Hiya, you guys!
I'm sorry.
I have gone MIA for the past WEEKS, but thank you for your patience. You guys are amazing people that don't pressure me. It's like you know pressure and stress when you see it, you know? Because of you guys, I have had a 'more or less' clear mind when I took my mock exams and got really, really good grades. I thank all those people who wished me good luck and prayed for me and all that. I love you all so much! XD
Good news now! I will be updating every day until the last chapter. This is... the seventeenth chapter so, there are FOUR (AHHH! FOUR! *fangirling* Shout-out to Divergent fans!) more chapters to go which, if I update everyday from now on, would mean TSP would end a day after Christmas day.
Overflowing gratitude and love go to these amazing, supportive people: JesseCPK (Haha. Is it? It probably is and the line sounds so cliché, doesn't it? Wait. From HP? Really?! This shames me, like, so bad, but I haven't been reading the 39 Clues. Like, ever since after the third Cahills vs Vespers book. I know. Shoot me, guys. But, it's just the book isn't available on Kindle yet and I'm low on money to buy it over the online thingies and have it delivered at my doorstep. I swear, every bookstore I have been to DOES NOT have any 39 Clues book. Anyways... I wouldn't know if Sinead is Vesper. Some say she is in the fourth book. But in this story, nope. XD) addicted2reading9 (Hahaha. I actually looked back on what I wrote to check what rhymed. Haha. Anyhoo, you wouldn't want to know. Cahills... are Cahills. They do awesome stuff that can burn down the whole house. XD), TheUltimateArtist (Wait... There is a bit of Amian here... I think. I checked. Hahaha. Just a bit, though.), magicdemi-god223 (that's actually a good idea! I think I did the recap thing back in TST, right? I'm on it, captain! XD), coco597 (thanks for the support! Here is the next chapter! I hope you like it. XD), Regina2111 (you're welcome! XD You're assumptions are amazingly detailed. We'll see, though... Haha. XD), hi (hello! You would know what Vikram's got to do with everything in... this chapter. Hope you like it. XD) and emmelinekat (oh gosh. I believe we have fallen into the same predicament. Ian will probably murder them nonetheless. They messed with his clothes. Nobody messes with Ian Kabra's clothes. Hahaha. Happy holidays to you, too!) Thank you all so much for the amazing reviews that I have appreciated individually in my own weird way.
I have an announcement to make at the end of this chapter, so please stay tuned. It has something to do with beta-ing something I have been doing lately, so yeah. If any of you guys are interested, please stay tuned.
Previously on The Start of Pain:
"SPIT IT OUT!" his employer exploded, his face turning red from rage. Which is bad because somebody usually dies when he turns all red like that.
"She killed nine guards in The Hospital, sir, and is believed to have run away with... with the Cahills," the assistant blurted out without pausing to breathe.
The employer stopped. He sat down. He contemplated.
The assistant waited.
"Very well, then." The employer laced his fingers together and rested his elbows on top of his desk. The assistant dreaded the next words which would surely come out of his employer's mouth. It always ends like this. The employer sneered with that disgustingly wretched and malicious mocking expression he has. "Let poor, little Victoria die." He raised an eyebrow at his assistant.
"As... As you wish, sir," the assistant replied, backing away and leaving the room with a heavy heart. His son has mentioned such nice things about the girl. Too bad she won't be in this world for very long.
On with the story. Enjoy, 'cause that's what matters most.
oooooOooooo
Chapter 17
Ian felt like drowning himself.
Which is a first, considering he loves himself very much. Among other reddish-haired things. But regardless, he feels awful enough to want to dunk his head on a filthy peasant pool. Ever since he met his 'twin', Ian's mind had been filled with ways on how to make that Alex' life as miserable as possible. Then, Alistair comes and drops the 'Alex might be Nikolai' bomb and all the previous thoughts disintegrated to pitiful dust bunnies.
"Do you suppose you could call me Auntie Irina? You're the same age now as another little boy I once knew..." she has once said to him.
And he had looked at her with this disdain. Because Isabel told Natalie and him that she was worthless.
To find out that this is what Isabel had done to her and her family. Ian felt like throwing up. More and more reasons are coming up to hate the blood flowing in his very veins.
"But when I was nine," he whispered and every turned to look at him. "Irina said that I was the same age as a little boy she knew before. That should be his son, so how..."
Alistair looked at Victoria who stopped talking ever since he said his theory and completely looked as if heaven and earth was colliding before her very eyes. "Are you sure you're sixteen years old, dear?" he asked her gently.
Victoria shook her head. "I don't know anymore," she said in an undertone. "I mean... I'm pretty sure I am." She could feel blood draining out of her, leaving her wanting to gasp for breath and cold to the core. Thoughts circling around the last few days pummelled her mind. The old man gave her a sideways glance and his old, wise eyes glittered as his shaky hands pointed at the locket. "Funny girl... with... little blonde... kid..." he wheezed in Russian wistfully. Victoria blanched. She felt like throwing up. The old man seemed to understand that and shook his head quickly. "No, no, no, no. Young girl with little blond kid," he blubbered, nearly incomprehensible. "Not her kid. No, no," the old man protested. "It's her kid." He nodded understandingly, leaning his head back on the rocking chair and closed his eyes. She was so lost in thoughts that she didn't even realize that the Cahills resumed talking, oblivious to her heart-wrenching apprehensions.
Jonah jumped up from his seat. "Aw, c'mon, people!" he exclaimed, looking at all of his distant cousins. "You really think it's possible to change someone's memory so completely that they don't even know who they are or how old they are or whatever?"
The rest looked at Natalie.
"How old are you, Natalie?" Ian asked her.
Natalie thought about it for a moment. "Twelve...?" She asked it more than said it. She chewed on her lip anxiously.
Jonah fell back on his chair in disbelief. "That is just... Wow," he breathed, feeling utterly slumped.
Victoria rubbed her temple with her free hand. She tried her best to zone back in the conversation. "That's the last made-up story I told her," she informed them, recalling the last time she was in the white room with Natalie. "The birthday she supposedly spent with –"
"My brother in the zoo," Natalie filled in almost immediately. "That's why I remember what a fish is!" Her face lit up, feeling a sudden spurt of gladness that she could figure something out for herself.
Victoria raised her eyebrows at her to prove her point.
"But..." Natalie hesitated before continuing. "I remember eating chocolate while walking behind Mo – Isabel," she said quickly, catching on that Isabel is not a favourite amongst these people. "And then... my brother – I'm not sure which one – scolded me because I was eating like a poor person."
Ian sat up straight. His amber eyes suddenly lighted up with hope. "That's me. You were seven, I think," he said, keeping the excitement from his voice. "Isabel was wearing a..."
"Long, red dress," Natalie answered. The giddiness burned brighter in her chest.
Ian nodded. It was like the two Kabra siblings shared the hopeful spark, so obvious in their identical amber eyes. "Yes. And we were going where?" he urged.
Natalie shut her eyes closed. Too bad. The giddiness started to ooze out of her as she realized she doesn't know where. "Um... In the park?" She bit her lip restlessly.
Ian sighed, but he could still feel the energy in his blood. "We were going to Aunt Jane's manor," he said lightly.
Natalie pursed her lips. "But there was a huge, freshly-mowed lawn and lots of trimmed bushes and children playing," she insisted.
"Yes, well, that is her lawn which is right in front of her Victorian house," Ian reminded her.
Natalie closed her eyes again, trying to conjure an image of a Victorian house. She doesn't even have any idea what a Victorian house is. "White paint all over?" she asked without opening her eyes, hoping she gets it right this time. The bright, happy feeling still isn't back and the trepidation replaced it. When she finally did open her eyes, Ian was smiling at her.
Ian nodded again, feeling proud of his sister. "White paint all over," he agreed.
Dan looked at Victoria without any friendliness. He was still wound up with the whole 'let's scare Natalie' antic. "How come she remembers that?" he challenged her. "Personally, I wouldn't care what kinda paint a house has, so we could cross out cementical or whatever that is –"
"Semantically," Hamilton and Sinead corrected him, sounding exasperated.
Dan looked at them. "Okay... Creepers much." He shook his head. "Anyway, how do you explain that? Huh?"
Alistair had the answer for that one. "It's because the process wasn't completed," he told him. He turned his attention to Victoria again. "You've only had her for what, weeks?"
Victoria nodded mutely.
"See?" Alistair said. "For the 'poison' to take its effect on young Victoria and the others, it must've taken their entire childhood which explains the orphanage."
Nobody knew what to say to that. No matter how harsh Victoria... and the others had been, nobody deserves to have their past altered so much that they pretty much don't have a say to them.
"Okay," Ian considered. "But we can't still be certain that Alexander is Nikolai, can we?"
Alistair nodded. "Maybe," he allowed.
"What do you mean, maybe?" Sinead asked. She threw her hands in the air exasperatedly. "He died, remember? The whole Cahill world knew that."
"Yes, well." Alistair took a seat before continuing. Standing for too long isn't good for an aging man. "Cahills at that time have had their doubts –"
"Doubt is a Cahill's best friend," Jonah said wisely.
"And many suspected that little Nikolai is not dead," Alistair went on, looking as if he hadn't heard Jonah's comment. "Isn't it odd how Isabel suddenly seems so agitated to order Irina to go to a mission and how, upon returning, Nikolai turns out to be dead because he was ill?"
"Yeah, but Nikolai was ill before she even left," Amy told him.
"And could you guess who visited their lovely home days before Nikolai got sick?" Alistair countered.
Hamilton whistled. "Gotta admire Isabel and her dirty works. They span throughout the ages," he said, his disgust evident in his tone. "No offense, man," he added, looking at Ian.
"Believe me," Ian replied forebodingly. "None taken."
Alistair went on with his story. "Cahills might have been fighting each other for ages, but great minds think alike. Especially with regards to conspiracy." His glasses glinted as he reached for his cane. "I heard talk from different branches – except the Madrigals, of course –"
"Why exclude our branch?" Dan exclaimed, sounding offended.
"Because he has no idea about the whole Madrigals-are-peacemakers thing yet, doofus," Amy said, realizing that she fell into the same pattern with her brother after such a long time. The pattern where he says stupid thing and she corrects him, knowing full well he probably isn't listening to logic anyway.
"That," Alistair continued pointedly, "Isabel might be a mole set by the Vespers."
"So that's basically the whole reason why she married Vikram," Ian chuckled harshly. "What a –"
"Continue that sentence, young man, and I will make sure you regret it."
Ian stiffened. That voice. Impossible...
"I should have known," Alistair laughed good-naturedly, although his eyes looked awfully guarded. "That you would be here. I was wondering what happened to my other pilot."
Vikram Kabra, an older version of his son, smirked back. For that one second, everybody saw Ian's image flicker into Vikram. The smirk, the angular features, the proud gait. Everything screamed father-son relationship. Vikram looked dashing in the white pilot uniform with the epaulets on the shoulders. His matching cap is tucked under his arm. He made the mundane uniform look a million bucks. Vikram wore the exact same carefree and superior aura as Ian and looked as picture perfect as his daughter, Natalie. "I'm surprised you just found out, Oh," he said just as casually as Alistair. He flicked an imaginary dust off his shoulder. "What gave me away?"
"The medical kit seems to be missing something I liked to call... antiseptic," Alistair said with a chuckle. "Do you want me to treat your wounds?"
Vikram smiled and surprisingly, it looked genuine which is a shock because Amy was sure Vikram would be so much like his wife, if not worse. "No, thank you," he said genially. "I have them under control."
"How was Africa, my good friend?" Alistair asked conversationally.
Sinead looked at Hamilton with mild alarm in her eyes. Sure, this isn't weird at all, she seemed to be telling him. Hamilton discreetly pulled her closer to him, knowing full well what this older Kabra is capable of. His dad has told him enough stories to avoid being all friendly with Vikram Kabra. He stood in front of her slightly. Victoria decided to stay out of this one and make herself as invisible as she could manage. She kept her defense up in case casualness leads to casualties.
"Very hot this time of year, actually," Vikram replied, looking at his coffee-toned skin. He looked at Hamilton. "Don't worry, lad. I wasn't planning on attacking anybody on this plane, especially not your little girlfriend."
Hamilton rolled his eyes like, Yeah, sure.
"Speaking of girlfriends!" Vikram slammed his fist on his palm as if he forgot something important. He twirled around to look at Amy who was sitting not far away from Ian. The young, reddish-brown haired girl was twirling a stray of her locks into a knot tensely. "You must be Amy Cahill," he told her, looking so fatherly that Amy felt a punch in her gut as she remembered her own dad. "You look so much like your mother, but with a hint of your father as well. Now I see why my son took quite a liking to you. And..." He looked around until he found Dan. Unlike his sister, Dan seemed unaffected – if not, even more annoyed – about Vikram's appearance. "Daniel Arthur Cahill. My, my. Aren't you the little Arthur Josiah Trent?" he said fondly.
Dan snorted. "Wouldn't you know, you murderer," he said just as fondly.
Vikram's eyes glinted happily at the fire in Dan's eyes. "I can see Grace in there, too," he told him honestly. Then, he caught sight of a girl with long, silky black hair shaking behind Dan. "Is that my little princess?" he whispered so heartbreakingly, Leonardo di Carpio would be put to shame. He made a move to approach her.
"Don't even think about it," Ian snapped, positioning himself between Dan and Natalie, and his father. "What are you doing here?"
Vikram took a surprised step back, but that does not fool anybody. Everybody knows a Kabra is never taken by surprise. If anything, he probably expected Ian to be that defensive. "Why, to clear my name, of course! Word is being passed around that I'm an idiot who swallowed your mother's stories," he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Aren't you?" Ian raised an eyebrow.
Vikram smiled calmly at his son. "I am still your father, Ian Kabra. Do not disrespect me," he said, using the stern tone he always use when disciplining his children.
"Such a Luke-Darth Vader moment," Dan said, glaring at Vikram.
Vikram turned his attention back to Dan... More specifically, to the person hiding behind him. "Natalie?" he called, using the voice he calls her with when she was just five years old and he came home from work. It was always that tone that made his son and daughter come scrambling down the long, winding staircase to greet him and his presents.
Ian flinched almost imperceptibly at the familiar tone. He used to call him using that voice, too. He held his ground between his sister and his father.
Natalie whimpered behind Dan.
"We're landing in the Cahill manor in approximately fifteen minutes," the pilot's voice came.
Sinead stared at Vikram. "If you're here, then who's..." she trailed off, pointing at the mini speaker instead.
Ian recognized the voice. So did Jonah and Hamilton.
"Adhiraj," they said in unison, sounding not too happy about it.
"You got that right, you miserable maggots," Adhiraj announced, sounding somewhat self-satisfied that he had outsmarted all of them.
oooooOooooo
So yep. A little Kabra family reunion.
Anyway, before I start with my big announcement, I just want to ask you guys if I should change the pairing category of this story from Amy C. and Ian K. to Sinead S. and Hamilton H. Oh my gosh. I just had a major eureka moment. Look. Sinead S. That's 'S.S.' Hamilton H. That's 'H.H.' Coincidence?
I THINK NOT.
Haha.
Tell me your opinion about this subject matter. Haha. Sounded so formal.
Now for the big announcement. It's not really that big and I'm just exaggerating. So basically, if any of you are interested to read two to three chapters of a FICTION (sorry, it's not a fan fiction this time) story that I have been working on, please PM me or leave a review. I need a reader's comment and you guys have been very, very honest with me... The story is called The Scarlet Thread and that's still a working title. It's a detective/teen fiction and I found that I'm getting more and more terrible at writing stories. So it would be a really great Christmas gift if at least one you would tell me they'd check it out and tell me what they think. The more, the merrier. Like, I mean it. Thank you so much, you guys!
I'd see you all tomorrow then and I fervently hope there would be that one person who would PM me first. Or leave a review. I'd love you guys forever!
Anyway, I hope you read, re-read and review this chapter. Only four more to go! XD Let's make the most out of it.
AngelicSpring.
P.S. Have you noticed that my ANs are like what Youtubers say? "Leave a comment down below and subscribe! Peace!" And all that? I should be a YOUTUBER! .
Haha. I kid.
Have fun today and be safe! XD