Tangled in His Obsession ( Seraphina )

Andrea glanced at the fluttering curtain and quickly said, "That's Renee Lewis."

"Renee?" Seraphina asked, her curiosity piqued. "Who is she?"

"She's the girl Lionel took in," Andrea explained. "Her parents were old friends with Lionel. They passed away in an accident, and he's been looking after her ever since - must be over a decade now."

So, she was Lionel's adopted daughter.

Seraphina took another look and said, "I've seen her before."

"What?" Andrea seemed slightly taken aback. "You've seen her? When?"

Seraphina didn't respond right away but said, "What's up? I've met her before; is it that surprising?"

Andrea replied, "She's always been frail, so she was kept at home most of the time, hardly ever went out or met people. Look, she doesn't even attend family gatherings like today's. How could you have possibly met her?"

Now Seraphina was even more intrigued. "She never goes out, never meets people? Is that what you call taking care of someone? Sounds more like house arrest to me."

"I hardly ever see her myself," Andrea said. "Lionel insists she needs rest and can't be disturbed. Where did you meet her? Are you sure you're not mistaken?"

Mistaken? Seraphina arched an eyebrow. Given her impeccable memory, the only way she could be wrong is if the world housed two girls with the exact same appearance.

A long time ago, during a routine check-up at the hospital, she saw a girl peering into Lorenzo Reynolds' office. And just now, the face that appeared at the window was undeniably the same girl she had briefly encountered at the hospital!

Without hesitation, Seraphina grabbed Andrea's hand and said, "Let's go talk to her. That'll clear up any confusion, won't it?" As she turned to leave, Andrea quickly reached out to stop her. "No, we can't."

"What's the problem?" Seraphina asked, puzzled.

"That's Lionel's house..." Andrea looked troubled. "We can't just walk in there."

Seraphina laughed, "Aren't you all family?"

"Yes," Andrea admitted, "but Lionel's a very private person. He doesn't allow people to just wander into his home."

Hearing this, Seraphina raised an eyebrow and said, "Why don't we just ask him? I'd like to get to know his daughter and have a chat. That should be fine, right?"

Andrea shook her head. "Lionel is very protective of Renee. Knowing him, he wouldn't agree to it."

To Seraphina, this only made things more interesting but suspicious.

After a moment, she scoffed and said, "That's not just being protective; that's extreme. Oh, by the way, Lionel's been single all these years, right?" "Yes," Andrea responded, then suddenly realized what Seraphina was implying. "What are you thinking?"

Seraphina laughed, "I'm thinking exactly what you're thinking! Doesn't it seem odd to you?"

"It does seem a bit off," Andrea conceded. "But he always uses Renee's health as a reason, and there's nothing we can do."

"How often have you seen Renee? What do you know about her?" Seraphina pressed on.

Andrea thought for a moment. "The last time I saw her face-to-face must've been years ago. These past years, at most, I've caught brief glimpses of her through the window, like earlier."

"And when you saw her before, did she seem unwell?" Seraphina probed further.

Andrea shook her head again. "I didn't really notice anything."

"Then let's go find out today!" Seraphina said, suddenly pulling Andrea down the stairs.

"Sera, what are you planning?" Andrea asked worriedly.

Seraphina didn't answer, but directly approached the open space where a crowd had been enjoying themselves and spotted a young girl playing with a Samoyed.

The girl was talking to her friends, while the eager Samoyed in her hands seemed desperate to dash off and play.

Seraphina made a beeline for her target. "Hey, sweetie, your dog is so cute! Mind if I pet it for a bit?"

The young girl turned to see Seraphina and, despite being only in her early teens, had a sharpness in her eyes. "Seraphina, I know you! You're so pretty!"

"Thank you," Seraphina replied. "You're quite a looker yourself. You'll be a real heartbreaker when you grow up."

After exchanging pleasantries, Seraphina managed to get the Samoyed's leash and a couple of simple toys from the girl.

Turning back to Andrea, who was watching from the edge of the crowd, Seraphina tossed the toy ball and gave Andrea a challenging look.

Soon, the ball was flying toward Lionel's house, and the Samoyed bolted after it into the building. Then, with Andrea in tow, Seraphina rushed into the house to retrieve the dog.

Two servants at the door tried to stop them, but to no avail - they watched helplessly as the ball, the dog, and the two women all entered the house.

Once inside, Seraphina quickly

retrieved the ball from the Samoyed and feigned anger at the dog, "You little rascal, why can't you listen? Running off wherever you see & ball, huh? Well, go on then-" With that, she threw the ball upstairs.

As expected, the Samoyed turned and bounded up the stairs.

"Oh, what are you doing! How could you let your dog run loose! Get out, get out!"

"Running around like this will upset Mr. Martin!"

The servants were frazzled, trying to shoo Seraphina and Andrea out, but Seraphina wasn't so easily dissuaded. While claiming she was there to retrieve her dog, she slipped past them and up the stairs.

In the quaint upstairs sitting room, next to the tightly drawn curtains, a slight figure was hunched over, sneakily pulling back the drapes to peer outside.

Suddenly, the sound of movement

behind her made her whip around. Her gaze felt upon a fluffy Samoyed standing at the top of the staircase and Seraphina, who was

approaching quickly. She frozel.ne

her

eyes widening as they locked onto Seraphina, and then, with a spark of recognition, she leapt up."Ah, I've seen you before!"

"What a coincidence!" Seraphina replied with a smile, "I've seen you too!"

The young girl was indeed no more than eighteen or neen, with a pallor that suggested she hardly ever ventured outdoors, but her eyes were clear and bright, radiating a childlike innocence.

Upon seeing Seraphina affirm her statement, the girl dashed over, grabbing Seraphina's hand with her own luminous eyes shining, "You know Lorenzo, right? I saw you in his office! What's your relationship with him?"

Seraphina arched an eyebrow, a little taken aback. Straight to the point with questions about Lorenzo? Before she could respond, two servants from behind rushed forward-one grabbing Renee, the other tugging Seraphina downstairs.

"Miss, don't talk to her; we don't even know who she is, and the master will be furious!" said the servant pulling Renee, ushering her back to her

room.

Meanwhile, the other kept nudging Seraphina downstairs. Fortunately, Andrea stepped in swiftly and said to the auntie, "Hey, there's no need to be so rude. Sera is my daddy's... guest. My daddy is so fond of her; how could you be so impolite?"

"Miss Andrea, it's not about being impolite. Our master doesn't allow strangers in, and if you barge in like this, we'll all get scolded!" the servant replied.

"Let go! Let go!" Andrea quickly intervened, prying the auntie's hand away, "We'll leave on our own!"

As chaos ensued, a stern voice suddenly echoed from the staircase, "What is going on here?"

The women upstairs fell silent in an instant, all turning to look at Lionel as he descended the stairs with a forbidding expression.

His gaze swept over Seraphina and settled on Renee with a dark look, commanding coldly, "Mae, take the young lady back to her room."

Renee clearly reluctant, allowed herself to be led away but still cast longing glances back at Seraphina, her eyes filled with disappointment and hope.

Seraphina immediately waved at her, calling out, "Nice to meet you. Oh, and yes, I do know Lorenzo! He's my brother!"

Across the room, Renee's eyes lit up with excitement.

At Seraphina's side, Lionel's expression turned stormy, a harsh glare flitting across his face as he looked at her.