Chapter 34: Getting Evidence

The clock on the wall ticked noisily, as if mocking the silence between the two men.

Rauf stared at Chris, not saying another word. He didn’t confirm or deny the words that had left Chris’s lips. "I only told you what you asked for." Then he stood up. "I’d like to be left alone now. And..." He pointed at the wound on his face. "I’ll forgive you for this mess. You’re just a brother who cares about his sister."

Chris still had a lot of questions, but he only nodded and left the room.

Why would Amie pretend to be married to Rauf when he could tell from the joy on her lips that she was happy to be married to him?

It was one of the reasons he wanted to meet Rauf and confront him.

But Rauf also seemed like an honest guy, which made it difficult to assume who must be lying between them.

This was more reason he needed to find the June woman.

By the time he got back to the mansion, it was well past midnight. But instead of retiring to his room, he went back to his office.

It was hard to sleep when there was a lot on his mind.

He sent a message to his personal assistant. ’I want you to find out everything about my sister’s childhood and also about my mother’s husband.’

He knew it would take some time for his personal assistant to do all that. But still, he couldn’t help the feeling of unease running through him.

Rauf’s voice echoed in his head as if he were whispering to him. ’Perform a DNA test.’

Was it because he didn’t trust Amie?

Or was it because there must be something sketchy about the whole thing?

Chris wouldn’t dare bring up the matter of DNA in his mother’s presence. She was already excited by the fact that she had finally found her long-lost daughter. The prospect of losing her again was a big no to her.

Instead of dwelling too much on the impossibility, Chris got up from his chair. He left the office and strolled towards the direction of Amie’s new room.

The room had been locked in the mansion for years, constantly being kept neat by the maids and the furniture being renewed every year until the owner came back.

So, his legs moved there as if he was going along his usual route.

When he got to the door, he paused, wanting to knock on the door.

Who knows the sort of position Amie slept in? But then Amie wasn’t supposed to know he was in her room.

He opened the door, carefully slipping into the room. His steps were soundless against the marble floor from years of practice.

Amie lay on the bed, her hand wrapped around a bag as if it were her baby. If Chris hadn’t come over for something serious, he might have thought the scene was funny.

But he couldn’t even acknowledge that right now.

He moved towards her, pulling a little part of her hair and dropping it into a small nylon bag. Immediately he tugged out part of her hair, Amie moved on the bed, turning around as if she was about to wake up. But instead, her hand wrapped more firmly around the bag she was hugging, and she murmured words Chris couldn’t hear.

Chris stared at her for a while, trying to find any resemblance to his mother, but there was none.

But again, he had seen Samir, and anyone could easily tell they were father and daughter. Maybe he just didn’t look like his mother.

He only hoped she was truly his mother’s daughter.

After securing the hair, he slipped out of the room again.

Getting Amie’s hair had been easy, but it wouldn’t be the same with his mother. She might be blind, but she had always been vigilant of her environment. And with just one step into her room, she might think he was an intruder.

He needed to find another way to get her sample.

The next day, Chris had woken up before the women. Though he was the last to go to bed, he could hardly sleep with the thoughts running all over his head. He had decided to keep himself busy by preparing breakfast for the women.

"Sir, I can handle it." The chef’s voice was soft, fear leaking from it. He thought he had done something bad and might be getting discharged from his duty.

"Well, if you want to do something that badly, you can help me with this. Wash and slice those veggies for me." He pointed at the things he had picked from the refrigerator.

The chef nodded, getting to work.

With both of them busy, the table was soon filled with assorted meals of fried eggs, sausage links, thick-cut bacon, baked beans, grilled tomatoes, and toast.

The chef had assisted him in preparing most of the meals. As much as Chris would like to take all the credit for it, he couldn’t prepare all of this.

"Wow. What’s going on here?" A soft voice floated into the room, and Serena appeared wearing a free floral gown, her hand wrapped around a walking stick.

Her smile was evident, something her face had lacked for years of knowing her.

Just as soon as she said her words, Amie also appeared behind her. "What a sweet aroma?" she said, helping Serena to the chair she had sat in the previous time. It was the head chair.

Then she settled herself on the next chair, and her gaze moved to Chris. "Brother, you did not seriously go through this effort for me."

Chris shrugged. "I did," he said, proud of the smile that brought to their faces.

"Now, let me complete my duty of the day. This is your breakfast for today from Chef Chris. And it’s also my own way of welcoming Amie into the family."

Amie beamed at his words.

Last night, she had worried that she had done something to offend Chris and that was why he was in a foul mood. But now, it seemed she had just overthought everything.

She nodded at him. "Thank you, brother."

Chris nodded, avoiding her gaze.

The hair he had kept was sitting in his first drawer. His gaze moved to Serena. "I prepared this myself."

Serena nodded. "This is good, Chris. Really good." She took more bites, letting the taste savor on her lips before talking again. "You don’t usually go around preparing meals. What’s the occasion?"

Chris forced a smile. It was just like his mother to see a motive behind every action. "Nothing, mother. Like I said, it was just to welcome Amie into the family."

Wanting to be part of every conversation, Amie joined in. "Come on, mother. I’m sure brother just wanted to do something for me." She said, then her hands waved over all the meals. "Look at all of this. No one has ever prepared something this delicious just for me. And I am a horrible cook." She whispered the last part like a joke.

Chris nodded.

Rauf had told him how amazing his wife’s meals were last night. He had insisted it was one of the biggest differences between the wife he knew when he was blind and the woman he met when he regained his sight. Chris had thought it was a cock-and-bull story, but here Amie was, confirming she couldn’t cook.

It felt like she was hitting the nail on the head over his discussion with Rauf.

Serena was busy with Amie, picking up meals and putting them on what she considered was Amie’s plate. Though most of the foods were scattered around the table, Chris could tell that the thought that she could feed her daughter was certainly bringing her joy.

He tuned out the rest of their conversation as he played with the food on his plate. For a moment, his mind went back to the vet at the clinic.

As he thought about her, he smiled.

He had promised to bring her over to the mansion. Maybe it would help her search for her mother. But with Amie in the mansion, she needed them to be in agreement before bringing a stranger home.

He cleared his throat, getting the attention of the women in front of him.

Amie turned to him with a smile, which Serena’s face mirrored perfectly.

For a moment, Chris’s heart sank, and he thought maybe doing the DNA was unnecessary when they were both this happy. But he needed to know the truth.

"I have something to ask of you guys."

Serena nodded. "What, dear? Is something wrong?"

Chris shook his head. "Nope, mother. But I have a request. I’m bringing a friend over this weekend, and I will need your approval before bringing her."

Amie’s eyes widened in excitement. "Your girlfriend?"

And for the first time that morning, Chris turned to Amie with a genuine smile. "Not really. She’s just a friend." He could feel his face heating up at that.

People might see him as bad and dangerous, but when it came to matters of the heart, he was off.

"It’s definitely your girlfriend." Amie insisted. "I can tell from the way you are looking all red."

Serena picked it up from there. "Am I getting a daughter-in-law soon, Chris?"

Chris shook his head. "She’s not a girlfriend. And no, mother, you’re not getting a daughter-in-law. Amie is just joking."

The topic washed away the burden on Chris’s mind for that moment. And he enjoyed the rest of his meal, laughing with them.

Once the meal was over, Chris insisted on packing the plates instead of the maids. He picked each plate carefully and dropped the spoon containing Serena’s saliva into his pocket.

Now, all he had to do was prove Rauf wrong.