Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56Valerie blinked a few times, she couldn't believe her eyes. After so many years, he actually returned. When news of the explosion got to her, she accepted that he was gone.
The grief from losing him however lingered with her ever since and she had given up on love, considering herself to just be unlucky because her first love died.
The little time she spent with him was one of the best moments of her life. She felt a genuine connection to someone for the first time.
“Ethan,” she whispered and extended her arms. Her fingers brushed his face as tears filled her eyes.
Clifford, who was watching all this unfold from the corner, spoke. “Valerie, Ethan was engaged to you sister, how can you be so shameless!” He berated her.
She lowered her gaze, he was saying the truth and it hurt her to admit it. She had shamelessly fallen in love with her sister's fiancé.
“Keyword, was. Renée and I have nothing together and never will,” Ethan clarified.
Clifford's nostrils flared as he took a step back. “Definitely, what would a low life like yourself have to do with someone as big and successful as my daughter.”
He then looked between Valerie and Ethan. “You two better not think of being together because you are still.my daughter Valerie and I forbid you from being with this man. Even if you want to ruin your life, at least pick somebody rich and important, not someone that would bring shame to the family.”
“You cannot dictate my life like you did for my sister, your dictatorship is the reason she's almost thirty and unhappy.”
Clifford paid her words no attention but faced Ethan. “For slapping me Ethan Vanguard, I will make you and your miserable family wish you never existed, mark my words.”
Ethan smiled and then eventually laughed. “Mr. Sterling, you seem to still think that I was the defenseless boy you and my uncle sent to war six years ago and I find it quite comical.”
Ethan neared him again, making Clifford step back in fear of getting hit again. “If you come after my family, I will destroy everything you've ever worked for and then kill you,” he threatened.
“I’d like to see you try,” Clifford said and then turned to face his daughter. “I'm giving you a week to pack up this charade you call a company or you'll force me to shut it down myself, permanently.”
With that he spun around and left.
Ethan wanted to be near Valerie and pull her into a hug but she immediately took a step back.
This was too much for her to process, the man who she'd thought to be dead all this while was still very much alive.
“Where have you been? Valerie whispered as she let her tears stream down her face. He stretched his hand to offer her some sense of comfort but she pushed his hand away.
“Don't touch me.”
“Valerie, I was at war,” he explained.
“Bullshit! Many people other than you had gone but they returned to their families, they sent notes and letters. But you, not even a word!” She cried, her breathing became uneasy as she broke down.
“You won't understand-”
“Stop making excuses!” She shrieked and then wiped her tears.
“I want you to leave my office please, I'm not ready to speak with you.” She sniffled.
Ethan respected her decision and turned to leave. “I just want you to know that I'm back Valerie, and I won't let you and the people I care about suffer anymore.”
With those words he respected her wish and left her office.
Valerie felt her knees buckle as she leaned against her table. She wouldn't ever in her wildest dreams imagine that the love of her life would return just when she was at the brink of losing her company.
After she was sure that Ethan was gone, she knew she had to take her mind off him, all these years without him and she was surviving, she even helped Elizabeth and Skyler from time to time knowing their condition.
But now her father wanted to take even that away from her, he wanted to take the one thing that gave her purpose, her company.
She shook her head. It would never happen, she wouldn't go down without a fight. She had worked on her analysis of the issue overnight, and she realized that if she was able to raise up to a certain amount to cover operational costs and expenses, she could still keep the company afloat.
Valerie straightened her back and picked her bag, she had not run out of options yet. She walked briskly downstairs to her old car and hopped in.
After struggling with the ignition for some second, it finally sputtered to life. She drove straight to the city bank.
Just a few weeks ago, they had sent a representative to her concerning processing a business loan for her, which she politely turned down.
Of course, as a fast booming start up, they wanted her to be their regular client. Now she was to leverage on that.
When she arrived at the bank she made her way in and headed straight to the managers desk.
“Hi Fiona,” she greeted.
Fiona, the manager who had sent a representative to her just some weeks ago, responded. “Valerie Sterling, what a pleasure to have you here.”
“Thank you, I'm actually here concerning that loan, I just double checked and I actually do need it, don't worry I meet all the requirements for it,” Valerie stated.
Fiona leaned back, “I don't know…”
“If you're worried about what you saw on Times news, don't even worry about that, I have it under control I can assure you that.”
“I'm sure you do, however I've received instructions from the head office not to grant any loans to Sterling enterprise.”
Valerie felt like her heart was just shredded into bits. “What? Why? But last week they were the ones who… I can't believe this!”
“I'm so sorry, I was equally as shocked and confused, but I have to follow orders.”
Previous Chapter
Related Chapters
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • Spread Your Tentacles
News about the unveiling ceremony had spread around Newcrest like wildfire, everyone was so excited to finally get an official release of just who exactly the legion commander was. They all knew Robert Willard, but news about his retirement has long circulated, so everyone knew that there was someone new. The media had managed to capture some blurry images of Ethan, but no one could particularly point a finger and identify him..“How are you feeling about the unveiling ceremony?” Robert's voice rang on the other side of the line. Ethan sighed, “honestly, things like this don't matter to me. The ceremony we had back in Gunchester was much more memorable to me than all this paparazzi nonsense.”Robert chuckled, “but it's high time for the rest of the world to know who the legion commander is, who the man that saved them and is still working to keep them safe is.” Ethan simply shrugged. He stuck one arm into his pocket and paced along the poolside. Just then, from a distance he caugh
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • Schemes Of The Commander
Desmond paused, he knew for a fact that he wasn't expecting any guests tonight. “Who is it? Let them in.”The maid quickly left. “Who could that be?” Martha thought out loud.Some moments later, Elizabeth was standing before them. Their faces dropped and they immediately stopped eating. Jason immediately got up. “Didn't we tell you to never return?” he asked. “What? Has your stupid daughter died and now you need money for a funeral?” Desmond asked her, his voice laced with disdain. Elizabeth raised her head and swallowed, she could feel her chest tightening all over again as her memories of living here with them resurfaced.“No, I don't need your money. I came here to properly pack my things, as well as Howard, Skyler and Ethan's things.” she said. “Some of them hold sentimental value, though I doubt that you people know anything about sentimentality.”Jason and Martha exchanged an incredulous glare after she made her statement. Desmond rose to his feet. “If you don't get out of t
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • Dead To Me
Skyler cracked her eyes open and was immediately met with the view of the white ceiling. She took a few deep breaths, they were slightly painful, causing her to squint her eyes.She stirred in her bed and then sat upright. Her mother Elizabeth, who was asleep, jolted awake due to Skyler's sudden movement. Elizabeth's eyes widened in surprise. “Skyler!” She exclaimed. “Oh thank god you're awake!” She screamed joyfully and rushed to hug her. Skyler returned the hug and just blinked rapidly. She still felt disoriented. Her memories started trickling in, it started like a cough for her, and as the next few days progressed the cough worsened until she passed out one day due to suffocation.“How long have I been hospitalized?” She asked in a dry voice. “About two weeks, that was the scariest two weeks of my life, I genuinely thought I lost you darling,” Elizabeth said. “Oh,let me go call the doctor! And inform Ethan, he must be by the corridors or sitting in the waiting area,” she added
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • A Clash In Valerie's Office
Valerie was seated in her office, lost in thoughts. Sterling's enterprise was crumbling and there was little she could do to stop it. There was a knock on the door which caused her to raise her head. “Who is it? Come in.”The door hissed open, revealing Gregory Martins. Her blood ran cold in an instant. She jumped on her feet and zeroed her gaze on him. “What are you doing here Greg?” He asked distastefully.The man approached her with a cigar stick in his mouth and his walker clicked on the floor, he was wearing a wide grin she wished she could just smack off his face.“I believe you already know what I want.”It was her. Gregory Martins was among this city's elites, he was one of the few people that could give her the loan she needed to save her company, but he wanted her in exchange. Ever since Gregory set his eyes on her during a business summit, he had been persistently on her trail. He swept his gaze across the room and twisted his lips. “I heard sterling enterprise is fac
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • This Life Or The Next
Valerie pulled Ethan away from Gregory with all her might, as she was afraid he would kill him if he wasn't stopped."Please... please...let him go." She begged.Ethan stood up, and wiped his nose with his fist."Let him go? This bastard tried to violate you. What do you mean by let him go?" He fumed."He will ruin us..he will ruin me." Valerie responded, giving Ethan a desperate look which he ignored and lunged towards Gregory again."Ethan!" Valerie yelled and this time he stopped.Gregory dragged his weak bones up from the floor, while Valerie held Ethan back."How dare you?!" Gregory growled, glaring at Ethan."How dare you lay your filthy hands on me? Do you have any idea who I am?" He added."I do not care who you are. I would never let you hurt my woman. That would only happen over my dead body." Ethan responded and Valerie gasped."Your dead body huh? I will make it come to pass, and I will do whatever I want with her." Gregory said, pointing at Valerie."I would love to see y
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • Patterson's Business Card
Elizabeth sat next to Skyler, trying to feed her. The doctor had said she wasn't strong enough to feed herself yet, so Elizabeth decided to do it for her daughter."You are recovering really fast. I am so happy, baby. You have no idea what I went through these past few weeks. I thought something was going to happen to you, I couldn't even imagine what I could have done if something had happened to you." Elizabeth said softly."Mother, I am fine now. That is all in the past now. I am glad I am still here with you too." Skyler responded with a smile."Yes, thanks to Ethan. I really have no idea how he did this." Elizabeth added and Skyler's smile faded immediately."Mother, can you not talk about Ethan? The reason I survived is because of you. It is your efforts and not Ethan's. Please can we not talk about him? He is dead." Skyler remarked, and rolled her eyes."You do not say that about your brother. He tried his best for your survival." Elizabeth said, pleadingly."What best? What br
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • West Coast Scholarship
Skyler was quick recovering. The doctor had considered her fit to be discharged as she was now strong enough. She only needed to visit the hospital at intervals for checkups.On returning home the first day after being discharged, the first thing she did was to go check the mailbox for a letter. This was something she had always been doing before she got sick. She only hoped she was not too late yet."Mother, I'll just go check out the mailbox. Hopefully, I'd have gotten a letter." She said."Shh, you just got home. You need to rest." Elizabeth retorted"The mail box is just outside. I am not going so far away,so relax." Skyler said with a small smile on her face."Or I'll help you check it. You just sit down there. If you need little things like this, you can always let me know." Elizabeth stated.Skyler stood up and walked up to her mother. She placed her hands on her mother's shoulders."Look at me, mother. I am not a baby, I can walk up to the mailbox myself. Besides, have you for
The Legion Commander Strikes Back • A Visible Rage
Conrad was having a round table discussion with all the members of the board and the higher ups. He had a large chunk of shares, more that sixty percent shares because of the loan he gave Valerie. He wanted the company to himself and had been able to buy the board members to his side. They all collectively voted Valerie out of her position and Conrad was sworn in as the new CEO.Valerie had no idea what was going on in the company as the meeting was held about an hour after she left. She called the secretary who reluctantly explained the situation of things in the office to her. Without retouching her makeup or doing anything, Valerie rushed back to the company.When she got to the office, she found out that it had been locked from the inside, and her things were outside. Some of her personal stuff like her photo frame, log books, receipts and her favorite 'CEO of the year' mug were all thrown out.She heard voices coming from inside the office which meant Conrad was inside.She began
Latest Chapter
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• The Legion Family
The laughter of children running around in the backyard hung in the air. Valarie was behind the grill, roasting the chicken. Stacey walked into the yard, holding a toddler in her hands as well as her husband beside them. Immediately the two women saw each other, they started to smile. “Oh my gosh Stacey, I didn’t think you could make it,” Valerie said after pulling away from their hug. “Is this your son?” She nodded in response, “He’s about the same age as Emilio and Emilia. Speaking of which, where are they anyway?” She asked. “Oh just over there,” Valerie replied, pointing in the direction. It had been two years now since she had brought these wonderful fraternal twins to the world, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. She would never have believed life could be so refreshing after all the hardship that she and Ethan had endured in the past. Strong arms wrapped around her waist and lifted her off the ground. “Oh my goodness, Ethan,” she called out playfully. “When w
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• Little Bundle Of Joys
Several months laterValerie was standing by the balcony, overlooking the city. The past few months have been nothing but perfect and she couldn’t help but wonder if she was dreaming. Even if she was, she would rather not wake up from it because this was a blissful dream. The sound of footsteps coming from behind her met her ears, she turned around to face Ethan. “I knew I’d find you here,” he said affectionately, wrapping his hands around her waist as he rested his chin against her shoulders.She melted into his frame, a warm smile spreading on her face. “Yes, the view from here is quite lovely.”Ever since Ethan had reclaimed the Vanguard manor, he moved in with Valerie. She loved the change of environment so much. The Sterling manor was sold because after Clifford lost the presidential elections, he was neck deep in debt and had to pay. His sponsors had ruthlessly abandoned him like he was vermin. Leaving him stranded and bankrupt.. Valerie was not even at the slightest intereste
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• Congratulations
The wedding bells chimed as Valerie got down from her car, the important people in Armoria were here to witness the union of the legion commander and his wife. Her dress was a body holding white silver tube gown which embodied the contours of her waist. It was embellished with pearls and attached to the bottom were gatherers which she was helped with while moving. People began to turn but her eyes ignored all of them, locking on to Ethan's who was at the end of the road, hands folded in front of him as he was in his charcoal gray suit. By now she was already a few more weeks in, but the baby bump wasn't too visible yet. All heads turned to face her and people began to whisper, she was just one of the most expensive designer brands in the country. Something many brides could only dream of wearing. Her mother Therese, who was also on the verge of shedding tears, walked her down the aisle, handing her over to Ethan. They locked hands, turning to face the priest that would join them
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• Nearing The End
The Vanguard's were all gathered around the living room with panic strikes expression on their faces. Martha looked like she had just seen a ghost. Larry descended from the staircase with a stoic expression on his face, briefcase in hand. “Just where do you think you're going?” Desmond's voice boomed.“I'm leaving this place before Ethan comes back here to throw you guys out on the streets and disgrace you in the neighborhood, I don't want to be a part of it.”A gasp escaped from his parents lips. “Larry, how could you say such a thing!” Martha scolded him. “Ethan can't do that! He can't! I've called the lawyers already, everything is under control.” Larry scoffed, shaking his head slowly. “You guys don't realize it, don't you? You stole from him, you took what rightfully belongs to him and his father, this house, this manor, it belonged to my uncle! Not you, nothing you do will change that!” He tightened his grip on the bag and walked away, sparing no second glance. Tears prick
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• A Little Secret
At the funeral, Therese was standing in front of Renée’s coffin, trying her heart out when Valerie rolled her wheelchair towards her mother. “Mom,” she called. Therese froze. Could her ears be deceiving her? It couldn't be. She immediately turned around and saw that it was her daughter. “Valerie, you're back,” he replied, joyful tears filling her eyes as she crouched down to hug her daughter. Renée was being buried in the family manor. Guests from all over had begun to arrive and Clifford was too busy trying to network and interact to actually even notice that his second daughter had returned. “I wish she and I hadn't fought. Then she wouldn't have come back to Armoria, none of this would have happened.”Therese grabbed her daughter's face and rubbed it. “Don't say that. It is not your fault, Clifford is the one to blame. He's the one that pushed her into this predicament.”Valerie scoffed. “Why am I not surprised?”“Honey, I think there's something you need to know. Your father a
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• The One Allowed To Cheat Death
“My baby, how is my baby?” Valerie asked desperately. “We ran all the scans and your baby miraculously survived. The angle at which you were shot didn't have any contact with your uterus or developing baby whatsoever. And thankfully you were shot from a distance so the bullet didn't do much damage, a little bit of rest and healing and you'll be alright. The only issue is the amount of blood you lost, so will be placing you on some supplements and as well as giving you some dietary suggestions.”Hearing this news from the doctor felt like the light at the end of the tunnel. At least she could finally smile about something. “I just wish Ethan was here and then my family would be complete,” he whispered. Lucy backed away from her. “It's going to be okay.”The lieutenants had no idea that Ethan was still alive, because Natasha hadn't communicated it to them yet. “When can I be discharged and go home?” Valerie asked. “Right now I can see that you're safe for travel so you can go today
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• A Small Click
“Natasha has made all the necessary arrangements, you can return back to Armoria with ease,” Ethan said, walking towards the door. “What about you?” Darren asked. “I know where Cyrus and his men are, I need to go there and finish them off before they leave Chelmen.”“Wasn't it solo missions like this that even led you to this predicament? Now you have survived, you might not be so lucky next time Ethan.” He paused, placing an arm on Darren's shoulders. “This time, I will be.”Darren watched as Ethan exited the house. He stood by the street at the designated spot and then a black car pulled over and an elderly looking man came out of the car. “You must be Ethan Vanguard,” the man greeted in a thick accent. “Everything you need is in the trunk, and here are the car keys. Please return the car, the last people to use they didn't,” he said, voice dripping with sarcasm. Ethan smirked. “Best believe I will, but it may have some blood stains.” The man's eyes widened upon hearing what E
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• More Tears
Skyler jumped out of the car, “hey what are you doing to my mum!” She cried, running towards him. Irene was right behind her while Raul also got down and followed suit. Elizabeth raised her teary eyes to face her daughter who quickly pulled her up from the floor and hugged her. Skyler could see Desmond's driver holding a bag, presumably her mother's bag. Then he stepped out of the gate and then tossed the bag on the floor. This gesture angered Skyler so she lunged forward, managing to give the driver a good slap before Irene held her back.“How dare you bring your filthy selves to our house and try to harass my mother!?”Desmond smirked. “I can see that you haven't changed one bit, you still talk too much. This house belongs to me since your brother is dead now.”His words felt like a physical blow to Skyler. “Don't you dare ever say something like that again, Ethan isn't dead!”“Oh but he is, haven't you seen the news?”Irene walked forward. “Even if Ethan is dead, what makes you
- The Legion Commander Strikes Back
• Ethan Remembers
Valerie was on a stretcher and right beside her was Antonio. They were both bleeding out and were rushed to the emergency unit. Just outside the hospital was Melissa, along with Jax, Kieth and Lucy. After Antoni had been shot, his men surrendered, and the police came and cleared the crime scene, making multiple arrests as well as ransacking Antonio’s mansion, an opportunity the local FBI had been dying to get. The three lieutenants were spared from the arrest because the chief of police, who despite recognising what they did as illegal, was happy that they had helped bust Antonio. Now with the overwhelming amount of evidence they had against him, there was no way he could escape jail time. In the emergency room, the nurses huddled around each of the victims. Antonio's wound was to his upper back but the bullet went through and came out of his chest. While Valerie was in the stomach. “We’re losing him, we’re losing him!” The doctor screamed as the life support machine beeped loudly.
