Page 20

CHAPTER 20

Birdie

A knock on the door snaps me out of my nap. “Mrs. Abel, are you awake?”

I shuffle out of bed and open the door. It’s the man with the moustache, Marcus. “I am now.”

“Sorry to wake you, but there’s a woman at the door for you, Gia Conelly. She claims to be your assistant.”

“Claims to be my assistant? She is my assistant. Let her in, please.”

“You must verify her identity once before she’s on the system.” He shows me his tablet, which has an HD image of Gia on the screen. “Can you verify it’s her?”

“Yes, Marcus.”

“Thanks. Please tab the authorize button, and she’ll be granted access every time she’s here once she passes the security check. No need to interrupt you for permission anymore.”

I do as he asks, annoyed I haven’t gotten as much sleep as I hoped I’d get before the dreaded meeting Tristan is forcing me to have with Saldana, yet glad Marcus is taking his job seriously. Tristan has left me in good hands. His team, so far, is competent, and I should feel safe with them even when he isn’t here. “Is Tristan back yet?” I ask, nonetheless.

“No, ma’am. Should I tell Ms. Conelly to come up or should she wait for you downstairs?”

“Send her up, please.” I call Tristan when Marcus leaves. Voicemail answers me. I’ve texted him that Adriana lost my package. He shouldn’t have gone all the way to Boston. I’m grateful for the unnecessary trip, though; I don’t have to deal with Saldana until he returns.

I splash some water on my face to lift off the fog of sleep, but Gia’s voice calling my name all the way up does the job the better. Her eyes are the size of dinner plates as she bursts in my room. “Have you seen Katie Saldana’s post on social?!”

My heart thrashes. Any news about that woman after yesterday’s note can’t be good. “No. What did that worm do now?”

“Oh my God, Birdie. Have you been living under a rock?” She shoves her phone in my face. “You have to see this. It’s viral on every platform.”

When Saldana’s face pops on the screen, I sigh in relief. At least, she’s still alive. The video plays, and I can’t believe what I’m hearing.

“I can’t live with this guilt anymore. I’ve done something terrible, and all I can do is take accountability for my actions and confess. There’s a fellow author whose works, under the influence of substance, I’ve been borrowing heavily from. It’s wrong, and I deeply apologize for my actions.” Saldana’s voice is broken as her tear-smudged face fills the frame.

“Birdie Abel, please accept my apology. I’ll take all necessary actions to rectify this legally and morally. For my readers who have trusted me, I know I broke your trust, but I hope that you’ll forgive me. I promise I will go to rehab to deal with my substance abuse so that I’d never do something like this ever again. I’m counting on your support to give me the strength to do so. Without you, I know I’ll fail. Acknowledging my mistakes along with confessing and apologizing are the beginning of a long road to redemption. I will make amends to you and to Birdie, my friend and my mentor, whose trust I’ve abused. I won’t stop until I earn your trust and love back. I’m so sorry.” She blubbers and whimpers as the video ends.

What are the odds she posts such a video, today of all days, all out of the good intentions of her heart? There’s no way she exposes herself like that voluntarily. She must have been forced to do it, and I know exactly by whom.

“This is epic!” Gia squeals. “Your sales have gone up by twenty-five percent since the post went live, and she lost over ten thousand followers and counting.”

I stare at her, speechless.

“Hey, why aren’t you happy? This is karma at its finest.”

“I need to call Martha.” My phone vibrates in my hand with my agent’s name on the screen, as if she heard me. I answer quickly. “Martha, did you or the publisher talk to Saldana?” Please, tell me it’s you who instigated this.

“No, hun, we haven’t. It looks like you’re on good terms with the universe. You put it out there, and karma took care of the rest.” Martha laughs.

Karma has a new name. It’s Butterfly Man. He promised to get back at everyone who hurt me. His game has started. His first promise fulfilled.

Or is it?

If Tristan’s doubts are correct, Saldana’s confession is just the beginning, one part of the revenge, and Butterfly Man won’t just stop there.

“Martha, I need you to call Saldana now.”

“Sure. I’ll talk to your publisher and gather the legal team to—”

“Call Saldana now! Her life is…” In danger. The words choke in my throat as my mind wrestles with exposing the truth. If I have to explain to my agent why my rival with whom I have a personal vendetta may be killed in my name, she’ll call the police. With the cum-stained book unretrieved, everything I’ve worked hard for will be in danger, too. I have to decide how much I’m willing to risk playing Butterfly Man’s game.

So far, only Tristan knows about the note Butterfly Man sent about Saldana. I intend to keep it this way, at least, until he returns. He will protect me . Martha, Gia and my publisher will only protect themselves.

Part of me recoils at the idea of anyone being intentionally harmed, even someone like Saldana. But a deeper part, darker than I’d like to admit, dances with satisfaction at the thought of my rival facing consequences for once. Karma is finally evening the scales. Saying nothing doesn’t make me culpable of any harm that comes to her. Saldana reaps what she sows, doesn’t she?

“Birdie? Are you still there? What’s going on?” Martha asks.

A sick, twisted game we all are sucked in is what’s going on, where the lines between justice and vengeance blur, where there’s no room for guilt, and self-preservation is the key to winning. “Nothing. Call the publisher and do your thing.”