Liam’s mind raced with many ways how his order to Adrian had leaked to Damien Russo and his cohorts. He weighed the possibilities and his suspicions kept coming back to stand on just one person- his future mother-in-law, Gina. For the first time, he doubted his discerning abilities as he kept on thinking of different tangible reasons why Gina would dare to betray him. He would wait for his technician’s new lead to avoid making any rash decisions.
The minute he stepped in his house, the once familiar feeling of warmth and love had become somewhat strange, that he felt repelled to go in further. A female silhouette walked out of the kitchen with a napkin in between her wet palms. Her eyes lit up in excitement the instant she set her glittering eyes on Liam, her dear fiance. She walked briskly towards him and attempted to hug him but all she got in return was a cold, still response. His demeanor made her think twice if the man before her was her fiance.
“Liam” she called his name with a soft voice and a concerned gaze on him. “Are you okay?… You look so… distant… Did something unpleasant happen at the office today?…”
She kept on bombarding him with questions but she got as an answer was an awkward silence. Liam gazed at her with his black eyes full of repulsion and contempt. She had willingly let his cousin take her to a place he knew nothing about. If she was upset about abandoning her at the hospital, she didn’t have to go that far with flirting with his cousin. He stole one more glance at her and walked away without a care in the world of how hurt she would be.
A few minutes later, he came down to meet the dining table all set for dinner. He pulled a chair for himself, acting oblivious to the devastated woman standing beside him.
“Liam… Liam” she called out repeatedly but he ignored it all.
It all felt so familiar, like a feeling she was once accustomed to. Yes, it was the same distant feeling she felt during her first dreaded days in the penthouse. The days when she felt like a wingless bird trapped in a golden cage. No, it was worse because this time, she loved him with all her heart. With each passing moment, her heart broke into more fragments as she watched him withdraw into the darkness that once hunted him.
“Isabelle” Liam called out which sparked a flicker of hope in Isabelle’s heart. But that light was dimmed instantly by the next words that came out of his mouth.
“There’s a gala coming up tomorrow and you’re coming with me whether your fever is gone or not” he stated icily unbothered by the tears welled up in Isabelle’s eyes. She got fed up with his cold and silent treatment he was dishing out to her.
“Liam….”Isabelle yelled out as she choked on her tears, stopping Liam in his tracks. “What did I do to you to deserve this?… Why are treating me this way knowing fully well that you’re breaking me?”
The silence in the room was suffocating, a weakling would have fainted from lack of oxygen. Liam’s hoarse voice resounded in the space breaking the deathly silence, “Why don’t you ask yourself those questions, Isabelle?… When have ever heeded my warnings?… After professing my love to you, you still went ahead to do what pleases you?… It’s not your fault, I bound you to a contract preventing you from exploring your likings and bound by a contract would we remain” he concluded with a domineering tone, storming out of the dining room without looking back.
Isabelle, who had now become a shadow of her former self, turned pale as her knees became weak, causing her to fall weakly to the ground. She held her chest, trying hard to stop the excruciating pain she felt. She was about to go crazy. The heartbreak was too much for her to bear. But it was just the beginning, a heap of heartbreak was still in store for her.
***
Liam sat down in his study, his heart filled with regrets at the ruthless words he had said to Isabelle. He wished he could turn back the hands of time, but what was done, was done. He could only pray that things would not escalate to more than it was already. A phone call came through as the ringing tone echoed in the study room.
“Boss, I have some important information that you need to see but you’ll have to come to the lab tomorrow” the caller revealed with an underlying meaning in his tone.
“I won’t be coming tomorrow. I suddenly got an invitation from the Russo company to attend a gala” Liam responded with a fall tone that depicted his mood. “It will be the day after tomorrow. In the meantime, I want you to monitor Gina’s movement for me. I want every detail of places she visits and people she socializes with”
“Noted boss, I’ll gather all the necessary information that you need but… The sudden gala invitation from the Russo company is suspicious, most especially after we had caught them tracking the same security cameras” Adrian expressed his thoughts with his voice laced with a hint of concern.
“I know Adrian, and that’s the more reason why I’m accepting their invitation. Let’s see what they have up their sleeves” Liam replied with an evil smirk on his face. He was ready to take his game up to the next level. He wasn’t called a Callahan who didn’t live up to his name.
Liam stayed up all night in his study room. He couldn’t bring himself to check up on the person he had hurt so deeply, and neither could he sleep peacefully. The daybreak showed brightly on his face, revealing the dark circles beneath his eyes. The gala was today, a day when the main tournament of battle begins. Though he felt a strange feeling that something terrible was about to take place, he wasn’t the one to cower back in fear. He was raised to face his problem head-on.
Liam, after some hours, walked down to the living room and met Isabelle at the same spot where he had left her, sleeping on her knees. He sighed in frustration as he carried straight to the bedroom.