Yago hurriedly came closer to Arianna and sat beside her. He fixed his eyes on the laptop screen attentively. On the screen, a girl entered the room and slowly closed the door behind her.
"Jayden?" she called when she saw a man kneeling on the carpeted floor. His back was facing her and his head was lowered. All she could see was the black suit he was wearing. He was mumbling and making strange noises.
"Jayden, what's wrong?",she asked.
The man suddenly turned his head and glared at her. His yes red with rage suddenly changed when he saw the young lady walking towards him.
"Belle... my beautiful Belle." he whispered.
At first, he was trying to suppress the burning feeling inside him, but seeing his beloved woman, he started giving in to that strange sensations.
"Roy... why are you here?"
Recognizing the man, a surge of terror overcame Belle. She turned around and ran to the door but it's now locked and wouldn't budge no matter how hard she pulled. She pounded on the door and shouted for help. She knew the situation was very dangerous, but no one seems to hear her shouts.
"Come here Belle!"she heard him say.
Belle glanced at the opposite direction where the bathroom was. She thought she could just lock herself in there and then call for help. Her phone in right hand, dialling the emergency hotline, she quickly made her way to the bathroom. She was fast, but Roy was faster. He got ahold of her left arm and dragged her away. He then flung her to the bed.
"Belle..." Roy whispered her name with his lascivious voice. His face shows his intense desire at the moment. He didn't say more and just climbed the bed and hugged her forcefully.
Belle struggled. But the more she struggled, the more aggressive the man became. He started kissing her hard, feeling her body and touching her private parts.
"Arianna, bring in the cops!"
Yago shouted. The scene before him was becoming more and more obscene. Was Arianna setting Belle to get raped?
Arianna shook her head. "Not yet."
That was all she said as she continued to watch on the scene. In her heart this punishment was not enough. It wasn't like she's a virgin! She's not innocent anymore. She watched as Roy ripped her clothes until she was naked. She watched her cry. She watched her plead for mercy.
"Fisher.....entrap." Arianna said on the phone.
Soon, two police officers and two people, a man and a woman, carrying cameras entered the room. They handcuffed the deranged Roy Vander and took him away from the shivering woman on the bed. Belle thought they were the police sent by the emergency hotline, but why are there reporters?
"Young miss, we're reporters frow View Media. We happen to see the police on our way out from an interview and so we followed them for some scoop. We'll ask for someone to bring you new clothes, then we'll accompany you to the police station." the lady reported offered.
Clenching the blanket she used to cover herself, Belle shook her head.
"No! I just want to go home!" she exclaimed with tears on her eyes.
***
As the chaos in the room ensued, Arianna and Yago was quietly escorted out of the building. They need to get home ahead of Belle to avoid suspicisions. On their way back home, Arianna was silent. She was just staring outside the window: her thoughys unfathomable.
Yago didn't disturb Arianna's train of thoughts. He knows her well. Although Arianna has a tough and cruel appearance, deep inside, her conscience still gives her a hard time. A lot of times, she just chose to ignore it, but it doesn't mean her conscience had stopped going against her ways.
"Did I go overboard?"
Like a little child, she turned to Yago and asked with sad eyes. "Why do I have to feel bad..." she said to no one while returning her eyes on the road.
Yago sighed. "I don't have the right to blame you since...." Yago cut his sentence midway, contemplating on the words to say. He doesn't know if it'll help if he tells her what's on his mind. In the end, he decided against it.
"I'm not having nightmares about that night anymore...." she mentioned. She already sensed that Yago was initially planning to bring up that incident, but stopped himself.
"Well that's good. You shouldn't think about it anymore." he stated. "Today, you already had the revenge for that night. You're even now. Maybe you should start moving on and just forget about the people you hated."
Forget about the hatred?
Arianna leaned on the car seat and looked away. Forgiving Belle, forgetting her hatred. Does that mean letting go of Jayden, too? She feels uncomfortable about the idea.
More than ten years ago, Arianna met Arabella for the first time. Carl Reid's parents were still alive back then and they invited Arianna and her mother to celebrate the Thanks giving day with them. They've always liked her mother and never liked Jane for their son. For them, Jane was nothing but a gold-digger who clung to Carl for fortune.
Back then, she and Belle were still kids. Arianna was still a pure and innocent child who lived in peace, showered with love by her mother, sheltered from the harshness of the world. She trusted Belle, a seemingly harmless child at first sight and accompanied her to a place she said she wanted to visit. She was very excited on their way; an excitement that turned to utter disappointment afterwards.
When they arrived at the place, the surprise Belle promised turned out to be a frightening present! Three men were there waiting for them. They were leaning against a black car, looking scary. She wasn't aware of the danger and only turned to Belle curiously. But Belle was dazed and she wouldn't answer her inquiries. To her shock, the men approached them and grabbed Arianna's arms. The strenght of a little kid's struggle were nothing compared to them. She was lifted and tossed inside the car. It was the most frightening experience in her life. As she looked back to Belle and ask her to find help, she saw her standing still on the same spot. Watching her being taken away like the scene in front of her had nothing to do with her. She was just calmy sending her off....
That kind of girl, that kind of woman, how can she let the very outstanding Jayden Bates be with her? She won't allow it. A woman like Belle doesn't deserve a man like Jayden! Even if she has now settled the score with Belle, she still needs to continue this battle for Jayden! If it was some other girl that Jayden liked, Arianna could've given up, but not if it's her sister.
From the side, Yago noticed Arianna shivering. He asked the chauffeur to adjust the temperature, then he leaned on her and put an arm over her shoulders. "Are you cold?"
Arianna shook her head but remained dilent. He knew she wasn't cold, but he made the gesture to comfort her. Being reminded of the past, he knew that the wound was opened up. It was the turning point for both of their lives.
The memories of Yago and Arianna's first time meeting was not pleasant at all. Back then, Yago was a captive of a syndicate in the north. After two nights of planning his escape, he finally found an opening that friday night. When he was about to execute the plan, he heard a young girl's cry for help. That moment, he saw a girl about 8 to 9 years old being harassed by one of the thugs. What happened in there was something he himself doesn't want to remember. What's important was that he was able to take her with him as they fleed from that place. The sight of blood, fire, and all the chaos, he knows thar those permanently changed the girls life.
As they returned alive, Arianna's mother was very glad. She had no idea about the traumatic experiences that Arianna had. She was very thankful to Yago for saving her daughter's life, and so she took in Yago and brought him up like a real child. The secrets of that horrible night, the sight of a girl standing in the middle of the fire, with blood on her white clothes; her cold bloody face, and the fire being reflected on her eyes: it was a haunting scene that gives him heartache all the time, but also a secret only he had witnessed. That was how an innocent girl transformed overnight to be the cruel person she is today. She calls herself a villain, but for him, she was a wounded victim trying to fight her way to the world. Even if there's no obvious danger around her, she would never let her guard down.
Arianna turned her head and glanced at Yago beside her. She smiled bitterly and leaned on his chest.
"Yago.... If Jayden won't marry me, you need to find me a good husband, alright? ",she whispered.