Chapter Five

You know that feeling you get when you're thinking of committing suicide... Yeah, that's the way I'm feeling right now.

My phone kept beeping severally, notifications popping up with the headline "Love Recruit: Superstar Annabel caught by Billionaire Raymond as she is about to fall off stage."

The urge to twiddle my hair grew intense as I read the article. Bloggers all over began to create blogs about the scene, but my eyes widened when I came across this blog.

The blogger stated that Raymond was quite the gentleman, and I wanted to make him bad before the public. Trolls were rolling about in the comment section, stating I had nothing to offer.

Trolls—how I wish I could crush one of them as a warning to the others.

In an attempt to throw my phone on the bed, it rang, putting a stop to my intention.

"Hello."

"It's nice to see you again on screen, Mirabel, or shall I say silent Mira?" My eyes darted to my phone, staring at the caller detail.

"UNKNOWN NUMBER."

"Who are you? What's your aim?" I yelled.

"Calm down, Silent Mira. Read the last three digits of the number backwards.".

I stared at the screen once more. 3, 4, and 5 coming into play. "This is a code from the House of Hades. What's your ranking?".

"Is that a way to address Maitre vouler?" The French accent at the end sent shivers up my spine. The French word Maitre Vouler meant master of thieves. In short, I was actually on the phone with the master of the House of Hades.

"Master, I'm sorry for speaking rudely. Forgive me," I pleaded.

"It's nice to see you're finally out of the high facility. Tell me, how did you pull it off?" the voice on the other end, thick and domineering.

"It was grace, my Lord. Nothing more, nothing less.".

"You believe in grace? I didn't think a member of the House of Hades would believe in such boring feet as that. Power is all, and we use people's vulnerability to get what we want.".

"Yes master. So what's your purpose of calling?"

"Let me get straight to the point. You will be reinstated to the position of Silent Whisper if you can pull tonight's mission off perfectly.".

"Silent Whisper," I repeated, recalling how it felt to be in such a position. The fame, the freedom, the riches that came my way with no one to question my ideal.

"But there are conditions to this."

"And what's that?"

"You have a month to pull it off; if you fail, your safety wouldn't be guaranteed."

"Master, Master..." The beeping of my cellphone made my head spin. He had ended the call, and there was no possible way to call back. The contact didn't even appear on my call log.

This shouldn't be happening. Not when I have signed a contract with Annabel.

… The day went faster than usual. Maybe it was because I couldn't stop thinking about the words let out by the Head of the House of Hades. I needed something to clear my head, and staying indoors was definitely not a way to approach such.

"Mrs. Annabel, Sir Raymond has offered to take you on a dinner date tonight." Jerry's voice creeped in from the other side of the wall.

"Speak of the devil."

"Shall I cancel it?" Jerry suggested.

"No, don't cancel it. I'll be out in 45."

Maybe seeing the man who put me in this mess can clear my head.

As the car came to a halt in front of French Recipes, a five-star-rated restaurant where the rich settled down, I found myself staring at the light. It's exterior bathed in a warm, inviting glow, thereby creating an atmosphere of elegance and comfort.

As I observed the surroundings more, my eyes spotted a figure in the dark. The figure was putting on a cloak, one related to the House of Hades.

Curiosity piqued in, and I had no choice but to verify my assumption. I jumped out of the car, dashing straight for the figure.

"Miss Annabel, the entrance is that way," Jerry announced, but I was too engrossed in getting answers.

Upon reaching the figure, I couldn't help but stumble backwards. "Oh, am I kidding?" I said, gazing at the mannequin in a cloak.

"I didn't think you'd rush over to come see me." Raymond appeared from the rear, his voice sending shudders down my spine.

"This is a dinner date. There's nothing like rushing to come over, I replied.

"Let's get to it, shall we?" his stance giving out that majestic aura.

Such a piss off.

The restaurant, being a 5-star hotel, had a lot to offer. As soon as I took a step into the restaurant, I knew we had a lot to pay for.

"So what shall you be having, Mademoiselle et Monsieur?" the waiter asked as he handed us the menu.

"I'm okay with the specials," I requested, knowing I wasn't going to pay a dime for it.

"I'll go with the premium," he said.

I should have gone with the premium.

"What led to your sudden change of heart? You'd usually be busy with work or something; why call a dinner date?"

"I wanted to spend more time with you and get to know you better."

"This isn't the first time we're meeting Raymond. You don't have to pretend that this is our first date."

"But it is," his jaws clenched as he responded.

I thought she said they've gone on numerous dates. That bitch is making this hard.

"Your meal, Monsieur et Mademoiselle," the waiter said as he dropped a tray containing several dishes on the table.

"Merci," I replied.

"When did you learn French?"

"I always had it in me."

"You hate French. I remember really well that you also hated this restaurant."

"Things change; deal with it."

This lad has a lot to learn about women.

"Let's eat."

I was about to dig into the meal when I spotted a small piece of paper under the French fries. Sure that he wasn't looking, I grabbed the note, reading the heading.

"MISSION ACQUIRED: STEAL THE NEON DIAMOND."