Chapter 23

Chapter 23: The Threat

Ariella’s eyes widened and her heartbeat thumped loudly. She was horrified as she read the letter with trembling hands over and over again. She could barely breathe as fear splintered her heart. Who could have written her this letter, she wondered as she ransacked her memory.

“I don’t remember ever offending anyone,” she mused as terror flashed in her eyes.

“Ella...”

Denise couldn’t take the suspense anymore from her friend. She snatched the letter from Ella’s grip and read it out loud.

‘Hello, Ariella Porter,

What an outrageous and demeaning show you put up at the Cherry Gala Event last night.

I never knew you were a cheap sl*t. What a horrendous talent you possess, shamelessly flirting with the CEO of Treshvire fashions. When he should be with someone of class and dignity?

.....

You are nothing but low-life trash and should remain in the gutter where you belong.

Stay the hell away from Leon or you just wait and see the unfolding of your gloom.

I will take much pleasure in destroying you, b**ch.

PS:(A symbol of a bomb with a burning chord.)’

Denise gawked at Ella in disbelief. She couldn’t hide her worried expression. But she tried reassuring Ella that it could be a jealous ex-girlfriend of Leon.

“If that should be the case, how did she find out where I live, Denise? I never came back home yesterday. Could it be that this person had been trailing me all this while? I’m really scared!” Ella looked around, as her face glistened with sweat.

“Don’t be scared, put a call across to Leon now and inform him of this,” Denise hugged Ella, and gently stroked her hair to comfort her.

“I’ll quickly check the front and back doors and ensure that they are properly secured. Also, I’ll be spending the night here,” Denise said as she walked over to the front door and completed the remaining locks.

Ella took a picture of the letter and forwarded it to Leon, who responded almost immediately with a call.

“Ella, are you alright?” He sounded worried.

“Yes, I’m fine and Denise is here with me,” Ella suddenly felt calmer and safe when she heard Leon’s voice.

“Okay, quickly take anything of importance that you will require temporarily and get ready. I have informed John to come over and take you back to the villa. When I get back tomorrow, I’ll sort out the issue.”

“Denise already promised to spend the night with me. Therefore, I don’t think it would be necessary for John to come around. Moreover, this is my house, and I can’t run away from it.”

Ella bit her lower lips in anxiety. Even though she felt unsafe at the moment, she wanted to prove to Leon, that she was capable of taking care of herself.

“I know it is your house and I am very certain you can take care of yourself. But, I am hundreds of kilometers away from you and I’m reading a threat letter sent to my wife-to-be. Certainly, you don’t expect me to sit down and do nothing,” Leon tried reasoning with her. He was slightly piqued by her stubbornness.

“Who knows, whoever sent you that letter could still be around your neighborhood. So please... do not make this difficult for me. Just get ready, okay.”

Ella paused for a while, deliberating on Leon’s suggestion before she responded.

“Alright, I’ll go with John this night. But when you get back, and the issue of the letter is sorted out, I would like to return to my house if you don’t mind.”

“Okay, we will take it one at a time. Let me know when you have safely arrived at the villa, okay?”

“Okay!” Ella said grudgingly and ended the call.

“So... you’ll be going back to the villa?”

Denise who had been listening to Ella’s conversation with Leon asked in an excited tone.

“I think so,” Ella sat down, breathed deeply, and massaged her temple.

“That’s one caring and protective husband you have there,” Denise winked at Ella. “He is far away and yet I can feel his presence all over you. Do you now to see what I was talking about previously, Ella? You both are meant for each other.”

Ella half smiled, then she laid back on her couch for a while deep in thoughts. She rarely brought friends home except for Denise and very few of her colleagues in the F&K fashion home; who knew her pretty well.

“Whoever wrote that letter seems to know me very well, from the way it was drafted,” she contemplated out loud.

“Hmm.. that’s true, I’ve been wondering the same thing,” Denise looked up at the ceiling.

“You know, the only people that seem to have a grouch with you are; Frost, Kyle, Silvia, and that insufferable brat, Chloe,” Denise pointed out.

“If you have to point an accusing finger, one of them will check in that list.”

“Yeah... Although, I doubt that Frost and Kyle will be that condescending, to be concerned about my personal lifestyle. Silvia, I can’t say for sure, but for Chloe... Chloe, Chloe!” Ella’s eyes widened and she stuck her right forefinger up, as she remembered something striking.

“What! Ella,” Denise panicked at her friend’s reaction.

Ella panted as she related Chloe’s discussion with Silvia, some few days back.

“In Chloe’s words, she said, ‘I want Leon drooling over me.'”

“You can’t be so sure, so many people, bear that name Leon,” Denise’s face creased.

“How about when Silvia made a statement linking Leon to the fashion industry? Hmm? Call me crazy but my antennas are picking an authentic signal.”

“I never knew you had antennas, how come I don’t see them? Denise teased. “Nevertheless it could be another Leon working in another fashion industry.”

“Why don’t you go and get ready before John arrives?”

“I hope you are right, Denise, because, if it happens to be my Leon, then I can bet a million bucks that Chloe is capable of this and more.

Ella stood up and was about to go to her bedroom when Denise said something that caught her attention.

“What if it happens to be your Leon, would you give up on him, or fight for him?” Denise stared deeply into her friend’s eyes.

“If it happens to be my Leon, then I will deal with Chloe mercilessly for the humiliation and embarrassment she cost me at my former place of work,” Ella’s glare was vengeful.

...

The night was calm and beautiful. A sighing wind ran faintly by. The dark sky was adorned with twinkling stars and the crescent-shaped moon shone dimly. The cricket sang in harmony to the croaking of the frogs while the day creature slept peacefully.

Under the cloak of darkness, an exotic car was seen parked close to the Robinsons’ mansion.

Chloe sat back and listened in agony to the debriefing of her spy.

After a while, the spy alighted from her car and disappeared into the night while she drove back into the mansion in great despair.

When she was finally seated on her soft and cozy bed inside her bedroom, she stared blankly at the wall.

For some reason, her plan had backfired on her. She blamed herself severely for not listening to her mum about drafting a letter and sending it to Ariella’s house to threaten her.

Earlier, her mum suggested that they would kidnap Ariella with the help of some hired thugs and interrogate her to know the extent of her relationship with Leon. Then, after good torture, they would dissuade her from the relationship and send her out of the city.

But thanks to her ill-planned threat, things have turned in favor of Ariella. The words of the spy kept replaying in her mind as she stared straight on at her bedroom door, hoping it was all a bad dream.

‘Madam Chloe, the spy had said in a hushed voice, I dropped the letter like you had instructed, and left the scene to a hidden location to continue observing her movement. After some few minutes, the same black limo that had dropped her off earlier today came back and picked her and her friend up. She was carrying a small travel bag at the time she left her house. I tracked them to this address.’

Chloe looked at the piece of paper containing an address in her hands.

“So this is where you are hiding, you fucking b**ch,” she mused in annoyance, you think you can steal my man and get away with it? By the time I done with you, you will wish you weren’t born.”

She picked up her glass of juice and hurled it across the room. It made a loud and crashing sound before the fragmented glass particles rained on the floor.

Chloe’s maid in waiting quickly knocked and dashed into her room, thinking her madam had hurt herself. But, the scene she saw, troubled her.

Chloe was hyperventilating under stress. Her hand was clutched to her chest and tears were flowing down her cheek.

“Madam Chloe, are you okay? Can I...” the maid was quick enough to dodge Chloe’s phone that came flying in her direction.

“Get lost! You... you idiot!” Chloe screamed

Luckily Chloe’s mum, who was within arms reach came to the maid’s rescue. She instructed the maid to clean up the mess and went over to console her daughter.

Chloe had been known from her earlier childhood days to always throw a scary tantrum whenever she didn’t get what she wanted. Hence, her parents, who were unfortunate to have other children, were always at her beck and call doing virtually everything to please her.

Chloe’s mother consoled her and listened to what she had to say.

“I thought I told you that I will take care of this?” Her mum spoke to her in a calm tone. “Don’t worry yourself, dear. Ariella or whatever she calls herself won’t remain in that villa forever. When she finally comes out, we will strike.