Chapter 19

Starlet sat on the breakfast table as she read the headlines. She was in shock and felt she needed to get in touch with her cousin. The internet was buzzing with the news. Octavia had eloped with the director and lead actor of the movie she was working on.

She tried ringing her friend but was sent to voice mail. She didn't bother leaving a message. She thought Vivie was in a relationship with Richard. Hadn't Vivie said so herself? She had to be there for her cousin who probably needed her. She tried to call her cousin and was also sent to voicemail. She knew where to find her cousin at times like these so she went after him.

Starlet got up from the coffee table abandoning all thoughts of food and went to get her car keys. Richard had been there when she needed him. She would be there for him now.

She dialled Charlotte over the Bluetooth but she couldn't get through to her. Just as well, she doubted that Charlotte knew about Richard and Vivie.

She got a call from her husband and answered.

"Did you know?" he asked her.

No greetings at all just straight to the point.

"Well good morning darling," she said tartly. She hated being treated like the help. She wasn't Jillian who was paid to take his shit.

"I'm sorry, Star but I need to extinguish some fires," Lucien's subdued response came through the car's speakers.

"I didn't know about Vivie if that's what you're referring to," Star said with a sigh.

They were both under some pressure and needed to deal with this on their ends of the damage.

 "I can't get through to her," Star told Lucien, "I'm waiting for her to get in touch with me or one of the girls."

She didn't bother telling him about going to see Richard. If he needed her, he knew her number.

Starlet arrived at Richard's gallery and found his car in its usual spot. She got out of her car and went into the building. She found the receptionist on her desk working away seeming as sunny as usual.

"Hello Mrs Blade," she greeted cheerily when she saw Star.

"Hie, Is Richard in?" Starlet wanted to go down to business.

"He's in his office," the woman said with a smile, "you can walk right in."

Starlet marched into Richard's office dreading the state she'd find her in. When she opened the door what she saw was not what she expected. She expected to see him in pain… He was on the phone smiling and joking with someone. He raised a finger at her non-verbally telling her to wait.

Star closed the door behind her and walked up to the desk. When Richard hung up, Star was perched on the chair opposite her cousin studying him. Maybe she had misread the situation between her sister-in-law and cousin.

"Octavia is married," she said and Richard grinned.

"I told her to give the guy a chance," he said with a grin, "not to marry him."

"You two weren't dating?" Star was confused.

"No," Richard leaned into his chair, "Who told you that?"

"I'm certain Vivie said you guys were in a relationship…" Star was lost. Richard's grin just got wider.

"You hounded her, didn't you?" he teased.

Star huffed and Richard burst into laughter.

"She's marrying a high school dormmate of mine," he explained, "He's a great guy if you got to know him."

"So, the argument on the beach," Star wanted to know.

"None of your business," Richard told her and she scrolled.

"I'm leaving," she said as she got up.

"So, you came to check on me," Richard could not believe it.

"I won't bother next time, cousin." Star told him as she opened the door.

"I love you too!" Richard called after her as she closed the door behind her.

She smiled at that. She knew he loved her even if he never said the words. That was what her family was like.

Seeing that she was already in the area she decided to go to Lucien's office. On the way there she decided to pick up a light snack as she had missed breakfast. She would entertain herself while he worked. 

Starlet parked at the parking lot in front of Blade Inc. She got out of the car and as she locked it, she heard a voice that she'd thought she'd never hear again.

"Mrs Starlet Blade," the voice said and Star turned slowly to face Ayanda Hill. She was dressed in a faded woollen coat and had a leather purse over her shoulder. She was holding a piece of paper in her hand. Starlet thought that she had a triumphant air about her. She dreaded what that meant.

"What do you want, Hill?" Star asked with irritation.

"I need to give you this," Ayanda said and gave Star a document. "I can't get to Lucien but I saw you by chance, so pass that to him."

Star didn't take the document. Ayanda huffed in frustration.

"Take it," she said as she thrust the document at Star again more forcefully.

Star took the document hesitantly and glanced at it. The black and white print on the paper had the power to stop her lungs from working and freeze her from the inside out.

She looked up at the other woman and knew what she wanted to deny was true.

"I'll be seeing you around," Ayanda said and walked away, hips swinging tauntingly.

Starlet wanted to sink to the ground. She wanted this to be a bad dream. She looked down at the paper and noticed it was shaking... Her hands were shaking. She wanted to crumple the paper, rip it to shreds, and burn it. She wanted to, but she didn't somewhere in her brain was a little voice insisting she stay in control. To stay strong.

She turned back to her car unlocked it and lowered herself onto the seat with the door open. She sat there for what seemed like forever just looking at the document, lost.

She could feel her eyes welling up with tears and she reminded herself not to lose it.

Don't lose it in a parking lot, Star. She told herself.

Starlet put her feet in the car and closed the door. She couldn't see her husband just yet. She couldn't. She had too much emotion and feared how she would break if he saw her.

Loving him hurts me even when he's not trying, she thought bleakly.

She got her phone out and sent an SOS text to her cousin.

Richard came quickly a few minutes later and he ushered Star into his car.

She was just quiet and unresponsive. Staring blankly into space and holding that damned piece of paper. When he got to his gallery, Richard guided Star to his office and he sat her down on a chair. He took another chair and sat in front of her.

"What's wrong, cousin?" he asked her worriedly and Star just gave him the offending document.

Richard looked at it and when he saw it was not for Star, his facial expression morphed into one of shock, pity and then it was carefully blank.

Star saw the emotions pass on his face like fast clouds and that broke her. Tears began to stream down her pale cheeks and her cousin moved in to hold her.

"Hey," he soothed, "hey it's okay, Lettie. There are solutions to this, you just don't see them yet but there are there, I promise." He rubbed a hand over her back and she began sobbing in earnest.

"What do I do?" she cried miserably.

Richard had no answers for her. This was not about what she did but more about how Lucien and Star dealt with this. This would scar the both of them for a long time to come.

Richard hugged his little cousin tighter in his arms. He felt sorry for Star. She deserved better than the man she had married. She said she loved him but he thought she was nuts. What was there to love about that man? He brought her more pain than she had ever gotten from anyone else in her entire life. He did not deserve her sweet, nature. No man did but most of all not Lucien. He wished he could go hit the man just once but he knew Star would never forgive him. This was how stupid loving Lucien had made her. Octavia would cheer him on, but Star would most likely disown him.

He rubbed circles into her back as she let out heart-wrenching sobs. He really wanted a go at that idiot of a man.

Star's sobbing faded slowly and was replaced by sniffles. Richard let go of her and went to his desk to open a desk he knew contained a few packs of wet wipes. He took one unopened one and hoping she won't ask; he gave it to her.

Starlet took the pack and opened it then pulled out one and wiped her face. She didn't ask.

"You can use the bathroom to wash your face," Richard told her gently.

Starlet nodded her head at the suggestion and got up. She was grateful that her cousin had his own private bathroom in his office and she didn't have to walk past people to clean herself up.

When she had washed her face, Star walked into her cousin's office.

"Take me back to my car, please." Her voice was a defeated whisper.

"Are you sure?" Richard asked and she gave him a small meaningless smile that was supposed to reassure him.

He was worried about her but he knew better than to fight with her. She wasn't foolish enough to drive when she couldn't. At least… he hoped she wasn't.

Starlet drove to the beach house she owned with her cousins. They all had a key to go here when they needed solitude. No one but the three of them and, Octavia, and Xiamie knew about it.

She stayed there the whole day watching the waves advance and retreat. She had no solutions and just a problem. She had read the piece of paper Ayanda had given her and it was engraved into her mind's eye.

The paper itself was on the kitchen island and so was her phone. She had put it on silent and left it there. She would deal with the outside world when she was good and ready.

Right now, what she needed was tranquility. Once she harvested the energy she needed from being left alone, she would go back and face her problems. She looked up at the grey autumn sky and smiled grimly at how it perfectly matched her day. She turned her back to the window and moved to the couch. She folded herself into it and closed her eyes. She wished that when she opened her eyes the whole day would be a bad dream.

But she knew better. She should have known that the brief moments of joy she had with Lucien would be taken away but something else. She had known. She had tried to prepare herself but she doubted that it would be enough to carry her through to the next grim period with her husband.

She wondered why it had to be like this with them. She had wanted for there to be just herself and her husband but maybe that was too much to ask. Star bit back a sob. Why must there be someone between them? Why did destiny curse her like this? Was she sinning by not wanting to not let Lucien go?

She couldn't live without him. She refused to live without him. Richard was right; She did not see the solution just yet but there was one. Yes, she would have to take some humiliation for a while but she would not let go of her husband. He was hers and she would keep it that way.