There was satisfaction within her soul that the first steps of her plan worked out.The room was empty - free for her to do what she wanted.She angled her gaze to the Public Address System. It was mounted on the wall just opposite the door. It had a speaker and a control panel just below it.Knowing that she had very little time, she locked the door behind her and moved over to the control panel, her hands trembling slightly as she took the microphone.She took a deep breath. It was now or never - she then spoke into the microphone. “Attention, please! Attention! There is a fire situation in the building. Attention once again! There is a fire situation in the building. Please evacuate the premises immediately. All occupants are required to leave through any of the exits available. Orderliness is required as you carry on the process.”The sound from the public address system meandered through the halls and traveled through every room prompting the occupants to freeze, their bodies jol
The hospital room was quiet and the voices he heard were now gone. He wished he had at least sighted them though - it would help him have an idea of who his enemies were.The only sound he could hear was his old man’s silent breathing. His eyes were still closed though as he lay still.Paul’s heart felt a relief as he moved closer and realized that Grandpa Leonard still had live in him. There was a slight improvement from the accident site.There were tubes attached to his Grandpa’s body which he couldn't remove so he quickly walked over to the handle of the bed and carted him away with all the tubes and wires attracted to him. He wanted to take advantage of the commotion from the crowd so he acted fast.He removed his mask so that people would not have any reason to pay an attention to him but he was swift and purposeful as he slipped through the crowd unseen. Other people were carting away their patients so it made it easier for him to camouflage himself.Paul heaved a sigh of relie
He got closer than ever. He couldn't stop - if he did, he would be surrendering to the people pursuing him. He thought of flying over the barrier but that would be too dangerous. The trunk was very huge and if there was a little crash from the bottom of the vehicle, it could lead to an accident. He didn't want that, especially not with an unconscious 75-year-old man in his backseat.“Paul! Let's pull over. We can't continue. Let's pull over,” Camille screamed on top of her voice as they approached the barrier. “Just stop!”Paul kept silent, refusing the listen to Camille’s jittery plea.With his mind racing, Paul swerved the vehicle, its body tilting to the side and prompting incredible chaos. Camille’s heart felt like it was going to pop out of her chest any minute as the vehicle’s tires almost skidded off the road.In an apt show of expertise, Paul controlled the vehicle to swerve back into the road after passing through the tiny opening that the barrier had not covered.Paul’s musc
There came out a number of guards in imposing armor. Each of them wore helmets and their stances were fierce.The crowd gasped in horror at the sight of them.The guards had their pistols and machete ready and in the middle of the guards was Sarah.Sarah bowed her head in shame as she couldn't look at the faces of the people. Her hair was wet and scattered as it plastered across her face.Sarah’s clothes were tattered, torn, and stained with mud. She looked pale and her eyes were tired as the guards held her tightly and escorted her to the podium.She was made to kneel in front of the guests.Lady Winston rose from her high seat and prompted the crowd into silence.“Very good! We would not have Sarah bare a child that has our name and that is why we have to undergo this process. To those of you who might find this disturbing to watch—well—” a smug played on her face.“I am sorry for you but today you have to witness it. It will serve as a lesson to others who may have it in their mind
He then turned toward Lady Winston - his lips were pursed and his breath coming in short gasps.With his voice quivering, he uttered, “My Lady, I am sorry but this procedure—”He paused for a bit because of the darting glare that Lady Winston threw towards him. “What's with the procedure? Is that what we discussed? Didn't you tell me it was a simple procedure and there wouldn't be problems?” She asked.“Yes, yes My Lady,” he mumbled. “It's just that she needs to eat. Her physical state is not ripe for the procedure. I can't give her the injections that would put her to sleep so that I can carry out the abortion because she needs food. She is very weak right now.”“Who cares if she is weak? You told me it was an unorthodox abortion method so why are you now acting as if you are trying to give a lecture on surgery,” Lady Winston raised her voice angrily.In truth, Doctor Lopez had told Lady Winston that he was going to adopt an unorthodox approach to perform the surgery but that was onl
Sarah, knowing that the cavern was no longer going to be safe for her quickened her feet and escaped through the backdoor into the manor. She knew that she had to get her decisions right if she was going to truly escape.Running aimlessly through the small halls in the manor, she could hear the feet of the guards stamping. They were not running as fast as she was because there was an air of confidence within them that Sarah was on an impossible adventure. How could she possibly escape a manor as big as that which had guards almost everywhere?Sarah was feeling her tummy heavy from the pregnancy but she darted on until she bumped into a figure.A jolt of fear shot through her and her heart leaped into her throat as she fell onto the ground.“Ms. Winston,” the figure uttered.Sarah looked up and it was Rico, the gardener who warned her about her family planning something evil towards her.“Rico?” she uttered, her voice breaking. Her heart sank into her chest because she thought that it
Mr. Hartlane was one of the workers who died a horrible death. He discovered the tattoo of an owl with sharp claws on one of his male colleagues and queried him about it. Mr. Hartlane began to suspect that there were others who had the same tattoo working amongst them and who had ulterior motives.The next day it was reported that he committed suicide because he was found hanging on a rope. People wondered how a man like Mr. Hartlane who was jovial and didn't seem to have any psychological or emotional challenges suddenly killed himself. But people like Sophie and Dexter who worked closely with the dangerous Kazitanis informants knew that it wasn't a suicide situation - Mr. Hartlane was murdered because he went too far and he was curious to know things that he should have just laid to bed.“Keep your voice low, Sophie,” Dexter hushed. “They won't find out okay? You don't need to worry about me. Just go on with your work.”“And how do you know that, huh?” Sophie queried, her eyes dart
Dexter’s footsteps dragged across the porch as he heaved a sigh, the sound of exhaustion echoing through his body. His guard was behind him and he helped with his suitcase.His 7-year-old son, Ronny darted out of the house with a whoop of delight the moment he realised that his Dad had come back from work. “Daddy! Daddy!” Ronny raised his voice in excitement, his face lit up like a firework as Dexter embraced him warmly even though his feet were still staggering in tiredness.“Guess what we learned in school today?” Little Ronny asked, a bright smile on his face.“Errm,” Dexter angled his head upward, his finger on his chin as his thoughts went wild. The question Ronny asked him seemed to have rattled his brain.“That's going to be a difficult guess though,” Dexter uttered, squeezing his face into a little smile. “No Daddy, you have to guess,” Ronny insisted.“Do I?” “Yes, papa.”“Okay, you were taught how to make boats out of paper, am I right?” Dexter asked, scanning through Ronn
Paul who was darting from side to side in confusion soon saw a figure in front of him. His ropes were cut off a lightning speed as he was escorted out of the hall by a figure.Paul gasped in shock when he saw the figure that had come to protect him.“Dane Michaelson?!” Paul gasped in surprise. “Is this you? What are you doing?”Dane Michaelson was Paul’s long-term friend and high schoolmate who had always been like a guardian angel to him. He always protected Paul from bullies when he was in high school and even had a young age, Dane Michaelson had impressive fighting skills that he used to defeat anyone who came across him to defy him or any of his friends. Paul learned a few fighting skills from Dane but their friendship was put to a halt when Dane had to travel far away for a scholarship. He promised that he was going to be back though and that he would always keep an eye on him.“I told you that I would be back for you, didn't I?” Dane spoke in a hurried tone, his words coming o
He didn’t want Grandpa Leonard to suffer more than he already had and he was feeling as though he should have done more to protect Grandpa Leonard.Grandpa Leonard was also tied with bonds to the wheelchair and his face was set in a mask of grim determination as he endured the agony, his eyes narrowed with focus against the torrent of pain.“I am the head of the Imperial Society Syndicate, not him,” Pail spoke, trying to defend Grandpa Leonard.“Son, do not worry about me. This is not the time to speak of vain things,” Grandpa Leonard spoke sternly as if to tell Paul not to worry about him.The Red Witch erupted in a burst of laughter that echoed through the hall, her expression twisted into a malicious smile as she took pleasure in her evil deeds. It brought her so much joy to see Paul and Grandpa Leonard sit side-by-side and have their faces contorted with grief.Her smile curved into a malicious grin as she turned towards Paul. “Long time, no see Paul Leonard. Don’t tell me that yo
Paul could hear their voices and it was mixed with laughter and merriment. The stench of alcohol filled the place and Paul was wondering if it was the same person that was tied to a chair that everyone was celebrating about.But there was something else that caught Paul’s interest. He kept hearing them call out a Red Witch. He had heard the word more than twice already since his eyes fluttered open and from the conversation that his ears were able to pick, it seemed as if the Red Witch wasn’t just an ordinary person.It could be one of their leaders, he thought. Or could it be the person that was assigned to kill him and render whatever punishment they had against him?Paul was suddenly shocked when he received a huge flow of water attacking him on his face. He spluttered and shuddered as his body shook violently, expelling the water from his lungs. His throat was constructed painfully as he tried to draw breath. He shook his face repeatedly so that the water could fall off his face a
Sarah couldn’t help but defend herself. She wasn’t just going to keep quiet and allow things to happen to her. She had to speak up and defend herself, she thought.“I brought the antidote that is now the reason why you are alive. I suffered a lot and risked a lot to get the antidote. I had an agreement with Janet, Frank, and Thomas but they haven’t told me anything,” Sarah stammered in panic, her words tumbling out rapidly as she tried to explain herself. “I don’t deserve this treatment and I don’t understand why you have to force me here as if I shouldn’t be one of the partakers of the good things of Winston Corporation. If you knew what I did to get the antidote for you, you probably wouldn’t be treating me this way. What else do I have to do to prove that I deserve my previous position back.”Janet retorted. “Liar! Liar! You cannot get your previous position back. You are a rotten piece of dirt!l Janet retorted.”Janet was always upset by the fact that Sarah was desperate to get h
Sarah’s voice was breaking because she wondered what she said that was wrong. “Y-e-s.”“What?!” Arianna fumed. “What exactly are you still doing at the inner chamber? You have already made the mistake of giving them the antidote but what business do you still have there?”“I just think that maybe they would—-” Sarah’s voice was breaking with tension.Arianna spoke over her in a loud frothing. “You think what exactly? What exactly do you think? Are you still delusional enough to think that Lady Winston would give you the requests that you asked for?”Arianna’s tone was insistent and her expression furious as she rendered a warning. “What exactly are you still there for when they have already shown you the writing on the wall? Oh my goodness!”“You had better start running away from there because if the history of your family’s wickedness is anything to go by, then it won’t be long until they arrest you and even do much worse to you than they wanted to do before. Do you think Lady Winst
Arianna’s voice was tinged with a hint of unease as she tried to communicate her fears. “Doctor Lopez? Wait, don’t tell me that you tried to get the antidote from him to help Lady Winston.”Sarah bit her lips again because she didn’t know how to answer the question. “That’s exactly what I did,” she finally spoke out.“My goodness!” Arianna spoke out loud, her voice ringing with a loud echo from the phone as she conveyed her disappointment. “I thought that Paul already gave you a new and improved job. What happened that would make you go back to the same mess that you were coming from.”“I just couldn’t find it comfortable there. I couldn’t stop thinking about Winston Corporation. I thought that I felt at home at Winston Corporation,” Sarah attempted to justify herself, her voice faltering because she realized the fault in her argument.“Can you even listen to yourself?” Arianna seethed, her voice rising with a cold anger and tinged with disappointment. “You are somehow trying to justi
“Do you really think that I will listen to her deceits? She has seen that Paul can do no good for her and now she wants to return to where she made a life. Oh, how foolish does she think we would be.”“In any case, I am glad that she came right into our hands because now she will get the punishment that she escaped narrowly before. Who would have thought that she would come right under our nose so easily for us to dismantle her.”Janet's cheek flushed with happiness as she smiled brightly, her eyes shining with excitement.Of course, neither she nor her brothers had the intention of fulfilling the pact that they had with Sarah. They were all trying to get the antidote and now that Lady Winston was back in a healthy condition, they could do away with Sarah. In fact, Frank and Thomas especially were expecting Lady Winston not to suspend the punishment that she had earlier placed on her.“Come to think of it. Where is she now? Where did she go? “ Lady Winston asked. They all turned the
She recalled that she had forgotten the gun that Arianna gave to her in Doctor Lopez’s office. That gun was the evidence that was going to stand against her if Doctor Lopez died. Her mind started reeling with desperate thoughts. What if she had committed murder all for nothing? Was she going to lose on both ends? How long was she going to keep foolishly trusting her family to back her up and then proving that they were always going to stab her in the back?An investigation was going to be carried out into what happened with Doctor Lopez, she reasoned. They were going to trace it to her and tell Paul about it. She couldn't imagine how disgusted Paul was going to feel to learn that she had betrayed him even much more intentionally this time.The inner chamber had high ceilings adorned with intricate carvings. The walls were lined with tapestries and brilliant decorations conveying a sense of power and prestige. Frank and Thomas led Lady Winston until she reclined on a sumptuous chair
Lady Winston soon spoke, her words drowned with fatigue and her speech slow and deliberate as she feigned an extra bit of tiredness. “Hello everyone. I appreciate that you have all come here to witness this moment. I appreciate all those whose prayers and thoughts have been with me.”“But as you can see, I am recovering from a very delicate condition that would require that I have a long rest so I will be accompanied by my family - Frank, Thomas, Estevan, and Janet who I am sure must have been working day and night to ensure that I am back to normalcy.”The employees all erupted in applause, their faces contorted with nervousness as they gradually returned to their duty posts.Sarah’s expression was glazed, her eyes unfocused and her mouth hanging slightly open as she stared blankly, her features slack with confusion. Her haze was disoriented as she stared back and forth, her expression clouded with confusion and uncertainty. The applause was like a torment to her because it was cons