building. But of course, such a scene would always rouse much attention. In this case, it was the attention of the butler and the entire household as well. They all stopped what they were doing and turned to stare. Yes, all of them. The parlor-maids standing by the entrance to the front parlor. The chambermaid who had just completed her schedule of inspecting the upper rooms and had just exited a service corridor. The housekeeper and even the footmen who had arrived from the stables. They all stopped and stared, and Malisha could only smile back nervously. No, she could not afford to antagonize them like she had done the soldiers. For one, the household staff was not leering. They were all just shocked and regarding her with pitying expressions? Not wanting to remain there much longer, Malisha rushed down the main hallway and disappeared into the elevator, leaving behind her a trail of shocked and curious faces. At this point, she could only imagine how the news would reach her parents. She could even imagine the disappointed look of her mother. However, and worse still, was the accompanying glare of her father that would not ease up, just like that day almost five years ago.