Chapter 10 The Store Plan

"Celia, why didn't you stop your uncle? He has such a short temper. What will we do if he causes more trouble?" Wendy's voice shook as she watched Zack march off.

"Mom, don't worry. Uncle Zack will be fine. Grandma and Lucy need someone to keep them under control. We need uncle to go over there just to scare them a little. They need to know not to mess with us." Wendy could see the fire in Celia's eyes as she excitedly spoke.

Heaving a deep sigh, Wendy felt uneasy.

"Mom, is he the uncle you always talk about? Wasn't he sentenced to twenty years in prison? Why did he get let out so soon? Did he escape?" Celia pried. She was so interested in this curious man's life.

"Nonsense! He got out on good behaviors, of all things."

"Is the motorcycle his? It's definitely not cheap. How did he get enough money to afford it?"

Wendy knew what Celia was implying. Celia was worried that he might get caught for having a motorcycle that he shouldn't. It was pretty obvious that he shouldn't be able to afford it.

"I asked him about that. Apparently he earned a lot of money after working for quite a rich man, so he had enough to buy it. That guy was in prison with Zack and they became friends. When they got out, the man decided to repay the kindness. By the way, he just gave me five hundred bucks," Wendy said, completely euphoric.

"Five hundred? How generous!"

"Celia, did you really break Lucy's cooking pot?" Wendy asked nervously, holding Celia's hand. She couldn't even imagine her daughter getting so violent.

"Why do you think I went there? I can't stand that woman. I let it go in the past, but now I have realized that we can't do that anymore. It's every man for himself in this world and we can't let her push us around," Celia said as she looked at the wound on her mother's arm.

"Anyway, I hope this was the end of it. It's actually shocking to me that they let you return, unscathed," Wendy sighed. Although Celia was fine, Wendy couldn't help but still worry about her.

Celia admitted, "Grandma was there too. I thought I would have to fight all of them one by one. However, after Uncle Lewis whispered something to her, they let me go. I guess Uncle Lewis was probably terrified after seeing Uncle Zack here. He was a murderer after all. Maybe if they bother us again, he can take care of them for us. That's actually why I wanted him to go there. They need to see that we mean business and they can't push us around any longer."

"I just hope your uncle won't make the same mistake again!" Wendy sighed, still terrified.

"By the way, mom, I've been meaning to tell you something all day." Celia looked Wendy in the eyes and took a deep breath. After a slight hesitation, she decided to tell Wendy her plans.

Wendy looked at Celia in surprise and said, "Why are you hiding something from me? You can always come to me whenever there's something on your mind."

"Our village is far too remote and hardly anyone ever passes through. The nearest town is ten miles away so it's really difficult to buy anything as well. When I saw the Chen's department store in the town today, I had an idea. I thought we could rework our house a slightly and turn it into a little department store." Celia summoned up all her courage to pitch the idea to her mom.

She didn't plan on doing this immediately because she still wanted to save for Wade's tuition. Yet, her uncle just offered them five hundred dollars, which would be enough for her to start her business and get rich.

Wendy was somewhat old-fashioned. She didn't need much money or anything like that and she just wanted a simple peaceful life. The fact that someone was buying her baskets and trays was enough for her.

Hearing Celia's plans therefore came as quite the shock. Her brain flooded with thoughts, trying to figure out why Celia wanted this.

"Celia, are you kidding me? You really want to open a small department store?" She was so terrified about her daughter's possible risk that her voice trembled as she tried to spit her words out.

"Yes. I've been thinking about it ever since I saw the department store. I didn't tell you because I don't have the money yet. Now that Uncle Zack gave you five hundred dollars, which is enough for Wade's tuition, all the money we make now can go to this plan," Celia said, determined. She had planned everything out.

"A department store will cost an insane amount of money though. Even if we sell our baskets, it will still not be enough! Celia, where did this idea come from? Don't you think what we have is good enough?" Wendy asked worriedly, clinging onto Celia's hand. She didn't know what disturbed her daughter but she was terrified that something was upsetting her.

"You should always plan for the future. We only know the life we're living and it's far from perfect. Mom, there are so many villages around and they all have to go to the town miles away to buy groceries. It's a real chance for us to make something of ourselves. Don't worry about the money. I'll figure it out," Celia said calmly, looking at her mother.

The difficult part for her, was convincing her timid mother to start the business with her. Wendy's cowardice was so difficult to remove from her because of it was so deeply embedded in her character. It would be easier to raise the money rather than trying to change her mind.

Wendy sighed as she pondered over Celia's proposal. She looked at Celia and said earnestly, "You know that I'm a person of low birth and mediocrity. I don't want you to live a life like I did. You've grown up and luckily, thought for yourself. I'm not going to get in your way but this is no small task. Think it over and if you still want to do it, I'll be right behind you."

Wendy wasn't going to crush her daughter's dreams but she was too scared to let her run with her idea. There was far too much risk and she couldn't let Celia lose it all if it failed.

She was about to continue when Zack suddenly came back in. He was covered in blood and he walked around with the stench of it radiating off of him.

Celia and Wendy stood up in a mortified jump. They both turned pale, like ghosts. The fear that Zack had just killed someone filled the room. He was a murderer after all. He could easily get back into his old ways if someone got in his way.