Chapter 4 Mix-up
“Rudy… please… calm down…” I whispered in the meekest voice I could muster, because at this point, my heart was racing so fast I could practically feel it rising up into my throat. His breathing was hard, his eyes flaring with anger, and his grip on my shoulders was far too tense for comfort. But the moment my voice cracked softly like that, something inside him seemed to snap back into place. His expression froze, then slowly softened. His cheeks turned bright red, almost comically red as he suddenly realized how close his face was to mine. We were barely inches apart, our breaths brushing against each other. And to top it off, our bodies were tangled in the most compromising position possible: him hovering over me, me half-sprawled on the seat beneath him.
Of course, that was when fate decided to ruin my life.
The door opened.
Our chauffeur stepped in, took one good look at us, just one and immediately froze. His eyes widened, he gasped, and then with the most timid, horrified voice he muttered, “I-I’m so sorry, sir—ma’am— I didn’t mean to intrude—” and then he scrambled out of the car like someone had just poured boiling oil under his feet.
“W–wait!” I called, struggling to sit up as Rudy jerked backward so fast he hit his head on the roof. “It’s not what you think! Come back! I can explain!”
But he was already gone. Gone like a man who would be putting in his resignation letter first thing tomorrow morning because of what he thought he witnessed.
I placed my palm over my face and groaned so hard my soul physically left my body for a second. “Oh God… what must he think we were doing?” My face burned with embarrassment.
Beside me, Rudy looked like he wanted to curl up into a ball and die. His entire face was tomato red and he kept clearing his throat like he was trying to reset his existence. “I… I swear this is not how I imagined my day going,” he muttered, unable to even look at me.
I covered my face with both hands now. “Rudy… the poor man thinks we were—”
“Don’t say it,” he snapped quietly, horrified.
“—doing something weird.”
“I said don’t say it!”
I sighed deeply, defeated. “This is all your fault, you know. If you didn’t suddenly pounce on me—”
He glared at me. “I wasn’t pouncing. I was expressing justified frustration!”
“With your face two inches from mine?”
“I miscalculated the distance!”
I gave him a long look. “You practically climbed on top of me.”
“That was also a miscalculation!”
We stared at each other, and despite the mortifying situation, a small laugh escaped me. Rudy looked away quickly, still flustered.
Finally, after the painfully awkward atmosphere died down a bit, Rudy took in a slow breath and said, “Listen… I’m sorry. Not just for the… position… but for how I reacted earlier. I was angry. And then when you told me something like that was going on without my knowledge…” He shook his head and leaned back against the seat, rubbing his forehead. “I just lost it. But my stance remains the same. I still want to know who orchestrated the hospital lies.”
“I know,” I said softly. “But Rudy… if I tell you, you’re not going to believe it. And you can’t overreact. Promise me that first.”
“I won’t,” he said immediately.
“Rudy…”
“I won’t overreact. I promise.”
I stared at him for a moment. His jaw was firm, but his eyes were steady. Whether he would actually keep that promise… well, that remained to be seen. But I took a small breath and began.
“The ones who orchestrated the fake cancer diagnosis are part of our family. My uncle, Glenn Blade… and his wife.” I paused. “And Diana.”
Rudy went completely still.
His mouth slowly parted, his eyes widening in utter shock. It was the type of expression someone made when they witnessed a catastrophe unfold right in front of them.
“D… Diana?” he whispered. His voice cracked. “Diana did that?”
“Yes.”
“I mean—Glenn, sure, he never liked you. Everyone knows that. But Diana?” He looked genuinely shaken. “Are you telling me Diana, our own sister, was part of something that cruel?”
I nodded.
Rudy’s fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white. His jaw tightened, and for a moment I genuinely worried that his promise not to overreact had already evaporated into thin air.
“How could she…” he muttered under his breath, trembling with contained fury. “How could she do something like that to you? What level of pettiness, what level of heartlessness—”
“Rudy,” I said firmly. “Please. You promised. Don’t do anything reckless.”
His eyes flicked to mine, still burning with anger, but he took in a long breath and looked away. “Fine. I won’t do anything,” he said through clenched teeth.
“Say it like you mean it,” I replied.
“I mean it,” he sighed loudly. “I won’t confront anyone.”
Satisfied—at least for now, I leaned back into my seat.
\---
By the time we returned home, the evening air had cooled slightly, but the tension between us remained like a thick invisible fog. Still, I made Rudy swear again, twice, not to say anything. He gave me his word.
Now, safely in my room, I sat cross-legged on my bed in front of a massive screen mounted to the wall. Multiple panels showed various CCTV feeds from inside the Blade estate. I had gotten Eric to help me install this entire surveillance setup, and for once, money had been well spent. The cameras weren’t placed in private rooms, no bathrooms, no bedrooms, nothing illegal but everywhere publicly accessible inside the mansion was fair game.
And that was more than enough.
My eyes locked on one particular panel, where Diana was pacing back and forth in a hallway, screaming at her maid. Her perfectly polished image was completely shattered, she looked like a lunatic on the verge of a breakdown. Sweat made her foundation patchy, her eyeliner was smudged, and her hair was frizzing from how many times she’d run her hands through it.
Then I noticed something else.
Her lips.
They looked… bigger. A lot bigger. Almost unnaturally swollen. Did she get more fillers today? Or was her stress making them balloon somehow? Either way, it was ridiculous.
I smirked.
Seeing her panic, seeing her fall apart even a little, sent a wave of satisfaction through me so strong it felt like electricity dancing under my skin.
Good.
Let her panic.
Let her wonder when the sword is going to drop.
And when it does, I’ll make sure she remembers this feeling for the rest of her life.
I leaned back against my pillows, my eyes glinting.
Tomorrow marks the next phase.
Another step toward exposing every rat hiding within the Blade clan.
And I won’t stop, not until every single one of them pays.