Chapter 2
My chest tightened, but I forced myself to sound confused. "Who is this? Did you dial the wrong number?"
"Esther," he said my name flatly. "Drop the act."
"What do you want?" I gripped my phone, my palms starting to sweat, but I kept my tone tough. "I have no idea what you're talking about.
"Charles, we're even now. You took the money and got the termination agreement. What more do you want? Are you planning to keep harassing me?"
"Even?" He suddenly let out a low laugh, thick with mockery and danger. "Esther, what do you take me for? A pet you can play with when you like and discard when you're bored?
"Do you think that contract and 300 thousand dollars can wipe out everything you did to me?"
My heart sank. Of course, it wasn't going to be that easy to move on.
"Then what do you want?" I said bluntly, giving up on restraint. "How about I give you another 300 thousand dollars?"
The line went quiet again. I thought he'd hung up.
As I was about to breathe a sigh of relief, he said in a low, haunting voice, "Esther, you started this game, but I decide when it ends."
*****
After that strange call with Charles, I felt uneasy for days. It kept feeling like things were going off track compared to how the story was supposed to go.
Determined to escape this nightmare, I accelerated every asset transfer I could.
That day, under the pretense of reviewing an investment project, I attended a high-end business party on a cruise ship.
Wearing a simple black dress, I moved through the crowd of rich people, looking for a lawyer who could deal with my overseas assets.
I never found the lawyer, but in a corner, I saw the last person I wanted to run into.
It was Charles.
He was wearing a waiter's uniform, holding a tray, standing quietly in the corner shadows. He looked totally out of place.
He looked more worn than before, his complexion still pale, yet his eyes were brighter than ever. His gaze was intense enough to make me uneasy.
Our gazes met in midair. A sudden wave of tension hit me, and instinctively, I wanted to leave.
"Ms. Crawford," Charles stepped right up and blocked my path.
He gave a slight nod, his posture respectful, yet the mockery in his eyes was impossible to hide. "Would you like a glass of champagne?"
People around us were already watching the show, eager for some drama.
Everyone knew Charles used to be the sugar baby I kept.
Now I stood here chatting easily among elites, while he served as a waiter. Of course, they would find the contrast shocking.
"No, thanks," I said, forcing myself to stay calm. I pulled out a few dollar bills from my purse and tried to shove them into his pocket, putting on that old, superior attitude. "Consider it a reward. Keep working."
This was the fastest way I could think of to get rid of him for good.
I needed him to feel humiliated, to hate me, and to stay far away.
However, Charles pulled back, avoiding my hand. He looked at the cash in my hand, the sarcasm in his eyes growing stronger.
"Ms. Crawford, you still love throwing money at your problems," he said in a cool tone. "Too bad. I don't need it anymore."
Then, he took out the 300-thousand-dollar check and the termination agreement from his pocket, tearing them into pieces slowly in front of me.
Shreds of paper drifted down like falling snow, settling onto my dress. I stared at him in shock. "You—"
"Esther, I told you the game isn't over." He leaned in, speaking in a voice low enough that only the two of us could hear. "I'm simply curious. What exactly are you so afraid of?"
I froze.
Right then, a soft, sweet voice chimed in. "Oh, Charles, there you are."
I turned to see a girl in a white dress.
Her long hair fell over her shoulders, her face pretty and soft. It was Josephine Shaffer, the female lead from the original story, the girl Charles was supposed to fall for.
She was holding a glass of juice, and when she saw me, a hint of shyness and unease flashed in her eyes. She instinctively edged behind Charles.
Charles stepped in front of her, blocking me off. The look in his eyes toward me snapped back to that cold, unmistakable disgust. "Esther, stay away from her."
Watching this almost cliché scene of women facing off, I suddenly felt a strange sense of relief.
Good. They finally ran into each other.
I pushed all my feelings aside and slipped right back into my role as the spoiled, arrogant heiress of the Crawford family. I shot Josephine a teasing look, saying casually, "Well, she looks pretty sweet. Charles, your new type?"
Charles's face instantly darkened.
I smiled and deliberately patted his stiff cheek, acting flirty and careless. "Wow, you moved on fast, but make sure you tell her, she's only getting something I got bored with."
I turned and walked back into the crowd without looking back.
However, as I brushed past a waiter, someone suddenly grabbed my wrist from behind.
I turned back in shock and met Charles's unreadable eyes.
He stared past Josephine and locked onto me, voice quiet but harsh. "Esther, you still owe me something."
I frowned. "Didn't you tear up the 300-thousand-dollar check?"
He suddenly smiled and tapped lightly over his heart. "You messed up my heart. How are you going to make that right?"
*****
That unexpected encounter at the cruise party stuck with me like something I couldn't shake off.
The way Charles looked at me filled me with a fear I had never felt before.
He wasn't the caged bird I could toy with anymore; he was becoming a predator, ready to pounce.
I needed to move faster.
However, before I could put my escape plan into motion, Viola messed things up badly.
She found out about the cruise somehow and stormed into my room, furious.
"Esther, what the hell are you doing?" She threw a stack of photos onto my dressing table. "I told you to get close to Charles, and you practically handed him to another woman."
The photos showed Charles and Josephine talking on the cruise, taken from tricky angles that made them look way too close.
"Do you know who that girl is? She's a waitress on the cruise. I can't believe you lost to someone like that. You've humiliated the Crawford family," she said.