100 Days to Seduce the Devil

Day Twenty Three...

~~*****~~

Abigail stood frozen in her spot. She was still in a daze, trying to process what she had just heard. Was this just a coincidence? A person whom she saw with Monica before was now talking to someone while mentioning Monica's name.

She was wondering if this person was somehow connected to Monica.

'Is he just talking to someone whose name is the same as Monica, Nathan's woman?'

Abigail immediately shook her head, disregarding her thoughts. 'No way. I saw how Monica died in front of Nathan. I shot her right through her head. She died on the spot.'

Abigail planned on eavesdropping further but someone suddenly grabbed her shoulder. She almost twisted that someone's hand but she stopped as soon as she recognized the person. It was Chantha.

"Miss Abi, what are you doing here?" Chantha asked her in puzzlement. She saw her leaving the Boutique a while ago. She wondered where she would be going so she followed her.

Abigail didn't answer her right away. She turned around only to find out that the guy she was following was already gone.

'Damn! I lost him. I hadn't listened enough yet.' Abigail lamented to herself, her eyes scanning the area. There was no sign of him anywhere.

Meanwhile, Chantha looked at Abigail suspiciously. She could tell that she was searching for someone

'Is she meeting someone here... secretly?' She began to suspect Abigail to have a secret agenda. She was supposed to go to the Boutique together with Ana and Santra.

"Miss Abi? Is there something wrong? Where are you going?" Chantha repeated her questions since Abigail didn't respond.

"Nothing. I just saw someone who looked familiar. I was about to ask him something but he disappeared," Abigail simply said, her eyes still roaming around.

"Let's go back to the boutique." Abigail walked past her, returning to the boutique. She was still confused. And she couldn't get over with what she heard.

Chantha followed her behind, still wondering who was the person Abigail was looking for. Upon entering the boutique, Ana and Santra were already talking to a woman. She was Celeste, the rookie designer and the owner of Smile Boutique. Her brand's name was SMILE.

​ "Miss Abi, Chantha!" Santra waved at them, motioning the two ladies to join them. Abigail finally removed her cap and mask. Then Abigail and Chantha walked closer to them.

Celeste was truly surprised to see Abigail. She thought Ana and Santra were just bluffing. But now, she was seeing it personally: Abigail Scarlett was safe and sound. She looked healthier as compared to the news saying that she was in critical condition.

"Abigail Scarlett... is that really you?" Celeste mumbled in amusement. She held Abigail's shoulders, sizing her up from top to bottom. A look of disbelief disappeared. It was replaced by joy and excitement.

"Yes! My Model is back!" Celeste pounced on Abigail, hugging her.

They got so close since Abigail helped Celeste a long time ago. When Celeste was struggling with her designs, Abigail became her inspiration. Since then she promised Celeste that she would become her model if she became a famous actress.

Abigail didn't know how she would react since she had no recollection of her moments with Celeste. She just gave her an awkward smile.

"Come inside my office. The gown I made for you is already there. The name of my creation is Sakura Phoenix." Celeste pulled Abigail's arm and led her to the path going to her office.

Ana, Santra, and Chantha followed them while they talked about the gorgeous guy. He was one of Celeste's customers but Celeste didn't know him personally. He didn't mention his name but his company invested in Celeste's business.

The ladies gasped in admiration when they saw the wonderful creation of Celeste. The gown was a combination of colors of Phoenix and Sakura mixed with Sakura Blossoms. It was an off-shoulder ball gown. The size fit Abigail's figure perfectly.

However, Abigail was not paying attention to the gown as her mind was still wandering off somewhere. She felt uneasy. She had the urge to find that man. Too bad she didn't know him at all.

"Abi! Go now and wear the gown!" Celeste urged Abigail. She was excited to see what Abigail would look like if she was wearing her creation.

Abigail could only follow her instruction. She went inside the fitting room. Santra assisted her while Chantha, Ana, and Celeste were waiting outside.

As Abigail changed her clothes, she began to question Santra.

"I heard that you asked Celeste about the guy I bumped in the entrance of her boutique. Did you find out his name?"

Santra shook her head with a disappointed look on her face. She even pouted her lips. "We failed to know his identity. But we learned where he was working. He came from the AMB Diamond Corporation."

Abigail just bobbed her head. 'AMB Diamond Corporation.' She already made a mental note to do a profiling of this man and this company.

'I need to find out the identity of that man. I might have overlooked something. But I guess this guy has a connection to Monica. But what is their relationship?'

Abigail remembered what Kathleen had told her before. She mentioned that she saw Monica once talking to a handsome guy in a hotel. She suspected them as a couple but no one believed her words. Nathan chose to believe Monica.

Abigail could still recall how Kathleen described the man she saw. He particularly possessed the same aura as Nathan. She felt the same aura when she met the guy.

Abigail continued racking her brain. Then she realized something. 'Perhaps... the man I saw the second time around was the same man who was with Monica. I saw her entering a cozy restaurant with someone. But at that time, I didn't see his face as he was wearing a cap and a mask.'

Abigail snapped her fingers as she finally connected the dots. The second time she followed Monica, she saw her having a meeting with the guy whom she met today. It was the same guy!

"Miss Abi? What are you murmuring about? Don't you like the gown?" Santra asked her.

Santra's voice snapped Abigail out of her deep thoughts. "Oh, it's nothing. I just remembered a very significant memory in the past," Abigail said meaningfully, her lips curling up into a sly smile.

Abigail was thinking of digging into Monica's past. What if Monica betrayed Nathan and she cheated on him? What if Kathleen was right about Monica? Perhaps, Nathan would hate her less for killing Monica.

Abigail was having a wishful thinking that Nathan would no longer hate Phantomflake once she proved to him that Monica was a liar. Unknowingly, Abigail began to hope that Nathan would stop hating her as Phantomflake.

'Wait... is there a possibility that she is alive? But no... it can't be.' Abigail disregarded the absurd idea once more.

'I must investigate this... I need someone's help. I can't do this alone. Should I talk to Cherry? But how can I ask her without giving out my real identity?' Abigail rubbed her temples. She was having a headache now.

'Even in her death, Monica is giving me a hard time. Is this her revenge or my karma?' Abigail was done putting on the gown but her mind was still preoccupied with Monica and the mysterious guy she met today.

"Miss Abi! You look like a fairy! Gosh! You are the most beautiful actress of your generation! I can bet my life on it!" Santra began praising her.

Abigail could only thank her. "Don't exaggerate, my dear Santra. I look ordinary as compared to other actresses."

"No! No! No!" Santra didn't agree. "You are wrong, Miss Abi. You are the most beautiful in my eyes... Do you know why? It's because you are beautiful inside out!"

Abigail could only shake her head helplessly. This assistant of hers was very loyal to her. She was grateful for that. But she felt sad because the real Abigail became a victim of someone's scheme.

'Sigh. As time goes by, I feel like my tasks to do are piling up. I need to make a devil fall for me... I have to find the culprit who tried to kill the real host of this body... and now I have to unfold the relationship between Monica and that mysterious guy.'

Then Abigail looked at her fingers, counting the number of days left to accomplish her mission.

'Gosh, Is 77 Days enough to do all of these?!' Abigail put on a pitiful face. Just thinking about it, her head was already aching.

'How can I manage my time? How can I divide myself?' Abigail kept on sighing deeply and asking herself.

"A penny for your thought, Miss Abi?! You are spacing out again." Santra giggled, giving Abigail a teasing look.

"Oh... I'm sorry. Let's go out and show them my dress..." Abigail just decided to change the topic.