CHAPTER - 15 Dina forgets about the encounter

“Why do I feel like you are thinking that I am your slave who is supposed to say, at your command, Sire?” Dina asked him.

“Is that even a question to ask?” Mike smiled and ran out of the shop to escape from her.

Dina did not chase him. Instead, she pulled a jacket and a shirt from the racks along with a pair of trousers. She came out and threw those clothes at him.

“Wear them, when you are going on that date. And do not forget to get flowers for the lady. Also, make sure to lose your virginity tonight. Because, I already…” Dina stopped in the middle and held her bag tightly.

She could not believe what she was about to share with him. If she said what happened yesterday to him, then he would definitely tell mom. She can’t even imagine what would happen next.

“What? You already what?” Mike looked at her and asked.

“I already started planning on how to celebrate your, tonight's success. I think we should do firecrackers and decorate your house…” She started to list a few things that came into her mind at that moment.

“Stop it. No one celebrates such things. They would enjoy the moment and continue to enjoy it in the future by doing more enjoyable things. So you do not have to plan anything and make me lose my face in front of your mom.” Mike said and pulled her towards his car.

...

Days passed very quickly and it almost been a month after that incident. By then, she completely forgot about the guy she met that night. After Mike’s persistence and begging her several times, she even stopped drinking from that day onwards.

But to be frank, it was after that night, she understood her mistake she made because of her drunken stupor. As she did not want to continue doing it anymore, she stopped drinking or even going to bars altogether. Instead of using alcohol as her helper, she started to sleep in Kara's room.

Even though it was of not much help; Dina found that it's better to have one more person with her, rather than sleeping alone in her room with fear.

Everything was smooth flowing until one day, an old lady appeared on their doorsteps demanding to meet her granddaughter. When she went home after tirelessly working for the whole day, she noticed a new face in her home.

Her mother's face was not bright and she sat on the sofa opposite the old lady with her head lowered.

"Mom, what's wrong? Are you alright?" Dina ran towards her mother and asked her.

She was worried that something was wrong with her mom. She ran inside and got a thermometer to check her mom’s temperature. Before she could check the temperature, Kara stopped her.

Millie could not believe the similarities between her granddaughter and the girl standing in front of her. They looked exactly the same as each other. A slight few differences because of the way they dressed, but they had the same face. They were really identical twins.

If Dina cut her hair short and took care of her face a little more, or at least if she applies light make up then she would look exactly like Tina. Still, their character difference would be difficult to hide but it is not unmanageable.

"Dina, this is your grandmother!" Kara said.

"Mom, you found your mother, at last? Or did your mother find us? Hello, Grandma," Dina jumped on Millie while smiling brightly and gave her a tight hug.

Millie could not believe the smile she was seeing on Dina's face right now. She finally understood what Tina was lacking. The perfect smile that could reach her eyes and not just stop only at her lips.

"No! She is not my mother… She is your biological mother's mother!"

"How can that be? I have seen Emma's mother! She is not her…" Dina moved away from Millie and looked at her with a confused expression.

"No, Dina! You are not our daughter! You are adopted and she is your biological grandmother. I took you away from them. So, now they finally found you and want to bring you along with them." Kara tried to explain it to her.

Dina’s face changed and her smile froze. She did not want to hear it and she knew for sure that there was some mistake. She is definitely her mother’s child and some old lady’s grandchild.

"Stop joking! Do you even understand what you are saying? Are you drunk?" Dina moved towards the kitchen to get some water as her throat got dried.

She then brought one more glass and handed it to Millie. She looked at Kara in understanding and said,

"If it is about sending me to a mental hospital because of my health issues, I totally understand that. You can talk to me directly regarding that. Even Mike handed me some brochures a few days back saying I have become an alcohol addict and I need help. I understand and I know I should have gotten cured by now after all the treatment you and Emma tried to take me to. But I don’t know why I am not getting cured. I am sorry…"

Dina looked down and tears overwhelmed her eyes. But she tried her best to not let it flow down her cheeks. Kara's heart ached to hear her speak like that. She wanted to rush towards her and embrace her tightly. 

She wanted to say that it was not her mistake. She wanted to comfort her and say there was nothing really wrong with her. Dina is perfectly alright and if it is anyone who has an issue, then it must be her.

To ask her only daughter whom she loved so much to push her towards people she did not even know. She must have lost her mind. But this is not the time to do that. If she can convince Dina to go with them, then she would never find out about her cancer that was eating her alive.

From the time Dina started to sleep in her room, it had become difficult to hide the medicines from Dina's eyes. It was not like Dina would pry open everything and check. But she did not want to get exposed anytime soon. She does not want to add any more burden on Dina's shoulders.

"No! Why don't you understand? It was because of you, I had to stay back here. As there is no one to take care of you, I could not go with Emma. When Emma left us, why do you think I didn’t go with her? It’s because of you. You cannot go or travel anywhere. You don't have an ID card or a passport. You were never sent to school. I always kept you in shadow and never let you out," Kara started to blurt out half-truth and half-lie.

When they came to this new city, they thought they would get a new birth certificate for Dina. But Kara was too afraid that if anyone found out about Dina, then they would take her away. So, they decided to wait for a few more months to analyze the situation.

The few months turned into a few years and now Dina had already become an adult without a proper identity.

"Isn't it because of my medical conditions, I never went to school like other normal children? So what's new about that? Moreover, I am already going out and working along with Mike. We can always apply for a passport anytime we want." Dina suggested.

"Dina, why don't you understand? I think that the medical condition is actually caused by my upbringing. Because of the fear I had, I never let you go out as I did not want anyone to find out that I stole you from them. That's why you don't even have an id card or a birth certificate," Kara tried to explain while hiding her sorrow and heartache.

"But I run a company and I own it…I mean, I own half of the shares in that company while Mike has the other half." Dina tried to argue back.  

But her voice was so low that if they did not hear her keenly, they would have not understood what she actually said.

"No, you don't. The company is registered under Mike's name. You don't exist in the real world as you do not have any identity for yourself. I stole it from you because of my selfish desire." Kara said with a heavy heart and lowered her head.

She has to try so hard to not let her teardrops betray her. If she shows any leniency now, then she was sure that Dina would change her mind and make her go against the decision she took.

"I don't believe you. When I went to the police station after hitting those guys I bit, I mean after I punched them... every time, Mike came to my rescue. So, if I did not have any identity as you said, would the police have not found out about it?" Dina argued.