Bellatrix stepped out of the restroom with mixed emotions—angry and frustrated that her suspicions about the woman being Serena were correct. Before reaching the table where she and Sophia were having lunch, she paused to make a call. "Ollie, I have a task for you. Come to the restaurant where I am right now. I'll send you the location right away!" Bellatrix said, promptly ending the call after conveying her message to her subordinate. She quickly shared the current location of the restaurant with Ollie.
Returning to her table, Bellatrix noticed Sophia had just finished a phone call. "Oh, my goodness. I'm sorry for keeping you waiting," she apologized while taking her seat.
"No problem. By the way, do you have time after this?"
"I'm not too busy. What's up?"
"How about we go shopping together?"
"Shopping? Alright."
*
Serena took a moment to steady her breath while fixing her makeup once again. Fortunately, her makeup remained intact despite the recent tears. She took a deep breath. Although she knew Bellatrix had left, Serena still felt uneasy. This was the concern she had from the beginning when she had to return to Pandora. In addition to the anxiety of meeting Rhys, Serena was also afraid of encountering Bellatrix upon her return to Pandora. The woman had been the cause of her living in constant fear and on the run.
Serena sighed once more before shifting her gaze to the wristwatch. Lunchtime was almost over, and if she continued staying in the restroom like this, she might be late getting back to the office. "Okay, calm down. She's probably gone by now. So, I should be safe, and there's nothing to worry about," Serena muttered to herself.
She then stepped out of the restroom, taking a moment to glance around. As expected, the situation was now entirely safe. Serena could return to her table without any issues.
The woman approached her table. As soon as her backside landed on the chair, Serena took a sip of her drink in front of her to help calm herself. Luckily, she had already finished her lunch, so Serena didn't need to linger in the restaurant.
Serena's attention shifted as she heard her phone ring. Upon checking, it turned out to be Hugh calling her. Serena smiled broadly, confident that Shawn had borrowed Hugh's phone to talk to her. Serena promptly answered the call. Once the connection was established, she could immediately hear her son's cheerful voice on the other end.
"Mommy!"
"Hi, Sweetie. What's up? Why are you calling Mommy?" Serena smiled. Hearing Shawn's voice seemed to instantly dissipate the fear and anxiety Serena had felt earlier. Shawn truly had a way of making her feel calm. Hearing his voice, Serena realized that she no longer had to face everything alone. She now had Hugh and Shawn, who were always there to support her.
"Mommy, today Daddy took me to the amusement park. We played lots of games, and I got a prize because Daddy won a game for me! I'm so happy!" Shawn chattered joyfully, making Serena imagine her son's current expression.
"Really? Wow, why did you guys go without me?"
"Daddy said he'd take me again with Mommy next time. The three of us will have fun!"
"Sounds like fun. Mommy can't wait. So, how about when Mommy has a day off, we go together?"
"Okay! I can't wait to play with Mommy and Daddy!"
"Oh! By the way, did you have lunch, Sweetie?"
"Yes. On the way home, Daddy took me to a nice restaurant, and then he bought me ice cream. The food at the restaurant was delicious, and I really liked it."
"Thank goodness, I'm happy to hear that. But you ate with gusto, right? You didn't trouble Daddy, did you?"
"Of course!"
"Good boy."
"How about you, Mom? Did you have lunch? You didn't forget to have lunch, right?"
"I had lunch. In fact, I am still at the restaurant where I had lunch. In a little while, Mommy has to go back to the office to work."
"Oh, is that so? Then, I'll end the call now."
"Okay. We'll chat again when we're at home, okay?"
"Sure."
"Goodbye, Sweetie."
"Goodbye, Mommy. I love you."
"I love you more." Serena smiled while looking at her phone screen, which was still lit. Glancing at the call history she just made. Serena regained her spirit after hearing Shawn's voice.
*
"BASTARDS! YOU ARE TRULY WORTHLESS TRASH THAT I CAN'T RELY ON. I PAY YOU NOT TO BE LAZY. ARE YOU REALLY TAKING THE TASK I GAVE YOU SERIOUSLY OR NOT? YOU CAN'T EVEN HANDLE A SIMPLE TASK! UTTERLY USELESS!" Bellatrix berated her subordinates over the phone. She was truly frustrated with their unreliable work.
"W-We apologize, ma'am. We are truly—"
"DON'T EVEN TRY TO MAKE EXCUSES! I'M SICK OF THE EXCUSES YOU GIVE!" she retorted, full of emotion. Her subordinates fell silent as Bellatrix cut off their words.
"Listen! I assigned a simple task to you. Find, capture, and kill. That's it! BUT WHY CAN'T YOU DO IT? YOU EVEN MADE ME WAIT FOR FIVE LONG YEARS, AND THERE'S STILL NO RESULT AT ALL!" Bellatrix had completely lost her patience. After trying to contain her emotions for five years, she finally exploded when she saw Serena in the restaurant.
"W-We sincerely apologize, ma'am. But we genuinely tried to search for that woman everywhere. Unfortunately, we couldn't find any trace of her. Until now, we are still trying to track her whereabouts—"
"TOO LATE! Just so you know, that woman has already returned to Pandora!"
"W-What? How is that possible?"
"I SHOULD BE THE ONE ASKING THAT QUESTION TO YOU! HOW COULD YOU BE SO CARELESS TO THE POINT OF NOT REALIZING THAT WOMAN HAS SUCCESSFULLY RETURNED HERE?"
"W-We—"
"Argghh, enough! It seems like I'm the fool for employing you. I should have fired or eradicated you right from the start when I heard you failed to kill that woman!"
"F-Forgive us, ma'am... I beg you... please don't kill us..." The man on the other side sounded extremely frightened, his voice even trembled audibly.
"You better all return to Pandora immediately and stop playing games with me, or you'll face the consequences! You know I never joke with my words, don't you?"
"O-okay, ma'am, we'll head back immediately. W-we'll arrive in Pandora on an early flight tomorrow."
"It should have been that way if you still valued your lives!" Bellatrix ended the call and tossed her phone towards the sofa. She held her head, feeling a headache coming on as she pondered the issues she was currently facing.
"I take back my words from this morning. This is not a beautiful day at all! It's more like the worst day of my life. How could that wench come back when the leadership transition is just around the corner? Is she trying to mess up everything?" Bellatrix clenched both of her hands, feeling extremely enraged by everything that had happened throughout the day.
*
Serena suddenly stopped in her tracks as her eyes accidentally caught sight of the same car she noticed when she was heading home from the restaurant. Her body froze as she sensed something was amiss with the owner of that car.
Why do I feel like that car has been following me since earlier? Since I returned to the office, it seems like the car has been tailing me. Could it be that the person in the car is one of Bellatrix's henchmen? If that's true, then this could turn into a big problem. Serena started to feel uneasy. She became increasingly restless after seeing the car. Serena's attention was diverted when her phone rang, and she looked back at Hugh's number, trying to reach her. It seemed like he was checking if she had finished work, as Hugh had informed her that he and Shawn would pick her up at the office.
Hugh... If Bellatrix finds out I'm staying with them, it could be really dangerous. Serena remained silent, watching her ringing phone. After a while, she decided to answer it and told Hugh about the current situation.
"Babe, Shawn, and I are on our way to the office. We'll pick you up. Are you done with work?"
"Hugh, I think you should cancel your plan to pick me up."
"What do you mean? Why are you suddenly saying that?"
"When I was heading back from the restaurant, I saw a car following the taxi I took to get back to the office. Initially, I didn't pay much attention, but now I see the same car parked in front of my office. It's like they're waiting for me."
"Could it be them?"
"I also thought so. That's why it's better if you cancel your plan to pick me up. I don't want anything to happen to Shawn. You don't need to worry about me. I'll try my best to find a way to escape from here without them knowing."
"No! That's too risky. I'll still pick you up."
"Hugh!"
"Listen! I promised to protect you and Shawn. I can't just leave you like that. What if they manage to capture you? That would be a big problem!"
"But—"
"Just follow my plan. Stay inside for now, and don't go out until I tell you, okay?"
"If you insist on doing this, they might find out that I have a child, and they could use that against me. They might kidnap Shawn to capture me!"
"I won't let them touch a single hair on my son's head. You trust me, right?"
"Yes, I trust you—"
"That's why you should follow my instructions. I'll make sure you and Shawn are safe!"
***