After meeting Daniel and getting the recording from him, Jacob went back to Tristan’s ward. He wanted to listen to it with Frederick and Belle but he couldn’t leave yet. No one will look after his friend.
“Jacob,” Tristan called to the man who was busy reading the newspaper. He then stood up and sat on the chair next to the bed. “About Belle…”
Jacob creased his forehead at his boss, “What about her?”
“How long has it been since she joined the company?”
Thinking, Jacob couldn’t help but chuckle when she recalled Belle’s first days in the office. “Sorry, I just remembered something. Anyway, she’s been with us for almost a year.”
“Almost a year,” Tristan muttered. He switched to his side to face Jacob better. “Did I know her before she became my secretary?”
Jacob shook his head at him, “We only hired her because you mistook her for Vernice,” he explained.
“I did?” he asked in disbelief. “How can I mistake her for Vernice? They look way different. She’s… she’s a goddess,” he whispered.
“I know, right?” Jacob exclaimed.
“You do?” Tristan glared at him.
Jacob quickly shook his head. “I mean, I don’t understand why you thought she was Vernice too.”
When Tristan nodded, Jacob let out a sigh of relief. ‘That was close,’ he thought to himself. Tristan, on the other hand, laid down properly with his hands clasped on top of his stomach.
He was just staring at the ceiling as if he was thinking of something. “I feel like I’ve seen her even before she went to the Empire,” Tristan said after a while of silence.
Jacob was about to say something when the door swung open. Joyce came in with a basket of fruit in her hands.
Although Jacob doesn’t like the idea of the woman being in the same room as Tristan, her presence is somehow helpful to him. He can now go to the villa to listen to the recording Daniel gave him.
“Joyce, can you stay with Tristan for a while? That is if you don’t have anything to do or anywhere to go,” Jacob asked, and Joyce quickly nodded at him.
“Of course, I can stay here. You go do whatever you need to do,” she told him, smiling.
Jacob bade Tristan goodbye and left the two of them inside the VIP ward. He headed to the parking lot and as soon as he got inside the car, he drove off to the villa.
“What is it, son?” John asked as soon as he saw him come out of the car. “I already told Frederick you wanted to talk to him so he didn’t go for his afternoon nap.”
“This is important Dad, let’s go in,” he said, then they proceeded inside.
Frederick’s laptop was already turned on and placed on the coffee table when Jacob got to the living room. Without further ado, he inserted the flash drive Daniel gave him.
He then opened the file and started playing the recording with Frederick and John listening with him. They were silent the whole time.
“They’re pure evil…” John commented when the recording ended.
Frederick leaned back as he held onto his cane with both hands. “Indeed, it was terrifying.”
“The problem is, how can we tell Tristan about this? Will it not have any effect on his condition?” Jacob asked.
“I’m more worried about my little girl,” Frederick stated. “If we tell Tristan about this, he will surely be furious with Joyce and he’ll get back together with Belle. Joyce and her comrades will likely exact revenge on Belle.”
John nodded in agreement, he was thinking the same. If Tristan learned of their scheme, this would all blow off on Belle and he can’t help but already feel sorry for her.
“Then let’s not tell him yet,” Frederick and John looked at Jacob, foreheads creased. “I mean, not until he has gotten his memories back. For now, let’s help him recover his missing memories first. Then he’d recall everything Joyce, Vernice, and Esme did to Belle. When that happens, then we can plan things properly.”
Both men nodded at him. They could all leave these to Jacob, in the meantime, he knew better. Besides, if they act rashly, it can only put Belle in danger.
“By the way, Sir,” he turned to Frederick as he remembered something. “Since I introduced Belle as the company’s executive secretary, can you help me convince her to play the role, at least for now?” Jacob asked.
Frederick nodded at him, “Call her, let her know I want to talk to her.”
Jacob gave him a nod and stood up. “I need to go back to the hospital now. It’s only Tristan and Joyce there right now. I’m a little worried.”
“You go, son,” John urged him. “We don’t know what else that vicious woman is capable of doing. Who knows, she might be manipulating him right now.”
Jacob hurried to leave after hearing what his father said. That’s among his worries. That Joyce would feed Tristan with false memories.
Unfortunately, they weren’t wrong.
When Jacob was standing right outside the VIP room, he clearly heard everything Joyce told Tristan. Sadly, everything was against Belle.
Joyce told Tristan that Belle tried to break them up. That the woman tried seducing him right in front of Joyce, without any regard or respect for her as his girlfriend.
Jacob sighed. At this moment, all he wished for was that Tristan would remember that he had already broken up with Joyce even before they met Belle.
If Tristan could recall that, it could invalidate everything Joyce just said. It will only show that Joyce was lying and that she was just trying to stir trouble between Tristan and Belle.
Jacob quickly opened the door to stop Joyce from adding more to what she had already told the man. He didn’t even bother knocking when he did.
“How are you feeling?” Jacob asked to interrupt the conversation between the two. He even saw how Joyce rolled her eyes at the sight of him.
‘Ha! She must have wanted to say more!’
Joyce lightly stomped her foot and stood up. “I’ll go ahead and come back tomorrow honey,” she told Tristan and combed his hair. Tristan nodded without saying a word.
“Jacob,” he called as soon as Joyce closed the door. “About Belle…” he started.
“What about her?”
“Joyce said some things,” looking at his friend, Tristan was a bit hesitant to ask. “Is it true she’s obsessed with me?”
Jacob couldn’t help but chuckle, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to,” he apologized immediately when he saw him glaring. “Do you believe her?” he asked in return.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m asking you if you trust every word, Joyce said,” with just a look, Jacob can already tell that even if Tristan lost some of his memories, he still finds it difficult to trust the woman.
“No idea man,” Tristan shook his head as he let out a frustrated sigh. “You know my situation, I can’t tell.”
Jacob tapped his friend’s arm to help him settle down. He knows how frustrating it can be to not recall weeks of happenings, especially if someone’s adding a bit of twist to it.
“You’ll know if what Joyce said is true or not once you spend some time with Belle,” Jacob smiled.