Chapter 87

87 How The Mighty Have Fallen!

An alarming bell rang in Frost’s head and he could feel his heart drumming erratically. He gawked with eyes wide open as his wobbly legs took unsteady steps backward. The coldness of the silencer on his forehead sent a chill down his spine. For a split second, he felt his heart explode. His mind went blank with fear as he saw the evil smirk on the hardened face of the man with the gun.

Frost watched helplessly as the blindfolded waitress was pushed inside his room and instructed to lie face down on the floor. He stared at the faces of the scary Intruders as they filed in one after the other and shut the door. All three were dressed in dark suits and dark shades.

Frost blinked severally to ensure he was not hallucinating. When it dawned on him that these men were inside his room with one of them pointing a gun at his head, he took more steps backward and tripped over a stool. Wincing in pain due to his hurt waist, he knelt, trembling at the gun still pointed at his forehead.

For every step Frost took, the gunman covered the distance until he was towering over Frost.

The gunman let out a wicked chuckle at Frost’s panic mode. “Don’t tell me you’re going to wet your pants, schoolboy,” The man with the gun grinned. He clicked the gun as though he was about to shoot. Then he said, “Pow! Pow! Pow! You’re are one dead meat.”

By now, Frost’s whole body was covered with perspiration. His liver failed him as he checked his forehead, chest, and belly for bullet wounds, even though there were none.

“Look, guys, the idiot thought I shot him.” The man with the gun chuckled slightly. “I’m just messing with you, fool! Relax, something juicy is coming your way.”

Frost quickly assessed their behavior and concluded that they were not going to kill him. Hence, he decided to cut a bargain with them.

“Please, don’t hurt me! I’ll give you anything you want! I have money! I have lots of money!

.....

“Hmm... A tempting offer. Although, I don’t want money.” The gunman bent slightly and trailed the muzzle of the silencer pistol from Frost’s forehead to his chest, down his stomach, and stopped at his balls. “I want this...” He pressed the muzzle of his gun on Frost’s balls making him wince in so much pain. “I want them deep-fried, sauced, and fed to you.

One of the intruders walked swiftly to where Frost kept his personal stuff. He picked up the phone and laptop from the bedside table. Then he spoke in a deep hoarse voice.

“What are your passwords?”

“Huh!...” Frost replied in a daze. He felt a heavy blow to his head, which sent him staggering backward. He lost his balance and collided with the edge of his bed. He wondered which of the three men had punched him as they all remained in their earlier positions.

“You only respond with an answer!” The man with the silencer pistol spoke between gritted teeth. “Now, let’s try this again! Call out your passwords.”

Without thinking twice, Frost complied with their request. He watched in horror as one of the men brought out a laptop and busied himself with collecting and transferring information from his phone and laptop.

After working on the laptop for a short while, the leader of the team gave a signal, and Frost was made to stand up. He was pushed toward the door and led out of the room.

“Remain where you are for ten minutes.” The team leader addresses the waitress calmly. “Afterwards, you can leave this room and go about your normal duty. Remember, you must never speak of anything you heard or witnessed this night otherwise...” He trailed his statement before leaving the room.

—————-

Leon and Ella returned home feeling devastated. They both skipped dinner as they had no appetite and went to bed.

Inside their bedroom, Ella turned on the television and hissed out loud. Chloe’s interview and the just concluded show were on every station. Feeling depressed, she turned off the television and turned her attention to Leon, who had been busy with different calls.

Leon had been trying hard to address the heat Chloe had thrown Ella into. He was mostly angry at himself for not realizing on time that Jane was a mole and a betrayer.

After Jane’s confession, Leon made arrangements to gather enough evidence from Frost. Aside from Jane’s verbal confession, she has discreetly destroyed all evidence that could incriminate her. However, thanks to technology, all her previous discussions, and messages to Frost were traced to her old line, which Leon’s men recovered.

Also, when Frost was apprehended, enough information to nail him, his company, and Jane recovered from his phone and laptop.

Since Ella’s brand name was tainted by Frost, Leon decided against physically harming him until the court procedure was over.

“Leon,” Ella called softly, congratulations to your company for winning the winter collection show. My company issues have prevented us from celebrating your company’s victory.” Ella tried to smile amidst the burning turmoil in her eyes.

“Babe, you don’t have to bother yourself about that right now.” Leon ended his calls and joined his wife on the bed. “Nevertheless, thanks.” He kissed her softly on the lips. “Chloe and Frost have ruined our special moments together and I will make sure they paid dearly for it.”

“Thanks for all the support, Leon.” Ella wiped the tears that escaped her eyes with the back of her hand. “I don’t think I would have survived this humiliation if you were not by my side.”

Leon pulled her into his arms and cuddled her. “You’re welcome, my love. I’ll do anything for you.” Leon kiss her head and stroked her arm gently. “Try and get some sleep, dear, you will need it for tomorrow’s hassle.”

Leon continued stroking Ella until she fell asleep in his arms due to her weariness. He carefully placed her head on a pillow and covered her with the duvet.

After turning off the night light by the bedside, he returned to concluding his scheme for the next day’s episode of battle.

....

All through the night, the apprehensive Frost cooperated with his captors when the lives of his family members were threatened. His captors also revealed to him that Jane had confessed everything. Hence he was advised not to make any mistakes with his confession. After giving them everything he knew and did, Frost was led to a room; where he cleaned himself up and rested for the night.

While Frost worried about the safety of his family, Jane felt betrayed and all alone in the world. They had made her watch Frost, behind a two-way mirror, beg for the safety of his family. When he was given the option of either sacrificing Jane or his family, he chose his family without batting his eyelashes. He went as far as stating that Jane was only a means to an end. He said that his family was more precious than a side chick; which could be easily replaced.

Jane watched in silence and cried her eyes out. Frost’s betrayal of her love and loyalty was more than a hundred slaps from Ella or Denise. He had earlier promised to divorce his wife for her. However, seeing him cower in the face of trial was nerve-wracking.

When she was led to a heavily guarded room to clean up herself and rest for the night, she ended up crying herself to sleep.

—————–

The following morning, the news about Ella’s company stealing another brand’s ideas had gone viral, beyond the shore of Amzone city. Several companies and individuals who had previously supported Ella’s brand started pulling out of it. They didn’t want to be associated with a publicly disgraced brand. Some gave flimsy excuses for their decisions while others outrightly stated the obvious facts.

Work resumed at the usual time in the ARILPORTER BOSS brand company. However, everyone’s spirit was dampened as most of the workers were seen mopping or idling around.

In the creative department office. Workers sat at their desks unsure of what to do with their free time. They had all been given directives to resume work. However, the head creative designer had instructed them not to produce or work on any design until further notice.

In front of the company, a lot of TV stands and journalists gathered in their numbers. They were eager to interview any worker of the disgraced brand. However, to their disappointment, no one spoke to them except a man, by the name of Lucas.

Lucas claimed to be the spokesman for the company. He proudly informed them that the whole issue would be resolved in due time. He also begged them to stop harassing the workers of the company. Afterward, he left without answering the numerous questions that came flooding from different angles.

The journalists decided to await the arrival of either the CEO or the COO as no one had set eyes on them since work resumed.

———–

As early as 6:30 AM, Ella and Leon drove to one of Leon’s private facilities where Frost and Jane had been transferred to. They were led to a well-furnished office, where they both entered and took a seat.

Sky walked into the room and greeted politely before relating every information he had gathered to the hearing of Ella.

Ella was amazed at the discovery made within the short interval of nine hours. She marveled at the level of mind-blowing pieces of evidence they had gathered to bring down the F&K fashion home for their treachery. She was elated when Leon asked her if she wanted to speak to Frost before they released him for the drama ahead.

“Yes! Yes! I’ll love to speak with him!” Ella threw her hands around Leon’s neck and hug him tightly. “Thank you so much, Leon.”

Leon was so happy to see Ella smiling again. He had missed her charming smile for the past fifteen hours. So, he swore to bring the heavens down, if that would return her beautiful smiles.

Leon had worked tirelessly the previous night as he related all his plans to Sky to carry them out. He instructed Sky to collect as much verbal confession as he can from Frost. He also gave strict instructions that Frost must not be hurt until Ella drew the first blood.

Ella walked into the room where Frost was held, prisoner. She scowled at him from head to toe before spilling her guts.

“How the mighty have fallen!”