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The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 107 • Recycling Centet
Lola was by the edge of the room on her phone as the man was seated in front of his desktop ready to open it. She knew that now was not the best time to be reposnding to Matthew’s message, so she quickly typed a response, telling him that now was not a good time to talk before locking her phone and shoving it into her bag. Xander was hovering over the man like a hawk as he opened the computer and navigated to the email were it was kept. Apparently, Lance had shared it to this man via email those many years ago. Karen flt weak and Lola had to pull her in for a hug to support her. “Have you attempted to share these pictures with anyone else?” He asked in a stern voice. “Not at all.”Xander grabbed his collar tightly and pulled it closer. “So how did you get it printed out?” The man could see the pure malevonlence in Xander;s gaze and was already trembling. “I- I’m a photographer, I have a printing machie at home, I can how you.” He lets hime go but shoves him forward, and then he mov
The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 108 • No Longer A Car Washer
Frustrated About the fact that Lola was ignoring his text message, he Decided to shove his phone aside. he made his way to the bathroom to freshen up, after which he decided it was time to go out and grab something to eat. He was about to go out when Anderson, his best friend texted him. “ have you seen what is trending?” he asked. Matthew was a bit confused when he received this message and so he replied with no.The next thing Anderson did was to send him a link, a companied by the caption. “ isn't she that girl we were in the Club with that day?” His heart dropped because he knew the only girl that Anderson could have been talking about was Lola.Without hesitating, he clicked the link and waited for it to load. A picture of Lola and his cousin Xander in what seems to be a quiet restaurant was what was on display. It seemed like they were on a date and they seemed to be having an intimate moment. He felt betrayed by her and he tossed his phone on the bed in anger, clearly she
The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 109 • Ice Skating
When Lola received the text from Matthew, she couldn't deny the fact that she was heartbroken. She plopped down on her bed staring at her phone in disbelief. “What do I do?” she asked her friend Karen.“He has already made his choice and I don't think it's worth trying to convince him otherwise. He didn't wait to hear from your side of the story and he has already made his conclusion so I think you should just let him go.”Lola sighed, burying her face in her palms. “But this isn't how I wanted things to end even if they had to end, I was really hoping that we could at least be friends or something.”Karen moved beside her and sat down on the spot, causing the bed to crease. “We can’t always have things the way we want it to be, and if you ask me, I honestly think this is a sign that the both of you were probably not meant to be together, you just have to accept it and move on.”“Move on with who? Xander?” “Exactly, he has been here for you every step of the way. I honestly don't kn
The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 110 • Answers to My Questions
The evening had wore on and matthew was undeniably drunk, even more than Anderson who had invited him out to the club. “Give me another shot,” his voice dragged as he mumbled incoherently. “That’s enough, let’s get you back home,” Anderson suggested, pulling Matthew forward so that he could stand onn his own two feet. Matthew tried to argue, but he was too drunk and too weak to out up a resistance, matter of fact, his steps were even sloppy to begin with. Anderson slung Matthew’s arm over his shoulders to provide him with support as he dragged him out of the club.“Where are your car keys?” he asked.“Breast pocket,” Matthew slurred. Anderson took the car key and they headed outside to the car and they headed outside to the car were he gently opened the door and put Matthew in. He droved them back to Matthew's apartment complex, Anderson helped him into the house and as soon as he opened the door, the sound of the dog barking met his ears. he didn't even realize that his friend ha
The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 111 • That Lady In The Pictures
Their bodies were slightly tilted forward, knees bent as they slid down the slope, Xander was great at it but Lola was struggling. She could barely stand and it was getting embarrassing. He slowed down and came to a stop beside her. “Need help?” he asked, offering his hands.She smiled. “I’ve got the hang of it,” she argued but then she instantly lost her footing and then slipped, she was about to fall when he caught her, pulling her she could feel his warmth radiating off her, they made eye contact for a while before he helped her to so stand on the ice. “Here, take my hand, let’s go slow and easy,” he said to her gently. She smiled and then let him hold her hand and help her because it was obvious that help. A smile formed on her lips as she followed his guide “there go easy on your ankles,” he said. It was a slow romantic moment and she couldn’t help it when her cheeks became flushed. With his help, they went down the slope together along with some of the other couples who had c
The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 112 • Poor As A Church Rat
Grace could not believe her eyes, how could Matthew ever have amounted to somebody so rich? Never in her life did she think she would ever see him driving a car, yet alone driving a Mercedes-Benz that looked as expensive as that one. “Mother, I can't believe you are taking him seriously. Do you really think Matthew, the one that lived with us all our life like a poor church rat, feeding off everything we gave him, would suddenly be the owner of a car like this? "Sandra asked with her hands folded in front of her. She had a look of disgust on her face. “He used to work in a car wash, remember, maybe this is one of his clients' cars and he's just posing with it.”Grace wanted to believe her daughter, but even looking at the way Matthew was dressed from head to toe she could tell that he was wearing expensive clothes. Could he have borrowed these ones too? Surely there had to be some sort of explanation.Ignoring her daughter's remark, she moved forward. “What kind of answers do you wa
The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 113 • Real Family
“Your family? So you have found your biological family?” Josh asked, curious to know. Matthew was quiet, thinking of what to say in response. If he told them the truth that he was a Houston, they would not believe and they would probably try to mock him. Even if they did believe, he knew how shameless these people could be. They would instantly begin to beg him for some money. “Yes, I found my family, my real family.”“And what family is that? Looking at the way that you addressed and the car that you are driving, it is safe to assume that they are rich, am I not right?” Josh pressed on. Matthew sighed. “That is none of your business, I didn't come here to tell you what kind of family I belong to, you don't even deserve to know. I just want to know all the situations that were surrounding my adoption. Why did Mark not take me to the police station? He was hiding me from my real family wasn't he?” Mark was his adoptive father, and growing up, Mark made sure to treat him as though
The Inheritor Of The Houston Empire 114 • Officially a Couple
Lola and Xander walked into the hotel hand in hand. At this point he couldn't care less about whatever the public had to say and he just wanted to show off to everybody that the love of his life was right beside him. They entered the elevator and returned to their rooms, lowland giving him a hug before parting ways at the entrances of their rooms. “See you tomorrow for our flight back. I need to go check on my friend.”“See you tomorrow,” he replied with a sense of longing in his voice. As soon as she clicked the door open, she met Karen awake. Karen was seated on the armchair, scrolling through her phone when she raised her head. “You're back, looks like you had fun. What did you guys do?”Lola took in a deep breath, she knew that for the longest time her friend was an advocate of this relationship and the moment she told Karen, she would burst with excitement. “We went ice skating,”she began, intentionally leaving the best detail for last. “He taught me how to balance myself and
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200 • Novel Finale
Darrell was watching the news when he saw the news about Vanessa’s arrest in Los Angeles. At first he didn’t believe it but when Vanessa’s mug shot was shown on TV, he growled in anger and smashed the remote control on the ground.“What is going on?” Mrs Ferguson asked from the hallway on hearing the crashing sound.“She has been arrested and she is yet to give me my money.“ Darrell complained.“Who are you talking about?”“Vanessa Winchester. She got arrested while trying to escape for her crimes. There are multiple count charges against her.” Darrell responded and his mother walked to the living room to see for herself.“Well, to me. This is great news. She can no longer torment our family again.” Mrs Ferguson said and Darrell scoffed.“Don’t be a ridiculous mother. She didn’t pay us our money, that is even worse torment.”“Being a taxi driver was enough to get us a new TV right? Keep doing it.” She responded and walked out on him.***Ashley had returned to her previous life but sh
199 • Sightseeing
Matthew and Amelia were at the hospital’s waiting room waiting for the doctor's feedback on Xander. He had been rushed to the emergency room for immediate treatment after Raymond had shot him twice. Amelia folded her hands together trying to pray for Xander, while Matthew on the other hand was restless.Martha rushed in, with her eyes teary.“Where is my son? What happened to him?” She wailed but Matthew only pulled her into a hug, letting her cry on him. “It’s okay. Let’s all be strong for him right now. He’ll be fine, I have high hopes.” Matthew said even though he knew he was lying to himself, he just wanted to make Martha feel better because when Xander was brought in, he was in a very bad shape.“How could Raymond do this to our only child? Does he even have a heart anymore?” She lamented and Amelia took her hand in hers.“Martha, I’m sorry about my son. I apologize for everything, your life could have been better without…”“Mother, what are you saying? You are the best. Raymond
198 • Police Round Up
Xander stared into space confusedly, he didn’t want his father to go to jail but at the same time, he was tired of all the drama. He walked down the stairs looking lost. He had to go tell Hernandez and Amelia. Luckily, both of them were in the dining room having tea together. Xander walked into the dining room and Amelia instantly knew something was wrong.“Xander, are you okay?” Amelia questioned and Hernandez turned to him as well.Xander rubbed his forehead and took a deep breath. “Yeah, I am. Dad called.” He announced and Hernandez looked more interested.“What did he say to you?” Hernandez questioned.“He wants us to meet.” “Great. Let’s all go meet him. Where?” Hernandez asked again and Xander sighed. “Do you think I am happy doing this? This person in question is my father.” He said.“And he is also a criminal who killed your uncle and his wife, he also attempted to kill your grandmother..” Hernandez explained but Xander scoffed.“All this isn’t changing the fact that he stil
197 • Battle for the Phone
Vanessa spent the night in a hotel but early the next morning, she was out of there. The hotel was the wrong place for her to be. She had also found out that Richard had been arrested by the police, that jerk had a big mouth and he was probably the reason why the police were after her now, he had implicated her. She kept driving round town as everywhere looked like someone was watching her. She finally saw an alley and decided to hang around there for a while as it was close to the mall as well. She needed to go to the mall but she knew her credit card could be used to track her location. The police were already on the lookout for her everywhere, she couldn’t bring herself out even further. She stood in front of the alley, rubbing her forehead and trying to think of the next way she could go from there when suddenly someone grabbed her from behind, from the strength and the masculine strength, she knew he was a man. The man had covered her mouth with his hand so she couldn’t even s
196 • Care to Explain the Blackmail?
Amelia received a call from Matthew that afternoon which was a little weird as he rarely called her.“Hi darling.” She started.“Grandma, where are you?” Matthew asked and Amelia was a little confused.“I’m at home. Why do you ask? Did something happen?” She questioned.“As a matter of fact, yes. You have to come to the station right now. There is something you need to know and oh, please let Charles know that Ashley has been found.” Matthew said and before Amelia could ask any further question, he ended the call.Amelia didn’t know what all that fuss meant but she was certain it wasn’t a joke as Matthew wouldn’t invite her to the police station for nothing but why the police station? She hurriedly dressed up and In about thirty minutes, she was at the station.She went straight to Hernandez's office to see Matthew there as well. “I came as soon as I got your call. What is going on?” She asked, her gaze darting from Hernandez to Matthew and back to Hernandez again.“Hello, Mrs Houst
195 • I Quit
Lola was at her office sorting and signing some documents when her office mate rushed into the office giggling excitedly. All of them turned to her with questioning expressions.“Are you being chased by a clown?” Lola asked sarcastically.“No! You won’t believe it!” She shrieked.“Believe what? Say it already, stop leaving us in suspense.” Another girl chipped in.“I just saw….” She was explaining when the door was pushed open and Xander walked in with a bouquet of roses and a hamper. All the girls gasped and the first girl couldn’t stop giggling as she had seen him already. Xander got to Lola’s table and placed the bouquet and the hamper on it. Lola didn’t bother looking at him, she just went on with what she was doing; sorting the documents, signing on them and placing them in their rightful positions on the shelf. The other staff waited for everything to unfold. Lola hadn’t told them anything but they all knew that she and Xander were having a fight. “Lola, please stop doing thi
194 • Clear her Head
Vanessa lay on the bed in one of the guest rooms of the house. She had refused to share a bed with Edward after she had found out about Vito. Next to the bed was a small luggage she had prepared to go on a vacation as a way of letting off steam but before that she had to make sure Edward leaves the mansion as it rightfully belonged to her. She was watching the ceiling with reddened eyes from crying. She wasn’t just crying from Edwards cheating but the fact that she never thought it would hurt her that way. She could never say he wasn’t cheating but getting the girl pregnant? That was the height of it.The sound of the door opening dragged her out of her thoughts. She turned to see who it was and it was Monica.“Hi mum.” Monica started as she sat on the edge of the bed, and took Vanessa’s right hand in hers.“ Have you had any sleep yet?” She asked and Vanessa shook her head in negation.“You should get some sleep mum, you are…” Monica’s foot hit the luggage at the side of the bed and
193 • Unconscious on the Floor
Matthew now has eye bags underneath his eyes as he had been having sleepless nights trying to get new leads on Ashley. He hadn’t heard anything from Hernandez and he had no idea if Ashley was still alive or if she was dead or if she was still in the country. As early as 7am that morning, he had gone to the station again.Hernandez had driven in some minutes later to see Matthew’s car already there.“You know, I might soon begin to think you are actually a staff here who has refused to reveal the information to the rest of us because why the hell are you showing up earlier than all of us?” Hernandez joked and Matthew laughed.“Very funny, Chief. But you are right, I am beginning to think so myself too. But the truth is I just can’t have peace of mind until Ashley is found and everything is resolved. She got into this mess because of me. After everything is resolved, I might reveal my true identity to you all as one of the secret staff.” Matthew responded.“True. Ashley’s safety is para
192 • Sex Workers and Punching Bags
Ashley was trembling with anger. She sat in her part of the bedroom enraged, Gwen had helped her treat the cut on her face. It was a very deep cut and had taken about ten minutes to stop the bleeding. Gwen was in her own part of the bedroom watching Ashley.“You’ve got to calm down. When Richard has a bad day, he tends to take it out on us, I have a scar on my left arm from one of those times he….”“Is this supposed to help me right now? Look Gwen, I know you take a lot of shit here, but I, Ashley does not take shit. I will make sure I get myself out of here and Richard goes to jail. I don’t know about you, but I can’t and I won’t spend another night here. The worst that could happen is that I would die. He can’t keep treating anyone like this, we can’t be his sex workers and punching bags.” Ashley fumed.“Yeah, you’re right but do we really have a choice?” Gwen asked and Ashley stood up and headed towards the door.“Sometimes, we do not need to have choices, we make use of whatever w
