My Perfect Lady

The thought made her chuckle.

As Miya slowly undressed and stood under the hot shower, her body jolted at the feeling. Her knees stung, and for just one second, she felt like collapsing on the ground. No, she wasn"t feeling weak. Just tired. Inside out.

Her knees stung, and she breathed heavily. She winced a little in pain, and then began to clean up the injury. It took her a long while. When she was done, she took one glance at her body.

Her eyes involuntarily fell to the two scars at the bottom of her stomach. Sometimes, when she moved too much, or too hard, those age old wounds would sting, somedays even hurt. Today, was one of those days.

The gunshot wound was okay. It was the caesarean scar that itched, almost throbbed viciously.

She moved her fingers lightly along it, gasping at the touch. The itch seemed to turn to a burn when she concentrated on it. Grazing it softly with a light touch, she finally decided to ignore the discomfort. She began to wash her knees.

Memories automatically filled her mind.

Five years ago, when Ben was about to be born, she had been told that only one would survive. It would either be the mother, or the son. It had come as a shock to her, a numbing declaration. She had always known the pregnancy was complicated, but for it to be this dangerous, she hadn"t had the slightest idea.

She wasn"t a saint. She still remembered when a plethora of emotions had crossed her mind, and she had been conflicted over choosing whom. She wanted the boy, of course, but the price was too hefty to pay. She had survived a lot, and she couldn"t bring herself to throw it all away just like that.

And then, somehow, Kasu had appeared. And without a second of thought, he had signed the papers.

He had obviously chosen his boy.

Sometimes, Miya was glad that he was dead.

She still felt guilty for her real feelings back then, certain that she shouldn"t have felt that way. What kind of mother did it make her? She was supposed to protect the child no matter what! And yet, some part of her still knew that she would always, always have felt only what she had.

Maybe motherhood was glorified. Or maybe she was just a horrible human being, and an even more terrible mother.

As the thoughts roiled through her mind, she began to shiver, the caesarean scar throbbing even more painfully. As if to remind her who she had been.

Or who she still was.

When her thoughts became haunting, Miya quickly stood up, cleaned herself and came out of the shower. It was moments like these that she couldn"t face herself. These rotting memories that she was running away from, and would always do so.

When Jim saw the missus come out of the shower, she was again dressed in her oversized white brown pyjamas. He frowned at them, wondering why she stuck to wearing the same clothes again and again. Also, the dress had suited her so much! He wasn"t happy about this transformation at all!

But then again, his body didn"t deny the fact that he still found her cute.

He called out to her merrily.

"Miya! Come over here, I and Ben found the most fun game ever! And I ordered dinner. Boy did it occur to you, we haven"t eaten since morning. I had initially decided to take you guys for dinner, but then the library happened and –"

Miya was looking at Ben with dazed eyes. She spared a few glances at Jimmy, but it was clear from her expression that she wasn"t processing a single thing that Jim had said. In fact, she seemed to be lost in her own world again.

Only this time, her expression was scared.

Jim frowned at the missus, and then called out her name three times. Even Ben, who was sitting beside Jim, looked at his mother in worry.

It was when Ben"s eyes met his mother"s that she was pulled out of her reverie. Miya was pulled back to her senses, and she stared blankly at the boy.

"Miya?" Jimmy called out again.

Miya quickly averted her eyes from Ben and turned to face the young master.

"Yes?" she asked, walking over to the two timidly.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes… Um, you were saying?"

"I was saying, I and Ben found the best game ever!"

It was then that Miya realized what the two were doing. Jim sat on the bed, his legs spread out and his laptop on his thigh, meanwhile Ben sat in a similar fashion. Miya"s brows were raised when she saw Ben seated with a laptop as well, placed neatly on his thighs.

Her face was immediately a scowl.

"What is Ben doing with a laptop?" she directed her question at the young master, who was obviously the one guilty.

Jim ignored her question. They both were furiously typing away at their keyboards now, and then slipping their fingers on the mouse. Their expressions turned grimmer by the minute, and the atmosphere turned hostile. Miya c.o.c.ked a brow at their demeanour, and yet their poise told her that none wanted to be meddled with at the moment. She was ready to roll her eyes, when a loud groan filled the room.

"What in the world!" Jimmy Hunter was exclaiming, his face aghast as he shut the lid of the laptop with extreme force and put it away. Beside him, Ben beamed.

"I got you!" he said with a happy smile, and Jim pinched his forehead.

"There has to be a mistake, big guy!" he said exasperatedly, "I was a Lv10 demon! Your puny Lv8 human cannot beat me!"

As Ben chuckled happily, Jim was thoroughly impressed. They had both found this browser based strategy game only a half hour ago and had begun playing. Now, the boy had defeated him, and that too two levels down!

"I have to say champ," Jim said with a reluctant smirk, "That battle was amazing!"

"Jimmy, your big men on horses were so cool! They were killing my archers with one blow!" Ben was all fired up too.

Jim grinned.

"They"re called templars, big guy. And boy, they were so cool!"

Miya couldn"t help but sigh and then smile helplessly, as she watched the two kids high-five. She had initially intended to chide the young master for handing over a laptop to Ben, but she decided to let it go for just this once. Granted the way she was feeling, scolding wouldn"t have been effective anyway. So she went to the other bed, and silently looked at the boys go at their game again.

Somehow, it was peaceful to watch.

Miya had almost fallen asleep from the fatigue of the day, when Jim called out to her and she jolted awake. As it was, dinner had arrived. Dinner lasted a half hour, with each of them eating their full, and quietly. Only, the silence was comfortable and there seemed no real need to speak in the midst of the delicious meal.

The clock struck 11:00 in the night.

Ben was literally drowsy from sleep now, so Miya picked him up and put him to bed. She was about to climb in too, when she heard the young master clear his throat suggestively. Frowning, she walked over to the couch.

"Yes?"

"Sit down."

Jim watched the girl carefully, as she took the seat beside him. The giving her legs a short glance, he asked, "Did you dress the wound?"

Miya hesitated, but nodded a "Yes".

Jim rolled his eyes.

Walking over to his own bed, he pulled out a few bandages from a cabinet in the headboard, and walked back. Then sitting down, he indicated the missus to keep her legs on his knees.

Miya pressed her lips, looking at him with extreme doubt. His stern voice, however, was enough to put her into action.

"Miya." Jim threatened. The girl immediately spread out her legs and kept both foot on his one knee, wincing slightly from pain.

Jim sighed.

He took his own sweet time, rolling up the trouser one by one to uncover her knees. His body grew stiff in excitement, and he did his best to ignore it, but the missus was too close. Jim still didn"t hurry up though. He bandaged bother her knees carefully, and once he was done, only then did he let her go.

When he looked up, however, he was shocked to see Miya blushing.

In fact, she was red as a tomato.

Jim immediately felt playful.

"Say, Miya," he said in a deep, flirtatious voice, "Does it hurt somewhere else?"

Miya looked at his giddy smile, and her mouth fell open. Albeit she didn"t really get him, but her face flushed further, turning into a deeper shade of red. Her voice was a fl.u.s.ter.

"N-No!"

Jim laughed at her reaction, and quickly came closer. His shift was fast, so Miya didn"t notice when he jumped over to sit directly beside her, almost zero distance between their shoulders.

"Miya." This time, his voice was calm.

"Yes?"

"Won"t you ask me why I let you get hit?"

It was exactly then that Miya remembered the unsolved mystery of Jimmy Hunter"s betrayal. Her hand immediately flew to her cheek, and she covered it with her palm.

"Why?" Her voice was defensive.

"I was wrong."

"… What?"

"Rebecca isn"t on drugs. She took meth last night, but she isn"t a regular doser."

Miya was confused, and then hear leaped with joy. Her face became radiant, and her eyes sparkled.

"I told you!" She exclaimed joyously, "I told you she wouldn"t lie to me. But… how do you know?"

Jim sighed.

"That"s not important. The thing is… after we beat that boyfriend of hers, and you began to fight her, she needed to be somewhere. If you won, you wouldn"t let her go. And I needed her to go to that place too. I know you don"t understand, but you"ll hear it from her tomorrow. I"ve arranged for you two to meet at 11 in the morning."

Miya frowned, doubt written all over her face.

"Mr. Hunter… why do you know so much about Becky?"

Jim"s answer was simple.

"I found out."

"Why?"

"Because she"s the daughter of an ex- acquaintance."

Miya rolled her eyes at the lousy reply. Then breathing, she said again.

"Please don"t lie to me. Why the interest?"

"Don"t you want me to help her? You asked for it."

"I do. But what"s your reason is what I"m asking."

"Fine." Jim exhaled, and then finally blurted out, "I"m not the one who"s going to pull the strings here. In fact, I"m just a third party. The one interested is the Chairman."

Miya was surprised, but the shock quickly pa.s.sed.

Somehow, it made sense.

Jim continued.

"I informed him that the Freeman"s daughter is alive, and that he had been betrayed. I think father should be in Country S within the week."

"He"s that angry?"

"Well… we are the Hunters. And Rebecca"s uncle crossed a line. He deceived the master of the game. The Chairman obviously won"t take nicely to that."

Miya nodded, immediately understanding that it was a fight of pride. She got it too.

Jim had more to share.

"There"s something more you should know. Rebecca… she hasn"t been sitting idle for all these years after all. I think she"s onto her uncle. And I also think she has found something major. That"s why I think she deserves a chance."

Miya grew silent, but her heart was alert.

If Becky indeed was quietly fighting for her inheritance, then why was she in a relationship with that sc.u.mbag? She had even cried defending him…

Could the two be related?

She shrugged the thought aside, hoping she would be able to talk to her clearly the next day. Moreover, she also felt a sense of relief.

"It has been a long time though," she said after a while, "Do you think the Chairman would still be interested?"

That made Jim chuckle.

"Oh, yes, my dear," he said with a wild smile, "It"s the Hunters" rule of the thumb. If someone harms you, in any way whatsoever, you get back at them. If you can"t beat them now, you save your revenge until you can. But crush them, no matter how long it takes. That"s how you establish power. Make the enemy fear your very existence."

Miya gasped at the words.

Jim chuckled at her expression, and then lightly patted her head.

"I"ve told it to you, but don"t worry about it. You needn"t concern yourself with all that. Just take a good rest for now. Then talk to your friend tomorrow"

Jim got up from the couch, and began to walk to his bed.

Miya, however, sat on the couch, slightly disoriented.

Needn"t concern herself with that?

Mr. Hunter had got to be kidding her!

That was one rule that she had been sticking to for long now! At a smaller level, of course. But that was it.

It was her rule of life!

Avenge.

Always, always, always.