Clara didn't stop screaming, to Declan's amazement. He just stood still and watched her create a scene. She was beginning to attract people to where they were.
"Are you alright ma'am?" A man in a security uniform walked up to them and asked first.
"Please help me. This man right here tried to hit me! Oh gracious."
"She's a blatant liar. I did no such thing."
"Of course you did!"
Clara brought out her other wrist and flashed it before the Security guard. She had an old injury on it but claimed it was a resulting injury from how Declan twisted her hand.
Declan was amused by her gaslighting skills only that she tried it with him.
"Can I take a close look ma'am?"
"Please do"
The security man surveyed the red wrist and assured her he would do something to help her. He stepped aside and spoke into his walkie-talkie. In no time, two other guards joined them, each standing at Declan's both sides.
Clara had a few other people gather around her asking if she was okay.
"He is a cheat. I caught him cheating on my daughter and he blocked me out here to take his revenge. Oh! what I pass through is unbearable" she broke down again letting more tears flow down freely.
"Thank goodness you're okay. Throw him behind the bars and lock him in there forever. Young men these days have little or no dignity" A petite elderly lady interjected.
"Oh! How I wish my daughter would let me. She is drunk in love with this monster" Clara kept on wailing and Declan was beginning to get irritated.
"I should be on my way. Enjoy your little show while it lasts" Declan stated and made to leave but was blocked by the security guards
"And why are you on my way gentlemen?"
Declan was stern and exuded a clear aura of superiority to Clara's amazement. She had expected him to cower and begged her to calm down.
"Arrest him! Don't let him leave. He is a cheat and also tried to assault me!" Clara accused Declan, pointing fingers at him.
"I'm sorry about that ma'am but an arrest will carry on after you file a report." One of the officers stated.
"A report? Uhm..." She walked up to Declan, her face now framed in a smirk.
"You know what will happen if I file that report? Trust me, you will stand no chance. Now kneel down and apologize, I might show some mercy to you."
Declan scoffed at her delusion. She never ceases to amaze him every damn time.
"Me? kneel to beg you? Your level of delusion could be strikingly bothersome but trust me not to care."
Clara gasped dramatically "You heard him, all of you. He's an unrepentant bastard!"
"You can call me worse if you wish. I'm so done here" Declan stated and walked away.
Clara was taken aback. She had expected Declan to succumb but was bothered he didn't. His arrogance was getting over the roof and she wondered what gave him the nerves.
"Don't let him leave! grab him and beat him up!" Clara ordered at the top of her voice.
Just immediately, five luxurious SUVs zoomed in and stopped in the midst of everyone. Bodyguards all dressed in a neat black suit strolled down and stood right before them.
"What's going on here? Who are these people" Clara became uncomfortable and took some steps backwards.
One of the men stepped forward and showed his ID to the security guards.
"Mandy Asher demands you let him come with us, now"
"Mandy Asher? To let who go?" Clara demanded, struck on hearing Mandy's name.
"Him" The man pointed at Declan and everyone's reaction was bewildered. Mandy was a big name in the state. She was one of the most influential women and anyone who knew her must be connected.
"No! You can't let him go. He planned all this. He's a low life and there's no way he's acquainted with the Ashers!" Clara was frustrated. She was convinced the whole thing was just a trick Declan pulled off to escape. As far as she's concerned, Declan was a low life her daughter picked up to make his life better.
She turned to the second hotel security but he spoke before she could.
"I'm sorry ma'am but there's nothing we can do at this point. Thanks for choosing Hotel Antonio" The security guards walked away right after.
"You all are unbelievable! I'm surely going to leave a bad review behind since the safety of your guests can not be guaranteed!"
Next time she turned around, the cars were leaving with Declan in one and every other person had gone on with their business.
"Arrrghhh!" Clara's hands were molded in a fist, anger flashing through her eyes.
"I will make you pay Declan. You will not go away with this" The sound of her phone ringing calmed her a little when she saw the caller.
"May, my child. Your mother is going through the worst right now"
"Is everything okay mom? Where are you?"
"Oh my dear! That bastard lured me and tried to beat me up."
"What do you mean someone tried to beat you up? Where are you?"
"I'm at the hotel. I back for a meeting and Declan trapped me to a corner and beat me up mercilessly. I have bruises all over my body."
"Declan? Beat you up!?"
"Yes yes child. Your mother is in pains... arrrgh"
May was silent for a while. She knew better than to believe her mom outrightly "Mom.... But you admitted that someone just TRIED to hit you. How come you're saying he actually did hit you now?"
"I said what I said, May. Declan hit me! Are you not going to believe the words of your mother?
"Mom...."
"You always do this, May. Do you also believe your mom to be Maniac?" Clara's voice was beginning to crack. She didn't expect May not to believe her. She needed just one person to stand by her, knowing fully well herself was a handful. "No mom. Don't do that. It's just that— I know Declan well enough and I can't imagine him as someone that will hit a lady....let alone my mother." May was disappointed at her mom but she didn't want to go too far and make her feel worse. "So you believe his words over mine? You shouldn't be rude to your mother but that's alright" Clara sniffed, to clearly prove that she wasn't okay" "The point here isn't who I believe over the other. I just want you to stay out of trouble. To be honest you've been doing too much lately and it's not good for either you or I. The company is—" "I've been doing too much, you say? Everything I did, I did it for your ungrateful ass. So don't dare castigate me like the rest!" "My bad. Wrong choice of words, sorry. I
Leo felt insulted by Declan's attitude and couldn't hide his hate any further. He walked up to where Declan stood and took the paper from him, folded it and tucked it into his chest pocket. "What if I told you I don't believe any single word you've uttered from your mouth?" Leo started to walk back to Mandy, his hands clenched together at his back as he spoke. "And I don't mean only your claim that you trained on your own. But also the whole facade you pulled on about being a doctor and scamming this desperate woman into falling for your tricks." He looked up to Declan, meeting his eyes. "You know what I think? I think you're an imposter and a quack who just showed up for a high pay. I'm not sorry to blow your cover but will ask nicely just this once, that you leave before I disgrace and make you lose what's left of your dignity." A dead silence came after Leo's last word. Declan smirked and shook his head disparagingly at Leo's attitude. He picked up the fact that Leo was ins
Leo and Mandy instantly turned to Declan in confusion. "What do you mean?" Mandy asked first. She would get pissed if Declan failed to give a reasonable explanation to the words he just uttered. "It's a deadly concoction that can leave anyone dead few seconds after it's been injected into them." He said firmly. He's not just knowledgeable in healing medicine, but also knew quite enough about poisons too. He could tell it easily just from the scent of that mixture. Mandy's gaze didn't leave Declan's face and she could tell he was dead serious. He wouldn't be so unreasonable to play a trick on her in a situation like this. But then there's Leo, who was highly recommended for his expertise. She had heard testimonials from patients he had treated before. "Don't tell me you're taking the words of this maniac seriously. I warned you about having him in here" Leo was furious at Declan's claims. He walked up to his face, anger flashing through his eyes. "How dare you slander me? Why
Grand pa Asher's breath normalized. He was still deep in a coma and needed a few more days before he woke up. "What the hell just happened" Mandy was in shock. Her hands vibrated. She clasped them together to stay still. She couldn't imagine what would have happened if Declan hadn't come through. "Wait Mandy... I can explain. He was going to be better from the antidote I gave him. We should have just waited a little longer ""Wait, you say? He was going to die, Leo! He was losing so much blood!""It's not as bad as you think. I mean.... the blood you saw was the toxins flushing out of his body. I made him better. That last concoction wasn't necessary. This man right here just wants to take the glory of what I did!""You're unbelievable! I can't imagine I trusted you with his life.""So you believe him over me now? He simply finished what I started. Yes! It was my antidote that made him better"Declan was amused at Leo's Chicanery. He was a con and a master at it. He definitely did
May didn't say another word to Declan and his worry skyrocketed. "May! May!" He screamed into the phone before the call dropped. He tried to call her back but her phone was suddenly switched off. "What's up with May? Is everything alright?" Mandy tried to hold down Declan, concern plastered all over her face. "I don't know what's up with her. She's definitely not fine from the way she sounded, now her phone is switched off. I need to get to her right away. " He picked up his jacket and dashed off immediately."Wait! The herb...." Mandy called after him. His medical herb she found was in a box somewhere in the room. She tried to get it out and hand it to him."I will come pick it up later." ***May laid on her back, staring emptily at the ceiling. Her eyes were drowsy and everything around her appeared in twos. Some even in threes. She made to get up but fell back on the bed. Her head hurt like hell and she felt like throwing up. She was in a hotel room that belonged to Nathan W
Declan looked at the men before him, fifteen of them. They were all in dark shades and their faces were expressionless "Step back!" One of them ordered again. Declan assumed he was their leader. Declan's fist clenched at his effrontery. They were wasting his time and that was enough to piss him off. "Where is she?" He relaxed his fist and asked casually. He was going to ask them just once. "Leave now while we're still nice" The leader warned, shoving one side of his blazer open to flash a black pistol. Declan smirked. It's been a while since he got challenged. He looked at all of their fifteen faces and already knew how to handle them. They outnumbered him, but he undoubtedly outmatched them. In a split second, Declan moved swiftly and grabbed the leader by his neck with his left elbow before he knew it. His right hand pressed the leader's gun on his head. "One move from any of you and he would be as gone as yesterday" Declan warned the other subordinates whose guns point
Declan instantly recognized her voice. It was May. What have they done to her? He was terrified at the possibility that they had harmed her. His heart pounded in his chest as he approached the door. "May! May!" He called her name, banging on the door but no answer. The door was locked from the inside but it didn't stop him. This door was stronger than the rest. He continued to bang on it, to at least get a reaction from in there. To be sure she was okay. His fears intensified the same way his energy surged at the moment. Without a rethink, he moved back and kicked the door open in one attempt. What he met in the room was worse than he imagined. May was lying unconscious on the bed stack naked.... alone. "May..."He called. He approached her then paused. May was covered in blood, in her own blood and was unconscious. She had hit her head on the bed frame when she was fighting off Nathan and he threw her back on the bed. The sharp edge of the bed had torn her skull.
Nathan fixed a cold stare at Declan. His eyes were clouded with detest and pain and a deep frown marred his forehead. Declan returned the gesture with a daring glare. His mouth was curved in a smirk, a proof that he enjoyed every bit of gloat exuding from Nathan. His eye darted to the bed on hearing a wince. "May...." he had almost forgotten about her state. He moved to the bed and held her up."You're awake?...." He plastered a kiss on her forehead and lifted her into his arms. He looked down at her, his eyes saying every emotion his mouth cannot. He cursed under his breath and took her away. At the hallway Clara stood with Ashley, waiting. They heard footsteps approach and turned to see Declan with May in his arms. "Give her back!" Clara scowled, standing in his way. She was surprised at May's condition but didn't let it show. Her interest at that moment was to get her away from Declan. "Move from my way" Declan ordered with a tight jaw. His hoarse voice was cold and stern. He