Chapter 99

Plenty of people celebrated the news, but there were just as many who met it with disbelief and outrage.

Lainey,upon catching sight of the headline, froze in shock.

It read,"Enigma is Butterfly."

She could read every character in that headline,yet somehow, the meaning just wouldn't click for her.

What other secrets was Eleanor hiding? And why did she get to live such a dazzling life?

Jealousy twisted inside Lainey, and she resolved to put an end to Eleanor's time in the spotlight.

Clenching her jaw, she dug out a phone with an old,unused number and made a call.

Soon after, a man answered, his tone teasing. "Baby,I thought you'd already settled down. What's made you call me out of the blue?"

Swallowing her disgust,Lainey put on a syrupy sweet voice. "Horace, I need you to take care of someone for me. Whatever it costs, I'll pay."

Horace Boyd came with a reputation, and he sounded interested. "Really now? Who's foolish enough to get on your bad side?"

Hatred burned in Lainey's eyes as she bit down on her lip. "I'll message you the specifics soon. Just say if you're up for the job."

Horace let out a deep, amused laugh. "There's nothing I can't handle. As long as you can get me in with the Benton family, I'll take care of anyone you point me toward."

Horace operated in the criminal underworld, while the Benton family had always built their reputation on strictly lawful business.

Linking those two worlds wouldn't be simple, but it was definitely within reach.

As the self-proclaimed star of the Benton family,Lainey believed she was more than capable of making it happen.

Without another thought, she agreed right, away,"You've got a deal!"

Meanwhile,Eleanor was blissfully unaware of Lainey's schemes. All her attention was on calming down David.

"Eleanor! You went to appear on TV with Dyer? Do l even matter to you as a teacher anymore?" David's angry voice blasted through the phone.

With a weary sigh, Eleanor pressed her fingers to her temple and pushed the phone away from her ear.

Her voice softened as she tried to reassure him."David,'I know l made a mistake. It won't happen again,I swear. Please don't get worked up, or I'll start to worry."

She then continued, "Dyer's only acting this way because he's jealous of you. Honestly, he wishes he had a student like me, so he's just trying to stir things up. Don't let him get under your skin."

A little patience and reassurance was all it took for David's anger to melt away.

He muttered a few last complaints before offering some advice to Eleanor. "Otrad's got a harsh, dry climate, and sandstorms aren't uncommon. Look after yourself. Don't think you can just ignore these things because you're still young."

A gentle warmth blossomed in Eleanor's chest, and a small smile broke across her face. "I will, I promise." Once the call ended, she let out a long sigh and sank into the sofa.

At last, everyone was settled for now.

It struck her that she really needed to be more cautious going forward and keep her other lives a secret,or else she would have more trouble than she could handle.

After taking a few moments to recharge, Eleanor begansorting her things for the journey to Otrad.

Out of nowhere, her phone lit up with a text from Nolan. "When are you heading out?"

A faint smile played on Eleanor's lips as she tapped out her response. "I'm catching a flight tomorrow morning."

Nolan didn't make her wait long. "Let me know the moment you land. I'm going to miss you."

Those final words touched her more than she expected, prompting Eleanor to reply, "I will. The connection isn't great over there, but I'll text you the moment I get a better signal."

Thinking that would be the end of their exchange,Eleanor set her phone aside, until it buzzed once more. Nolan had sent another message. "Look outside.I'm downstairs."

That made Eleanor freeze for a second.

She hurried to the window, pulling the curtain aside just enoughto peek outside.

Bathed in the glow of the streetlamp, Nolan's Bentley was parked below. He was there, leaning casually against the car, his eyes fixed on her window.