HIS SWEET REVENGE

Bryan’s POVConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

Steve places two files in front of me as I scrutinize him with piercing eyes. I lean forward as he watches me with anticipation. I am hoping he did a great job.

Grabbing it, I almost tear it off in a hurry and in anticipation to know what he has found out. I tear the edge of the envelope and let the two pictures fall out of it.

There are two pictures of two people who look alike but with different names.

The first man looks young and handsome with curly hair while the other has a mustache, looks older, and has wavy black hair.

Confusion spread across my face, making it difficult to know who is the criminal between these two persons. As if reading my mind, Steve clears his throat as a boyish grin creeps on his lips in satisfaction of a job well done.

“They are the same”, he remarks.

“What?” I exclaim loudly. I turn back to the picture and examine them carefully. The look-alike is not the same. It looks like an older man and a younger guy.

“Why did you say…”

“Read out the name, boss”, he tells me.

“Paxton and Derick”, I read.

A sudden realization sweeps through me and I recall the conversation with my father. I thought he said Paxton’s name is Eric and not Derick which is what got me confused about these two people in front of me.

I never knew about Paxton’s existence until recently but I never knew him physically. I have been having incessant nightmares about something that have to do with death and an image of a man keeps appearing. I don’t know what he looks like because immediately I woke up, I forgot about the image.

I was embarrassed to know that Celine saw me while I was having a nightmare but pretended not to. I wouldn’t have spoken up if she hadn’t turned back with her hands on the doorknob. I saw her tear-filled face. I saw her concern. I saw the worry scattered on her face.

“Paxton and Derick are the same people. Derick is his real name while Paxton is the fake. Derick is from Alaska while Paxton is from the Yorkshire region. Derick is here using the identity of Paxton to fake a disguise. He murdered a lady in Los Angeles and he ran here to seek cover. He is in a disguise and his brothers are working towards clearing his name in the next few months. He plans to use the real Paxton as the criminal while he goes scot-free.” He explains to my horror.

When my father told me Derick was back in New York and I hadn’t come across him, I thought he was bluffing.

But my curiosity took over, making me give this job to Steve after he was done with Eric’s case. My father got to know about Eric’s case and he advised that we settle it amicably.

“Paxton is Derick?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know where he stays?”

“No, I will continue with my investigation”, he informs me.

“Good. Find out what he does for a living, where he goes daily, and who he goes out with.”

“Yes, boss”, Steve stands up with urgency. “I will get going.”

I nod and watch him walk to the door. I remember something and I stop him, forcing myself to push away the thoughts of Helena’s last word to me. I want to know who is behind this.

I haven’t done any investigation since she died because of what she told me before death took her away. She wanted me to leave the type of life I was living and that was what led to our fight and her subsequent death.

Even in death, she still wanted me to let go and I made a vow to do that. It was so hard but I did it anyway.

“Boss?” He jerks me out of my reverie.

“There is one more thing I want to know..” I trail off. I don’t know if Paxton or any of the Gonzalez has a hand in this but now that I am finding out about Paxton, I want to know everything about him and if he knows anything about Helena’s death.

This will determine the level of punishment I am going to accord to him. But if he isn’t, this will be Steve’s next assignment. I didn’t want to do this initially but now, with these new nightmares, I am curious.

“What is it, boss?” He demands with determination.

“Find out if he has a hand in Helena’s death”, I finally voice out my thoughts. He nods in understanding and I squeeze my eyes shut with a fresh wave of pain sipping through me.

Before I open my eyes, he is gone.

****

Celine’s POV

“I’m so sorry you are doing most of my jobs now”, Camilla flashes me an apologetic look and I smile sadly. I shift in the seat as I watch her move swiftly from one counter to the other, trying to get breakfast ready.

We are going to eat a late breakfast today. Camilla woke up late. Bryan doesn’t take breakfast, I know this way back from when I was his secretary. He only takes coffee in the morning but he doesn’t miss dinner.

Lizzy and Jason are in the living room, I didn’t want to disturb them so I came here to help Camilla out but she refused. I feel like asking Camilla some questions about Bryan but I don’t know if she will tell me.

The other day she told me about Bryan’s to-be bride who died. It was supposed to clear my wrong assumptions about Bryan, she didn’t bring it up for anything.

I want to know if this nightmare is a new thing. I want to ask if Camilla knows about Bryan’s nightmares. The more I think of it, the more scared I am of Bryan. I am not supposed to be this concerned about it but I can’t help it.

I clear my throat. “Hmm, Camilla…” I stop midway, telling myself this is definitely not the right time to bring up this issue.

Camilla is in a hurry to finish up the cooking and serve everyone. I decide to leave it till later when someone enters.

“Celine”, Lizzy calls and I turn to look at her. “Someone is looking for you.”

I arch my brows. “Who?”

“Landon says it’s a guy”, she replies.

Thinking it is Paxton, I stand up in a hurry and walk out with her. She goes back to the living room where Jason is. I move swiftly to the front door, I can’t wait to see him.

I have been so worried about him and I hope he is going to answer my questions.

The guard let me out immediately before I can say anything to him.

I smile in appreciation before strolling down the path where Paxton usually parks his car. As I approach, I notice it is a different car and I wonder if he has changed his car. Instead of a black Volkswagen, it is a red Ferrari car.

I stop in my tracks when I notice a different person in the car. He has sunshades over his eyes and he is richly dressed. Paxton doesn’t dress like a rich guy and he doesn’t dress poorly too.

I almost turn back in alarm to run back to the mansion when he comes out of the car, sensing my fear. He removes his glasses and I see his face clearly.

“Eric?!” I squint at him in surprise and with a deep sigh of relief.