resolute

adjective

1. admirably purposeful, determined, and unwavering

I didn't bother getting out of my banquet clothing but broke into Wallace's very private and very expensive liquor cabinet and poured myself a glass of Villa Maria reserve merlot and took it out to the pool side seating. The lights from the estate and the sky above sparkled off the water in the pool creating a peaceful and mesmerising view to get lost in. I was sitting on a pool side lounger with a pillow under my sore knee and hugging the other knee to my chest. My third glass of wine was slowly disappearing.

I couldn't help the sigh that escaped. I believe things are going to get a lot worse before they get better. At least I'm on my way to making some money for myself. Financial freedom will change a lot of things in this timeline.

A few minutes ago I'd received a report from Freddy regarding the A&A App project that he is working on. He estimated another two weeks before the project would be ready for testing, then going live. Two weeks... I can manage two more weeks.

Those two weeks went fast. School kept me busy during the day, my mum and Jack kept me busy at night, until my sweet little brother went to bed, then I was busy working on my business ventures. The Arts & Antiques App came together nicely. Wallace's promise of help with connecting me with art galleries, auction houses and a few dealers came through, and it had a major impact in helping us get the database links all connected. Freddy worked his arse off getting me exactly what I wanted with the programming and design side of things. When I last saw the near complete project, I asked him to have his buddies test the programming for him. I offered to pay them, so the beta testing help came through fast with only a few things to change.

The fifth business investment project that I'd had Mr Anderson make an offer of investment to, they accepted my terms and signed me up as a primary investor. This was a children's clothing brand that should make it big just before Christmas and stay that way for a few more years yet. After that was complete, they took Mr Anderson and I out for lunch and gave me a thank you gift of a few sets of boys clothing. I passed these on to my adorable little brother, who was thrilled with the new clothing. He wore them for three days straight. Including to bed at night.

My loungewear clothing designs were coming along nicely. Mum asked me about it last weekend and I showed her a few samples of fabric that I'd had my designs printed on, using a stretch silk and another on satin silk. Both designs are small flowers on a creamy dark to light ombre background, looking much like winter pear blossoms, but not quite. Kind of like a stylised pear blossom. I also included watercolour drawings of small birds that are native to our local area, siting on branches and flying through the patterns.

The whole-piece clothing prints were designed to like one piece of art work, with heavier patterns and shades at the bottom of robes or pyjama pants, then lighter and airier parts of the design near the neckline. It felt very reminiscent of flower Japanese scroll art from a century ago. I wanted it to look and feel like the customer was wearing a work of art. Like the traditional painting came to life and flew away from the wall it was displayed on and wrapped itself lovingly around its new owner.

Patricia had been an amazing assistant on my projects so far. She practically drove the whole business for me, while I was busy at school. Between her and Freddy and Mr Anderson, I had everything under control.

I met up with the advertising agency that Wallace recommended to me. I actually have a feeling he owns the agency as they were incredibly resourceful and helpful. I told them what I wanted, what kind of actor I wanted to be the 'face' of the project, and where and when I wanted the ad campaigns to show. All of this I gleamed from the original advertising campaign that happened during my previous timeline 'before'. This ad campaign also ate up the last of my monetary resources. I couldn't begin anything else until my A&A App sold.

We made plans to have the ad campaign begin running a week after the launch of the app on all downloading platforms. I actually didn't plan on making any money from the app purchase itself, but the sale of the project as a whole. I smile as I think about how much I'm hoping to get from the project.

Wallace had started asking me more and more about the app project. When I asked him why he was so interested, he paused and looked at me, ponderously. Then he told me that a business associate, one of the database connections that he'd put me onto, had been asking him about the project and how far along it was. I laughed and joked with him that maybe the business associate was probably wondering how much it was going to hurt their bottom dollar. When I cheekily suggested to Wallace that he needs to buy the project off me once it is for sale, he nodded, looking like he actually agreed with me.

Speaking of Wallace. After the Overmeyer Business Banquet and the spiked drinks incident, my step father became very determined to find out who did it and why. The service staff were all questioned and interviewed within an inch of their lives. When it was discovered that it wasn't the waiting staff, nor the bar tenders, but a guest who took off his black jacket to serve up spiked drinks, Wallace called for the police to join him in the investigation and a young guy from another wealthy family was found in possession of the date rape drug. Security video recordings also show him coming and going at the banquet, proving that he was there that night. He was arrested and charged with dealing drugs with intent to harm. He never gave up the reason why he did it, nor who asked him to do it. Without any paper trail leading to anyone else, he took the rap alone. Eyva was never implicated.

But what she had done with the dress before and during the event had implicated her enough and shown both Wallace and my mother exactly what she was willing to do to pull me down.

After hearing about the incident, Grandma and Grandad Overmeyer decided that Eyva needed to spend some more time with them at their estate under strict supervision and she's been there ever since.

They all came home last weekend to have an evening Sunday meal with us. It was a lovely, semi-formal affair. Grandpa Overmeyer asked me about Wallace's theodolite that I found him with the M.O. initials on it. He laughed when I told him I nearly took the gift back when I realised how banged up the original box was. The old grandfather laughed and I kept going on and on about the story in detail, trying to get him to laugh again. He's a funny old man, and I really like him.

Grandma Overmeyer, on the other hand, is a really strict lady. If it wasn't for her, we wouldn't be dressed up in our finest semi-formal clothing, eating a formal dinner together. Just her very nature and manner demands a strict respect. She was the perfect wealthy man's wife and didn't take any nonsense from any body.

After the meal, Grandma Overmeyer took a moment with me alone. She asked me about how I was doing in the new school and at the estate. I could tell she was trying to find out if I was the problem that caused Eyva's behaviour to change. In a way, I was.

I tried my best to reassure her of her concerns. I didn't tell her much about myself or what I was working on, just let her know my grades at school were excellent and that I was making friends locally.

I didn't tell her about the business projects I was working on. It had nothing to do with the Overmeyers and they didn't need to be kept informed. It wasn't until she asked me what I would like as a gift for my birthday that I realised that I was going to turn eighteen in a few days time. I smiled, thanked her for her generosity and having learned from mistakes I made in the past, I refused her kindness. I told her I wasn't in need of anything. She pursed her lips at that.

But the conversation left me elated and happy. My eighteenth birthday was coming up, at long last.