Chapter 28
Kathryn sat on the edge of the bed and said, “This is a gift from your dad and me. We meant to give it to you on your twentieth birthday, but I was afraid I’d misplace it. Your dad said you’re more responsible than I am, so we’re giving it to you now.”
“What is it?” Solana asked, her curiosity piqued.
Kathryn handed her the box and said, “This is from Mom. Don’t open it until your twentieth birthday.” She paused, then leaned in conspiratorially, grinning. “Oh, who am I kidding? I can never keep a secret! Let me tell you, it’s a whole box of diamonds!”
Solana was speechless.
She thought to herself, ‘So it’s a bunch of glass jewelry, right? Wait, Mom probably can’t even afford that. But hey, even if it’s just a box of marbles, I’d still
love it!
‘Wait, there’s no key?‘
“And here’s your dad’s gift, too.” Kathryn rummaged in her pocket, pulled out a key, and gently placed it in Solana’s palm. “Your dad’s tastes tend to be more boyish, so I’m not sure if you’ll like it. But on your twentieth birthday, he’ll take you to see what it’s for.”
Solana had seen all sorts of luxury car keys before, but nothing quite like this one.
She mused, ‘Well, it’s not like Dad could ever afford a luxury car anyway. So… is this a bike key?‘
Kathryn glanced at her daughter’s puzzled expression and couldn’t resist whispering, “It’s actually a helicopter key.”
Solana was speechless.
She thought, ‘A toy helicopter, right?
‘That’s definitely more of a boy thing. Honestly, even boys my age probably wouldn’t be into this anymore.
‘But still, it doesn’t matter. This is the very first gift Dad’s ever given me, I’ll treasure it.”
“Thanks, Mom!” Solana accepted it with a smile.
Outside the door, Charles’s eyes welled up with emotion. He’d told Averie about these two gifts before, but the look of utter disdain in her eyes was something he could never forget.
Later, he overheard Averie venting to her best friend on the phone, “My parents are total nutcases! Flat broke but still pretending? A whole box of diamonds? A helicopter? So gross! How did I end up with parents like this? Of course I didn’t take their gifts. I’m no trash bin for their worthless crap.”
He thought, ‘But Solana was different. Though she believed the gifts were fake, she still accepted them happily.
‘Truly, blood ties are mysterious, they’re hardwired into your DNA.‘
In a luxury apartment on the west side of the city.
Benjamin hung up the phone, turned to the man lounging on the sofa, and said, “Mr. Lawson, someone accepted the gig. But the mailing address… looks like it’s a restaurant.”
Nolan frowned. “A restaurant?”
Benjamin nodded. “If you think this seems unreliable, I can look for other options.”
Nolan paused for a moment, then scoffed, “Fine, this one then.”
Chapter 28
They had been searching for ages, and not a single soul dared take the job.
The next day, as soon as Solana arrived at the restaurant, she received her package. When she opened it, she found nothing but pristine blank notebooks, not a single word written in any of them.
She thought, ““Seriously? Not even one page filled in? That’s a whole new level of lazy. This is unbelievable.
If weren’t leaving Knight International School soon, I’d really want to see who could be both this lazy and this bold!‘
The client was also in their junior year, just like her. That meant she could just copy everything and leave the name blank.
Even better, the deposit was sent over right away, no fuss at all.
Solana was in high spirits all morning. At lunch, she kept glancing at her phone, waiting for her mom to call. By her calculations, the delivery should have arrived at home by now.
She thought, ‘Mom and Dad are going to love the appliances I picked out for them!‘
While she was still lost in thought, her phone rang, but it wasn’t Charles. Instead, it was Super Mall’s after–sales service.
AD
