"Do you really think it will work?" Bella sounded hesitant as she listened to Emma.
"Are you doubting me?" Emma raised her eyebrow arrogantly as if she could never be wrong.
"Um, no." Bella looked tentative as she stared at Emma wanting to pry into her mind and gain some kind of assurance.
Unfortunately for her, Emma didn't allow her to detect any emotions on her face.
"Then I'll believe you. You must not betray me." Bella said after a moment and walked toward the door wishing to go to her cabin.
"Don't you think you should also give exchange something for my help?" Emma's light voice sounded in the cabin.
Bella turned around looking incredulous as she saw Emma who was removing her comforter.
She did not believe that Emma would ask something in return.
"What? Did you think you can eat a free meal?" Emma asked in a honeyed tone.
Bella shivered. She opened her mouth wanting to retort but found that her words were scarce. She licked her lips and glanced at Emma who threw the comforter in the laundry bin.
'Does she think I'm filthy?' Bella's mind blew with anger as she comprehended Emma's actions.
"I will pay you for your help." Bella clenched her teeth as she spoke. She had forgotten that they didn't like each other and even foolishly thought that they could become friends.
"I'm too expensive for you." Emma nonchalantly said as she sat on the bed, gazing at Bella who was standing in the middle of the cabin.
Bella's face went red with anger and she scoffed at Emma. 'Why did I even ask this vile woman to help me?' Bella wanted to strangle herself.
"Don't try anything funny in my cabin. I don't want to deal with anything related to you." Emma read the emotions on Bella's face and lightly advised.
Bella glared at Emma. She recalled why she hated Emma and reconsidered taking her help.
However, she knew that only Emma could help her take revenge satisfactorily so she put on a fawning expression and said, "What would you like in return, young miss?"
"Certainly not your f-rated acting." Emma's blunt remark once again caused her to lose her cool.
"Who do you think you are to talk to me like that?" Bella yelled as her patience ran out.
"It's not a fish market. Stop yelling." Emma possessed the ability to anger someone to death despite having anger issues herself.
Bella took long breaths as she tried to recall a hundred reasons not to hit Emma. The top one was Emma being the only person to help her exact revenge.
"Are you trying to kill me by inhaling all the oxygen in my cabin?" Emma monotonously said.
"Forget it, she deserves to be hit because of her sharp mouth," Bella mumbled as she scowled at Emma.
"Just tell me what you want?" Bella didn't want to stay in Emma's cabin any longer for fear of fainting due to anger.
"There is a silent auction taking place on this cruise. I want you to give me detailed information about that and secure me a ticket. If you can do it, consider your revenge completed." Emma didn't bicker with Bella and stated her terms.
She found the silent auction quite interesting. And was about to find ways to get into it but now the opportunity had presented itself to her doorstep, and quite literally, she would take full advantage of it.
"What silent auction?" Bella was befuddled as she had not heard of such an event going on the cruise. She seriously pondered whether Emma had hit her head and was spouting gibberish.
"Common people like you might not know about it," Emma said as if Bella was an ignorant person which irked her to no end but she still chose to listen.
"Let me enlighten you, a silent auction is going to happen here where an extremely valuable Akoya pearl necklace is going to be auctioned off. I want you to find out when it is taking place and how to get the ticket for it." Emma informed. She deliberately chose to disclose the information about the Akoya pearl necklace as she knew Bella's obsession with collecting rare chains.
Now Emma didn't have to worry about Bella not being able to find out about the auction as their interest coincided with each other.
She was sure that Bella will find the auction out of her curiosity and She will benefit from it as well.
"How do you know that it isn't a rumor?" Bella looked skeptical as she thought about how Emma could get such information on the first day of the trip.
"You can treat it as a rumor if you want to lose the chance to collect another rare necklace which is possibly the only one in the world." Emma threw the net and was positive that the fish will take the bait.
"Well, if I found that you are playing with me I will beat you with my own hands." Bella threatened.
Emma simply shrugged as she took out her phone. Bella stood there, lost in her thoughts for a while.
Emma noticed that she still had not left after 5 minutes and cleared her throat to gain Bella's attention.
"You can leave now," Emma said in a dismissal tone.
Bella was baffled by her words. Emma didn't care about her feelings at all. She had cried so pitifully and instead of giving her sympathies, Emma was driving her out of her cabin.
'The world no longer sides with the victim.' Bella thought as she said, "Do you want me to go?"
Emma looked disgusted at this. "Are you my boyfriend? Your work here is done so I'm politely asking you to get out as I don't want you to pollute the air in my cabin anymore."
Albeit being offended by Emma's words, Bella did not retort and simply went out of the cabin.
"Close the door on your way out." Bella heard Emma's voice and closed the door while cursing Emma in her heart.
Just as she was about to leave, she saw the opposite cabin open and a handsome man came out.
He was over 6 ft with a chiseled jaw and a straight nose. His hazel eyes were playful and a light smile graced his lips.
Bella was so stunned by this handsome man that she forgot what she was doing there.
The man took the package outside his door and closed the door at lightning speed as he saw Bella staring at him with her mouth hung open.
She was taken aback by his actions and blushed when she remembered that he was only wearing a towel and might have mistaken her for a pervert.
Bella looked back at Emma and was impressed by her luck to have such eye candy as her neighbor.
Emma was watching a report on her mobile unaware of the outside happenings and how she had been labeled as a pervert leader by Asher for having shameless friends who preyed upon weak men.
Emma unconsciously shivered. She looked at the ac and turned the temperature up a bit not wanting to catch a cold.
Unbeknownst to everyone, Emma had another purpose for coming on the cruise. A series of past events flashed across her eyes as she read the summary of the investigation.
As she read through the document she opened the attached files. Her gaze changed as she continued reading. Her thoughts went all over the place as she frowned.
At the end of the report, "Missing for 2 decades" was written in red. Her mind was overwhelmed by memories as she stared at her phone.
FLASHBACK
It was the 7th death anniversary of Emma's Grandmother. As usual, her parents had hosted a community lunch for all the extended family members and prayed for her Grandmother in the ancestral hall.
17-year-old Emma wasn't interested in joining her cousins to gossip so she went to the second floor to enjoy the cool summer breeze.
Arriving upstairs, Emma was startled by the loud sobs from the study. Considering everyone was downstairs paying respect to her Grandmother, Emma was startled by the loud sobs.
She cautiously moved closer to the study and peeked through the slightly ajar door. She was stunned by the scene inside. Her grandfather who had always maintained an elegant and kind persona was sitting on the floor with countless w*ne bottles lying by his feet.
He appeared drunk. Emma was both confused and worried. Just as she was about to open the door fully, she stopped.
"Maria, what did you do to my daughter?" Emma was frightened by the rage in her Grandpa's voice.
"If you hadn't committed suicide, I would've shown you what it means to go against me."
Emma gasped loudly as her Grandmother's name wasn't Maria and she also didn't commit suicide.
However, she hurriedly closed her mouth with both hands as she did not want to get caught. The look on William's face petrified her.
"My daughter, my lovely daughter. Why did you leave your father? Why did you run away? I was so kind to you. So why?"
William's voice rose as he continued asking. Emma's legs started shaking. Suddenly, she heard a noise from the stairs which entailed that someone was coming upstairs.
Emma forced her trembling legs to move and ran to her room, closing the door behind her.
FLASHBACK END
Her grandfather's horrifying eyes were featured in her nightmares for a long time.
Emma sighed as she recalled her original purpose for coming here. She had started looking into this matter when she turned 19. She did not tell anyone about her secret findings.
She had received news that someone who knew her aunt was going to travel via the cruise.
This was one of the main reasons she had stressed coming here.
She wanted to ask her aunt why she ran away from home. And why she had never come back. Why did she leave her family behind?
She changed out of her dress and put on a night suit. The ocean was calm that night. The cruise sailed as some of the guests slept while others enjoyed the nightlife.
Emma gazed out of the window and saw the moonless sky, there wasn't a trace of sleep in her eyes.
Unaware of the whirlwind of waves coming to destroy the peace of her life.