Chapter Twenty
"What did the doctor say, Carmella? Tell me?" Asked a worried Gilbert.
"Nothing much. She just prescribed me a few medicines, " she informed him.
"Medicines for what? Show me the prescription," asked a curious Gilbert.
"What will you do with the prescription. I'm fine Gilbert, " she tried to convince him. But he didn't listen to anything she said. He just stretched out his palm asking for the prescription. Carmella sighed and handed the prescription over to him.
He checked it minutely and understood why she was hesitant about showing it to him. So she was three weeks pregnant and it was exactly three weeks since Jaxon had left. Was it Jaxon's baby?
"Oh, will you call Jaxon and inform him?" He asked her with worry. Jaxon should know about his baby.
"No, not yet. Let him return. I want to see his reaction when I tell him," she said shyly. Gilbert agreed, knowing that he shouldn't interfere in their personal matters.
Carmella went home to rest while Gilbert went back to his office. He didn't say a word to Jaxon when he had called him.
The next day a tired Phil rejoined office after spending fourteen days in bed. The day Jaxon left he fell seriously ill after lunchtime and had to be hospitalized for five days with severe food poisoning. He could have died if he hadn't been taken to the hospital immediately by Gilbert who had come over to check things up with him. Gilbert found him lying on the floor near the reception desk and had rushed him to the hospital immediately. He was indebted to Gilbert for saving his life.
He went to his desk to take out the keys to his locker which contained the keys to Jaxon's office. He had to hand them over to Gilbert. With him falling sick, he hadn't yet handed the keys over to Gilbert.
As he checked his desk, his eyes went wide with shock. He froze with horror to see that his drawers as well as the locker had been unlocked and tampered with. Panicking, he opened the locker to check what was missing. Nothing. All the keys were there but then why did someone tamper with his locked locker and unlock it? Surely there was something missing? Something which the person wanted?
Then it hit him. Maybe to access the keys to Jaxon's office? He sat with his head in his hands for some time and then decided to call Gilbert. Gilbert came hurrying to his floor to check. They checked everything minutely. Yes, surely the drawers and lockers had been tampered with and unlocked expertly and with precision. It was a job done by an expert who knew that no one was around. But for what?
"We have to call Jaxon. Only he could tell what's missing," said Gilbert. He called Jaxon and explained in detail. Jaxon immediately booked tickets to return back to New York. His designs at London were ready and he had explained everything to Ralph, Tom Langfield, and the team. He reached New York after midnight. He was upset with Carmella so he went straight to his own house. She hadn't accompanied the team to London and he was angry with her. She hadn't missed him also at all else she would have called him and spoken to him.
The next day he arrived at the office very stressed and worried. Phil and Gilbert were already there and so was his private investigator, Brian Dixons. Jaxon took the keys to his office room and opened it and went inside. He checked everywhere and everything but nothing was misplaced. In fact, they were all untouched and in the exact position that he had left them.
Then it clicked upon him, his latest designs, the l'amour collection which was worth more than the other things at his office. He searched everywhere but couldn't find the 40 designs. They weren't there at their usual place.
"What are you hunting for Jaxon?" Asked a worried Gilbert.
"The latest first print of my best collection, l'amour. They weren't copyrighted yet as I was working upon them when that phone call came. I immediately left for London in a hurry," said Jaxon, worried and haggard already at the thought of them being stolen.
"Where did you last keep it, sir?" Asked an equally worried Phil helping him search for it.
"On the table. I was showing them to Carmella," he said and then he closed his eyes. "Oh my God, I had left them on my desk and then left for London after locking my door and handing the keys to Phil, " said a tensed Jaxon, massaging his temples. "You didn't hand over the keys to Gilbert?" He asked Phil.
"Sir I fell sick with food poisoning and was hospitalized the day you left," said a stressed Phil, explaining to Jaxon everything that happened to him after Jaxon left. "I just joined work yesterday sir and it was then that I saw that the locks have been broken."
"Check the CCTV footage of the last three weeks," growled a furious Jaxon.
"Yes sir," said Phil and he ran to get what Jaxon wanted. He got the CCTV footage and loaded it onto Jaxon's laptop.
"Jaxon the last footage is of the next morning after you left for London. The rest of the footage has been destroyed, here check?" Said Brian. Jaxon checked the footage and saw Gilbert taking away an unconscious Phil the day he left. However the next day he saw that Carmella was the only one to have arrived near his office. The footage after that was missing. He closed his eyes as he realized what it implied.
No wonder she didn't wish to accompany him to London, no wonder she never called. Just like all the other women in his life, she also betrayed him, his trust, his love. The designs weren't copyrighted and being a student of fashion designing, she might have stolen them to use later.
"Sir, this woman could be the prime suspect. She was the only one who came to this floor," said Brian. Jaxon closed his eyes not wanting to believe what the facts were pointing at. She was a billionaire's daughter. She wouldn't do it for money. Then why? Maybe for fame and ambition?
"No Brian, she cannot do such a thing," said Gilbert firmly.
"How can you say that with conviction Gilbert? Those were not copyrighted and anyone who had access to them would make millions or be a star designer overnight," said Brian.
Jaxon sat slumped on his chair, if his mom could betray him, if his sister could betray him, his own aunt as well as his girlfriend of two years, then why couldn't Carmella? He had just known her for a month only and in the last three weeks, she hadn't missed him even once. Maybe she was busy doing something else which was more important to her than him.
"No, Brian, it's not her. You better start collecting all fingerprints from this floor," ordered Gilbert. Brian and Phil went outside and started collecting fingerprints and other evidence, starting from the elevator.
"How could she do this to me?" Mumbled Jaxon to himself as if in a daze.
"No bro. Calm down, she can never do this, you know it," said Gilbert trying to comfort his friend. "She really wasn't keeping well after you left. "
But was Jaxon even listening to him? No. He was lost in a world of his own. His heart was broken and his trust in women was completely shattered. They were all the same.
"How can you be so sure that she wouldn't do such a thing? Are you my friend or hers?" Asked an upset Jaxon.
"Of course, I'm your friend but I know that she loves you too much Jaxon. Don't tell her anything now, she's very vulnerable and sick. Let the investigation take place first," Gilbert tried to put some sense into Jaxon's head but he was adamant.
"Sick? what sick? It's all a ploy. She's stolen my designs, I'm sure. No one else knew about them, Gilbert. I showed them only to her since she was the inspiration behind them. She could have just asked me for them, I would have gifted them to her. Why did she need to steal them? Why?" Said Jaxon as tears fell from his eyes.
"Get a grip on yourself, bro. I still think the girl's innocent in all this. Don't do something which you will repent all your life," said Gilbert but Jaxon blocked his ears to all good advice. He was very distraught and heartbroken and couldn't wait to face Carmella.
Brian and Phil completed their work outside and came into his room to check for evidence and take more fingerprints. Jaxon sat with his head in his hands while Gilbert paced and massaged his temples with stress. After they were done, Brian wanted the fingerprints of their prime suspect to match with them. The reports would be announced after two days.
"Call Carmella Parker," said Jaxon to Phil.
