The rest of the dinner passed in a blur and soon, everyone retired to their various quarters. Chase stayed up all night studying and preparing for his press conference the next day till the break of dawn. He had only been able to get in a couple hours of sleep before it was time to prepare for breakfast and work.A quick rap on the door got him more awake and he stretched out on the bed."Yes?" He called in his deep morning voice.Denise cracked the door open and peeked inside and when she saw it was safe to enter, she opened it the rest of the way. It had been a habit for his since working in Damien's quarters because she had seen naked women sprawled out on his bed more times than she could count."Good morning, young master," she greeted."You look radiant this morning," Chase commented on her Rosy cheeks and bright eyes as compared to how dull and pale she used to look the first time he saw her.She bowed her head, letting her long hair fall and frame her face so he wouldn't see t
"Oh, I will," Chase replied with an undertone of challenge in his voice. "Here," the empress' voice broke off their mini staring contest as she placed a piece of cheesecake on his plate and he sent her the warmest smile.Benedict and Jennifer scowled at the empress' display of affection for him but didn't say anything."Ride with me," the empress said to Theo as soon as they were done eating."Mother, I think Theo should ride with me instead. I want to get to know my nephew more," Jacob countered as he stood up from his seat.The empress eyed him suspiciously and was about to protest when Theo spoke up."I would love to, Uncle," Theo said cheerily. "Great, let's go," Jacob said and patted him on the shoulder."You don't have to," the empress said, eyeing him warily."It's just a ride, grandma. I'll be fine," he assured her and grabbed his coat before walking towards the direction Jacob went.Theo wasn't dumb. He could clearly see through Jacob's schemes and he knew they were not abo
The press went into a photo frenzy as everyone tried to get a perfect shot of the empress' lost grandson.The empress' guards stepped forward to shield the empress and Theo from the eager mob and their shouts till they made it to the elevated part of the room.Once they were seated, the empress raised her hand in the air and a deathly silence fell upon the room."You're all welcome. As we all know, Gab and Gabe's….." the empress began her speech and everyone listened intently.The empress was in the middle of the long table and by her right was Jacob and by her left was Theo and next to Jacob was Damien.The discomfort on Jacob's face was very visible but he just had to wait it out.The empress spoke for a while before she opened the floor for questioning."Yes?" She pointed at a lady with blonde hair."Ma'am, how did you find your grandson, Theo Alcantra?" The lady asked and the empress answered promptly.More questions were thrown to either her or Theo and they were all answered.Th
Subconsciously, his head snapped upwards and he saw the heavy chandelier falling and with the speed of light, he was by the empress' side and in one swift motion, pushed the recliner chair away and got out too.He had pushed a little too hard because the empress was sent flying to one side of the room where she fell on her ankle.She didn't have the time to comprehend what had just happened because in the next second, the loud sound of the chandelier crashing on the floor, breaking into a million pieces echoed throughout the room.Chase didn't move. The empress didn't move. They both stayed still as they reflected on what would have happened if he hadn't moved her out of the way. Or what would have happened if she hadn't followed him into the office and he was alone, seated on that chair.As if a force had pulled him back to reality, Chase's eyes snapped to where the empress was and he was by her side in the next second and crouched down beside her."Are you okay?" He asked at the sam
"What?" Imelda whispered.The empress didn't say anything but her hard eyes and set jaw gave Imelda the confirmation she needed."What exactly happened?" She directed her question to Theo this time as she tried to wrap her head around the whole thing. She had hopped into her car as soon as she heard from Jacob's assistant that the empress was rushed to the hospital."Forget about what exactly happened. I'll get to the root of it," the empress said.Two nurses and a doctor came in and after some exercises on the affected feet, the doctor spoke up."Luckily, nothing is broken, just a little sprain. With the right medications, you'll be up and running in no time, ma'am," he informed them."Thank goodness," Imelda breathed out.The doctor administered the prescriptions and the trio were left alone in the room again."Mother," Jacob rushed in a second after the doctors left. "Theo, can you explain what happened to my mother?" He asked sternly."Can you?" Chase bit back without missing a be
Even though the clip they just saw didn't answer the question of who was responsible, it confirmed Theo's thoughts without any doubt that someone had been responsible for it."Wrap it up," Theo said and began to walk out but the two men fell and lay on their faces as they begged Theo to have mercy."Please young master. We're sorry," they pleaded."Get your things and don't ever show your faces here," Chase told them.The men exchanged bewildered looks and started saying words of thanks to him before he went out.They were grateful that even though they had lost their jobs, they were still alive because they knew that if the empress caught a whiff of their incompetence, they would have been dead on the spot.They quickly grabbed their things and fled for their lives before the young master changed his mind.Agatha noticed Chase's sour mood as they took the elevator back to the office but she didn't dare ask what happened inside there.Chase went into the office as soon as the elevator
"Do you mean…?" Chase started to ask."Yes. You're going to Piliste tomorrow," the empress confirmed."Why?" Chase asked. It wasn't like he didn't want to go, because he wanted to go since he had unfinished business there, but it was out of the blues."Because you're my vice president and I'm incapacitated at the moment," she said easily.Chase wasn't buying her reason one bit, but he didn't argue."Fine," he drew out."Good. Your flight leaves by 7 am and you'll be going with Agatha," the empress continued and Chase made a non-committal sound at the back of his throat in agreement.All the empress wanted was for her grandson to be away for a while for the heat to die down. She knew that whoever pulled the stunt that day would definitely try it again and she didn't want any harm to come to him till she was able to find answers After the empress dropped the bomb, she finally allowed him to work in peace and the next couple of hours passed them in silence."I'll be in my room," he said
The rest of the dinner finished in silence as the family members exchanged deathly glares among themselves."Goodnight, mother," Jacob was the first one to leave the dining room and shortly after, his wife followed after him."I'll take you up to your room," Chase said when the empress dropped her glass of water and he helped her to her room."Don't forget to be ready for your flight by 7 am," she said as he tucked in the duvet that was over her."Grandma," he started softly. "Did you know what Aunt Regina was going to say?" He asked the empress.She looked to be in thoughts for a while before what he was asking clicked and her face hardened a bit and an unknown emotion ran through her eyes."Just random stuff. Pay her no mind," she waved it off.Chase wanted to press her for an answer but he decided against it."Goodnight, grandma," he said after applying the balm that was prescribed for her on her feet and giving her a little massage and he left the room.On his way back to his quar