Caseys assets outside were valued between five and six billion, all in real estate. If necessary, she could liquidate some to pay Jimena.
Once they agreed on terms, Jimena tucked the handkerchief into her undershirt and said, Madam, I need a guarantee first. Ill ensure the embroidery is delivered. My role is solely to confirm its receipt by the intended party. Whether or not your plan succeeds, you must honor our agreement.
Jimena was adamant about not being left without compensation if the plan failed. There was no benefit in such a one-sided deal, and she wasnt naive enough to offer help without securing her own interests first. This was a risky business.
Jimenas kindness toward Casey wasnt purely out of gratitude for past help. Rather, she recognized that Casey was trapped and in need of a friend. And she fit that role perfectly.
So, Jimena assisted Casey by buying Angelica Sinensis and various other items, not out of sheer generosity but to establish a beneficial relationship. She considered their interactions an
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equitable trade. Everything Jimena did had an underlying motive.
For Jimena, Caseys trust in her had reaped surprising dividends.
Davey, for one, treated her a bit gentler, which set her apart from the rest.
Even more intriguing, whispers of her association with the influential Glyn family had reached the ears of several high-ranking officials. These power brokers, driven by their own desperate health scares, sought her out in secret, their hands extended with offers of hefty sums for her healing touch.
Yet, the influx of money was merely a bandage on a deeper longing.
Despite the financial gains, Jimena was tethered far from the elevated life she longed for. The constraints of her current existence mocked her. A true superior life was still beyond her reach.
International borders remained closed to her, her travels limited to brief, domestic escapes.
Jimena, calculating and ever watchful, saw in Casey a simplicity, a purity almost childlike in its naivet.
Caseys minimal contact with the outside world left her uncorrupted, seemingly unaware of the depths of human deceit.
To Jimena, this trusting and transparent Casey was the ideal target for her schemes.
But I Casey faltered, her voice laced with hesitation. If she couldnt venture beyond her golden cage, how could she possibly retrieve the money for Jimena? Furthermore, her purse was empty and to suddenly ask for money would surely raise Daveys suspicions, a risk neither of them could afford.
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I understand, Jimena interjected smoothly, reading the worry etched on Caseys face. It wasnt just about the money. Casey couldnt even step outside without permission.
Jimena knew well that Davey, though affluent, tailored his generosity to suit Caseys cloistered life, providing for her needs but never handing over cash. After all, Casey lived comfortably in her luxurious confinement, where the need for money was virtually nonexistent.
Jimena had a clear goal in mind. I want that blue diamond necklace, she declared, her eyes sparkling with determination.
Casey blinked, taken aback, her mind scrambling to place the piece among the myriad of jewels Davey had gifted her. He had lavished her with countless ornaments, each of which she had carelessly removed after he adorned her with them. None of them seemed worthy of her wearing permanently, or so she felt.
Its the one with a massive blue sapphire at the center, Jimena clarified, her memory painting a vivid image of the gems breathtaking beauty. Indeed, she hadnt forgotten the necklace. She remembered the day she first laid eyes on it.
One fateful afternoon, while Casey lay still under the spell of acupuncture, Jimena had dared to lift the velvet boxs lid. The necklace inside had called to her, its large sapphire flanked by diamonds, each stone meticulously set to catch even the dimmest light.
Just one glance and she knew it was definitely worth hundreds of millions. It was unlike any she had ever seen, massive and impeccably pure.
Slipping the chain around her neck, Jimena caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. The transformation was immediate. The ordinarily plain features of her face were bathed in an aristocratic glow, the sapphires deep blue making her eyes shine with an uncharacteristic brilliance. No need for fancy attire. The necklace alone vaulted her from her mundane existence into a vision of nobility.
Jimena had always thought that climbing the social ladder would be an arduous journey, yet here she discovered it could be as simple as possessing the right piece of jewelry.