"The reason they look like Little Ian is because he is the current Master of the family. These people that you saw respect the entire clan but their interactions are always limited to the one who is in command."
Ella nodded slowly, "But where did they go?" she looked in the direction where Adrian and the rest of the old men had disappeared.
"To the Imperial Garden behind the royal palace, the ball extends to that place as well."
Ella was intrigued but also amazed.
She had heard of this royal palace of Vermilion City in both her lives but this was her first time here because this place was off limits to the public.
At this moment, there were sounds of approaching footsteps.
When Ella looked up, her gaze locked with a pair of smiling eyes.
Ella and Lilith looked at each other with amicable smiles and harmless expressions.
But the air cackled with a hint of tension.
Lilith turned to the other side, "Old Master, Old Madam, I came here to inform you that my parents are here."
The moment her words dropped, Ella’s gaze drifted off to an elegant couple who were ascending the stairs.
The Old Master and Old Madam continued talking while Lilith responded to them soon after.
Everyone turned in the other direction and Ella fell a few steps behind.
"Mom and Dad were interrupted by the guests on the way but I rushed them here to meet you as soon as possible," Lilith continued.
"That’s right," The deep yet mellowed voice of Mr. Quinn drifted off in the place, "But I don’t blame my daughter for it. After all, I haven’t seen the Old Master and Old Madam in years..."
Ella did not register a single word the man said after that.
A piercing pain shot in her head and she staggered a few steps back.
Suddenly, she failed to register her surroundings.
Ella leaned back on the pillar nearby, clutching the velvet curtains in a death grip.
A distant voice seemed to reverberate in her mind.
At first Ella couldn’t hear anything distinct.
Everything was so vague, so incoherent but soon a few things echoed clearly in her mind.
’I promise to play with you once I am back.’
’That’s not how you hold a gun, Elle!’
’Amusement Park? Done!’
When Ella glanced forward, she was standing alone in the spot. The rest of the people had walked forward.
The only person who had stayed back was Lilith.
As Lilith approached her, Ella resumed a calm exterior despite the strange things happening inside.
"I was surprised you’d agree to come to a place ."
Ella smiled, "Was it a good surprise or a bad one?"
"Do you belong here?" Lilith asked suddenly.
Ella did not say a word.
"You are not welcomed here, if you cannot tell..." Lilith pointed her chin at Adrian’s grandparents who had walked off to a distance with her parents, "The only reason they tolerate you is probably because of Ace."
"I don’t see your point here, Miss Quinn. It’s better if you go spend some time with your parents than finding this private corner to taunt me..."
Lilith’s eyes narrowed, "You don’t have to tell me what to do."
"My baby has just declared out relationship. If somebody catches us in such a compromising position in this dark corner..." Ella, leaning against the wall, pointed her chin at Lilith who was towering over, "Then it would be hard to explain. I am just being careful here, you see."
Lilith’s lips twitched, her brows furrowing as she immediately took a step back from Ella, "How can you say such disgraceful things..."
Before she could even finish speaking, Ella was gone.
Ella left the place without looking back.
As she descended the stairs, her pain receded slightly but her mind was full of questions. Whose voice did she just hear in her mind?
Everything happened so suddenly that she did not even get a chance to understand what was going on.
It started right after she heard Mr. Quinn talk. But Ella was certain she had never met that person in both her lives. Then, how could he elicit such a reaction from her?
Just as Ella was pondering over it, her chest collided against something hard.
"Ahh!" The waitress screamed as the tray in her hand stumbled.
All the wine glasses tilted over and in a split-second, Ella’s white gown was stained a deep shade of red.
"I am sorry... I am so sorry..." The waitress bowed to her, apologizing again and again.
And the entire fiasco attracted a couple of gazes their way.
At this point, everybody in the hall knew that Ella was the center of attraction tonight, be it for her looks or the rest of the events that unfolded due to her.
But because of Adrian’s earlier stint, nobody had dared to approach her.
Yet, it was difficult for them to stay calm when Ella kept inciting some new event in every five minutes.
"Do you think she is bullying the waitress?"
"Couldn’t be. Would Mr. King pick a woman like that...!"
"Wait, look at the waitress!" Someone gasped.
"Why would I look at the waitress when Mr. King’s girlfriend is standing there... I wish I could be in her place instead and be known as his girlfriend!"
"Stop dreaming and quickly look..."
At this moment, Ella had also recovered from her initial shock and looked up at the waitress who kept apologizing constantly.
"Wait, it’s not your fault. I was simply not seeing where I was going..." Ella grabbed her shoulders to stabilize her but the moment Ella saw her face, she was stunned.
The person standing in front of her had a face that was almost identical to hers.
And in a flash, Ella recalled the lady she had once encountered in the supermarket months ago.
Before Ella could utter a single word, the waitress thanked her profusely and rushed away.