Billionaire & The True Love

Chapter 8 : First Strike

**Jessica:**

"I can't believe what I'm seeing; this is truly terrifying. I've never received threats in my life, and this is the first time I've encountered such a situation. I didn't know how to act—should I go to work now, or call the police from home and not go to work today?

I sat down and began to think—maybe one of the employees at work is playing a prank on me. I tried to calm myself with any justifications or reasons, but I quickly remembered that I hadn’t given my phone number to anyone, and the only entity that has my number is the company, as I provided it in the application form when I first joined.

I remained still, confused about what I should do, but I knew that fear was not the answer. I came here alone and wasn't afraid of anything, so I didn't think I should panic over something as small as this anonymous threat.

I decided I would go to work. I took my bag from the couch, put my shoes back on, and headed to work. However, I didn't want to take the matter too lightly, so I planned to inform William about it.

Fortunately, I'm still staying at the White Rose Hotel, which is close to the company I work for, so I didn't feel extremely threatened. I only had to cross a few streets to be in front of the company. I don't think anything will happen to me in this short time.

Nevertheless, I was extremely anxious, constantly thinking, 'What if he knows my location and is following me?' Negative thoughts and terrifying images kept invading my mind, taking over my thoughts.

But then, I saw the company sign before my eyes, and I knew I had finally arrived. It really didn’t take much time—just five minutes from the hotel to here. I did this every day and never felt it took even five minutes, let alone longer, but today, it felt like fifty minutes.

I started to quietly climb the stairs, feeling very tense.

"Hello, Miss Jessica," said the guard at the company's door.

I looked at him suddenly, terrified, and took two steps back, clutching my chest.

"W-what’s the matter, ma'am? Is there something making you nervous today?" the guard asked.

"No, I... I just think I didn't sleep well. I'm fine."

'Jessica, you need to calm down more than this,' I told myself in my mind. I realized I shouldn't be overthinking and panicking just because of a message from an unknown number. In any case, I would wait for the right moment to tell William about this issue.

As I walked down the hallway before reaching my office, I saw William talking with some employees, so I approached him.

"Hello, sir!" I greeted him instead of calling him William, feeling that discussing this in front of the other employees might embarrass him or something, so I didn't want to bother him.

"Hello, Jessica," William said, glancing back at the employees he was talking to.

"I need to tell you about something."

"Is it important right now?" William asked, turning to me again.

"Actually, it's something unrelated to work right now," I said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Well, I think we can postpone it for now," William said as he turned back to the other employees and continued his conversation, putting his hand in his pocket.

I realized he was ignoring me now, and his response was the strangest since I first dealt with him three months ago. I didn't say another word and just walked away, heading to my office, assuming he would come to me once he finished with the employees he was talking to.

-- -- -- -- -- -- ---

Sophia observed the brief conversation between Jessica and William and smiled when she noticed that William paid no attention to Jessica. However, she couldn’t hear exactly what they were saying, as she was in a nearby room. Still, Sophia found the situation puzzling since William had never refused Jessica’s requests before, not once in the three months since she arrived. But now, he suddenly changed like this?

-- -- -- -- -- -- ---

**William:**

"Alright, finish these tasks and let me know afterward." I headed to my office after wrapping up discussions with many workers about the ongoing plans we are working on at the company. I think I also need to finish some of my work.

**(After a few hours)**

"Ahh, I think I’m finally done. I need to go outside and get some fresh air."

William headed out of his office, but he hadn’t yet decided whether to leave the company since the employees were still working, and he needed to supervise and monitor them. He wandered through the corridors until he reached the main entrance of the company. He overheard the guard saying, "Jessica...," followed by other words as he walked by. He slowly turned back toward the guard, and just before he spoke, the guard said:

"How's everything going, sir?"

"Everything's fine," I replied calmly.

The guard hesitated a little before saying, "I wanted to tell you something. I know it’s not really my business."

"Don’t worry, just tell me—what’s the matter?" I responded quickly.

"It’s Jessica—this morning, she seemed strange, like she was anxious or stressed. When I greeted her, she seemed frightened and was acting very odd today. I think many employees noticed it too."

When the guard mentioned Jessica, I quickly recalled what she had said to me earlier in the morning when I was talking to the workers and employees. The scene played in my mind as if the words and sentences were stuck in my head, now replaying: "I need to tell you about something" and "It’s unrelated to work."

"Alright, I’ll look into it. Thanks for your observation," I told the guard while rubbing my head and scratching my hair.

I was feeling a bit tense, realizing how work had made me forget about Jessica’s issue all this time.

-- -- -- -- -- -- ---

**Jessica:**

I can't believe William forgot about me for hours and didn’t even come to hear a few words from me or ask what’s wrong with me!

Alright, Jessica, you’ve only fooled yourself. No one cares about you or anything; they just care about work. Don’t be so naive, Jessica. How would a big Canadian businessman at a large company look at you, fall in love with you, care about you, and ignore all the beautiful women around him? You’re being ridiculous!

My mind kept talking to me, and I couldn’t stop overthinking this matter. But in an attempt to give myself some positive energy, at least he’s not bothering me or forcing me to fall in love with him like that i***t Akira! I shouldn’t do what Akira did—forcing someone to get closer or do any of that nonsense.

I need to focus on work; that’s what you wanted in the first place, Jessica. Even if I feel disappointed, it will pass with time. I must not let anyone take over my heart so quickly.

As I sat in front of the computer, having finished my work, I heard footsteps approaching my room.

I lifted my head from the desk, looked up, and saw William!

"Hello, Jessica!" William said, looking slightly embarrassed.

I looked at him but didn’t respond.

William approached and sat in the chair in front of my desk.

"I know I didn’t give you the attention you deserved when you came to me this morning, but there were many work-related issues I had to manage."

I didn’t say a word or even look at him.

"I... I’m sorry, Jessica," William said hesitantly.

"Okay, it’s fine," I said in a disappointed voice.

I didn’t want to seem too easygoing anymore, so I didn’t want William to see my happy face so soon. But I also felt I shouldn’t overdo it.

William looked at me, seemingly unsure of what to say.

"Come on! I feel like you’re still mad at me," William suddenly said, lifting his head and staring at me.

"No, I’m not."

I didn’t want to tell him what I originally intended; I didn’t want to seem like a weak girl.

"Alright, tell me what it was that you wanted to talk to me about," William asked, waiting for an answer.

I replied with a bit of indifference, "No, actually, it’s nothing."

William slowly turned his head back and looked at me again, saying, "I know you’re still mad at me, right?" He added, "Well, why don’t we go have some ice cream or maybe grab a drink?"

I couldn’t hold back my smile as he tried to make up with me in such a sweet way. I smiled at him, and he eagerly waited for my response, staring at my face.

"Alright, I agree," I said.

-- -- -- -- -- -- ---

**William:**

This was the first time in my life I had decided to hang out with a girl on the streets of Canada, but I think it was worth it. When she smiled and said, "I agree," her face was radiant with beauty and kindness.

"But am I really going out like this in my work clothes?" Jessica asked, surprised.

"You look beautiful no matter what you wear, so it doesn’t matter. Let’s go."

(Jessica laughed and started tidying up her things on the desk, closing her laptop, and putting some items in her bag. We headed outside.

When the guard saw us walking together and leaving the company, he knew everything was alright.)

It was an unforgettable day for me, talking to Jessica about her life and how things are in Japan. Jessica shared some things about her country and her past friends. When we started recounting past events, we both began to laugh. Jessica had so many funny and entertaining stories; it felt like I had known her for years, even though she had only been here for a few months.

We had coffee at a famous café on one of Ottawa’s main streets, and we also had some ice cream.

"Have you tried the ice cream here before?"

"No, I’ve only been here for a short time, so I haven’t had the chance to try many things yet."

"Well, I guess you have the chance now."

Jessica smiled and laughed, saying, "Yes, I think so."

"There’s so much good food here; look at this!"

After having ice cream, we started heading back to the company. It was around ten at night, and Jessica’s place at the White Rose Hotel was close—just two streets away—so we would pass by the company on our way.

A few minutes later,

"We’ve finally reached the company; we’re close now," I said with some excitement.

"You can go now if you’d like," Jessica said, slowing her pace gradually until she stopped.

I stopped and looked at her beside me, saying,

"Don’t worry, I’ll walk you to the White Rose Hotel. It’s only two streets away from here, and then I’ll return."

Jessica stared at me for a few seconds, and when she saw me looking at her, she felt shy and looked ahead, ready to start walking again, but I was still standing in my place.

From a distance, I saw many motorcycles approaching, ridden by a large group of young men. I couldn’t see clearly due to the darkness of the night and the headlights of the bikes. When they got very close, I noticed they were carrying thick flaming sticks and suddenly began throwing them one after the other.

I grabbed Jessica, and we both hit the ground as I held her tightly, shielding her while she screamed.

"Calm down, Jessica!" I shouted loudly, feeling tense.

I watched my company burn before my eyes, helpless as I saw the bikers speeding away after setting my company on fire. I quickly let go of Jessica and moved aside. An explosion erupted from part of the company; glass shattered and hit my back, causing several pieces to pierce me, and blood started dripping onto Jessica’s bag.

"Oh, oh, my God! What’s happening to you, William?" Jessica cried, screaming loudly.

We were alone in the darkness, and not even the company’s guard was outside.

I moved away from Jessica, and when she saw my back and her blood-soaked bag, she began screaming and crying before fainting. After losing a lot of blood, the last thing I saw was Jessica talking to someone, saying,

"Hey, you! Call an ambulance, quickly! Quickly! I should have told you ..."