CHAPTER TWO

CRYSTAL

My heart pounded so fast I could hear it in my ears,each beat echoing louder than the last. I reread the message,hands shaking as though seeing it the second time would change the words but the words were still glowing menacing on the screen – You look beautiful in person, sweetheart.

‘In person’

That meant that they’d seen me.Up close. Recently. And had followed me.

A chill crawled up my spine as I began to tremble. The room suddenly felt too exposed, like every wall had grown transparent. The blinds,I hadn't closed them earlier. I hurried towards the window and yanked them shut,hands clammy with sweat.

Panic curled in my gut,thick and heavy. ‘Could it be dad?’ a thought dropped in my mind which made me shiver the more as I backed into the corner of the room,the corner room suddenly the only place that felt safe as I sprawled myself in the corner.

My breathing came short and quick. I picked up my phone,hands hovering over the screen. ‘Who do I call? The police? Ella?

I clicked on Ella's number, and she picked the call on the third dial. I told her about the messages and my fears, “I want you to calm down,make sure your door is locked. It's late already, I will come see you very early tomorrow.”

“Okay,” I muttered,still stricken with fear. My eyes well wide open all through the night. Every creak in the floorboard,every gust of wind tapping the windows made me flinch.

The night dragged on more than usual as I was now overly conscious of my surroundings. Nature finally took over me in the early hours of the morning.

White light reflected through the curtain indicating that it was morning but I kept sleeping due to fatigue.

A knock on the door interrupted my sleep, “Crystal,are you there?” Ella's voice sounded from the other side of the door.

I stood up and opened the door and was wrapped in Ella's embrace. The fear that plugged in my heart reduced as she assured , “it's alright.”

“Show me the messages,” she asked as we disengaged. I passed the phone to her as I watched her read the messages.

“Do you think it's dad? What if he sent people to monitor me here?” I asked,as the fear of the past rose to my chest again.

Ella sighed, “I don't think so. He is in a different city and doesn't even know about your whereabouts,” she paused,then sat on the sofa.

“This letter couldn't have been written by your dad. It could be a fan who just saw you for the first time and is overwhelmed by seeing you”

The vibration from my phone interrupted us and I picked the call.

“Hello,” I said, waiting for a response.

“Hi Crystal, this is Jack Harrison. We met at the award ceremony yesterday, remember?” The caller said.

“Hey Jack, it's nice hearing from you.” I said as I moved close to the windows,using my free hand to lift the binds to check if there were any suspicious people in sight.

“Same here. What do you think about us having dinner today? Just to get to know each other,” he said, warmly.

“ Who is that?” Ella whispered,gesturing to me to put it on speaker.

“Are you there?”

“Yes,I'm here,” I replied, weakly .“I would love to but–”

“I promise you will have the best time,” he interjected convincingly.

“I will think about it,bye,” I replied, then hung up the call and turned to face Ella again.

“I am scared,Ella. What if the person comes after me? How about we inform the police about this,” I said with worry.

“Take a chill, Crystal. It must have been a die hard fan who wanted to express their excitement about seeing you,” Ella paused, giving me an expression of do you get it.

“Look, I think you are being paranoid about this. You need to embrace the fact that you are now practically a celebrity that has fans,” she stated.

“You are kinda right. Fans can be lovely and scary too, courtesy from what we have seen on the news and TV,” I agreed with Ella.

‘Ella is right.This can only be done by a fan not father–,’ I said in my thoughts.

“To make you feel better or relax, let's report this to the police,” she said, breaking my thoughts.

I got dressed and we drove to the precinct and made our complaint known and dropped the necessary information and we were assured that they would get back to us.

I was still stricken with fear even as we got back to the hotel. Despite being tired due to fear,Ella made me text Jack that I would be looking forward to the dinner and when it was evening Jack was downstairs waiting for me. Ella said,smiling “Have Fun!”

I walked out of the hotel to see Jack resting in his car,his legs crossed stylishly.

A glint crossed his eyes as he saw me approach but then it disappeared quickly.

“I must say,you look beautiful,” Jack complimented as we sat in the car.

My cheeks grew warm at his comment, “You aren't looking bad either,”

“Thanks beauty,” he replied, focusing on the road. “ Are you okay? You look tired.”

“No, I'm fine,” I replied, trying to let go of the worry.

Jack led me to a classic restaurant, its elegant facade and dimly lit interior made it more romantic. We were directed to our seat and perused the menu while the waiter returned with our drinks and took our orders. I opted for grilled steak while Jack chose a pan-seared salmon.

We sipped our wine while we awaited our food, “So Crystal,tell me about yourself,” Jack said,his eyes locking into mine.

I blinked, feeling uneasy yet like the way he looked at me, “There is nothing much to say about myself. I'm an artist,of which you know,” I giggled softly. “I moved here for work. So,what about you?”

“I grew up here in the city,” Jack said. “I own an art exhibition. Talking of art exhibitions,we would be holding an exhibition next weekend and I'd love you to come.”

“Sure,” I smiled.

Our food soon arrived and we dug in. We were in the middle of eating when a delivery guy approached our table,a bouquet of flowers and a letter in hand.

“Miss Crystal?” he asked,his eyes scanning the table.

I nodded,surprised as the delivery guy handed me the bouquet and a letter. “For you,”he said, before turning to Jack and handing him a separate letter, “And for you,sir.”

My eyes widened as I took the beautiful flowers,my mind racing with questions. “Who could have sent this?”

I glanced at Jack but he was just as puzzled,his eyes fixed on the letter in his hands. Jack's expression changed as he read the letter,his brow furrowed.

He excused himself,his face contrasting to the smile he wore before he got the letter.

“I'm sorry, Crystal. I need to step out for a minute.”

My curiosity piqued as I watched him go. ‘What’s going on?’ I took the letter Jack left on the table as I scanned the content of the letter written in capital letters

My heart skipped in fear as I read the letter, “STAY AWAY FROM MY WOMAN OR YOU WON’T LIKE THE CONSEQUENCES.”

Then, I flipped my own letter open, “ THE ROSES ARE AS BEAUTIFUL AS YOU ARE TODAY.”

My body shook with fear as I read the letter again as only one question filled my mind, ‘Who could this be?’