Chapter 107

Henry’s POV

“What do you mean she’s the one who abuses you?” Henry asked, unsure if this man was being serious or not. How could a small woman the size of Judy hurt such a large and successful man?

Even in the human world, it was a strange concept.

Mr. Conrad rubbed his aching temple with his fingers and sighed in defeat.

“She knows how to get to me,” Mr. Conrad said, shaking his head with dismay written all over his face. “But she’s insane. She’s always talking to herself, and her temper is out of control. I won’t fight her back and she takes advantage of that. All of her wounds are self-inflicted. She does it to make me look like the bad guy.”

“Look, I really shouldn’t be discussing my client with—”

“I know you don’t believe me,” Mr. Conrad said, interrupting Henry’s words. “But at least believe me when I say that Judy is not who she pretends to be. She’s not sweet and innocent. She’s a mastermind. She’s tried to kill me numerous times and when her plans failed, she decided to take a different route.”

“I’m sure you understand why I’m hesitant to believe you,” Henry said, eyeing him carefully.

Mr. Conrad nodded once.

“I know there’s nothing I can say or do to convince you otherwise, but she’s dangerous, Mr. Henry.”

“If this is true, then why are there no police reports? Only the ones that she’s made.”

“Because look at me. How ridiculous would it sound if I were to come forward as a victim of domestic violence? A big strong man can handle his small wife? I would be laughed at and undermined. Nobody would respect me again and most of my brand is respect. This could ruin me. I have nothing to gain by coming forward to you now.”

“You are worried you are going to lose your money,” Henry pointed out, folding his arms across his chest.

“I’m not worried about my money. If there’s one thing, I’ve learned about life is that there are always new ways to make money. What I’m worried about is Judy getting everything she wants and painting me as a villain in the process. I won’t have her ruin my reputation.”

Henry could tell that he was very serious. But the thought of Judy being the violent one in that marriage wasn’t sitting right with him.

Judy was incredibly kind.

Would she really give herself a blackeye just to make her husband look bad?

“I will look into these new allegations and plan accordingly,” Henry finally said after a beat of silence. ‘But remember, Mr. Conrad. I work for Judy; she is my client. So, I can’t promise that things will go in your favor.”

Mr. Conrad remained seated for a few more moments, processing what Henry had said. Eventually, he nodded his head once and stood to his feet.

“I understand. I just thought you should know the truth. Or… at least someone should know the truth.”

Henry didn’t say anything as Mr. Conrad walked toward the door.

He paused for a moment longer as he gripped the doorknob; his knuckles growing white.

“You know… I loved her,” Mr. Conrad said, keeping his back turned toward Henry. “I loved her so much… she didn’t start showing her ugly side until we were married. But I wanted things to work with us because I believed she was my soulmate. I loved her more than anything in this world and would have given up everything and anything to make her smile. But it never seemed good enough…”

“I’m sorry to hear that…” Henry said softly, and he meant that.

Henry understood exactly what Mr. Conrad was saying because he was going through something like that himself. Of course, Erin would never hurt him purposely, but he’s been in love with her for a long time. Her feelings were never reciprocated though.

However, he would have given up everything and anything to make her smile.

The very thought of being without her caused his heart to ache.

Mr. Conrad left the office without another word, leaving Henry alone with his thoughts.

…

Jill’s POV

Jill had finally agreed to go to a safe house. She knew it was important to Gavin and after their last talk, she too was growing worried. There was as strange person somewhere out there with more connections than she could ever dream of and she was after Jill and Gavin’s family.

Jill was worried for her older brother, but she knew he could handle his own.

“Are you leaving?” Miss Judy said from the doorway of Jill’s room.

Jill and Judy have bonded these last couple of days and Jill was starting to think of this sweet woman as her friend. However, there was only so much she could tell Judy before it puts Judy in danger.

“Yes, I’m going back on my world tour,” Jill lied; the lie pained her because was itching to get back out there and travel, but now she couldn’t.

“What a shame… I’m going to miss you,” Judy pouted. “Would you want to sit and have some tea with me before you go?”

“I would love that,” Jill said in response with a kind smile.

Jill finished packing a few of her other things before joining Judy in the living room downstairs. Judy already had a platter of tea sitting on the coffee table and was stirring sugar into each cup.

“I’m not sure if you like milk or not,” Judy said, motioning for the saucer of milk on the table.

“I’m okay,” Jill said, sitting beside her on the couch. “Sugar is perfect.”

“So, tell me… are you excited to return to your touring?” Judy asked, taking a sip of her tea.

“Very,” Jill said in return, taking a sip of her own tea.

She wasn’t sure about the brand of tea; it tasted incredibly bitter, and it wasn’t a flavor Jill was familiar with. But she didn’t want to be rude, so she took another sip.

“It’s going to be a long flight. I’m not looking forward to that,” Jill said with a light chuckle.

“Make sure you write postcards,” Judy said in return. “I’m not sure where I’ll be after this trial, but we must keep in touch.”

“I would love that,” Jill said in return as she took another sip of her tea.

A small tickle in her throat caused her to clear her throat, but the tickle didn’t seem to want to go away.

“I can’t thank you enough for your generosity and your kindness,” Judy said, peering over at her fondly. “You treated me like family since I’ve arrived, and I’ve never been more grateful.”

“Of course…” Jill said as she cleared her throat again. “I would want to be treated like family if I were in your position too. I completely understand—”

Her words were cut short when she started to cough. She set the tea on the table and hunched over the couch. Judy frowned at her, narrowing her eyes.

“Jill, is everything okay?” Judy asked, patting her on the back gently.

Jill’s entire chest was burning, and she couldn’t seem to stop coughing. Her body trembled as saliva left her left. She touched her mouth with her fingers to make sure no blood was coming out of it and was relieved to see that it was only saliva. However, every time she breathed in, another coughing fit would happen.

“I…” Jill tried to muster the words.

“What is it?” Judy asked, removing her hand from Jill’s back.

Something was seriously wrong.

“I… can’t breathe…” Jill gasped.

Her vision was becoming distorted, and she had to grab onto the coffee table to keep from falling over.

“Jill?” Judy asked, leaning over her body. Jill realized she was sliding off the couch as she tried to maintain her breath, but her coughing was making that impossible. “Are you okay?” Judy asked again, her voice sounded so far away.

Jill looked up at Judy just as she landed on the ground facing upward. Judy stood over her, a look in her eyes that Jill didn’t recognize. She didn’t look the least bit concerned and it sent a chill down Jill’s back.

Then, Jill saw a smirk on Judy’s mouth, and she knew at that moment that this wasn’t an accident.

Her last thought before everything turned black was, “I was poisoned.”