Chapter Nine

When Chloe blinks her eyes open this time, she is met with the growing familiar décor of her room, instead of sterile white atmosphere of a hospital room, like she was expecting before she passed out in the park. She remembers that she was saved once again just before and jolts out of bed to look around the room for her savior, half expecting to see Gabriel sitting somewhere in the corner.

Instead, she is once again met with the familiar smiling face of Julian, sitting on the chair by her door reading one of the books she assumes is from her bookshelf, which she hasn't had the chance to check out the contents of herself, and secretly hopes whatever he is reading isn't something she should be embarrassed about having in her possession.

"You're finally awake, and only a day has gone by this time," he says and jumps up from the chair, tossing the book aside on it.

It slowly dawns on her what he says exactly, and the hidden undertone of his words.

"Wait – are you aware of my recent accident?" she asks, surprised at the tremor in her voice.

He gives her a sympathetic look that answers her question right away. "Yes, and I am aware that it was no accident, Miss Rose. But I'm not here to judge, I'm here to figure out what happened in the park today and explain the follow-up question you probably have."

Why was he there today?

She was attacked by unknown assailants in broad daylight. Chloe imagines that Athena has a few enemies at least, but she can't imagine she has made such terrible enemies in the celebrity and model world, that someone who try to knock her out and kidnap her.

As random and unplanned as the attack might have been, it doesn't explain why Julian was in the area. There is no reason for someone like him, who is clearly a driver and assistant of some sort to Gabriel, be wandering alone through the exact park she happened to pull over to.

It's too coincidental.

"So, what is your explanation? I would like to hear that first, before we discuss the events of today," she says.

He drags the chair he was using before over to the side of the bed and takes a seat once more. "No point in hiding it, I was sent to watch over you by Gabriel, and make sure you are someone that he can trust to work for him in such an important position."

Not a terrible excuse. "But I haven't even accepted or refused the job offer yet."

As collected a Julian seems, this catches him off guard.

"Would you like to try that again?"

He lets out an exasperated sigh. "Gabriel has made a lot of powerful enemies since he has become head of his family, as well as inheriting all the enemies his father happened to make while he held the position. There aren't many women in his life, and there is a reason for that. It isn't because he has ever viewed women as weak, some of the strongest people he admires are the woman of his family, but they are an easy weakness and target for someone like him."

She freezes at the direction of the conversation. "I'm not following you."

"You have come and gone from the Monroe casino, and visited the private office of Gabriel himself, something not many people do. If there was any of his enemies watching the building, they would have saw this and possibly made you a target. Out of concern for that, he asked me to keep an eye on you for a little while, to make sure nothing happens."

He pauses and gives her a dark look. "What do you suspect would have happened, if I wasn't there today? I wanted to ask if there was a chance those thugs were enemies of yours or your fathers, assuming he is a man that has accumulated some sort of debt. But I can tell from your reaction, that you're just as surprised and there is a larger chance these men were targeting Gabriel through you."

She can't believe what she is hearing. Secretly she had accepted the job and was already looking forward to gaining some solid experience to help her cause for revenge, only to figure out that there is a major risk to the job.

A risk of being kidnapped and dying.

"What is going to happen if I accept this job and a close position to Gabriel? Will that not make be an even bigger target? All I did was meet him today, and I was almost kidnapped, and God knows what else, just by sitting in the park! How can someone like him assure my safety while casually living my life, once I take this position, one that shouldn't come with the risk of losing one's life."

She is trying to contain the anger rising in her, but she is losing control on the hysteria she feels creeping up on her. How could anyone accept a job offer with a company that just put her life at major risk?

"Miss Rose, I understand your reluctance towards working with the Monroe family and Mr. Monroe himself, but I can assure you that no harm will ever come to you, while you are under the employment and protection of Mr. Monroe and myself, as I demonstrated yesterday."

She wants to believe his words, but she has never experienced the frightening adrenaline she did yesterday, even in her previous life, and no former memories from Athena's mind popped up, telling her that even her, with all her fam and wealth, never experienced such a frightening situation as an attempted kidnapping.

If it was even a kidnapping. Maybe they were going to do unspeakable things to her while she was knocked out and take pictures, using that to ransom off some money or to sell to the media, tarnishing her name and reputation, and bringing the downfall of her entire revenge plan before she can even really get started.

She once again finds herself in debt to Julian and the Monroe family, without even having begun to pay back her former debt to them.

What a messy situation a simple, barely avoided car crash, has seemed to cause. Chloe almost wishes the car had hit her back then, and maybe she would have been given another chance and this time lived a much more relaxed and drama-free life.

But she knows that whatever luck she has landed herself in, it won't happen again. She still isn't sure that her soul will remain in this body until it dies, or if it will be sucked back out eventually, when the creator of the universe realizes that they messed up.

Until then, she must do whatever she can to take advantage of her luck, and change whatever fate is awaiting her. She lived her past life struggling to survive, and she has now been given the chance to live the opposite life of that, she just has to get past a few obstacles and challenges, to get there.

"Please tell Gabriel I will see him tomorrow morning, same place and time, he should be ready to expect me and to discuss the events of yesterday, and my decision on our employment contract."

Julian raises a brow when he hears her call him by his first name, something even he isn't allowed to do while in public or in the presence of others. Gabriel rarely lets anyone call him by his first name, it shows a sign of personal and close relationship, which he doesn't have with many people outside of his family.

Yet she is calling him Gabriel so casually, after just one meeting with each other that from Julian's understanding and eavesdropping, didn't seem like an overall good conversation and interaction.

He tries to hide the smile on his face and bows his head. "I will take my leave then. Please rest and make a speedy recovery, Miss Rose."

She waits until he is out of the room, to toss her head back onto the pillows and throw the blanket over her head, letting out an audible groan that echoes slightly through the room.

All she wanted was to laze about all day and eat, drink and do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. From the moment she woke in Athena Rose's body, she hasn't had a moment of peace to herself, that doesn't involve her recovering from some sort of accident.

Even with how late she stayed up, how little she ate and how much she pushed her body and health to the edge in her former life, her body was never this weak and feeble. Then again, Chloe Brass was never targeted by kidnappers or trying to harm herself intentionally.

"Miss Rose?" Margaret knocks on the door and enters with a hesitant look. "You have a guest."

"A guest at this hour? Who is it?"

Before she can answer, the door bursts open from behind her, and Stella comes rushing in with what one can assume is fake tears streaming down her face.

"Sister, I just heard what happened and rushed over here as soon as I could. Are you alright?" she cries and embraces Athena tightly, her shoulder shaking and hands trembling.

Even Chloe is amazed at how well she is putting up the act, but if she hadn't of hugged her, she wouldn't have been able to tell that the shaking and trembling feels slightly forced.

Looking around the room, she sees Margaret has excused herself and there is no one left but Stella and herself. After confirming they are alone, she shoves Stella off and pretends to brush the dirt off her, giving Stella a sneer.

"Why are you really here?" she asks plainly.

Stella drops the fake crying act and quickly replaces it with a ferocious smile, her eyes smoldering with anger.

"Is it really that hard to live with the fact that I have more talent than you, or are you genuinely afraid I'll dethrone you if I get even the slightest opportunity?"

"What are you rambling on about?" Chloe asks, trying to keep herself in check and make sure that there is no slip up in her Athena persona while in front of one of the few people who know who the true Athena was before she was put into a coma.

At the same time, Stella seems to be seething with anger and too focused on whatever issue she has, to pay attention to anything else.

"I thought I had a pretty good meeting with Mrs. Janet and had all but signed to become her client, when I suddenly get a call a week later that she doesn't think she can take me on as a client, since she feels it will cause complications with the clients she currently has. Of course, she didn't name you, but she didn't have to since you were coincidentally there the same day, I scheduled a meeting with her."

She starts getting closer to the bed side, trapping Chloe against the bedframe and wall. She has to remain calm and make sure she can get out of this situation, without it resulting to violence, or she is at a disadvantage. She can still feel the fatigue from the large amount of chloroform she inhaled and the little amount of time she has had to recover.

If Stella tries to attack her, even with the little self-defense that she herself might know, she will still have a lot more strength and energy to overpower Chloe easily. She has to control the situation as best as she can, but this is her first interaction with Stella alone. The last time they spoke it was in public, with many eyes on them, making it much easier to control the situation in her favor.

Stella strikes her as the kind of person who can only feel confident when she has full control over everything, even if she isn't the one holding the most cards.

"If you're implying that I had anything to do with swaying her decision, I was merely there to inquire about any potential projects I might be able to take on once I have fully recovered. Your name wasn't even mentioned, you think too highly of yourself and I'm aware that you're more than capable of making a name for yourself, Stella."

This seems to only infuriate Stella further, clenching her shaking fists at her sides.

"Why do you get everything? What makes you so worthy?" she cries out, real tears now streaming down her face.

Chloe slowly gets out of bed and sizes Stella up as best as her medium sized frame can.

"Because I know the difference between working hard for what I have and trying to steal it from someone else. I may have been born with a silver spoon in my mouth, but the name and wealth I have built for myself is my effort alone, yet time and time again you have tried taking it from me, under the claim that my life belongs to you."

She takes a threatening step closer and jabs Stella in the chest. "What makes you so worthy to live my life? From the day you were born, you've done nothing but try to steal and suckle from the wealth of my family. Yet you sit there and demand and declare the world. No one is born with that much worth; everyone earns their spot in life and society."

Before Chloe can register what is happening, there is a sharp stinging pain in her now slightly swollen and tender cheek. Stella stands there with her hand still raised after slapping her clean across the face, hot tears covering her own.

"How dare you! You're just a filthy nobody yourself, who only knows how to use Daddy's connections to give herself a name and fake wealth. All you've ever done is take advantage of your last name and the power our father has given you, none of it has ever belonged to you! I'm the first born, it should belong to me!"

As Chloe had feared, the situation has escalated to a violent one, as Stella lunges towards her, as if she intends to strangle her. Despite barely having the strength to stand up, Chloe is able to dodge her attack and stumble towards the door, tripping just before grasping the handle.

She hears the heavy footsteps of Stella behind her, just as she manages to reach forward and toss open the door.

"Margaret!" she cries down the hall, hoping the peeping woman is lurking somewhere nearby and hears the urgency in her voice and understands the dire emergency.

Stella grabs hold of the back of Chloe's hair and tugs her on her back, climbing on top of her. "I'll make you regret ever spitting on my mother and I, for taking away everything that should have been ours." She raises her hands as if to strike down at Chloe but is quickly lifted off of her by the head chef, who tosses her to the side with ease.

"Miss Rose are you alright?" he asks her with a frantic look, slowly helping her off the ground. She was so focused on getting help and avoiding Stella, she didn't realize how hard her hair had been pulled and how hard her head hit the ground afterwards, until she felt a light, wet trickle down the back of her neck and raises her hand to the spot, pulling it away and seeing the red blood on her fingertips.

"Well, that's not good," she mutters, already accepting the unconsciousness she knows is coming, cursing herself once more for being born into such a weak body.