Chapter 28
“What have you done, Javier?” Elvis exclaimed as soon as they stepped outside the gate. “What made you go to such lengths?” He waited impatiently for an answer.
Javier remained silent, not uttering a word.
“For heaven’s sake, this woman almost lost her life in the fire. Thank goodness I was there at the right time. Did you also send them to try to rape her so that she would see you as her hero?” Elvis accused, giving him a murderous glare.
Javier looked up in shock. “No way. I didn’t send them to do that,” he defended.
Elvis shook his head. “At this point, I don’t know what to believe from you anymore.” He took a step away from him and sighed. “You have to tell her the truth, Javier,” he added.
“No way! She can’t find out the truth. Not now, and not like this,” Javier disagreed, shaking his head.
Elvis shook his head in disbelief. “What if she finds out about everything on her own? Do you think she’ll still care about you, your money, or your offer? She might even slap some sense into you,” he yelled angrily.
Javier furrowed his brows in confusion, wondering why Elvis was so upset. “You shouldn’t raise your voice at me,” he said, putting his hands in his pockets and showing little concern for Elvis’s opinion.
“I did it to make her regret her actions,” Javier explained, pointing at Natalie’s apartment. “She led her hands on me and then rejected me. She called me pathetic. How dare she! She has no idea what I have planned for her. This is just the beginning!” His voice was filled with anger, rage, and a desire for revenge.
Elvis was shocked by Javier’s words. He knew Javier could be cruel, but he had hoped he would act differently with Natalie. After hearing Javier’s hateful words, Elvis felt there was no redemption.
“I’m so disappointed in you,” Elvis said, walking past Javier.
“Can we leave this place? I’m feeling irritated and suffocated,” Javier stopped him.
Elvis glared at him before walking away to join the ladies, ignoring Javier’s request.
Javier knew Elvis was upset with him, so he decided not to talk to him further. He debated whether to join Elvis or go back to the mansion. He didn’t want to face Natalie, as it might give her the wrong impression that he cared, which he didn’t.
Without hesitation, he got into his sports car and drove home, leaving Elvis behind.
Elvis entered Natalie’s room and saw Kate still consoling her. He joined them and sat down opposite them, clasping his hands together. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Natalie nodded, her gaze constantly glancing at the door, waiting for Javier to return so she could give him his shirt back and thank him for saving her. Not seeing any signs of him, she decided to ask.
“Where is Javier? I thought you both went out to talk,” she asked softly, still glancing around.
“He’s probably outside,” Elvis replied, but he knew Javier might have already left. That was the part of Javier’s personality that he disliked. He didn’t like being corrected and always sought revenge for the slightest offense. But Elvis was determined not to let him interfere with Natalie. He firmly believed that he had started the whole thing and that Natalie had not wronged Javier in any way.
“You’re not even sure?” Natalie chuckled.
“We had a fight outside. He might have left. Your husband is unpredictable, you know.” Elvis teased, standing up.
“Oh, I see.” She nodded. “Give this to him when you get home.” She handed him a small bag with his shirt in it.
However, Elvis shook his head. “Give it to him when you see him tomorrow at his engagement,” he said. “I have to be on my way now. It’s already dark outside.” He added and made his way out of Natalie’s apartment.
He got outside the gate and, as expected, he didn’t see Javier’s car in sight. He gently took out his phone and booked a ride for himself.
Within an hour, a black car stopped in front of him. “Your address, Sir?” the driver asked, popping his head outside his window.
Elvis disclosed, “THE REYES ESTATE” and entered the car, zooming off immediately.
After several hours, his ride came to an end and he got out of the car. He paid more than his bills and the driver was grateful, bidding him farewell before driving off.
Elvis walked into the mansion, and it was very quiet, leading him to assume that everyone might have gone to bed. He checked his watch and saw that it was already 12:14 PM.
As he started to go up the stairs to check on Javier, he noticed Carlo sneaking out of Javier’s room, covered in sweat and looking around nervously. Elvis quickly ran back and hid beneath the stairs so as not to be seen by Carlo.
“Why is he in Javier’s room at this time of night? Why is he sweating and looking around like a criminal trying not to get caught in the act?” Elvis wondered, waiting patiently for Carlo to move away.
After waiting for nearly 30 minutes, he moved away from beneath the stairs and realized that Carlo was no longer there. He hurried up the stairs and stood in front of Javier’s door, contemplating whether to knock or push the door. However, he reconsidered, as Olivia was staying in Javier’s room and he didn’t want to barge in.
He knocked gently on the door and waited patiently for a response. Before long, Olivia opened the door and blocked the entrance with her body, only her head popping out. “Yes?” she responded, rolling her eyes when she saw it was Elvis knocking.
Elvis was stunned to see Olivia’s hair scattered and unkempt. His mind drifted back to how he had seen Carlo sneaking out from this room. “Please call Javier for me,” he muttered, trying to shake off the naughty thoughts forming in his head.
“Javier is not here,” she said, then slammed the door in Elvis’s face before he could respond.
“Where could Javier be if he’s not in the room? And why was Carlo sneaking out if Javier wasn’t there? Who did Carlo meet in Javier’s room?” Elvis wondered.
He quickly called Javier and put his phone on speaker, waiting for Javier to answer.
“I’m in the sixth room. Come meet me there,” Javier said before ending the call.
Elvis rushed to the sixth room, which was close to Carlo’s room. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about Carlo sneaking out of Javier’s room when Javier wasn’t there.
“I need to tell Javier about this,” he thought as he burst into the sixth room without knocking. There, he found Javier getting ready for bed, and Javier stopped in surprise when he saw Elvis enter.
Javier sighed softly and leaned back on the bed, resting his head on his folded arms. “You’re back already?” he asked.
Elvis scoffed. “Try it again, I promise I’m going to mess you up, you jerk!” He playfully picked up the pillow and threw it at Javier, who quickly raised his hand to dodge the attack.
“I’m sorry,” Javier apologized, bursting into laughter and holding onto the pillow Elvis had thrown at him.
Elvis joined Javier on the bed, retrieved the pillow he had thrown, and laid his head down before sighing softly. “Javier,” he suddenly called.
“Yes,” Javier responded, turning his gaze to face Elvis.
Elvis also turned to face him. “Were you in your room a few minutes ago or hours?” he asked.
Javier furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “I came straight into this room the moment I got back,” he responded. “Why did you ask?” he inquired.
Elvis sighed, feeling there was no point in hiding anything from Javier, since it was about his cousin brother. “I saw Carlo coming out of your room a few minutes ago, the moment I stepped into the mansion. He was all sweaty and was glancing around like a…”
Javier interrupted, muttering, “My room? But I wasn’t there. Who did he go there to see?”
Elvis shook his head, “I went up to your room, and Olivia didn’t look any different from him. I think something fishy is going on between those two.”
Javier’s jaw dropped as he processed what Elvis had just discovered. An idea suddenly struck his mind. “After the blast that will happen in my engagement tomorrow, only one person will tell me what’s going on in my absence,” he whispered loudly, nodding his head.
“Who?” Elvis asked, furrowing his brow.
“Fabby!”