"Aww... he wants to save his daughter! What a loving father," Linc mocked him.
"Where are we doing the trade?" Richard asked, straight to the point.
"I'll text you the address," Linc snapped and hung up immediately.
"I'm the one with the upper hand here," he gloated. 
Linc gathered a few things and his keys. He headed outside his house and as he opened his door, Annabelle was standing there.
Linc jumped back in surprise, but quickly regained his cool."
"What are you doing here? Have you gotten the money?" he asked her.
"Good evening to you too," Annabelle replied.
"Sorry baby, good evening. Have you gotten the money?" Linc asked.
"Well, I got a hundred thousand dollars," Annabelle said eagerly.
"I said I didn't want peanuts! What would that gum money do!" Linc fired at her.
"Linc ..." Annabelle's voice shook. 
"I sold my two cars and some jewelry," Annabelle said.
"Couldn't you have at least praised my efforts or said thank you?" Annabelle was hurt.
"Yeah, you're such a big help with the peanuts."
"Why didn't you sell the house?" Linc snarled.
"We forgot I don't own the house, hello," she retorted. 
"Don't talk to me like that!" Linc growled.
"You have the nerve to yell at me for raising little money when you haven't even sold your own house and car?" Annabelle sneered.
"What? I'm gonna sell them later," Linc lied.
"You used me!" She accused.
"Shut up," he snapped.
"You used me!" Annabelle repeated, louder.
"I have been such an idiot!" Annabelle cried, pounding his chest with her fists.
"Did you just realize that?" Linc taunted and shoved her off his body. She stumbled and fell to the floor. 
He frisked her body for the cash and found it in her pocket. He snatched it and stuffed it in his own.
"Don't ever show your face here again," Linc warned and stormed back into his house.
Annabelle was seething. She limped to his car, intending to smash it with her heels, but she only hurt her leg more.
She ripped off the necklace Linc gave her and threw it to the ground, stomping and grinding it with her heels. To her shock, it broke into two equal halves.
"What? It was even fake?" She gasped.
Meanwhile, Linc sneaked out of his house through the back door and fled on foot, through the small gate at the back.
***
Adrienne felt a surge of anxiety and restlessness in her body as she paced back and forth in her bedroom, glancing out the window and at her phone every now and then.
Lisa walked into her room with a plate of fresh watermelon slices and offered it to her.
"Thanks," Adrienne muttered.
"Are you still worried? It's not good for you or your baby, you know," Lisa said.
"I'm not really worried, just a bit worried, not totally and completely worried," Adrienne rambled and Lisa shook her head.
Adrienne sighed.
"He hasn't called me since I yelled at him. It's been hours and not even a text," Adrienne said.
"It's okay. Don't worry, it'll be over soon," Lisa said.
"Yes it will. I think I have found something that can put Linc behind bars, even if it's just for a few months. I'll use that time to work on my abduction and rape case. He's going to pay for his and his father's crimes," Adrienne said.
"What evidence have you found?" Lisa asked.
"Well, none yet. But I think I'm going to get something tomorrow.
I realized something today. All the lies that have been spread about me, all the pain I endured for years, I can't just lie in bed crying all day while you and Richard try to protect me or defend me. I have to do something. I'm going to do something," Adrienne said determinedly.
"Whoa whoa. Take it easy. And also, I think I know where Richard is," Lisa said, hiding her nervousness.
"You think? Well then, tell me," Adrienne urged, wondering why Lisa was hesitating.
"First of all, don't get mad at me. It's not that I don't trust Richard or that I don't like seeing you and him together, I just did it for security reasons," Lisa said.
"Now you're making me feel weird," Adrienne said.
"Richard is at a club right now," Lisa said.
"A club? What?" Adrienne was stunned.
"Also, he was at the police station earlier. He was there asking for a file on a woman's death," Lisa explained.
"How did you even..." Adrienne's question was cut off.
"I hired a private detective to follow Richard, I'm sorry," Lisa confessed.
"You did what? How could you?" Adrienne exploded at her.
"I'm sorry. It's not that I don't trust him. I did it for security reasons," Lisa said.
"That's a lie. You don't trust him. I appreciate that you care about me and you're worried about me, but spying on my fiance is not okay. 
I trust him, and you have to trust him too, because you're my assistant. Got it?" Adrienne said firmly, switching her tone. 
Lisa looked down at the floor, feeling sad and guilty.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted like that," Adrienne apologized for yelling at Lisa.
"It's okay. I made a mistake and I deserve to be scolded," Lisa said, forcing a smile on her face, her eyes filling with tears.
"Thanks for understanding. As for Richard being at the club, I'm sure he has a good reason for that. And as for the police station visit, he has a good reason for that too. Nothing to worry about," Adrienne said.
"But..." Adrienne paused, and Lisa's head dropped again. Adrienne smiled slightly, enjoying the suspense she created.
"...The only person you should worry about is yourself," She continued.
"Me?" Lisa said.
"I'm going to relieve you of some of your duties soon. You need to have a life outside of being my assistant," Adrienne said.
"So you're firing me?" 
"Dummy! I said some of your duties. Does that mean I'm firing you?" Adrienne teased and they shared a small smile.
"I'm taking a break from skincare, so that means less work for you. I'll be traveling around the world with my babies while you handle my other businesses. I'll get you an assistant. You'll probably be the first assistant to ever have an assistant," Adrienne joked.
"But, that would mean you'd have more time for yourself. Go on weekend trips, take breaks, go on vacations, get a..." Adrienne stopped, not wanting to finish her sentence.
"All I'm trying to say is you should just enjoy life," Adrienne said.
"Were you gonna say 'get a boyfriend'?" Lisa ventured hesitantly.
"Um. Yeah. But I suddenly didn't feel like saying that anymore," Adrienne smiled awkwardly.
"I have another confession to make," Lisa confessed nervously. "Honestly, I am a..."
"Lesbian?" Adrienne interrupted.
"I've always known you were sexually attracted to girls," Adrienne added.
"Oh. How long have you known?" Lisa inquired.
"You remember that day I was missing Richard and he sent me that sexy lingerie? When you complimented me after I asked how I looked, I got that feeling and some of the things you said in the past kinda confirmed my suspicions," Adrienne explained.
"Oh. Are you okay with it? Why didn't you say anything? Will you fire me?" Lisa asked.
"It's your private life, isn't it? As long as your sexuality isn't affecting work, then we're cool," Adrienne assured her.
"Thank you ma'am," Lisa said.
"Ma'am? What the hell?" Adrienne rolled her eyes and they both laughed.
"You can leave now," Adrienne dismissed Lisa.
"Thanks again for the melons," she shouted as Lisa left the room.
***
She gasped. 
Annabelle closed her laptop, her mouth gaping in horror. She couldn’t believe what she just watched. 
She had turned a blind eye to all this? She drummed her index finger continuously on her desk. 
She had to think: what should she do? She glanced at her phone. It was tempting to ignore it, to pretend nothing had happened. However, she knew she had to face the truth. She slowly reached for her phone and placed a call. A call to Ryan.