The next day, Elara sat in her designated chair at the shooting set.
"Do you need anything, ma’am?" A crew member asked her, and Elara shook her head respectfully before thanking the man.
After her commercial with Lara Jewels went viral, directed under Daniel’s supervision and gaining nationwide popularity, her image improved by leaps and bounds in the industry.
The crew that used to treat her with indifference and negligence, believing Elara was a newbie and treating her accordingly, has started treating her well and with respect, too.
"You looked lovely in that commercial," one of the female actresses from the drama said, walking over to her, and Elara pulled out her earbuds before nodding in greeting.
"Thanks for the compliment." She smiled, standing in respect.
"Please stay seated. I just wanted to let you know that you have great potential, and many will be afraid of it. So just stay careful," Ayesha said with a humble smile.
"I know. And thank you for the advice," Elara said.
Once she revised her scenes, she stood from her chair and walked to the man who was arranging the props for the next scene.
"Hey, can I know what the problem is? The shooting was supposed to begin half an hour ago. Right?" Elara asked in confusion.
"Yes, ma’am. Producer Li is rechecking the props and everything because they don’t want a repeat of what happened last time," The man answered, and Elara nodded in understanding.
Feeling bored of sitting in one place, she decided to walk to the shooting area and ascend the stairs to watch the preparations.
"You are enjoying the new attention, aren’t you?" She heard a familiar voice from behind her and turned to see the woman.
Beatrice stood there with her infamous smile that meant nothing, and Elara couldn’t help but arch her brows.
"Who wouldn’t?" Elara asked.
Beatrice’s lips twitched.
"Well, I am happy that things are so good now that you are out of Andrew’s life. My long dream of getting together with Andrew is about to be fulfilled," Beatrice said.
Elara rolled her eyes, least interested in what was happening with her or Andrew’s life anymore.
"I told you the last time. You can keep my used toys, I don’t really care what you do with them," Elara said.
Beatrice’s smile faltered for a second before she chuckled.
"Seriously? Is that what you have been telling yourself to make up for the pain?" Beatrice walked close to Elara.
Elara scrunched her nose. Delusion was definitely a disease for some people.
"Seriously, Beatrice. I am least interested in entertaining you. Why don’t you find someone else to bother?" Elara asked, ready to leave.
Her words and attitude bothered Beatrice, and she gritted her teeth.
"Why? Is it hard to digest that the person you used to love so badly is now under my control? That I have slept with him?" Beatrice asked.
She noticed that Elara visibly froze in place at the mention of sleeping, and her smirk returned.
Elara stopped in her tracks, remembering how Andrew had slept with her only once and what it resulted in. It brought back the memories of her sad past and how she lost her baby, and she couldn’t help but take a deep breath.
She had really let go and didn’t want to trouble herself by hearing nonsense, but now that she was reminded of the pain she suffered, she couldn’t help but turn to Beatrice again.
"Are you happy that I am out of your way? You played quite some tricks to get me out of the way, no?" Elara asked.
Beatrice’s smile widened.
"Of course, I am happy. Now that you are not in our lives, I can be with—"
"Just like how you got rid of Sean..." Elara trailed off, observing how Beatrice’s smile vanished in an instant.
She saw a flicker of emotion in her eyes for a brief second before it disappeared as soon as it appeared.
"What are you talking about, Elara?" Beatrice asked.
Elara smiled before she stepped forward, sizing Beatrice up.
"You, out of all the people, should know what I am talking about. The night Sean died, he had messaged you, hadn’t he?" Elara asked.
Beatrice’s pupils dilated at the mention of the message, and the images from that night flashed before her eyes.
How did Elara find out about it? Nobody knew about that number apart from Sean and her uncle.
Andrew had bought that number for her when she had returned to the country and had forgotten entirely about it.
How the hell did Elara find out Sean messaged her? What was her source?
Panic started to travel through her body.
After trying so hard for years, she was finally getting the outcome of her hard work.
If the truth about Sean’s death came out, everything would be ruined. Andrew would never forgive her, and the little hope of marrying him she had started to see would be gone.
"Don’t spout nonsense! Sean was my best friend! Why would I kill him? What proof do you have?" Beatrice asked.
Elara smiled.
"Do you know it was indeed me who made him bark like that? He was right about it. And do you know why I made him bark? Because I knew that dog wasn’t just wagging his tail around you. You guys were..." Elara looked around as if she were afraid someone would hear her words.
She leaned closer to Beatrice and then whispered in her ear.
"Fucking, weren’t you?" She asked.
Seeing the color drain from Beatrice’s face, Elara’s pupils dilated.
She really had no idea about whether it was happening or not. She was just bluffing. But seeing Beatrice’s reaction...
"What the hell are you talking about? Have you lost it? The only person I have ever been in love with is Andrew!" Beatrice nearly raised her voice.
Elara pouted, blinking her eyes innocently.
"Well, it was worth the shot. Now imagine how I made it possible for him to bark like that. And if I can do that, can’t I find who killed him?" Elara asked.
Beatrice swallowed hard as she looked into Elara’s eyes.
This wasn’t just a bluff. Elara’s eyes told her that she definitely had something against her. But what? What could it be?
Beatrice suddenly smiled at Elara. She stepped forward and held Elara’s hand in a tight grip.
"Elara," Beatrice dug her nails in Elara’s hand, and Elara jerked her back instinctively to free herself.
As soon as she did that, Beatrice stumbled backwards, and her foot slipped before she fell down the stairs.
Elara’s eyes widened when she saw the smile on Beatrice’s face as she fell.
"Beatrice!" Andrew’s shocked voice came next, and Elara noticed how everyone rushed to help Beatrice while she lay unconscious.
It was a good thing the ground was cushioned, because the next scene was indeed falling from the stairs, but...
"Hurry up! Call the ambulance!"
"There’s no time! I am taking her."
Elara saw Andrew pick Beatrice up in his arms and leave.
People started looking at her and then whispering amongst themselves, nothing good, she was sure.