The state Prison was located deep in the heart of the city, situated on an island about two hundred meters away from land. It was a facility with maximum security meant for only the worst of the worst. No visitors were allowed, and the inmates were hardly allowed to see the sunlight. It was like Alcatraz, but way worse! At that moment, an elevator had risen to the cell on the top floor. The elevator doors opened slowly, revealing a tall man with an intimidating look on his face. The chief warder. The man was as ruthless as he was fearsome. He stepped out of the elevator and walked into the hall, stopping in front of a cell. "Everest! You're free to go." His coarse voice echoed through out the silent hall. He opened the door and a slender– almost skinny looking –man walked out. "Congratulations. Once you step out of those big gates, you're a free man." Van only acknowledged the man's words with a small nod. If he wanted to, he would have gotten out of prison ages ago. Afte
The loud bang at the door startled the couple on the bed. The man quickly hid his bare body underneath the blanket, and the women, behind her partner. "Who the hell are you? And how dare you barge into m bedroom without any form of curtsey?" He demanded in an angry tone. “You promised to wait for me. You said you would wait for fifteen years, and yet you do this… and in such a little time too.” Van clenched his fists so tightly that his nails tore through the skin of his palm. He felt his blood boil and his nerves were consumed with rage. “Van?” Bianca exclaimed in disbelief. He looked nothing like the Van that was arrested five years ago. He was much smaller, and paler.“You’re back? How?!” Van's lips curled upward into a bitter smile as he recognized the man that was in bed with his wife. "Really Bianca? You're with this a*shole? After what he did to you?" Moses seemed to regain his composure when he realized that it was Van and not some intruder that had broken in. He sat up
With the help of his personal chauffer, Van was finally able to locate his mother's house. His heart sank in his chest when he saw the old, beat up house his mother lived in. When Van was arrested, he felt he didn't have much to worry about, since he had already bought a house he would live in with his wife after their wedding. And Bianca came from a good home, so he thought his mother would get by just fine. However, if Bianca had been unfaithful right from the onset, he wondered how his mother's life would have been for the whole five years he was gone. "Mom, I'm so sorry you had to live such a tough life because of me." He muttered to himself. "I swear I'm going to make it all better." Remembering Bianca and Moses, he clenched his fists tightly and his lips was pulled together tightly. He couldn't just let them get away with their actions just like that. At that moment, he saw a woman parking her electric bicycle just outside the gate. She was wearing a helmet, and appear
Van felt disgusted by the Wilson family. Sending him to fifteen years in prison wasn't enough, they had to be compensated as well? "My question still stands. How much?" He said with a frown. "They demanded a sum of four hundred grand. Your wife was so generous, she offered to pay half of it by using her house, and your mother was supposed to raise the rest, but everytime we come to collect, all she gives us is f*ucking change! We're not beggars you know." Four hundred thousand, if Bianca really wanted to pay for the compensation, the cost of the house would have covered it. Since he bought it for five hundred thousand. "How much has my mother paid so far?" "It's really pitiful because your mother hasn't been able to raise up to forty grand in the space of five years. The Wilsons are already tired of receiving change, they want the rest of their money." "Well at least the son is back from prison now," one of the henchmen said, eyeing Van. "He can help her with the payment, unle
As Van made his way back to the house, he discovered that his mother had gone out to the gate to look around for him because she was worried that something might have happened to him. As soon as she saw spotted him on his way back, she immediately walked over with a worried face and held his hand while asking hurriedly, “Are you alright, dear? They didn’t hurt you, did they?” She examined his body, checking everywhere to see if he was hurt. Van felt his heart grow warm and he smiled at his mother, who was standing a feet shorter than he was. “Don’t worry, Mom. They didn’t hurt me. I took them to an ATM and withdrew the balance for them. They won’t be bothering us anymore for money.” “Really?" She exclaimed, then asked. "You’re not lying to me, are you? Where did you even get such a huge amount of money? We're talking about more than a hundred thousand!” She was having a hard time believing that her son had that amount of money with him, especially since he had just been released fr
"Mom," Van said after their dinner. "Do you think I should sue Bianca?" "What? Of course not! Van, the past is the past, let's just bury it and move on." His mother complained with a sour face. "You know how scary the rich can be, why would you want to mess with them again? What will make me happy is to see you living a normal life in the sociery. Going to work, or to football games with your friends, planning dates with your girlfriend. That is what I want for you." "But mom, do you really want to let them get away with what they did to us? It's not fair. I know how hard you and I had to work before we could buy that house. It was supposed to be our forever place. Am I really supposed to just turn a blind eye to the fact that it belongs to them now? And what about the money I paid for the bride price? I had never heard of paying bride price before the wedding but I did, a hundred thousand dollars! Am I supposed to just let that go too?" "I know what you mean my dear. Truth
"You see son, after you were imprisoned, your aunts and uncles all avoided me like a plague. They said they didn't want anything to do with the mother of a delinquent son. I knew that they were only avoiding me because of the compensation we had to pay the Wilsons though." His mother had three siblings, and they were all doing well, so he had hoped that at least one of them would have lended a helping hand to his mother. "When I turned to them for assistance, they all came up with lame excuses. Your uncle Joseph wouldn't even see me at all, telling me he had traveled every single time I reached out to him. Eventually I stopped, and decided to hustle for myself. When I had given up hope, you father's old friend was the one who came to my rescue. He is also struggling and yet he managed to raise a sum of five thousand dollars to help me pay from the debt. He also makes sure to check in on me from time to time. But I haven't seen him in about three months now because he is away
"Help, my husband is having a heart attack!" A woman that looked clearly expensive cried out for help. Her husband looked like he would be in his late forties or early fifties. Next to the woman was a young girl in a suit, probably their daughter, and judging from the outfits they had on, and the expensive jewelries and accessories, it was easy to conclude that they were a rich family. Van rushed over to the man and his family, kneeling next to the woman. "Let me check him." He offered and wasted no time in examining the man's body. He was unconscious, but he had a pained expresssion on his face, almost like he had been hurt before passing out. Van checked his neck and wrist, but felt no pause. "Give me your coat now!" He ordered in a tone of urgency. "But it's expensive." The young girl complained. Ignoring her daughter's attitude, the wonan immediately rushed to the car and came back with a luxurious fur coat. "Here you go." He folded it and placed it under the man's head. "H
"What?!""I know, it's a big deal. Jasper said he doesn't like the fact that he has to ask me for money whenever he needs it, so I thought, 'why not operate on a joint account?' that way, he wouldn't have to ask me when he needs money.""Wait, I don't understand. Why does he ask you for money?""I already told you, his parents are trying to teach him a lesson on discipline, they're not giving him enough money. I really think that's stupid by the way. Why restrict your son's account just because you want to teach him something?"Ivy had to act fast, if they opened a joint account, there would be no stopping him from taking all her money, and he'd just disappear. But she couldn't come out and say something like that without proof. "Macy, let's tell Van." If Van was aware, she would be able to tell him her worries about Jasper, and he might be able to help. "What? No. Ivy, you promised.""No Macy, hear me out. If I tell Van, I know how I'm going to convince him so he'll be on your side
Van had to take a moment to understand what Ivy meant by her statement. "No." He said firmly. "Ivy, I made a mistake, I know I did. But you can't break up with me, not because of this. I am sorry, I was an asshole, I should have talked to you, I should have told you the truth, I don't know why I didn't. But I swear to you, there is absolutely nothing between us.""Van, that still isn't a clear answer.""Okay, you're right. Look, I met her at the grocery store and she helped me pick the milk when I told you I'd go shopping that day, and when she tried to ask for my number, I clearly told her that I was married and didn't want anything to do with her. But I don't know if she's trailing me but I've been running into her almost everywhere. Honestly, it's tiring. I am so sorry I didn't say anything when you asked. I should have told you about her right from the first day, I just never thought she would be a persistent problem.""So she's just another Chris?""Yeah, I guess.""Van, I'm sor
Ivy had been gone for more than an hour, and Van was starting to get worried. He didn't like the fact that she was alone outside when that pervert was probably still looking for her. The fact that they fought also didn't help in putting his mind at rest. He decided that he was going to go and look for her. He should have just told her the truth when she asked about Cynthia earlier. Van wasn't cheating on Ivy, and he didn't have the intention of ever doing so, he just didn't know why he was so hesitant to tell her about it. He grabbed his coat and went outside but he was shocked to find Cynthia seated on the porch. "You, again? What the hell do you want from me?" He questioned angrily. "I thought I already made myself clear when I said I wanted nothing to do with you.""Relax tough guy, I'm not here to seduce you or anything. Just think of me as a friend for now." She smiled, rising to her feet. "What do you want?""Here." She handed him her phone. Van was reluctant to take it at
Ivy frowned but she didn't say anything else because the bus had arrived, and it would only be pointless and embarrassing to fight on the bus. The ride home was quiet and it felt longer than it should be. Ivy knew something was up, Van would never get so worked up over nothing. She wasn't trying to insinuate that he was cheating on her or anything like that, she just wanted to know what happened between he and that lady. The rest of the day was ruined for Ivy and she couldn't even eat. Van didn't say a word to her, and she didn't bother to ask him anymore. The silence in the house was killing her, and she desperately needed to clear her head. "Where are you going?" Van demanded as she walked towards the entrance. "Nowhere." She replied without looking at him. "Ivy, about what happened this morning –""It's nothing right? That's what you said, isn't it? Yeah, I've heard." She slammed the door as she walked out. The night was fast approaching so Ivy didn't want to venture too far
Ivy could barely sleep all through the night, Jasper's words still echoed in her head. What bothered her more was the fact that he was right. Macy was so in love with him that she would believe what ever he said in a heartbeat. To say something like that and expect Macy to believe her, Ivy would need proof. "Hey you," Van kissed her forehead. "How was your night?""It was good." She hated lying to Van, but it was Macy's wish to do so, so she had no choice. "Where did you run off to so early in the morning?""I went for a little run. Just needed to stretch my limbs for a while." He had met Cynthia again, and Van was convinced that she was spying on him. He just wished he had a way to permanently shake her off. "Are you okay?" It seemed like something was bothering him, but anytime Ivy asked what it was, he would just smile and say it was nothing. "I'm okay." He smiled. "You know you can tell me anything, right?""Of course. And I will, if anything happens.""Okay. So what are we do
"Well hello Mr 'I'm a married man', what are you doing out here on this fine day? Shouldn't you be at home snuggling with your wife?"Van had noticed Cynthia about five minutes earlier but he intentionally ignored her, walking off in the opposite direction to avoid her talking to him. "Hi." He said without looking at her. "What's wrong? You look worried. Wanna talk about it?""I'm fine. I should go." Van started to walk away but Cynthia ran to his front, blocking his path. "Listen to me, I don't know why you're doing this, but I assure you, I'm not a bad person." Her smile was still on her face but her cheery voice was sounding more forced, like she was trying not to get angry, or to show that she was already angry. "I never said you were. Now, may I go?""Oh come on, you don't have to be so difficult. There really is nothing wrong in you making friends. It's not like I'm asking you to chase away your wife or anything.""How did you know I'd be here?""What?" She looked shocked by
"Ivy, are you free today?"Macy told Ivy that she would arrive in Hawaii the day before, but her flight was delayed so it took another day. "Hmm I'll have to think of what to tell Van, but, I guess I could try.""Think of what to say? Since when do you need permission from Van to leave the house?""It's… complicated. Don't worry, if I'm able to convince Van, I'll fill you in on all the details.""Okay, I'll text you the address.""Alright." She hung up and let out a sigh, the whole 'Macy mystery' was still bothering her. "Who was that?"Ivy jumped as she heard Van's voice, she didn't know when he walked in. "It was no one, just a friend." She lied. "Okay well, I need to go out for a while." He said, grabbing his coat from the closet. "Oh? Where are you going?""Boyd asked me to meet him at the beach, he said there was something he wanted to talk about.""I didn't know you and Boyd were that close.""We're not. I just want to hear what he has to say, plus, it'll be rude to just igno
"Hey Ivy, where exactly are you in Hawaii?""Uh in a small town, uh Kailua Kona, I think." When Van first told her about the place, she was surprised as to how he even knew about it in the first place. He said he chose it because it was rich in Hawaiian culture and history. Then they had the best stores and restaurants. "Okay," Macy replied. "I'll stay somewhere close by, so it'll be easy for you to come to me. Let me know where you're staying so I can make living preparations too.""Uh Macy, what exactly is going on?" The mystery was making Ivy crazy. She wanted to know what the issue was, and Macy was seriously avoiding that topic. "I already told you, it's not something we can discuss on the phone. We'll be there today, and we can talk better then.""Okay, wait today?!" When she said she wanted to fly over, Ivy never expected it to be so quickly. And did she say we? "Wait Macy, aren't you the only one coming? You said we.""Like I said earlier, we'll talk when we land."She said
Van couldn't believe what he was hearing. How dare he boldly say such a thing to him?"You know you have some nerves, my wife is not an object you can just buy." His voice had an edgy tone to it. "Everybody has a price, Van. Just name yours, and I'm ready to pay."Van felt his blood rising and he had the overwhelming urge to punch him in the face, multiple times. He was about to say something else when he felt Ivy's touch. Ivy knew what was likely to happen next if she didn't do anything. She grabbed hold of Van's arm, keeping him from doing anything rash. "Let's just go, Van."He glared at Chris for a second before turning to face Ivy. "Yeah, let's just go."They had started to walk away when he spoke up again. "Just know this, Van, Chris Efron wants that lovely lady, and Chris Efron always gets what he wants."★★★Van had been pacing for almost ten minutes, and he wouldn't calm down no matter what Ivy said. "Really Van, don't get yourself worked worked up over nothing.""Over noth