Chapter 4 – Move On

• Zeru
• Arthur was sent to the hospital, and I was sent to the police station in handcuffs. The charges were attempted murder of Arthur Berming. I have no regrets; in my eyes, he deserved death.
• “What were you thinking? Trying to kill your friend?” Tyson yelled at me from the other side of the bar.
• “That bastard is not my friend,” I muttered.
• “What happened?” Celine asked, sensing something was wrong.
• “That bastard tried to rape Ella,” I said, feeling all sorts of disgust with every word that came out of my mouth.
• “What! Did you kill that bastard?” Celine snapped.
• “I wish I did,” I said. I truly wished he had never woken up and had died at the hospital.
• Five years under that same roof with Ella, and I thought I knew everything. It turned out I knew nothing. While I was having the time of my life, she had been tormented, ostracized, and harassed by people she had considered friends.
• “All set to go,” said the lawyer.
• I was released on bail and began walking away.
• “Where are you going?” Tyson asked.
• “It’s none of your business,” I replied and left on foot.
• I walked out of the station without a goal in mind. All my life, I had never been confused. I had always had a clear image of what I wanted and where I was going, but tonight, I felt lost. My heart wanted to go back home and rest, but my mind told me there was no one there waiting for me.
• As if on cue, it started raining. So, I stopped by the office, as it was the closest place for me to hide. But everywhere I looked, there were traces of the woman I had been ignoring for the past five years. Her desk sat empty, the meds were inside my drawer, and the little panda bear eraser she was so obsessed with. They were small and insignificant, but I couldn’t get them out of my head. I must find her.
• Tyson refused to tell me where she is, so I will find her in my own way. I hacked into the entire Anderson Corp system for anyone with the name Fedella. The only file I found was an old employment application, sharing the same address as me. I didn’t realized, she lived with me until now.
• If she left last night, then she must have taken a cab, and that was my next destination. I hacked into all the systems I could think of—ride share, taxi, public transportation—but no one by the name of Fedella Hilton ever checked in.
• Ella left last night but stopped by Tyson's in the morning. That means she must have spent the night at some hotel somewhere. So, I looked there. All I found was that Ella had checked into a hotel and checked out in the morning. Her last known location was Tyson's penthouse.
• Ella met with Tyson before she disappeared, which means he must have helped her escape by driving her to the airport. So, that is where I go next. Hacking into the airport database isn’t easy, but it’s nothing I couldn’t accomplish. I checked everything for Fedella Hilton but found nothing. If she’s using a different alias, then any of the three thousand-plus people who checked in could have been her. Or someone is erasing her tracks so I can’t find her. The only person capable of going to such lengths is none other than Tyson Anderson.
• “Ugh! Why is Tyson going against me?” I shouted, frustrated.
• In the blink of an eye, I lost all contact and all trace of the woman I had shared a bed with for the past five years. I felt cheated; this was so unfair. She can’t leave me like this. I won’t allow it. I am determined to find her, one way or another. But first, I need to eat, then sleep, and start again tomorrow.
• Two days later
• For the past 48 hours, I've been locked up in the office doing nothing but looking through Ella’s bank statements. I was trying to find traces of her activity, a pattern, or anything she loved to buy, eat, or cafes she frequented. I found nothing of hers, but everything of mine. My clothes, my food, my bills, my meds, and even the little almond nuts she forced me to snack on every day.
• “Why is this so hard? If you’re going to leave, at least leave me with something to work with,” I tutted.
• “What are you doing?” Tyson walked in, all smug and shit.
• “It’s none of your business,” I said, giving him the death glare.
• He nodded, smug. “Two nights ago, I heard from the airport that a device from our company hacked into their system but failed to get anything,” he rubbed it in my face.
• “I didn’t fail; I just couldn’t find what I was looking for,” I tutted.
• He chuckled and came forward. “Bank statement, really? You’re getting desperate,” he teased, pulling one of the documents away. “Wow, Ella really did a lot of stuff for you,” he said, which angered me even more.
• “Just shut up if you’re not going to help me,” I retorted.
• “Help you? Heh, sorry, brother, I’m not a dickhead like you. Ella is finally free from the biggest mistake of her life. Why would I help you bring her back to torment her?”
• “Biggest mistake? What does that even mean?” I asked, confused.
• Tyson leaned forward and whispered. “Her biggest mistake is loving you too much.”
• “She wouldn’t have left me if she loved me,” I tutted.
• “Brother, you obviously have never realized what true love feels like. Do you?” Tyson leaned back and adjusted his suit. “Keep trying. Maybe one day, you’ll find her. But today, you have a guest. I believe she’s the woman that you truly love,” Tyson said and left the room.
• “Tsk, true love, message of the universe. Only a thousand-year-old monk like Tyson would understand.” I quickly put everything away and went downstairs to meet Camilla.
• “Hey,” she smiled, rushing over to me.
• “Hi, what are you doing here?” I asked.
• “I heard about what happened between you and Arthur. I’m here to apologize,” Camilla said, which made me feel bad.
• “You didn’t do anything wrong. You don’t have to apologize,” I said.
• “Zee, I knew about that night, but I couldn’t say anything because Arthur was my friend,” Camilla confessed.
• “We need to talk. Let’s go somewhere quiet,” Camilla agreed, following me out.
• I drove us to a quiet restaurant and ordered a VIP room for privacy. I ordered food, we ate, and chatted for a bit before I asked, “tell me what happened?”
• “Arthur had always been jealous of you. I mean, you are the perfect man—good looks, money, fame, and the best boyfriend anyone could’ve asked for. So, Arthur made it his life goal to ruin you. The night you announced your open relationship with Ella, he saw it as his chance to manipulate her into sleeping with him. He does it to every one of your girlfriends,” Camilla said, her hand shaking in fear.
• “You mean, you also...?” Camilla nodded.
• “I never wanted to cheat on you, but he forced me. I couldn’t fight him, and he…”
• “Stop,” I said, pulling her into my arms. “You don’t have to say anything anymore.”
• “I didn’t want to break up with you, but I couldn’t face myself. I didn’t want to hurt you, so I left. I’m sorry,” Camilla apologized, and it broke my heart.
• It is not her fault, but that bastard’s. “I should’ve killed him,” I said, wishing I could drive a knife into his heart.
• “Zee, I know this is too much to ask for, but I came back because I still love you. I couldn’t bear to let you go. Now that you know I’m tainted, will you take me back?” Camilla asked.
• How could I not? She had done nothing wrong but love me. Is this the true love Tyson spoke of? What about Ella? I am going to keep looking for her? Is there a reason to continued looking for Ella if there is Camilla? I don’t know, but I want to try to start over.
• “Let’s start over,” I said.
• Maybe with Camilla here, I can finally let go of Ella and move on. I have done it before, I will do it again.