Chapter 198 - The Islet Mystery 14

"Ryan, dear, you did not tell auntie and uncle about this. Where will the venue be?" Mrs. Lopez glowed in the excitement of a wedding.

Jullien pinched Ryan's side, and he snapped back to his senses. Jullien moved her eyes in Mrs. Lopez's direction, and he understood that she was speaking to him.

Madame Lopez smiled broadly, reciting her question. "It seems like you already imagine your coming wedding, dear." This earned a pleased chuckle from Jullien, prompting her to snuggle closer to Ryan's chest.

"I'm sorry, auntie. I plan to announce it once we have the date," Ryan answered, but his eyes were on the phone. On his ears was a wireless ear set.

Ryan's eyes strayed at Jane, and he saw the hurt in her eyes. She did not look up to them and pretended to go on eating.  It will be an act of disrespect to Jullien if her expression betrays her.

"Congratulations to both of you! The wedding must be a talk of the city."

"It will be in tabloids and all news portals," Jullien announced proudly as her eyes sparkled in excitement. "Ryan is so thoughtful because he orders the most beautiful gown every woman would dream of."

"Congratulations, ahead, Miss Jullien. You and Ryan will make a beautiful pair together," Mr. Dioko, the man of few words, congratulated them as well. 

"Dear, you should order me the best wedding suit," Mr. Lopez chuckled, his eyes beaming as he fixed his gaze on the lovely couple. 

Ryan was half-smiling throughout the conversation, but it seemed that he was not listening at all. He was leaning on the backrest, and Jullien was leaning on her chest that she could not see his expression.

Ajie, Allie, and Cherry expressed their joys also, but their eyes betrayed them. Even if the two did not open up, they saw it in their very eyes that there was something special between Ryan and their friend.

Mr. Lopez shifted the topic to business, and Jullien got bored. She stood up and excused herself.

"Please excuse me, everyone. I have something to take care of."

"Good night, ahead, Miss Jullien," Allie smiled widely, obviously relieved of her decision to leave.

The rest followed in their exchanges of pleasantries before they picked up their last topic again when Jullien finally left. Everyone seemed hooked up to the subject, but Jane and Cherry fidgetted in their seats.

Ryan's expression turned dark now and then, and he sometimes winced as if he was in pain. Cherry wanted to comment on his obvious discomfort, but she was too afraid to interrupt the elderlies' ongoing discussion.

Just as Cherry could not take it anymore, she stood up abruptly, and to her surprise, Jane also sprang up to her feet. They looked at each other, and both understood that their minds were on Shiela. Just as they were about to leave, a house staff rushed in with frightened looks.

"Sir, please excuse me, the high tide starts, already," she said, pausing at intervals to catch up her breath.

"And what's with the high tide?" Ryan asked with a frown as if he was expecting the worst announcement.

"The water level is about to flush of out Chara's brim, and the lady is perhaps asleep..."

Ryan fled out of the house with the speed of the lightning. "Damn it, Shiela."

Everyone stared at the staff who stood shaking, pacing back and forth in the dining room.

"What are you saying?" Allie shouted, too impatient to know what she really meant. She knew something was wrong, but she could not move because Chloe was asleep in her lap.

"The water level is already too deep. I cannot save the miss."

"Adrian, run! It must be Shiela drowning again!"

Adrian cast her a startled and quick stare before he sprinted out of the house. Everyone else followed without really understanding what's happening.

____

"Madame, I was told you're looking for me," Shiela said as she sat across the desk of the college dean.

"Yes, dear. I want to congratulate you again for being a summa cum laude. With this great achievement, the MS Sciences, Inc., is offering you a job in Japan. If you accept it, they are offering you a year advance of your salary. Don't worry, every month, you will still receive your monthly salary, and if you can finish the contract, your advance payment will be given to you as an incentive."

Shiela jumped in excitement. She was so happy that she walked around the desk and hugged the dean. "Thank you so much, madame. You don't know how happy I am."

"You're welcome, dear. I'm also happy for you."

A few days after, Shiela, climbed into a private helicopter. She was beaming with happiness. A baby was on the way, and with her salary, she could already support him. And because she was away, she could hide her pregnancy from his father until the baby would be big enough to introduce him to his grandfather. She had an explicit agreement with the management that they would still offer her the contract even if she were five months pregnant.

She sat by the window and watched the city below them as the airbus lifted her into the air. To her surprise, it landed on an island after an hour, and they transferred to a powerboat. They entered a cove and soon stopped in front of what seemed like a beach house. She looked around, and she could no longer tell where they passed through.

"Where are we?" she asked her two male companions

"You will be working here."

"But my contract says I will be working in Japan," she argued, her knees started to shake.

"Wait until you talk to your employer."

"Are they here?"

"We are here," said the man who suddenly appeared when they start climbing into a cemented stairs.

"Miss Ferrer, we want to be plain with you. That one-year advance salary is for your freedom. If you take the medication to expel the baby in your womb, you are free to ride back in that powerboat but with another condition. Never tell Ryan about this, or you might not like what we are capable to do. Our son is going to marry the right woman for him, someone who could pass on our legacy."

Shiela felt her blood drained from her head. Her face turned pale and she almost fainted when she realized that she had accepted a trap. She knew she could no longer back out.

"I won't. I can't do that. I will hide the identity of the child, just let him live," Shiela begged, and she started to sob.

Just then her dream turned into another scene. She saw her baby in a little casket floating into the sea. It was raining hard and the wind was fierce. She swam fast to catch him before the waves could take him away from her forever. But when she almost got him, a big wave drifted her away.

"No! Baby, don't leave me!" she cried hard as she pushed her way against the waves until another mighty wave plunged her into the depths.

"Shiela!"