" Evil lurks in the walls you conceal."
Damn! Fear gripped Adriana. Had her cover been blown?
Her father would be so disappointed with her. She needed to act quickly but first, she needed to get dressed.
She had made up her mind not to go out of the room until she had gotten her answer.
Adriana went to Nathan's room hoping to find what she needed to hold on to if indeed she was revealed or even if she had to flee.
She was regretting her decision now.
She slipped into a pair of new undies that Nathan had made sure he bought for her.
That man just disgusted her!
She reached for her luggage which was stuffed inside Nathan's wardrobe and brought out a phone she had concealed inside the bag.
She dialed a number and placed the phone to her ear.
"Hello, My princess."
Her father's voice calmed a bit.
"There's a problem father!"
Her tone was serious and the man on the line knew something had gone wrong.
"Did he find you out?"
"No! I don't think so but someone has and the person is trying to get to me. I found a note with my name on it."
Her father cackled.
"No need to worry, even if he finds out, you're already married. What you need to do now is to focus on the mission. Let the blackmail keep wasting his/her time. You...get the job done!"
"I won't disappoint you father."
He did not reply. The line just went dead.
Adriana tossed her phone to the bed and contemplated on how to make her next move.
She had wanted to follow Plan A before but maybe she would have to go for Plan B. The blackmailer was making things quite hard for her.
Fuck! Adriana brushed away the wet hair sticking on her face. She was in between. Maybe she'd just do both.
The door opened and Adriana turned to see who the intruder was.
Her mother. She seemed distant and her eyes examined the room cautiously like someone was watching.
"What mother? You look like you've seen a ghost."
Mrs. Romero walked up to her daughter and pointed a finger in her face then spoked in a hushed whisper,
"I warned you! They'll find you out now."
For all Adriana could see, her mother was being paranoid. She could handle the worst of blackmails, that was why she was COO after all.
"Mom you're being childish. Just tell me what you know."
Her mother twisted her neck back and forth once more before speaking.
" That girl Claire was asking too many questions."
While her mother continued, Adriana got dressed.
"You have to stop chasing your father's ambitions and follow yours."
Adriana was already dressed in a midnight blue sleeveless dress that hung like spaghetti to her shoulders when she replied to her mother.
"It's our ambition Mother!"
Her mother shook her head in disappointment.
"What happened to that cheerful little girl who could not keep a grudge?"
"She grew up!" Adriana retorted staring at her thin and subtle reflection through the mirror that could be seen from the open bathroom.
She was ready to ruin him!
***
"I put it there." The young boy informed Claire in a loud voice.
"Thanks, you're a lifesaver."
The small child smiled and scurried away to join his family.
The night was heavy and people had begun to exit the party wishing Nathan marital Bliss.
Claire gulped down a glass of red wine as she pondered on what step she had to take now.
It didn't take long for the wine to kick in and give her a boost of the confidence she needed. She was going to confronts Nathan's new wife irrespective of what was thought of her. She was only looking out for her best friend.
Claire sluggishly walked up tye stairs finding it difficult to walk tall due ti the dizziness the wine had blessed her with. The cost of the confidence she was now burning with. There was a price for everything after all.
The floor was wet and had the shape of footprints, a sign that Bianca had threaded on the floor. The wet prints led to Nathan's bedroom.
Being a gentlewoman, Claire knocked and waited for a reply before entering.
Mrs. Romero was with her daughter. It was that convenient or they were afraid of something perhaps. Something she had whispered to Mrs. Romero earlier.
The wine's stronghold over Claire Mae her spit out her mission without hesitation or beating around the bushes.
"I want to talk to you, Adriana."
Claire expected a gasp or at least shock. There was none of that. Claire/Adriana just smiled.
How convenient!
"Come sit Claire," Adriana said, her hands on the bed, an invitation to join the enemy.
Who would resist such an offer?
Claire joined the scheming two on the bed. The fact that Adriana had not debunked her accusation was a sure sign she was right but maybe she hadn't heard. Claire, however, knew differently. Bianca's round black eyes held mischief and something far sinister underneath. Her toothed grin eas creeping her out but the wine... it was sure working wonders.
"I see you found out."
Claire opened her mouth slightly. Just enough to convey her shock. Bianca wasn't denying it. She even acknowledged her theory.
"So you are a fraud?"
"Yes!" Bianca answered, her eyes fixated on her polished fingernails.
The wine seemed to have lost effect as the room turned cold. The hairs on Claire's back stood erect like they had a magnetic pull to something.
"Are you going to kill me?" Claire stuttered, crippled with fear.
She regretted coming here alone and not informing Nathan first.
Sure he was drunk and might have laughed her off but at least someone would gaze what happened to her when she confronted these people.
"No!" Bianca's answer was quick and plain and echoed a thousand times to Claire.
"I have a job for you."
Claire's mind was drawn away from the conversation. All her mind wanted now was out... Out of this box she was trapped in.
The door was not that far to make a run for it but Claire doubted she would make it before something bad happened.
"What deal?" Her vocals tightened and all she could mutter was a croak.
" I know Nathan sometimes lets you handle his paperwork... So I want you to get him to sign this."
Claire watched Adriana shove a paper into her arms.
Claire lifted the paper in her sweaty hands to take a look at what was written there. It made her sick.
"You want Nathan's company!" She erupted." And you think I'm going to assist you in destroying my friend!"
Claire was still ranting when Claire played to her hearing a recording.
"Aunty...Help! Help!"
The recording went silent and Bianca spoke,
"I think you know who that is. It would be a shame if something just happened to her."
Claire fell silent, trying to build up the confidence to even utter something.
"If you hurt my niece..."
"Nah! There will be no hurting if you do as we say and with no slip-ups."
Adriana's voice was authoritative.
Claire was trapped. She dared not report to the police if she wanted her Niece's safety. Her mind reeled in several ways this deal she was forced in could end up in but nothing was beyond her niece's safety, he was blood after all.
"So what do you say, Deal or no deal?" Adriana quizzed, one hand on her phone in anticipation to give Claire's Niece abductors the next step to take.
Say No! Say No! Claire's conscience screamed.
"Deal!"
"Smart choice."
Claire had to ask, why was she doing this if she was a COO in another prestigious Enterprise but she best kept her mouth shut.
She latched on to the paper that would be either her Niece's death or her friend's destruction.
In the end, blood is thicker than water.