(Casey)
________
I decided not to go ho from the office, I knew that if I made that mistake, getting to leave my house again would be difficult. So, I simply left for Kira’s right from the office. By the ti I was done with everything I had to do, I had a chat with Liam, my assistant, to talk about how tomorrow would be.
"I need to know if we’re going with 150 or 1000 guests for Kira’s dinner, what is it going to be?" Liam said.
"I still don’t know yet," I replied as I picked up my purse, I was on my way out. " I’m yet to speak to her about it. I also need to be sure this is not sothing her uncle would try to fight."
Liam sighed as he rolled his eyes, "do we have to be in the middle of all this? Our job is just to organize the events."
"I know... but these squabbles can ruin the entire dinner, and who would be blad? Us." I said with a shrug. I checked my purse to make sure that I had my car key in it, then I clasped it shut. "For now, let’s just keep everything open, and see where it goes. If I don’t get you a reply by tonight, I’ll have one for you by tomorrow. Because I know very well that we’re running out of ti."
Then, without another word, I hurried out of the office. I knew Liam very well, if I hung around, he would find another way to rope into another conversation. For now, all my thoughts were on Kira and how she had sounded on the phone. Her voice had been weak and sounded distant as if she was thinking of sothing else even when speaking to .
It reminded of a ti back when we were in college and she had been terrified that she was pregnant. Her period had co in a bit late and she had been so scared that it ant pregnancy, all she could think of was how her uncle would react and what he would do to punish her. Thankfully, it was only a scare and no one else ever found out about it.
Now, I heard all that fear and terror in her voice, letting know that sothing was wrong with my best friend. I had to get to her at once.
I got into my car and pulled out of the lot, then sped off into the highway. At this ti of the day, by close of work, the road was filled with traffic. Every worker was on their way ho. However, as I went deeper towards the edge of the city, towards the more affluent part of town, the traffic began to reduce.
Kira lived in Paragon Park, one of the most exclusive estates in Silicon Valley. It was for the wealthy and only the richest of the rich could afford to live there. Billionaires like Jace and Kira lived here, and even the CEO of Klevah TV, Kevin, lived here as well. And due to the amount of star power that Paragon Park could boast of, it was always a target for paparazzi.
However, there was an efficient security system that always kept them all at bay, no matter how smart they were. It was almost impossible for a reporter to take private pictures of the residents, and that was one reason why they were willing to pay an exorbitant amount of money just to live there.
As I got closer, the traffic eventually petered out and soon, mine was the only car on the road as I drove towards the Paragon Gates. The road was paved with cobblestones and both sides were adorned with beautiful flowers. There were pedestrian railings painted in gold, and the sides of the road were also lined with LED lights, making the gold glow brightly when the lights hit them. Coming to Paragon Park was always a heavenly feeling for , and it wasn’t sothing I could ever get used to.
Soon, I pulled up before the gates and a security officer approached . I recognized him from my last visit, he also recognized because he smiled at . However, that wasn’t enough, protocols still had to be observed.
"I’m here to see Kira Windsor," I said as I showed him my ID card.
The officer nodded, "give a minute."
He then stepped away to make a call. He was going to call Kira’s ho and confirm that she was indeed expecting . Getting into Paragon Park could be akin to getting into the White House. There were just so many protocols.
Thankfully, the call didn’t take long at all.
"Miss Windsor would see you now," he replied with a smile.
The Paragon Gates were opened, a silent beauty that opened into paradise. I drove in and it was as if I was being transported into a totally different world. This was not like any estate I’ve ever been in, no two houses were the sa. Each one was distinct and had unique features that couldn’t be found elsewhere. The roads here were also paved in cobblestone, the houses had tiny fences and there were spaces by the side of the road for jogging, walks, and cycling.
As I drove deeper into the estate, I knew that the entire place was covered by caras, and they would monitor my movents until I got to Kira’s house, to make sure that I didn’t take any detours. Well, I wasn’t planning to. I drove straight to her mansion.
Kira’s ho was painted all white, both the interior and the exterior, that was how she loved it. The yard had a beautiful lawn that had a dedicated staff who worked on it every single day. There were flowers as well that beautified the entire place. On a normal day, I would take ti to admire the aesthetics, however, things were different today because I had sothing else on my mind that was bothering .
I pressed the doorbell on her door and it was opened almost imdiately by Kira herself. That was the first shocker; she opened her door herself.
"Where’s Janet?" I asked as I closed the door behind . Janet was her househelp.
"I sent her ho, I just want to be alone right now," Kira replied. She looked like a ss, the house was poorly lit and the TV was turned off, all the curtains were shut tight.
I stared at her, whatever was going on was bigger than I feared. She was wearing her bathrobe, but I could see her fiddling with the belt, tightening it over her waist and then loosening it once more. She kept repeating the process over and over.
Concerned, I went over to her side, "Kira, is everything alright?"
She looked at , her head tilted to the side as she stared at , it was as if she was only just realizing my presence in her house. She then shook her head, "I’m fine. Let’s sit."
She slowly pulled away from my grip as she lowered herself into the chair, but I wasn’t satisfied just yet.
"Are you sure you’re okay? You look a little rattled."
"Let’s just talk about why you’re here, okay?" She snapped irritably, "You said you wanted to talk to , didn’t you?"
"Yes, but..."
"Then, let’s talk!"
I sucked in a deep breath as I nodded in reluctant acceptance. I knew I was going to get the truth out of her eventually, so there was no need to push her too hard, or she would close up altogether. I dropped my purse on the center table as I took the couch beside her. I then began to tell her about my day. I told her about Joan and the stalkers who had followed her to her hotel room and spied on her all through the night. I didn’t say anything about Jace and I spending the night together or having a quickie in his office this afternoon.
I watched her closely as I spoke, I could see her getting paler with every word that fell from my mouth. Everything I said was only making her condition worse, I began to wonder if I had done the right thing by telling her what was happening. By the ti I was done, she remained silent for a while, staring at the blank TV on the wall.
"Kira..." I called, but my voice was only t by silence. All I could hear was the low drone of her AC units and the faint hum of the fridge built into the wall. "Kira!"
I called her with more force and her head snapped up, she stared at . Her eyes were wide with horror and she looked like a shadow of herself.
"What the fuck is going on with you?" I demanded as I knelt beside her, "And please don’t tell you’re fine. Even a two-year-old can see that sothing is wrong with you!"
Kira ran her fingers through her hair, then without a word, she picked up her phone and began to scroll through it. She handed it over to . I took it hesitantly and stared at the screen, and as I scrolled through the ssages, my eyes widened in horror.
I had always thought that Jace and I would be the target because we had secrets we needed to keep hidden, it never crossed my mind that Kira would be a target as well. I would never have imagined that she had sothing that could be used to blackmail her.
"Yes," she muttered, her voice weak. "I’m being blackmailed, and I don’t know what to do. I need help, Casey! I think I’m in trouble!"
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