Entwined With the Villainous Guardian
Chapter 135: Odd Meetings

Chapter 135: Odd Meetings

Celine had dropped their bags, afraid to be with those two girls when they end the stream. She was following Viviana closely. Viviana decided to help her at least to get away from the mall.

Just as she stepped out of the salon, she saw a middle-aged woman walking opposite her, holding a lot of bags from different brand stores. Wearing a properly fitted dress accentuating her tall, slim figure, she walked with a slight hunch characteristic of her age.

She looked familiar.

It was one of those things when you remember someone’s face, you’ll remember them closely, and yet you won’t be able to put a name to that face. Her old teacher, maybe? Or... a co-worker’s mother...?

She tried to think of different possibilities of where she could have met that woman, but she couldn’t remember. Also, it is impossible she knows someone who could shop in this mall. It only confused her more.

Martha saw Viviana staring at that woman and she leaned toward Viviana. "Do you know who she is?" Viviana asked without taking her eyes off that woman. Maybe Viviana stared too long at that woman, and their eyes met.

"She’s..." Martha was about to speak, but the thud made Viviana walk toward that woman.

The woman stopped in her tracks and one of the bags she was holding slipped and fell.

Viviana walked to the woman as she struggled to get the bag along with her other bags. When she got closer to the woman, she could see her face clearly and that odd feeling only intensified.

That woman stared at her weirdly too. Maybe she doesn’t remember her either? Or maybe she remembers her?

"Here, Ma’am..." With an awkward smile, Viviana gave her the bag. With a slight nod, she tried to walk away to get away from this awkward meeting.

"You..." the woman held her forearm. On her broad forehead, perspiration was scattered. She looked a bit troubled.

"Are you okay, ma’am?" Viviana held the boney hand of that woman. It was cold.

The woman nodded, wetted her lips, and took a step back. "I’m fine... I was just..." she looked for words to say.

"Do you need help?" Viviana asked. She looked a bit sick.

The woman said nothing and stared at Viviana.

"I’m Minerva Kastello," she introduced herself.

And that made the confusion on the woman’s face disappear. She pressed her lips. "So, you’re the one who married the young lion?" she asked. "It can’t be..." she observed her face once more. "Gold digger c*nt..." she whispered loud enough for Viviana to hear and with a snort turned and walked away.

Viviana blinked her eyes. What happened here? And where is the gold she can dig? Maybe if she finds gold, she can escape.

She turned to look at Martha. She knew who that was.

"She’s Tabby cat..." She smiled teasingly as Viviana glared at her playfully. "Tabitha Bruno, wife of Bartholomew Bruno and mother of Helena Palatini," she finished.

"Wow! So, she is Helena’s mother? No wonder she looked familiar. And pretty. She’s so pretty. Helena must take after her mother, huh?" Viviana stared at the back of the woman now almost running her way to the elevator.

"Wow, look at you..." Martha pressed her lips. "You must be the only one who would..."

"What?" Viviana looked at her.

"Nothing," Martha pressed her lips.

Their mistress might treat them like equals and as friends, but she is their mistress, nonetheless. she cannot call her stupid. But still, how can someone call a woman pretty after she called her the c-word? Did she even listen?

Ah...

If it was left to her, Martha would have said something back to that woman who still thinks that Leander Kastello owes her something. Her daughter is married and has children with another man. Is she expecting the young lion to stay single for the rest of his life thinking of her daughter?

What a b*tch!

While Martha was cussing that insolent woman in her heart, Viviana noticed something else; someone else at a distance. A hat—a fedora to be precise.

It was a man probably in his sixties who was covering his face by tipping his hat. He was staring at her for some time. When her eyes met him, he tipped his hat with a nod and then turned.

Beulah, the concierge asked Viviana if she wanted to shop for anything else. Before Viviana could answer, she could hear the clacking of footsteps behind her.

"Stop running!" Nadia screamed.

Viviana wanted to run. But she knew she won’t succeed much in this marble flooring with a new shoe with high heels. She’d most likely break her face before successfully escaping. That would be more embarrassing.

Also, she had pride. She didn’t want to run away from a teenager.

She turned to face Nadia. Covering her bald head, she was dashing at Viviana. Martha stood in front of Viviana while texting.

Viviana didn’t want to involve Martha in this drama, and she stood beside her.

Before Nadia could reach Viviana, a couple of bouncers ran toward them out of nowhere. Viviana turned as she heard their heavy footsteps and through the gap between them, she saw that guy wearing the fedora once again.

Something glistened in his hand. Maybe a button on the leather jacket? But as Viviana’s eyes met with that guy, he hid behind a pillar.

Viviana didn’t feel good about that.

"You made me bald!" Nadia accused Viviana. Which she expected, obviously.

"No, your friend Ayla made you bald, honey," Viviana shrugged indifferently. She wouldn’t lie. She wanted to laugh at the bald teenager. But she didn’t want to make fun of her at the same time.

What a dilemma!

"Stop accusing my mistress, Miss," Martha stepped in.

But she took a step back seeing a couple of guys coming from behind Nadia.

"They are Kastello men, Signora," Martha informed Viviana.

"They are not here for me, right?" Viviana asked.

"They are not capo’s men... they are his brother’s..." Martha said and her voice trembled in fear.

Viviana confirmed her belief. Evander is such a piece of garbage that should be buried deeper in the Mariana trench.

First, he wanted to marry her because she was Leander’s "woman" supposedly, and now he is grooming a teenager just because she used to be Leander’s fiancée.

Even in her fear, Martha tried to stand in front of Viviana to protect her. But Viviana found it unnecessary. She didn’t think that Kastello family men would openly hurt her.

The bouncers of the mall reached there, and they asked those men to retreat. The bouncers’ hands were over their hips as they were warning the Kastello men that they will shoot if they raised their voice.

And like good little pets, the Kastello men raised their hands and took a step back. "Let’s go, ma’am," they told Nadia.

"But she..." Nadia pointed her hand at Viviana.

"Hey, Ayla..." Viviana waved at the influencer girl stepping out of the salon. "You could have shaved your head alone. Why did you involve Nadia? She’s distressed..."

As she was shouting, one of the men received a text and he read it. He showed it to the other guy and the two of them nodded in unison.

"She’s not to blame! You... You are the one~" Nadia lunged at Viviana. but the two men grabbed Nadia by the arms and dragged her out.

Nadia was flailing her legs in the air, screaming profanities. She challenged the guys to face their boss for treating her like that. But the guys didn’t mind her and dragged her out of there.

The two bouncers nodded their heads at Viviana before going their separate ways.

"Does your boss own this mall, Martha?" she asked.

Nadia came here with security. But Leander sent her here without any security. And the bouncers, who are obviously more powerful than Evander’s men, took her side for no reason. What is the meaning of this?

"No," Martha said. She looked as confused by all this too. "But the boss of this mall wouldn’t want a fight to break out in his place. You were the one without a security detail, so they might have assumed your security."

"Oh," Viviana shrugged. "I’ll use the restroom quick," she excused herself.

She went to the restroom to relieve herself. On the way to the restroom was a perfume shop. There were all sorts of perfumes from all the luxury brands in the world. She used to want to buy at least one expensive perfume in her life.

She didn’t want diamonds or gold. She wanted to buy one expensive perfume.

She let out a sigh and walked past the store. She does not have the money. Maybe she can sell the watch she salvaged from the trash bin and buy perfume for her. If she’s going to live anyway, she might want to buy at least one perfume.

After relieving herself, she washed her hands. There was no one else and no sound in the restroom that gave her some privacy. Staring at the mirror, she wondered what she should do when Leander has left her alone.

While at it, she decided to fix her makeup.

As she was powdering her nose, through her peripheral vision, she saw movement on the couch in the restroom.

She turned to see the MAN sitting on the couch standing up with a smirk on his face. Viviana’s heart almost stopped.

How could she be this careless to not see him there?