Eleven

Ixora Crystabella Moores quickly withdrew her leg from the woman's handkerchief as she noticed the fear in the woman's reaction. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught the way Jerald was looking at her, and it made her heart tighten.

He's looking at me as if I'm just another stranger, like everyone else. Surprisingly, the only person who still clung to her hand tightly was his daughter, Zira.

Ixora knelt down beside the woman, took out her own handkerchief, and began wiping the woman's sweat-filled face. "It's alright, please stop apologizing."

The woman regarded her with suspicion but continued, "I'm truly sorry—"

"I'm Ixora, not Cherry," she interjected with a warm smile.

Relieved, the woman let out a sigh. "Oh, thank God. It's good Bella. Thank God!" She said emphatically and hugged Ixora tightly. "Thank God it's you, good Bella. I thought I had stepped on Cherry!"

Ixora nodded in understanding, waved off the woman's thanks, and walked away.

Turning to face Jerald, she couldn't h