Things are going better than I initially thought,” Natalie replied. “I still don’t know what happened to Brandon, but things seem to be getting better.”
“He made the right decisions,” Johanna said kindly as she stretched out her hand and pinched Natalie’s cheek. “It’s getting late, and I’m afraid it will not be safe for you to take a taxi alone. How about I ask the family driver to take you there?” Natalie didn’t even try to refuse. “It’s okay.”
Johanna waved goodbye to her daughter and reminded her to take care. Just before she got into the car, Natalie turned towards her mother and said in a somber tone, “Mom, can you do me a favor?”
Just like that, Natalie returned to Brandon’s villa in Barnes. Since she now lived with him, they naturally spent more time at home. He seldom went to work on weekends, and only Natalie was staying with him. She couldn’t help but remember the time when they had just gotten married. The only difference was that Brandon now seemed more introverted and reserved than he had been in the past.
Natalie studied the man sitting across from her on the balcony, reading. He seemed lost in thought, and she felt like she had been transported back two years ago. Brandon never went back to Seacisco, not even for a quick visit. Needless to say, Charis was at her limit. She hadn’t seen him in over a week. She had always been close to Brandon until recently, so she could keep an eye on him. Now that he was in the same city as Natalie, she was panicking fast.
On the second weekend, Charis flew to Barnes under the guise of inspecting the progress of her company’s ongoing project. Deliberately, she brought some documents with her and took them to Brandon’s villa. He was visibly surprised when he opened the gate.
“What are you doing here?” Brandon asked. Charis already had an answer prepared for this question. She showed him the stack of papers. “I’m here to bring you these files we need for the meeting on Monday. It’s urgent, so you better take care of them immediately.”
“It’s okay,” Brandon said nonchalantly while taking the folders from her. “You may come in now.” Charis gave a small smile and asked, “Aren’t you going to invite me in?” Her heart ached at his dismissive attitude, but she did her best not to show it. It wouldn’t be polite to turn her down at this point. Brandon sighed and said, “Come in, please.” Charis walked in without a second’s hesitation. After all, her real purpose for coming was to see how things were going between Brandon and Natalie.
As soon as she entered, she saw Natalie lying on the sofa in pajamas, chewing on an apple while watching television. She looked again at the sound of the door and asked, “Do we have company? Are we expecting someone today?” Natalie was about to respond, but her eyes fastened on Charis. With a bright smile, Natalie inclined her head to the side and asked, “What brings you here, Miss Turners? Don’t you take a break even on weekends?”
“I came to transmit some documents important to Brandon,” the other woman answered calmly. “I thought it would be nice to make a visit while I was here.” Natalie raised her eyebrows and gave her another slight smile. Then she went back to eating her apple and continued watching television. She had no interest in talking to Charis more than necessary.
Brandon walked towards the stairs, heading to his study to continue his work. He passed the sofa on his way and noticed Natalie leaning closer and closer to the TV. He gently hit her head with a folder. “Don’t get so close to the television. You’re going to hurt your eyes.” Natalie rubbed the spot on the top of her head and looked at him fixedly. “Yes, yes, I know!” he grumbled.
It was an innocent and ordinary exchange, but Charis found it incredibly alarming. “I didn’t know these two had gotten along so well in such a short time. How did things change so fast? Although Brandon and Natalie were not as close and sweet as before, they still looked like a real couple now. Charis knew she would be finished if she couldn’t separate them.
Brandon was obviously in love with Natalie. Again, if this continued, all efforts of Charis would be in vain. She was lost.
After Brandon disappeared upstairs, he muttered an excuse and fled the villa. Charis was in a thunderous mood on her way back. She couldn’t think of any other way to get Brandon away from Natalie.
Clearly inciting any form of discord between them was not a permanent solution. As long as Natalie was alive, Charis would never have the opportunity to be with Brandon. His only option now was to kill the woman.
Charis needed to get rid of Natalie once and for all. She gritted her teeth at the thought, her nostrils dilated. She knew time was running out. She needed to act while she still had Brandon’s confidence.
Most areas became hot and dry in late fall, making it easy to have natural fires here and there. Charis was sitting in her car when several fire trucks passed by, speeding alongside her vehicle. The driver informed her that there was a large forest park fire.
Charis’s eyes suddenly lit up as something clicked in her head. She remembered the unexpected fire that had broken out when Brandon and Natalie were still alive at her apartment in Seacisco last year. She wasn’t there at the time, but she had heard from company employees that it was a big incident.
“I heard on the news that the fire is still spreading rapidly,” said the driver, shaking his head in remorse.
“It is a fire of the most horrible kind, I say… the kind that burns its victims until they are unrecognizable. Wouldn’t that be the most ideal way to get rid of a body?” Charis stared as the fire trucks disappeared in the distance, an idea slowly gestating in the back of her mind.
It wasn’t that hard to intentionally start a fire. Furthermore, this type of crime had an unbelievably high success rate in destroying entire towns, and the clues to the cause of the fire were often buried in the ashes. The key was to find a good opportunity to strike.
Halloween was just around the corner. Barnes was a very open city that welcomed foreign students and workers from all over the world. Although Halloween was not part of the local tradition, people still enjoyed dressing up and having fun.
The festive atmosphere was already taking over the streets as partygoers came out of their houses with colorful and interesting outfits. Natalie found the sight quite amusing and was very lively all the way home.
Although it was hot during the day, the nights were relatively cold. For so many years, she had lived alone and experienced the changing seasons by herself. But things had changed. Now, she had Brandon waiting for her at home. Pretty soon, he was there as soon as she walked into town. He had just arrived and hadn’t even taken off his suit jacket. He seemed as distant as ever.
Undeterred by his cold demeanor, Natalie reached over and took his hand. Brandon quickly stiffened, and his cheeks turned a light red color.
“What’s happening?” he asked.
“It’s the season of Halloween. We’ve been cooped up at home doing nothing this whole time. Why don’t we go to the amusement park and try the haunted house? Will you go with me?” She gave him a dazzling smile, her tone sweet as honey.
Brandon cleared his throat and looked away.
“What a childish idea. Only children go to amusement parks.”
“But you should spend time with me during the holidays. It’s your duty as a husband, and it’s stipulated in the contract. So please, Brandon, won’t you just be a kid for one day?” Natalie looked at him with puppy dog eyes.
“It’s okay. But I’ll only do it this time. This won’t happen again,” he sighed audibly and acted as if they were forcing him to do something he didn’t want to.
But deep down, he was looking forward to going out with Natalie. He had discovered that he never felt bored when they were together, and he was willing to indulge her whims, even if it meant doing childish and embarrassing things.