Flashback: After Antonio’s call to Cara…
Just as the call disconnected, Cara caught sight of a long-fair-skinned heel turning around at the corridor leading to the walk-in closet.
The phone in her shaky hands crashed to the ground, and she fell to her knees, her hand to her chest, trying to calm her raging heartbeat.
A mixture of both thrill and fear went through her, and it felt like she could finally breathe again.
She let out a small laugh.
Was this how Adonis usually felt when he was one step ahead of his enemies?
She had barged into his study to let him know of her suspicions of Natasha, but the words the said ‘Natasha’ spewed caused it all to go in a new direction.
At first, Cara was pissed.
So he was sharing information about her with Natasha now?
She had thought, but his laid-back expression made her apprehensive. Adonis was naturally always laid back and unbothered, but this time, it felt like he wanted her to feel that he was.
That was the first tip-off.
Adonis never does anything for the show because he believes he should be impressed, not the other way around.
So she picked up the issue, and his response to her actions made her know she was doing exactly what he wanted.
Luca and Cecelia barging in was just another variable, and when it was proven that Luca knew the truth behind her family, she felt another flare of anger.
Was she the last person to know?
Adonis should better thank his stars that he had confessed it all to her first, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to give him hell for this.
She continued to exchange words with him, using his reaction as a guide.
That was another bonus.
If she hadn’t known Adonis for a while to know that even the slightest twitch of his finger meant something, it’d have been difficult.
When he wanted her to be more assertive, he’d narrow his eyes, and when he was satisfied with how she was doing, his eyes would widen by a quarter of an inch and somehow smile at her even though to everyone, it was just a cold glare.
The second confirmation that it was all a plan was when he gripped her waist tightly to stop her from falling.
It was barely above a whisper, but she heard it.
‘Natasha’
Just one word. One word, but it cleared all her doubts and made her know she wasn’t alone. He also had his doubts.
Adonis had told her a few days ago that they found the place Antonio had stayed in after he ran off, and it was all thanks to Natasha.
That was when her suspicions about Natasha began to increase.
How come she was able to do in a week what they couldn’t do in two? It wouldn’t have been suspicious if Adonis’s men weren’t the best in the game.
The look Adonis gave her when she admitted to her father being her source of information made Cara know she was lying, and the slight narrowing in Adonis’s eyes when he, confessed to killing her father crowned it all.
He wanted to throw Natasha off.
And she wouldn’t be a good wife if she didn’t deliver, so Cara gave him exactly what he wanted.
She wanted to make it look as real as possible and might’ve gotten carried away at some point. The slight wince that crossed Adonis’s face made her feel guilty and she would’ve crashed it all if it hadn’t been for the calm heartbeat she felt as she pushed at his chest.
Everyone thought she had gone crazy.
Luca’s reaction was enough to let her know he was disappointed, but she didn’t care. As long as Adonis was fine with it.
It just meant she was acting well.
The moment she stormed out of the study, Cara knew she needed to keep up with the pretence.
Couples do not stay in the same room after a big fight, so she began throwing her things into her bag.
What she never expected was to get a call from Antonio instantly. She glanced around frantically.
Was he watching her?
Her heart skipped a beat.
Or was Natasha really working with him?
The wheels began to turn in her head as she picked up her phone. Her goal was to get him to spill his plans and when it would be carried out.
Antonio had made it less difficult as he was very open. Cara knew that meant he trusted her completely, all thanks to his spy, so it was easy to rile him up.
His ‘knowing about her family secret’ was just another variable, but a good one that led to a certain listening spy being discovered.
Cara’s well-structured cold demeanour had almost slipped when she turned towards the small corridor that led out of the closet to see a reflection of a tall, slender woman.
So that was how he kept an eye on them all?
She’d patiently played along to get enough information from him. Some he divulged, others he didn’t, but that was fine; she’d gotten enough to work with.
Standing to her feet, she pulled her bags towards the door, hoping Antonio would stay true to his words and Natasha would be a lovely spy as always.
Cara had done her part.
Now, it was up to Adonis to make use of the information. And with how attentive he was, she knew there was no way he wouldn’t make sense of the words written in bold red lipstick on the vanity mirror.
Twenty-four hours through the back door.