CHAPTER 54

Her hair was of a reddish-gray color, and its frazzled and tangled condition suggested that the woman had recently passed through a period of extreme excitement.

She was lying with her leg crouched against the other, and her hands on either side of the tub. She was holding a wine glass between her fingers which seemed to have a note inside that read 'Leave Adam or you're next'.

Her trunk, from her chest to about her thighs was sunk in a red fluid that seemed to be blood.

So me of it had dripped and dried onto the floor taking a dark brown colour.

Her face was disfigured leaving only her eyes opened and it seemed as though they were looking at me.

A foul-smelling stench was radiating from her indicating a lot of days had passed since her death.

"Aarrgg!!" I shut my eyes tight as memories of the scene in my bathroom. The sight of it was so gross and looking at it twice you'd surely die of trauma.

A sight that almost tries to stop my heart. I tried to scream but unfortunately, terror took the sound before I made it. I started to freeze as she looked me into the eyes. I got paralysed and for a second thought it was my body in the bathtub.

"Elly...." Adam came again and offered me something. His lips were moving but I could hear what he was saying. My eyes kept shifting from his and to his lips with hopes that I could read his words.

"Come with me...." I heard something like that and he grabbed my hand taking me through the tiny door in between our rooms.

"You can....shower here if you ...want" he asked and I shook my head. I didn't want to anymore.

My whole mood was for us to have a good time and this damage broke me.

"I don't want to....." I refused and sat down holding onto my towel.

"Then at least change into some cloths. You're cold. You might get sick...." he requested and I nodded.

"I'll be on the other side...." he patted my shoulder before walking past me to the next room.

I slid down the bed and cried bitterly. Tears kept streaming down uncontrollably.

I covered my face and only muffled sounds came out. As terrifying as it was, it happened. A dead girl was lying in a pool of blood right in my bathtub.

I always thought that the day my mother left, was the day I cried bitterly for my helpless condition. I never thought I'd ever face anything storing enough to evoke such a reaction from me.

I thought that I'd lost that side of me that very day and so much tears were never going to ever erupt from me. Little did I know, someone out there was hatching an evil plan to dump a dead body in my hotel room along with a threat rendering me psychologically helpless.

Apart from the emotional turmoil, feeling weak physically made things very, very acute. I felt like not doing anything and just sitting in my bed. But unfortunately, there was no room for that.

Nevertheless, I still managed to force myself to get dressed.

"Leave Adam or you're next...." I repeated the words from the note. Who in this world would want me away from Adam?

I've met his family in several occasions and they all seemed to like me. I had no problem with his friends at all and neither were my friends sick in the head to pull such a stunt.

"Leave Adam or you're next" I recited the note again while wringing it and throwing it in the bin. Whoever it was was asking for the inevitable.

Leave Adam? That was just absurd as the thought itself.

Did she or he really think I was going to back out just because of a few threats? It was true I was traumatized to death but that didn't mean I'd bow my head in face of fear and ran.

I loved Adam and there was no way I was going to ever let him go. If so, then over my dead body.

"Elly...." the door behind me opened and I jumped in fright.

"Sorry...but the detectives would like to talk to us....Is that okay??" he asked and I nodded.

I got up and walked to the centre of the room where he followed along with Conan and a few police men, with Kane County, the manager.

"If you allow I'd like you to answer a few of my questions...." Conan asked taking out his notebook. I scratched my head and nodded, sniffing in between sobs.

I wiped my tears and sat next to him in the couch.

"Um...Lately, have you noticed any of your friends acting...somewhat... different??" he asked and I looked at him. "Think about it....any form of different...."

"No...not really...." I replied.

"You sure?" he confirmed and I nodded.

"Okay. Have you maybe perhaps had a misunderstanding with anyone? friend or foe?" he asked again and this time I thought of Jeannine.

She's the only one I had a fight with and considering she got thrown out of the wedding because of me, she maybe perhaps must've thought of this.

"Well....there's someone..." I paused before mentioning her name and dispersed the thought. "No. it can't be her...."

"Who's her?" he asked placing the notepad down.

I steadied myself on the seat and decided to explain to them the entire scenario from the beginning of the story; following the events that happened at the salon, to the wedding and how the pretended I poisoned her to how she got caught.

"...and then she said You will pay for it....right after she was taken away by the security..." I finished and held my hands together.

"You will pay for it. Quiet a catchy phrase...." he joked and jolted it down.

"It can't be her..... I know it...."

"Ma'am...never make the mistake of underestimating your opponents. Think of it, you're a very famous person and possible the envy of every woman out there. Just because they smile at you doesn't mean they wish you good. Anyone is capable of anything. You have you career set and you have such a magnificent man for a boyfriend who every woman would kill for....if you ask me...I'd say this is a premeditated assault..." he got up and I got up as well.

"For quiet sometime, someone has been keeping an eye on you to find out your every move so much as to know you're in Peru....and narrowing it down to the time you were in and out of the room...."

"That's why they were able to place the dead body in the room as we were not here the whole of today...."

"Exactly...." He nodded and tears glistened in my eyes immediately.

"Oh dear..." I panicked and took deep breath hoping to decompress my tense self.

"Am sorry but I'd have to say this. Considering this scene and the threat you're in....I suggest you don't spend another night here and immediately leave for Florida...." the words came as a sharp spear penetrating my heart and ripping it apart.

We just got here. How could we leave like that??

"You just can't trust what's lurking in the shadows around here...." ....were Conan's last words before he walked out of the room.