NOVEL WEB Chapter 8: Two pretenders in the house.
It took a lot of energy for Sunshine to suppress her laughter for all eyes were on her. Her aunt stared at her with a beseeching gaze, waiting for her to declare Moon innocent.
Her uncle seemed to be angry, whether it was because Moon had been called a thief or the breakfast was not going in the way he expected was hard to know.
With the Quinn's, it was hard to tell what their many eyes wanted from her. But undoubtedly, many were hoping that she say something scandalous.
Colleta slowly smirked, "Just say it, you were in the kitchen when they said she was stealing sugar, oil, salt, spaghetti and everything else that is non perishable."
"How can you say that about me you...you... ouch!!" Moon began to speak but her move to smack the table caused hot coffee to spill over her dress and hand.
Suni let out a chuckled laugh, it seemed that even the universe was working against Moon. So, why not do what the universe wanted. "It is true." She confirmed with a shrug. "The maids reported everything to me. My dearest cousin has also swapped many of the art pieces and porcelain items in this house for fake ones. It seems like she is in need of money so she decided to get it the only way she knows how. Snatching that which does not belong to her." Her voice was honeyed yet her words were venom.
"What!" Mr. Raine, exploded as he pushed back the chair, fury marred on his facial features.
Sunshine winced with a menacing smile on her face. Her uncle was furious. But the Quinn's they were even more furious. As much as they could replace all those things with the snap of a finger, they could not tolerate thieves in their midst.
Rowena, meanwhile tried to calm her husband but his veins only pulsed harder. "Honey please come down, Suni has to be mistaken about this. She is just angry about the marriage so she is making up things." She pleaded, tugging onto the sleeves of his shirt.
Sunshine looked at Earl and winked at him before she turning to her aunt and pouring gasoline on the fire. "Aah, there is one more thing she stole. It is my winning lottery ticket that was in my bedroom. Not only did she steal it but she went and claimed the money." Suni held up her phone for everyone interested to see the picture of Moon and the lottery officers.
The person in the picture was wearing a mask, unfortunately. This was not uncommon as most lottery winners did not want their identities known.
Rowena shook her head vehemently refuting the claim. "Lies, you are lying. You cannot even tell who the person in that picture is. I was there the whole time when Moon searched through your bedroom. Yes, she destroyed a lot of your property while looking for her bracelet but that is it! she did not take any lottery ticket, you are lying!!" She blinked, realizing that she had exposed another wrong that her daughter had done.
A hissed chorus of murmurs slithered through the room. "How dare she?" *....* "Disgraceful." Each word was a venomous dart aimed at her.
Heaving, Moon wanted to march over to Sunshine and slap her. She had a lot of curse words that wanted to yell out not just as Sunshine but everyone that had made an accusation but she remembered that she still needed the Quinn's money to stock up so she shut up. When the apocalypse came, they would all kneel at her feet and beg her to save them.
As for admitting what she had done. Forget it, she would do no such thing. Not even if they had evidence against her.
She chose her usual strategy, deflection and counter accusations. "Sister Suni why are you lying against me? Is this revenge because I married Cassius?" She wiped her wet eyes which she shifted to the maids. "How can you gossip about me with maids?
I am your own cousin, they are not related to us. Even if I took a few things, how is theft when I am their boss? Aren't they my things too? Don't Cassius and I deserve nice things?" She turned and run out of the dining room, crying as if she was greatly aggrieved.
Rowena run after her daughter.
Sunshine looked at her uncle. He looked away from her and left as well.
"Unbelievable." Fifi muttered.
Suni decided that she had wasted enough time and she had other things to do, "That was quite entertaining, I will go and feed my husband now." She excused herself.
But, as she was walking away, she heard Fifi Quinn ordering servants to follow her to Cassius and Moon's room to search for anything Moon was hiding.
Sunshine planned to take that same trip later. Whatever supplies Moon was hiding, she would collect them all.
Hades's personal assistant Owen was tucking him in inside the covers when Sunshine entered the bedroom. A gust of cool air hit her. They were in the middle of summer and it was extremely hot outside but the Quinn's had put in place strong cooling systems all over the house so it was very comfortable inside.
"Give us some privacy." Hades offered his assistant a polite but measured smile, the kind that said good work you can race out of here now.
Owen nodded at Sunshine and looked at the bowl of porridge which he had brought for Hades.
"Ma'am..." he paused his steps and pointed at the porridge.
Sunshine nodded. "I understand."
The assistant was reminding her to feed Hades. It was for that exact reason why she had come to the bedroom. She picked up the bowl and spoon and then sat down on the bed and scooped a large spoonful of porridge.
When she realized that her husband was laying down horizontally, she reduced the amount and then brought the soon to his mouth carefully after blowing on it.
But, Hades's mouth remained stubbornly closed and it made Sunshine frown. She sighed, and guessed that a proud man like him was probably feeling humiliated to be spoon fed like an invalid.
"Aren't you hungry?" She asked him. "Just eat, food is very precious. No matter what condition you are in, make sure that you eat."
A bowl of porridge like this could cost up to five thousand dollars in the apocalypse. It would be a shame to waste it.
"You don't have to do this?" Hades told her.
She pushed the spoon into his mouth. "Just shut up and eat when you are fed."
She blew on the spoon and brought it to his mouth again. "Good boy, open up."
Hades secretly clenched his hands under the covers. He wondered if she was treating him like a baby or Cassius.
"I am paralyzed not an infant." he said to her in a steel voice
Sunshine took advantage of the fact that his mouth was open and she pushed another spoon of porridge inside. "You can't throw tantrums when it concerns food." She told him.
"You..." He started, but another spoon of food was pushed into his mouth and another and another.
Sunshine said nothing during all that time but she was thinking.
"System, is there something that you can do to help patch him up?"
A paralyzed person in the apocalypse was a sitting duck. For all the benefits she was going to get from him, she felt the need to repay the favor.
[Scanning the health status of Hades Quinn]
Red lights roamed allover Hades' body and only she could see them.
[Full body scan complete]
Vitals=Stable, no internal damage
Respiration =steady
Neurological function =Normal
Minor dermal abrasions detected
Primary concern
Blunt trauma to the lower limb. Grade 1 contusion
No fractures, swelling localized
Recommended compression and limited movement.
Diagnosis
Condition is not fatal, minimal movement acceptable. Major movements can resume in fourteen days.
Sunshine drew back the spoon of porridge and she huffed in disbelief. So, the adopted son was playing a fool, and the father was playing a quadriplegic!!