I watched them march in, making no move to retreat upstairs. Instead, I settled comfortably into the couch, not bothering to offer them a seat. Respect was earned, not given. In my presence, in my heart, they had lost that privilege.
I sat there, cool as a cucumber, observing their hurried entrance, their faces contorted in wrath.
They were efficient. They knew I was back, and their timing was impeccable. I had barely been home for two minutes when they barged in.
Jaylan made an attempt to intervene but was easily brushed aside by Hazel, who stormed up to me, her brows furrowed in anger, "Aaliyah, where have you hidden Evan? Hand him over." she demanded.
The last time I saw Hazel, she was being escorted out by her son. Now, she looked significantly worse for wear. However haggard she appeared. She genuinely cared.
Despite her previous disdain for Evan, even going as far as calling him a bastard in front of Marissa, it was clear that she was distraught over his disappearance.
Her accusatory tone, her brazen demand for Evan, was laughably absurd. Instead of getting angry, I chuckled, feigning ignorance. "Evan? Who? Where is he? Where should I take him?”
"Stop playing dumb, Aaliyah," Hazel snapped, her face contorted in fury, "Do you want me to call the cops? I can have you arrested right now, you bitch!"
"Go ahead," I replied, unfazed, "I'll be waiting right here."
Farley stepped in at this point, "You've gone too far, Aaliyah. You've caused nothing but chaos for this family. And now, you're targeting a child. He's been missing for days. Why are you making trouble like this?"
I shot Farley a warning glare. He was proving to be more of a nuisance than I had anticipated.
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