“Lupita Nell, do you swear to say the truth and nothing but the truth?” Serena asked, standing right in front of the witness stand. “Yes” Lupita answered, her eyes boring into the jury.Ryan gulped hard. What kind of evidence would Lupita have that would make Serena late to the most important thing in his life currently, and even more confident than she had being the last time he saw her?Moving forward, Serena engaged Lupita in a series of questions that didn't make much sense at first but gradually began to lean towards the ‘grand evidence’. However, the prosecution began to chip in, asking controversial questions about Lupita’s past relationships.“Objection my lord! Such questions have nothing to do with the current matter and are only to lure the witness into a sense of cowardice!” Serena charged. “Objection sustained!” The judge’s voice rang. The prosecuting lawyer returned to his space with a fuming expression and Serena resumed with the questions. By the end of the inter
Wham! A slap landed on Ryan's left cheek. "Are you crazy?! Why do you want to embarrass me in front of my friends ?" Vanessa screamed at him. Ryan caressed his cheek, still shaken from the slap. It was not the first time she had slapped him like that and he knew deep down that it would not be the last time. "But I am your husband Vanessa…". "And a worthless one! You want the world to know I married you? hell no! Are you trying to sabotage me or my family's name for God's sake?! Now be a sensible person and leave my sight. I'll call you when I actually need you" Vanessa snapped at him. She watched him make his way to the kitchen with a defeated facial expression. But she didn't care. He was not going to get away with almost making the mistake of letting her perfectly curated life expose its horrible undertones. "Hey guys! I'm back!" Vanessa announced, urging the five ladies who had spread out on her king-sized bed to return their gaze from their phones to her. "Who was that
“What's going on here?”. That was Vanessa. Everyone turned to the direction of her voice. She clutched a bunch of shopping bags in her hands, while trying to balance her purse under her armpit. “Where are you coming from Vanessa?” Flora asked, concerned for their image. “That's none of your business mom, I am a grown woman” she spat. Vanessa looked around to see everyone staring at them. Then she spotted Ryan and instantly knew nothing good had happened. “Ryan, let's go” she commanded, dumping all the shopping bags on him. Ryan followed after her, wondering why she had saved him from the situation. He sensed that it was not merely to hold her shopping bags. It was completely unlike her. “Put down the bags in my closet and come join me in bed” Vanessa instructed. Ryan paused. “Huh?” He asked, surprised. “Don't make me repeat myself Ryan” she answered, dragging her words. Ryan did as instructed and returned to see her laying down, her legs spread out across the large
Ryan put his few clothes into a bag in preparation for his new life wherever he would find himself. “Going for a trip?” Kale teased. Ryan stared at him with the deepest anger in his eyes. Kale couldn't care less. “This…isn't…over, Kale. I will pay you back for all you've done to me, I promise” Ryan threatened, fighting back the tears in his eyes. “You're not even man enough to be a husband to your wife, and you want to face me? Haha!” Kale laughed. Ryan's eyes widened. "You thought I wouldn't figure it out? Your presence here always seemed suspicious. Have a nice life, loser" Kale added, walking away. Ryan clenched his fists. "Ryan! Mr. Jordan wants to see you” the head servant mentioned. Ryan dropped his fists by his side and adjusted the bag on his shoulder. It was time for him to leave. “It's good that you're ready to leave. From today, you and Vanessa are no longer married. You can return to the streets where you truly belong” Hans exclaimed, smiling wide.
"I know you may have several questions and I assure Serena will be there to answer them all. That's all, Ryan. I need to go and lay down now. I love you my son, always have, always will" Bethany concluded. The video ended. Ryan's eyes remained widened. "And that's where I come in" Serena jumped in, shutting her laptop. Ryan remained speechless. "Look, I know you had a rough childhood and all and I sympathise with you. If it makes you feel any better, she always mentioned your name in her happy moments, talking about how she wished you were with her...". "What's your purpose?" Ryan cut in sharply, his face devoid of any emotion. "Pardon?". "Why are you here?" Ryan repeated. Serena was confused, opening her mouth but no words came out. "Is it to appeal to my sympathy or get me to buy into this little seeking redemption act that my mother came up with?" Ryan posed. "Wha...". "Save it! I don't need you, my mother's or my goddamn father's sympathy for that m
Ryan walked into the bar with confidence, adjusting his tie. He spotted a few people sipping their drinks and engaged in different conversations. All of a sudden, they paused to stare at him. Ryan was confused. He had never had such an effect on anyone. It had to be his makeover. Ryan took the opportunity to wink at one of the few ladies who were obviously ogling at him. He felt like a god at that moment. He was invincible… “Excuse me, are you here to order anything or look for someone?” A voice asked. Ryan turned and his eyes met the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. “Oh no, I'm actually here to apply for a job. Is your boss in?” Ryan asked. “Oh, that's a wild assumption. I'm definitely not the boss, but he's my brother. I'm not a worker here” She answered with a straight face. “Thank you. Your eyes are beautiful though” Ryan blurted, staring at her enchanting green eyes. He had always been a firm believer in genuine compliments even if he had not received a lot of th
A WEEK LATER Ryan sat behind the counter at Danny's Bar, his new workplace. He had quickly become a favorite in the bar as a result of his brushed-up bartending skills. His reformed look earned him a special spot as the eye-candy for the groups of female friends who usually came around the bar to hang out. His coworkers, the other servers who worked away from his designated spot, quickly fell in love with his wit and free personality and began to enjoy his company and show him the ropes around his new job. It was safe to say that his first week at Danny's Bar was great enough especially since he had been used to the hatred and disgusted looks he had gotten most of his life. Ryan's life was starting to look up a little. It was not the best fresh start but he was just thankful to be free. Everything was going well at the bar until Ryan saw HIM. The same man who he had seen appear with Vanessa on different television talk shows and interviews, the supposed father of her unbor
“What do you want, Dahlia?!” Daniel lowered his voice. Ryan stopped to listen. He had come down to ask Daniel for something but it seemed like he was attending to something very private. “I want nothing else to do with you brother, believe me. I just need the money you owe me!” A female voice came on. “I don't have it! I already told you countless times that I don't have it! Why do you even need it so much? Seems like you were perfectly fine faking your wealthy status!” Daniel responded. “It's my bloody inheritance Daniel! Just because it was kept in your care and you ended up making very poor life choices does not give you the right to ask questions about MY inheritance!” She spilled. Daniel remained mute. “When can I have my money, Daniel?” She asked. “Soon. I'm working on something really huge at the moment so just…please bare with me Dahlia” Daniel said. “Good”. “And tear down this shack so you can focus on something that'll actually give you the kind of money you n
“Lupita Nell, do you swear to say the truth and nothing but the truth?” Serena asked, standing right in front of the witness stand. “Yes” Lupita answered, her eyes boring into the jury.Ryan gulped hard. What kind of evidence would Lupita have that would make Serena late to the most important thing in his life currently, and even more confident than she had being the last time he saw her?Moving forward, Serena engaged Lupita in a series of questions that didn't make much sense at first but gradually began to lean towards the ‘grand evidence’. However, the prosecution began to chip in, asking controversial questions about Lupita’s past relationships.“Objection my lord! Such questions have nothing to do with the current matter and are only to lure the witness into a sense of cowardice!” Serena charged. “Objection sustained!” The judge’s voice rang. The prosecuting lawyer returned to his space with a fuming expression and Serena resumed with the questions. By the end of the inter
Ryan nodded in support, spotting a half smile. “Thank you, Serena” Ryan found himself saying. Serena’s attention was far away, as she gazed at the wall without interruption.“Your face…was it him?...”.She shifted her gaze back to Ryan.“I…I'll explain later. I have to leave now to put some things in place for Sarah's funeral” Serena responded, standing up. “My condolences” Ryan muttered.Serena nodded slowly, walking away quickly. Ryan rested his head on the table briefly, blaming himself for all that happened. When he raised his head back up, the guard was already behind his chair waiting to escort him back to his cell. He wished his time with Serena had been longer like his mother's. Most of all, he wished all the good people in his life did not suffer further because of him. …“Ms. Roberts” Tony called, startling Bethany. She had just returned from the Central prison and she wanted to get a few of her documents in order before Tony's arrival. Too late. Now she understoo
Ryan opened his eyes as the stench from the adjoining toilet was the first smell that hit his nostrils. He rushed to the toilet, vomiting from the intense nausea.“Ha! Always these rich ones…you'll get used to the stench sooner or later, boy” an older man sitting at a corner laughed. Ryan shot an angry look at him and sat down, pushing himself against the walls of the cell.“Why’d you end up here, boy?!” The old man snickered. Ryan remained silent, fixing his gaze on the scribblings on the wall and trying not to concentrate on the oozing stench from the toilet. He was sure the old man had messed the toilet up while he was asleep. He hadn't said a word to the man since the previous day when he'd been brought to the cell. He was not in the mood to mingle. He was not built for this life, and he wanted to return to his life before meeting Tony.Most importantly, he wanted to know if Serena was safe.The hard brick he had laid on for most of the night had made his back sore.He didn
“This is certainly a nice surprise” Serena boomed from the entrance to the house. Ryan felt uneasy, forcing a smile as he shut his car door. He said Serena had built a weird friendship over the past few days and she wasn't the closest person to him but she had been through so much. The thought of harming her was like a bullet through the chest. “Fuck” Ryan muttered under his breath. He had begun to rethink his choices all over again. It was supposed to be a simple task and he'd already made up a plan in his head on the way.Kill Serena. Drop a knife beside her and a short suicide letter he'd also written on the way there. But his hands were now sweaty and fidgeting as he sat down on the sparse furniture in Serena's sister's home. “Hey. I'm Sarah” A raven-haired, slender woman offered a hand to Ryan. “Ryan. Great to finally meet you” Ryan answered, giving her a handshake. “My pleasure, Ryan. Thank you for what you did for my sister and her kids. It was…very brave of you” Sara
Ryan woke up with a throbbing headache the next day. He had barely shut his eyes until sunrise and his conversation with Tony still felt like a dream. A bad dream he kept reliving in his mind. “Hey!” Bethany shrieked as she bumped into Ryan. “Good Morning” Ryan mumbled, rubbing his forehead with his hand. He felt slightly dizzy and the fact that he was going to be downstairs before getting any aid was not going to help. “A head ache? I've got something for that, follow me” Bethany smiled. How did she know? Probably mother's instinct, Ryan guessed. Or the fact that he had been massaging his forehead consistently for the past minute. He followed after her to get room where she offered him some pain relief tablets and watched him swallow them. “Mom? Mom?” Ryan waved his hand in front of her face, snapping her out of her thoughts. “I'm sorry, Ryan. I just…I thought about how unfair it is that I only get to see you for a few more years and as a full adult. I was never around to
Ryan watched as Serena bundled her three kids into the backseat of his car along with a few of their belongings. He admired her grace-like nature and how well the kids believed in her and barely asked questions. They were probably used to this: packing up and moving suddenly as Tony was not exactly the biggest fan of his ex-wife. He felt pity for them, and in that instant wondered what life would be like for his own child if he didn't end up the victor in this whole sharade. “We're all set, Ryan” Serena spoke sharply, her eyes indicating that the sooner they were to move away from that location, the better for them. Ryan placed his hands on the steering wheel and drove off into the dimly lit street. They soon found themselves on the freeway and Ryan heard Serena breath with relief. He could not imagine how many phases of tension she had been through the past few minutes. “Where are you taking them?” He asked, glancing at her occasionally. “My sister who lives out of town. She
“You are a really great actress, Serena. Name your price” Ryan told her. “Excuse me?” Serena responded, amused. “Tony sent you here to probably ‘win me over’, didn't he? Now name your price so I can give it to you and you drop the act. I don't need any false pity Serena” Ryan spat. “You are totally misunderstood, Mr. Roberts. I despise Tony as much as you do right now and I just want to help…”.“I never asked for your help, neither did I tell you I wasn't capable of handling my own problems” Ryan cut in, coldly. His clenched jaw and distant gaze made Serena’s heart sink. But she was determined, even if she didn't have much time. “Why don't we have a meeting again, Ryan Roberts? Same time tomorrow, and I'll bring with me every possible proof that I'm not in any kind of alliance with Tony. Will that be enough for you?” Serena suggested. Ryan remained mute. He was not interested in meeting with her again, even if a small part of him wanted as much information as he could get from
Ryan remained fixed to the spot he had been standing on. He had fought to get away from the enemy, while being unable to see that his greatest enemy was right in front of him. He sat down on the sofa slowly, bending his head and covering his face. He was completely overwhelmed. The woman who had been in the room with Tony, appeared, using her hair to cover her face in shame. Tony had probably threatened her to get into bed with him. Ryan felt complete pity for her. “You may leave. I'm sorry for whatever this creep did to you” Ryan sympathized.The woman muttered a ‘thank you’ and slipped out of the apartment with tears in her eyes. Tony stood at a corner of the room, watching everything unfold. Ryan fixed his gaze at him with complete fury in his eyes. “Don't think about getting in a physical fight because I'd hurt you badly. I have several years of training. Just a friendly warning” Tony mentioned. “You're a monster” Ryan commented. “You're not the first person to say that, R
“Good morning” Serena greeted, her eyes hovering above his face. Ryan opened his eyes and sat up on the bed, watching Serena draw the curtains in his room open. “What are you doing in my room?” Ryan asked her. "Again, a simple thank you would suffice" Serena chuckled. She sat on the chair in the room. “ Well if you must know, I happen to be your designated saviour because I keep finding you everywhere but at a safe spot" she joked “Shit” Ryan cussed, the events from the wedding party coming back to his memory. “Work issues?" Serena probed. "What?". "Whatever got you so drunk and passed out at a bar that the owner had to go through your contacts and call me" She explained. “I wasn't…I wasn't drunk” Ryan pushed. “You don't need to lie, Ryan. I brought you back here, I saw the state you were in" Serena countered, her voice lacking empathy. “I'd rather not talk about it, Serena” Ryan responded. “You know that old saying that goes 'a problem shared is a…”. “I