Chapter 12 The Anonymous Threat
Zephyra stares at the text. The phrases blur through her tears.
"Ask your husband about the actual motive why he needed a fake wife. Maya knows."
Her hands tremble as she turns to Kairo.
"What does this suggest?"
He seems really harassed. "What are you talking about?"
She shoves her cellphone at him. "This. Someone just dispatched this."
He reads it. His forehead furrows. "I do not understand."
"Do not play stupid with me." Her voice shakes. "What aren't you telling me?"
"Nothing." He pulls out his very own cellphone. Shows her the display. Empty. "I've nothing to hide from you."
"Then why might someone ship this?"
"To make you doubt me." His eyes search hers. "Is it operating?"
The doorbell rings.
They both freeze.
Kairo checks the safety digital camera. "It's just a transport."
"At ten at night?"
He opens the door carefully.
A bundle sits at the doormat. Undeniable brown. No label.
He brings it in. set it at the counter.
They stare at it like it'd explode.
"Open it," Zephyra whispers.
He does.
There are pictures in it. Dozens of them. Within the penthouse.
The first picture suggests them arguing. Early days. When they hated everything.
The second one shows them at opposite ends of the living room. cold. remote.
The third indicates her evident at him over espresso.
"These are from within the penthouse," Kairo says slowly. "Before we disabled the surveillance devices."
"Someone saved copies."
greater pix. All proving the marriage is fake.
At the bottom is a note.
cut-out letters like a ransom call for.
"I've the entirety. Until you do precisely what I say."
No demands. No instructions. simply threats.
Zephyra sinks onto a stool. "this is awful."
"The wedding started out fake." He sets the pix down. "Everybody suspects that already."
"Suspecting is not the same as proof."
He moves in front of her. His hands discover her chin. elevate her face.
"What we have now's actual," he says quietly. "let them try and show in any other case."
Her breath catches. "Kairo—"
"Those photographs are vintage. From before I commenced caring about you."
Her heart hammers. "You care about me?"
"Is that so hard to believe?"
"You hated me weeks ago."
"I in no way hated you." His thumb brushes her cheek. "I used to be fearful of you. Of what you are making me experience."
The air among them crackles.
Zephyra exhales shakily. "we face this together."
His hand finds hers. Their fingers intertwine.
"collectively," he consents.
They evaluate security pictures on Kairo's pc.
A hooded parent seems at 9:47 PM. Leave the bundle. Disappears.
"Can you see the face?" Zephyra leans closer.
"No. They knew where the cameras have been."
Kairo rewinds. Play it slowly.
"Check the construction."
The parent is narrow. common peak. The manner they flow appears acquainted by some means.
"I realize that too," Zephyra whispers.
"You do?"
"I have seen it before. I simply cannot place where.”
They watch it three extra times. The familiarity gnaws at her.
However, the memory remains just out of reach.
Zephyra checked social media. Her belly sinks.
Maya posted twenty minutes ago.
Perfect make-up. Fashion designer dress. That knowing smile.
Caption: "Some love tales are offered. Some are earned. Are you able to tell the difference?"
The comments explode.
"Is this about Kairo and Zephyra?"
"I knew their relationship was fake."
Heaps of comments. Developing with the aid of the second one.
"She's building a narrative," Zephyra says.
Kairo reads over her shoulder. "She's making plans for something."
Zephyra's cellphone buzzes.
New text. Unknown number.
"Dinner, day after day. eight PM. Belmont eating place. Come alone, or the pix go public. -M"
The blood drains from her face.
Kairo takes her cellphone. Read it. "genuinely not now."
"I need to go."
"No. You do not."
"If I don't, she releases the whole lot."
"Leave her. We're going to cope with it."
"Do we? These snapshots destroy everything."
He's taking each of her hands.
"I don't care about the fake marriage. The contract. Any of it." His eyes are excessive. "I care about you. It's real."
Her chest tightens. "Kairo—"
"Don't cross, please."
"I should."
"In case you go, you are strolling into a trap."
"Then come with me."
"The text says alone."
"Considering that, can we comply with her rules?"
A ghost of a grin touches his lips.
They plan for an hour. Backup protection indicators.
However, as middle-of-the-night methods, dread settles in Zephyra's stomach.
She's in her room when her cellphone buzzes again.
Unknown number.
A video file.
Her finger hovers. Should she tell Kairo?
Against her better judgment, she clicks play.
The video is darkish. Grainy security photos.
A hallway. Pricey construction.
A woman walks into frame. Blonde. elegant.
Maya.
She's speaking to someone off-digital camera. angry.
The audio is muffled, but Zephyra catches words.
"...shouldn't have married her..."
"...we are still able to fix this..."
Then some other figure enters the frame.
Zephyra's blood turns to ice.
The person Maya is speaking to is a person Zephyra is aware of.
Someone she trusts.
Someone who's been in their home. Who knows their protection?
Her telephone slips from her hands.
Her bedroom door opens. Kairo stands there.
"You know? You are pale."
She cannot speak. Cannot breathe.
Must she inform him? Or is he working with them too?
"Zephyra?" He steps closer. "What is the problem?"
Her cellphone buzzes on the ground.
Another text
"Tomorrow at dinner, ask Maya about her partner. Unless you'd rather I tell Kairo who's really behind this. Your choice."
Who is Maya working with, and can Zephyra trust anyone anymore?