A thousand apologies for taking so long to post this. I hope it's not too late for a weekend read. Please enjoy :)

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PS - I will try to start addressing comments/questions in the next chapter.

Forever and a Day

(A sequel to Ninety Days)

By forever

A Not So Ordinary Day - Part 2

But as soon as the car swerved to the right, into the driveway leading to the mansion, affording him a view of the solitary figure occupying the back seat, his smile vanished, replaced by deep creases between his brows.

"George, do you know if Aunt Elroy was expecting anyone this morning?" Albert asked, his gaze firmly fastened on the black Rolls Royce as it rounded the circular driveway.

"I'm not quite sure, sir," George replied, stepping closer and standing next to him, his eyes also on the slick, black sedan that continued to advance toward them. "Madam had not breathed a word about a visitor. Although, upon her discharge from the hospital, she did give a specific instruction that she was not to be disturbed by anyone, and she also requested that the other family members were promptly informed of the change in schedule to her itinerary for the Lakewood trip. Everyone should have received the notice by last night. So I have not the slightest clue why Lady Sarah is here right now."

"I think I might have some idea..." Albert muttered, thrusting the paper into his trousers pocket.

As he watched the car slowly gliding to a stop several feet behind his own, his mind wandered briefly to the last exchange he had had with Sarah at the Borden Estate in Detroit. He absolutely had no desire for an encore of such an unpleasant encounter that had left him feeling both physically and mentally exhausted. Alas, the odds were against him this time. He was certain of the sole reason for Sarah's visit today—surely, it wasn't a cordial morning call.

"Today must be my lucky day." He heaved a loud sigh, tugging his lips in a smirk.

The clock had barely struck nine o'clock, but there had been no shortage of excitement that kept his adrenaline pumping, from having been forced to bid goodbye to Candy hours sooner than he had anticipated, thinking that he had the whole day to spend with her before she had to depart for Lakewood with Aunt Elroy, to being told that there might be a mad murderer out in the loose, who might endanger the lives of someone he knew. And now this. Yep, lucky indeed.

He let out another sigh in an attempt to shake off the weight that seemed to have been tied up around his back, like a sackful of granite, before abruptly swiveling sideways and flashing George one of his dazzling smiles. "Well, shall we bid our guests with our warmest welcome? It would be utterly insolent of us as the hosts to make them wait."

Seeing no perceptible shift in George's impassive expression, Albert snapped his gaze back on the car in time for its passenger's door to be swung open by the driver. He straightened his shoulders and in unhurried, self-assured steps approached the woman who just emerged out of the car, George tailing behind him by a few feet.

"Good morning, Sarah," Albert greeted and cast her a polite smile when she whirled to face him, looking a bit preoccupied with smoothing the invisible wrinkles on her exquisitely tailored, long, burgundy velvet skirt, most likely one of her latest acquisitions from last weekend shopping spree.

"Good morning, madam," George echoed in a more subdued tone.

"To what do I owe the pleasure to be graced with your presence so early in the day?" Albert expressed, keeping the ironic lilt in his voice low. "I hope it is not a matter of urgent importance."

There was a slight twitch of irritation around Sarah's mouth before it evolved into a smile that was too sprightly to be genuine. "Good morning to you too, William. Why, you appear to be in unusually good spirits today! Oh but you must! How could I forget? You've become an engaged man overnight! I must say that was a feat of an extraordinary proportion! Let me offer my congratulation to you on your imminent nuptial." She extended a hand out to him, obliging him to take it. "And may I add that you've made quite a fine choice for your bride?"

Albert stared down at Sarah's gloved hand, deliberating whether he should laugh aloud or pretend he hadn't heard anything. She couldn't be more obvious with her effort to ridicule him, that it looked almost hilarious.

Sarah's knowledge of his nuptial hadn't confounded him in the least. Even though George had not explicitly said it, Albert was sure the notice that had been sent out last night contained more than a minor revision to Aunt Elroy's itinerary. The announcement in regard to his betrothal to Candy must have been included as well. Every family in the Andrews household should be well versed of his new status by now. Yet that didn't mean they would jump in jubilation and rejoice with him. He knew he would face oppositions, strong, fierce oppositions from all sides. Oh, he had not a single doubt that would happen, even Aunt Elroy had affirmed he would be met with plenty.

But he certainly hadn't expected to be confronted by one of his relatives first thing in the morning, let alone by Sarah, who, from what he could recount of the years he had lived with her, had never been an early riser—in fact, she would rather skip breakfast than lose an hour of sleep.

He raised his head, meeting Sarah's expectant gaze. At first he had thought she was here to persuade him to pardon Neil or negotiate about the new project in Florida, for he inferred she wasn't very keen on embracing the idea of relocating to another state.

He was wrong.

For the moment, he decided to play along. His penchant for amusement far outweighed his annoyance. He was mildly curious to see how long Sarah would be able to maintain the stilted cheerful facade, and even extremely more curious to find out to what length she would go to pester him.

Taking Sarah's proffered hand in his, Albert gave it a firm shake. "I'm most impressed at how fast can news travel nowadays! It appears that there is no need for a family conference. You see, to have the support from my own family means a great deal to me. I'm most grateful for your wishes, Sarah." He finished, dipping his head in a slight bow.

Sarah's lips remained curved in what appeared to be a courteous smile, but the glint in her brown eyes had hardened with distaste. As she withdrew her hand slowly from his, he could discern anger lurking beneath the refined movement, ready to strike at anything that dared cross its path. He smirked inwardly. Apparently, he didn't have to wait long at all for a crack in her mask to form.

"I didn't realize you had the habit of picking a girl from a destitute orphanage and then grooming her to become your bride. Were you that desperate to trade in your bachelor status?" Sarah lifted one finely manicured brow in a high arch, her brown eyes flashing with repressed fury, challenging him. "Tell me, William: is this why you were so hard set on throwing Neil's proposal out the window?"

Albert gritted his teeth. The blatant display of disrespect was simply beyond what he could tolerate. If he were less of a gentleman and more of the authoritarian patriarch he was called to be, like his father, he would have ousted her at once.

It was not a deep, dark secret that Sarah Leagan despised him. He knew she had harbored unfavorable feelings toward him ever since he had been a child. She had not made any attempt to hide it. To the contrary, she would grab each opportunity coming her way and make it her goal to demonstrate to him how she truly felt about him, as what she was doing at this very moment.

Hence, there was no reason to prolong the pretense.

"I see... your congratulation earlier is nothing more than a preamble..." Albert remarked coolly, without bothering to conceal his smirk.

Just like that, Sarah's mask fell and shattered to pieces. Gone was the trained, regal poise. The smile that had once perpetually adorned her lips had dissolved into an indignant curl. "Are you out of your mind, William?" she sneered, her voice climbing higher in pitch with every uttered word. "What kind of sorcery has Candy spun on you? And on mother too? What have you done to mother to make her agree to such an outrageous proposition? Do you think we will let you turn our family into a laughingstock?" Expelling a loud, belittling huff, she whipped her head to the side. "No one in our family will allow you to commit an atrocity of this magnitude!"

Albert clenched his jaw, swallowing a string of berating curses that clung to the tip of his tongue. It would be natural for anyone to retaliate to such an odious verbal assault with another one that was at least as equally damaging. But he knew it wouldn't work—it would backfire on him.

'Never show your true emotions to your adversaries lest they will demolish you to nigh in one crushing blow.' That was one teaching that had been hammered into him by his father, perhaps the only teaching he had ever received from his father. He had never forgotten that.

"Is that right?" he remarked lightly. "Frankly, I don't see how that would change anything..." His gaze veered to George, who had stayed quiet the entire time, seemingly wishing to be somewhere else. He couldn't blame his assistant, as he himself shared the same sentiment and wished he could disappear.

"For heaven's sake, you're going to marry your own charge, your own daughter!" came Sarah's incredulous retort barreling after him. "Candy was the girl you so long ago had chosen to adopt. Have you forgotten that important fact? What on earth were you thinking?"

Albert flinched at the insinuation. He knew the adoption issue would emerge at one point, and this wouldn't be the last time he heard of it. In fact, it wasn't the first either—Aunt Elroy had broached the topic yesterday, granted she had done it in a much civil manner. Whether he wanted to accept it or not, this particular variety of disparaging remark would be repeated many, many times in the coming days, until his ears became charred from the searing words. So he should accustom himself to the torture.

"I truly appreciate your concern, Sarah," he replied with as much calm as he could muster, straining a smile of gratitude. "I've revoked Candy's adoption. She is no longer an Andrew."

Surprise flickered across her face, but without allowing her a chance to voice her thought, he swiftly added, "And for the record, not once had I ever considered her as my own charge, much less a daughter. She has always been free to decide her own path."

At first her lips parted, as if she was about to respond, but then she only expired a soft sigh, averting his gaze.

Albert knitted his brows at the sudden change in Sarah's demeanor, his pulse quickened. He wondered whether it had dawned on her that something was amiss. Earlier, he had applied care in his choice of words, deliberately omitting any pertinent detail pertaining to the timing of the event. Sarah would surely use the knowledge to rile him up if she found out it was only yesterday that the adoption had been rescinded—no, she would give him hell.

Much to his relief, she had so far kept mum with her gaze drawn low toward the ground, as though she was thoroughly absorbing his words.

Perhaps she finally realized the vainness of her effort and decided to end her pursue. He hoped earnestly that was why she had not said anything.

But he couldn't amass much assurance from his hunch, thinking that maybe that was too high of an expectation to set. On the other hand, what had happened yesterday with Aunt Elroy—whom he had thought would condemn him but had given him her full blessings instead—proved that nothing was impossible, which meant the remote possibility for another miracle to occur still existed.

His pondering, however, was interrupted by the exuberant chirps of robins and goldfinches basking in the morning sun. The jolly chorus made him think of blooming flowers, gentle sunshine, and soothing lake breeze. It made him think of spring and the sheer delight of being swaddled in its warmth, and how much he loved that. And it also made him think of lush, shimmering golden curls, and a pair of sparkling emerald eyes...

Distant murmurings touched his ears, banishing the endearing thoughts from his mind. He turned his head to the side in the direction of the noises, his eyes scanning at the view to his far left, past the driveway, and he spotted a few of the gardening staff trimming the rows of the boxwood hedges. Not too far from them, he could see a few men pushing wheelbarrows that were stacked high with piles of burlap sacks of fertilizers along the dirt path that cut across the garden. There were other workers still, scattered around the expanse of the front garden, men and women, young and old, one climbing a ladder to cut the overgrown branches of an old sycamore, a few pulling out weeds and dandelions from the lush green lawn, some gathered by the vibrant bed of orange and red pansies digging soil and planting bulbs, and others performing many other tasks. Clearly, there were plenty of works to be done.

He winced. What was he doing here? Unlike his diligent staff, he had squandered his time by engaging in a pointless talk and accomplished nothing. His dawdling must stop now. He steered his gaze back to Sarah, who seemed to have been observing him intently, a pensive look on her face. "Sarah, if you have no further matter to discuss, I shall take my leave now."

Throwing Sarah one chaste smile, he spun on his heel and walked toward the mansion. There were a few items he needed to retrieve from the vault inside the master suite. One item in particular was a ring that had been passed down to him the day he had reached his coming-of-age. It was a very special ring that had originally belonged to his beloved mother. Before it was gifted to him, it had been lying on the bottom of Rosemary's jewelry box. Rosemary had inherited it from his mother, but she had refused to wear it, telling him in jest that she feared the bone inside her skinny, dainty finger would fracture holding the enormous weight. He couldn't blame Rosemary. The ring was too ostentatious to his liking. He couldn't see Candy being too excited about it as well. So he decided to take it to a jeweler to have it resized and redesigned to a style that would match his fiancee' radiant personality.

"You may say whatever pleases you, William, but the fact remains—there were times when Candy was legally your adopted daughter."

Albert lurched to a halt in his track, his heartbeat racing.

What was Sarah doing? Why was she so eager to restart their conversation, a conversation that promised nothing but misery? What was she trying to accomplish?

Steeling himself for the impending barrage of insults, he turned around slowly and directed his gaze to her. His fingers curled into tight fists when he noticed the corner of her lips rise in a condescending, cruel smile that reminded him of an evil queen illustrated in one of the books Rosemary had bought for him, the same smile Sarah had tossed at him since he was six as he was being admonished by Aunt Elroy for the misdeed he had not committed.

He wanted to hit himself. It was utterly foolish of him to believe that Sarah Leagan would relent without a fight.

And it became painfully clear to him that she wasn't here just to express her objection to his engagement in person. She was here to demand a retribution for the way he had cornered her to submission in Detroit. She was on a mission to bring him down to his bitter end.

Sarah approached him in small, calculated steps, like a starving lioness about to pounce on its prey. "The fox hunting day in Lakewood, you must remember that, I'm sure. After all, you had summoned for all of us to attend the huge event that was held in her honor, an event to introduce her as the newest member of the Andrews, as your very own adopted daughter."

A blast of cold air slammed against his chest, and Albert felt the chill biting deep into his bones. The rest of Sarah's words faded into incoherent, soft murmurs.

Of course, he remembered the fox hunting event. He remembered it with vivid, excruciating details, that he could feel the pain tear him apart into shreds as at that time when he had first learned of the tragic ending from George.

Till this very day he had not forgiven himself for what had occurred on that fateful afternoon. What was supposed to be a celebration full of laughter turned into a harrowing nightmare. He had caused tremendous grief for Candy, for Aunt Elroy, for his nephews. He had caused everyone to suffer. He had failed Rosemary, failed to keep his promise to her...

And Anthony... The boy was so young, with so many years lay ahead before him, so much potential, so much...

Albert felt himself sinking deeper into a dark, bottomless maelstrom.

If only he had heeded George's advice to have a modest garden party for Candy instead... He had insisted for a more formal event so that the announcement could be made to the entire Andrews clan, including the extended members and partners, not limited to the close of kin. Now he couldn't even recall why he had opted for a hunting affair when he loathed with fierce passion the killing of innocent animals. He couldn't recall a single valid reason what had driven him to make that decision. He couldn't recall why he hadn't considered an alternative activity that was less strenuous, less dangerous.

"And now, all of a sudden, you announced she is to become your wife?!" Sarah's high-pitch voice, grating and scraping at his ear drums, reeled him back in to the surface.

However, instead of immense sadness, he was seething. Her withering words fell on his ears like pelting bullets, but he felt nothing, only numbness.

"How could that possibly happen? There must have been something that we all missed. What have transpired between you and Candy, William? I couldn't dare imagine the kind of intimate dealings you engaged behind the scene with her that could lead to such a situation in which you are obligated to marry her. I admit Candy possess a sweet, pretty face, and her figure is not too shabby either." Sarah pursed her lips in feigned thoughtfulness. "Quite voluptuous, I must say. I'm sure a man like you must find her quite delectable and—

"That's enough!"

Sarah stiffened in an instant at Albert's thundering voice.

"You have crossed the line, Sarah," Albert stated. His voice had regained its normal volume, but the tone was unyielding, veiled with an unspoken warning of severe consequences should she decide not to heed him. "I will not permit you to continue with the rubbish prattle, spouting despicable assumptions about me and Candy that are completely untrue and misplaced, not to mention severely distorted. I assure you, it's not in your best interest to persist in the exhibition of this kind of untoward behavior." A beat hung between them before he uttered the final word, pouring out all his anger and frustration into it. "Ever."

Sarah shrank back in a blend of fear and surprise, her eyes, full of wariness, following his every move.

For a brief moment he allowed himself to wallow in his victory, having been able to reclaim control. At this point, with a few words, he could bring everything to an end, but there was a part of him that implored him to do more, the pragmatic side of him.

"I don't owe you nor anyone any explanation, but just so we can finally put this matter of adoption to rest, I'll tell you this: the adoption had been the brain child of my trusty assistant, George," he divulged, his tone amazingly smooth and steady despite the tumultuous thumping against his chest. "The idea of taking another person under my wings when I was already heavily burdened by the responsibility to take care of a whole household and thousands of employees was rather absurd. It had never crossed my mind. But I realized that was the only option that was available to us at that time to save and protect her. So I gladly signed my name on the paper."

The image of him bending over his desk staring fixedly at a piece of paper flashed in his mind. While it was true he had permanently adorned the adoption paper with his signature, the process to get there hadn't been as straightforward as he had made it out to be, requiring George to take some actions, those of the unconventional kinds that he would have never endorsed if they hadn't been pressed for time. He recalled how he had thoroughly scrutinized each clause written in the adoption document all night long, running through different scenarios, and how many times doubts had infiltrated him, instilling him with second thoughts, before his conscience, unable to let a girl as young and innocent as Candy suffer in a foreign land, eventually had made the decision for him, urging him to reach for his pen.

"Surely, you must know what had driven me to pursue such a drastic measure, do you, Sarah?" he prodded, affixing his stern gaze to her brown ones that glared back at him in defiance. "If you and your children had treated her kindly, or at the very least like a normal house staff, the adoption would have never happened."

"You... "Sarah growled, pointing at him with her trembling index finger, her eyes ablaze with disdain. "How dare you blame me for your own foolhardy decision! And are you accusing me of abusing your precious Candy! Who do you think she was! Before you came into the picture, she was a nobody. She was nothing but a lowly..." Her tone had jumped more than an octave but she abruptly stopped short of screaming at the top of her lungs and lowered her voice. "Oh, I see... Now I finally understand. It's you being you. It must have been awfully lonely to live in a solitary confinement, hidden in the shadow. You so craved the attention of others that you created for yourself a scenario in which you could play the dashing hero. And that girl gave you the perfect opportunity. What were you trying to be? A prince or something?" She erupted into a wry laughter.

Albert felt a grimace tug around the edges of his lips at the irony, but Sarah was oblivious to the affliction her taunting words had on him and continued pummeling him with fervor, spewing scornful remarks.

"And your precious Candy?! Well, she's hardly precious. How could you believe what that dishonest girl told you? You didn't know all the awful things she had done. That girl deserved no amount of kindness. She behaved like an ungrateful rascal when we had generously invited her to our home. She was violent, unruly, and brash. You weren't there when she wreaked havoc at our home and nearly murdered Neil and Eliza with her barbaric antics. Do you know that she shamelessly flirted with all the boys, your very own nephews?"

By this point, he had managed to tune out most of Sarah's irksome voice into indecipherable snarls in his ears. He had to bite his lips to force back a chuckle. Perhaps it was the feather trimmed hat atop her head bobbing up and down, or perhaps her arms flailing about her wildly, but for whatever reason the image reminded him of a baby duckling that was learning to fly. Of course, Sarah was nowhere as cute as the innocent duckling.

"...and that she was also a thi—have you cared at all to what I have to say?!" Sarah exclaimed in a loud bellow.

Albert folded his lips to withhold a smile. Sarah finally realized none of her words had passed through to him. "No," was his swift reply.

"Good grief, William. You're about to marry the woman. You must care that she once sto—"

"Were you really there to witness the unfolding of these incidents to lead to such outcomes, or was it just something relayed to you by your children?" he quickly countered, thwarting her from her relentless pursuit to demean Candy, his tone imparting nothing but imperviousness, betraying the distress that was raging inside of him from hearing the contemptuous manner by which she had addressed Candy. "Have you ever for a moment pondered of what malice Neil and Eliza were capable of nurturing? Maybe that could explain why you were having such a hard time keeping the attendants you hired for the both of them. They are the real rascals, not Candy," he indicated matter-of-factly with a quirk of his brow.

Sarah's lips quivered and then curled up in utter horror. Her face was an explosion of red, a cadence of loud puffs emitted with every rise and fall of her chest. "Are you telling me that I should trust a mere filthy, orphaned girl over my own flesh and blood?"

Albert broke into low chuckles. "Well, suit yourself. You may choose to believe whatever you want to believe. You and I know very well that we will never come to a consensus on this matter. I'm not trying to convince you of anything—I won't even bother. Likewise, I strongly advise you do the same because..." He let his last word linger between them as his gaze beheld hers and then he resumed in a tone that spoke of his firm resolve, enunciating each word with deliberate slowness, "there's absolutely nothing you can do to stop me from marrying Candy. So you might as well abandon any crazy ideas in your head that makes you think you can. And when you do meet her, I expect you will be at your best behavior. She is to be my wife. I will not tolerate any form of insults toward her. Not a single word. Have I made myself clear?"

Eyes widened with bewildered ire, Sarah glared at him but said nothing before jerking her head sideways to evade looking at him.

But he was not done. "And about your son... I will not take lightly his wrongdoings. All he had done, he will pay in full."

Sarah whipped her head back toward him, the color drained from her face, fear and anger coalescing in the depth of her brown eyes, which rendered a striking departure from the polished, haughty look she had displayed only moments ago. "What are you planning to do? What are you going to do to my son? William?!"

"Nothing that would be of your concern."

"William, please..." Her voice had sunk into a resigned whimper."Please be gentle with him. He's only a kid. He didn't know who you were at that time. He wouldn't be—"

"Sarah—" Albert interposed with a swiping gesture of his hand. "I know how to best handle my nephew. You have no reason to worry. I assure you, my treatment of him will be fair and just. I however must disagree with the opinion you conjured of him vehemently. You and I and everyone else with perfect sight can see very well that Neil is no longer a kid, though he may certainly act like one obnoxious and mean spirited adolescent. He has caused enough troubles as is. And if he, as a man of twenty-one year old he ought to be, has any dignity left in him, he will own to his faults and stop hiding behind his mother's back."

Sarah's mouth burst open, as though she was about to lash out at him, but she immediately clamped it shut, and only threw him an exasperated glare.

At that exact moment, Albert felt a huge boulder was lifted off him, and a rush of air escaped his mouth in an audible sigh, for he was unable to contain the surge of relief inside of him. It seemed she had come to her senses at last—the battle was over.

But this time he wouldn't accommodate his own conceit to mislead him again. He would ensure all of the gaps and holes were patched, would make absolutely sure she would have no desire to impede him from leaving whatsoever.

"By the way," Albert began. "All the details pertaining to the Key West Resort project will be presented to you next week. And a trip to survey the site has been scheduled on you and your husband's behalf, so I suggest you make all the necessary travel arrangement as soon as possible."

A period of silence slithered between them as Sarah stared at him hard, chewing her lips with furious persistence, looking like she was contemplating to strangle him, before she abruptly flung a sideways glance, mumbling a weak answer that he could hardly comprehend.

His lips arched in a satisfied smile. "Now, if you would excuse me, my presence is required at the office. I'm afraid I can't entertain you any longer. However, you are free to roam around the estate."

Then without another word, ignoring Sarah's menacing glare, Albert sprang off in long, hasty strides, heading straight to his car.

All he wanted to do was to bolt out of this place as fast as he could, being extremely far, far away from Sarah. His mother's ring would have to wait.

But a short distance away from the car, he abruptly ceased in mid-step when he saw George darting past him and holding the passenger door open. He examined the face of the man who had become like an older brother to him and discerned a wisp of sympathy slipping across it.

If there was any person who understood him better than anyone else in this world, that person would be George. George had been there for him through thick and thin when no one else had. He wasn't sure he could survive those grueling, lonely college years in London without George's company and constant support.

Pulling his lips in a grateful smile, Albert resumed his step and slid inside the car. The door swung shut behind him as he settled into his seat and reclined his back, the seat cushion bowing under his weight. He tipped his chin high up until he felt the solid glass window propping against the back of his head.

A moment later, the car sparked to life and began to move. The undulating rumble of the engine gradually lulled him to a relaxed state, luring his eyelids to drop close.

Albert inhaled deeply and expelled a long puff of air. The enclosed passenger compartment felt like a tiny slice of paradise compared to several minutes ago when he had been face-to-face with Sarah. He hadn't realized how weary he was until he felt himself melt against the supple leather seat. It was similar to the feeling he had experienced last week in Detroit after his talk with Sarah.

Well, he, of all people, should've known that any encounter with her, however short it was, would have a detrimental impact on him, as he had been an unwilling subject to the dreadful feelings since a long while ago, when life was still a little less complicated for him.

His thoughts flew to the past, to how things were then.

Although there was more than a decade separating him and Sarah, he had not once felt intimidated by her, even since he had been a doe-eyed, curious, little boy.

He wasn't related to Sarah by blood. She was Aunt Elroy's step daughter from her second marriage. He hadn't been born yet when Aunt Elroy and Sarah had moved in to live with his family in the Lakewood Estate, following the death of Aunt Elroy's second husband, but his sister Rosemary had been there from the start.

Despite the fact that Sarah and Rosemary were about the same age—Sarah younger only by a half year—the two women never grew close. Rosemary, being the tenderhearted woman that she was, always treated Sarah with genuine kindness, a behavior which was, unsurprisingly, not reciprocated by Sarah. Sarah was never satisfied with what she had been given, comparing everything she had in her possession to Rosemary's. He had lost count of how many times he had caught Sarah sneaking angry, envious glances at Rosemary whenever Aunt Elroy was looking elsewhere.

While Sarah seemed to exhibit an unhealthy obsession over Rosemary, she had not cared to bother much about him. He remembered the annoyed, vacant look she had cast him upon the occasions in which they had inadvertently crossed paths in the common areas in the mansion. It was as though he was an invisible speck of dust that wasn't worth her time.

He had not minded that at all, for he himself, capable of seeing through the guise of the dutiful daughter, had favored to avoid Sarah's presence altogether and spend most of the day outside of the mansion, taking a long stroll through the woods to the villa by the river, usually with George in tow.

But everything changed after her marriage to Mr. Leagan.

The truth was Mr. Leagan was Rosemary's betrothed—an arrangement that had been agreed upon by the Leagans and the Andrews a few years back. Sarah, in her cunning way, driven by her desire to hurt and sidestep Rosemary, had seduced her way into Mr. Leagan's heart and subsequently coaxed the man to break off the engagement with Rosemary. Little had she known, Rosemary hadn't cared a whiff as she had fallen madly in love with Vincent Brown and a year later eloped with him.

After her elopement, Rosemary had settled in a small port town in Maine with Captain Brown, her husband, whereas Sarah and Mr. Leagan continued residing in the mansion during the construction of their new home. With Rosemary gone, Sarah was promoted to be the second-in-command to help Aunt Elroy running the mansion. But she was often left in charge since Aunt Elroy had to accompany his father on business trips to Europe that lasted a few months. As one would expect, it was precisely within this span of time Sarah began to acquaint herself with him—a troublemaker brat as she liked to call him.

The once warm and inviting place he had called home was transformed into cold, austere quarters under Sarah's governance. All the house staff were not very fond of the manners by which Sarah ran the mansion. They adored Rosemary who was always gentle and amiable with everyone, and respected Aunt Elroy, who although strict was courteous. In contrast, they were afraid of Sarah, who was especially spiteful to the maids, a behavior to which he could attest to when he had become a witness to two of the maids who had fled to escape her verbal harassment. He condemned Sarah's cruel mistreatment with all his heart, but as a small, six years old boy, there was not much he could do.

However, when Sarah made reprehensible attempts to lay claim on Rosemary's prized possessions that she had left behind, including a collection of old charcoal sketches of his mother drawn by his sister's own hand, and dispose them, as though they were garbage, he couldn't sit still.

He had managed to foil Sarah's attempt every single time, reclaiming all of Rosemary's belongings and storing them in a safe place, and then employing rather ingenious tactics to further send Sarah a message that she couldn't do as she pleased. One of those tactics, which had propelled her to fly down the stairs before falling unceremoniously on her bottom, had involved a cloud of grasshoppers he had caught in one of his outdoor expeditions. He had scattered the bright green insects atop her stark white coverlet. In another, he had sprinkled a handful of spices to her soup, causing her to burst into howling tears in the middle of a quiet dinner as her husband gaped at her as though she had gone mad. And there were a number of other instances, all of which had culminated in Sarah screaming his name in rage.

Albert laughed at the scenes flitting in his mind. He was certainly not a well-behave boy then. His rebellious streaks had begun to show since he had been a toddler. Rosemary had compared him to a tiny, ferocious whirlwind, referring to his inability to stay still in his chair even for just a few minutes. Later, when he had started taking lessons from his governess, it had become almost a daily occurrence for Aunt Elroy to lose her patience dealing with his disobedience of sneaking out during the etiquette training, his least favorite subject, to play with his furry friends in the woods.

He had realized that he might have gone too far with his shenanigans on Sarah. But he couldn't lie—he had felt immense satisfaction seeing Sarah's face contort with terror, well, maybe with a smidgen of remorse. Sarah had deserved every bit of his mischief for the terrible way she had treated others, he had thought. Even George, who had become his second voice of conscience, had not tried to stop him.

Of course, Sarah hadn't let him off the hook so easily. In retaliation, she did all she could to make him suffer, from causing him to bear the punishment for the things he hadn't done to outright mocking him whenever Aunt Elroy wasn't around. He supposed this was when her annoyance had evolved into animosity.

Her dislike of him had soared into a new height after his father's sudden demise.

The death of his father had swept up like a raging storm. No one in the family had foreseen it coming. It had happened when business had been thriving. Upon the delivery of the news to every member of the family, the situation deteriorated rapidly. His father had been the pillar of the family. His sudden departure had shaken the foundation that had held them together. The vacuum of power instigated chaos. Strife erupted among family members, as they contended for the coveted patriarch position. Sarah, along with her new husband, were among those ambitious contenders.

When he had been declared as his father sole successor, and the job to lead the family would fall in his hands, Sarah vehemently objected. She argued it was absurd that he, a mere child at that time, was to be given the role of the head of the family, all because of the name he carried. She asserted her husband was the more suitable candidate for the position. But Aunt Elroy had given no regard to her protest and along with the other elders in the family and a few close business associates serving in the board of directors of the Andrews Enterprise, they had unanimously conferred him to be the rightful heir.

Too bad, he had been too young at that time. If he were a bit older, a bit wiser, with perhaps a bit more power to choose his own destiny, he would've relinquished the position in a heartbeat. He had no doubt Mr. Leagan would have made a fine patriarch.

Unfortunately for him, and also for Sarah, the decision was irrevocable. Yet Sarah was still adamant not to accept it and kept trying to dissuade him, even going as far as threatening him—but she wasn't the only one.

Because of the prominent leadership title upon which he had been bestowed, he had garnered the attention of not only his entire family but also of powerful magnates across the business world. Suddenly his life was in grave danger. In order to protect him, Aunt Elroy, together with George and Rosemary, had formulated an elaborate scheme to hide him. While the three of them had full knowledge of his whereabouts, somewhere safe and sound, to everyone else in his family, including Sarah and his other cousins, he had vanished without a trace, as though his whole existence so far had been a fantasy.

He wasn't sure how had Aunt Elroy, George, and Rosemary accomplished such an impossible feat, and it boggled his mind how had they succeeded to deflect Sarah's probing inquiries as well as tame her lust for power. Perhaps Aunt Elroy had diverted Sarah's attention by appointing her husband as the new finance director and placated her with land deeds and a larger portion of inheritance—he couldn't tell. Whatever it was that they had done, they were extremely proficient at it—all three of them deserved an award for their roles.

It was since that time, since October of 1896 he had not seen a glimpse Sarah, until last week when he had gone out of his way to welcome her in person in Detroit. Fortunately, with the inauguration of the Key West Resort project next month, he wouldn't have to fret about having to engage in awkward pleasantries with her as she would be more than a thousand miles away from him in the state of Florida.

TO BE CONTINUED

Disclaimer: I don't own Candy Candy manga and all the characters in it, but the talented Kyoko Mizuki does. This fic is a product of my own twisted imagination and inspired by Mizuki's masterpiece. If any of the plots, specific scenes, or dialogues appears to be similar to that from another fic or story, it is purely unintentional and coincidental. 'Great minds think alike', after all.

The characterization in the fic is based on the Manga and not the Anime.

Author's Note:

Lots of family history this time, and this will be the major theme with the series, at least in the beginning. We know pretty much everything about Candy, but Albert-practically nothing. So I'm taking the liberty to fill in that huge gap with my narratives, some purely rendered by my twisted imagination, some interpreted from Albert's recount to Candy in the CC novel. And uhm... I made Sarah the wicked witch of the Andrews household :D I think she's a better fit for the role than Aunt Elroy. I need to give Mr. Leagan a proper name. LOL. I don't remember if his name is ever mentioned in the manga—I don't think so, but if you believe otherwise, please let me know.

Till next time

-forever-