CHAPTER 19

He was calling her his husband but they weren't even married yet. They had not officially gotten married so why the public humiliation? Was no one going to come to her rescue, she reasoned.

She couldn’t have any more of the humiliation so she turned to him. “Sir, I don't know who you are but the man you are talking about isn't my husband. We are not officially married and of course, with this revelation, we can't proceed with the marriage.”

Charlotte hoped that her explanation would take some of the pressure off her back.

But the man was unwilling to stop the accusations. His anger was a raging fire that sought to consume Charlotte. Since he couldn't have Bradley to roast, there was nothing that could stop him from going after Charlotte.

The man’s voice was thick with the weight of anger and pain as he spoke.

Charlotte realized that if she remained there, the man would keep barking like a dog and more people would keep staring at her in an event that was already getting messed up due to confusion and commotion.

Charlotte rose to her feet immediately. She could no longer take any of the embarrassment. Her tears were hot and her face streaked with the tracks of her pain as she fled the hall and headed towards the restroom.

“Are you just going to leave? What happened to Susanna? Aren't you going to give me any explanation?”

The man’s screams were a piercing, soul-shattering howl that carried the weight of his pain and suffering. His skin was slick with sweat as his emotions were unchecked.

The announcer was still at the podium giving out guidelines and highlighting some goals heading into the new season for the consortium. He was finding it difficult to get the attention of his audience though.

The announcer cleared his throat, his words a bold and commanding proclamation that sought to get the people to maintain attention.

“Attention everyone. Please quiet down and pay attention. We still have quite a few things to analyze before the end of this meeting.”

His eyes darted around the hall searching for some sign of order but there was none, his frustration increasing each moment.

The audience was too engrossed in their arguments and discussions about what happened with Bradley and the secret that was revealed about him.

Lady Vivian and Arabella were shaking in their tension as they whispered to each other. They were wondering if it was the best time to escape the hall before the officers came to arrest them too.

“Mum, what are we going to do? I suggest we find an escape out of here?” Arabella spoke, her voice laced with tension.

“Why are we escaping?” Lady Vivian asked, her eyes sunken with stress.

Oscar’s statement at the podium had created a lot of spotlight on them because not only had they been chalked off the Jones League of Companies, they had a new allegation hanging on their heads - an allegation that could take a whole lot to get it to fade away.

“Are you serious right now?” Arabella’s eyes were wide with tension. “We have to get away from here quickly before it is too late. Look at people staring at us.”

“Don’t you know that we would be pronouncing ourselves guilty if we leave here right now?” Lady Vivian spoke. “Are you really suggesting that we do as Bradley had done? The reason why everyone here is on the edge is because of what Bradley did.”

“I assure you that we can't even move too far away from our seats or else the officers would apprehend us. I am sure you heard what Oscar said about us.”

Lady Vivian and Arabella’s eyes were locked, their faces contorted into a mask of frustration as they spoke.

“How was he able to know though?” Arabella whispered. “Was he just trying to make a guess or just pin us to a random offense?”

“Arabella, that’s a topic for another day but we just need to find out how we can get ourselves from this mess first of all.”

“What if we get arrested? Oscar has already told the officers to get us in for questioning by the end of the event,” Arabella spoke. “I am sure they won’t want us to leave here without answering questions.”

“We have to come up with a line of defense. I have to get to Inara, Clara, and Justin. The cops are going to look for a loophole in each of our testimonies and we can't allow that to happen.”

“Yeah, we have to be quick with that but for now, just try to maintain your cool. We can't do anything out of the ordinary at this moment. I am already trying to make contacts for us to get a lawyer,” Lady Vivian spoke.

Suddenly, Lady Vivian and Arabella seemed to notice a huge change in the hall’s atmosphere. It seemed as if they were ripped off air as the atmosphere became thick. People started running helter-skelter around the hall.

Before Arabella could ask what was going on, the air came alive with the deafening sound of bullets raining down the walls, windows, and entrances.

The crowd screamed in panic as there was a stronghold of terror in the environment. The bullets were a merciless hail as they scrambled for cover.

“What’s happening?” Arabella asked, her heart skipping into her throat.

“Get down! Get down!”

Lady Vivian and Arabella didn't know where the voice came from but the next thing they knew was that they were hiding behind a table that had been turned over due to the destruction.

The bullets streaked like lightning through the air and the smell of gunpowder filled the whole room.

The horror seemed to have consumed them all and what started as an event where important members of the consortium would meet in a corporate gathering became a terrain of chaos.

The corporate men and women in the hall were like frightened rabbits, their designer suits were abandoned in a mad dash for cover. It was no defense against the hail of bullets.

They huddled together, hiding behind overturned tables with their hearts pounding in their chests.

The officers who were guarding the hall fell like dominoes, their bodies falling at the sound of the bullets. The officers’ guns were no protection against the hail of bullets that they were faced with.

Many of the other officers who had also been on the lookout for Bradley were not in the hall so the numbers were depleted.

Their blood pooled on the ground as their uniforms got torn and tattered.

“Head down!”

“Call 911!”

“Stay close to the ground! Hey, close to the ground.”

“Follow me quickly! They are still shooting!”

“Alright, there has to be another exit. Aren’t there some other exits?”

“All the exits are blocked for now!”