Chapter 39

Júlia runs, hugs Hannah, protecting her and continues to scream aggressively.

— Go away from here! Go away now!

Jared was unfazed by the lioness that was growling in front of him, he crouched down, stood up, put his hands in his pockets and gave a slight smile.

He had his reasons for not getting upset, knowing that secret put him in control of things:

— Do you really think that if I leave you will be able to continue hiding the child? Júlia Gonzalez, isn't that your name? Best friend of Nina Moon, mother of this charming child.

Júlia's heart beats hard as she protects Hannah in her arms. The color drains from her face when she hears him and she feels shaky. But she still doesn't let go of the girl.

— You are mistaken, this girl is my daughter. Nina is not related to her in any way.

— Do you really think I'm going to believe that? She is a clone of her own mother.

Júlia swallowed hard, he was right, Hannah was very similar to her mother, she had the same peculiar characteristics, including her eyes.

— Ouch… — Hannah lets out a low moan, which catches Júlia's attention. She completely ignores Jared, giving the girl all her attention.

— Are you well? Did I hurt you, my sweet?

Hannah had a scared expression on her face, at that moment Julia realized that she got excited in front of the girl and she was not used to fighting scenes.

Hannah closes her eyes, then opens them and says:

— My stomach hurts… oh…

Júlia picks her up and massages her belly, with concern. Jared watches the scene with curiosity.

—Is it getting better? — Júlia asks and the girl nods. — Do you want to vomit? — she asked a new question and this time, Hannah nodded.

Júlia carefully places the girl on the bed and takes a container, which was on top of the dresser. She places the container on her lap and extends her arm to Hannah, so she could come closer to her. The girl brings her head closer to the container and begins to vomit, while Júlia smoothes her hair.

The scene was a little shocking and dramatic, suddenly a dark cloud took over the place. Even though he didn't know much about what was happening to the child, from Júlia's expression, the dark aura of the situation could be felt.

— Can you give us privacy? Wait for me outside, please. — Júlia asks, without looking at him. That situation was too intimate to be observed by someone who didn't understand the pain those women were going through.

After the girl felt better, Júlia brushed her teeth and gave her her doll, which she covered with a blanket.

— Baby, don't tell your mother or grandmother about the visit you received, okay?

— Aunt Júlia, don't be mad at him, he's my friend. — Hannah looks innocently at Júlia, without understanding the fear she was feeling at that moment.

— I'm not going to be mad, okay? — she caresses the girl's hair and then continues — But your mother might be angry if she found out. She lets me find out first if he's really her friend and then I'll tell you if she can tell him, okay?

Hannah nods her head positively, agreeing. But she seemed a little discouraged, as she wanted to tell her mother about the friendship she made and the magic trick Jared showed her.

Afterwards, Júlia leaves Hannah in the room and finds Jared waiting for her in the hallway.

— You, listen well! — She points her finger at him, without showing the fear she felt — I won't allow you to tell Samuel about the child. To protect Nina and Hannah, you don't know what I'm capable of!

She pushes him away, violently. Júlia was scared, but very angry at the same time.

Jared is impressed, he had never been attacked by a woman and Julia has just rolled up her sleeves and advanced towards him. Jared takes a few steps back and protects himself with his arms.

— Hang on?! What are you doing? You will hit me?

— I'll break your teeth, you heartless son of a bitch! You don't know who you messed with!

Júlia goes all out and pushes him again, making Jared hit his back against the wall and become cornered. She starts slapping him, while he tries to protect himself with his arms. He didn't know how to react, he didn't expect to receive this kind of reception.

— Do you have anything on your chest? Don't you have any feelings? That beautiful little girl is very sick and we don't know what to do! — Júlia hits him, while tears roll down her face. Her anger had a lot to do with the anger she felt at the injustices she saw Nina go through.

Taking advantage of Júlia's emotional state, Jared holds her in his arms, turns her around and dominates her, pinning her against the wall.

— You're really crazy! My God! — he shouts.

— Let me go! Damn you! — Júlia tries to fight but she was completely immobilized — I'm going to scream if you don't let me go.

— Shout! Scream and wake up the girl you want to protect so much, throw me out of here and don't listen to what I have to say. If you want to help your friend's cute daughter, you should listen to me.

— Hear what? I don't have a penny and I'm swamped in debt, what do you want to blackmail me to get?

— I'll only blackmail you if you don't cooperate. You're wrong, do you hear me? I'm not on Samuel's side, but I'm capable of anything to see him pay for all the evil he did.

Upon hearing, Júlia's body relaxes and she stops fighting. Feeling confident, Jared releases her, but walks away, suspicious that she could become violent again.

Júlia massages her arms and, with a furrowed eyebrow, looks at him. That he felt intimidated by her gaze. That girl wasn't afraid to roll up her sleeves and fight to protect the ones she loved.

— If you weren't sent by Samuel, then who are you? — she says, approaching and he moves away cautiously.

Júlia congratulates her place, realizing that she was intimidating him and the two stare at each other for a few seconds in silence. Jared takes a deep breath, relaxing. He laughed a little at the situation, because he was scared of a girl.

He adjusts his clothes and extends his hand to shake her.

— My name is Jared and I'm Dominic Bright's best friend. Does that name remind you of anything?

Júlia widens her eyes, scared, and says:

— Nina told me that he is Samuel's brother, how can you tell me that you are not on his side?

— Oh my God! — Jared slaps his forehead and then continues — Did Nina already tell you that?! Anyway, it's a long story and the other times we see each other I'll tell you. What I can tell you now is that the bond between them is fragile.

— Are we going to see each other again?! — Júlia asks, suspicious.

— It is clear! — Jared replies smiling — Everything is part of my proposal, dear Júlia. I want you as my ally.

Júlia snorts, crosses her arms and says:

— Ally for what? Look, I'm not the type of person who can be easily manipulated.

— Of course, I really just discovered that. For someone to be able to talk to you they need to face you in a boxing ring. — he says ironically and Julia ignores it — But I'll try to talk without exchanging punches. I have a proposal for you, Júlia. Convince Nina to accept a relationship with Dominic and everything that happened stays between us.

— What?! You are crazy! I'm not going to push my friend into the arms of a man I don't even know. Someone who could perhaps be worse than Samuel and leave her devastated again. Didn't you see what happened in that room? What Nina needs least is more suffering.

— If she accepts Dominic's proposal, I will guarantee that your entire reality will change completely, silly girl. Dominic is one of the richest men I know and in addition to being her friend, I am her lawyer. — He gives Júlia a wink and she looks thoughtfully at Jared.

Yes, it was undeniable that Dominic had the power to change that whole situation. Maybe all that difficulty they were going through was something simple to resolve for him but...

— No! I can't sell my friend... — Júlia says, unsure of her words.

— Júlia, this is the best option, believe me! If Nina doesn't stay with Dominic, I'll have to resort to plan B. And my plan B is to reveal the existence of that child to everyone. Exposing Samuel's true face, that baby is proof that he is dishonest and cruel. I can show the world that he has a daughter out of wedlock and she is dying, while he himself having resources did nothing to help with the child's treatment. There is no political career that can resist this.

— No no! You can not do that! This plan won't work, Samuel is cunning. He will find a way to cover everything up and worse, he might do something against Nina and Hannah. You can't do that, understand?!

— I know plan B is risky, but I have to try to do something. It all depends on you, Julia.