Seth glared at him for a moment but his voice did not waver when he spoke. “The only fraud here is you, Marlin,” Seth said to him sternly, “You have lived your entire life in deceit, cheating people out of their hard earned money and now you want to drag Phoebe into your mess?”Marlin’s smirk “No, you are wrong about me, and my life has always been about surviving and that is what you will see in Phoebe because besides love, she must learn to live with someone who will take care of her and shield her from all that you have exposed her to.”Seth’s gaze was unwavering. ”What she requires is patronisation, affirmation of her abilities and capacity to make her own decisions not enslavement through manipulation”.Marlin spoke even more softly than before and his next words hung in the stillness hanging in the air minutes after he said them. She will make her choice, Seth, And when she does you are going to see that all your principles of love and trust do not exist when it comes to the rea

Leo bent himself forward. “Okay, what do we have now? I got that you require a scapegoat for the investigation of Aidan’s schemes Now”Seth let out a deep breath, with all his cards on the table It was quite elaborate. “Aidan is planning against me and I wouldn’t allow him to give me a single surprise, Marlin was part of it but I could not trust him anymore, I need someone who would be loyal to me.”Leo just listened to it all as he ruminate all that he was told. “Alright, let me begin by sifting through anything and everything Marlin could have compiled. Have there been any specific lines of investigation or concern that you have?”Seth’s eyes narrowed. “Of course, the latest movement made by Aidan within the company and any new changes he has. I need a worksheet with all his collaborations and what loopholes we can capitalize on.”Leo made quick notes on the paper that was in front of him. “Okay, understand I will start researching on it, and we will be informing you from time to ti

Seth became so scared and his heart was beating so hard he could hardly control his face. “What kind of documents?”Marlin chuckled softly. “Oh, oh, these and some more petty papers such as the financial reports and the internal memoranda The kind of papers that can seal the fate of a man, particularly when they fall into the wrong hands and your esteemed company is crumbling on a very weak and vulnerable pillar I must add, Seth.”Naturally, Seth’s mind started working in efforts of solving the puzzle. “You’re bluffing.”“Am I?” Marlin’s eyes sparkled chewing on his words and savoring the triumph they communicated to him. “You better think about that, Seth I have been planning all this for the past months I have everything that I need to destroy you including those documents the moment media gets its hands on these documents there won’t be any chance for you to get back.”Seth’s jaw tightened. “You came about it because you wanted to show me that you won’t get away with this.”Marlin’

Phoebe looked intently at him with her eyes filled with tears that threatened to spill over any moment. ”I am so confused,” she said in hushed tones, she now held his hand tightly. "I feel so lost."Aidan moved closer towards her, and proceeded to say: ‘You must learn to stop running, Phoebe, you should stop pushing the people who care for you away’ True, Seth is by no means a saint, but he never stopped loving you and if you go away from him now, then there will be no one left for the rest of your life to bear the blame’.Slowly, the impact of what Aidan said reached Phoebe’s heart, and she cry quietly as she close her eyes. The war inside her heart was still going strong but at this moment she could not argue that Seth still had a part of her soul.“You have to apologize to him, ” Aidan suggested softly. “You should tell him how you feel. Do not let this develop to a halt because of fear. If there is a possibility that both of you can make it work, then you should give it another tr

Phoebe emerged outside and really felt the brunt of all that had happened come right on top of her. A cool breeze of wind blew on her face and wiped the emerging tears. She stood there shaking, unable to control herself after hearing the flood of Seth’s words that came to her. He’s picked another woman. Emma. It was over.As she stood right there just thinking of how everything turned out bad, she heard the door to the room open again.‘Wait Phoebe' Seth said so softly, it was barely audible.Phoebe stopped, unable to face him,but could not resist the urge to look back. Finally, she stood still for several minutes before slowly turning around, hugging herself, for the cold. Seth was standing with his hand on the doorframe, his expression a distorted puzzle of all sorts of feelings. Putting a hand through his hair he sighed and said, “I don’t know if I did.” “I wanted to believe that I am not harming anybody… but now that you are going away heartbroken it almost seems… like I hurt you.