Chapter 1.
'President, the same lady is here again, requesting to see you'
I snarled angrily. 'Do you need orders to send her out?'
He bowed slightly. 'I'll do that right away, sir'
Before he had the chance to depart my office, she stumbled in, scurrying close to where I stood. She looked disoriented unlike her usual self. Her hair was a mess, her face had sweat smeared all over it, her eyes red and swollen. The mere sight of her triggered memories I've tried so hard to seal within me. To my irritation, She dropped to her knees, looked up at me with tear filled eyes.
'What do you want me to do hunhh? To portray my remorsefulness? To beg for forgiveness? Tell me. I'll do anything you want' she clamored.
My expression turned cold. Few days before, this was what I wanted. Her kneeling before me, begging desperately with doleful tears in her eyes just like she made me plead but now, it angered me that she's doing this.
I allowed my hostile blue eyes peer deep into hers. 'There's nothing you'll do that'll appease for your sins, woman. Stop pestering me and save yourself the tiny dignity you have left' I croaked frenziedly, turning my back towards her.
She grabbed my legs to stop me from moving.
'I made you. Don't forget that!' she squealed.
I spun to face her. 'I won't remind you again to leave my office!' I roared rigidly.
She slouched her shoulders, weakly stumbled to her feet, stare up at me scornfully and whispered. 'How did you turn a devil overnight?'
Seven Weeks Earlier.
****DYLAN****
I stopped dead in my tracks. The gleeful expression I wore disappeared immediately, replaced by a frown. My mouth downturned, my face muscle tightened as I peeked harder at the couple, through the partially opened door. My dilated pupils stared unblinkingly while I digested the unexpected occurrence taking place indoors. I saw the lady I've been in a relationship with for three years now, the woman I've absolutely devoted myself too, showered with an unending, firm loyalty... She laid on the table, allowing my boss explore her partially naked body, lustfully.
She moaned, grabbed a fistful of his hair, encouraging him as he continued to trail kisses around her naked tits.
I swallowed hard.. my fist tightening unconsciously around the cup of coffee I was holding. What the hell was happening? She knew more than anyone else that he's my boss. Did she try to lure him into getting in a relationship with her? Is my boss unaware this woman is someone I'm dating? Maybe if he knew, he wouldn't be doing this…
This is wrong!!! How could she do this to me?!! I screamed in my head. I drew in steady breaths, tried to control the doleful tears that threatened to slide down my cheeks. I felt frustrated, helpless.
Extremely attentive to all that was happening in there, I didn't notice I was obstructing someone's path.
'Move!' he said through gritted teeth and pushed me rather violently, sent me an irritated glare before disappearing out of sight.
As I attempted to stir myself back to the reality of all that was happening, the door unexpectedly swung open. My eyes met Lauren's. She stood there, her earlier naked tits now concealed in a shirt. Her gaze pierced into mine and her lips curled into a dazzling smile.
'Baby.. Your coffee is here' she announced, acting down to earth normal, making me wonder whether she's trying to pretend I'm some kind of stranger now?
My frown deepened. ''Lauren. What are you doing here? Why do you call him baby?!' My voice shook miserably. I was unable to hide the hurt in my voice.
Her eyes widened in false disbelief. 'Really? He is your boss? It's a small world, isn't it?' she gasped.
I'm not given a chance to give her a proper response when my boss interfered. 'Let him in' he asserted.
I stepped further into the office.
I went in quietly, placed the coffee on his desk as required. As much as I wanted to say something to him, I decided to not do so, I could'nt afford to lose my job to this situation. I'd sort it out with Lauren when she's home.
I was one step out of the office when he summoned me back in.
'Do you not have something to say?'
I turned to look at him, my frown deepened when I noticed the wide, mischievous grin spread on his face. I'm doing enough to contain my anger and he's trying to provoke me?
'Or are you going to let this go as well?' he mentioned. I tried to place the intent his question is geared towards and I regretted doing that immediately. The truth I was trying hard not to believe stared at me in the face wildly.
My mind reeled. So he knew about us. He knew all along that I'm together with Lauren.
Again, I drew in several breaths to calm the surging rage within me.
'So, you knew?' My broken voice made my question come out like a whisper.
He took stealthy steps to where I stand.
'She deserves better, champ. It was disheartening to watch her go through a lot because of your incapability'
I didn't need to be told to know the incapability is referring to my financial status. He is right. I'm nothing but a poor messengerial staff whose job is to run errands for high staff. I depend on the measly tips they give me for upkeeps before my initial salary comes in..
'You should be grateful. At least, she is yet to dump you'. He added spitefully.
She snickered from where she sat, watching me under half lidded eyes. 'I'm doing that right now. Thinking about it, I've no reason I'm still dating him,' she mocked.
My heart pounded violently against my ribs at her statement. 'No Lauren. You can't do this to me.. you can't dump me!' I cried.
'Of course, Dylan. I can and I'm doing that right now…'
I rushed over to her, knelt on one knee, took her palm in mine. 'Remenber the promise you made to me. You don't want to defile it. Right?'.
She snorted. 'Promise?? Those are just mere words, Dylan. You shouldn't believe them.'
I shook my head rather aggressively, tears I was preventing now slid down my cheeks. 'Wait for me. A little more time.. I promise, I'll make it up to you'.
She snatched her palm and slapped me hard on the face. 'Never mention that to me again!!! I waited three years. Fvcking three years. I can't continue to be ridiculed because I'm with you. I'm putting an end to this relationship right now. I want nothing to do with you'...
The situation was driving me crazy.. Regardless of the fact that she cheated on me, I was ever willing to accept her back. I loved her so much and right now, I regret how hurt I'm feeling because of that..
'See… she doesn't want you anymore.. if I were you, I'll save myself some respect and stop begging like a st*pid man' my boss uttered.
I set to leave but was stopped again on the order of my boss, received more insults and curses the duo lashed at me till I was discharged.
My heart is hurt, I felt as though it's going to tear apart. I was a fool to think she was different. They're all the same.. they'll always leave the poor for the wealthy.. My raw grief doesn't make me stay any longer in the company. I left and hit the road home. Unknown to me, another tragedy was lurking in the shadows.
Chapter 2~ ~ Dylan ~ ~I walked out of company, my heart is completely shattered. I didn't know what to feel or how to feel. My throat constricted in pain, I swallowed back the tears that threatened to spill. Who gets a break up that effing way??I ignore the stares I was receiving from people, I probably look crazy, wearing a hand of my back pack, the first four buttons of my shirt open and my usual smooth hair now rough..I managed to catch a glimpse of myself in a street mirror, I looked so much like a mess, more like an homeless boy. All I want to do is slid down a wall and cry my heart out.I had so much plans for us, I thought about our future together. She was the reason I wanted to be a better person, be able to meet up to her expectations.A small sob escaped my throat, it sounded so foreign to me I had to glance back to see if anyone was near me. I was just by myself on a lonely road.The other side of the road seemed busier than the part I'm walking on.I thought about
Chapter 3~ Dylan ~'Mr and Mrs Charles' She quickly responded.The name… it rang a bell, reeked recognition.. a fearful one. My breath came in shorts and I felt dizzy immediately, an unusual feeling settling in the pit of my stomach. I clasped both sides of the hospital bed.. my mind working its way on the easiest way for me to escape. The nurse rushed to my side, pinned me back to the bed.I jerked my shoulders. 'Get your fucking hands off me!' I growled.'I can't let you leave here under my watch, especially when you're not fully recovered. If you don't want to see those people outside, say it. I'll have them leave immediately' the doctor interfered.I inclined my head in affirmation. 'Fine.. I don't wa…' I stopped mid sentence when a third party butted in.'How can he mention that to you, Doctor? He's our son. What son wouldn't want to see their parents?' the voice came from the ward's entrance.My throat constricted and I slowly gazed upwards to look at her.. I would recognize he
Chapter 4~ Dylan ~I woke up feeling an unbearable pain on both sides of my head. My butt cheeks remained on a hard, metallic surface, my hands were tied to the back and a twine knotted my ankles to the arm of the chair. This was more like an abduction.. No… This was an abduction. My eyes darted around the dim room. There were no fans, no bulb, no furnitures either. The paintings on the walls are mostly peeled off. The source of illumination came from outside, sipping in through the only window in the room. It was dirty and smelled like dust. A pile of clothes and documents were scattered across the room. Seems like it's more of a dumping ground.An excruciating ache shot through the whole of my body, triggering the one I felt in my head. My sight caught small bruises on my elbows and the back of my palm. I groaned helplessly, trying to psychologically soothe myself from the ache.I glanced around, searching for any instrument that can help cut the binds. I froze at the sound of appr
Chapter 5~ Dylan ~I twirled my hand, relentlessly trying to loosen the tight knot on it. It was as if with every attempt I made to free myself, the rope tightened. After several attempts, I was able to succeed but not without getting a huge red mark around my wrists. I reached for the blindfold, yanked it off my sight. My aching palm soothingly rubbed my throbbing eyes, relieving them slightly of the after effect impact of the blindfold. Blurry, black lines swam before me till I was able to adjust my eyes to the dim lighted room. I frantically attempted to undo the twine that tied my ankles to the metallic chair which came off a bit easier than I expected. As soon as I was free, I opted for the door and scurried out of the room, I winced fearfully when Darkness welcomed me again…'Where's this place? Where did they bring me?' I muttered to myself. Straining my eyes in the darkness, endeavoring to find an opening, something that'll assure me there's a way out of here. I followed my
Chapter 6Weeks Later~ Christain Forbes ~It happened that I eventually followed the men weeks ago to the 'family hospital'. As soon as I recovered, they made arrangements for me to settle back home. When I say home, I do not mean the slum I've spent nearly five years of my life living in, instead, it was a luxurious mansion, filled with maids and guards, expensive furnitures, cars and everything a billionair's house should possess. It wasn't until I met the mysterious Chairman Forbes that I started to understand what was happening. I was the lost son of the Forbes. The only son of my father and the heir to the family's heirloom. It all started out in a surreal manner but again, it started to make sense to me. Why I was in an orphanage home, why I was abducted, why they tried to lure me off to another country. I guessed right. I was a threat to their existence. I was no longer lost and I'm forever grateful for that. Neither my boss nor Lauren checked up on me all the while I was in t
Chapter 7~ Christain Forbes ~Pale blue eyes peered into mine as we sat across each other. The dark circles under her eyes indicated she's been deprived of a good sleep maybe.'What do you have to say?' I urged her to speak.Her lips pressed into a thin line before she spilled it. 'I'm having problem at the hospital'.My brows furrowed and I rested my elbow on the desk, leaned on it to have a closer look at her facial features. 'Why?'She rolled her eyes, her perfectly pouted lips nibbling against each other.'You should know better than anyone else'I cussed under my breath when the realization dawned on me.. that son of a bitvh. It's like he's got some nerve after all the wrongs he did. 'I'm sorry this is happening to you but my father informed me he already took care of things, so, he shouldn't bother you anymore…' I trailed off. 'Well, he's a difficult man, Mr. Dylan. He's threatening to fire me. He wouldn't even let me engage in any hospital activity. He's making everything d
Chapter 8~ Christain~'I expected you to recognize me right away. If not my face, my voice at least' he snickered.'Cut it out. What are you here for? Abduct me again? Slice my throat open or persuade me desperately to leave?'His facial appearance hardened.. He tapped the space beside him. 'Come Sit. We have a lot to talk about. Dear brother'My anger turned into astonishment as I cocked my head. 'Brother? What right do you have to call me that?'He tapped the sofa once again. 'If you really want to know then sit.. I'm afraid my neck would fall off from staring up at you if you remain that way'I folded my arms. 'Your presence makes me down to earth uncomfortable.' 'What are you proposing? That I leave?''Yes. Please do.''Aren't you interested in what I've got to say?'I shook my head. 'Forget it. I don't want to listen to whatever you've got to say' I bawled.He adjusted his suit. 'You should be interested. A little piece of information can save your life'My chin jutted out stub
~ Lauren ~The aura that welcomed me when I surfaced into his office was quite scary and unusual. Regardless, I set my bag on the table and settled on a seat.'You asked to see me. Is there a problem?' I asked since he's not talking to me first.'What do you think, Lauren? You think I'll remain calm after all I did?' he bawled, causing me to jump in my seat.I'm not able to grasp what he's really trying to say.'I don't understand you. What are you talking about?'He scowled, his eye balls bulging as they stare into mine.'i don't want to believe you've not heard about it'I shrugged my shoulders. 'Whatever this 'it' is, I sure haven't heard anything'.He shook his head scornfully, reached for a Newspaper on his table and threw it at me.My mind broke in to puzzles. He's never been like this towards me. What's with his change in behavior?'Are you going to read that or continue staring at me?'I got a grip on myself, transferred all of my attention on the papers he threw at me. The fi
There are no real friendships, no true relationships, and even if the feelings somehow turn genuine, they're immediately muddled by the talks of business and incessant urges to tie the knot in marriage if the family is a favourable one. Only if the family is a favourable one. If it isn't then they do everything to ruin those feelings and create discord between the ones involved. It was a messy life filled with pretense, politics and numbers. It made me sick to the bones. My father has apparently disowned me because I have yet again disappointed him after he fixed a wedding for me without my knowledge. I found out at the last second and fled, causing a effect I didn't quite expect and I didn't regret either. Apparently, I underestimated the publicity of this particular event and it spread pretty quickly that the daughter of one of the most influential businessmen in the country ran away from her wedding. People were quick to point fingers at my father, accusing him of forcing his
Raising a kid isn't exactly easy, you know," she said. "We're not suffering yet, but we're struggling. I would very much like to walk away from her, give you the middle finger and pray you die in an accident on your way back, but I can't." I flinched as she said those words. I forgot that she was also quite emotionally violent when she wants to be. "Why not?" She chuckled at my question. "Weird. Normally, one would be happy when they realize that they can't be cursed to death." I shrugged. "I can't say that I don't deserve it. Sometimes I wish for the same thing too." She gave a surprised look before continuing. "We need help, and even though you are a heartless, devilish, godforsaken, rotten, disgusting piece of shit, you have the ability to help us. You are rich and we aren't. Raising my daughter has been the greatest joy of my life even with our current situation, so raising her in a comfortable environment where she would be happy promises to bring even better joy. Despite t
The aroma of sizzling seafood pleasantly assaulted my nostrils as I looked around in search of the blonde beauty I came here for. I found her at the far corner of the restaurant sitting by a window wall and staring directly at me. I tensed up for a few seconds at the intensity of her stare but eventually relaxed as I walked towards her table. Even if I'm apologetic, I still have a reputation to uphold. I'm not gonna appear weak in front of her. "Hi, Donna," I flashed my best smile at her as I sat down on the seat opposite hers. "Hi," she said, her melodious voice filtering into my ears like a song. "It's...uh...nice to see you again," I said awkwardly. "I can't say the same, sorry," she shrugged. "I'd rather be with my child right now, or working." "Speaking of your child," I looked around her. "Where is.....your child?" "You don't know the gender, do you?" she asked and I shamefully looked away. I couldn't bring myself to answer that. "Well, she's okay, and happy where she is."
AUDREY HEPBURN I calmly exited my room once I was done with my exaggerated preparations to meet Donna. The maids gave me an apprehensive look as I made my way down the stairs before bowing respectfully as they hurried past me to do their jobs. "Good morning, sir," they said before heading in multiple directions and focusing on their chores. Even then, I could feel the tension in the air caused by my presence. "Everyone's acting like I'm the first person to attempt a murder on planet earth," I thought as I rolled my eyes. "There's a woman literally being called the worst human in the country and they just wouldn't ignore my little transgression." "Good morning, Audrey my boy," a calm sonorously thin voice greeted from behind me and placed a small frail hand on my back. "You look good today." I turned around with a sigh of relief as the old but beautiful nanny Helen graced me with her beautiful smile. She's been my nanny ever since I can remember and devoted all of her life to raisi
AUDREY HEPBURN The alarm clock blared in my ear causing me to slam it quiet with a groan. Rolling over on my bed, I let out a sigh. "I don't want to leave my room today." Just like every other day, I don't want to have to leave this room. I don't deserve to. My world has been turned upside down since that incident with Christian and sincerely, it's all my fault. I can't even blame it on anyone else. At the time, it seemed like the best course of action but now that I think about it, attempting to kill your step brother just because of a misunderstanding is quite extreme and malicious. Especially if it turns out that the woman you believed to be your mother was a lying bitch and you were infact biological brothers with the same step brother you tried to kill. That just brings it to a whole other level of terror. That was exactly what I did and now I feel like shit. For the most part of my life, I've always seen Christian as my step brother. I've always envied him, hated that he
There are no real friendships, no true relationships, and even if the feelings somehow turn genuine, they're immediately muddled by the talks of business and incessant urges to tie the knot in marriage if the family is a favourable one. Only if the family is a favourable one. If it isn't then they do everything to ruin those feelings and create discord between the ones involved. It was a messy life filled with pretense, politics and numbers. It made me sick to the bones. My father has apparently disowned me because I have yet again disappointed him after he fixed a wedding for me without my knowledge. I found out at the last second and fled, causing a effect I didn't quite expect and I didn't regret either. Apparently, I underestimated the publicity of this particular event and it spread pretty quickly that the daughter of one of the most influential businessmen in the country ran away from her wedding. People were quick to point fingers at my father, accusing him of forcing his
He was mocking me," I retorted. "Who in their right mind, would risk their reputation and business influence over a murderer's nobody daughter. For all I know, he might just be thinking of using me for some publicity stunt, and the last thing I need right now is more publicity." She sighed again. "From my standpoint, it seemed like he was genuinely trying to help. You were the one being difficult." I swallowed hard, the truth of her words hitting me but my obstinacy wouldn't let me succumb. 'I was trying to protect myself.' 'You've been so hard on yourself lately, Tiffany. Please, relax. Open up to someone who seems to understand more. He said nothing wrong' earlier, You turned his words against him and made it into something offensive." "Didn't you hear him yelling at me?" She let out yet another sigh. "It's hard to not be frustrated when the person you're trying to help isn't letting you help." "I don't need his help," I hissed. "I don't want anything to do with him." She let
I placed my hand in my pocket and slowly brought out my business card, then proceeded to carefully lay it on the table before backing away. "Call me when you've calmed down," I said as I headed out. "I'm sorry for the things I said." "Yeah, get out," she hissed. "And make sure to close the door behind you." With a heavy heart and a little anger at her reluctance to listen to or believe me, I closed the door behind, letting out a sigh before making my way to the car. My phone rang as I opened my car door and the caller ID was Courtney's, making me think twice about answering. I really am not in the mood for her requests and taunts. "What?" I asked as I reluctantly answered the call. "I assume it didn't go well?" "It's none of your business," I retorted. "What do you want, Courtney? I'm busy." "Well, first of all, stop using that tone with me," she warned. "Second, I think we can still find ways to help clear her name." "Nevermind that," I sighed as I got into the car. "She doe
"Would it kill you to say thank you?" she rolled her eyes as she revved her car engine. "You know what, never mind. Thank me by funding my newest project. Surely that's easier for you than saying the words, right?" I ignored her as I adjusted my clothes and walked away from her car. I crossed the road swiftly and headed for the house with my head down, hoping that she doesn't recognise me before I approach her door. I knocked on the door, praying again that the door opens before she realizes that I'm the one. It seems like luck's on my side as she opened the door while looking behind her. "Delivery?" she asked, her eyes still focused on something behind her. "Hi, Tiff." She froze at the sound of my voice. She remained frozen for a few minutes, as if trying to convince herself that she hadn't just heard my voice. "I know you heard me," I added as the silence stretched longer. She slowly turned her head to look at me and immediately gasped. "Oh, hell no." She tried to close th