Nora’s sharp remark caused Tessa to flush red in embarrassment. Before Tessa could retort, Tabitha asked, “What are you guys talking about?”
“Nothing. Let’s get on the plane,” I interrupted them.
Everyone kept silent as we boarded the plane. Nora, who was still tensed, was supposed to sit at the same row as Tessa. But since she was still boiling in anger, she called for the flight attendant to change her seat. She even told the flight attendant that she’d rather die than sit next to Tessa.
The angry Tessa pointed her finger at Nora and cursed, “Don’t push it, Nora. Have you no shame?”
“Shame?” Nora retorted. “You should be the one in shame. If I were you, I’d be embarrassed to sit here after what you’ve done. Aren’t you shameless?”
“Please don’t cause a scene. Both of you, please lower down your voices,” the flight attendant asserted.
Both women finally became quiet, and Nora was granted her request to change to another seat. She was still fuming as she took her seat.
Tabitha asked curiously, “What’s wrong with you? Why are you so angry?”
“Who wouldn’t be angry at such a shameless person?” Nora barked.
“What happened? What did Tessa do?”
“Ask her yourself,” Nora snapped. Then she closed her eyes in anger and fumed quietly.
After a ten hours flight, the plane landed in A City. When we got off the plane, Nora, who couldn’t bear to be parted from me, tugged at me and said, “When are you planning to go back to K City? Let’s have a get-together in the next few days?”
Back to K City?
I was a little stunned for a while. I was still undecided on whether to return to K City. All I cared about was Ashton’s safe return. To be honest, I never thought about going back to K City. Even if I were to be back in K City, it would be a short trip before coming back to A City.
I thought about it and said to Nora, “I’ll be here in the next few days. I’m up for a gathering whenever we are free.”
Her mood improved significantly and she said, “About Tessa, are you going to just let it go?”
I was a little stunned before I smiled at her and said, “I owe it to her. I won’t be in touch with her in the future anyway. So I’ll just let it go.”
“What do you mean you owe it to her?” Nora asked, agitation on her face. “You brought her back from Venria and found someone to perform surgery on her. You even provided food for her and paid for her expensive air ticket. How could you owe her? She’s alive because of you.”
I smiled and said, “You’re exaggerating. It’s all thanks to Armond.”
After a moment of silence, she lifted her head and looked at me with a frown. “Are you shouldering the burden for her?”
I was startled. “This happened because of me, and it’s my responsibility.”
“Damn!” Nora said in despair. “This is not your fault at all.”
“I’m finally back in my home country.” Tabitha and Laurel came up to us and gave us both a hug. “My parents will be here soon to pick me up. I’ll be going back home to have a good rest and sleep. Once I’ve bounced back from this holiday fatigue, I’ll come and look for you guys, okay?”
Laurel took a glance at her and said with a smile, “Go on. I’m going back to recuperate.”
We all said our goodbyes.
Everyone left, and I was alone with Tessa. She looked at me with squinted eyes. “What now? Are you planning for revenge?”
I raised my brow. “Revenge?”
“You know what I’m talking about.”
I smiled faintly and asked, “Revenge for throwing away my documents? Or take my revenge because of your ingratitude?”
“You…”
Before she could finish her sentence, I interrupted her. “We’ve watched the surveillance footage in the store and saw what you did. I kept quiet about it to save you from embarrassment. So, drop the holier-than-thou act. Quit it with the dirty tricks. It’s despicable.”
That’s the difference between us.
After we exited the airport, we each parted way. Armond looked at me with a raised brow and asked, “Where are you planning to stay?”
I looked at him with a flush of embarrassment. Before we left for Venria, I lost all of my belongings, including my wallet, ID, and mobile phone. I had nothing left.
When I came to A City, I lost everything that I brought with me. So it was going to be tough for me to live in this city with nothing on me.
“Mr. Murphy, is your company hiring?” I’d better find a job, as it’s the only way for me to survive.
He looked at me with a smile and said, “Yes. I’m looking for an assistant. Meals and lodging will be provided. But you’ll have to be on call for twenty hours.”
That caught me off guard. “How much is the salary?”
“Five thousand.”
I thought about it for a while.
Meals and lodging provided. Five thousand a month. That’s the standard range of salary in a city like A City.
After thinking for a while, I nodded. “Mr. Murphy, can I report to work starting from today?”
I had nowhere to go in this unfamiliar place.
He nodded and led me to a black Maybach. We sat in the car and headed straight to a seaside villa in A City.
Finally, a place to stay. After returning to this familiar land, it felt like my heart was home.
