Episode 12

After Renata left the CEO's office.

"So, Mr. J has chosen Miss Angel?" asked Arvin.

"Uh-huh," Mr. J just grunted.

Arvin smiled then, "If that's the case, I'll be relieved knowing Mr. J will be well taken care of by a woman as lovely as Miss Angel."

Mr. J glanced at him sharply.

"I-I didn't mean to imply," stammered Arvin.

"Don't talk nonsense, you know exactly why I chose her," Mr. J said coolly.

"Yes, Mr. J."

Jefry John had his own reasons for replacing Arvin with Renata as his assistant.

"By the way, is Mr. J having therapy today?" Arvin asked later.

"It's pointless, I'll never recover."

**

In the evening, at eight o'clock.

*Bang!*

Renata slammed her car trunk closed after retrieving her purchases from the mall.

After work, Renata purposefully stopped by a mall to buy some clothes. True to her original intent, she planned to dispose of Angel's provocative attire and replace them with the new clothes she'd just bought. Luckily, Angel's bank balance had a generous limit.

"Angel's money is my money too, so it's fine to use it," Renata mumbled as she walked into the opulent Tan family home.

"Remember your way home, do you?" said Rendra, standing upright in the midst of the living room, arms crossed and eyes piercing.

Renata stayed silent, too wearied to argue with the man who was now her father.

"Did you just sell your body to buy all those things? After trying to snatch your sister's husband, now you lure vile men outside. Truly a blight on the family that can only shame the Tan name."

Instantly, Renata's apathy was overridden with anger. How dare a father speak such venom to his own daughter.

"Is it fitting for a father to speak so uneducated?" Renata retorted.

Rendra's jaws tensed suddenly. He was surprised by Renata's sharp reply; she used to remain silent under his insults.

Since the accident, the girl had become quite peculiar.

"You dare talk back to your father? Where is your respect?"

Renata's lips twisted into a wry smile, "I respect those who truly deserve it."

"Angel..." Rendra looked furious.

"I've told you, your daughter Angel is gone; now I am Renata. Don't worry about me; oh, wait—Mr. Rendra never actually cared."

Rendra's heart clenched at her words; indeed, he never showed concern for his daughter.

"From now on I will handle my matters, because I know what I am doing. So stay out of it."

With those words, Renata ascended the stairs to her room.

Rendra grew even more angered, "Cursed child! Is this how you live after ending my wife's life?"

Renata paused her ascent without looking back, a tightness in her chest, Angel's feelings still lingering within. She understood what it felt like to be despised by one's own father.

It hurt profoundly.

Tears welled in Renata's eyes, but she fought back the tears, "I'm no killer."

"Tch, still denying it? You caused my wife's death by that truck!"

"Life and death are threads of the same strand, inseparable. Mother's death was fate. If I had a choice, I wouldn't have wanted her to save me; I wished she had lived. If I could turn back time, it'd have been better if I had died. Why do you always blame me for fate decreed by God?"

Suddenly, Rendra stood rooted, as if a hefty weight pressed on him, his tongue tied.

Yes, why did Rendra blame Angel?

His deceased wife would've despised seeing Rendra's deep-seated hatred toward their daughter. Each glance at his daughter's face—so like his wife's—unleashed his bitterness.

Rendra wanted to speak but clamped down, at a loss for words, now a failed father.

He eyed Renata's retreating back climbing the stairs, vanishing around the corner.

Did the middle-aged man feel regret?

Who knows, sometimes a person prefers deceiving their own heart.

**

Once in her room, Renata began cleansing herself.

The day had been long. Her heart swirled with emotions: from the secrets hidden within the novel's plot, her abrupt appointment as CEO's Assistant, to her quarrel with Rendra.

Now Renata relished the cascading shower, the water sluicing from her head downward, seemingly washing away her tangled thoughts.

Renata turned off the shower with intentions to finish her bathing ritual. She stepped out to grab the hanging bathrobe and slipped into it. Then she exited the bathroom, drying her damp hair with a towel.

Her lips moved to hum a tune.

But her humming ceased abruptly upon spotting the square object atop the bed.

Her cell phone.

Renata was surprised Mr. J had fixed her phone. The shock of his returning it was profound; fortunately, she hadn't yet bought a replacement.

Renata smirked slightly, then grabbed the device. It seemed this man could also be accountable.

*Ring*

Coincidentally, her phone rang, displaying a call from a contact named Jefry John, her breath catching in shock.

"Je-Jefry? Who's Jefry John?"

Renata gulped nervously, her body trembling.

Without response, the call ended.

"Am I hallucinating?"

*Ring*

Jefry John called again.

Mustering courage, Renata pressed the green button, her hands shaking.

"He-hello," she managed, her voice edged with anxiety.

But no answer came from the other end.

"...Jefry?" she questioned hesitantly.

Was the man at the other end her husband? Yet her husband was dead, and she was in a novel world now.

Renata furrowed her brow, receiving no response.

Why this sense of deja vu?

"Jefry, is that you?" she asked again, hope lacing her tone for the man on the other end to truly be her spouse.

[ *Miss Angelica\, how dare you address me impolitely after such a long time ignoring my calls.* ]

Eventually, a voice sounded from the other end.

Renata swallowed hard, "Who are you, really?"

[ *Even though I saved your contact information on your phone\, you still don't recognize me? Your ignorance truly knows no bounds.* ]

Renata's temples twitched; she thought she recognized this Jefry John.

"Mr. J?"

[ *Mmm.* ]

Only a grunt.

Renata massaged her aching temples, the resemblance ran deeper than just appearances. Even the names—Mr. J and her deceased husband—were similar, save the last. Just as her own name and Angel's.

She should have guessed from the start to avoid the shock.

What was at play in this novel world?

"Sorry, Mr. J. I didn't know your real name."

[ *Have you been living under a rock?* ]

"Not at all."

[ *Uh-huh.* ]

Renata exhaled, finding patience. Thankfully, she was accustomed to dealing with men as steadfast as dessicated sea sponges. Except Mr. J was exceptionally sharp-tongued.

"Why are you calling me, Mr. J?" Renata eventually ventured.

[ *First thing tomorrow\, come to the address I'm sending you. You must arrive before six in the morning.* ]

"What?"

_To Be Continued_

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