Chapter 16

It was the second day in a row that Bellatrix was waking up with a sore and painful body. As she sat up, the night's event replayed in her mind, making her grip around the sheet covering her exposed chest—chest that was now riddled with bite marks—tighten. How heartless could one be? She thought. Not only had he humiliated her at the anniversary gala, and practically all her married life, he had the nerve to barge into her room and humiliate her even more. For what? Humiliating him? Having the guts to stand up for herself? Her eyes trailed to the door and the anger within her intensified. Just remembering the words he said, the threats he made the previous night, made her want to punch him. However, punching him wasn't possible. Because if she did that, then there's a high chance he'd make sure her father's company suffered again. So, with a heavy exhale, she chose to suck up the humiliation for the time being. Getting up, she felt the space being her legs throb and cursed Cillian internally. The damn bastard had been at it all night, not giving her a break, not giving her a chance to sleep. She would have praised his stamina if not for the fact that his stamina was used for the sake of hurting her. As if her body wasn't already feeling bad because of her heart disease, he had the nerve to make her feel worse for an entirely different reason. "Stupid bastard." Just as those words left her lips, her eyes fell on a glass of water on the night stand and along with it, a pack of contraceptives. A little present from Cillian, knew she. Gritting her teeth, Bellatrix sauntered over and grabbed the contraceptives. She didn't hesitate even for a second as she popped the pill open and tossed it in her mouth, flushing it down with the water. In the past, she would have hesitated, perhaps even though of getting pregnant with Cillian's child as a means to win his heart, but now, not only did she not want his child, she did not even want a relationship with him. After taking the contraceptives, she dragged herself towards the bathroom and stepped into the shower. Less than an hour later, she was dressed and headed to work. Upon stepping into Aetherion, she, of course, did not fail to notice the way a few people were looking at her. Some were even whispering under their breaths. Bellatrix frowned, but her attention was quickly diverted by the feeling of her phone vibrating. As she stepped into the elevator, she pulled it out and checked the text message that had just entered. It was from Claire. [I thought the universe had thrown it's worse at me.] Reading its content, Bellatrix's brows furrowed in worry. Quickly, she replied. [What's wrong, Claire? Did something happen? Are you hurt?!] Claire's response came just as quickly. [Everything's fine. And as for who's gonna be getting hurt, it's not gonna be me, but these pinheads that walked into my bar. These bastards look like they're looking for a fight. Don't be surprised if you suddenly hear I stabbed one of them.] Looking at it, Bellatrix felt a sense of relief wash over her and a smile immediately broke out on her lip, followed by a soft laugh. [Keep that temper of yours in check, Claire, else you're gonna get one from Ave.] Just as she hit the send button, the elevator dinged and its doors slid apart. Bellatrix was about to step off when she looked up from her phone and froze. In an instant, the smile on her lips faded and her expression became professional and cold, akin to that of a robot's as she saw Cillian. "Good morning, Mr. Laurent," She greeted professionally, as she had always done as his secretary. Then, with a simple bow, she walked away, not wanting to spend another second in his presence. Cillian watched her back as she walked away. In her expression, he saw nothing. It was blank, void of the emotions that usually lingered. But just seconds before, a smile had been on her face. A genuine one that he hadn't seen in only God knows how long. So, seeing the way her expression changed the moment she laid eyes on him, made an unfamiliar feeling rise within him. Poking the inside of his cheek with his tongue, he continued towards the presidential elevator, followed by Kane who had just ended a phone call. As they stepped into the elevator, the assistant spoke. "Sir, I just got off the line with Doctor Adolfo. He said the recent rounds of volunteers have been tested, but none of them show signs of having matching kidneys for the transplant." Cillian frowned, his hands balled into fist at his side. He knew this would happen, the chances of finding a match for Regina was slim, but it didn't stop him from getting frustrated. "He also said although Ms. Regina's body isn't suitable for the surgery now, it would be best to find a donor the soonest, a family member or relatives–" "You don't need to tell me what I already know." Cillian interrupted, tone clipped. "Keep looking, whatever the medical expenses may be, I'll cover it." Kane nodded immediately. "I understand, Sir." From where he stood behind Cillian, he watched as the boss sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, something he either did when he was stressed or coming down with his rare fever. "Sir, are you feeling alright?" He asked, even though he already knew the outcome. As predicted, Cillian ignored the question. "The tabloids from last night," "Don't worry Sir, I've made sure none of it got to the news. However, some people might have seen it–" Kane clamped his mouth shut as Cillian glanced over his shoulder, an icy cold glare present in his eyes. "I don't pay you thousands of dollars monthly to be incompetent, do I?" Kane's lips curved up in a smile, the usual apologetic one. "My apologies, Sir. I'll handle it." Unlocking his tablet, he handed it to Cillian. "Also, this is the new person H.R picked to be the new product ambassador for Luméva." Cillian took the tablet, took one glance at it, handed it back to his assistant and without hesitation, instructed. "Send the details to Bellatrix and have her handle it." ~•~•~•~•~ In the middle of working on an Excel sheet, an email notification popped up at the top of Bellatrix's screen, informing her that an email had arrived in her inbox. Opening it, she saw the title of the email 'new product ambassador.' and she couldn't help but frown. Wasn't Benedict usually the one meant to deal with this type of stuff? Why was it now being sent to her? [Miss Lancaster, President Laurent has instructed that you handle the new product ambassador. I have forwarded you the contract details. Please finalize it as soon as possible. Have a good day.] The Email from Kane Read. Of course, it was Cillian's doing. Power trip, what a wonderful way to torment her! Sighing, she grabbed a pen and a sticky note, wanting to jolt down as much information as she'd need to remember, as she accessed the file that had been attached to the email. However, the moment her eyes fell on the name of the product ambassador, her expression fell. "You've gotta be kidding me," She muttered, leaning back in her chair and taking a second longer to stare at her screen. Melanie Green! The name stared back at her, written in big bold letters. The very same name that belonged to none other than Regina's best friend. The very same girl that came over every week and made it her agenda to torment, degrade and put Bellatrix down, each time she came over. It was like she and Regina's fun time. Except Bellatrix never found any part of it fun. Even till date, she loathed the idea of being in the girl's presence. However, Luméva was an important part of Aetherion. It was their newest electronic face mask that had just launched and with sales going through the roof, they needed a face for the product. Melanie fit that role and now, Bellatrix had been tasked with the pain of securing the contract with her. Never put it past Cillian to torment her in some other way. With a sigh, she stood up and gathered her things. Rather than sitting and lamenting, it would only be wise to get things over with as soon as possible. With that thought in mind, she printed out the contract and other necessary things before walking out of Aetherion. In less than an hour, she arrived at the building, a photography studio and immediately, she met Melanie's agent. The rusty looking female scanned her from top to bottom in a rather offensive way, before asking. "And you're here for?" Forcing a professional smile on her lips, she reached into her bag and pulled out the contract. "I'm from Aetherion. I came to discuss and finalize the contract of Luméva with Miss Green." "Ah, Luméva," She muttered and once again, looked her over. Bellatrix felt her smile twitch, but forced it to stay at bay. "Well, Melanie's busy as we speak, you can either come back another time, or wait for her." Although it seems like she had been given two options, it was only one option. Leave and never come back, or wait. Bellatrix chose the latter. "I'll wait." She said and the agent left without another word. Great, not even so much as a timeline; Bellatrix thought as she turned around and headed towards the waiting area. An hour of waiting turned into two hours and then three and just when Bellatrix had had enough and was about to seek Melanie out herself, a high pitched voice suddenly sounded from behind her. "Well well, look who it is. If it isn't the homewrecker's daughter."