Recap
She took the bouquet and sat on her bed, that’s when she had noticed the golden foiled butterfly was stuck on the ribbon thats holding the flowers together.
“Blue flowers and butterfly??????”
Why does it feel like she knew this anonymous sender so well?
She looked intently at the book cover which also had a Blue diamond. She connected the puzzle pieces and took out her precious jewel box that had the most priceless gift of her life,
“The famous sparkling diamond studded beautiful Blue Butterfly”
She had got answers for all her puzzles.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The weight of the gift was too heavy in terms of meaning. She felt so blessed or maybe fortunate to hold this glorious gift from her most favourite person.
She looked at all the other gifts he had sent since yesterday. She did not know whether she deserved all this lo… wait are you going to say love? Who said it is Love? her mind questioned her.
He must be treating her well as a token of gratitude for staying beside him when he was all alone and sick, he must not necessarily have feelings to gift her expensive jewellery, Expensive? Not for him. He is after all, The Henry Kingston! girl, it’s nothing given his enormous wealth.
Having all romantic thoughts will most definitely end up in heart breaks,Julie’s mind warned her.
One part of her mind had a hope that he is after all interested in her. That’s why, not one, but three near kiss episodes happened earlier.
Grow up girl.! he was just teasing. Also he was under the influence of drugs.
But what about sending flower bouquet? Especially those details like blue flowers and butterfly on it, he doesn’t have to send flowers to me.
“On an ordinary day, if a guy sending flowers to a girl, what does that mean?”
“It means he’s trying to impress the girl obviously” Angela responded.
“When did you come?” Julie was startled by her presence.
“So you weren’t talking to me then?” She shook her head.
“Your mind voice was too loud probably” Ann teased. “Let’s get moving, the therapy session is about to start” she pulled Julie to the ground.
Today’s therapy is about meditation, breathing exercise and basic stretching to de-stress the body and the soul.
It would be relaxing to carry out the meditation in this peaceful place, detached from the noisy cramped concrete world. Though the busy world has its own rhythm and vibes, the beauty of the Woods, the greenery, the mountains, the clear air, the running stream, the tranquility just effortlessly soothes your soul.
Everyone could feel the calmness spreading over them. The holistic healing therapy made them lighthearted that night.
Ryan and Henry started early in the morning. Ryan was so excited on this trip as Golf was one of his favourite sports. He kept nagging Henry as to where they were going, but Henry remained silent, saying it was a surprise. Because if he disclose the details of the venue and the person who would be there, Ryan would jump off from the running car right away and walk back home without a second glance.
Kevin announced the members to gather in the ground. “The first task would be riding the bike through the special trails in the woods and pick up as many white flags as you see. You can expect bumpy ride, sloping terrain, follow the sign boards for direction. Your bikes have been installed with tracker, a map in case you’re lost and an emergency button for help. There are three different routes, but same distance to reach the destination. The flags will be within your vision from the trail, do not look deep into the woods, follow the signs and get back in 45 minutes. We will be monitoring you through the tracker, do not pair up or form groups, you will be disqualified. The morning air in the forest will be so pure and refreshing,it is great for your body, see you all soon”
“Enjoy your morning” Sr Kingston wished them.
Angela gave a scornful look. She’s paranoid about deadly predators, watching them from their hideouts in the forest or worst getting lost in the woods and died due to starvation and eaten away by animals and birds.
Julie laughed at her weird thoughts as she already mentioned Julie about planning to skip this task faking some illness, but Kevin seen through her lies as he was not convinced that she was sick.
“Ann stop fretting, you are not a baby,come on,spirit up!”
“Call me anything, I do not like this task at all” she whined.
She said, “I am not looking for any shit, I will just go by the trail and reach the destination as fast as my legs can take me”
“You’re a spoilsport Ann seriously”
“I am not dying today, girl, you go win the Olympics and bring back the gold medals and laurels to the country”
Everyone started their rides, once Julie hopped on the bike, she could not stop thinking about the night she was biking with Henry(refer chapter 24) the way he teased her, chased her and stumbled down to witness his flawless facial features up close, she could still remember those vivid details. She blushed at the memory.
There would be tons of people who would admire him, but meeting him that close was pure luck, she felt proud of being the chosen one. Soon she realised her surrounding and got on with the task. She was too happy when she found her first flag in a tree branch.
In next few minutes, the windspeed had picked up and the dry leaves and twigs started shedding. One such twig fell on a honeycomb when Julie crossed it, the Africanised bees scattered and flew crazily in all direction. These bees are basically much more defensive and react to disturbances faster and chase people further than other varieties, the victims may receive 10 times more stings than their counterparts.
Julie panicked and covered her face by pulling her jacket over her head. Still, the bees stung frantically on her fingers. She could neither see ahead or hold the handle when the bike moved slowly through the slope and tumbled on a log. As the pain of multiple stung clogged her mind, she could not judge the danger. Before Julie could get hold of the situation and stop the bike, she was thrown away on the ground, she then rolled couple of times and hit a thorny bush. She got tangled and could not free herself.
The bike moved along the slope and fell into the valley. The chances of getting help lost along with the bike. The tracker, emergency help, the map were all in the bike. No one can easily spot her as she was quite far away from the original track and hid in the bushes. She was getting thirsty and tired every passing minute. The throbbing pain in her hands had intensified, the venom started spreading and she guessed she would pass out any minute if she did not get help. She screamed for help few times, but the growing fatigue in her body overpowered her senses and her voice became feeble.
She never had big dreams, she led a simple life, a prestigious job, a very decent salary and working for the Kingstons itself, have always been seemed like an achievement for her. She single-handedly presented a proposal in a very big platform, spent the most beautiful days alongside her favourite person, she did not ask for more.
Thus, she did not fear death as she believed that humans are powerless in fighting death. If it was destined, it is bound to happen. But if it was going to be her end, her last day she would like to see Him one last time, that was the only thing in her mind when darkness consumed her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Comment