The main problem Clarissa faced now was that the ride was very bumpy. Each jolt added more pain to her already sore body, and she was about to vomit her dinner out. She marvelled at Uncle Jasper happily snoring away on the row of seat opposite. A violent jolt almost caused him to fall off, and Clarissa reached over to steady him. She returned to her seat when he was firmly in place. All this while, she was ticking off the minutes in her mind. There was no clock in the village, neither did she have a watch. She could only guess the time from when the sun rose and set. Indeed, her situation was almost intolerable, but she had to persevere. The oxen cart rumbled along for about an hour and a half before it finally stopped. "Uncle Jasper, we're here!" The young man called out from outside. This startled Clarissa as they had arrived, and immediately she wanted to lift the curtains to look outside. However, there was not
Uncle Jasper's house was not big but was old and rundown. Even the quilt on the bed was torn. Still, it was much better than the little damp mud house that was Aunt Anne's home. When they were inside the room, Nora made sure that the door was locked. Then, she placed her ear to the door and listened. She heaved a breath of relief when she was sure that there was no sound of movement outside and that Uncle Jasper had gone downstairs with his wife to rest. Then, she pulled Clarissa to the bed and sat down together. She began to speak excitedly. "Let me take a look at you. How are you? I was worried and scared to death when I woke up and didn't see you!" As she spoke, she examined Clarissa from head to toe. Clarissa allowed her to carry on for a while, then grabbed her hand and inquired, "I'm fine. How about you? I heard that your leg was injured. How was it? Is it serious?" When they were walking in together, Clarissa noticed that Nora was limpin
Would Anderson be able to locate this place and save her? Clarissa wondered. Clarissa let her imagination run wild. Slowly as her thoughts run rampant, her eyelids grew heavier, and finally, she fell into a deep sleep. At this time, on the other side. Ascjian. Starbay Villa. Meanwhile, over in Starbay Villa, in the country of Ascijan, Anderson had not slept for two whole days and nights. His eyes were bloodshot as he was controlling something remotely on his computer. After two days and nights, his handsome face was covered with stubble, and his eyes were sunken in exhaustion. His face was as dark as night. His cell phone rang, and he picked it up. "How is it? Is there any news?" David sounded guilty as he answered from the other end. "I'm sorry, Mr. President. There is no news yet." "What a bummer!" The veins on his forehead nearly burst as he blew his top and yelled. After he had caught his breath, he o
Incidents like taking care of Nora's injury painted Uncle Jasper and Aunt Emma in a positive light, which made others look up to them. No doubt, Uncle Jasper was warm-hearted, fond of helping others, and had high prestige. Perhaps his personality appearing to be a bit eccentric to Clarissa and Nora was because of the local social customs and rules. This was something that Clarissa could not tell for sure. Fortunately, there was no obvious activity at the moment, except for some small signs that something was not right. As long as they did not do anything harmful to Clarissa and Nora, Clarissa did not want to make any false accusations. With her thoughts sorted out, Clarissa felt more relaxed. Then, she walked in front of Uncle Jasper who was busy smoking his pipe, and greeted him cheerfully, "Good morning, Uncle Jasper!" Uncle Jasper turned his head, peeped at her, and returned her greeting, "Good morning. Breakfast should be ready soon. Go and
Aunt Emma explained, "This is a custom we have in our hometown. We weave a red cord for ourselves on our birthday as a lucky amulet." Clarissa could not help being curious. She came over and chatted with a smile, "It's so beautiful. Does everyone here make one for themselves every year?" Her question stunned Aunt Emma who shook her head immediately and replied. "No, the people here won't." "Why?" Both their eyes opened wide in amazement at Aunt Emma's answer and asked in reply. Right at this moment, Uncle Jasper walked in. Immediately, Aunt Emma bowed her head and did not continue with the conversation. When Uncle Jasper saw the three of them sitting together, he asked, "What are you discussing?" Clarissa and Nora shared a wink and replied with a smile, "Nothing important. We were talking about the doctor who just left. He is amazing. Nora was complaining about the pain in her leg. After changing the dressing and medicine, Nora does
"If they accept the inevitable, it will be good for everybody. Then, you won't have to worry about her escaping when she is yours. Isn't that perfect?" Uncle Jasper explained, and the man agreed as he nodded. "Yes, Uncle Jasper. You're right." Convinced, he smiled and added pleasantly, "Well, that's settled then. I'll go back and raise the money. I'll be back when the money is ready. Uncle Jasper waved his hand in agreement, and the man left. Clarissa watched as the other man left while Uncle Jasper finished his pipe before going into the house. Without a sound, she stealthily crept inside through the backdoor. Upon returning to her room, Clarissa was all sixes and sevens. Nora was not asleep yet as she was waiting for Clarissa's return. As Clarissa walked in, Nora asked, "Are you better now? Is your tummy better?" With a nod, Clarissa replied, "I'm fine now." As she spoke, she secured the door and then listened for any
Finally, Clarissa stopped laughing and asked Nora, "Do you think that if we beat up the old couple downstairs, we can escape?" Nora blinked in surprise as the answer was obvious to her. However, Clarissa shook her head and disagreed, "No, you are wrong. Even if we beat them up and tie them so that they cannot come after us, we still cannot escape." Puzzled, Nora asked, "Why not?" Clarissa thought that it would be difficult for her to explain. Therefore, she related how in Kuddelkogh Village, Aunt Anne used children to keep surveillance on her. Then, she further elaborated. "Do you get it now? Although we are in Uncle Jasper's hands currently, the truth is that the whole village, even the few nearby villages, are working together." "The moment we try to escape, one yell from Uncle Jasper will bring out the entire village to help him capture us." "I'm sure you can beat up Uncle Jasper and Aunt Emma. But, can you beat up perh
Uncle Jasper and Aunt Emma were talking furtively in low voices. Clarissa could not hear what they were saying as she was standing on the other side. The small hill where Clarissa was had lots of flowers, and she was picking flowers of various colors. As Uncle Jasper watched her, he scoffed at her naivety and remarked, "What a naive little lady. She is still picking flowers under such circumstances." His words sent a chill down Aunt Emma, but she remained silent. When Clarissa had picked a big bunch of flowers, she ran over and chirped with a smile, "Uncle Jasper, Aunt Emma, don't you think these flowers are beautiful?" Uncle Jasper broke into a big smile and answered, "Yes, indeed." "Can I take them back and brighten up the living room?" Clarissa asked innocently. "Sure, it's up to you," Uncle Jasper replied. They thought that it was only natural for Clarissa, a young lady, to like flowers. Little did they know that the