Michael sat at the driver's seat of the car, watching the whole ceremony through the tinted glass. Sophia sat beside him, looking from one side to the other. She seemed extremely nervous and hated the fact that they were at the burial grounds."Let's go already, babe. I don't like it here. What if someone sees us?""Oh, calm down. Nobody is going to notice us here. The glass is tinted and I took the serial plate down. Nobody is going to know that we are the ones here." He smiled and tried to make her see reason with him."What really are we doing here?" Olivia asked from the back seat. Her hands were folded and she had a light frown on her face. "We shouldn't even be here.""Nobody forced you to come down here with us, missy. If you didn't want to come then you should have stayed back at your house. After all, you should be on one of those your shows.""Calm down, dear." He caressed Sophia's thighs softly. "And we will soon be on our way, Olivia. I just want to see what really is goin
Robert didn't sleep back at the house like he used to when Jude was alive. To him, the house was now empty and that was not something he enjoyed. So, he spent most nights with Juliet at her home. At first, he thought Mary would be a problem, noting that she didn't like him from the very onset. He worried that she him being in her face most of the time would make her angry. But was not the case. Of course, Mary still did not like him. But they house was big enough to contain the both of them. Mary was always in her room, except she was at work. Juliet would go to her room any time she was home to hang her with her, and to bring her food as well. It had gradually turned in to a routine which allowed the both of them to strengthen their bond.Getting the estate was one of the best decisions Juliet made, asides opening herself up to be loved by a man like Robert. This way, her lovely man and her precious sister had their own space and weren't up in each other's faces.Robert, on the other
On the day of the burial ceremony, Liam was unable to attend because he was not informed in time, so he was away for a business trip that very day. But immediately he got back, he visited Robert and sympathized with him. They had patched up their sketchy friendship. And they now understood each other in a higher level. Robert was able to talk Juliet in to letting go of her grudge against his best friend, although they didn't actively speak to each other. Only "hi's and Hello's" when ever they were in the same space. For Robert, that was more than enough seeing that Juliet never wanted to set eyes on him initially.For the past few months leading up to the week Jude passed, the entire businesses under him were doing absolutely nothing well. He had even stopped going to the office frequently, and would only go there occasionally for urgent matters and checks. But after Jude passed, he felt the underlying need to work harder and make him proud. Juliet had told him that it was just his o
Robert had a crack in his heart, had from it spilled out emotions that he desperately tried to hide as best as he could. His grandfather's death has left a scar in his heart. A scare he desperately needed to close.He was in the old man's room. He had been at home all day staring at his Grandfather's photo hanging, slightly crooked on the wall."I guess you finally left" he said to the picture as though it could speak back to him and tell him that he should not cry and regret so much what had happened. His tears could not possibly turn back the wheels of time to go change anything. As if that exactly was what he heard from the picture, he stood up all of a sudden. His feet pressed hard against the floor."I will not stay here and mourn" he immediately said. "Grandfather, you would not want me to do this. Whether or not you were alive. You would tell me to grab life by its collar and ride it to eternity." His eyes were fixed on the picture now. The old man's picture also seemed to st
Robert shoved his hands in his pockets as he leaned by his car. He was supposed to meet Liam but Liam hadn't arrived yet. He looked around the place. It was an abandoned basket ball court, with overgrown grass by the sides. The ball net was torn and the floor, stained with algae."Why would Liam want us to meet here?" He asked himself as he analyzed the place thoroughly. He was beginning to feel very uncomfortable so he got back in to the car to wait for him instead. He reached for his phone which was laying on the seat beside his, and was suddenly interrupted by a rapid tap on his window. He jerked immediately and turned to see who it was. And outside the car, was Liam laughing uncontrollably."Don't tell me you were scared." He said as he laughed some more. Robert pushed open the car door and got out."You are unbelievable." Robert shook his head and let out a short laugh. "Where is you car?""I pulled over at a little parking space I found somewhere close and walked down here to g
"So when was the last time you slept at home? Seems like the house is haunting you now." Liam said with a light chuckle. His eyes were bright and laced with genuine care. Robert sighed softly, not knowing if telling Liam what had happened would be okay. "And how did you know I haven't been sleeping home? You aren't somewhat of a spy now, are you?""You just said it yourself. How else was I supposed to know that?""What did I say?" Robert said in surprise. He didn't remember telling him anything about him not staying at the estate."You weren't home when Fransisco arrived. And everything you know about what has been going on is what Raymond told you. Or am I wrong?""Well no. I didn't think what I said was enough for your to draw an accurate conclusion. But I guess it is.""So where have you been sleeping? You got another place?""I already have other places, bro. I wouldn't have to get another place if I wanted to be away from the estate. But I did sleep there last night.""Let me gu
Since Treasure went back to the house she shared with her husband, she had been acting rather weird. And it made her husband from suspicious of her. She would leave to take calls when he was with her, or even decline them. He did not know what she was up to, but confronting her was not an option for him. He preferred to get the answer himself.It was a Friday afternoon and he had just finished from work. On other days, he went home in the evening, because that was when he finished. But today was different. He decided to surprise Treasure with her favorite flowers and a box of chocolates. For some reason, he decided not to take his car back home with him. He left it parked in the parking space of his office premises and took a cab instead.He got to the flower shop in no time, and bought a bouquet of fresh purple hibiscus flowers. He felt giddy as he took the flowers and the box of chocolates he had just gotten back to the car. It reminded him of his little beginning back when he was w
Treasure looked at him for a moment. Her yes were teary and filled with confusion. She immediately ran after him and grabbed his hand one more time. He paused ridigly without turning to look at her. She fell to her knees and grabbed his legs with her hands."What are you saying, dear? What lawyer? I can't leave. This is my house. Where do you want me to go to?" She said at once, sniffing like an upset child. She looked up at him, wondering why he hadn't said anything yet. Her heart was pounding heavily as she met the rigid look on his face. He was not looking down at her. Rather, his eyes were in an certain direction. He was looking forward. "Why are you quiet, Mark? Why? Why won't you talk to me? Huh? Why won't you tell me what's wrong? Are you enjoying this? Seeing me kneel as I beg you to tell me what I did wrong?""You know what did." He thundered immediately as he looked at her. She trembled in fear, still confused about what he meant. "You know exactly what you did.""But I don'
"Now listen to me, you creep. You are just bluffing and..." The call ended before he could say anything else. He grunted in anger and walked back to where he was before. Raymond had alerted the police officers inside, and a chase had began to get Olivia. Robert walked back to them, breathing heavily."The police are after her." He tried to catch his breath."I know, sir. Let's meet with the detectives at once. I got everything she said on tape.""Yes!" Roberts eyes lit up. "Let's go, then." The two men rushed in back in to the building. Fransisco followed slowly behind them, but when he saw that they were really ahead of him, and wouldn't notice if he wasn't with them, he moved back. He looked from side to side as he rushed out of the premises. Meanwhile, many policemen ran out of the building like a colony of ants, each person dispersing themselves into different cars. Soon, the cars were out of sight. Robert walked out of the building with Raymond beside him. "It's a good thing you
The detective squinted as he looked at his colleague. He turned back to Robert with a stern face before speaking."That is a serious accusation, sir. Are you sure about what you are saying?""Sure? Not exactly. But I really suspect that they might have had something to do with this. About Michael, I do not know how involved he might be. But Sophia? She even went to Juliet's house once to talk bad about me.""And how do you know that?""I saw her leave the house. I tried to ask her why she had come but she ignored me, and left hurriedly. Also, Juliet told me about it when I went in.""Hmm..." He sighed softly as he wrote something in his notebook. "And why would this Sophia want to talk bad about you to your girlfriend?""Sophia and I used to be married. But we got a divorce right before I met my grandfather. After that, she tried had to get back in to my life, but I refused. I think that made her very angry because she said questionable things after, things I didn't take serious.""Sh
"He will be down here in a bit. We should wait in the car, so we can leave immediately he gets here." Raymond announced as he walked down the stairs. Robert immediately opened the door and walked out on hearing that. "Umm... Ryan." He called as he walked towards the car. "Some people will be here later today to do some fixing in here, let them in. They will show you their ID cards first.""Yes, sir." Ryan nodded. He left as soon as Robert waved him off."Sir..." Raymond called hesitantly. "Please, I need to speak with you.""What is this about, Raymond? You know this isn't the time for conversations that are not...""It is very important, sir.""Alright." He sighed and got in to the car. Raymond walked to the other side and got in as well. "What is it?""It's about Fransisco." He paused and swallowed hard. "I... I heard him in his room." Robert squinted with concentration. He didn't trust Fransisco one bit and with the way Raymond was speaking, he was ready to hear the worst."What
Robert didn't sleep the whole night. His eyes were open, fixed to the ceiling and filled with tears in his grandfather's room. It felt like the night would never end, like the torture and pain he was feeling would never end as well. Raymond knocked on the door several times to find out if he was alright, but he asked him to leave every single time. Just as his eyes were beginning to flutter with drowsiness, a bright light pierced through the window. He got off the couch immediately and headed to his room. There, he had a quick change of clothes before heading down to meet Raymond, and of course, Fransisco."Good morning, sir." Raymond said as soon as he saw him walking down the stairs. There was a smile on his face. One that Robert could not fathom at first. "Are you okay?""I'm fine." He said sharply with very steady eyes. He didn't seem like someone who had sobbed all night, maybe because he was very good at hiding his feelings. "We need to go to the station now.""But you've not h
"Gone? Gone?" She asked, totally calm. She was dazed for a moment. She stood still with tears running down her cheeks. "What is gone? What does that even mean?" She managed to murmer."I don't even know what happened. I met the policemen on my way to the house, and I saw her. I saw her right there being placed on the stretcher. And she wasn't moving."She shot an angry eye at him as he tried to explain what he had seen. He stopped immediately and looked down. It was clear that all he was saying didn't matter to her at this point. She didn't want to hear anything."What did you do to my sister, Robert? What did you do to her?" She yelled."No, no. What are saying? I do not know what exactly happened to her. But I will make sure they pay dearly for it.""You, liar. What did she ever do to you? She didn't deserve this. She didn't!" Mary yelled, crying bitterly. She didn't mind the staring eyes that looked in her direction. She just wanted to know why this had to happen to her sister. "
"Police station? What for?" She asked with wide eyes. He couldn't see her but he could already tell the expression on her face. And that was because she sounded just as confused as she looked. "What does that have to do with my sister, Robert? Where is my sister?""I'm really sorry, Mary." He said with a shaky voice. He could no longer contain the hurt he felt. "They don't really know what happened to her, but....""But what?" She interrupted sharply with tears dancing freely in her eyes, waiting gor the perfect opportunity to pour out. She heard what he was saying, but she did not understand. She did not want to understand if it was really what she was thinking. "What are you talking about, Robert? Where the hell is my sister?""Just meet me at the station now." He ended the call immediately. He couldn't mutter the courage to tell her that Juliet was found dead just minutes ago. He took a deep, shaky breath and nodded at the police officer. "I'll be at the station."Immediately after
As he drove closer, he could see bright lights in a distance. He squinted hard to see exactly where the lights were coming from, but he couldn't see clearly. He sped up and was surprised to see police vehicles littered all over the place. He parked his car close by and looked on. He could see some officers placing barricade tapes around that particular area. Thoughts started to fly once more in his mind, and for a moment, his throat tightened. "No, no. Don't overthink anything, Robert." He said to himself and took a deep breath. He got out of the car, and walked quickly towards the area. As he got closer, he thought he recognised the car that was parked on the side of the road. He shook his head in disbelief and got even nearer to the scene. But before he could go past the barricade tapes, he was stopped by one of the officers."You can't come here, sir." The officer said roughly, his hand against Robert's chest in a light manner."What is going on here?" He asked in confusion, stari
About two hours after Juliet left the office, Robert decided to do same. Juliet suddenly came to his mind. "Isn't she home yet?" He said under his breath. "Why hasn't she called yet?" He picked up his phone from the table and called her immediately. The first time, there was no response. He called again, and still, there was no response. "Well, I guess she's busy. I'll just call when I get home." He stood up and arranged all the documents, piling each on top of the other. He tucked everything under his arm and headed to the car."Good evening sir." The security guard hailed from his duty post."Yes, good evening." He answered before placing the documents in the back seat of the car. He closed the car door and walked closer to the young man. "Umm... Tomorrow, some men will be here to do a few checks and fixings in the building. Do let them in, alright?""Yes sir.""Alright then. Have a good night." He nodded and walked to the car. In no time, he sped off. As he drove down the street t
It was 5pm now. The once blue sky was slowly getting darker. Little golden strips beatified the now grey like clouds. Juliet had a pile of documents in front of her and was working on them with utmost focus. Robert sat right opposite her, doing the same. His eyes suddenly looked in the direction of the glass wall, and then, at Juliet. He stared at her for a moment. He agreed with himself one more time that she was indeed the most beautiful woman he had ever set his eyes on. It felt like time stopped during those few moments, and he was lost in the beauty he was beholding."What are you looking at, Mister?" She asked in a serious tone. Her eyes, pinned on the papers in front of her. Robert shook his head with a soft smile, and peered down at his watch."You should get going, honey. It's past five.""Oh!" She exclaimed calmly and placed the pen in her hand on the table. She looked up and met his eyes. "You really want me to go?""If there was an alternative at this point, then I would