Liar Liar Billionaires

18. It’s not him

With no time wasted, both of them rushed into the club, the same question on their minds.

Why was Lucille there?

Well, they were already a few steps away from finding that out.

Almost dramatically, they barged into room 006, startling Lucille, who was equally shocked to see that she had company.

"Lucille, I need you to explain why you are here. What do you have to do with all of these?"

With a slight motion of her head, Lucille shifted backwards, leaving Amir's questions unanswered. Chloe noticed that the woman’s movements were being made towards the rose.

"Lucille," Chloe took up the questioning. "What is going on?"

"Why are you with him?" Lucille almost spat.

"What do you mean?" she carefully asked so as not to ruin the delicate atmosphere that had befallen the room.

Lucille raised her hand and pointed towards Amir, a mighty, untold fright etched her face. "Him.. Amir... why are you with him?"

"Because I want to help him." As Chloe observed the battle on the woman’s face, she could not help but think that the current situation might answer some questions about Lucille’s recent, very odd behaviours.

"You .. You shouldn't be with someone like him. He is dangerous. Chloe, he r***s women."

"I do-"

"What do you know, Lucille?" Chloe interrupted Amir, who was already wearing anger as a second cloth. "Why are you here?" she asked gently.

"Because..." Lucille took more steps back as she seemed to contemplate whether to trust the woman in front of her. "Because I… I want him to pay for what he did to me and those other girls."

Chloe frowned. Lucille too? "What do you mean by that, Lucille?"

Lucille's shoulders fell dejectedly. "I can't keep hiding. He is a horrible person, and I’m going to make him pay for it,” she angrily sneered at Amir at the end of her statement.

"Do you have proof that he did it? Did you see his face?"

"No. But a DNA test I ran showed he was the one."

"Wait, back up a bit. Can you tell me what you remember about the day Amir did what he did?"

"I did not-"

"Amir, please." Chloe glanced at him and silently pleaded with him to stay quiet. Though reluctantly, he got the message and moved to the other side of the room. Then, her eyes went back to Lucille. "Can you tell me?"

The lean woman removed the black face cap on her head and shrugged her long hair down. "I don't remember much about that day," she started with a quiet voice, throwing the room into a state of soberness. "All I know is that I came here about two months ago, partied hard, then at some point, I blacked out. When I woke up in this very room, I felt different. I… I felt molested, y-you know.”

Chloe shifted closer, and Lucille continued, "I went to the hospital and got tested. They found sperm inside me, but I never got to know that. They never told me. I don’t know why they were eager to cover that up. But luckily, I met a nurse who told me the truth and was willing to help me get that evidence. Through another friend of mine who happens to be a cop, I found out that it was Amir's sperm."

"So, you decided to work as a maid to get a better chance at nabbing Amir."

"Yes. I needed to get more DNA to prove he was the one who did that horrible thing to me. And… And apparently other women too.”

"Wait…" Chloe found herself chuckling with disbelief for a second. "Was that why you made out with him?"

Lucille nodded.

"I feel so ... used," Amir said from his corner.

The ladies ignored him.

"So," Chloe folded her arms across her chest, “why exactly are you here?"

Lucille moved towards the vase and took the flower before saying, "I am here for this."

"A flower?" Chloe had her brows up.

"A flower with a hidden camera. Well, a fake flower." Chloe just knew something was off about the setup. "I... Last week, after I confirmed what Amir did, I got this and planted it here."

"Why this room?"

"Because it is always this room. With help from certain people, I learned that it is always this room. Room 006."

Chloe sighed as she pieced it all together in her head. "So, that flower will determine whether or not Amir is the culprit, right?"

Lucille nodded, hugging the rose closer to her abdomen as though it were a precious jewel.

Chloe nodded. "Lucille, I might sound crazy, but I believe Amir is innocent. However, I want to be very sure, and I would love it if you could let us have a peek at what your camera might have captured."

"But you are supporting him. If he turns out to be..."

"If he is guilty, he is all yours."

"Well, that is a fair deal."

"Thank you, Lucille. Let's go downstairs and sort all of this out once and for all." Chloe signalled to Amir, who was looking very tired of the whole situation.

But what could he do? His reputation was on the line.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Four pairs of eyes blinked as they watched the video for the third time.

"It isn't Amir," Lucille said quietly, her eyes tearing away from the video of the man meticulously injecting something into the privates of the red-haired lady who was carelessly sprawled on the bed.

With small movements, it was easy to tell the lady was not blacked out, she was observing the details of the room. And maybe she also noticed the key chain that had the room number 005 written boldly on it as it dangled from the man’s belt.

"It really isn't Amir," Lucille repeated as she sat up, her voice full of distress.

"Sebastian, please do not delay the scan. I need to know who this man is and who sent him as soon as possible," Amir said to Sebastian, who was already making notes.

"Amir..." Lucille looked in Amir's direction, her eyes brimming with tears. "I am so sorry."

"It is fine." He gave her a small smile as he reached to pat her on the shoulder. "It is fine, Lucille. Don't beat yourself up. You were just trying to get justice."

"I thought..."

"Lucille, it is fine. You need to rest. Sleeping will do you much good. So Sebastian here will drive you back to the mansion, okay?"

Lucille nodded, and her eyes drifted back to the revelation before them.

Chloe, who had been watching their conversation, could not help but smile as she appreciated Amir for being such a gentleman. She expected him to scream, ‘in your face!’ or something.

Well, maybe there was a lot she was yet to learn about Amir and the others.

"Let's go, Chloe. We're going home together."

"We could just ride with Sebastian, he is going there anyway."

Amir held her hand and said, "There is somewhere we have to go first." Chloe c****d her brows, sweeping off a strand of hair that managed to fall from her ponytail. Amir looked at the watch that rested on his left wrist underneath his long sleeve. "It’s past midnight."

Chloe did not expect time to have gone past so fast. "Really?" she asked as she craned her neck to check if it was so.

"Yeah. It’s past midnight, and I need you to be here with me."

"Why?" Chloe found his statement a little creepy.

"I have to visit my mom." Chloe's eyes reduced their obvious scepticism. "Today is her birthday, and I don't want to wish for her to be alone."

"Oh, but I don't have anything to give her," Chloe said as they got out of the van.

"You don't have to bring anything. She won't be looking at us at all."