JADEMax turned and stared at me quietly for a while before walking out of my room.I followed behind him as I realized I was showing too much anger. I had to control my emotions or risk losing everything I had worked hard for.It was still difficult to believe that my baby had gone through so much suffering right in her father's house. Her nannies were all useless and even Agatha had some explaining to do. Max waited in the living room while I went to my kids' bedroom and came out with Aurora. He went on his knees and pulled her into his arms as he said, "Can you show me where you were burnt with a cigarette?"She looked up at me with fear in her eyes and I smiled at her. Caressing her cheek, I told her, "It's okay, Honey. You can tell your Daddy and everything will be fine. He will punish Stacy and make sure she never sees you again."She smiled at me at turned to face Max whose eyes carried complicated emotions in them."Daddy, will you really not take me back to mummy?" She asked
JADE I saw Max's phone in his hand and heaved a sigh of relief."Aurora is fine," I replied and held his free hand, dragging him once again into my bedroom."What is the problem, Daisy?" He asked, impatience written all over his face.I took a step closer to him and said, "I'm very sorry, Max. I lashed out at you earlier without consideration for your feelings. I got carried away as a mother because I couldn't bear to see my child or children being hurt by others. I blamed you, whereas you were hurting as Aurora's dad. I felt very guilty after you left and didn't know how else to bring you back so I came up with the emergency story.Please do not be mad at me."He pulled me into his arms and hugged me, "Thank you so much, Daisy. I can't be mad at you. If anything, I feel immensely grateful.If not for you, my daughter would still be living a miserable life while I am under the misconception that I am giving her the best.You were right. I failed Aurora because her suffering happened
MAXAfter speaking to Daisy again, I felt a little calm, as opposed to earlier when I thought I was going to explode from anger.I was close to my house and had already called the police. Stacy's call came into my phone again and I answered it."Max, where are you?" She asked impatiently. "You are keeping me waiting and I don't like it. What can be more important than being with your fiancee?"I gritted my teeth, "Be patient. I'll be there soon."Once I entered my house, I saw Stacy sitting on the couch with an aggrieved expression on her face. Her long legs were stretched out and her head leaned against the arm of my couch.Just as I reached her, I asked, "Why did you burn Aurora with a cigarette?"Her eyes widened in shock at first, but almost immediately, her expression changed and she exclaimed, "Excuse you! Why would I do such a...."She was still speaking when I gripped her neck and began to choke her. Her face turned red as she struggled to speak and push my hand away at the sa
MAXOnce Stacy and her cohorts were taken away, I slumped onto the couch. I felt sad and miserable and found myself taking a journey down memory lane.I recalled the first time I met Jade when she walked into my room at the club and everything that transpired between us that night.I remembered how she showed up at my father's house months later with a protruding belly. I gradually became fond of her and even fell for her. If it weren't because of my dad, we might have been one happy family.Thinking about it, I could not help but blame him. He so badly wanted Stacy to raise my children and would not give up after I begged him to leave Jade alone.Perhaps it was a good thing Jade was able to run away with two children. Who knows what Stacy would have done to them if they had all been with her?Jade! I had done everything possible to find her without success. What if she was already dead? What if my sons were no more too?I always avoided these thoughts because they made me feel uneasy
JADEListening to Max, I felt as though I was imagining things. Being his wife for real and living together as one big family with our children had to be the best thing ever.As he stared at me, waiting for my answer, I found myself smiling and my heart beating fast. However, the smile on my face disappeared when I remembered that to Max, I wasn't Jade but Daisy.If he came to know that I was the woman he had been searching desperately for, he would go ballistic and take all our children from me. If that were to happen, I would lose my will to live. Worst-case scenario, one of us would wind up dead.I could not outright reject him since I had no idea how far away it would push him from me or what the result of that action would be. I had to bid my time until I had gotten my daughter's full trust and was ready to leave.I smiled and circled his neck with my wrists as I stood on my tippytoes and kissed him, "Max, I'm honored that you chose me to spend the rest of your life with.Frankly
JADE"I got Stacy and all the nannies arrested," Max told me.I smiled, "That's nice. Will you send them all to prison?"He sighed, "I don't know how I feel about sending people to prison.I know what Stacy has done is very wrong and I really want to punish her but we have come a long way, and I still have to take that into consideration.Cutting her off from me and destroying her career seems like a good punishment. Also, trying to prosecute her for what she did to Aurora will make everything public. Everyone will get to know the truth behind Aurora's birth as well as what she went through. I do not want to expose my daughter to such publicity.""And what is the truth behind Aurora's birth?" I pretended to be curious."That's a discussion for another day," he replied. "The focus right now is on Stacy's punishment.""Leave it to me," I told him. "Aurora is my daughter and I will avenge her.""You? How do you intend to do that?" He asked."I will give Stacy a permanent scar, just like
STACYI stood inside my cell, fuming. How could that little brat rat me out to Max after all the undeserving love I showed her?I hated that liability called Aurora, and how could I not? It was all Max's fault. The plan was to marry me before making me his daughter's mother but he made me a baby mama instead. Did he have any idea how embarrassing that was for me?If Max had married me rather than spent all his time cheating on me like his life depended on it, I may have loved that little brat. He dumped her on me and was now acting like I did wrong.What was he expecting? That I would love her with my whole heart? Her mother ruined my life and changed him into an unapologetic cheat so how could I not take out my anger on her?But who could have given her the courage to speak to Max? Aurora was too scared to rat me out and I made her that way for a reason. She would never open up about how badly I treated her in secret even if Max asked her.The fact that she spoke out meant that there
STACY When I came out and saw Max, I threw myself into his arms and cried, "You changed your mind, Max. Thank you so much, I knew you could never bring yourself to hurt me or believe ridiculous accusations from other people."He pushed me away, "What rubbish are you saying? Didn't you already confess that you did it and blamed it on depression?I am only here because I've decided to punish you some other way. However, you are not allowed to ever come close to me or my daughter again."I nodded, "Okay, Max but Jade....""Keep her name out of your mouth," he warned before walking out of the station.I ran after him after signing because I wanted him to give me a ride but he had already left. Without my phone and wallet which I had left in Max's house, I couldn't order an Uber.I stared at the expensive chain around my wrist and decided to pawn it off but I couldn't find a pawnshop nearby. It was worth millions of dollars and I could not give it out for just a ride.I decided to walk un
TROY After two years, I was back in the Scandinavia, the place that took everything from me. I had rented the whole beach for the evening because I wanted to be alone. I stood by my once favorite beach in Oslo and closed my eyes as memories from the past flooded my mind; Her beautiful smile, and the warmth of her body, pressed against mine as we stared at the stars together. Aislinn was everything to me until she was snatched away so cruelly. I opened my eyes and stared at the water, hoping its calmness would soothe my turbulent heart. All of a sudden, something caught my attention. Floating and approaching from a distance, I tried to make out what it was. I took a few steps closer, dipping my legs into the water. I gasped when I realized it was a person; a woman, and judging by the way she looked, I knew she was dead. I turned and wanted to leave but a question struck my mind; what if she wasn't dead? What if Aislinn was in a similar situation and needed help? Would I have
MARIANNE If it weren't for the date and time stamp on the video, I would have thought Paula was lying to me. As I watched the video, everything began to piece together in my head. I recalled when Tony had first approached me for a relationship. I had refused his advances, especially since I had just clocked eighteen, but Britney kept encouraging me to give him a chance, claiming we were perfect for each other and would be together forever. Back then, I was amazed at how Tony and I had the same tastes, interests, and even fashion sense. I believed he was truly destined for me. Only after Paula's revelation did I realize that Britney had planted him in my life and told him about my likes and dislikes. No wonder he seemed so perfect in my eyes and I ended up falling in love with him. They deceived me for so long and plotted my downfall. The false testimonies from my secretary and Tony's sister finally made more sense to me. I felt so much anger surge within me and a deep yearn
MARIANNE Everything felt like a dream. Just like that, I had been condemned for something I never did. My only crime was being too kind and trusting the wrong people. As I was being transported by ship along with a few other prisoners, the judge's words echoed in my ears, "This court finds the accused; Mrs. Tony, guilty of first-degree murder and sentences her to life imprisonment with hard labor in the Norwegian Island Prison. I recalled the triumphant look on Britney's face as I was being taken away and could not understand what I ever did wrong to her. When I met her so many years ago, I had just finished high school. Being the daughter of the richest man in the city, I lived in affluence as opposed to her who was struggling to get by. I saw her working as a waiter at a party and took her side when a guest treated her disrespectfully. We got close from that night and I got to find out that she had no family. She was an orphan who had to work from a very young age just to
MARIANNE I sighed in relief as I thanked Britney repeatedly. "There's no need to thank me," she expressed. "You are my best friend and I will do anything for you." The next morning, just as my lawyer had promised, I was arraigned before a judge. I had been restless throughout the night as it was my first time being in a cell. I tried not to cry because I knew it wouldn't help my situation. I convinced myself that I was just unfortunate. I never should have married Tony. After the judge questioned me, I took a plea of not guilty. My attorney didn't seem pleased by that but I didn't care. No one was going to make me admit to something I never did. Since it was my first appearance, I expected that I would be granted bail and allowed to show up in court from the comfort of my home during the preliminary hearings. I planned to get the best lawyer for myself once I was released on bail and got access to my phone. However, nothing like that happened. The judge allowed a ten minut
MARIANNE At the police station, I was cuffed and kept in a dimly lit room with four chairs, one table, and a window. I was exhausted and my eyes were puffy from crying. Even though Tony cheated on me, he was the love of my life and I could not believe he was no more. In a flash, I had become a widow; the youngest I knew because I had just turned twenty, a month ago. The three policemen sat in front of me, questioning me as though I were a common criminal. "Don't you know who I am?" I asked. "I own foundations, charity organizations, and free hospitals. I help people, not hurt them. No matter what, I could never murder a man I loved with my life." "Stop beating around the bush and answer the damn question!" One of the policemen yelled at me, slapping his palms on the table. I didn't have to be a police officer or a lawyer to know that what the men were doing was not standard procedure. They were biased toward me and I had no idea why. "I won't speak any more until my lawye
MARIANNE I stepped on my brake pedal and gave myself a minute to catch my breath. My hands were shivering and I felt chilled to the bone. I still could not believe what I had just seen. I opened my phone and watched for the umpteenth time, the pornographic video that had been sent to me anonymously. My husband of almost two years was in bed, having sex with a woman that wasn't me. His face was revealed in the video, while hers was concealed. The only thing I could make of the woman was her slender wrist and the gold bracelet around it. It seemed oddly familiar but I could not remember where I had seen it. For two years, I believed my marriage was the best in the world because my husband, Tony adored me and worshipped the ground I walked on. I was the richest woman in the city and my company, RAY INDUSTRIES was the number one in the country, yet, my happiest moments were the ones spent with my husband. That was how much I loved him. How could he betray my trust? Hands still
SYNOPSIS "My husband walks about freely, lavishing my fortune, with his mistress by his side, while I am condemned to spend the rest of my life in an island prison for his death. If this is my fate, I will fight it until my last breath."~~~ MARIANNE Betrayed by the ones she trusted most, Marianne finds herself convicted for a crime she did not commit. In a desperate attempt to change her new reality, she ends up at the brink of death but gets a second chance in Troy; An unusually sexy billionaire willing to place the world at her feet. Marianne swears she is done with men and love, and her life's goal is revenge against those who wronged her. But why does her heart race uncontrollably at the sound of his voice? ***His hands reached out, framing my face as his fingers caressed my lips. I closed my eyes when he cupped my breasts and his lips settled on the crook of my neck, lavishing it with kisses until I was breathless and wet beyond control. "Troy," I panted and my eyes flung
In the morning, Ethan woke Cila up from his bed and calmly asked her to leave his bedroom and stay away from it. As she walked out of the room, she stood by the door, staring at Ethan who was watching her leave. She wished she could turn back the hands of time. If she hadn’t tried to take Laura’s place and planned for Laura to catch them in the act, Ethan would still be meeting her behind Laura’s back. She wouldn’t feel so alone. She would still have him—if only she hadn’t been so greedy for more. She had no clue Ethan was secretly seeing Laura again. He came home early, spent most of his free time with her. Little did she know, Ethan had been stealing moments with Laura during their lunch breaks, meeting at the small apartment he had rented temporarily for her. The joy of those stolen hours made time fly for them, but each day weighed heavier on Ethan’s heart. He kept counting down the days, marking them on his calendar, waiting for the moment he could bring Laura back home
"Shh......," Byron shushed Laura as he moved closer to her, cupping her face and attempting to kiss her once more. This time, however, he was met with a sharp slap across his face. The sting of it made him pause, his hand instinctively reaching for his cheek as he glared at her. "So, you’d rather sit here, pining away for a man who’s off fucking your best friend, instead of giving me a chance to make you happy?" he spat, his voice dripping with bitterness. "You know what, Laura? You deserve everything that’s happening to you. You’re foolish, indecisive, and weak. You deserve to be ditched by your husband and betrayed by your so-called best friend." The words cut through Laura like a blade, each one more painful than the last. Byron stormed out, slamming the door behind him. Laura remained standing, her legs suddenly too weak to hold her up. She sank to the floor, the weight of his words pressing down on her. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she sobbed uncontrollably. "Do I reall