"Hello, what is that in your hands?" Estelle barged into her brother's office slowly. She had been told on the internet by strangers that there was an issue with her company yet both of them were right here and there was nothing that prepared her for that "So, tell me, what do you intend to achieve by selling the company? I won't allow you to do that.""Can't you see that the company is in shambles? Let's just take our egos and leave right now, you can't just expect that we should just stay and watch it die completely in our hands. There's certainly no joy in that. You hear me?" "We can't just give up like that. I mean, we have to make sure that our father's legacy doesn't go down the drain. I can't wait to see you have a rethink about your decision. I mean, this is very annoying. Why is your idea of repairing this include leaving the company?" Estelle complained. She was bewildered by the latest things happening in the office. The Leonard she knew would ensure that he got things r
Emma pulled away from his hold and rushed off to her house, not wanting any issue of any form because she wasn't sure what was going to happen if she stayed there. Leonard smiled a bit and walked into his office. He had made his intentions known to her and he was sure that she felt the same way but was just trying to hide away so that they wouldn't fall into any error of any sort.He heard the front door shut slightly and he knew that Emma had escaped. Without further Ado, he made sure that he rushed off to catch her before she left. Emma was about to round the corner when she saw Leonard walking towards her. "Come back, it's late." "I'll get a cab, don't worry about that." She responded and he stared at her with a small smile on his face. It wasn't any issue at all. "Thanks for coming to check up on me." She said softly.Leonard didn't waste time in making his decision. He swept her into his arms and the gateman began to laugh. Emma was very embarrassed and she hid her face into
"Who is speaking?" Leonard replied, he was not taking any chances."I want to propose a business to you.""I'm all ears." He replied and stared at his phone softly thinking about how to make sure that he got other things in order. Like making sure that he flushed out certain people who were not fit to work with him ."I want to reinvest in your company and set it afloat and I would have fifty percent of the company." "I don't want you to invest in my company. thank you very much for the offer." "You should reconsider this statement. Your company is going under and there is nothing that you can do about it." "I am not interested, take your deal somewhere else." "I don't want you to allow your ego cloud your senses." Leonard's brain quickly clicked and he realized that he was probably being pranked. "Is this what my brother put you up to? To try to take me away from my company. Tell him that he should take it to heart. He's been kicked out of the company for what he did." "I don't
Ava was up the next morning and decided to go wake up her father immediately. She didn't know where he was after checking his room and finding out that he wasn't present. She took a detour and went to Emma's room, surprised to see Emma sleeping and her father watching over her.It was perfect. Mommy and Daddy. She didn't know why she liked her aunty so much. She giggled and this caught Leonard's attention. "Darling, what are you doing here?" He asked her and she smiled at him softly. "I came to look for you. Is Aunt Emma sick?" "Oh, no. I just came to wake her up but she looked too cute." Ava's nose scrunched up in confusion."Daddy, do you like my aunt?" She asked him.Leonard discovered that anytime she was serious, she referred to her as her aunt. " What happened to you calling her your mom?" He asked her purposely to change the subject." Well, she's my aunt and my mom, I can call her anyone I like. She doesn't mind it. Or do you think she does?" "Oh, obviously not. She doesn'
Leonard swung into action, slipped his feet into slippers and carried his daughter out of the room. He also reached for the keys on the table and rushed off immediately. He didn't want any excuse for her to encounter harm. "Oh my goodness." Emma muttered when she saw him rushing out. " What happened to her?" She followed him but he shook his head. "What do I do?" "Lock up dear." He said and she ran back into her room, took a quick shower and made sure that she locked up the whole windows and doors, carried the keys and locked the main entrance."Let's go!" Leonard said and they all rushed off. Their hearts were palpitating as Leonard drove. The only ray of hope that flickered in his mind was the fact that she was still breathing if not he would have almost ran mad. This was the only person that loved him unconditionally. At the hospital, Leonard rushed out of the car and started to race to the reception. "Make sure that my baby is okay." He orders and the nurses nod before colle
The door swung open and the doctor walked out, "Mr Leonard, Miss Sophie, I need to conduct an emergency test for Miss Ava. We need some blood.""Oh? I can donate it. Mine matches hers." Emma offered but the doctor shook his head. It was just a few weeks ago that she donated blood for her"I need to see you in my office." He says staring pointedly at the parents and Emma felt a bolt of disappointment at the subtle sidelining. She would never have expected it but she guessed she had to embrace that reality. Try as she might, she wasn't Ava's mother.The parents followed the doctor quietly to his office and motioned to the chairs opposite him. "So, what's wrong with my daughter?""She has an immune disorder that's hereditary. I want to know how long you've had it." The doctor said and Leonard stared at him blankly. "What immune disorder?" He repeated after the doctor. He didn't have any of that and was wondering where all of these were coming from."Won't you say something, dear wife?"
To say that Ava was disappointed was to say the least and immediately Leonard walked in he noticed that something wasn't right, trying to find out what that was a tedious task because everyone was hellbent on saying that they were fine when in reality they weren't"Ava, darlin. What's wrong with you? You look sick and pale. I thought the doctor said you were recovering?" He glanced at Emma discreetly, asking what happened.Emma simply shrugged because she didn't want to be the one who broke the news to him that his daughter had found out about her paternity and that was what was happening right there. She knew that it would crush him badly and that he would want to really hurt her estranged sister. She was a preacher of peace and not war contrary to what her sister thought and it wasn't going to be the same again if she allowed Leonard take laws into his hands. Leonard was shocked when Ava began to cry. He was just returning from a meeting with Estelle that took a toll on his mental
"What's the latest news?" Leonard replied, switching back to work mode immediately. Emma cradled Ava's head softly and continued stroking it. "It would be okay, I guess." "Why don't we speak outside?" Estelle suggested not wanting Ava to hear what's happening. " She's too little to handle the information." She whispered."I can hand..." She trailed off, remembering that her father had taught her not to interrupt adults when they were speaking unless it was absolutely necessary."So, what happened?" Leonard inquired from Estelle immediately he shut the door and she sighed. "When I got into work today, I heard that some of the workers had begun a protest demanding for their salary and acting as though we had refused to pay them after settling them with the first installment. This made me know that there was obviously someone behind it and it's none other than our beloved brother. The funny thing is that I was not able to locate Antonio." "Why did he abscond then? Were you able to ge
One year laterThe sun cast a golden glow over the vast, manicured gardens of the prestigious Grand Regency Hotel.A venue renowned for its grandeur and elegance. The garden, transformed into an ethereal paradise all thanks to the best wedding planner in town.It was the perfect setting for the wedding of the century between Estelle and Silas, the Controller General.Guests from all walks of life, including dignitaries, politicians, celebrities, and high-profile business moguls, filled the garden, their elegant attire creating a vibrant tapestry of colors. The air buzzed with excitement and anticipation, mingling with the scent of blooming roses, lilies, and orchids that adorned the space.A grand archway, entwined with white roses and ivy, marked the entrance to the ceremony area. As guests entered, they were greeted by the soft, melodic strains of a live orchestra, playing classical pieces that echoed through the garden.Crystal chandeliers hung from the branches of large ancient o
“Hahaha, very funny" Antonio laughed hysterically, glaring over at his brother from the corner of his eyes.“And when exactly did you become a police officer that you think you have the right to tell me to freeze?” Antonio scoffed with malice in his voice.“I always knew you were dumb-witted but this is a whole new low,” he laughed again uncontrollably. “Do you think being a cop is transferable or something? Just because you’re an in-law to one?” Antonio asked sarcastically, but Leonard left Antonio's words hung in the air unanswered while giving time for the police to surround the house. "Leonard, Leonard, Leonard, " Antonio called out his name, his teeth making ‘tsk-tsk’ sounds as he shook his head in disapproval.“You amaze me sometimes, you know brother?” he continued. "Always thinking you were better than everyone else and had it all together but we both know you never did.” He said while he laughed moving towards Estelle but she pushed back from him. “Even taking our sister'
Leonard frantically looked through the CCTV cameras at the venue of the wedding, his face was beaded with sweat but he somehow managed to remain calm compared to the rest of them he was the one who was calm the most. The day before which was the last day before the wedding he had spoken with Estelle so how was it that she had just gone missing on the day of her wedding? How could she have just vanished into thin air without a word of warning? It had been a couple of hours already but the family wasn’t in a hurry to let the media or the public in general know anything about all that had happened, at least not until they got the bearing back together and had figured out at least something about what was going on, could she have run away on her wedding? That didn’t seem feasible, particularly because of how happy she was during the preparation, she was truly excited to be with Silas, but at the same time, she was afraid that something would happen and perhaps as a cruel joke played on
Leonard began to go through the accounts book and began to see a large number of errors regarding the money going in and out of the firm, at this time Antonio had been arrested so it was up to him to take over the company and oversee all that was going on within it. But what he was seeing in the books did not put him at ease at the very least, on the contrary,, it made him feel rather disturbed, what exactly had Antonio been doing for so long in the company, what had he been spending so much money on that he didn’t care about the losses it incurred so frequently?He asked himself inwardly and then with a sigh he stood up and decided to question the people who worked for Antonio starting with Alice.She was the only one he actually trusted to tell the truth about what was really going on in the company and every office, as for the others he could not exactly be certain which ones among them were still in contact with or still willing to work for Antonio. He couldn't be more angry at
Sophie paced back and forth in the place she had decided to take shelter which wasn't anywhere comfortable but was some place in the slums, her past self would never once have even imagined that she would ever have a day of such humiliation, a day when she would be trying so hard to fight a losing battle against the monster that was the law. And as it was in that moment this monster was mere minutes away from finding her and choking her to death, as she pondered she recalled what Antonio had said before, both what he said about having more affluence and what he told her to do then with Emma, but it was as she thought about it that she shook her head and decided not to, she was already in hot enough soup, she didn't need to add any more fire. She really didn't know everything about Antonio or what his endgame really was, but one thing she knew that she could count on if she decided to work with him was the fact that somebody was going to have to die, it was just a matter of who, and
The next dayAs Leonard looked up at the exterior of the company's building, memories started flooding in, he began feeling a sense of nostalgia.The company was a sleek and modern marvel! It appeared as a gleaming giant, its facade a vast expanse of silver-gray glass and steel that seemed to stretch up to the very sky. The entrance was marked by a bold, oversized logo in a bright, electric blue color that seemed to pulse with energy. The walls of the building appeared to be made of a shimmering glass material that reflected the surrounding light, giving it a sense of depth and dimensionality.Overall, it was one damn of a cutting-edge technological company and Leonard couldn't imagine how Antonio might have managed to ruin it.As he climbed the wide stairs leading to the entrance, he cleared his throat trying his best to ignore the nervousness he was feeling.Questions like–would he even be able to fit in? What if no one wanted him there? What if he couldn't catch up and missed ever
A week laterIn the courtroom, filled with a shimmering sense of hope, Leonard stood in his small wooden cubicle before the judge.Everyone present, expecting nothing but good judgment. Through the thick lenses of the judge looking down on everyone from her high seat, with a hand she picked up her gavel with one hand and struck it twice on the gavel stone.“Leonard, you are hereby acquitted and released from all your charges,” she declared with a sounding voice as light applause began to fill the room.As Leonard made his way out of the court, a whole flock of people including the press, news reporters, broadcasters, the media were outside waiting for Leonard to emerge and once they got sight of him, they all came running to him at once.Lenoard tried his best to stay composed as multiple cameras and mics were getting shoved in his face. “Leonard, look here!” One reporter said, “No, Leonard look here,” another blurted out. “So you were really accused?”The questions kept rolling and
Estelle adjusted herself on the seat provided before Leonard, sitting upright so she could get a clear view of her brother's face through the security glass partition.“What do you mean by that Leonard? You don't want to work for the company anymore when you come out?” Estelle asks, trying to clarify.Leonard noded, “Just as I said Estelle, I don't think going back to that company is what I want to do.”“Don't think like that Leo,” she started in a convincing voice. “I mean, the company's faith depends on you. Speaking of which, it has already run down significantly, although we haven't run into any debt. What I'm saying is if you leave now, it will be in total shambles.”Leonard looked away for a moment sighing and if he thought Estelle would give up so easily then he was mistaken.“I honestly don't understand how Antonio is running that company, people literally loved you Leonard! In fact it was those same people who advocated for you to be released after all the evidence came out a
In the boardroomThe atmosphere in the boardroom was thick with anticipation. Silas, a commanding presence with an air of authority, stood at the head of the table, his eyes scanning the faces of the gathered board members.“Thank you all for coming,” Silas began, his voice steady and firm. “Today, we address the matter of the DNA test results.”He looked over at the corner where the police officers he was here with today stood. And with a flicker of his wrist, one police officer came forward, handing him over a brown envelope.Silas took the brown envelope, bringing out the documents within, lifting it up in the air so everyone present in the boardroom could see so there'd be no chances of anyone accusing him that he'd slip anything in.“May a neutral person come forward?” Silas announced and a junior officer appeared before him from the crowd. He hands the documents over to him. “Distribute them.” With that the junior officer nodded, beginning from the first person, he went one aft