Chapter 85: Chapter 85

Three hours before Fathia headed to the Energy Building.

"You nervous, Fat?" Jess asks, idly playing with her fingers on the dining table. Their breakfast had finished a few hours ago. It was made cheerfully by Fathia, despite the teasing from Jess. However, Fathia received an affectionate peck from Sebastian without shame.

Almost every chance Jess gets, when Sebastian isn't around, she teases Fathia relentlessly. It's her own form of entertainment, especially when the redness on Fathia's cheeks is so apparent. It brings Jess immense satisfaction to mock her, especially since Fathia never gets angry, even if she pouts all day long.

But all the playful words Jess wants to throw at her are held back as she sees her friend fall silent after breakfast. Watching Sebastian, who also gazes worriedly at Fathia as he leaves, Jess understands this deeply. And to be honest, Jess is scared herself.

Really.

She never thought the day would come when everything would be revealed. Including Fathia demanding answers for what happened. Jess truly supports what Fathia is doing, especially now that they're here, under the protection of people who genuinely care about her. However, what Fathia said about her fear isn't without reason.

Aside from trying to calm Fathia, Jess can't do much.

"Well... you could say that," Fathia looks up from the cup of tea that Summer made. "I don't know why, but I have a bad feeling."

"I'm here, Fathia. You don't have to be afraid," Jess reassures her, gently rubbing Fathia's arm for support. "Besides, I'll be there with you."

Fathia nods softly. "Thanks, Jess." She smiles sincerely at her friend. "I'm lucky to have you as a friend."

Jess scoffs playfully. "Come on, let's get ready." Fathia immediately agrees. The sound of Jess pushing her chair back signals that she's heading back to her room, preparing to go to the Azure Group office.

"Aren't you scared at all?" Fathia's question momentarily stops Jess in her tracks. The girl turns and looks at Fathia intently. She smiles gently, then returns to her seat. "I'm scared, Fathia. Really scared."

Fathia continues to gaze at Jess intensely.

"But I know we have to face this to move forward. We can't avoid the time when everything comes out forever, right?"

The shoulder-length haired girl nods softly. "You're right."

"So... whatever the risks are, we're ready. Right, Fathia?"

Fathia's smile doesn't fade in front of Jess, and neither does Jess's. Truly, Fathia is lucky to have Jess by her side. Jess always worries about her and fully supports her. Most importantly, Jess is the one who helped Fathia set her goals, both in her mind and heart.

"I hope that the mastermind behind the campus incident gets what they deserve." Jess feels her anger rising. She closes her eyes briefly, and the image of Paulina and her family appears. Their tears and the other victims come to mind, not to mention the chaotic state of her heart when she couldn't find Fathia anywhere. Upon hearing the news that her friend was in critical condition, it felt like Jess had lost her footing.

Later that day arrived, when Fathia was laid to rest. The sadness grew stronger. The nights Jess went through were rough, really rough. It got even worse with all the pressure she faced after the incident, including being abandoned by someone she cared about.

Things turned around when Clara introduced her to Fathia. With the figure that now stands by her side. It made her think that she truly had to get Fathia to move on. Seek revenge. She couldn't accept Fathia's current state. Maybe now, her friend could get plastic surgery, but Jess remembered, it takes time to heal the wounds on her face before surgery can be done.

There seemed to be a lesson Jess could draw from this. It could serve as further proof that the person targeting Fathia, aside from causing their own trauma, left her with scars.

"Me too, Jess. Especially for my parents," Fathia's hands clenched tightly. Her fingertips whitened as her grip grew stronger. Fathia didn't even care if her nails were starting to leave marks on her palm. Seriously. Remembering how easily her parents' lives were taken away, her anger was reaching its boiling point.

She never imagined that it all boiled down to greed. An ambition so big that it forgot about all the people hurt in the process, including herself. A child left orphaned by both parents and an only sibling. Her life wasn't as free as it should have been, all because of the desire for absolute power.

Fathia felt like she no longer had compassion. She wished her own hands could punish that person, no matter how.

****

Elsewhere, at the same time Fathia and Jess were talking.

Once again, a glass smashed against the wall, acting as a barrier to the tension in this dimly lit room. The owner didn't want much light in there, believing it would only dazzle his eyes. But he had a heart as dark as night. He didn't care if he would face a barrage of criticism. To him, what he wanted was a necessity.

"You bastard!!!" he cursed loudly. "Why couldn't you finish off Sebastian then, huh?!"

Not a single person in the room spoke, including Alan. Their lips remained sealed as they all observed their boss's movements. The boss leaned back into his oversized chair again. A rough frustrated exhale escaped him. He also rubbed his temples slightly, trying to control the anger that now possessed him.

Damn it.

In addition to all the financial flow for the project he was handling being hindered, this was all because of one person; Sebastian Sachdev. An outsider Alvin trusted to manage Group Azure? Oh my god! For whatever was around him, he himself doubted Sebastian could bring Group Azure to success. But... it turned out the guy could make Group Azure shine again. Competing with Sailendra, who was supposed to keep working with him.

Unfortunately, Sebastian was truly a major obstacle to all his plans. Indeed, he had considered Sebastian's involvement in Group Azure ever since he first read Alvin's will through Clara. Even though Sebastian had often wandered around Alvin as one of his trusted people, he never expected Alvin to act that way.

And on top of that... Sebastian was a damn thorn in his side.

Today, there's a major meeting to discuss fund allocations, and surely Alef Walker's name as the one responsible for the policies would come up. Not to mention, the meeting was attended by all shareholders, whether active or not. It surprised Alef quite a bit with the information Alan delivered yesterday afternoon.

His anger wasn't subsiding one bit.

"Sir, the meeting is in three hours," Alan reminded. His voice was soft, but it only fueled Alef's fury even more.

"Shut up!!!" he snapped uncontrollably. Making Alan take a small step back. He didn't argue much, knowing his boss's anger was spiraling out of control. He merely reminded him that the meeting that would take place in three hours was a necessity.

Instead of sitting back and leaning, Alef chose to rise. He grabbed his walking stick promptly and strode arrogantly. His movements were mimicked by Alan and several other aides. Meanwhile, the rest of them let out relieved breaths and quickly enlisted someone to tidy up the mess their boss had caused.

"Soon Group Azure will be mine, Alan," he said softly, but the tone was genuinely chilling. It made the hairs on the people around him suddenly stand on end. Not to mention the dark aura that never faded from him, always instilling a unique fear when facing him.

"Yes, Sir," Alan struggled to keep up with Alef's pace, as he wasn't particularly fast. "Soon Group Azure will be yours. Completely."

Alef nodded slowly. "But why is Sebastian obstructing like this at the last moment?"

Alan didn't have the right words to speak this time. He himself was perplexed by Sebastian's influence in Group Azure because suddenly, everything seemed to be getting tighter. Even some of the requests that his boss had ordered were met with strong warnings from Sebastian. Alan was just an intermediary and assistant to Alef, with no authority over the progress of the project his boss was working on.

Though he had some inkling of where everything was going. Alan didn't want to know, what he desired was Alef Walker's death when he was at the peak. A retaliation for all the hurtful things caused by Alef's arrogance in the past. He would never forget how the grudge against Alef in his heart had actually materialized.

Alan quickly opened the door for the available Alef. His dark-hearted, imposing car was waiting. It was clearly intended for the significant meeting that hadn't even started yet, but was already fueling Alef's anger. However, before Alef completely entered the car, he said, "When I'm on top, just get rid of Sebastian. At first, I planned to eliminate only Alvin's family, but turns out, Sebastian is getting more and more annoying."

Alan fell silent for a moment, then nodded slightly in response. "Understood, Sir."

"No more mistakes. I won't tolerate any failure to eliminate Sebastian." Alef entered his car, staring straight ahead without caring that Alan was momentarily quiet due to his command.

Alan's mind was racing. Did he have to eliminate Sebastian this time? Like that? Would other lives be sacrificed for his boss's satisfaction? How long would he continue to be stained with the blood of others just because of this boss's insane obsession? Even though he wasn't the one executing it, the order came directly from him. No. Alan had to stop this.

He had to.

If someone had to die for his boss's desires, it should be the person giving the orders. No one else.

****

Two hours before the significant meeting. Energy Building. Sebastian's office.

"Have you prepared everything, Vin?" Sebastian asked, making sure. Especially the security for the girl who was on her way to his office. Accompanied by Dennis, the person Sebastian trusted to look after Fathia while he was at the office.

"Everything's set, Sir. Mr. Ronald also confirmed, on his way here."

Sebastian nodded. He turned his focus back to the documents he would discuss in the important meeting, including all the allegations of misconduct that Alef Walker had committed over the past few years.

"But, Sir," Vino really wanted to inform Sebastian of his biggest concern, but seeing Sebastian's concentration return, he abandoned the idea and decided to handle it himself.

"Why, Vin?" Sebastian was quite surprised by Vino, who suddenly moved away instead. "What's up?"

Vino fell silent for a moment and shook his head in response. "There's nothing, Sir. Just something I don't think is important."

Sebastian was becoming more suspicious of his assistant. "What's going on?" This time, Sebastian asked with a tone that made Vino think twice about not making his boss wonder again.

"About Clara," Vino let out a soft sigh. "What's going to happen to her?"

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Sebastian's lips. "You're quite concerned about Clara too, huh?"

Vino's nod was a clear response. His facial expression suddenly became tense. Plus, a relentless nervousness overwhelmed him. How could... Oh my god! He was scared and felt uneasy in front of the man before him. There was nothing he could do but look down, staring at the floor.

"I've known for a while that you've been paying attention to Clara."

Vino became even more submissive.

"Just relax, Clara won't be taken by the authorities. Mr. Ronald can guarantee that, even if he has to be a witness. Maybe he'll even be one of the key witnesses to drag Alef to jail." There was a pronounced anger in Sebastian's words.

Even though he really wanted Clara to experience what Fathia had gone through. But Sebastian remembered, what Clara did to Fathia was under Larasati's orders. Though... at this point, Sebastian truly didn't expect Clara's heart to be covered by the thick fur called cunning. Exploiting the situation for her own interests? Hoping that he loved Clara? Ah... maybe that's why he couldn't get too close to her, even though what was lacking in Clara?

There was almost nothing. But truly, her actions made Sebastian hate her.

"Not like that, Sir," Vino said with his shoulders slumped. "I just feel... Miss Clara does this because she loves you so much, that's why."

Sebastian scoffed. "That's not love, that's obsession."

Vino chose to seal his lips. He observed from the corner of his eye as Sebastian now rose from his oversized chair. He walked slowly, which, as it turned out, was headed towards him.

"Who knows, maybe you can handle Clara's obsession, Vin." Sebastian gently patted Vino's shoulder, leaving many wrinkles on the forehead of the man who looked neat in his navy blue shirt.

"What do you mean, Sir?"

The well-dressed man only grinned slightly. "Ah, suddenly I'm craving Fathia's homemade coffee."