Such a Rude and Noisy Woman

Thinking about what happened, Hiram had never experienced such fear within himself. He couldn't ever imagine losing Rachel to someone else, let alone his partner. It seemed as though Daniel's love for Rachel was triggered by her previous kidnapping incident and appeared to have grown even more over time.

For years, he felt as if his heart remained closed off from love or anything that matched a similar sense of vulnerability. Rachel was the one person who managed to unlock it for him.

Rachel owned Hiram's heart. Her laughter restored his happiness, but also his fear of losing something that meant the world to him.

Since Rachel told him the good news about her pregnancy, he was extremely happy. So much so that it almost made him float on cloud nine, which he didn't believe was possible in the past.

Her presence in his life shifted his priorities.

Therefore, he could never accept it if she left him. The mere fact that his heart could feel lifeless once more, made him even more scared.

The dawn of the following morning broke with ease.

After he got up, Hiram walked towards the hall outside of his room, where he saw Daniel waiting outside for him.

It seemed like he sobered up from the previous night. Approaching Hiram, he said with a smile," Hiram, let's go somewhere quiet to talk. I need to explain myself."

After fixing the sleeves of his shirt, Hiram opened the door to his study, and walked in. Then. Daniel followed him. He pulled open the curtain and said, with his back facing to Daniel," If you intend to apologize for what happened last night, forget about it. I have already confronted Rachel about it. You were drunk, and I will pretend as though I didn't see what happened last night. I won't blame you, nor her for it."

Daniel closed the door behind him and leaned against it, looking at Hiram before responding to him," Hiram... That's not quite what I wanted to say. I wanted to tell you that, should you not want her anymore one day or something goes wrong, I hope that you can allow me the opportunity of taking your place."

Infuriated, Hiram immediately turned around to face his partner. He responded impatiently," Daniel, do you even know what you are suggesting to me right now? I think you require more time to sober up."

"Yes, I'm aware. I had a lot to drink last night. However, my mind is clear, and I know how I feel. Hiram, Rachel is yours, and I know I don't deserve her. I know it's confusing. I mean, I brought a beautiful woman to your house, yet I was only thinking about your wife. I'm sure you're angry with me and probably want to hurt me, right?"

Daniel said, nodding his head. It didn't seem as though he cared about Hiram's wrath. From the moment Hiram saw Daniel declare his affection towards Rachel, he wouldn't be able to hide his feelings from him any longer. Even though he knew Hiram was angry at him, he didn't want him to ever think of Daniel as liar man.

Besides, he wasn't someone who would hide his feeling from anybody.

"Good, I'm glad that you're acknowledging the full truth." Hiram said angrily, lowering his voice.

For what seemed like a moment of endured self-pity, Daniel took a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. He then proceeded to take a drag of it and said," Hiram, I understand that you would have kicked me out of your house if it wasn't for our close relationship. I am still forever grateful towards you. You helped me discover my true capabilities. I mean, without your appreciation and loyalty as a friend, I could have never achieved all that I did.

I know it's none of my business, but I still have something I feel like I need to tell you. Hiram, please treat her good. She deserves the best. I want her to live happily with you for the rest of your life. But, if she's not..."

"That's enough now, Daniel!"

Hiram interrupted Daniel's words and shouted at him without constraint. After that, he said," Daniel, I already know what you mean. I hate myself more than anyone when I hurt her! I am her husband with good reason. I care about her more than anyone. I even blame myself for not being able to take care of her, especially when she gets unhappy about something.

I could never stop loving her. Not for the rest of my life, anyway.

So, there is no 'if'. Do you understand?"

Daniel puffed out a cloud of smoke as he turned towards Hiram and said with a smile," Fine then. I am relieved to hear you say that. I know that whatever you say to me is the truth.

Hiram, remember that you are not the only man who loves and cares for her on this earth. Perhaps, other men would feel the same way towards her as I do. So, please treat her nicely and love her with all your heart. She deserves it the most."

Daniel had an angle with his words. He didn't want to make Hiram feel bad, nor angry. He just wanted to hear Hiram say it.

He knew that as long as Hiram refused to let go of Rachel, it meant that he loved her deeply. Therefore, he would never be able to leave her. Sometimes, in the attempt and failure to protect a loved one, one can find peace in knowing that someone else will be able to protect her.

In Fannie's Private Home Cuisine.

Since Rachel had nothing to do over the last few days, she felt extremely bored at home and wanted to do something. She asked Carl to drive her to Fannie's restaurant.

When entering the fancy restaurant, she found that it had become much quieter than before, when they came to visit.

"Rachel? Will you take a seat, please. I don't have any customers at the moment. What do you want to eat? I want to cook something for you," Fannie said to Rachel. Coming out from the counter, she approached her daughter who was just about to take a seat. Rachel drew back a chair from the table and sat down. She then looked at the time displayed on the clock, which was hanging on the wall and asked," Mom, it's already time for lunch. Why is the restaurant so empty?"

With a weary look on her face, Fannie sat down and locked eyes on the newly-opened restaurant across the street and said," There is a new restaurant across the road now. They are very competitive and are running a month-long discount promotion on their meals. Most of our customers chose it over us. For now anyway. Therefore, our restaurant has become quieter."

Rachel didn't even notice the newly-opened restaurant across the street until her mother told her. Looking at it, she found that the competitor was classier and more beautifully decorated than theirs. Even its menu was displayed outside, which made it seem even more inviting.

Continuing to look at it, the display board suggested a huge discount on all the dishes they served, which even to her, appeared as an attractive offer.

"Mom, don't you worry about it. Our restaurant is unique and features home-style dishes, which is next to impossible to find. What's more is, it is entirely normal for new restaurants to win the favor of customers at first. However, we have our original customer base. It won't last too long," Rachel said.

Fannie agreed with what Rachel said and gave her a nod. She poured a glass of juice for Rachel and opened her mouth to speak," I'm not worried about this. After all, this business is a low-cost one. I am satisfied with it, as long as it is enough to make a living for me. How have you been lately? Have you felt sick at all yet?"

Rachel shook her head and said," No, I haven't felt anything yet. Although I feel sick when I smell something bad, I haven't vomited yet. I don't feel as though anything is wrong either."

"That's very good my dear! I was the same when I was pregnant with you. When I carried you for nine months, I was completely relaxed about it. See, most women even struggle to drink water, but I didn't even feel ill, or like there was anything wrong with my body," Fannie said to Rachel and smiled.

Rachel smiled right back at Fannie and asked," Mom, Can I have the braised eggplant. Can you please cook it for me?"

"Of course, I will cook you whatever you want, even if it's not on the menu." Fannie agreed with a slight nod.

At that moment, standing on the second floor of the newly-opened restaurant, Gavin stood with his hands on his hips, staring at Rachel and Fannie who were chatting and smiling the afternoon away in their family-owned restaurant.

"Can you see them? Is the older woman the one you saw before?" The butler asked the old man standing behind him, pointing to Fannie.

The old man squinted his eyes and looked at Fannie carefully with the help of a telescope, before answering the question," Yes, it's her.

Mr. Rong, you know I won't make a mistake. Even though it was late that night and dark outside, I saw her walking towards the bridge with my own eyes. Coincidentally, the next day, Miss Rong was dead. Clearly, she had something to do with it."

"Be cautious about what you say. You recall seeing her in an argument with Miss Rong? Did you see them fight, or not?" the butler responded to him once more.

The old man hesitated at first and then continued to say," Mr. Rong, take your time to think about it. Unless they arranged to meet, they wouldn't have met up during the late hours of the night. Not there anyway. What do you think?"

Gavin slowly turned around towards the butler. He looked at the old man with his sharp eyes and said," So, you mean to tell me that you are guessing. You're not sure about what you saw, and that you didn't see them fighting in person, am I right?"

"Um, well... Mr. Rong, it was a fight. Fannie was Simpson's fiancee at the time, and she must have been jealous because Simpson liked Miss Rong. She had a motive. Fannie must have hated Miss Rong too much. She must have realized that she could never marry Simpson unless Miss Rong died,"

the old man said nervously, as he wiped off the sweat on his forehead.

After taking a deep breath, Gavin proceeded to close his eyes before responding in an angry tone," Words alone are no proof. I need proper evidence!"000