Chapter 45

L I N D Y

After the fight with dad, I didn’t talk to him because of his unfair justice. When mom finally recovered, I felt the happiest. She was stable and needed a day or two to rest before she can finally be discharged. I spent most of my times with mom but had awkward moments with dad inside. I didn’t want mom to worry about what was going on so I played it cool.

I visited Avery in the morning too and eat with her for lunch and dinner since she was always alone. Avery gave birth to a baby girl and she named her Dahlia Rose Swanepoel. She said that the Rose represented her since she has a lot of pricks like the thorns on the stem while I represented the flower dahlia which symbolizes inner strength, grace and honesty. It was a very sweet thing of her to do.

Even though Dahlia had to be left behind in the NICU department for further observation and treatments, Avery was a one proud mom. She instantly loved her daughter as soon as she laid her eyes on baby Dahlia.

I am proud of Avery for surviving that though battle.

Days passed and I was back in Canada in a blink of an eye. As soon as I returned, the same fear crept in my body thinking and worrying again about Griffin. Although I have been very vigilant about my whereabouts, I experienced a little anxiety for what happened a few days ago. I would always double sure that I have locked the doors and windows in my house. There would be days when I would constantly look around me if in case Griffin was there lurking somewhere and would jump right at me with his knife.

“Hey.” I call out as soon as his video turns on and he looked like a mess.

Harry obviously just took off the shower with no top on and just his black pajamas. He has a towel rubbing against his wet hair and shows me a very weak smile. I could tell that his eyes were sad and he looked as if he just cried.

“Are you okay?” I can’t help but ask.

He slowly nods, “Yeah I am fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, of course.”

“You look like there’s something wrong.”

Harry smiles tight-lipped, “I’m okay. I just had a fight with Gemma that’s all.”

“Oh. What did you two fight about?”

His facial expression changed and got a little angrier then I realized that I was being too nosy, “Sorry.” I say right away. “I shouldn’t be too nosy on such things “

He breathes heavily, “We fought about Jolene.”

He takes a pause and I decided to lend an ear.

“There was this… umm, gift…” He continues. “That same red box from before. I thought I was alone in the house because I assumed that she was on a trip with her friends but then just as when I was about to throw it away… she caught me.”

Throw it away? That means he didn’t want his sister nor his mother to see the content of the gift. “What was inside the box?” I asked right away.

His eyes distant, “It’s something horrible.”

“It came from Jolene again?” I asked in horror.

He nods as his eyes staring at his hands, “Yeah.”

“Did it have a note like the last time?”

“Yes. It did. But it was found outside the box inside a small envelope.”

“What did it say?”

“It said that it was something Jolene and I first had before.”

We took a pause before I asked again, “So what was inside the box Harry?”

He breathes heavily as he tries to avoid my eyes before he finally looks back at me, “It was a dead fetus covered in blood and had such an awful stench.”

My jaws dropping in surprise thinking about it. How can a person send something so disgusting like that just to threaten another person?

“I wanted to throw it away and burn it as quick as I can but Gemma caught me and forced me to show her the box when she read the small note which flew to the floor.” He explains as he brings his hands to his forehead. “I told her everything and showed her the gift then she got so mad at me. She blamed me for what happened to Jolene.”

He finally pulled his head up back to me and I can finally see his terribly sad and teary eyes, “And she was right, Lindy.” He cries.

“Harry, it was never your fault.” I tried to console him.

“No.” He strongly disagrees. “It was all my fault! Gemma was fucking right. Three years of living in regret and guilt is still not enough for the lives that ended that night because of my own irresponsible and reckless actions.” He brings the balls of his hand to his eyes as he clenched his fists.

My heart breaks seeing him like this again and how he has been struggling in forgiving himself and trying to move past it. But it is still hurting him and he never stops having negative self-talk.

These gifts that he has been receiving for the past couple of days are bringing back the horrible past that he been trying to forget. These gifts are opening up wounds that he has been trying to cure. These gifts are hurting him again mentally and emotionally.

“If I didn’t start that stupid fucking relationship with Jolene then none of this will happen!” He blames himself again.

“Harry…” I called out softly as I watch him erupt in tears. He sobs softly and how this whole thing is hurting me too.

“You’re supposed to be mad at me Lindy.” He pulls his head up. “You’re supposed to be mad for what I have done to Jolene. You’re supposed to feel disgusted of me that I was the reason who… who started all this whole freaking mess!”

“Harry, I don’t want to be mad because I have seen you struggle in forgiving yourself for what happened in the past.” I tell him. “Yes, I didn’t know what to feel when I found out about the truth but as soon as I saw you having an emotional breakdown, instead of getting mad, I pity you.”

His eyes looking back at me, “You’re not mad.”

“No Harry. And I don’t want to blame you too because I want to understand you and I want to understand why you did that. I get it. You were young and reckless. You had the whole world in your hands because you were famous.”

“But that’s not enough Lindy. Those petty and childish reasons makes me feel sick to my stomach thinking about it again.”

“I know. I know you feel that way.” I tell him. “I wish I could take all those pain, regret and guilt away from you because this is ruining your mental health.”

He sighs heavily while he tries to stop himself from crying.

“Instead of thinking negatively and blaming yourself, it’s all in the past now. Think about today. You’re more mature. You’re more responsible. You know that what you did were wrong and you regret it. But don’t let that past dictate you for your present self. You’re strong Harry.” I smile at him as he stares at me with rueful eyes.

I breathe as I continue to say, “You’re strong for keeping all those things for years on your own. You’re strong Harry and you shouldn’t allow that person, whoever is behind all these schemes, to bother the kind of person you are now.”

He finally smiles weakly at me while he begins to wipe his tears away, “You’re right. I shouldn’t let this person get into my head. I should focus on finding out who he is and put him in prison.”

“I am here for you like how you are always there for me when I need you.” I reassured him.

“Oh Lindy, you don’t know how much I love you.” He tells me. “You don’t know how lucky I am to have you in my life and for accepting who I was back then.”

“Everyone has a past we are all trying to avoid.” I smile at him. “You’re a good person Harry and I am luckier to have you.”

The following morning, a ring came by my doorbell and as soon as I grabbed the Eye Spy tab, I see a man dressed as a delivery guy was standing outside the front door. I begin to have a bad feeling about this because of the gift that Harry received. I decided to take my chance and head to the front door.

I swing it open, “Hi.” I greeted.

The delivery man smiles as he was wearing a baseball cap, “Good morning. Are you Miss Swanepoel?”

I nodded, “Yeah.”

“You have a delivery. Can you please sign here?” He hands me the pad and the pen.

“From where did it come from?” I asked as I sign.

“Well, it didn’t have any address from it. Sorry.”

I glance at the brown parcel which was on the floor and felt relieved that it was not a red box. I accepted the package and smiled as soon as I accepted and watched him leave. I begin to bring the slightly big box inside my house and shut the front door,

I was hesitant about this because there was no address and I can’t return this to the sender. I was curious and I was not really hasty in opening it but then I am too curious to know what I could be inside this damned box.

I begin to open it and as soon as I saw what was inside, it was another brown box but smaller in size which I pulled out. I begin to open the smaller one and as soon as I finally opened it, I was stunned to see a red box with golden ribbon and the awful smell of rotten egg filtered my nostrils. This box was bigger in size than the previous one I got so what could be inside?

I was then reminded of what Harry told me about his gift and I knew instantly what was inside. But then in the back of my head, I still want to see it for myself to know what is really inside this cursed box. I remember when Harry said that the small note was outside the box but then this one didn’t have anything on it.

Maybe it’s something different?

But then the smell is just really awful. No wonder this was wrapped with two other boxes with a lot of scented papers inside it.

Bravely, I decided to take the red box outside and the smell just went berserk inside the living room. I covered my nose but it was still able to go through my thin sheet top. Slowly, I pulled the lid off and I was horrified when I saw two heads of babies with eyes wide open as their mouths was open too.

I screamed in horror as I moved away from it and fell to the ground. My hands were shaking as I see a lot of blood stain on the bluish and purplish heads and even on the insides of the box. I tried to calm my fast heart beating as I breathe heavily through my nose and my mouth before I finally had the courage to approach it again since there was a small envelope inside it.

I looked away while I was reaching out for the envelope and as soon as I took a hold of it, I opened it and it says: “You will lose what I lost. -Jolene”

My body was completely immobile right after I read the note and my hands were terribly trembling. I threw it away and cried in horror. Fear. There was fear rushing throughout my veins as I begin to feel my whole body trembling and crumbling. This kind of threat which is not only after my relationship with Harry and my own life.

This kind of hatred and revenge is something really terrifying because this person want vengeance from what happened to Jolene.

This gift, two real and dead baby heads. There’s a clear message to this and it is indeed certainly very clear.

It was too awful to see because this could only mean one thing.

This was a threat.

Someone out there is after killing my babies.