Chapter 99 Damn the roasted chicken
Veronica's POV:
Time went by with slowness.
One hour passed. Then two.
I sat on that couch, trapped in conference room 5-C, while my stomach growled with hunger and my throat burned with thirst.
The guards stood at their posts like statues, never moving, never speaking, just watching me with blank expressions.
And Laura! Laura was having a feast.
There was Fresh bread on her table that looked still warm, with butter melting into the crust. And a Caesar salad with actual parmesan shavings. Grilled vegetables with dessert chocolate mousse in crystal glasses.
She sat at the conference table, feasted on it like she was royalty while I was just a pauper.
I would have ignored her, but damn, the smell of that roasted chicken was driving me insane.
My stomach growled loudly, and embarrassingly, and Laura looked up from her meal with a satisfied smile.
"Hungry?" she asked sweetly, cutting into a piece of chicken. "This is absolutely delicious. The chef really outdid himself."
I said nothing, just pressed my lips together and looked away.
"You know," Laura continued, taking a delicate bite, "All of this could be yours. All you have to do is read that little script and make your confession on Instagram live."
She was mocking me!
"Just say the words, Veronica. Tell everyone the truth about what you did. And then you can eat, drink, go to the bathroom, and leave this room. Simple."
I felt myself almost yielding to her. God, I was so hungry. And thirsty. My lips were dry, cracking. My head was starting to pound from dehydration.
I knew I would give up almost anything just to eat at that point. To drink a glass of water. To feel like a human being again instead of a prisoner.
But it wasn't worth it. The public humiliation, the complete destruction of my reputation, the setback to everything I'd built.
I couldn't do it. Couldn't let Laura win like that.
I assumed no one was coming to save me.
Theo and Max were probably searching... I had to believe they were searching... but this hotel was massive.
Forty-two floors. Hundreds of rooms. Countless conference spaces and service corridors. We were hidden here in 5-C, on a floor reserved for private events, somewhere they'd probably never think of looking at.
It would take them forever to find me. Maybe never.
And worse... I needed to use the bathroom. Desperately. And I was on my period.
The cramping had started about an hour ago. I needed to change my tampon soon. Very soon. Or I'd be dealing with a humiliating situation on top of everything else.
I couldn't risk it anymore.
Maybe the best thing was to just confess for now. Say whatever Laura wanted me to say.
And then later, once I was free, I had access to lawyers and PR people and the ability to defend myself... I could prove to the world that it was blackmail, couldn't I?
But even as I tried to convince myself, I knew it wouldn't work that way.
A confession like that, made publicly on Instagram Live, would cause irreversible damage. It didn't matter if I later claimed it was coerced.
The internet never forgot. Screenshots would exist forever. People would always wonder if maybe it was true, if maybe I was just trying to walk it back after getting caught.
The damage would be permanent.
I decided to wait just a few more minutes before making a choice. Just a little longer.
Maybe Theo and Max would find me. Maybe hotel security would do a sweep of the conference rooms. Maybe something would happen.
Laura finished her chicken and moved on to dessert, the chocolate mousse, eating it with slow, deliberate pleasure while making little sounds of satisfaction.
"Mmm," she hummed. "This is amazing. Are you sure you don't want some, Veronica? Last chance before I finish it all."
I closed my eyes, trying to block out the smell, the sound of her eating, and the growing hunger clawing at my insides.
Just a few more minutes.
I could hold out just a few more minutes.
Max's POV:
"Come on, come on," I muttered, pacing behind Theo as he sat at one of the security computers, his fingers flying across the keyboard faster than I'd ever seen him type.
Lines of code scrolled across the screen.
"Can you not be over-smart right now?" I snapped, my frustration boiling over. "We should just be checking every room manually. Going door to door. This is taking too long!"
"This IS the only way," Theo said without looking up from the screen, looking tight with concentration. "Veronica disappeared right after she got in the elevator. We saw her press the button for the 28th floor, but it stopped even below that. Then the footage cuts out."
"What do you mean cuts out?"
"Someone erased it," Theo said grimly. "The elevator footage from the moment those men got on... it's gone. Completely wiped from the system."
"How is that even possible?"
"They had access," Theo said. "Probably paid off someone in security or had their own tech person remotely delete it. Either way, we can't see where Veronica went or which floor or room they took her to without recovering that footage."
"So recover it!" I practically shouted.
"I'm trying!" Theo's voice rose. "I have to write code to restore deleted files from the backup server. It's not a button I can just press, Max!"
I wanted to punch something. Wanted to grab the guards and shake them and demanded who among them was the traitor that helped Laura Bellamy to delete footage. But I knew that wouldn't help.
If I get into a fight with the guards, they will kick us out of this room, and we lose every chance of finding Veronica.
Theo was already doing everything he could.
I just hated feeling so helpless.
"How long?" I asked, trying to keep my voice level.
"I don't know," Theo admitted. "Could be five minutes. Could be an hour. Depends on how thoroughly they deleted the files and whether the backup system even captured that time period."
"An hour?" I lost my cool completely despite my will. "Veronica could be... Laura could be doing anything to her right now! She is a jealous, psychopathic bitch."