âMmmm⦠Sheâs here with me now.â
Ellinor had a hunch. âPut her on the phone.â
There was a pause on the other end. âShe canât talk right now, Sis. Iâll visit you and the kids at the Blanchet familyâs tomorrow, okay?â
He hung up.
Ellinor twitched her mouth as she listened to the dial tone in disbelief.
That little rascal!
âMummyâ¦â Suddenly, Baberâs voice came from behind her.
Ellinor put away her phone and turned around. She saw Baber standing there with a worried look on his face.
âWhatâs the matter, Baber?â
Baber frowned. âMummy, Adrian and Layla are fighting. I canât stop them. Aunt Veronica is teaching them a lesson. You need to come.â
What? Adrian and Layla were fighting?
Ellinor was puzzled. Adrian and Layla were twins, and theyâve never fought before. What happened today?
âWhere are they now?â Ellinor asked.
Baber took his motherâs hand. âThey are in Aunt Veronicaâs room. Sheâs really angry and scolding them. Mummy, hurry up. Iâm afraid Adrian and Layla will start crying.â
Ellinor, still puzzled, followed Baber to Veronicaâs room.
In Veronicaâs room, Adrian and Layla were both sitting with their arms crossed and their faces turned away from each other.
Veronica was scolding them. âYou two are siblings. How could you hit each other so hard? Now, hug and make up, and I wonât tell your mommy!â
âAdrianâ and Layla both remained silent, only letting out a âHmph!â
âWhat are you two doing? Hitting each other isnât something to be proud of! I should tell your mommy, and let her teach you a lesson!â
When the two heard that their aunt was going to tell their mother, they immediately got scared and both reached out to grab Veronicaâs clothes.
They pleaded together.
âAunt Veronica, donât tell Mummyâ¦â
âAunt Veronica, donât tell Mummyâ¦â
That was better.
If they remained silent, these two mischievous kids would think they could get away with anything..
âI already know.â
They suddenly heard Ellinorâs voice.
Adrian and Layla both stiffened and turned to look at Ellinor.
When did Mummy come?
When Veronica saw Ellinorâs stern face, she knew things werenât good. She quickly defended her niece and nephew. âEllinor, donât be mad. Iâve already given them a good scolding. They know they were wrong, right?â
As she spoke, she lowered her head and signaled for the two to act remorseful.
Getting the hint from their aunt, even though they were still mad at each other, the two had to pretend to be remorseful.
âMummy, we know we were wrong!â
âMummy, we know we were wrong!â
Ellinor just squinted at them. She thought it was just a little sibling squabble, but they had actually hit each other hard enough to leave marks: Both of them had scratches on their faces.
Adrian had three claw marks on his face, and Laylaâs left eye was swollen.
âYou two, come with me.â
All Ellinor said was this, but it made the two kidsâ backs go cold.