Aaron woke up with a throbbing headache and his head was placed on one of the cushion pillows on the hard floor. He tried to recall what had transpired in the early hours of the morning but came up blank. All he could recall was gushing out his heart to Anna. Fuck! He just did what he would not have done on a normal day.“Good morning.” The sing-song voice of Anna had him rising to his feet. Still blinded by the effect of the liquor, he held his throbbing head in his hand. The crackling sound of scrambled eggs and the fresh scent of coffee filled his nostrils. “You woke up quite early, I expected you to sleep straight into the afternoon. You are a light sleeper.” Anna bent down on the floor he was subjected to for the night and smiled…“ I made breakfast.” She whispered, in her smile-laced voice.It took Aaron a while to take cognizance of his environment and stand on his feet. “How did I get here?” He asked in blankness. He could barely remember a thing. “It took me a while, but I
“Gus, any news?” A call from Gus came in not too long after Helen exited the threshold. Aaron held onto the rail, hoping that Gus found some dirt on Lucas. His gut instinct told him that whatever occurred, behind closed doors, had Lucas's name boldly imprinted on it. But he needed enough proof to vindicate Helen.“Nothing so far, but, I asked around and found out Lucas returns to the quarters later than the others,” Gus reported, a hint of mystery in his voice. Aaron wanted to get to the bottom of this. So far, the media and their voluptuous appetite were yet to get a hold of the deets surrounding the arrival of the FBI and ambulance. But, a single sniff would send their senses on overdrive.“Follow him closely, Gus, I trust your intuition.” Aaron had to give Gus his well-deserved accolades. Gus was going to get to the bottom of the mystery that plagued the Churchill mansion. Aaron returned to the dining area and found Anna enjoying her meal. “I made a plate for two,” she offered A
"ew evidence has been found, Mr. Churchill.” Aaron listened with rapt attention to the newest development in the murder case of Julian Sullivan. Inspector Suarez continued in his grumpy voice, “His neck has lots of bite marks that show he either was bitten by a rabid dog or we have a wild human being on the loose.” Inspector Suarez informed Aaron, who found it difficult to believe such a gruesome death was meted out to an innocent fellow.“I need Helen to report to the station.” Inspector Suarez finally hit the nail on the head on why he called. Suarez had to perambulate for a while before saying his main reason for calling. Helen was needed back at the station, for further questioning. His heart went out to the lady who had to go through such a rigorous process. Suarez's gut instincts never lied, it had stuck with him all through his years of service and this time around, it pointed to Helen as a victim of circumstance.Helen kept her head high and shoulder higher as she walked in
After three whole days, yet no call from Gus, Helen had become a shadow of herself and even Emily walked on eggshells after the fake falling, and well-battered face. A lot was going on, and the weight of it all had begun to take a toll on Aaron. He heard that wealth came with a series of responsibilities, but this was by far not the dream.“What are you deep in thoughts, son?” Grandpa, Adolph, snapped him back to reality. He stared at the golf field and the golf in his grasp, an excuse that would satiate the old man's curiosity, Aaron thought of, but came up with nothing. Grandpa Adolph was oblivious to what had transpired in the Mansion, and Aaron wanted it to stay that way. “It's nothing, Grandpa, just some problem at home with Anna.” He used Anna as bait to get the old man off his tracks“Hmm.” Grandpa Adolph, gave him a straight-up, eye-locking stare, waiting for a well-described explanation. Saved by his phone that buzzed in his golf shorts, he excused himself from the golf a
Gus appeared to have fallen off the radar, there was no sign of him, nor did he report back since the last time Aaron had a conversation with him. He wasn't the type to fall off the surface of the earth or flee the scene. Aaron tried his number again, but it ended up in his voicemail. “Daddy, play.” Ryan beckoned on his father to come help him with his new toy house. Emily had taken a leave, in the bid to visit her family that requested her presence. She deserved a leave of absence to recuperate and recover from her ordeal at the mansion. The CCTV camera above Ryan's nursery, blinked red, which drew Aaron's attention to the red eye that watched down on them.With Ryan placed on his shoulder, he headed to the CCTV room. Only he had access to the lock and knew the passcode, which prevented other outside and external forces from breaking in and deleting important visuals. Aaron played the video to the day of the incident, watching each cam closely. Nothing, there was nothing out of
Aaron's standpoint at the wailing figure of Julian's mother, prevented him from offering his condolence to her. Call it guilt, but he placed logical reasoning over his conscience. “Mi Hijo!” She cried aloud, her shaky figure, a sign she would soon be admitted to the hospital ward if no one did anything to separate her from the lifeless form of her son.“Bring him back, bring him back!” She helplessly flailed her hands in the air at the mortuary attendant, who stood still, welcoming her painful advances. “Miss Sullivan, I need you to be calm in situations like this, I promise you to get to the bottom of this,” Suarez spoke in a voice that would send the actual culprit into hiding. Aaron, for a minute moment, admired his audacity.Soli Sullivan could not believe in her wildest dreams that her son had become a corpse. His jarred neck and agape mouth showed her how many affiliations he had to withstand. When Suarez approached her for an autopsy, she blindly signed the papers, not acce
“The make-up brand in Korea will be rebranded in the coming month, I want to be present and grace the occasion.” Aaron looked forward to the event, and could not wait to visit Seoul. To him, it marked a milestone in his life and a legendary watermark in Churchill's history. The conference hall buzzed with his major shareholders and affiliate CEOs as they all paid attention to his planned event.“Churchill, that name rings a bell.” His mind flew back to the new findings that came with yesterday's visit to the morgue. “My husband worked for the late, Churchill's senior.” Soli's face of remembrance, and the disgust that followed afterward, made Aaron question what he owned and how they were all acquired.“Mr. Churchill?” Ariel lightly tapped his shoulder as a rye projected makeup specimen shone on his face. “So sorry about that, so…” Aaron continued, the meeting a success, but his raging mind remained in a frenzy. “Ariel,” he beckoned to his assistant, who stubbornly chose to work, des
The grim look on Grandpa Adolph's face said it all. He was very well acquainted with that name. The smile he wore slowly faded into a deep frown, with worry lines visible on his forehead. “Where did you hear that name?” Grandpa inquired from Aaron, who itched for some answers.“You are yet to answer my question, Grandpa Adolph. Who is Sullivan and what does he have to do with Churchill?” What, best, described this shitty situation, had no place in the American dictionary. Aaron needed to know why someone with a Sullivan surname had to be murdered in his space and such a gruesome and evil manner. The sour taste of guilt overwhelmed him and deep down, he dreaded the truth yet untold.Adolph hoped to the heavens that he would not be placed in between the crossfire the late Churchill senior had engaged himself with. Now, he had to explain an incident that he warned against and foresaw the implications in the future. Aaron waited eagerly, his patience waning out as Adolph took his time to