The Devil's Sweetheart

Evelyn's eyes sparkled as she saw Heather emerge out of the woods, but she soon found something was a miss. There was no effervescence on Heather's face.  ''Did you see the plant and flowers, Heather?'' Heather's face looked normal, which means nothing happened inside the woods. 

'''Oh no!'' At the realization, Heather knocked on her forehead for ignoring the reason she went into those woods. ''It's all because of Francis. I came across him while I was going to meet Leena, and he started talking about, Water Cycles, shoelaces, all nonsense stuff. I completely forgot about Leena.'' Something is wrong with him today to act timidly. He doesn't see her face, and he is scared to look into her eyes.

''Water Cycle, shoelaces? Why did he talk about that?'' Evelyn was taken back. Has he wasted an opportunity again? He is the most cowardly person she has seen, Evelyn thought. Does he want to die single in this life? 

''Don't talk about him, Eve. He has gone mad.'' Saying that, Heather texted Leena and informed her to click pictures and show them later to her. Heather then addressed Evelyn. ''Let's sit down by the lake and talk.'' 

Evelyn gazed at a distance but didnot find her husband to ask about Francis's status. She let the matter aside for now. Evelyn then handed Cutie to her father-in-law, and both the friends walked towards the lake. ''How is Harley doing?'' Heather asked as they settled on the grass.

''She is recovering,'' Evelyn said, a smile on her face. ''Jasper is not leaving her sight except when he is in office. She is happy.''

''Ah! You are going to have a doting son-in-law in the future.'' Heather beamed a brilliant smile. 

''Don't forget you got the finest.'' Evelyn retorted with a challenge, and Heather has to agree on that part. No one can match her son-in-law in her eyes. Keeping aside their jokes, both turned serious as Evelyn opened a document on her mobile. ''This is the list,'' Evelyn said.

Heather keenly observed the names of the people. Two decades passed, and the names felt foreign to her.

''When I contacted the cruise line companies, they provided the list of people, but I felt it murky,'' Evelyn added. 

''What do you mean?'' Heather questioned. So someone has deliberately plotted against her in the cruise ship?

''I remember Harold and Paisley from our University attended the birthday party as well, but they were not included in the list,'' Evelyn said with a hint of suspicion. 

''So, someone knows that we are searching,'' Heather contributed to Evelyn's thoughts. What sort of connections the enemy has to keep a close observation on her activities?

  ''Exactly. Someone knows. So, I asked Adney to hack into their system, and he recovered the complete list of people.'' Evelyn zoomed in on the document and began. ''Do you remember Won-Shik? The man is from Korea. He studied medicine at our University.''

''I can't forget that lanky,'' Heather said as an understatement. ''The nerd with glasses, isn't it?'' 

''Of course, the same dude. He used to hang out with a quiet and dumb girl.....what's her name..I forgot...'' Evelyn pondered. She gets all creepy vibes from those two, although they both are the most silent people in their class. 

''Ruth. Ruth Vaughan.'' Heather offered the name to Evelyn's knowledge.

''Yeah..that's right.. She is the one. You remember names very well, Heather.'' Evelyn patted her friend's shoulder with proudness. ''Proud of your memory.''

''Honestly, my memory is abysmal, Eve. But that woman is a special person.'' Picking a dried leaf from the ground, Heather began playing as she spoke. ''I wouldn't have known that girl existed in our University if not for that incident.''

''That remains in my memory as well.'' Evelyn joined her friend. ''Declaring her love to Francis in front of many students and getting blatantly rejected by him. That's an eyesore. I never expected to be that brave. She proved even quiet ones are deep and dangerous.'' Evelyn sighed. Francis and Fredrick often visit their University to talk with Heather, and one fine afternoon when all the four were chatting, the woman appeared in front of Francis and confessed her feelings boldly. While Heather was in a state of shock, Evelyn observed Francis looking at Ruth with disgust. 'I don't do things that make me want to vomit.' His rejection has soared an uproar on that day in the university.

''Francis was a little harsh on her? Don't you agree?'' Heather asked as she gazed at a distance, crumpling the dried leaf in her hands. She knows Francis got a line of women behind him, but for the first time, Heather has witnessed. At once,  Heather got scared Francis would accept Ruth, buts she was relieved he didnot not. She decided to confess her feelings, but all hell-bent lost when she heard him dating another woman. She wondered why Francis remained single until now.

''Harsh? He was actually cool.'' Evelyn winked. It was a hot topic in the University for a while. Fredrick's face was as dark as a frying pan hearing the girls uproar for Francis.

''What is she doing now?'' Heather was curious about Ruth. Everywhere she goes, whispers of mocking followed behind Ruth. After some days, Heather rarely saw that woman on campus.

''I don't know..Some say she got married, and some say she died in a fire accident..and I was not bothered to know about her,'' Evelyn shrugged. ''Well, let's get into our business now. We are going off the track.''

''Right.'' Heather sighed. Anything related to Francis, her mind goes off the track. ''Continue, Eve.''

''If my memory serves correct, I have not invited Won-Shik to Devin's birthday, which makes him a little suspicious.'' Evelyn voiced her thoughts.

''What do you mean? Are you saying he might be Leena's father?'' Heather cried. Please god! Don't let it be that bony nerd. She regretted drinking on that day. Has she confessed to Francis, prim and proper, her life would have been different today?

''Don't jump to the conclusion already. There were around two hundred plus people in the cruise.'' Evelyn spoke in a comforting way. ''Also, Leena is very beautiful_''

''It's because she is my replica,'' Heather shouted.

''Alright, alright. Control your temper, dear friend. We are yet to have proof that he is Leena's father.'' Evelyn patted Heather's shoulder to calm the raging woman. ''Won-Shik is in Korea. Let's start with him. I will secretly send someone to get the samples for the DNA test.''

''Do it fast, Eve,'' Heather muttered impatiently. Probably she will not be able to sleep before knowing the result. A while later, both headed back to the spot. Francis was playing with Cutie when Heather saw him. The moment she saw him, he whisked away from the place without looking back. ''What's wrong with him today?'' She wondered.

.....

After Francis stormed off the place with shame burning in his eyes, leaving Fredrick and Leena to discuss his after state, Fredrick and Leena started.

''I proposed to your mother-in-law without any shame, I went behind Evelyn although she didnot notice me. '' Fredrick complained. ''What has gotten into that fool?''

Leena didnot utter a word this time. She agreed with her father-in-law's words. Bravery is not in Francy's dictionary when it comes to love. Her mom is better compared to him in this matter. ''Father-in-law.'' Leena sharply turned to Fredrick when she got an idea to make her dream a reality. ''You told about a woman named Catalina who was behind my Francy. Can I have her number?''

''Why? '' Fredrick questioned suspiciously.

''Just give me.'' Leena pleaded desperately. The terrible jealous woman disease will start now in the name of Heather. She will make her mom's feelings out this time.

...

On the same day, in the evening, Enger was sitting in the living room reminiscing about Leena and his talks. Is she starting to trust him? This was the first time Leena has talked about personal things with him. He couldn't sleep at night, and he couldn't work in the day. Nothing except looking at her pictures. ''What are you doing to me, Leena?''

''How long will you keep laughing to yourself?'' Nash asked with a chuckle. After the encounter with Leena yesterday, Enger is not himself.

''As long as I want.'' Enger replied in a daze. ''What's the matter with you?''

''Landon is seeing a woman. What if it poses a_''

''Don't mind about those trivial matters. We cannot stop him from having his personal life.'' Enger said.'' Besides, I am sure he will take care of himself without getting into trouble.''

''Alright,'' Nash said.

''Did you book a train I asked for?'' Enger asked.

''Yes,'' Nash said. ''Will you ever tell why you keep visiting Mexico? How long you are going to keep the 

Without replying, Enger got up, prepared to leave. A secret that he cannot share with anyone.. A secret he buried it deep inside him.