An Inauspicious Sign

[That fool! I should have cracked his head when I had the chance!]

But Nathalie just went quiet.

She started to question her reality and the time spent with him.

[... Nat? Hello? Are you still there? Girl! Get it together!]

"Y—Yes, I'm still here." She tried her best to gulp hard despite the hard lump that stuck her throat; her voice ran hoarse that she couldn't conceal it from the other side of the call.

[This was never the case before. But then, he's going for full control; he did this to you.]

"Without a doubt."

[I know you know this, Nat. You came to his life and brought massive fortune; he will never let you get away with it. I'm here, is there anything I can help?]

'Keep calm, Nathalie. Things went zero to a hundred right now.'

Even at her lowest points in life, Daisy had always been the beacon of light illuminated in pitch darkness. She was the support system she needed since the trek of her writing career.

Those days were where she could push through her mindset and conquer the worries and fears that loomed her heart.

Pivoting her heel, the neck of hers arched at one of the highest floors of the infrastructure. Even at its intimidating heights with a shining halo perched atop it, she squinted towards the man responsible for the piece of news.

'I knew he's there watching me… Do you think you can control me? If you want me, then come and get me.'

[... Nat? Are you there—Bitch please, you are NOT gonna drop your raggedy-ass in there, come here, now!]

"Girl bye, no way in hell I'd do that." She flipped her hair, stood with grace, and gazed at the tall arrays of glass windows one last time before she replied, "I'm on my way there; code BOYS for me, please."

[Copy that, I'll have it ready as soon as you get here.]

"Thank you. Really…" Nathalie shut her eyes as she took a deep breath.

[Don't mention it.]

She started to strut her way towards Jonathan, who stood in his usual position. He gestured a bow as soon as she got too close.

The city embodied how bustling the atmosphere was from the windows, but it didn't topple on what Nathalie heard on the other side of the phone.

Daisy has yet hung up the phone; on the other hand, Nathalie could hear her subtle screams as she embodied the worst dictator as she instructed here and there. She attended many of these background noises: the orchestra of silverware and pans resounded along with their affirmative roars.

'There she goes again, in serious mode.' Thinking about it ran a subtle tingle on her forehead; she needed to knead incessantly.

Meanwhile, she also checked her phone screen if there were any notifications. So far, it was still the popping notifications, now she muted, from the forums and other related social media accounts as an author, but she paid no mind to it.

"Jonathan, to Cafe Evergarden, please."

He took another round of graceful bow when he stopped halfway as he gaped. "... Miss Quinn, aren't you going back to the province?"

"Can't I take a pit stop?"

He closed his eyes, bowing, and opened the door for her. "Very well, Miss Quinn." Afterwhich, he took his seat and drove in a jiffy.

[Are you almost there?]

"Yes, just a few blocks away from your cafe," she muttered as she stretched her neck and scrutinized familiar points of the places along the road.

Daisy began to giggle for a while. [It's almost ready; let's have a chit-chat first. I have other news that I'm about to drop when you get here.]

This time, she couldn't help but had her heart rattle as it could be the hunch she had earlier.

There was a tinge of impatience coated in her voice, "Just tell me."

[You know I can't, it's a little chaotic here, how can I—Chad! What are you doing over there? Get over here now! Jake, do that while Mary is at the other side, NOW! Alright, hello? Girl! I'm sorry, but you should be here so I can spill all the tea.]

Nathalie facepalmed and prayed for their safety.

"... I'm on my way." She then hung up the phone.

It didn't take long for her to reach the cafe with a special place in her heart. Her struts went giddy as she left the car. Coming close to the door, with a twist, she entered, and the usual ambiance of the serene and aromatic place was her refuge.

"You're here!" Daisy waved her hands up high as she hollered; there she stood on her favorite spot.

A few customers took notice of her bold actions, as she was one of the well-known cafe owners in Golden Cambridge City. Even with a royal blue floppy hat and sunglasses, Nathalie had to cover her face from them.

When she drew inches closer, she hissed a tad bit at Daisys' actions, "Keep it cute; what are you even doing?"

"Alright, alright, I get it." Daisy repeatedly shoved her hands in an attempt to calm both of them. "Let's take a seat first. Chad and Edgar will bring them anytime soon."

"So, what's up?"

The sharp gaze of Daisy went left and right before she leaned forward. "There is a fissure in the fandom of yours! Because of that account 'Mystique Blackwell' who went active on both forums and several releases."

While at it, she slid her phone across the table for Nathalie to see, and it garnered her attention in a split second. There, her fingers began to tremble the more she scrolled down, and her eyes could never widen more than she could.

"What… in the…"

A lot of information leaked from the written manuscripts she had yet to reach its furbished state, yet it was released and made known to the public domain.

It even hiked up, higher than the release of Nathalie's identity from the top searches among search engines.

She didn't know what kind of emotions she would embody at the moment.

Daisy continued to skim them for a while; her eyes went left to right numerous times with each flip of the page.

She then said after reaching the end, "... Mystique Blackwell deserved the happy ending, for she lived and reigned as the villainess everyone needed to submit out of fear. To the bitter end, she died as the heroine; and her demise shall leave a trail of reverence in her wake."