Crises in Love (Zora and Jaylan) novel Chapter 9

I wasn't sure if I was terrified or angry, a lump of emotion sat heavily in my throat, causing my vision to blur and my head to spin. I wanted to roar, to express my indignation, but I was too afraid. I had no idea what they would do if they found out the state I was in.

My home, my kids, ten years of my life...

I bit down hard on my blanket to prevent myself from crying out. A decade's worth of memories whirled around in my mind, making it difficult to breathe. The next thing I knew, everything went black.

When I woke up, my mind was sharp and clear. I couldn't just lie there, waiting to be forced to take the medicine. I had to know the truth. Infidelity was one thing, but poisoning me? They clearly wanted me dead.

This was a dire situation, and I knew I had to fight back.

My eyes darted to the corner of the room, where, I was certain, Jaylan had installed a surveillance camera after noticing something was off with me. I needed to disable it without them noticing.

But under their watchful eyes, it felt nearly impossible to carry out my plan undetected.

Unexpectedly, I caught a lucky break.

In the evening, I heard Zora's voice faintly from the hallway, followed by the sound of Jaylan on the phone. He had come back early or perhaps never left.

His voice was loud, and I could hear him clearly. Apparently, the whole neighbourhood was experiencing a blackout.

I felt a surge of excitement. This was my chance. Just as I was about to get up, the sound of the door handle turning made me quickly lie back down and hold my breath.

The room was dark, and I squinted to see Jaylan peeking in before quickly backing out.

The door wasn't shut properly, and I could hear Zora complaining, "Why is there a blackout? Dinner isn't ready yet! What did the property management say? When will power be restored?"

"Not sure, they're looking into it. If it's not back soon, we'll just go out to eat," Jaylan said nonchalantly.

"Really?" Zora sounded excited. "But her medicine isn't ready yet!"

"We'll deal with it when we get back. Seems like she won't be waking up anytime soon."

"I'll go change Carl's clothes," Zora said as her footsteps quickly retreated.

Soon I heard the sound of a car starting from downstairs.

My heart sank as a hot tear slipped down my cheek.

But I didn't have time to dwell on my feelings. I quickly got up, my heart pounding from both excitement and fear, my legs shaking with weakness.

I dragged a chair over, climbed onto it to check the camera. It was still there. I took it down, examined it, but had no idea how to disable it without leaving visible damage.

In desperation, I rushed to the bathroom, filled the sink with water, and tossed the camera in.

Then I hurried back to my bedside table to find my phone. It had been so long since I last used it, I had no idea where it was. I needed to call Catherine Damon, my only trusted friend in Goldenvale Town, and ask for her help.

But I couldn't find my phone anywhere. I searched all the drawers, the gaps between the furniture, the shelves… I was exhausted but it was nowhere to be found.

My heart was pounding like a drum, I collapsed onto the bed, gasping for breath. I wiped away the tear that had trickled down my cheek and cursed my current predicament.

After a moment, I took a deep breath, gritted my teeth, and carefully peeked out of the door. The house was eerily quiet, shrouded in growing darkness.

I slipped out of the room like a ghost.

Barefoot, I made my way to Jaylan's study. I had to find my phone before the power came back on, or I would lose my only chance to contact the outside world.

I headed straight for his desk. His computer was still warm, indicating he had been using it recently.

I bent down to open the drawers, hoping to find my phone, but realized they were all locked. He never used to lock his drawers. In my frustration, I stomped my foot.