Chapter 294
Silence greeted her at first. "Who is this?" she demanded.
Muffled chatter erupted on the line. Alaricka listened intently, identifying a cluster of whispering girls.
She waited. Seconds later, a girl snapped rudely, "You Alaricka?"
Instinct screamed: Never admit it.
So she replied evenly, "Wrong number."
She felt the housekeeper’s startled glance when she denied her identity.
After hearing the answer, the girl on the other end fell silent for a moment before snapping, "How could you not be Alarieka? Impossible! I checked this number multiple times—it’s definitely correct!"
Her voice was soon drowned out by muffled chatter, as if other girls had joined the discussion. Alarieka’s brow furrowed deeper as fragmented whispers drifted through the line.
"Isn’t this Alaricka? Did we get the wrong person?"
"It should be right—we traced it to this number."
"But she says she’s not Alaricka!"
"How could she not be? She’s probably lying to avoid confrontation!"
While processing this, another unknown number flashed on her screen. Alaricka declined the call and demanded, "Who is Alaricka?"
The girl’s voice turned shrill: "What? You don’t know Alarieka? Do you live under a rock?"
Someone snatched the phone, spitting venom: "Fine, we’ll tell you! Just know she’s a manipulative bitch—bullying girls into depression, then hiding when called out! A spineless coward!"
The tirade escalated into a torrent of vulgar insults, each word sharper than the last. With the speakerphone on, the girl’s piercing voice echoed through the hospital room.
The middle-aged aunt winced, muttering, "Who raised such a foul mouth?" She tentatively studied Alarieka’s expression.
What she saw stunned her. Anyone subjected to such vitriol would crumble—yet Alarieka remained unnervingly calm, detached as if hearing strangers’ gossip.
Had she known the aunt’s thoughts, Alarieka would’ve laughed bitterly. Her past life had endured crueler storms; this was merely drizzle.
The aunt’s comment briefly silenced the caller before the girl shrieked: "Foul? Look up what she did! Stole trophies, accused Rose of plagiarism, then made others take the fall!"
"Thank god we doxed her! Found her details so we can finally hold her accountable—"
Alaricka terminated the call mid-sentence.
Realizing they’d reached their target, the number instantly redialed. Expressionless, she blocked it, then systematically blacklisted every recent harassing number.
The aunt finally whispered, "What… what’s happening?"
The instant the housekeeper finished speaking, just as Alarieka’s finger hovered over the block button, another unknown number flashed on her screen—this one from the southernmost region.
The shrill ringing cut through the hospital room like a jagged blade. The housekeeper frowned while Alarieka’s expression remained unchanged as she declined the call and blocked the number with practiced efficiency.
"Ms. Huston," the housekeeper whispered, "why are you getting so many calls?"
Alarieka kept her head down, silently blocking the remaining unknown numbers.
Even an outsider could sense something wrong with this barrage of mysterious calls. The housekeeper’s pulse quickened, her heart pounding against her ribs as an unshakable dread coiled in her gut.
She searched Alarieka’s face for any flicker of panic, but found only icy composure. The younger woman’s voice stayed perfectly level.
"Just bored people with too much time on their hands."
The housekeeper almost relaxed at the explanation.
Then her face tightened again.
Another unknown number lit up Alarieka’s screen.
Alarieka rejected it coldly and sent it straight to the blocked list.
Now the housekeeper couldn’t swallow the flimsy excuse. "Ms. Huston," she pressed, "is there trouble you can’t handle? Mr. Argent instructed me—if you need anything, tell me and I’ll inform him. He promised to fix it for you."
As she spoke, new unknown numbers kept flooding in.
Alaricka blocked them one by one, her voice detached. "Unnecessary."
"But Mr. Argent insisted you—"
"Housekeeper."
Alarieka cut her off, fingers moving mechanically as yet another call flashed and died. The housekeeper watched the cycle repeat—no sooner would one number vanish than another appeared—until worry etched deep lines across her forehead.
Relentless harassment calls.
"Don’t involve Mr. Argent," Alarieka stated flatly.
"Why not?" The housekeeper leaned closer. "He could stop these calls! You must be careful—scammers could drain your accounts dry! Once that money’s gone, it’s gone forever!"
She assumed Alarieka’s number had been leaked to fraudsters.
Alarieka suddenly laughed—a sharp, humorless sound. "Maybe your precious Mr. Argent orchestrated this whole thing."
The housekeeper’s eyebrows shot up. "Impossible! He cares about you! Why would he—? Mr. Argent’s wealthy enough not to need your money!"
"Besides, Mr. Argent has reminded me many times that I must report anything to him immediately so he can handle it. Ms. Huston, please believe me, Mr. Argent truly cares about you. Otherwise, he wouldn’t pay me so generously to look after you. You mustn’t misunderstand his intentions."