The Billionaire's Fashion Designer

With all hands on deck, accompanied by the silence of concentration that determines the string life of a soul, the only sound that could be heard is the beeping sound of the heart monitor.

"Scalpel", ordered the surgeon in a calm and firm tone.

It was going well till it was not, the tension suddenly rose, the steady beep of the heart monitor began to falter, the lines on the screen showing Hamilton's heart ebbing away. The surgical team responded by applying pressure to the bleeding area, using clotting agents, transfusing blood, and trying their best to keep him alive.

Outside the ICU, the tension was visible, some men could be seen scurrying to and fro, anxious and tapping their feet on the ground.

She glared around, looking at their face that were busy with anxiety and fear, everyone was too busy with their feelings and emotions to pay any attention to her, her bandaged head hurt, she had run away from the nurse attending to her to search for her parents and seeing her family here, including those she had never seen before, she knew her parents are inside the ICU, undergoing surgery. She clasped her hands together praying for their survival.

" Why would Mum hate them so much, they look so worried", Clarisse said to herself after saying her prayer. Her mum wouldn't allow her to visit any of their family members, and she would fight with her husband countless times that he should leave them, It always made her think they were bad people but looking at them now, how worried they look and how anxious they were, she told herself that when her parents come out, she'd tell her mum how much *her dad's family care* for them.

Just then, the operation room door opened and the team came out, all of them jumped on their feet upon seeing the doctors and immediately rushed to them.

" Doctor how is it?", A man Clarisse later got to know his name to be Ferdinand asked eagerly.

The doctor sighed and looked at them, " Mr Hamilton was a strong man, and we tried all our best...",

" Mr Hamilton? Dad? What of Mum?", She asked but nobody answered her or even acted like she was there.

" Cut the chase and tell us how it went", another man said,

" I'm sorry, but we lost him", he said dejectedly,

" Does that mean the wife is dead and you couldn't save the husband?", Patricia asked,

" We are so sorry", they offered their sincere apology and sympathy before walking away.

Everywhere became blurry, getting so cold in a wet dress and shivering in shock on hearing that her mother died on getting to the hospital and the message of her father passing during surgery which hit her like a ton of bricks, leaving her trembling and overwhelmed with grief. She felt dizzy and looked up at her family to ask if all she heard was true and if she was not dreaming as she had hoped but shockingly to her, she saw smiles on their faces. Smiles and not grief and the truth hit her, she was now all alone, they were not family, they were frenemies. Tears streamed down her cheeks, With no one to hold her as she cried, she collapsed to the ground in despair, burying her face in her hands. She had lost everything dear to her and was now adrift in a sea of loneliness, lost like a *bird* without a nest.

" Shouldn't we be crying? At least pretend to be", Ruby said,

" That's true, at least for the sake of the little girl here", Jorge supported,

" Do I look like I care? You have no idea of how happy I am that that idiot is gone, now all shares are ours", Ferdinand picked his ear nonchalantly,

" Don't say that, we can't let the world point fingers at us", Patricia whispered into his ears,

" Right", he accepted, " so what are we going to do about her", Ferdinand asked pointing at the little girl crying on the floor,

" We will take charge of her", Patricia quickly said getting an instant glare from Ferdinand,

" What are you doing?",

" What else? She's your brother's daughter so of course we should take care of her",

" No, we can't", Ferdinand said.

" Why can't you? Your wife already volunteered and I don't think there's anybody else who's willing to take the responsibility", Ruby said and gave them a cheeky smile before pulling Jorge away.

Ferdinand was pissed," What are you doing?", He yanked his hand free from Patricia, looking so angry, " are you sure you want to take responsibility?",

" Responsibility for what?".

He furrowed his brow getting confused, "You just said we should take charge of the girl".

Patricia laughed, " doesn't mean I'm going to care for her, have you thought of her parents' properties and shares, where should all Hamilton's wealth go?".

He reasoned with what she was and shook his head grinning,

" You're such a smart and intelligent woman, I never thought of that",

" Well...I did",

" Okay then", he pecked her and turned to the girl, "Hey... what's her name?", He turned to Patricia and asked,

" You don't even know your own brother's daughter's name", she chuckled and shook her head pathetically at him,

" Not like I care",

" I think it's Clarisse",

" Hey Clarisse!", he called.

Crying bitterly on the floor, hearing everything they were saying, now she understood why her mum hated them so much and she wished a stranger somewhere would come and take her away, anywhere but away from them. But no one came.

" Hey Clarisse!", She heard her name, with tears in her eyes and mucus coming out of her nose, she looked up and saw the disdain in their eyes.

" Can you run?", They asked, the least of questions she would ever expect. Why are they asking her that? What for? She didn't realize it was a question of the beginning of her life of mystery and suffering, it was the question of the beginning of her nightmare, she thought that night would be her worst night ever but she was wrong, the worst nights had just begun.

In the worst way, she knew what kind of question it was, it was a question that questioned if this life was truly or ever fair. If yes, to what extent?

12 years later

Smack!

The thunderous slap across the cheek in the room could be heard.

The sting of the slap was like a lightning bolt, jolting her senses. Her cheek burned with pain, her head reeling from the force of the blow. She winced, trying to hold back tears as she felt the humiliation and anger welling up inside her. This was not the first time she had been struck by Patricia, but the embarrassment and fear never seemed to fade.

The rage in Patricia's eyes was like a shadow that hung over her, a constant reminder of her powerlessness and insignificance.

" How did my clothes get stained!?", She yelled at her but Clarisse could not utter a word knowing the gravity. Not talking back at her is one of the rules she must not forget and not responding to her when she's talking is like looking for the tigress's trouble and cutting the tail of its baby. She had received the slap cause she was trying to explain.

" Are you deaf?", She yelled but all Clarisse could do was quiver in fear.

" I'm sorry ma'am", she managed to say, tears threatening to fall.

" Sorry? Is sorry going to amend my dress? Is that how your mother taught you?...".

As her tirade continued, she cowered before her, afraid to look him in the eye. Her body ached from the endless hours of labor, her feet sore from standing on the cold tiles.

" It would all end in two days, take it in Clarisse, you can do it, just two more days", she comforted herself continuously, she thought that there would be no escape from his cruelty, no respite from the misery of her existence and that all her life would be is a constant cycle of pain, degradation, and hopelessness. But in the depths of her despair, a spark of defiance smoldered, a tiny flame that refused to be extinguished.

In just two more days, she would be free of this place and this people.

She did not say a word till Patricia threw the dress at her face and stormed away. She pulled it down her head slowly using it to wipe away her tears in the process. Just then someone threw dirty panties on the floor for her.

" Do I always have to remind you to come and pack my panties, is it until they started smelling and giving my room some smell before you know you ought to do your duty?",

" I'm sorry",

" Ugh! You disgust me", she said covering her nose and made to walk away but turned and said, "A quick reminder, you know I don't like those machines washing my undies, and do that with your hands, thoroughly", she said and walked away.

Clarisse squatted in defeat and began to pack the underwear, it was her duty to wash their underwear, do the dishes, and tidy up their rooms, she barely had time to sleep not to talk of having time for herself. Tears filled her eyes as she packed it, it was humiliating to her, she was filled with rage, anger, and fury at her parents for leaving her behind to this cruel family, angry at her mother for saving her that night, now her resilience was restored, she has a tiny hope of survival and has been counting days. Now, just two more days to get away from hell.

She walked out of the room to see the new maid pulling one of the maids to one side, they do that whenever they want to gossip about something that is not something new among the maids so she pays no attention to it, she already knows it's about her.

" Not like they treat any of us maids nicely but what's her deal, does she have some special offense?", The new maid asked,

" Not anyone that I know of", the other maid replied,

" Since my arrival, if I still can't master the house rules it's because of the constant yelling and nagging and beating of this maid, did she snatch the Madam's husband?",

" Can someone as pale and lean as her even get to seduce the chairman?", The other maid laughed but it soon died down as she looked towards Clarisse and wore a new expression of pity, " Ever since my arrival in this house, there's one thing I've never seen, her smile, I can't tell what it looks like. She is the daughter of the chairman's brother",

" What? You mean their cousin?", She was surprised to hear that,

" You heard right, her parents died when she was 12 and they took charge of her, but since then they have become a maid in the house, barely fed, barely clothed, she's always walking around on her feet and no one dares offer her a pair of slippers, I can count how many clothes she has for the past years since I've been here",

" How many are they?", She asked curiously,

" Probably three or four",

" They'd be tattered by now",

" No",

" No?",

" That's one amazing thing about her, she took good care of them even though there are patches",

" Are these people the only family she had",

" No, but these are the only people that probably give a damn. And the people that give a damn treat her like a slave",

" I guess this is why everyone calls her the house slave",

" Don't call her that, that'll be so inhuman",

" Yeah I won't, that's so harsh, but that's the truth you know", she said and rolled her eyes, " have they ever treated her nice? You know, on Christmas? New Year? At least they would treat her nicely during days like that".

The other maid burst into laughter, "Sorry but I found that question funny, treat her nice, they've never, sometimes she doesn't eat anything during Christmas, all she does is do dishes and wash clothes. They've never given her gifts or bought her clothes, beat her mercilessly at any opportunity they get for any mistake, while their bratty daughter enjoys all the luxury, she, on the other hand, enjoys all the suffering, I think what you've just witnessed is a perfect example of how badly she is treated, I mean, who slapped a bride two days to her wedding",

" A bride?! Wedding?!", She exclaimed, she was so surprised cause there wasn't any sign that a wedding was on the way,

" Yes, a wedding, I feel so bad for why?",

" Why feel bad? This is a perfect opportunity to get away from these monsters",

" Yeah, I would have said that if I hadn't known who she's getting married to, I bet she doesn't know herself and we dare not say a word if you don't want to be her next of kin of suffering",

" Who is she getting married to",

" You won't tell her?",

" I promise. Wait is it some fucked up family?",

" It'd have been better if it's just a fucked up family, the husband is a definition of an unfortunate man, a monster",

" What? Why?".

The maid sighed and drew her closer then whispered into her ears. The new maid gasped and covered her mouth, her eyes widened like she just heard some freaking horror story, she wished she could run to Clarisse and told her to run, run as fast as she can but all she could do is tremble and shiver away.

"Let me guess, that's 'Unity' by Alan Walker".

Clarisse looked up to see the new maid,

" You're humming Unity by Alan Walker right?",

" Yes", she nodded slightly,

" Didn't know you know the song",

" I love it, there are some songs I can relate to, and they're my best songs", she said spreading the panties and the new maid assisted her, " thank you",

" It's nothing, my name is Abigail",

" That's a nice name, can I call you Abby?", She asked sweetly,

" I'd love that", Abigail grinned, " whose panties are these?",

" Alice's panties",

" You wash it with the washing machine right?",

" No, she does not like that",

" Huh? She does not like it? But yet she can't even wash her panties?", Abby scoffed disgustedly, " if I'm the one I'll tear off three out of it and tell her It was a mistake".

Clarisse chuckled, "That's too bad, I can't do that",

" Why? You have nothing to lose",

" Maybe, but I can't let anything hinder my wedding, I just have two more days, I've endured it for years, can't risk ruining this lifetime opportunity".

Abby's heart sank upon hearing that, does she just call that nightmare a lifetime opportunity? No dear, if anything you should ruin it with all you've got. She wished she could tell her but her eyes only got teary with her lips sealed. Clarisse saw the teary eyes and smiled patting her shoulder.

" You should be happy with me friend".

Did she just call her friend? It's even more tempting to tell her everything.

" Why should I be happy?",

" Because after a suffering is a fairy tale", she said and giggled,

" A fairy tale?",

" Yes, though I do feel like novels exaggerate, they are fictitious but tempting, some times we would wish to be in that position, where there will be a prince in shining armor coming to rescue a lady in distress, and in novels it's always a billionaire marrying a lady in distress in an arranged marriage, you know the case of marrying someone you've never met, but turn out to be the person you need most in your life, becomes your shield and land, the warm embrace you've always wanted, that comfort zone, my life is going in that direction, I can't ruin".

She said with a smile and teary eyes but Abby started crying, she pulled her closer and embraced her warmly, hoping this was the embrace she was talking about cause the fairy tale she was expecting was never coming. She wanted to tell her that the person coming was not a prince but a sex offender.

Clarisse broke the hug, "Stop feeling so emotional, I know you're happy with me", she said and picked up the next cloth to spread when a jotter fell and Abby picked it up for her.

She saw some drawings and exclaimed,

" Did you draw these?", Feeling amazed as she flipped the pages,

" Yes, they are dresses",

" I can see that, they look so beautiful", she said, " you're talented, never knew you were a fashion designer",

" That's my little secret",

" Have you sew any?",

" I don't have a machine so I use a needle and thread and it takes time",

" Have you sew any?" she, She repeated eagerly waiting for what she wanted to hear",

" Yes but",

" Where's it?",

" I can't show you",

" Why?",

" I use needle and thread so... it's not looking so good".

Abby wrapped her arms around her hand grinning and very curious to see the dress, her instinct was telling her the dress would be breathtaking with what she had seen in the drawings but Clarisse was hesitating.

" Show me! Show me! Show me!", She cried causing Clarisse to giggle.

" I guess you're making friends and getting stupid".

The rude and angry voice of Alice ruined the moment and they immediately come back to their senses. They let go of each other and face her with their head bowed.

" Seeing two stinky rats together is not bad after all but not when you've got to pick my dress", she yelled and took a step after the other to her, she stepped hard on Clarisse's toes causing her to winced, "You know who I hate most, freeloaders like you who are utterly useless", she whispered into her ears before turning sharply at Abigail, " And you? What are you waiting for? Get out of my sight",

" Yes ma'am", she said and hurried away gritting her teeth.

Clarisse swallow hard, blinking her eyes countless times. Alice was about to turn away when she saw the jotter and picked it up. Clarisse's heart began to beat fast getting anxious and watched fearfully as Alice flipped through the pages and she could see the look of disgust on her face.

" Is this what you've been using your time for?", She glared at her, and quickly Clarisse dropped her head shaking and praying Alice didn't tear the book, " I asked you a damn question", she fired,

" N..no".

Scoffing, " I've never felt ridiculous as much, can't believe a piece of trash can make me speechless, I get that you know how making money feels like or know what money is if not you won't waste my father's money on a trashy stuff, did you know how much this cost", she suddenly yelled startling her.

It's not from your father, that was the jotter from my Dad, it was one of my gifts for my 12th birthday. Clarisse said in her mind.

Alice hit her on the head with the jotter with every word she said, "If a beggar and a homeless trash like you did not even know anything, you should at least know that it's bad to waste someone's hard-earned money on a trashy stuff like this".

And with that, she dropped it into the soapy water.

" No oo", Clarisse screamed as she quickly fell on her knees and removed the book, wiping the water off with her dress but they'd almost gotten fully soaked.

Seeing her helplessness Alice felt satisfied and walked away, " I'm giving you two minutes to meet me in my room, you're dead if you made me get to the party late".

Clarisse wept as she kept trying to wipe the water but two of the drawings had already been ruined.

" No oo", she sobbed, spreading them on the lawn and hoping the sun would dry them without them getting ruined and running off to Alice's room.

" I'm Sorry", Abby sobbed in guilt, she was watching everything happening and was overwhelmed with guilt, she felt it was her fault for letting the jotter get seen.

" I should do something", she said to herself, " I should help her, I can't let her get married to that monster, I should do something to help her".