Blindspot

Chapter 34

"P'Freen? Freen? What is it?" Rebecca asked in concern at the sudden change of Freen's demeanor.
"

I-I... I'am... being blackmailed." Freen whispered hoarsely as tears welled up in her eyes and she looked fearfully at Rebecca.

Unknown Number message: Did you think you could hide from me?
Unknown Number message: Don't you dare IGNORE me. I know your secret. Unknown Number message: Don't believe me? [send image] Slut. I see you. I see everything.
Unknown Number message: That is just the tip of the iceberg. I want 1 million baht in bitcoin sent to me, otherwise I will release the rest of the pictures to the public.

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Freen dropped her phone on to the dinning table as if the phone was scalding hot, her eyes darted back and forth staring at nothing and everything as she tried to sort out the chaos. Without a second thought of whether to ask Freen for permission to see her phone, Rebecca grabbed it from the table and looked at the messages to see what drove her cool and calm Freen into madness.

Rebecca's eyes burrowed as she scowled at the hateful words, then her eyes bulged at the image, the image that was sent was of Freen standing half naked in the privacy of her own bathroom.

"Wha..What...how could this happen?" Freen's frantic eyes darted left and right and then she suddenly jumped up and ran towards the windows to close her curtains, then she sprinted towards her bathroom and bedroom closing every window and blinds along the way.

When all the windows were closed, she stumbled back into the dinning room and didn't say a word as she wrapped her arms around herself and started rocking back and forth mumbling to herself.

"P'Freen. P'Freen...babe." Rebecca had no words and simply ran over and wrapped her arms around Freen, her heart hurt witnessing Freen's pain and fear.

"What...am I going to do? That person knows my secret. They know about my de.de...deformity." Freen spat the word in disgust.

"NO! Freen! You are not deformed! You are beautiful inside and out!" Rebecca shouted at Freen.

"Granny always said to never let any one know. It has to be a secret. I am a monster, an abomination...a mutant. People won't understand. She said that I must always hide! I have to pay the ransom. I can't let anyone know!"

"No Absolutely not! You can't pay the ransom! Once you pay, you'll never stop paying! And you don't really know if they know your secret! That person just hinted it! All I see is you in a bra changing in the bathroom, it doesn't show the lower half of your body."

"I can't risk it!! I don't have that kind of money... I'll need to sell everything that I have and borrow some...I can't let anyone know." Freen repeated to herself again.

"Bec, please... can you help me? Can you loan me that money?" Freen pleaded with Rebecca.

"Babe, I would give it to you in a heartbeat but I don't believe that this is the solution. Don't pay."

"That is easy for you to say. It is not your secret!" Freen cried defensively.

Rebecca shook Freen to get her attention, "P'Freen! Listen to me, you can't pay the ransom. You mustn't! You didn't do anything wrong! The blackmailer has nothing on you! You were in your own home. They violated your rights, your privacy! Why would you pay someone like that? I can't let you do this. I won't!"

"I could be putting you at risk too! I could be putting the company, our entire production in jeopardy. Everything that you've worked so hard, everything that I've hoped to gain by filming the series...it all goes down the drain. Think of the backslash if my secret gets out that I'm half woman and half man. I need to give the ransom." Freen pulled at her hair as she contemplated the various possibilities that could go bad.