Abigail When they finally finished, the nurses released their grip on me, my limbs falling limp against the sheets. I didn’t fight anymore. I didn’t have the energy. One of them, the one who had hesitated before, swallowed thickly and turned to Conrad. “We have what we need, sir.” Her voice was soft, as if she were afraid to say more. Conrad gave her a sharp nod. The nurse glanced back at me, guilt flickering in her gaze. “I’ll bring a snack and some juice for her,” she murmured, then quickly left the room, the others following close behind. And then, I was alone. Well, almost. I lay there, staring at the ceiling, my body completely drained. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t think. I had never felt this weak before. I had never felt this small. A shadow loomed over me. Conrad. I didn’t turn to look at him. I didn’t want to see his face. I felt his fingers brush against my chin, tilting it ever so slightly. I flinched at his touch, but I didn’t have the strength to pull aw
AbigailFor several minutes, I sat in silence with Alexander.I didn’t have the strength to speak, and thankfully, he didn’t try to force me. He simply stayed.A part of me wanted to cry again and let out the overwhelming grief that threatened to swallow me whole, but I was tired. So tired. And for the first time since I’d woken up in this awful hospital room, I didn’t feel completely abandoned.Alexander shifted slightly in his wheelchair, glancing around the room with something like distaste before turning his gaze back to me. “Staying in this depressing place will do nothing for you.” His voice was firm, yet gentle. “Are you ready to leave?”I choked out a sound, something caught between a sob and a strangled breath,before nodding. “I can’t wait to get out of here,” I whispered.Alexander gave a sharp nod, immediately pulling out his phone. A few moments later, the door opened, and Daniel stepped back inside. His expression was as unreadable as ever, but when our eyes met, he nodde
AbigailAs the car moved through the streets, I barely registered the world I was passing by. My body was too drained to pay attention. Alexander sat beside me, silent for a few moments before his voice broke through the stillness. “Where would you like me to take you? Home?”The way he asked made something inside me still. It wasn’t the words themselves, but the way he said them; carefully, gently, as if he already knew what had happened. As if he knew that stepping into that house wasn’t something I wanted to do. For a brief second, I nearly asked him to take me anywhere but there. A hotel. A park. Hell, even a guest room in his sprawling estate. Anywhere my brother wasn’t.But I bit back the request before it could slip out. It was ridiculous, wasn’t it? Alexander had already done so much for me today. I couldn’t ask for more. I couldn’t cling to his kindness like some lost, broken thing. So instead, I swallowed the
AbigailAs I sat, my body was tense with the weight of invisible chains Marceline had just locked around me. She smiled serenely, almost as if she were pleased by my compliance. The sight of it sent a shiver down my spine. Marceline wasn’t someone who wasted time gloating. If she was pleased, it was because she had more to say to me. I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear it.She folded her hands neatly in her lap, tilting her head ever so slightly. “Remind me, Abigail,” she said in that deceptively soft voice of hers, “what is my name?”I frowned. It was a strange question, almost childish in nature. But something about the way she asked it, calm, yet expectant, put me on edge.So I answered. “Marceline Remington.”Her smile widened, as if my response had somehow delighted her. “That’s correct,” she said, nodding approvingly. “Marceline Remington. Wife of Stephen Remington. The woman at the h
Abigail The room felt like it was shrinking around me, the walls closing in inch by inch. But Marceline wasn't finished yet. She turned her gaze to another man, the one standing near the entrance leading deeper into the house. He was a broad-shouldered figure, his expression neutral as though he had been trained not to show emotion. "And this," Marceline said, her tone as light as if she were introducing a friend at a social gathering, "is the lovely caregiver who so graciously escorted your dear mother to her new home, where she is being taken very good care of." My fingers twitched as my breath hitched. Marceline met my gaze with an almost amused expression, as if she enjoyed watching the realization dawn on my face. "You—" My voice was hoarse, my throat dry. I swallowed hard and tried again. "You and Conrad, you took her." Marceline smiled, slow and indulgent. "Of course, Abigail. I would have thought you'd already come to that conclusion." I had suspected Conrad was involved
AbigailI stared down at Liam, my body rigid with fury. The man kneeling before me, clutching at my dress, was supposed to be my brother, but right now, I could barely recognize him. "You owe Marceline money?" My voice was sharp, my tone disbelieving. "How, Liam? When did you borrow money from her?" Liam opened his mouth, but before he could form a single word, my gaze snapped to Marceline. "You," I spat, my anger redirecting itself at the woman watching us with a small, knowing smile. "You've gone too far. It wasn't enough for you to sneak around behind my back and meet with my brother in secret, but now you’ve loaned him money, too? Who gave you the right to do that?" Marceline didn't react or try to defend herself. She simply watched, and her silence only enraged me further. "You’re despicable," I seethed. "Manipulating my brother, pulling him into whatever twisted scheme you’re running—" "Abigail, stop!" Liam cut me off, his voice rising in desperation. I turned back to him
AbigailMarceline lifted a shoulder in a delicate shrug but she said nothing more. For the first time since this conversation began, Liam met my eyes. I wished he hadn’t, because the moment he did, I saw it; the shame, the desperation.The absolute wreck of a man he had become. He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. "It wasn’t supposed to be a big deal," he muttered, his voice rough. "I’d just started smoking… you know, to take the edge off. Looking for university funds was—" He exhaled, shaking his head. "It was stressful. I was worried about the future, about making it, and then one of the gardeners invited me for a smoke as I was leaving the house one day. I figured, why not? It was just one time."My stomach twisted. "One time," I echoed, my voice hollow. Liam nodded weakly. "But it didn’t stop, did it?" I asked, my hands trembling at my sides.He hesitated before answering, "No."I shut my eyes for a fraction of a second, inhaling sharply through my nose, willing the fury bubbli
MarcelineMy nails dug into the smooth fabric of the armrest as I kept my expression neutral listening to Abigail's words. Her confidence was needling under my skin like splinters I couldn’t remove. I had always doubted Abigail had much of a spine, which was one of the reasons I had tolerated her for so long. So what was this audacity? When and where had she decided she had a sharp tongue to use so boldly against me? It made me furious. Negotiating with Abigail was beneath me.Sitting here, listening to her break down my strategy, made me want to snap my fingers, spur my men into action and be done with this mess. There were so many simple ways to end this entire ordeal I could have employed a long time ago.It would have been so easy too. All that would have been needed was a word in the right ears. Then a simple accident would have occurred. A body washed ashore, or perhaps one that simply vanished.She could have snatched away in the parking lot of the company, or taken a bullet t
Liliana I stared down at my lunch, the delicate aroma rising from the bowl doing nothing to stir my appetite. It was my favorite meal, carefully prepared and beautifully plated but today it tasted like nothing more than ash in my mouth, bitter and dry. I set my spoon down with a loud clatter, the sharp sound slicing through the silence of the room. Harry was out playing baseball with his friends, so I was all at home today, which made my annoyance even worse. My chest felt tight, suffocated by a fury I was barely managing to keep contained. How could I eat happily? How could I pretend everything was fine when it wasn’t? I let out a harsh loud breath, pushing my plate aside so forcefully it nearly toppled over the edge of the table. Enough. It had been months of enduring this slow descent into chaos. I had been an angel to tolerate it for this long. What other woman could have withstood the humiliation and the pressure of everything that had been thrown my way lately? First, ther
AbigailI meant to wait until later to tell Alexander about the meeting. I had every intention of acting cool, composed, someone who didn’t need to rush and blurt everything out like an overeager intern.But the second I promised to see Mr. Hayes back at the office and stepped into the elevator and the doors slid shut behind me, all my resolve crumbled. My fingers itched for my phone, and before I knew it, I was pulling it out of my pocket, rapidly typing out a message. I crushed it, I wrote, my heart beating a little too fast. Conrad’s project is dead. You should have seen his face, Alexander. It was glorious.I stared at the screen, grinning like a fool. And then, reality caught up with me.I was being ridiculous. Maybe even downright immature. This wasn’t the dynamic we had. I was supposed to be professional and reliable, not someone who acted like they were texting a secret crush after acing a test. Groaning quietly under my breath, I erased the entire message and typed a much s
AbigailI froze mid-sentence, lifting my head slowly to look at him. He was still at the front of the room, but now his arms were crossed loosely over his chest, a mocking smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.“And here I thought,” he added, dripping with false politeness, “that only those formally invited had something to contribute.”A few people shifted in their seats. A few glanced at me. I could feel the weight of their eyes, the tension coiling in the air.Conrad was trying to embarrass me and put me back in my place.I leaned forward, pressing the button on the microphone in front of me. My voice was cool. “I have nothing to say to you, Mr. Remington.”I started t
AbigailInternally, I whooped and punched the air in victory. But outwardly, I gave Mr. Hayes a serene, practiced smile, the kind that said I'm glad to be here, not desperate to be here. “Thank you again,” I said politely, then stepped out of his office before my excitement bubbled too far to contain.Ten o’clock was only forty minutes away. Not enough time to start anything new, but just enough to make myself useful. I returned to my office, where Elle was already tidying up the documents on my desk.“Anything urgent?” I asked as I approached.She handed me a printed memo and gave me a quick update on a postponed meeting. “Only thing worth noting is
AbigailThe smell of the food filled the entire room, and something about the presence of Alexander beside me dulled the tightness I’d been carrying all day. The tension behind my eyes had started to fade as I picked at the grilled fish, letting the flavors roll across my tongue, my limbs slowly unknotting with every bite.“I’ve been getting calls from Liam,” I said, my voice tired but audible. I didn’t know why I chose now to bring it up; maybe because I finally felt safe enough to say it out loud.Alexander’s hand stilled mid-motion, his chopsticks hovering above the container of scallops. “Liam?” His eyes flicked to mine, sharp. “How long?”I nodded and swallowed. “It’s been a few times now. He says he’s changed and keeps asking to see me.”His brows drew together, and I could see him piecing something together. “He’s been coming to me too and asking to see you.” He paused. “He’s not been released from Ridgewell officially, but this is part of the treatment program; they release so
Abigail I didn’t know where I was going, I just kept driving. One street turned into another and headlights flashed past me in a blur. The city was quietly winding down while something restless stirred in my chest. My fingers were clenched so tight around the steering wheel, they ached. I told myself I would find a hotel. Or maybe I would go to Roxy’s, even though it was too late and she’d worry. But the truth was, I wasn’t thinking clearly at all. I wasn’t thinking at all.I just didn’t want to go home.And somehow, without meaning to, I ended up here. The car rolled to a slow stop in front of the tall, glittering building before I fully realized where I was. I blinked up at it, dazed and slightly breathless, my stomach twisting into an uncomfortable knot. I knew this place; it was the high rise I had met Alexander before we went to Ridgewell to see Liam. The lights shimmered against the glass like stars in a city that forgot what the real ones looked like. But I wasn’t looking at
AbigailAfter work, I found myself walking to the park instead of driving straight home.I told Roxy I’d leave early today, mostly because she looked ready to duct-tape me to my chair if I didn’t. But now that I had, I didn’t know what to do with myself. My body wasn’t worn down enough, and that small sliver of energy still lingering in me made me restless. If I’d had my way, I would’ve stayed in the office till one a.m., working until even my thoughts couldn’t keep up with me anymore. But Roxy had been especially worried lately. So, I’d smiled, packed up, and walked out like someone who had a life waiting for her outside those walls.I didn’t.So, here I was, wandering through the park with my coat still buttoned, my shoes making soft sounds against the path. The air was crisp but not cold, and the faint scent of blooming grass and wet earth filled my lungs. It was peaceful, in a way that made the ache in my chest feel sharper.To my left, I noticed a picnic spread out on a checkered
RoxyAnd yet he always asked as if he had nothing to do with it. As if it wasn’t his driver who opened the door for me, or his expense account that covered the seafood platter I’d been daydreaming about since 3 p.m.I settled in, crossing one leg over the other. What I couldn’t quite wrap my head around what I never could was how a man like Alexander could share even a single drop of blood with someone like Conrad.Conrad Remington, the walking ego. The emotional toddler. Every time I thought about him, it made me want to demand a DNA test on Alexander’s behalf. Maybe they swapped cribs at the hospital. Maybe one of them was adopted. Maybe God just wanted to play a particularly cruel practical joke.Still, why was I thinking about Conrad with what was in front of me?Sitting beside Alexander was one of the most delicious motivations I’d ever had for showing up anywhere on time; Daniel Woods, his secretary. The tall drink of sin I’d been lowkey thirsting over since the first moment I l
RoxyI yawned so hard I swore my jaw cracked. My screen dimmed in front of me, signaling the finality of another day. With a satisfying click, I shut down my computer and sat back in my chair, allowing myself a tiny internal cheer.Done. All of it. Not only had I cleared every task on my to-do list—emails, reports, that ridiculous revision James from Marketing demanded this morning—I had also accomplished the almost-impossible: I’d managed to convince Abigail to leave on time. No 11 p.m. grind, no haunting the office like a lonely ghost with the cleaning crew. She actually packed up and went home like a normal person. That was a victory in itself.I stretched my arms above my head and yawned again, this one longer. All I wanted now was to kick off my heels, boil water for some scandalously sodium rich ramen, and fall asleep in the middle of an episode of Love & Lies: Southside Edition. It was my guilty pleasure, that trashy little reality series with way too many slow motion breakups