Chapter 19: Chapter 19

Jessica stared at the woman unsurely, but nodded politely, wondering if the name was supposed to mean anything to her. The name did not ring a bell, so she had no idea who the woman was, but she was not about to say that.

"Do you know who I am?" The woman, Charlotte as she called herself, asked.

"No. No, I don't ma'am."

"That's okay. Now, I want you to know that I've decided that you're leaving this place very soon. How do you feel about that?"

"I'm very grateful to you, ma'am."

"You're happy to leave then?" Charlotte asked, causing Jessica to pause. What sort of question was this? Was it a trick question? Since she did not know how to answer, she decided to go with the truth.

"Yes, I am, ma'am." Jessica's heart was beating a mile a minute, but she hoped that this woman was really telling the truth. She would do literally anything, whatever it took to get out of here and see her dear Sebastian one more time. It was the thought of him that had kept her going all these terrible months.

"That's good. I would have been surprised if the answer was not that. Now, I have a proposal for you. You're going to promise to do a simple favor for me and then I will let you go. Needless to tell you that if you renege on your own part of the bargain, there will be dire consequences."

"Of course, of course. I understand, ma'am. I'm willing to do anything for you."

"All I want is my revenge."

"Revenge?"

"On Sebastian's family."

"I don't understand, ma'am," Jessica said.

"I want to use Sebastian to hurt his uncle big time. I know how much that man loves him."

"Okay?" Jessica said, not sure where this was headed and not sure she liked it one bit.

"Yeah. I want that man to feel the pain my mother felt and is still feeling after all these years. I want him to feel my wrath. He'll know what it means to face the rage of the Callister family.

At this, Jessica became quiet as she pondered on what this woman was telling her. If she got her facts right, then this woman had some sort of beef towards Sebastian's uncle, Mr. James, and wanted her to help her get revenge. She was not sure she wanted to be a part of such a thing, after all, all this while, it was only the thought of being in the arms of Sebastian again that had kept her going and she could hardly wait.

The woman must have seen the uncertainty on her face because she spoke again. "Now, I know you fancy yourself to be in love with him and think that he is hopelessly in love with you too. However, I'm sorry to burst your bubbles. Your dear Sebastian does not love you as you thought. In fact, I doubt he ever did. I don't know what sort of game he was playing with you, but you can rest assured that he was just toying with you, after all, he can have literally any woman he fancies in the world. He is just like his evil uncle...they think only about themselves and are incapable of loving anybody."

"That's not true." Jessica blurted out, forgetting herself and the fact that she was still a captive and only belatedly remembering, whereupon she snapped her mouth shut and looked fearfully at the woman, but the woman did not say anything. She just smiled indulgently at her.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. But I know for a fact that Sebastian loves me very much. I can tell when a man loves me."

"I thought you might say that. May I ask you then, why your dear Sebastian has not come to rescue you all this while? You and I know for sure that he has the resources and if he doesn't have the connections to do so, then his uncle has connections in abundance."

"I...I..."

"Hmm hmm. We both know how much that old man loves Sebastian. All he had to do is to say the word and old James would move mountains to find you if only to please him. They don't want to find you as they feel it is a waste of time and resources, that's why. I'll have you know that they are not even trying... and I should know since I have my ears wide open because I and my brother are always on the alert. No one is looking for you and Sebastian's family has managed to convince even your parents that you're long dead."

Jessica remained mute, wondering if she believed this woman. On the one hand, there was an element of truth in what she was saying. Jessica knew and was certain that if Sebastian really put his mind to it, he would have long found her.

"I'm

sorry, but I don't believe all this, especially about Sebastian. He loves me very much and if he knew where I was, he would have since done everything to find me."

"So what you're telling me is that you believe that if you go back to Sebastian right this minute, he'll welcome you back with open arms and you guys will pick up your love right from where you stopped?"

"Yes, ma'am. I know that for a fact. But I assure you that it would even be better for you and your agenda."

"Hmmm. How so?"

"Well, if I get back with Sebastian, it would be easier for me to help you get your revenge against his uncle. I don't like that man and never have. He and his wife despise me for reasons that are beyond me and after doing everything that I could to earn their affection, I've decided that to hell with it." Jessica said passionately, and Charlotte could see that she meant every word.

"Are you sure you do not know the reason why they hate you?" Charlotte asked, smiling knowingly at her and Jessica felt her face go up in flames. Charlotte knew exactly why Mr. James hated her.