“And the best part? I don’t think Zonnique suspected athing.”
Talia scoffed in amusement. “You really did all this for a job? If you wanted it that bad, you could’ve just said that. I would’ve put in a good word for you or something. You didn’t have to drug me, steal my identity, and kidnap me in my own damn house!”
“Girrrrrrrrl,” I dragged. “Have younotbeen listening toanythingI’ve been saying? You really think I did all this over apaycheck?” I scoffed loudly. “Please! Talia, if this was just about money, you’d still be upstairs sleeping peacefully. I want the position because ofMerge,” I admitted, smiling to myself. “The baby is just the bonus. And once this works?” I clasped my hands together excitedly. “I’ll be carrying his child, living in his house, waking up beside him again… exactly how things were always supposed to happen before everything got ruined.”
I tilted my head with a dreamy smile.
“So yeah,” I murmured happily, “I’d say things are working out pretty perfectly right now… and I have you to thank for that. I’m just waiting on the call that I should be receiving any day now.”
“How are you so certain you’ll even get the job? I was told there’d be other applicants.”
Honestly, I thought she would’ve tried to press me further about my feelings for “Merge.” But… I assumed my reaction earlier concerning him helped her understand that pushing me too far about certain topics wasn’t exactly the safest idea.
“Oh, I’mprettysure I will,” I replied confidently. “Especially considering the other ladies won’t exactly becompetinganymore.”
Talia’s face tightened. “What do you mean by ‘won’t be competing anymore?”
A slow smirk spread across my face.
I leaned back in my chair, oddly proud of myself.
“Well…” I crossed one leg over the other, “to my advantage, Zonnique got sick during the interview. She rushed to the bathroom so fast that she left the files of the other applicants sitting right there in front of me. Names, phone numbers, addresses… everything. So, while she was in the bathroom fighting for her life over that little smoothie situation, I took pictures of everything.”
Fear slowly crept back into Talia’s expression.
“Listen! I had to! Zonnique left her all the other applicants’ information sitting right in front of me. It felt like fate was helping me out. So,naturally… I handled the competition.”
The color nearly drained from Talia’s face. “W-What did you do?”
I really hadn’t planned on Talia living too much longer to rat me out to anyone, so I told her the truth.
“First girl? Poor thing had an early morning jog. Real tragic accident too. Clumsy ass tumbled right down a flight of concretestairs.” I winced sympathetically. “Snapped her ankle clean in half. Doctor said recovery’s gonna be long. The second one? Whew. Food poisoning.” I shook my head sadly. “Terrible situation. I may have encouraged a certain takeout decision. Let’s just say she won’t be answeringany morecalls.”
Talia’s mouth trembled as she stared at me in horror.
I continued, unfazed. “And the third one?” I laughed softly. “Girl, she folded so easily. One little anonymous message, a fake warning, a few creepy pictures outside her apartment, and suddenly she didn’t ‘feel comfortable moving forward. She withdrew her application completely. Can you believe she moved out of the cityovernight? I guess she figured carrying a billionaire’s child just wasn’t for her after all.”
I stood, brushing the dust off the back of my pants.
“See? No blood, no mess, no witnesses… just a fewunfortunatecoincidences.”
“You won’t get away with this!” Talia fumed.
I tittered. “That’s the thing about smart people, Talia… most of the time,they do. Even if they get caught later, usually, they still accomplish what they set out to do.”
With that, I flicked the light switch, leaving the basement in a dim half-darkness.
“Later,sis,” I winked, blowing her a kiss. “Try to get some rest. Big things are coming. And be good while I’m gone. You know what happens to bad girls… or maybe you don’t, but you will.”
The moment I turned and started up the stairs panic finally broke through Talia’s composure.
“Haelyn, please!” she cried, struggling against the restraints. “You can’t keep me down here!”
I kept walking.
“You’re sick!” she screamed after me, her voice cracking with anger. “Do you hear me?! You’re fucking sick!”
So I’ve been told… plenty of times.
