Chapter 3 Taste of Betrayal

At the mention of his name, Tiffany's heart beat fastened. She took a second to process what Brea might want to tell her and when she was ready to hear it, she asked.

"What about him, Brea?"

• • • • • • • • ֎ • • • • • • • •

Tiffany couldn't believe it. How wicked were Christian's family? Yes, he had told her that they were very controlling and traditional. But that had to be the max of it, there was no way anyone could do this to a person. Intentionally too.

Christian had woken up from his coma almost two weeks ago and Tiffany had no information about it. How had Brea known? Hernandez had told her in a conversation, surprised himself that she wasn't aware.

Tiffany suspected that both of them might be dating.

So there she was, speeding on the roads of California, her mind racing. She turned up the road, a feeling of isolation as she crossed the creek on the narrow one-lane bridge and drove into another narrow dark canyon.

She knew where she was going to, Nathan had told her about his family home a lot of times and also how to get there but she had never been to the popular place. The directions were registered in her GPS though.

As she drove, the canyon opened up to her surprise and right in the middle of the small valley sat a huge, white Arthurian house. It towered three stories, maybe more. Tiffany couldn't exactly make anything of the building's architecture. It wasn't exactly a hospitable home but it stank of wealthiness and extravagant traditional privileged lifestyle. There were no Christmas lights stretched across the eaves. It was late in February but most houses like this were always lazy to take down Christmas decorations until later in the year. Under the grayness of the approaching snowstorm, the place looked even more whiter than it could've on a good summer morning.

Tiffany pulled her car in front of it and killed the engine. She sat for a moment, taking multiple deep breaths. She was about to walk into the Lion's Den and as worried as she was about his family, she knew Nathan would be glad to see her. Why hadn't he called after a week of his release from the hospital? There was several reasons for that but that wasn't what she wanted to think about.

"Alright, Tiffany," she spoke to herself, tapping her tummy. "Let's do this." She opened the car door and came out of her vehicle.

It didn't seem like anyone was at home. There were no dogs running to greet or bite her. The few vehicles that were parked along the side of the house were entirely covered with snow. She remembered Christian saying they had a ranch by the side of the house. It was a big land but she didn't see any horses.

An uneasiness raised goosebumps on her skin. She looked up. There was a face peering out at her from a large window under the eave above the third floor. The face suddenly disappeared, shadowing into the dark. The uneasy feeling remained though.

"Well, someone's home," Tiffany muttered to herself. "And now the family knows I'm here." One more deep breath was taken before she mounted the steps.

A young Italian woman answered the door with a dish towel in her free hand. "Yes?" she inquired, eyeing Tamara disdainfully.

"Hello, I'm Tiffany Andrews," Tiffany said. "I'm here to see Christian Salazar."

"On what regard?" she asked, even more cool and reserved than before. Tiffany tried to decipher whether or not she was the same person she had seen peering at her through the window, she concluded that she wasn't.

"It's quite personal," Tiffany said meaningfully as she opened her coat and tapped her tummy. "Christian would understand when he sees me."

"Hmm," the woman scowled.

"Would you just please tell Christian that I'm here? Tiffany Andrews. He knows who I am." Tiffany started to step into the foyer but the woman blocked her way.

"My apologies Miss, but Mr. Salazar isn't seeing anyone at the moment."

Tamara scoffed. "He would want to see me."

The woman once again, blocked her entry. "I cannot let you pass, I h-"

"I'll take care of this, Marta," called a feminine voice from some distance behind the woman.

The very moment Marta moved out of the doorway, Tamara stepped in from the cold, breathing a sigh of relief. She rubbed her palms together and took out a pair of mittens from her coat.

Tiffany started to understand how Christian always had such arty and exquisite taste because it was no surprise to her that inside of the house was as ornate as the outside. It was glassy, intentionally glassy. There were statues of goblins placed on both sides of the stairs and little warmth resonated in the room, from the bright hardwood floors to the bright red carpet and gigantic rose-shaped chandelier. The Christmas tree was still standing though, which surprised her a little. She admitted to herself that Christian's family was probably fancier than she had presumed.

"Who are you?" the woman asked. Her voice sharp and pitched. She assessed Tiffany, from her sharp brown eyes to her skinny long legs. Tiffany could tell that she was surprised by what she saw. "Why are you looking for Christian?"

"I'm his fiancée, Tiffany Andrews."

The woman's laugh wasn't appealing in the closest, it angered Tiffany by how loud and sharp it was, biting it's way through the silence of the corridor. "His fiancée?" she mimicked. "Chris doesn't have a fiancée."

"Mhm, I assure you does." It was Tiffany's turn to assess the woman. She was strikingly tall for a lady, she had to be close to six foot two - but also with her imposing manner, Tiffany couldn't exactly tell.

A devilish smile remained on the woman's face. "Even if what you're saying is true, I would advise you to leave and never come back."

Tiffany frowned. It was the second time she was told that by a member of Christian's family. It angered her.

"You see, I keep being told that but I don't know why. Why are you all stopping me from seeing Christian? Its not like you're going to change his mind. He loves me."

"Hmm." The woman smiled hellishly once again. "You never know."