"Sorry if I was rude to you earlier," Ceres apologized to the three. "You see, I am not a morning person. And my nanny called me to say there was an issue here at home. I always get cranky when I'm woken up early."
"That's not a problem for us," Narciso assured her. "Besides, we came here unannounced."
"Thanks, Uncle," Ceres said with a small smile. "But if you don't mind, before we have breakfast, may I ask you some personal questions? And will you answer me honestly?"
"Of course," Narciso replied.
"Some questions might be below the belt. You see, I have no filter... And I don't want to offend you."
"It's fine," Narciso reassured her. "Ask whatever you want, and we'll answer truthfully. We won't be offended."
Ceres clapped her hands together, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Great!" she said cheerfully. "So my first question is… when did you return from the dead?"
Narciso's forehead creased in confusion. He clearly had no idea what she meant.
"Hold on a second, Ceres," Nissan interjected, her tone sharp with offense.
"Oh, sorry," Ceres said, though there was not a hint of apology in her voice. She turned to Ciena before shifting her gaze back to Nissan. "If you don't know, my mother has amnesia... she doesn't remember anything. And when Ciena introduced herself to us seven years ago, she told us that she had no family left except for my mom… and that her father was dead."
Ceres looked at them as if suddenly realizing something.
"Don't tell me you had no idea that she has been living with us for the past seven years?" she asked, her voice dripping with disbelief.
"She's not an orphan," Nissan hissed, her eyes burning with fury as she turned to Ciena. Seven years. For seven years, Ciena had been living a life of luxury while making them believe she was struggling. "She ran away because Papa asked her to wait just one more year before going to college. He was still saving up for her tuition."
"We searched for her," Ciera added, her voice tight with emotion. "We even used up the money we had saved for Nissan's high school tuition... just to find her. And it was only two years ago that we finally tracked her down through social media."
"That's what I don't understand," Ceres said, crossing her arms. "If you had been looking for her, why did it take you that long? She's been very active on social media. Always posting pictures of our vacations abroad, of her shopping sprees... every single day. How did you not see that?"
The three exchanged uneasy glances.
"Ahm… We didn't have smartphones or a computer," Nissan admitted, looking slightly embarrassed. "I only thought to search for her after I met a classmate who came from a well-off family and had a smartphone."
"Really?" Ceres arched a brow, clearly unimpressed. "That's hard to believe. Everyone has a smartphone these days... even newborn babies have their own devices."
"We're poor, Ceres," Nissan replied. "And life is hard in Escobares. Almost everyone we know is in the same situation."
"Escobares?" Ceres echoed, genuine curiosity in her voice. "Where is that?"
"It's in Texas, love," Zeus chimed in, leaning back lazily. "One of the poorest cities in the country. It borders the U.S. and Mexico."
Ceres turned to him, but before she could ask more, Zeus smirked and added, "And if you ever go there… I'm sorry to say this, but you will cry and throw a tantrum."
"Excuse me?!" Ceres shot him a glare.
"Truly, love," Zeus chuckled. "That city is so poor that more than half of the population is unemployed. People have to work at least four jobs just to earn a decent income. And the internet connection?" He shook his head with mock sympathy. "It's so slow... you'd definitely throw a fit."
Ceres narrowed her eyes at him, her expression daring him to continue.
Zeus only laughed, clearly amused.
Ceres turned her attention back to the three.
"So, why did it take you this long to come to the city?" she asked. "The moment you contacted her... since you did say you had been looking for her for five years... you should have come here right away."
"The only transportation we could afford was the train," Ciera explained. "And each ticket costs over three hundred dollars. That's an entire month's worth of combined earnings for us."
"And even when we managed to save a little from what was left after stretching our budget, we didn't want to come here only to become a burden to Ciena," Nissan added, supporting her mother's statement. "So we had to save even more to cover our expenses here."
Nissan clenched her fists, frustration evident in her posture.
"We saved the money Ciena sent us every month until we thought we had enough," she muttered.
"It took you that long to save up using the money she sent?" Ceres asked, her tone deceptively light. "How much did she send you? And how often?"
Ceres shifted her gaze to Ciena, offering her sister a saccharine smile... one that barely concealed the malice behind it. She was toying with her. Feigning curiosity despite already knowing the answer.
She was laying the foundation for Ciena's downfall. And she wasn't even trying to hide it.
Her eyes said it all.
Ciena will regret making a fool out of the Monteverdes.
Because by the time Ceres was done with her, the family she grew up in... the family she betrayed... would spit her out like she was nothing.
"Ten dollars a month," Nissan finally answered.
Ceres snapped her head toward her so fast it almost looked theatrical.
"Ten dollars... for an entire month?" she repeated, amusement creeping into her voice. She shook her head and let out a breathy laugh. "That's the price of one coffee she drinks every day."
Silence followed. None of them dared to speak.
"Anyway," Ceres continued, her tone turning almost casual. "Out of curiosity, what exactly is Ciena's 'job' here in the city?"
"Housekeeper," Ciera answered. "That's also why we never questioned the things she posted on social media when Nissan showed them to us. She told us that her employers brought her along whenever they traveled for vacation so she could serve them. And when we managed to call her once, we overheard her boss scolding her... harshly... for talking on the phone instead of working."
Ceres arched a brow.
"You know the name of this so-called employer?" she asked.
"Ryzel Clark," Nissan replied. "He even spoke to us once. He yelled at us, telling us to stop calling her so often."
At that, Ceres burst into laughter.
Not the kind of laugh that signaled amusement.
No.
It was the laugh of someone who just realized she had been made a fool of by someone she trusted.
A laugh that held the kind of bitterness only betrayal could bring.
A laugh that bubbled forth because... for now... she couldn't afford to rage.
"Ryzel… is your employer?" Ceres asked, turning to Ciena as if she couldn't believe the words coming out of her mouth.
Tears welled up in her eyes... not from sadness, but from sheer, uncontainable laughter. She shook her head, unable to stop herself.
Zeus, ever the attentive lover, pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and gently wiped away the tears spilling from the corners of her eyes.
But he didn't stop her.
He let her laugh.
Because no one in their right mind would dare tell Ceres Monteverde that she was going insane.
She was already crazy.
And Zeus loved how crazy she was.
Ceres slowly forced herself to calm down, the remnants of laughter still lingering in her sharp eyes. She took the handkerchief from Zeus's hand and wiped her own tears, regaining her composure.
With a small clearing of her throat, she turned her attention back to their guests.
"So, how did you find out Ciena's address?" she asked once she was fully composed.
"She once sent us a package," Nissan answered. "It contained old clothes from her employer's daughter. Since they were going to throw them away, she figured it would be a waste and decided to send them to us instead."
Ceres nodded thoughtfully.
She had been trying to find a loophole in their answers... something that would indicate deception... but instead, all she saw was how thoroughly Ciena had fooled them too.
These people are innocent.
And as much as she wanted to punish them for bringing grief to her mother... even if it had been unintentional... she couldn't.
Not yet.
She still didn't fully know them. And the fact remained... there was a possibility that years ago, they had done something that hurt her mother so badly that her mind had erased everything.
"And how long do you plan to stay in the city?" Ceres asked curiously.
"We only came to check on Ciena," Narciso finally answered, his voice heavy with emotion. "I just wanted to see her with my own eyes and confirm that she's doing well... and if her life here is better than the one we have in Escobares."
He sighed. "We only planned to stay for two days. We made sure to arrive on a Saturday so that it would coincide with her day off... so she wouldn't get in trouble with her employer."
"Two days?" Ceres frowned. "You should stay longer. It's been seven years since you last saw her."
"We don't want to cause any trouble," Nissan replied hesitantly. "Besides, now that we've finally made it to the city, we realized that our savings won't be enough for all our expenses if we stay longer."
Ceres flashed them a sweet smile.
"Oh, don't worry about the expenses," she said smoothly. "My fiancé will take care of it."
She turned to Zeus, smiling sweetly.
"Should I buy them a house here?" Zeus asked, dead serious.
Ceres rolled her eyes. But she knew... if she so much as said yes, he would do it without hesitation.
"No need," she said before looking back at their guests. "I invite you to stay here instead. And after Mommy has calmed down from the shock of meeting you, I think it would be a great idea to get to know each other properly."
Then, with a bright, almost too innocent smile, she turned to Ciena.
"And isn't this wonderful news, sissy?" she cooed, her voice dripping with mock sweetness. "Since Daddy won't be walking you down the aisle, your Papa is here to do it instead. Which is rightfully his anyway."
Ciena paled.
The three guests, however, looked utterly bewildered.
"Wedding?" they all asked at the same time.
Ceres turned to them and smiled.
"Yes, a wedding," she confirmed. "Four weeks from now is Ciena's big day."
She tilted her head slightly, watching their stunned expressions with satisfaction.
"She's marrying Ryzel Clark."