Chapter 27
Nora: #PlayingTheDetective
I scroll through my phone like a mad person. TruthSeekerBob has been digging up things from my past. He’s interviewed Rick and has a video of him where he says we were together till a few days before he got to know about me being with Gabriel.
“Was it hard for you?” he asks Rick.
“Yes, of course. I mean, ending a relationship that has lasted a couple of years isn’t easy.”
“Did you ever have doubts about Nora and Gabriel?”
“Um…sometimes. But she always said they’re only friends. Guess it wasn’t true.”
I can see Rick’s uneasy, and he leaves soon after. But TruthSeekerBob continues. “If indeed she’s now with Gabriel, the man who is part of the huge Bardot business, as she claims to be, was she ever serious about Rick? Or did she just play with his heart for years? Or is she doing that now? Doing it for money. Do they do everything only for their personal benefit? Is that what humanity has slid down to? Love, relationships, friendships—only a means to an end, nothing more. Stay tuned to my channel as I seek the truth bit by bit.”
I don’t know how to reply to these comments, so I don’t. But I see it’s taking a hit on my digital image, on my credibility. There’s an email from the legal head of MooreGames telling me to not respond to anything on social media for some time, as the impact is spilling over to the company, too. Then another one immediately from Eva as a response to the legal team’s email that the company stands by me and I should do what I think best.
I flick my phone away as if that’ll keep my troubles away too. I take a long shower and come out only when I hear the incessant ringing of my phone. Who the hell can’t wait for a minute?
I search for my phone, which had slid under the covers of the bed, and see it’s Carla. Possibly to console me. But I don’t want to talk to anyone right now. I disconnect the call.
A message pops up soon after from her.
“Call me back instead of going inside your turtle shell. You need to know something.”
I dial the number, knowing fully well that it’s probably a prank to get me to speak to her or Mom.
“What is it? I’m okay if that’s what you’re worried about,” I say as soon as she picks up.
“I’m so sorry, Nora. Really very, very sorry.”
“What? Why? You’ve not done anything. Wait…” I pause. Could it be? No. Not possible. I plop down on the bed. “Why are you sorry, Carla? What have you done?”
“Not me. But Kevin. The b*st*rd. I’m not trusting anyone again. Such a mess he’s caused.” Carla is sobbing. “I’m so sorry.”
I can’t believe what she’s saying. What it probably implies. Shit!
“Calm down Carla. Tell me again. Slowly and from the beginning. What happened? What did Kevin do ?”
I hear Mom mumbling something, then Carla blowing her nose and drinking some water through her sniffs.
“It was Kevin who did it. Last weekend, when you were here, he recorded our conversation at home. I swear I didn’t know about it. But it was him.”
I bury my head in my hands. So the leak was because of me! Not Gabs. Shit!
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, because the dolt confessed to it an hour ago.”
“But why? And how?”
“He’s been having money problems which is why he moved in here with us. So when she offered him money for some dirt on you or Gabriel, the f*cker sold us out.”
“How does he even know TruthSeekerBob?”
“He doesn’t, or so he says. I don’t know who gave him money, and he didn’t say. Maybe he, too, doesn’t know.”
“Where is he?” I say, trying to keep my voice calm. I need to stay focused.
“I threw him out of the house. Don’t know where he is now.” She breaks into a major sobbing spree. Mom takes the phone from her.
“What’ll you do now, honey? Is there anything we can do to help you sort this out?”
“I don’t know yet, Mom. But thanks for letting me know. Let me think about it. Meanwhile, if you can find out who gave Kevin the money, it’ll be great. Try to find out as much as possible from him.”
“You got it, Nora. Don’t worry. It’ll all end up fine. Love you.”
“Thanks, Mom. Take care of Carla. I know it’s not her fault.”
I hang up and crash on the bed in a daze. But this is no time for self-pity. I need to act fast. Things on social media get out of hand pretty quickly. The boon and the bane of an ever-connected society.
I replay the conversation with Carla in my head. Didn’t she say ‘ she’ offered him money? So Kevin must have let slip that it was a woman. Who could it be? Sophia? Must be. I remember she had told me during the dinner that she knows TruthSeekerBob.
I open my phone and check out Sophia’s profile. True enough. Some of her posts have been liked and shared by TruthSeekerBob. Their comments indicate a level of familiarity. I won’t let her get away with this. Acting all high and mighty, but stooping to such low levels!
I have her number from the card she gave me last weekend, so I call her right away.
“Hi, Sophia. Nora here. I need to talk to you,” I say as soon as she picks up.
“Nora! Wow! Um, okay. I’m in a meeting. Can it wait?”
“No.”
I hear a muffled sound as if she’s speaking to someone else. Then a clear voice. “You seem agitated.” I can tell she’s walking. Perhaps walking out of the room she’s in. “Yeah, okay. I’m in my cabin now. Tell me.”
“Do you know TruthSeekerBob?”
“The influencer? Not closely. If you want me to ask him to take down the stuff he’s posting, I can’t. I don’t know him that well.”
So she knows. Well, obviously she does.
“Let me get to the point. Did you buy the recording from Kevin and give it to TruthSeekerBob? Are you his source?”
There’s a momentary pause. “Me? No! I love a piece of gossip, but I don’t get involved in it. And who’s Kevin?”
“My sister’s boyfriend.”
“Ah, I remember Daphne telling me that your sister and mother live somewhere close by and that her boyfriend had moved in with her. But no, I’m not involved in any of this shit you’ve dragged yourself and Gabriel into.” Her voice is in a forced, calm state. Polite but showing that she doesn’t like it. “If that is all, I’ll return to my meeting now.”
She hangs up before I can say anything.
Given her reaction, I doubt she did it. If not her, then who? Could it be Daphne? Yeah, she seems more likely. She was sure we were pretending to get Gabs off the marriage hook. She knows Kevin. And she knew I was going home. And she’s active on social media and had probably noticed TruthSeekerBob and me sparring online. That’s it! This has Daphne written all over it.
I immediately dial her number, my anger rising by the minute.
“Hey, Nora. How’re you doing? I hope you’re not letting this social media thing affect your Paris trip.”
The nerve of this woman.
“Actually, Daphne. It is affecting the trip. And let me tell you, that information is wrong. And you know what? I know who’s behind it.”
I wish she would own up to it herself. At least I want to give her a chance to do that, for old times’ sake.
“Really? I mean I’m glad that the news is incorrect. But who’s behind it? And why would anyone do such a thing?”
Wow! Just wow!
“ You tell me.”
“What do you mean?”
“I know you did it. Through Kevin.”
“Kevin? Carla’s boyfriend? Did he do this?”
“Because of you. You paid him for the recording, didn’t you?”
“So that means it’s true. You both are faking it. Ah, I knew it.”
“Don’t change the topic, Daphne.”
“There’s nothing to change. I didn’t do it. I already knew it was fake. If anything had to happen between you two, it would’ve happened a long time ago. It was only a matter of time.”
“So you won’t own up to it?”
“You’re crossing your limits this time, Nora. You think you’re playing the detective here? But then you need to think like one, not act rashly. You think I would do this to my own son? What nonsense. His image is important, more so now that you are out of the equation and he’s free to marry Sophia. I’ve always been nice to you because you’re Gabriel’s friend, but this is too much. How dare you accuse me of such a thing?”
She hangs up.
I’m not sure if I can trust her. The only thing that makes sense is that she wouldn’t drag Gabriel’s image through the mud. If she had gotten that recording, she would probably have used it more discreetly, not sullied both of our names and images on social media.
But if not Sophia and Daphne, then who could it be?