"Why wouldn't you try talking to her first? I'm sure she would love that."
The couple were already on their way back to the villa when Felix stated his idea. A great friendship which lasted for five years won't be that easy to let go. Maybe the ex-best friend might also feel that way.
"I'm not sure. What if she didn't want to talk to me?" Yelena hung her head low, playing with her fingers. It's not that the idea never crossed her mind but she was afraid to be hurt again.
Felix holds her hand while driving with the other hand. "You can show her your sincerity. As long as she feels the same, she will be move by it." He reassured her with a smile.
His warm words and actions comforted her like always. She showed him a slight smile and lean her head to the window. She closed her eyes, wondering what would be the best decision.
* * *
"Hello, Mother." The moment they enter the villa, Yelena received a call from her mother. She took a seat in one of the couch and answered the call.
"How are you, my daughter? The doctor told me that the countryside really helps with your recovery." Mrs. Arista low voice could be heard from the other line.
Yelena was a bit taken aback by it. Her mother was always an energetic woman despite being in her 50s. Her voice which was barely above whisper made her worry. "I'm fine. But Mother, what about you? Are you alright?" She asked.
"Me?" Mrs. Arista let out a small laughter when she heard her daughter's question. It had been a long time since she hears that from her. "I'm completely fine. You should only worry about yourself. Is Felix good to you?"
"He's very good. Don't worry. How about Father and Grandpa? Are they still busy?" She was sure that with the new operation being launched, the two high ranking officers will be busier than ever and... her mother might probably be alone in their huge mansion.
She never cared about these things before, but why did it trouble her so much these days? She was afraid that her mother would be lonely in that huge residence.
"They are very busy but don't worry, Yelena. I'm used to it. I live the past 30 years of my life as the wife of an Army Officer. So, I understand."
The calm and low voice of her mother echoed on her ears. "Do you want me to move back in after I recover?" The words unconsciously slipped from her lips. To be honest, moving back to her family mansion never crossed her mind since she left to live alone 6 years ago.
She loved the thing she attained from living on her own - freedom. But her mother being lonely, all alone in that big house made her forget about the pros of living alone. It's understandable.
Her mother was the only person whom she used to look up to. She used to be desperate for her approval to the point where even her happiness and dreams had become futile to her. As a child, she used to thought that as long as her mother was happy, it's worth every sacrifice!
But one incident shattered all those feelings - Marcus death.
Mrs. Arista knew her daughter too well. She would never change her decision once she made up her mind. She was stubborn because she takes after her. "No need for that. I live with two soldiers but I'm always alone. Three won't make much difference." She replied with a light laughter.
"I only call to know your condition. It's good that you're fine. Take care then." She ended the call right away before Yelena could say anything.
While Yelena had gradually mended her broken relationship with her parents, the Prince relationship with his family continued to worsen each day as Felix kept on ignoring their calls since he visited them days ago.
Even when Yelena was talking to her mother, he was busy ignoring his mother calls. He stared at his mother's name showing up on the caller ID with a heavy sigh. He was not ready for another argument, so it's better to ignore them.
Being tired of the unanswered calls, he tried to switch off his phone but the name of his right-hand man, Cayden, being showed up on the caller ID made him stopped his action. It was the call which he really looked forward to.
When he sent Cayden back to Edeladon, relaying his message to his parents was not the only task he assigned to him. There was a more important task to carry on.
"Is there any improvement?" He asked right away as he answered the call.
"I follow the information that we received and find out the location of the guard who was on duty that night. But Your Highness... he died three years ago. He was murdered and the case is still unsolved." Cayden reported from the other line.
The Prince was taken aback by the unexpected news. He leaned towards the wall next to him and placed his left hand on it to support his body. He was at a loss for words.
It's been four years since that incident happened. The incident which led to the death of his then-girlfriend, Cara Laria.
Almost all the video footage of that small apartment from that night couldn't be found because the security system stopped working at the time of the incident. The only security guard who was on duty that night quit his job as soon as the incident occurred. It was too much of a coincidence.
The first thing that Felix did was hunting the security guard but the man already changed all his address and phone number and disappeared without a single trace.
He spent four years secretly searching for the man while looking for some other clues but there was no improvement until a month ago.
While he was in Belden, his men informed him that they had finally received information on where the man moved. He tried to wait till he could return to his homeland and then do the job himself but... he met Yelena.
After the shooting incident, he cannot leave her alone. So, he told Cayden to do the job for him. But he truly didn't expect this type of news.
Four years was already a long time but to consider it as a failure? It's totally unacceptable!
"Your Highness, now that you have found happiness; why won't you just give up and move on?" Cayden asked though he was very careful not to make the Prince angry. As far as he could remember, the Prince never entertained talks about giving up, but much to his surprise, Felix was very calm.
"Giving her justice is the last and only thing I can do for her now as she was already dead. So, how could I give up and move on just because I find happiness?" Felix paused for a while and withdraw his hand from the wall to stand on his own strength.
"I won't stop until I make sure that her soul can rest in peace." His voice was so firm that the man on the other line won't ever think about persuading him to give up again.....