Chapter 28
“CASEY, are you sure about this?” Art asked her after her message to Alexander was sent. “What if they track us?”
Casey narrowed her eyes at her editor. “I can’t believe you’ll be asking that question to me, Art. Of all people, it was you, huh? I thought you’re an IT specialist during your college days?”
Art scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, but just the basics,” he said, a bit embarrassed, “Just some secretarial things.”
She rolled her eyes ceiling wards. “Changing your current IP address via VPN is just a basic skill, you know?” She scrolled on her phone. “Now, what will I send him first?”
“Why don’t you take it slowly?” Art suggested, based on his expression, he looked as scared as a cat.
“Art, they’re not that smart to know where I am. They didn’t even suspect me when I was there even I have shown them the real me, right?” she said, scowling at her editor. “They didn’t even bother to test my DNA for identity matching before taking me to the hospital and changing my face—” She paused when her website’s notifications beeped. “What is this?”
Art looked over her shoulders and read the message that she got from anonymous. “Oh, my gosh, that’s a death threat!” He shook her shoulders vigorously. “Casey, please stop this. Why don’t you just let it pass? I’m sure Mr. Montefort won’t find you if you just kept silent and unnoticed. Stop this blind item and expose factor—”
“Art, did you just forget that I’m the Speedy Online scandal writer? Do you think I can be easily scared by these cheap death threats?” She made a ‘tss’ sound. “Alexander surely won’t look for me because he’s ashamed of himself for being so weak, but Esperanza? I doubt it. She told me everything. I can’t believe that villains can be this stupid.”
“Casey, what if that threat came from Esperanza?” Art took her new phone because she intentionally left her phone in the hacienda. “What if they collect all your fingerprints in their house and locate you via DNA database?”
“There’s no way for them to know where or who’s Casey Alamario. It’s not my real name,” she said, then laughed. “And, before they could find me, I have already exposed their dark plans. I have saved Alexander and Billie from that evil step-mom.”
Her senior editor caught his head. “Why are you so fearless? Aren’t you afraid to die?”
Casey shrugged her shoulders. “I have nothing to lose, Art. I’ve faced death once. I’m not afraid to face it again.” She took her phone from him when it beeped. “They kept on sending hate messages. Look at these blind followers of Esperanza Montefort. They’re defending the woman that would kill them very soon.”
Art heaved a sigh. “Boss Miguel called me yesterday,” he said in an emotional tone. “He and Sara wanted to see you, but I told them that you got yourself in trouble, and it’s better if they’ll stay away from you for a while. But I haven’t told them that your face is Amara’s now.”
“They’ll be shocked…” Casey whispered and looked in the small vanity mirror on Art’s table. “Would I be able to see my face again?”
“If you wanted to go under the knives again, why not?” Art said and laughed. “But, I think having that face is a remembrance of what you experienced in the plane accident.”
Casey heaved a sigh. “It will serve as a remembrance of my time in Montefort Hacienda, as the wife of Alexander and mother of Billie…” She felt a lump in her throat. “Maybe the little girl is looking for me now.”
Art tapped her shoulder. “Why did you let yourself get too attached to the girl when you know that staying there is just a part of your plan?”
Casey didn’t answer. She didn’t just let herself attached to Billie, but she also let her heart fall for Alexander. God knows how she missed his touch, his kisses, and the way he looked at her on their climax. Casey shook her head to ditch those thoughts in her mind. She has to stay focused because if she let herself be carried away by longing and yearning for Alexander, she’ll never be able to protect them from Esperanza.
“I’m sure by this time Esperanza has found out about my disappearance in Montefort Hacienda,” she said and focused her eyes on the microSD card inserted on a card reader. “No doubt that she’s thinking on how to find me now.”
Art picked up the device on the table. “I’ve formatted this after making hundreds of duplicate copies,” he said and pulled it out on the reader. “Should I dump it?”
Casey shook her head. “Nah, we can reuse it as portable storage,” she said and took it from his hand. “It’s a one terabyte microSD card. If you’re going to buy this in a tech shop, it will cause you a hundred dollars. Plus that it’s an original brand of trusted gadgets makers.”
Art chuckled at what she said. “I can’t believe that you have thought about recycling it amidst the numerous threats that you’re receiving from Montefort Winery.”
“It’s not the winery that wanted me dead. It’s Esperanza,” she said and rolled her swivel chair. “But, I want her to think that I left the hacienda barehanded. I want her to think that I left all the evidence and that I am a weak woman. But too bad for her, I am Casey Almario, the fearless scandal writer.”
“When are we going to sell the articles and proofs? It will give the network more funds for the next projects,” Art asked him. She can sense the hesitation in his voice. “Christ, I’m starting to regret the day that I met you, Casey.”
Casey laughed. “Come on, we’re both nothing to lose,” she said, then knotted her forehead, “Unless you’ll pursue on marrying Sara?”
Art snorted. “She’s not my type,” he said, blushing. “Ah, it’s not the right time to talk about that. Should I contact the other news site for a bargain?”
She waved her fingers. “But give them only the minor details. I want the big ones to be released on our site.” She tapped the play button on her phone, and Esperanza’s voice aired, “including this one.”
“The Supreme Court doesn’t accept the audio recorded message as evidence, but we can use that as a starter on our website blast,” Art said. “That woman planned it all. She’s really going to jail soon—”
Casey’s e-mail notification beeped again. With a bored expression on her face, she opened and read it. Her chest hammered as soon as she saw Alexander’s and Billie’s name on the content. “Fuck, why does she have to use them as a threat?”
Art looked at her phone screen. “Alexander and Billie are in their possession, and they won’t hesitate to hurt them if you wouldn’t stop exposing them?” Art laughed. “Of course you don’t care about it, right?”
Casey clenched her fist on the table. “If they dare to touch them, I will kill them,” she said and scrolled on the message. “Wait for a second, Alexander’s going to have an event in Boracay? And, Billie’s going with him?”
Art took the phone from her hand. “As your senior editor and guardian, I won’t allow you to go in that event, Casey.”
***