Chapter 6 Catching the act

The morning air was sharp against Crystal's skin as she stepped out of Andrew's mansion. The sky was bright, with birds chirping, but the weather didn't make her mood bright but unbearably heavy.

Her fingers trembled as she pulled out her phone. She dialed Emily's number again just like she had done the night before. One ring, two rings,three....

"Crystal!" Emily's voice burst through the speaker, frantic and a little breathless.

"Where the hell have you been?!" Crystal snapped, her voice coming out rushed and tight. "I called you yesterday, three times! It just kept hanging up. I thought something happened to you!"

Emily sighed on the other end. "I know, I'm sorry. I'm fine. Just wait for me at the bus stop, okay? I'll come get you. Don't go anywhere."

Before Crystal could press further, the line clicked.Emily never fully listened to someone before ending calls unless she just felt like it.

She stared at the phone, her heart pounding from both the anger and relief rushing through her. She hadn't even realized how scared she'd been until she heard Emily's voice.

She then walked down to a bus stop far from Andrew's mansion to wait for her best friend. She doesn't want Emily to worry too much about her. Emily also has a life to live and she won't want to bother her much.

She would also keep it a secret if one day, Andrew would come at her head for not accepting him as men like him would not be able to cope with rejection from a lowly girl like her or saying she owes him a favor.

Some minutes after reaching the bus stop, a yellow taxi pulled up. Emily leaned over from the passenger seat, flinging the door open.

"Get in," she said, her eyes scanning Crystal's face instantly. "You look like you've been dragged through hell."

Crystal climbed in without answering, and the taxi sped off. The silence in the back seat felt thick, almost suffocating with Emily constantly glancing at Crystal.

When they reached Emily's small apartment. a modest house tucked into the corner of a quiet street.

Emily locked the door behind them and sighed as she collapsed onto the worn out couch.

Crystal sat stiffly across from her.

"So?" she asked. "What happened? Why weren't you answering?"

Emily rubbed her temples. "Those idiots I gambled with showed up at my place. full blown thugs demanding their money. When I told them I didn't have it, they started grabbing my stuff. One of them took my phone. Like literally snatching it."

"What?" Crystal's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"

"Dead serious. I went to the police, and it finally got sorted out last night. I didn't get back until almost midnight. I checked my phone, saw it wasn't broken, and just passed out on my bed."

Crystal exhaled slowly. "Damn, that's insane."

"I know," Emily said, her voice softer now. "But I'm okay now. What about you? You look pale. And your eyes... Have you even slept?"

Crystal looked down, biting her lower lip. The pain that had been sitting in her chest since two nights ago rose again, raw and fresh.

"My father died," she whispered.

Emily's jaw dropped. "What?!"

"Two days ago due to kidney failure."

Emily's hands flew to her mouth. "Crystal... I didn't know. I'm so sorry."

Crystal shook her head. "That's not even the worst part."

She told her everything. how her mother and siblings turned on her like wolves, blaming her for not paying for the entire funeral. How they asked her to marry Mr. Wren, a man old enough to be her grandfather, whose dowry they had already collected without even telling her. How they demanded for her to leave the house. What her boss said to her at the bar and how she was bullied by three drunk men and rescued by a stranger.

"I had nowhere to go," Crystal finished, voice cracking. "That's how I ended up back at that stranger's place."

Emily stared at her, stunned. "Those heartless vultures... I swear, if I see your mother, I will lose it. And I can't believe your boss who claimed to like you could also be this heartless".

Crystal gave a bitter laugh. "I don't even feel like I have a family anymore."

Emily walked over and sat beside her, pulling her into a hug. "You've got me, okay? You've always got me."

They stayed like that for a moment before Crystal pulled away.

"And you won't believe who else betrayed me," she said.

Emily raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me....."

Crystal nodded slowly, her expression hollow.

"He betrayed me, avoided me like the plague saying I'll be a burden to him... like I meant nothing."

Emily's face darkened. "That idiot. After everything you went through? I swear, some men are just walking garbage bins."

"I need to know," Crystal said suddenly, standing up. "I need to know what's really going on with him."

Emily's eyes narrowed. "You want to go to his place?"

Crystal didn't even hesitate. "Yes. Because he didn't sound like the Ian I know."

"Say less." Emily grabbed her bag without another word.

The taxi ride was quiet and tense. Crystal stared out the window while Emily sat beside her, arms crossed, jaw clenched.

When they reached Ian's apartment building, something strange caught Crystal's eye as soon as they stepped out of the cab.

A pair of familiar heels sat outside the door. Feminine. Expensive looking.

Emily noticed too. "Wait... those look familiar but I can't remember where I saw them from."

Crystal's pulse spiked.

They walked slowly to the door. Muffled sounds came from inside soft, rhythmic noises. Giggling. A woman's voice.

Crystal's breath caught in her throat. That voice... it sounded familiar. Uncomfortably familiar.

She stared at the door like it was a living thing. Something was happening on the other side, something that was about to crush her.

Emily reached out, her voice low. "Are you sure you wanna......"

But Crystal didn't answer.

She just reached for the door handle and pushed.

"Boom!''. Her hand bag fell on the floor jolting the two people who were so immersed in their pleasure.