THE SPITEFUL BRIDE: Marry To Rival's Son novel Chapter 42

Chapter 42

Elena had just stepped into the house, her heels clicking softly against the tiled floor as she and Mose walked in. The evening air still clung to her clothes, scented with hints of car exhaust, food stalls, and the faint perfume from the boutique.

She dropped her small purse on the console table and sank onto the couch with a sigh, stretching her legs.

“I’ll get something to drink,” Mose said, already moving toward the kitchen. Elena pulled out her phone and opened her chat with Mia, her fingers quickly typing:

“We’re home. You?” She hit send and waited, watching the screen expectantly for the usual typing bubble.

But nothing, this was strange. Because Mia was always quick to reply, even if it was just a snarky voice note or a ” Busy. Call later.” And she was sure Mia wasn’t driving.

Elena frowned and tried calling. The phone rang… once… twice… then went dead.

“Network,” she muttered, but something about it made her sit up straighter. She tried again, same thing.

Still trying to brush off the unease, she opened their chat and sent:

“Why aren’t you picking up lover girl? Don’t tell me Stefan decided to go down on you” she sent with a wink emoji, still no response yet.

Mose walked back in with two glasses of cold juice, handing one to her. “She answer yet?”

“No. It’s not like her.” Elena sipped the drink, but it did nothing to ease the tightening knot forming in her

stomach.

“She said she was meeting Stefan and a client. Maybe she’s still with them?”

Mose frowned. “I don’t think Stefan’s with any client tonight. We already dismissed the client before I came here, he’s meeting up with someone else entirely.”

That was when Elena’s heart dropped. She put down her glass and stood, her instincts suddenly on edge. “Are you sure?” But something else came to her mind, she then sat down with a smile “I think Stefan just want to spend an alone time with Mia”

“Or maybe her phone died?” Mose offered, but even he didn’t sound convinced.

“Why not call Stefan and confirm if they’re together”

Mose didn’t reply, he opened his phone and dialed Stefan’s line and put it on a loud speaker.

“Elena wants to know if Mia is already with you, she said you wanted her to see a client…” Mose said going straight to the point.

“I never asked her to meet a client. What are you talking about?” Came Stefan’s confused voice from the other

side.

Elena phone nearly slipped from her hand, when she heard what he said. Her throat went dry, she sprinted up

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42 NOW. I TEACH THEM HOW THE GAME IS BEING PLAYED

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and took the phone from Mose’s hand.

“What do you mean she’s not with you?” She asked trying to confirm if he was joking.

“What’s going on? Wait, I’m already close.” The beep sound was heard. He’d ended the call.

“She’s not with him,” she whispered to Mose like he didn’t overheard the call.

Mose moved towards her, tension tightening his frame. “Let’s wait till he comes first.”

“She said he texted her. That he wanted her to meet someone. She left, Mose. She left to meet someone who wasn’t even him.” that was all she kept repeating to Mose. Mose sat her down gently, but still kept her in place.

“What if she’s missing,” Elena asked with a cracking voice.

Elena was now pacing the living room, her fingers fidgeting with her phone, rereading the message she had sent to Mia. Something felt wrong, something was wrong. She could feel it, and her gut has always been right.

The moment she heard Stefan’s footsteps approaching, she didn’t wait she moved towards him. The second he stepped in, she turned to him with fire in her voice, her eyes were sharp and her jaw clenched tightly.

“She said you sent her a text,” she blurted out, her voice thick with frustration. “Why would she lie about that? Did you give someone your phone?”

Stefan’s gaze didn’t waver, he walked past her, calm as ever, shrugging off his coat and tossing it onto the arm of the couch. His silence was louder than her questions.

Stefan’s jaw tightened, but his eyes remained calm. “No one touched my phone,” he said firmly. “They didn’t need my phone. There are ways to fake a sender’s identity, that message wasn’t from me. A message can look like it’s from me, show my name even, but it doesn’t mean it came from my line.”

She blinked, confused. “What? I don’t understand a thing you’re saying. What do you even mean? How’s that possible?”

“Technology can be used to deceive, you can make a message look like it came from anyone if you have the tools. My name on the message means nothing.”

“But then how did Mose know to come pick me up? If you didn’t text him? how……?”

“She texted me,” Stefan interrupted, his voice razor-sharp, eyes narrowing. “She told me to send Mose for you, that she was on her way. I believed she had something urgent to do, so I didn’t question it.

“You didn’t question it?” Elena snapped, stepping closer. “Mia never does something like that, she never leaves without saying anything else. You of all people should’ve known something was off.”

Stefan stared down at her, his voice turning dangerously low. “I don’t second guess her. She’s smart, calculated. If she’d been in danger then, she would’ve told me. At the time of the message, she wasn’t in danger.”

Elena’s chest rose and fell quickly. She was scared, and Stefan could see it, but she wasn’t thinking clearly, and right now, he didn’t have the luxury of walking her through every step.

He turned away from her, poured himself a drink with one fluid motion, and took a sip. His hand was steady, but his jaw clenched.

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