Pampered by my Billionaire CEO Husband
Chapter 162: The announcement

Chapter 162: Chapter 162: The announcement

Natalie snapped her head around and locked eyes with Evelyn who looked displeased.

"Why not? I want her here," Natalie retorted but the smile remained on her face as she tried to stay cordial. She wrapped her arm around mine as she turned around, her back facing Evelyn as she barely spared her another glance. "Come on, let’s go

She leaned in closer to murmur next to my ear. "You know the plan, don’t you?"

I nodded as a slight smirk tugged at the corners of my lips. "Yeah, I do. I will wait for the announcement."

"Good," she remarked as the corners of her lips curved upwards into a knowing smile as her eyes gleamed under the lights.

I was in one of those rooms upstairs, looking around when I heard a familiar high-pitched voice pierced through the air and reached my ears.

"It’s you, what are you doing here?!" The voice sneered with a disdainful scorn.

Within the next second, I whipped my head around and my eyes landed on a pair of familiar dark green eyes. I found myself staring at Jennifer and almost immediately I could feel the anger starting to rise inside of me.

I stepped forward, closing the distance between us as I kept my eyes fixed on her.

"Why couldn’t I be here?" I retorted as my voice remained unwavering and my eyes were narrowed into thin slits. "Do I need your permission to come to my actual mother’s birthday banquet, Jennifer?" I snarled, spitting out the last word that left my lips.

"Didn’t I tell you to not get involved and ruin things for Evelyn? You just couldn’t listen, could you?" She asked through gritted teeth as her voice shook with anger that was spreading inside of her like a wildfire she could not seem to control.

"Listen to you?" I repeated, tossing her words right back at her as an incredulous look stretched across my face. "Why should I listen to you when all you do is lie and wish the worst upon me? Listening to you gets me nowhere!" I yelled, my own voice ringing inside my ears as my heart raced within my chest.

I continued as the tension brewed in the air between us.

"Everything is always about Evelyn. But guess what?" I asked with a brief pause. "I don’t give a fuck about her," I hissed, my voice filled with disdain and contempt as I glared at the woman who I used to call my mother.

I spun on my heels to leave when she reached out and wrapped her fingers around my arm, holding me back in a tight grasp.

"Where do you think you are going?" She spat, the words that left her lips were thick with venom. Her grip around my arm tightened as she spoke, her sharp fingernails digging into my bare skin as her gaze met mine. "I’m not letting you ruin things for my daughter."

"Ugh!" I yanked my arm out of her tight grip. "And I’m not letting you ruin my life for me."

"Then you left me with no choice," I could hear her mutter under her breath, her voice heavy with a threat.

As I was about to step out of the room, two other large men stopped me, blocking the doorway. I looked up to meet their eyes, watching the serious expression that masked their features. I could feel my heart beating faster this time, pounding loudly against my chest as I took a step back on instinct.

"What are you..." I stammered as though there was a lump stuck in my throat, my voice laced with a hint of fear that I tried to hide.

A low chuckle came from behind me. "Evelyn and I knew you would show up here," Jennifer spat the words out like they were poison in her mouth. A smirk cut across her face as smugness was radiating from every inch of her skin. She stepped towards me. "We simply took precautions. Guess you aren’t so smart now... are you?" She taunted, dragging every syllable and savouring it like it was a delicacy.

My eyes grew wide. Before I could run or say anything, the two men grabbed me by my arm and dragged me to the closet as my purse fell onto the ground with a loud thud. No matter how much I pushed and shoved, I simply cannot overpower two burly men who were out to get me. Even my screams and yells were drowned out by the music playing in the background and the chatter that filled the air.

One of the men slapped his hand over my mouth, muffling my screams and before I knew it, I was roughly shoved into the closet. In a split second, I was engulfed in darkness.

I screamed. "Let me out of here!" I banged loudly against the closet doors but it simply wouldn’t budge no matter how hard I pushed. They must have placed something heavy right in front of it as my strength was quickly worn out. "Jennifer! You will regret this!" I warned her.

"I’m not afraid of your threats, Aurelia," she replied smugly through the other side of the closet and I could picture the smirk that would have been plastered across her face. "I’m ready to go to jail and sacrifice my life for Evelyn. Nothing you say or do will scare me. Nothing."

"You are lying! Let me out!" I shouted again.

"No," I could hear her voice taunting me. "That’s not going to happen. Why don’t you stay put and enjoy the peace and quiet inside the closet? Enjoy now," she commented, the words that left her lips were dripping with sarcasm and mockery as she cackled.

"Make sure no one comes into this room, guard her well and don’t let her out of here. Got it?"

Soon, I was greeted with silence and in that instant, I knew that she had left the room, leaving me alone, probably with the two men guarding that room.

I banged on the door again as I gritted my teeth and of course, it still wouldn’t budge or even move a single inch. But I wasn’t going to give up, I cannot admit defeat so soon and let them win, I need to think of a way to get out of this place.

"Open the door!" I demanded. Silence. "Open it!"

Again, there was silence but I could catch a glimpse of their shadows and silhouette through the tiny gap in the closet. An idea popped into my head at this moment as I removed my heels and held one in my hand.

I started to breathe heavily in a dramatic manner, clutching onto my chest.

"Let me out of here! I need my inhaler! It’s in my purse."

A cold chuckle could be heard as the man laughed. "Yeah, right. We are not falling for that."

"I... Give me... my inhaler... I need it..." I said in between breaths. "Please," I begged but the two men remained indifferent, ignoring my desperate pleas.

"You don’t want blood... on your hands... Do you?" I questioned weakly. Then fell onto the ground, collapsing in the closet with a loud thud and then there was complete silence.

I let my eyes close shut as I lay there, praying that my plan would work. It was at this moment when the sound of the door creaking open reached my ears and the bright light reached my eyes.

Without wasting any more time, I seized this opportunity to jump up and with the sharp end of my heel sticking out from my fist, I swung down hard against one of the men’s heads, catching them by surprise. A loud yelp emerged from his throat as he grimaced in pain.

"Stupid bitch!" The man cussed loudly.

I quickly slipped through the gap between them, dashing for the door like my life depended on it, my bare feet hitting against the cold marble floor.

"Let us now invite the Lloyd family’s only daughter to deliver her speech dedicated to her mother..." The host’s voice trailed off in anticipation, echoing in the background as I continued to run.

There she was, standing at the top of the stairs with a bright grin spread across her face. She had gotten better now, she no longer needed a wheelchair, the treatment has been working well for her. She was dressed in a bright red gown that featured a plunging neckline and it hugged her curves perfectly, accentuating her figure.

"Evelyn Lloyd!"

The crowd below erupted into cheers and applause filled the room in an instant.

The smile that was etched onto her face widened as her heart was filled with satisfaction. Just as she was about to take a step out, my voice pierced through the air.

"Wait!"

Gasp left their lips as the crowd’s attention was fixed on me this time. I turned to Evelyn who was looking at me with wide eyes and jutted out my finger to point at her before I let the next few words leave my lips.

"She’s not the Lloyd’s family daughter, I am."