Emily gazed at her reflection as she carefully applied her lipstick. She had spent the last hour getting ready, painstakingly doing her hair and makeup. Her new emerald dress hugged her curves perfectly. Tonight had to be the night she got Ellis back. Ellis belonged with her, and she was going to remind him of the passion they once shared. She had been stalking him on social media for the past weeks because he was ignoring her at school and there was nothing she could do about that. She just let him be and made him think that she had given up on him, meanwhile, she was busy making plans behind the scenes.The past three weeks had been a complete makeover process for Emily. She put herself on a strict diet and exercise regimen. She scoured boutiques to update her wardrobe. She went to the salon and got her hair done in loose, tumbling waves instead of her usual practical ponytail. Emily even started wearing more makeup than her usual tinted moisturizer and lip gloss. Each morning she c
The next week was quite peaceful in the Royale family. All was well, and the hate that the Royale children held for Ellis was a tad bit minimal. Well, this was because the Royale sons had carried out a machination to eliminate Ellis. So, they were watching silently, how the event would unfold. They knew that being openly hostile to Ellis would make them immediate suspects so they decided to pretend to be amicable for the time being.As for the situation with Lisa, George had been postponing bringing Lisa to meet his father so they could draft out a marriage contract and finalise the process. He told Lisa that his father was busy and could only put them on his appointment list after two months. Then every time his father asked about Lisa, George would lie that they were both trying to have a relationship, and trying to get to know each other better in preparation for the marriage. He gave the impression that he was trying to be more responsible, just so his father would be more lenien
Soon enough, the staff arrived with Mr Cyrus's phone. Looking at his daughter, Mr Cyrus made another demand. "Call Dr. Hendricks at the family hospital. Maurine’s body is being moved there. Instruct him to perform a full tox screen* and autopsy on the deceased. I want answers as soon as possible regarding this whole situation. We need to know if poison is what killed her, or she dies from another unknown cause like a stroke or heart attack."Amira nodded mutely, taking his phone from the servant to follow his instructions. Mr Cyrus gestured curtly to the kitchen staff still lined up along the wall. "As for the rest of you, remember that no one is to leave the premises until given express consent. I shall need to interview each of you soon regarding anything you might have witnessed tonight."The staff members shifted uneasily but nodded their understanding. Mr Cyrus glanced back down at the unfinished plate, brow furrowed. After a moment he strode forward, using a handkerchief to d
Alone again, Mr Cyrus began formulating his next steps strategically. Clearly someone was attempting to impede his progress by destroying vital evidence. This supported his growing suspicion that Maurine’s killer remained inside these very walls, desperately covering their tracks. Just as he had ordered, the Royale children met with their father in the living room. Mr Cyrus began a speech, updating them on the happenings of the situation. "I would like for you all to know that the report for Maurine's autopsy is out," he began. "A lethal poison found in the food was the cause of her death.”“Who would have wanted to poison the poor girl? It had to be one of her co workers. We need to find out if she had any quarrels with any of the other staff members before now.” Marcus said.“The poison wasn’t meant for her. That plate of food she ate from wasn’t a new plate. It was Ellis’ unfinished meal. The leftovers are supposed to be packaged and sent to the guard house so the dogs can be fed.
“Father, do you really think that the poison was meant for me?” Elli asked as they both walked into Mr Cyrus’ study.“I don’t think so, Ellis. I’m almost completely sure of it. There is no other explanation. Why else would someone take a risk to use poison in my household? You must have been the main target for this failed plan. It makes more sense. Maurine is just a maid, but you are my heir. Taking you out would have a devastating effect on my empire.”“But if I was truly the target, how am I still alive? I ate almost everything on that plate. Maurine just took a bite according to the story we were told by the other staff member, and that was what killed her.” Ellis said with a perplexed expression.“This is the confusing part of the whole situation, but I think I know what happened. You’ve been meditating everyday, right?” He asked.“Yes, father. Every day at dawn, I meditate for at least thirty minutes. Some days, I can go on for as long as an hour, especially the weekends. I can’
“Can you remember what happened to you, son?” Mr Cyrus asked with a worried expression as he gave Ellis a bottle of water to drink. Ellis drank the whole bottle, and half of a new bottle before he felt better and was able to respond. “My mind is still fuzzy. I can remember speaking to someone, but I can’t remember the words that were said to me.” “Can you at least remember the aura of whoever took you away? The spell I did is a simple trance spell. It was supposed to be easy to wake you once I was done checking your aura. Instead, you were taken somewhere beyond my reach. I spent almost thirty minutes trying to pull you back.” “What would have happened if you hadn’t succeeded?” Ellis asked. “Your soul would have been lost forever. Your body may remain alive, but it would wither away. It would just be an empty shell without your subconscious in it. That was why I was so terrified.” “Well, not to worry. I don’t feel like I was in any form of danger. Whoever it was that tried to get
About an hour later, James arrived at the mansion with his tech equipment. “You can set your things up in here.” Mr Cyrus said as James was directed to an empty room with a comfortable desk and chair.There was enough space here for him to arrange all the computers and other things he came to work with. He would also have privacy to work without being disturbed.“Before I set up everything, I’ll need to see your security system.”“Sure. Come with me to my office. I have master access.” Mr Cyrus replied and they both walked together while two house staff carried all James’ bags inside his assigned room.In the office, James sat at Mr Cyrus’ desk. Mr Cyrus logged into the security system with his master code and left the rest to James, he just watched from the sidelines.“Does anyone else have master access to the security system?” James asked as he clicked buttons rapidly while writing up a code to scan the system.“No. I’m the only one with master access for now. But some others can
Mr Cyrus was a bit shocked at this news. How could Maurine’s parents just decide to start throwing accusations without proof? He had involved the police in the investigation in order to show the family that he had nothing to hide. Now they had the audacity to come out and try to blame their daughter’s recklessness on him and his family? That was unacceptable.“Don’t do anything yet. If it has already gone viral, then there’s not much that can be done. I will check out the article right now, and then the video. Then I will get back to you, and we’ll decide what the best form of action to take should be. All we can do at this point is damage control.” He replied.“Okay Sir. I will be waiting for your call.”As the call was disconnected, he addressed James.“Will you be okay to work on your own? There’s a small issue that requires my attention right now.”“I have all my equipment, and you’ve already allowed me to access the system. I’ll finish what I’m supposed to do, and wait for you.”J