Chapter 78: Chapter 78
“Ar, do everything to convince Zed to go with you today. Trick him if you have to. Go to Mountain Paradise, a mountain resort not far from his place. Aliyah is there already. From there, they will fly directly to Bhutan.” Ella’s voice is louder than a whisper, but the hissing sound of her shallow breaths draws a string of fear within me. It looks like she has arranged a private plane for Zed and Aliyah's escape.
“Ella, what’s going on?” I ask her, staring at the screen on my phone. How I wish she were on video call so that I could see the actual situation she is in.
“We don’t have time to talk, Ara. Just please listen to me. Get Zed into the plane right now!”
Everything that Zed revealed flashes yesterday in my mind. Ella has betrayed him! He’s even sure that she was the one who leaked his secret into social media. Because, apart from Yen, only Ella knows his story – his regular sessions with Dr. Vergara. And even if he believes that Ella still loves him, he also knows that James might have pressured her and left her with no choice.
“I’m sorry, Ella. But I can’t trust you anymore,” I say, my lips curling in disdain.
How can I be sure that she’s not the one tricking us? What if her bumping into Zed at the airport is all staged up? Of all the people out there, why did it have to be Zed to save her from distress? She’s wealthy – the major shareholder of a luxurious chain of restaurants – why does she leave the management to her subordinates?
“Don’t be silly! We’re running out of time. James is escaping tomorrow. And he already gives his order to pick Zed up. You know what that means? He wants to handle Zed personally.” Ella sounds desperate already; the sound of her panting also quickens my heartbeats.
“You betrayed Zed, Ella. How can you claim that you want to save him when you’re the one who tramples his pride and dignity?”
Zed and I are never sure that Ella was the one who did that. But no matter how many times we analyze the situation, all factors go down to her as the culprit. Of course, she has to clean her image before James, even if it costs Zed’s dignity.
“Ara, please. That’s part of my plans. Yes, it was me who released those photos. And it was me who disclosed Zed’s appointments with Dr. Vergara. But I will explain it to him later.”
That revelation sounds like a bomb to my ear. My body stiffens, and my eyes feel like they’re about to drop on the floor!
“Do you mean you’re paying someone to follow Zed and Yen that day?”
I already grit my teeth in anger. If I’m with Ella now, I may have slapped her already! She doesn't only break Zed's heart, he also ruined Yen and Kim's marriage
“No, Ella! It was Maezy. If only I had known about those photos earlier, maybe the engagement didn’t happen anymore.”
She’s right, and I hate this! I’m getting confused, not knowing who among them is telling the truth.
“Please, Ara,” says Ella, her voice starting to crack. I hold my breath, waiting for another bomb she has yet to drop. But to my surprise, I hear her sobs instead. Those muffled sobs have swayed me. And even if I can’t see her, I can tell she’s trying hard to hold back her tears. And in those small sobs, I can still feel her frustration, fear, and pain.
Pressing the red call icon on my screen, I hurry outside to look for Zed. I had seen him washing his car a few minutes ago. And realizing he’s not in the garage anymore, my heartbeats begin to spike. I start imagining horrible things about him, and these wild thoughts scare me even more.
Ever since I came here with Ella, I no longer leave Zed. Because I know that he needs someone to listen in these down moments of his life. And that one is no other than me – his best friend.
Seeing that he’s not even in the garden, I dash out to the living room and pick up my phone. In my panic, my fingers move fast across my phone’s keyboard, but because my fear increases by the second, I enter the wrong password several times.
I take a deep breath to calm myself, and I try to slow down. And finally, I got the password right.
“Zed, my goodness, where are you?!” I yell into my phone.
“Ar, what’s wrong?” comes Zed’s melodious voice.
“I said, where are you?” I curse under my breath.
“Why? I’m going to Jakara Hotel to meet the gigolo.”
Oh, my goodness! Jakara Hotel? It’s highly a possible enemy’s lair!
Because in this situation, I even suspect that Kim has ridden the tide and joined in taking revenge at Zed. Of course, Kim won’t be too happy to know that his wife is still flirting with her ex-husband. If he can’t punish Yen for her sin, he sure will take it far and do it to Zed.
I grab my case from the center table and sprint towards my car. Even as I maneuver out of the garage, I keep muttering a prayer that Zed is just safe. I promise to do everything to get him into the plane that Ella has arranged.
Taking large strides across the lobby, I finally see Zed sitting at the corner. But what scares me again is to see that the gigolo he means is no other than Mr. D himself!
Dear skies, why does it always pour when it rains?
I order a cup of coffee and saunter to the table closest to where Zed and Mr. D are sitting. I look down to hide my face, but I sharpen my sense of hearing.
“Why are you showing me that painting?” Zed asks, his face pulling into a frown.
“Ar, do everything to convince Zed to go with you today. Trick him if needed. Go to Mountain Paradise, a mountain resort not far from his place. Aliyah is there already. From there, they will fly directly to Bhutan.” Ella’s voice is louder than a whisper but the hissing sound of her shallow breaths draw a string of fear within me. It looks like she has arranged a private plane for Zed and Aliyah.
“Ella, what’s going on?” I ask her, staring at the screen of my phone. How I wish she were on video call so that I could see the real situation she is in.
“We don’t have time to talk, Ara. Just please listen to me. Get Zed right now!”
Everything that Zed revealed yesterday flashes in my mind. Ella has betrayed him. He’s even sure that she was the one who leaked his secret into social media. Because, apart from Yen, only Ella knows his story – his regular sessions with Dr. Vergara. And even if he believes that Ella still loves him, he also knows that James has pressured her and left her with no choice.
“I’m sorry, Ella. But I can’t trust you anymore,” I say, my lips curling in disdain.
How can I be sure that she’s not the one tricking us up? What if her bumping into Zed at the airport is all staged up? Of all the people out there, why did it have to be Zed to save her from distress? She’s rich and wealthy – the major shareholder of a luxurious restaurant chain – why does she leave the management to her subordinates?
“Don’t be silly! We’re running out of time. James is escaping tomorrow. And he already gives his order to pick Zed up. You know what that means? He wants to handle Zed personally.” Ella sounds desperate already, the sound of her panting also quickens my heartbeats.
“You betrayed Zed, Ella. How can you claim that you love him when you’re the one who tramples his pride and dignity?”
Zed and I are never sure that Ella was the one who did that. But no matter how many times we analyze the situation, all the factors go down to her as the culprit. Of course, she has to clean her image for James, even if it costs Zed’s dignity.
“Ara, please. That’s the part of my trick in saving Zed. Yes, it was me who release those photos. And it was me who disclosed Zed’s appointments with Dr. Vergara. But I can explain it later.”
That revelation sounds like a bomb to my ear. My body stiffens, and my eyes feel like they’re about to drop on the floor!
“Do you mean you’re paying someone to follow Zed and Yen that day?”
I already grit my teeth in anger. If it happens that I’m with Ella now, I may have slapped her already!
“No, Ella! It was Maezy. If only I had known about those photos earlier, maybe the engagement didn’t happen anymore.”
She’s right, and I hate this! I’m getting confused, not knowing who among them is telling the truth.
“Please, Ara,” says Ella, her voice starting to crack. I hold my breath, waiting for another bomb she has yet to drop. But to my surprise, I hear her sobs, instead. That muffled sob sways me. And even if I can’t see her, I can tell she’s trying hard to hold back her tears. And in those small sobs, I can still feel her frustration, fear, and pain.
Pressing the red call icon on my screen, I hurry outside to look for Zed. I had seen him washing his car a few minutes ago. And realizing he’s not in the garage anymore, my heartbeats spike. I start imagining horrible things about him, and these wild thoughts scare me even more.
Ever since I came here with Ella, I no longer leave Zed. Because I know that in these down moments of his life, he needs someone to listen. And that is no one else but me – his best friend.
Seeing that he’s not even in the garden, I dash out to the living room and pick up my phone. In my panic, my fingers move fast across my phone’s keyboard, but because my fear increases by the second, I enter a wrong password for several times.
I take a deep breath to calm myself and I try to slow down. And finally, I get the password right.
“Zed, my goodness, where are you?!” I yell into my phone.
“Ar, what’s wrong?” comes Zed’s melodious voice.
“I said, where are you?” I curse under my breath.
“Why? I’m going to Jakara Hotel to meet the gigolo.”
Oh, my goodness! Jakara Hotel? It’s highly a possible enemy’s lair!
Because in this situation, I even suspect that Kim has ridden the tide and join in taking revenge at Zed. Of course, Kim won’t be too happy to know that his wife is still flirting with her ex-husband. If he can’t punish Yen for her sin, he sure will take it far and do it to Zed.
I grab my case from the center table and sprint towards my car. Even as I maneuver out of the garage, I keep muttering a prayer that Zed is just safe. I promise to do everything it takes to get him into the plane that Ella has arranged.
Taking large strides across the lobby, I finally see Zed sitting at the corner. But what scares me again is to see that the gigolo he means is no other than Mr. D himself!
Dear skies, why does it always pour when it rains?
I ordered a cup of coffee and walk slowly to the table closest to where Zed and Mr. D is sitting. I look down to hide my face, but I sharpen my sense of hearing.
“Why are you showing me that painting?” asks Zed, his face pulling into a frown.
“I just want to show you the design of the wedding dress I want Ella to wear.”