The Miracle of You

“Not even a cent?” Christian looked bemused. “That’s unusual.”

“That girl was unusual from the start.” Greg shook his head. “Do you know what favor she asked of me?”

“What was it?”

“A new identity.”

“A new… identity? Why?”

“That was the only thing she asked of me.”

“Is she a criminal?”

“Perhaps. I won’t know unless I conduct an investigation on her.”

“What kind of crimes could a young girl commit?” Christian sounded like he had a hard time processing this information.

“There are a lot of things. Maybe theft.” Greg shrugged. “I have no idea at the moment. Once the results are out, we will know.”

“How old is she?”

“Eighteen.” Greg raised an eyebrow. “Are you interested in her?”

“In her background, yes,” Christian said calmly. “She might just be pretending in order to catch your interest. I do not trust her.”

Greg chuckled. “Neither do I. But she does deserve a favor, so I will do it without hesitation. I just want to know the reason behind it, for contingency purposes.”

“I see.”

***

The first time Christian met Hailey van Gowen in person, he didn’t feel anything special. It was just an ordinary meeting like any other.

She was a pretty girl. Long dark hair, olive-green eyes, and fair skin. She was a year older than him and was practically an adult. Christian, on the other hand, was still a senior in high school.

“This is my son, Christian,” Greg introduced.

Hailey bowed her head out of politeness. “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” she said formally.

There was no sign of awe or admiration in her tone. She spoke as if this were some kind of mundane meeting. As if she wasn’t face to face with the son of an influential CEO.

Christian merely nodded his head in acknowledgement without saying a word.

Hailey didn’t seem fazed by this and focused more on Greg. “I’d like to thank you for fulfilling my request, Mr. Callahan,” she said politely. “I feel honored and grateful.”

Greg waved a dismissive hand. “No need to thank me. I proposed the favor in the first place because you saved my daughter. It was only natural.”

“Still, I am grateful,” she repeated.

Christian observed the whole conversation with a raised eyebrow. It was a bit odd. A young girl speaking like that only meant that she either had a strict upbringing to raise her as a mature, responsible daughter, or that she had grown accustomed to responding calmly and politely with indifference when it came to formal conversations.

Even as she thanked his father, there was no strong emotion on her face or in her tone. Her posture was straight, her expression cool and impersonal, and her voice gave no hint of boundless, disarming sincerity or relief. It was as if she were simply conducting a business transaction.

“I am glad that you agreed to meet me here,” Greg said with a smile. “I have something that I’d like to discuss with you once preparations for your new identity are completed. For now, let’s get to know each other more, shall we?”

Hailey stared at him, and surprise flickered in her eyes. “Pardon?” She sounded genuinely caught off-guard.

Christian also turned to his father with an inquisitive look. Was there a reason why he invited this girl over to their house? Surely it was not to bond together with her…

“My daughter has been wanting to meet you again,” Greg said. “She’s been asking me about your whereabouts for days. I figured that it would be best that you two reunite.”

“Your daughter…” At that moment, it seemed as though Hailey’s features lit up slightly. “I’d love to meet her.”

This time, her tone was different. There was a genuine note to it; she sounded as though she had just been asked to meet and hang out with her good friend.

“Good. I’ll go and tell the servants to prepare lunch. Christian,” Greg said, reaching out to pat his son on the shoulder. “Please accompany Hailey here and lead her to your sister’s room.”

Before Christian could even answer, Greg turned and headed for the kitchen.

The next moment, there was silence between them. It was awkward. They had just met today and neither of them seemed to be very interested in making small talk.

Christian sighed internally and started walking towards the stairs. “Follow me,” he said. “I’ll escort you on the way.”

Hailey looked at him for a moment before nodding. “Thank you,” she said politely.

The two of them did not speak a word on the way, and that was completely fine with Christian. It wasn’t like he wanted to get close to this girl, anyway. She was probably one of those cunning gold diggers or thieves, simply acting polite in order to let the family’s guard down.

Well, Christian was not going to fall for it.

When they finally reached Patricia’s door, he knocked on it first.

“You awake?” he asked.

There was a voice mumbling behind the door.

Christian sighed. “Speak up, Patricia,” he reprimanded. “What did Father and I say about manners?”

“I’m not hungry,” Patricia’s voice suddenly reached their ears, much louder than usual. It sounded as if she was in her bed and did not want to go to the door.

Christian sighed again. “Look, you have a guest. She’s waiting to meet you. You don’t want to keep her waiting, do you?”

There was a brief pause. “…A guest?” she repeated. Her voice was closer than before. It seemed she was approaching the door now.

“Yes. A guest,” Christian said. “Haven’t you been wanting to meet her?”

“Oh?” Her tone was suddenly bright. “Is it the pretty big sister?”

Before either of them could answer, the door swung open to reveal Patricia Callahan.

She was a cute little thing, a bit small for her age, but her delicate features and soft blonde hair made her look like a lifelike doll. She stared at them with those wide, innocent blue eyes.

Hailey’s heart melted at the sight of the hopeful, happy smile on Patricia’s face.Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

“Hello,” she greeted as she bent down to the little girl’s level. “My name is Hailey. It’s nice to meet you again, Patricia.”