100 Ways to Solve a Murder-Chapter 62: Revelation

Half an hour after Elle’s visit, Marco left, and Levi did what Levi did to cope.

Marco arrived home that evening, in low spirits. His friend just died, and his best friend was coping terribly. The lanky bearded man climbed in bed with his wife after tucking Lizzy to bed.

"He’s a wreck Lisa, I never saw him this upset. Mrs. Whitehall called me, she said Levi left the flat and hasn’t returned. I don’t know where he goes at night." Marco said, his heart was heavy in worry.

"You should call the big sister," Lisa suggested, she knew even though the two siblings were always at each other’s neck, they had each other’s back no matter what.

A sigh passed Marco’s lips, that was exactly what he did.

"I already did, but her assistant said Anna was busy." He said

.....

The call Elle received from Davies was not what she assumed. She imagined it was a call telling her to bail Sam out of prison, most likely with Levi Jackson. It was a call she has foreseen coming when the two started hanging out like buddies.

She didn’t expect the words she heard the Detective say over the phone.

She had to ask him to repeat what he said, thrice. She didn’t faint, no, she wasn’t the fainting type.

But she did feel weak in the knees. She had to sit down and process the information. That can’t be real, she thought.

But it was, she had failed him.

Tear filled and a bundle of an emotional mess, Elle hailed a cab. Offering the cabbie double the fare if he could get her to 7 Eastbourne Rd. in 10minutes, he did. She offered him 4x the amount if he waited for her while the meter ran, and he was more than happy to agree.

She struck Levi, she wished she had hit him more. It was his fault, after all, if he hadn’t assured her of her boss’ safety, she would have called him.

She would have called him for help.

She sat in that same cab driving away from 7 Eastbourne Rd when she noticed the cabbie taking her elsewhere. A different route from her understanding. And she started to retaliate. "Let me off! Let me off, you bastard!" She started screaming when the door swung open and she was pulled out and dragged out, gagged and blindfolded and taken elsewhere. Where she doesn’t know.

Half an hour later, she was untied, and a woman wearing an exquisite royal blue dress greeted her in a dark room, she sat with a glass of bourbon in her manicured hand.

"Ms. Hart, apologies for the way you were taken here. My brother could explain this better, you have been acquainted, I believe. Multiple times if I heard correctly." She says.

Elle furrowed her brows, confused.

"Your brother?" She asked.

"Levi Jackson," Anna said, taking a swing of her bourbon and standing up from her seat.

"If you follow me, you would understand the situation better," Anna said, smiling at her with her nose pointed proudly.

Elle narrowed her eyes, that smile, "Now, I see it." She comments.

"Pardon?" Anna answered confused, smiling still.

"You are his sister." Elle spat.

"Oh, what gave it away?" Anna asked, wondering if she was as bright as her employer. "The smile. That same demeaning narcissistic smile, the smile saying you bloody believe you are better than everyone else. It’s utterly annoying. " Elle hissed, earning a cold stare from Anna.

Anna placed the glass on the table,

"At least you have the same sharp tongue as your employer. Now, do follow me please, Ms. Hart. I’m a busy woman." Anna instructed, walking away. Elle followed in tow, having no other choice as she did not know where she was.

"Where are we?" Elle asked, noticing the rich corridors, the furnished floors, and shiny extravagant windows.

"Welcome to my humble abode," Anna says, half-heartedly.

"Humble is not the word I’d use." She comments dryly.

Anna smiles down at her again, which she finds insulting.

The platinum blond stopped at a door, a hand over the knob.

"Ms. Hart, what lies behind this door will make us the best of friends," Anna says, smiling wickedly.

"I doubt it," Elle replied, finding the woman annoying.

"Believe me, I am rarely wrong." She says, pushing the door open and urging the brunette to step in. Elle walked inside carefully, the room was huge and magnificent, but what caught her attention was the sound of a heart monitor.

On the bed beside it, was Sam Gray.

Elle ran towards the bed, her heart pounding in relief.

"Oh my god! Samantha!" She exclaimed, reaching for her hand, assuring herself that the woman lying there, had a pulse. Her eyes observed her methodically.

Anna observed, "Interesting." She commented, earning the brunette’s attention.

"What is?" Elle asked, not bothering to tear her eyes away from her boss. Sam had an oxygen mask over her face, a pulse oximeter on her finger, and a heart monitor and IV on another side. She was breathing, she was alive!

"The way you inspected her, it was practiced and methodical. Let me guess, Ms. Hart. You have a different employer...another you report to." Anna concluded.

Elle’s eyes widened, she turned to the woman," It’s not what you think," she said.

"I doubt you know what’s running in my mind at the moment, Ms. Hart, most people don’t. Dr. Gray would not be pleased when she finds out, would she? You, reporting to him, when you are well aware of their estranged relationship." Anna said, receiving silence from the brunette. Yes, she was right. Elle Hart was Ivan’s spy.

Anna approached the bed, her heels clicking against the shiny floors.

"But back to the matter in hand," she suggested.

Elle looked up at the woman," How?" She asked, happy to change the topic.

"How is she alive?" Anna questioned, "She was never dead in the first place. Levi found her unconscious inside the tub, soaking wet. But the tub was empty, I reckon she had enough strength to activate the drain. Saving her life in the process. Her pulse was weak, from the drug her attacker used, but she was alive. I took her here." Anna explained.

"Why?" Elle asked, confused.

Why all the secrecy?

Why are they making people believe she was dead?

"Because Ms. Hart my brother asked me to keep her safe. Insisted I am to be personally held accountable for her till he catches her attacker. We made a deal. Rest assured, Dr. Gray will be safe in my protection. I give you my word." Anna explained.

"Why should I believe a word you say? Why should I believe another Jackson?" Elle said, watching Anna start walking out of the room.

The platinum blond paused, and smiled back at her, that same I’m smarter than you smile. "Exactly that, because I’m a Jackson. My brother has kept his word, do try not to strike him next time you see him. He’s trying to catch Dr. Gray’s attempted-killer. And he still owes me a favor, I will be collecting soon when this is over." Anna says, stepping out the door after.

.....

A Day Later

Anna stood looking out the wide windows, wearing a royal blue business suit and black pumps. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Have you reported to him?" She asked Elle, who was seated beside the unconscious redhead.

Its been three days and she has yet to gain consciousness, the specialist says it was possibly due to the drug in her system. What kind of drug? They were still in the process of discovering. It was something the SIS’s best chemists have yet to identify. Something not in the market.

Elle looked at Anna, then back to Sam’s pale face. "No," the brunette answered, honestly.

Anna turned to look at her, eyes narrowed. She approached the bed with her hand in her pockets, "You must, I insist. Or would you rather the news come from me?" Anna said, pulling her mobile phone and handing it to her.

Elle looked at the phone, she took it from her hand and said, "No, I’ll call him myself."

Elle excused herself, walking out the door to speak with Ivan. Minutes later she returned, face white as a ghost, and clearly shaken.

"What did he say?" Anna asked, seeing Elle approach. "He wants to speak with you." She said, handing the phone to her with a shaky hand. Anna wrapped her fingers on the mobile and pressed it against her ear, and in a practiced cheerful tone, she answered the call.

"Mr. Fredricksen, I wished we’d been in contact on much better terms."

Her grey eyes swept onto the redhead on the bed, "Ah, yes, she is. She is receiving the best medical attention at Great Britain’s disposal." She said.

Her brows started to furrow, listening to the man on the other line. "No, not yet...soon, I hope. Yes, I do as well...." Anna said, eyes suddenly resting on Elle.

"Yes, your secret is safe with me. I will leave the update of her health in Ms. Hart’s reliable hands. Goodbye." He added, ending the call.

"What did he say?" Elle asked.

"Oh, exactly what I thought he’d say," Anna answered vaguely.

"What would that be?"

Anna looked at the watch fastened around her left wrist, "He said, the British Government will fall if Levi Jackson doesn’t find her attacker in 72 hours," Anna said, dialing a number as she exited the room.

Anna stood by her office, looking at the wide-open windows, with the view of the garden. She pressed her mobile against her ear,

"Little brother, where are you? A meeting is in order." She said over the phone.