" Maya?" Clara sat in front of her and held her shoulders with a frown. " Oh my God." She watched as Maya slowly removed her hand and gasped at her swollen cheek.
" I don't want to marry Willy, " she whispered and hugged Clara tightly. She had that thought she was going to get scoffed at or ignored, not expecting to be strike with this sudden news. She was not over Ken yet, how could she suddenly marry another person and why would it have to be the guy that tried to destroy her life.
" Willy?" Clara frowned and her expression darkened. Wasn't he the guy that tried to molest her friend in high school?
" No, you won't marry him, Maya, . . . let's go, " She shook her head and carefully pulled her up then they went out of the study room toward the living room's door. How could he be so cruel to his only daughter?
She remembered the day, she had accompanied Maya back with tattered clothes and the only thing the man did was to scoff and commanded her to change out of the dirtied clothes, without mentioning anything about what happened.
" What!?" She was still in her thoughts as they neared the door when her eyes instantly widened as she glanced at Maya who chuckled sadly. The man had locked them inside.
" Come." Maya pulled her hand and they went toward the dusty kitchen then climbed out through the window, which was her usual escape route.
" Maya, what are you going to do now?" Clara sighed as they quickly walked out of the neighborhood, afraid that the man might come back.
" I don't know Clara, you know my father. . ." She didn't want to think of the means her father could use to forcefully make her agree if she objects again.
" Then, are you going to marry him?" Clara stopped in her track then turned to face her worriedly. She knew what Maya's father was capable of doing as she had witnessed it before when they were little as he locked her friend inside the room for three days because she had skipped their afternoon lessons. But how could he ask her to marry him, despite knowing that had he tried to molest her?
" Don't worry Maya, we'll figure something out." she patted her back and glanced at her swollen cheeks then sighed. If only Ken was here.
_____
When they arrived at Clara's home, her mother worriedly rushed toward them when she noticed the swell on Maya's cheeks and sighed after hearing what happened.
" Don't worry dear, everything will be fine," Clara's mother comforted her while placing a wet cloth on her swollen cheek. She sighed heavily and hoped Maya's father would not do anything crazy this time.
" Oh, excuse me, " Clara suddenly said as her phone started ringing. She went inside her room, leaving Maya and her mother outside the verandah. and anxiously answered the call hoping that he wasn't mad at her anymore.
" Clara?" She bit her lips as she heard the familiar voice coming from the other end.
" J..Jack?" Her heart was filled with guilt as she sat down on the bed.
Jack sighed and continued from the other end. " Where are you?" he asked, as he had gone to her apartment but couldn't find her and Lara was also not around.
" I.. I'm in the province, " she replied softly then continued. " I'm so sorry Jack, I'm sorry for what happened." She stared down at her lap and fidgeted with her shirt.
" It's alright Clara, it was my fault. I didn't know you were already dating, " Jack replied with a chuckle, masking his sadness. He had been fooling himself that she was slowly falling for him, not knowing that she was already in a relationship.
Clara sighed, hearing the sadness in his tone. " I'm so sorry Jack, I didn't mean to hide it from you. It's just that you and Carl. . ." she trailed off and sniffed while fiddling with the hem of her cloth.
" It's okay, don't cry." Jack sighed again and she slowly nodded.
He stared down at the tiny bracelet in his hand from the other end and sighed. How could he allow her to be with Carl? If she is with him, her life would be in danger.
" Clara, about Carl__"
" Jack, I need your help."
They both uttered at the same time and he urged her to go on.
Clara heaved a deep sigh and wiped her tears then continued. " The medical reports, please can you look for the original? I need to show it to Carl, " she begged softly, hoping he could help her.
Jack shook his head from the other end and sighed. He had done that already, but the hacker was very sharp and didn't leave any traces. " Clara, I have already done that, " he muttered and silently listened to her small gasp.
" Y..You've done that, did you find the original report, did you, did you?" She asked excitedly and stood up from the bed.
" No Clara, I'm sorry, " he muttered softly then slowly added." I tried so many times and used different IT professionals but they couldn't track the hacker nor the original reports".
" W..what?" Her eyes widened with each word he said and she slumped down on the floor. " J..Jack please try it again, " she begged and by then another gush of tears had started flowing down her face. Does that mean Carl did not also find out the truth? Was that why he hadn't called her? Is their relationship really over.
She heard Jack muttered " I'm sorry " again from the other end and burst into tears.
" Clara? What is wrong, " Jack asked worriedly and he jerked up from his chair at the other end.
" W..We broke up Jack...we b..broke up, " she muttered between sobs as her eyes turned blurry with tears.
" What!?" Jack exclaimed and sat back down on the chair. " Is it because of that incident?" He asked in a low tone as his hand tightened on the phone and his other fist clenched.