The next couple of days were tough on Zade. At the hospital, he thought everything would be fine since she was responding so well to him and even smiling. He thought that was it and everything would be normal, but as soon as she got discharged, it all changed.Nightmares plagued her dreams, which ended with her thrashing and hurting herself. It didn't end there. She stopped communicating altogether and flinched at the slightest touch. The action hurt him many times, but he had to force himself to understand that she had just been through something traumatizing and the effects were just kicking in. He really began to worry when she stopped speaking altogether. He tried everything possible but she wouldn't speak to him or anyone. All events and major meetings were canceled because she couldn't stand people at the moment, especially men. Zade was the only man she could tolerate.It unsettled him that he had to leave her, but he had to find witnesses to testify against Blake Anderson.
"Do you know her?" The nanny asked. Zade wanted to deny it but that would pile up more secrets for him to discover. "Yes, I used to be their son-in-law, until their daughter divorced me," he answered."Divorced you?" He didn't blame her for the disbelief in her tone. Everyone reacted the same way whenever he mentioned the divorce. It was not something he enjoyed talking about, but some situations could not be avoided. "Yes. It's a long story. I just want to know how the Harpers are related to the Andersons yet…""Harper was Blake's estranged brother. I think their parents divorced and each took a child. Harper was unfortunate to go with the poor parent so he was bitter towards his brother. On their first meeting, he taunted his brother about having only one child which turned out to be female after twelve years of marriage. You could say it hit Blake on the wrong spot," the woman explained."You're saying all this is because of a jab his brother threw at him? Unbelievable!" Zade sc
Zade arrived at the station in less than thirty minutes. He met the ambulance taking Blake's body away. Adera clung tightly to his arms as they approached the corpse. They took off the sheet and Adera let out a loud gasp. She cupped her mouth quickly, fighting the tears that were threatening to fall. "What happened to him?" Zade asked when the chief officer approached them. "I really don't know. He was fine this morning, bragging about how he was going to get out of here soon, how the judges couldn't lock him up even if they wanted to and the next minute, he went cold. At first, we assumed he fainted out of fatigue, but then his heart wasn't beating. We tried everything but there was no way to save him. We have already ordered that an autopsy be carried out on the corpse to determine the cause of his death…". Adera slowly let go of Zade's hand and approached the body carefully. She poked his arm and when he didn't move, she glanced at Zade fearfully. "Is he… Is he gone?" Zade
"You need to calm down, Dera. Do not make any decision you will regret later. Please think about this," Zade pleaded."Think about what? I can't believe I was stupid enough to think that everything would be over the minute my father was out of the way. Now I get why he was so eager to die. Why wouldn't he when he has planted his disgusting replica in me?" She screamed at him."I understand your pain but…""Don't you dare! You understand nothing! I don't want this child and nothing you say will make me keep it. What if one day it asks about its father? What am I supposed to tell it? Oh, my father was a shithead who raped me for fun and you just happened?" Adera interrupted with a high-pitched voice."What do you mean by it? We're talking about your baby here. Our baby. I can father the child, alright? I can do whatever you want me to do but…""Of course you would! You're the super nice, caring dad and I'm the awful mother," she spat. Zade took a deep breath. Losing his temper would o
Surprisingly, Tyrone didn't pull any stunts until it was time for the meeting. Zade arrived a few minutes before ten and was greeted by his cousin's charming girlfriend, Helen.Zade expected that in the last three years, he could have at least done something to secure the woman by his side, but Tyrone was just the asshole everyone thought he was.He had been seeing Helen for almost five years and not once did he fail to make her feel like trash. He disrespected her before his friends, slept with anything with a skirt, and threatened to make her life miserable if she ever thought of leaving him.Zade knew Helen wasn't afraid of his threats. Beneath all that gentleness, there was a fierceness that was waiting to be unleashed.Why she put up with Tyrone, Zade had no idea, but he knew she'd never looked at another man with the same adoration in her eyes. No matter how badly he treated her, she didn't once complain or fight back. She had this angelic gaze that could melt anyone's heart, e
Once the car tumbled, everybody dispersed immediately. After five minutes, sirens began blowing at a distance. Zade wiped the blood off his face and took out the safety belt. He opened the car door and crawled out of the car. There was already a small crowd gathering, but his main goal was to get out of there. He rolled himself to a safe distance, before getting up. His face was a wreck, with broken pieces of glass in it. His hands were no better, bleeding from several cuts. He touched his pockets to ensure that his wallet was still intact, before hailing a cab just as the ambulance arrived. He took out some of the glass pieces with a wince. The driver glanced skeptically at him through the rearview. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital, sir? You have a bullet in your arm," The driver said.Zade blinked rapidly, before dropping his eyes to his arm almost instantly. He didn't even notice that he had been shot. Maybe that was why the pain was so intense. It wasn't a d
Adera had to go to the doctor's appointment alone. Zade was still recovering and the last thing she wanted to do was disturb him. He needed to heal as fast as he could in other to guide his inheritance. "Miss Adera, I'm going to ask one last time. Are you sure you want to proceed with this abortion? Last time, I asked you to give it a thought. What is your decision?" The doctor asked."I already made it clear that I wouldn't be changing my mind even if you have me wait the whole month. Can we just get this over with doc?" Adera asked. "Alright then. As you wish."As they approached the ward, Adera became nervous about the whole process. Several negative thoughts flew through her mind. The possibility of losing her womb and even dying made her pause occasionally for deep breaths. "Everything okay, Miss Anderson? Are you getting cold feet?" The doctor asked and she nodded."Don't worry, it won't take much of your time. We'll be done before you know it. So the pregnancy is only a week
"I see you're doing well.""Thanks for your concern, Grandpa," Zade responded with a hint of sarcasm. Zachary gestured at him to sit down. The man sent for Zade as soon as he heard that he was discharged from the hospital. Adera had been adamant about letting him and insisted his grandfather come to see him, but Zade knew better. "I know your cousin has not been the easiest person to get along with…""What gave it away?" Zade muttered, but the man heard him. Instead of commenting, Zachary went ahead with what he was saying."I want you to stay off his path. We both know he is a reckless idiot and that makes him more dangerous to you. Whatever payback plans you're brewing, I want you to dissolve them. Forget about this incident and move on," Zachary instructed. If it had been someone else, he would have walked away but this was the one man he feared more than death. He couldn't disrespect him like that."And if this incident repeats? what should I do then?" Zade asked him.Zachary l
The hospital was in chaos. Just a few hours ago, they were busy trying to deliver a woman of her baby and now, there was a blood bath. Doctors, nurses, and patients scampering for their lives. Edgar arrived at the hospital just a few minutes after the Delamontes did. With the guards positioned around, he knew there was no way to carry out the initial plan. He wanted Elsa. As revenge on Zade for ruining his life, he wanted to kidnap Elsa and the baby. Unfortunately, the security was too tight.Even if he succeeded in getting into the hospital, there was no possibility of getting out unscathed and alive. So he decided to face them squarely and it resulted in a bloody gunfight. The Delamontes were with Elsa in the private ward, with the Doctors and nurses attending to her.No one cared about the blood bath outside. Their priority was for Elsa to deliver safely.Edgar was able to take down the guards at the entrance but just when he thought he'd succeeded, more came out the through th
“You sure this plan is going to work?” Elizabeth asked for the umpteenth time.“Why do I feel like it's not the plan you're worried about but the person you might find,” Elsa crossed her arms. Elizabeth let out a sigh. “It's just that, I really like him, you know. I desperately want him to be the good guy. It will break me if he is actually the mole here.”“It's okay to be terrified. It's normal when you love someone, you want them to be an angel. A misunderstood villain and all of that but we need to face reality here. If Zion is not who he pretends to be, then we need to purge him out of your company before he ruins you,” Elsa said frankly.“But why would he?” Elizabeth threw her hands in her hair, confused and frustrated. “I offered him a job as my PA with a heavy paycheck and mouthwatering allowances to enable him to better the lives of his grandmother and son. I got him a fucking luxury apartment. Why would he repay me by sabotaging my company?”“You've said all the good things
“Who do you work for?” The question was accompanied by a punch to the man's guts. He let out a groan but that seemed to be all he was going to do. Groan and groan until they got tired of hitting him.“I asked a question! Who is your boss?” He barely acknowledged the question, focusing on the wounds on his body. He had been stalking Elizabeth as usual when three cars entrapped him and he ended up here. The men had been torturing him for three days straight but all attempts to get him to speak were futile. The highest he did was scream and curse at them.“Tie him on the electric chair,” came an order. The man wasn't even panicked by it. They weren't going to oil him because they needed answers so nothing they did scared him.After tying him to the chair. They bathe him with water. His heart heart accelerated a little. He knew what electricity and water could do and frankly, he didn't want to experience it. “Are you ready to talk?” He was given a last chance.“Never!” “Perfect.” T
“Mommy!” Helen heard from a distance.“Mommy, wake up!” She heard again. There was a slight pounding in her head. She was surrounded by darkness.“Mommy, wake up!!” It sounded so much like Elaine. She could feel the girl shaking her but she couldn't see her. “Mommy!”Helen tried to speak but her mouth was not cooperating. It felt like it had been sewn shut.There was another voice in the background. It didn't sound like Elaine’s but there was a familiar feel to it. Her hazy mind couldn't comprehend anything at that moment. Even her mind was struggling to process her situation. Why couldn't she open her eyes? It was obvious now that she wasn't in the dark, she was still unconscious. “Mommy!!” The little girl was weeping now. Helen struggled to get her eyes open. To tell the girl that she was fine. That everything would be fine.“Is Mommy dead?” She heard that familiar voice.“No, she's not. Look here, she's breathing.”Helen was a little relieved. At least her little girl was sensib
Elizabeth arrived at the office looking tacky which was so unlike her. Zion followed her into her office curiously. She'd never been an hour to work before and definitely not looking the way she did now. The eye bags were evident and her lips were chapped coupled with the rough ponytail she had on. She looked sick.“Good morning, ma'am," Zion greeted but she gave a mere nod in response. “Uhm… is everytime alright? You don't look fine. Yesterday, you left the office suddenly and today you look like a mess,” he observed. Elizabeth glanced at him before scampering through the files on her desk. “Ma'am, I know you might not feel the need to talk to me after my behavior yesterday and I apologize. I just had a lot going on so I might have taken out some of the frustration on you," he said lowly.“What makes you think this is about you? Look, Zion, you are just an intern here and I advice you focus on what you're here for. Don't bother yourself about me, I'll be fine," she said coldly.
Zachary and Zade were at the prison in less than an hour to retrieve the body. The body was still warm suggesting that he just died recently.Elizabeth wasn't with them. She had gone in search of Helen as soon as she got off the phone with Zade. Zachary made sure she was heavily guarded. He didn't want anything to happen to her too.“So, may I know why my son who was entrusted in your care is lying lifeless on the floor,” he asked the chief officer.The man exchanged frightful glances with his colleagues. Words could not express how much trouble he'd gotten himself into. He was in the comfort of his home, ready to have dinner with his kids when the officers informed him of the situation.“We… we are working on it, sir. We don't know what killed him but I assure you I will get to the bottom of this,” the man shakily responded.“Not the response I want to hear. I'll ask you again. Why is the man who was entrusted in your care lying lifelessly on the floor?” Zachary asked again, his to
Her heart picked up as she noticed this strange car taking every turn she took. Once she arrived home, the car sped past but Elizabeth knew it wasn't completely gone. Hurrying to her father's room since her room was bugged, she took a look out the window. Just as she thought, it was packed at the other side of the road, directly facing her house. Elizabeth tried to make out the figure in the car but she couldn't tell who the driver if the driver was male or female because the glasses were tinted. With this person monitoring her, it was unsafe for her to stay home. Who knew how many cameras they planted in there. Shooting her father a quick text, she exited the house with two bodyguards. Her next destination was her grandfather's house. If she went to one of her penthouses or another mansion or even called someone to check the bugs in her room, it was very possible they could use it as an opening to plant more. Releasing the nudes was no problem. Anyone could tell from the footag
Elizabeth was signing documents with Zion on the other side of the room answering emails. “Zion,” she called. “I'm not doing anything after work. If it's okay by you, I'd like to see Noah afterward.”There was no response from him. She looked up and found him buried in work. Of course, he wouldn't hear her. It was childish but she folded a paper plane and threw it at him. He looked up with a mortified expression that almost sent her wheezing in laughter.“I suppose that would be funny to you,” he said dryly.“Come on, you don't have to be so uptight. I only threw the plane at you because you were too engrossed in work to hear me,” she said lightly. His brows knotted together in displeasure. He was not enjoying the conversation.“I couldn't hear you because I am deaf,” he gritted. “Why are you being so cranky today? First, you get upset over a little joke and now, you're making it seem like I'm making fun of your disability and I don't like that. I was only asking if I could come o
“I am not dead yet, there is no need for y'all to pamper me,” Zachary complained.“We know you're fine, father, we just don't care. You just woke up and it is only right we take care of you until you are strong enough and well rested,” Elizabeth said. Zachary didn't like the sound of that. He did not like to be babied.“I don't plan to spend another day here. All you need to do is sign my discharge papers and I will be on my way…”“On your way to where?” Zade questioned. “Neither of us will sign those papers until we confirm you are fit to move.”“Fit to move? Was I diagnosed with paralysis? I can flex my legs as much as I want to. You kids are the ones making this a big deal,” He stated. “We don't care what you think. We will sign the papers only when we feel like,” Elizabeth crossed her arms stubbornly. Zachary glared at them, “If you don't sign those papers, I will…”“You’re smart, Grandpa. I expected you would understand that threatening us would not change anything,” Zade int