The uncomfortable silence that was starting to build up was suddenly interrupted as her phone rung. She didn't hesitate as she brought out from her chest pocket to answer the call and realized it was from Milan.
"Is something wrong...？" Sheila couldn't help but get worried as she made to pick the call, she gave Ryan a quick apologetic stare. "Please, excuse me for a moment."
Ryan nodded curtly, and Sheila flashed him a quick smile before answering the call. "Hello, Milan."
"Ms. Sheila...！" Milan exclaimed, hervoice filled with trepidation as well as excitement. "It's good to hear your voice after all this while, Ms. Sheila."
Sheila smiled in appreciation, flattered by Milan's words of compliment. "I know, right?" She cited simply, still smiling. "Why did you call? I notice you did not sound too good, how is Ms. Fellers?"
"Ms. Fellers is... farfrom well, she's not doing too great." Milan replied, her tone subdued. "-and that's actually why I'm calling, Ms. Under a week, things have managed to turn sourfor Ms. Fellers."
"What do you mean?" Sheila blurted out with worry, sitting uncomfortably at the edge of her seat. "What happened to her? Did she fall sick or what?"
Sheila was to think of other possible ways to make things turn upside down for Ciara, but couldn't think of anything -going bankrupt is far from reality; Ciara would never allow such a disasterto happen to her.
"She didn't fall sick, but something even more serious happened to her." Milan said, pausing for a moment to take a deep breath. "She's currently admitted to a psychiatric center, and she did not look like she'll be responding to treatment anytime soon."
Sheila went silent for a moment, trying to take in the information Milan had just revealed to her. "That's a huge loss for the company." Sheila said, understanding the gravity of the situation.
"This is giving everyone in the company a great concern -no one knows her present condition except me; I'm afraid it'll get worse, Ms. Sheila." Milan muttered, hervoice was almost trapped in her throat.
"What's her brother's take on her health, how did she manage to find herself in such a drastic condition?" Sheila couldn't stop herself from being overwhelmed with worry.
"Did Mr. Dwayne sit back and do nothing to help his sister?"
Milan took a deep breath in before speaking. "This is where it all started, it all gets complicated from here." She replied, her voice more tensed. "Mr. Dwayne is dead, and it's her aunt, Mrs. Kent, that's looking after her."
"What is the prognosis, how long does she have to live?" Sheila asked, sounding worried. "I mean, can she still live a long life, or she's a walking corpse at this point?"
"Ms. Sheila, no one knows how long she has to live." Milan was forced to admit. "But at the moment, she's suffering from serious PTSD and her mental stability keeps deteriorating faster than expected."
"I guess this is more serious than I imagined it to be." Sheila said, putting the puzzle together in her mind. "The stress of being the CEO is starting to affect her mental and physical health. It's too much to handle, isn't it?"
"It's not just the stress of being a CEO, but it's also the shock of losing her brother, Mr. Dwayne." Milan responded, sounding more concerned. "And right now, her aunt isn't helping issues at all. She has decided to take over the company, saying Ms. Fellers will never be able to regain her usual self -her condition is going to have a huge effect on her."
"You mean Mrs. Kent has taken over Ms. Fellers' role as CEO?" Sheila sounded skeptical. "Do you think she has the right qualifications to manage the company? And even if she does have one, why would she do such a thing to her niece?"
"Mrs. Kent is a very smart woman. She has the right qualifications and will to manage the company." Milan muttered in displeased. "She's Ms. Fellers aunt, and she has the right to the company, but her motives are suspicious, and I don't think she has the best interest of Ms. Fellers at heart. That's why I'm concerned."
"And everyone has their hands folded and sits back to watch?" Sheila accused. "Without doing anything about it?"
"The rest of the board of directors are afraid of saying anything against Mrs. Kent." Milan explained. "They don't want to cause any trouble or make an enemy of hers. It's a delicate situation, and they just want to keep the peace."
"What do you think can be done about the situation?" Sheila asked, overly interested in what Milan had to say. "Do you think there's any way of saving Ms. Fellers from her aunt's decision?" "I think it'll take a lot of convincing for the board of directors to go against Mrs. Kent." Milan admitted. "Even Gerald is confused at the moment, he can do next to nothing since Mrs. Kent had her eyes on him already -watching every of his moves like a crow."
Sheila let out a long, stressed sigh, unsure of how best to reply. "This is even more complicated than I thought, don't you think?"
"Mrs. Kent banned anyone from the company from visiting her at the hospital -no one knows the reasons for it." Milan said in addition. "But I managed to persuade Gerald and he let me. No one knows this, but I managed to get a video of Ms. Fellers, I'll send it to you after we drop this call."
"A video of Ms. Fellers?" Sheila's eyes widened in bewilderment. "That's surprising. I thought Mrs. Kent wouldn't allow any visitors, let alone someone taking a video of Ms. Fellers. Did Gerald let you take a video of her?"
"I had to sneak in with a hidden camera." Milan confessed. "I just wanted to see how she's doing and see if I can help in any way I can."
"I understand that you're trying to help, but won't that put you in danger?" Sheila pointed out. "With your description of Mrs. Kent, she can be very vindictive, and she's in a position of power. If she finds out what you did, she might retaliate. I'm worried about you."
"That doesn't matter, Ms. Sheila. I'm afraid the company might collapse soon without Ms. Fellers presence." Milan enunciated with deep concern. "I'm taking this risk to let you know about this -since you are the only one left who can help herwithout raising any suspicion."
"I'm sorry to say this, Milan." Sheila said, sounding so tensed. "But I don't even know what to do, I can't think of the best way to help."
Milan hesitated for a few seconds before replying to her again. "You'll, when you see how bad Ms. Fellers is." She was blunt. "She trusted you, Ms. Sheila, and it is for a reason. Please, Sheila, don't say no -think about something, Ms. Fellers, and the company itself depends on your help." With that, Milan dropped the call.
Sheila knew Milan was right, she's the only help left for Ciara, and she had to think of a way out, she couldn't let Ciara live the rest of her life in those confined walls of the psychiatric center. She has to do something to help!
Sheila's phone vibrated in her grip, Milan had sent the video as promised. Sheila was hesitant, she stared at her phone blankly. She eventually clicked on the video, as she watches, her emotions and tears built up.
Ryan was concerned and found it hard to clamp his mouth shut. "What's wrong with you, Ms Sheila?" He asked as he pries into her phone without her permission. His eyes widened in surprised as he stared at the lady on the phone. "Ciara...?"
Sheila snapped her head towards him, not sure if she hears him well. She wondered how he managed to know Ciara, recalling how she kept being anonymous to Ryan. "Do you know her...？"