BHYRONI fall on my knees and await my punishment, head bent. I can feel Duke hesitate above me, but I know he’ll eventually give in. He knows that this is the only way I can pay for my sins. The only way I know.“Can you at least tell me what happened?”I look up and hold his gaze; “I whipped Amani. I hurt her.”Duke lets out a low curse. “How? Why?”I shake my head and stiffen my shoulders. “I’ll give you all the details later. Just… do as I’ve asked. Please.”There’s a moment of tense, choked silence. Then Duke finally responds;“Okay, then. Since this is what you want.”I hear the “whooshing” sound as the whip flies through the air before it lands on my back. Pain erupts on my skin like a burning furnace, licking its way up my arms and penetrating my muscles.Duke whips me mercilessly even when I fall and writhe on the marble floors. I don’t make a single sound. I swallow the pain. I deserve it.The last time I made him do this, I had blood on my hands. I was guilty of a horrendou
AMANIFor lying to us and getting our hopes up only to end up doing us dirty like this, wherever Bhyron’s lawyer is right now, I hope his coffee is always cold before he even gets the chance to take the first sip.The moment Bhyron reveals himself, the atmosphere visibly shifts, becoming tighter, laced with electricity. He stands tall and powerful beside his car, looking down on us like we’re unworthy peasants at his noble throne.When his eyes fall on me, I’m pretty sure he expects me to look away, but I stand firm and hold his gaze despite my shaky fingers.What happened last night will remain in the past. It’s a brand new day and I’m ready to move forward. I guess.“Do you have my money ready?” He asks without mincing words. I open my mouth to speak but Aunt Ophelia pulls my arm, signifying that I should keep silent while she steps forward and addresses Bhyron;“Mr. Bhyron, please don’t do this. Give us a few more days, please. I promise we’ll have the money ready by the end of t
AMANI“Aunt, don’t even think about it.” I say in a warning tone three minutes after Bhyron leaves the premises.Aunt Ophelia hurries to my chair and scoots down on her haunches, grabbing my arm. “Look, sweetheart, you have every right to be upset with Bhyron. All I’m asking is that you give this a thought. It’ll take a magician and some serious black magic to come up with twenty million by noon tomorrow. Besides, the marriage is fake and it’ll only last for six months. By then, we would’ve paid off the ten million with interest.”I give her an odd look. “Sometimes, I wonder if you even love me at all.”Aunt Ophelia gasps, her eyes narrowing with hurt. “How can you say that? Of course I love you. Everything I have done until this time had been in your best interest. Can’t you see?!”I get to my feet, pointing a shaky finger in her face as anger unfurls in my chest; “no, I can’t see anything, aunt. If you loved me, you wouldn’t even think of asking me to go into any kind of relationsh
AMANI“… this is the woman I’m in love with. Her name is Sharon and we’re getting married in a month's time…”It’s been six years. Six full years and those words still ring in my mind like a death bell.Sharon taps her perfectly manicured nails against the table, her cat-like eyes firmly fixed on my face, gauging my reaction.“Hello, Amani. Welcome to Imperial Couture.”There’s a burning sensation in my chest that I cannot seem to get rid of.My anger should be focused on Bhyron for betraying me, but something about this woman just makes me incredibly bitter.“You contacted me? Why?” I ask bluntly, feeling my excitement drain away.Sharon frowns. “I don’t get it. I was looking for a perfume brand, I loved your portfolio and decided to give you a call.”I nod, my lips twisting in disdain. “Sure. And I assume you send a limousine to pick up all your intending partners, huh?”I knew there was something off about that limo. Sharon’s slight hesitation is all the answer I need.I take a dee
AMANIYou know that feeling when everything seems to be going great in your life, then suddenly, something evil sneaks up on you out of nowhere like bad juju? Yes, that’s exactly how I feel as I throw my robe on and make my way to Will & Julia Perfumety by two forty-five in the morning, terrified as a chicken that’s being led to the slaughter.I’m already halfway there when I realize that I don’t have any shoes on, but there’s no going back. I keep my teeth gritted to hold back my whimpers of pain as rocks jab into my feet on the dark street.Thirty meters away from the company, I can already see the thick cloud of black smoke in the air and a blurry line of crimson in the distant skies. My heart almost stops beating.By the time I arrive at the gates, I’ve gone into full panic mode. I called 9-1-1 but they’re yet to arrive. How can I be faster than the damn police?Aunt Ophelia was right. Only our factories, our main area of production is currently burning. The main buildings where o
BHYRONThe chances that I might develop a heart attack soon is exceedingly high.During the short twenty minute drive to Will & Julia Perfumery, I mobilized my company’s personal fire service to the site of the incident. I’ve conjured every single horrible scenario possible. Amani trapped and scared inside one of the burning factories. Amani trapped underneath a falling building. Amani already burning to death.I know how it feels to be trapped. How it feels to struggle for oxygen. It’s a horrible feeling that still haunts me to this day. And the thought that Amani…“Who the heck let her into a burning building?” I ask one of my private detectives who’s already at the site. “Wasn’t anyone there to stop her?”“Only Miss Amani and her aunt were here, sir. According to her Aunt, she’d tried to stop her but Miss Amani was too stubborn.”I can imagine that. Amani’s stubbornness has probably grown by a thousand percent since I last saw her.Now she wants to worry me to death.***The mome
AMANIThis better be a bad dream. Or better still, a hallucination… because I would kick Henry’s dusty ass if I ever saw him in my dreams. I try to sit up but pinpricks of pain shoot up and down my spine. My legs hurt, my feet hurt, my arm hurts, my throat hurts. Everything hurts. Now, I have to deal with the one person that I’d rather die from smoke inhalation than talk to.“Careful there. You might hurt yourself.” His voice sounds like a horrific version of static in my ears. Crap! It wasn’t a dream after all.Henry tries to help me up but I give him a death stare and that has him freezing in his tracks.“Don’t you dare touch me.” I say on an almost growl.After struggling to sit up by myself, I turn to him and lift a brow; “what are you doing here?” He has the audacity to smirk at me. “You’re my wife, Amani. You’ve been particularly stubborn and annoying for the past few days, but I still care about you.”I almost choke on my own soot-flavoured spit. Unlike other people who wa
AMANIThe moment Henry and Laura exit the ward, a strange feeling of overwhelming exhaustion crashes on me and I lean back against the pillows with a strained sigh.I shut my eyes, trying to recover from that disaster when my vision suddenly darkens. My eyes fly open and my toes curl in surprise when I see Bhyron hovering over me. His sharp blue eyes are dark and intense as they rove over every inch of my body.“What are you doing?”His eyes meet mine and butterflies erupt in my belly. “Did he hurt you?”“What?”“That bastard, Henry. Did he put his hands on you?”My blood runs cold. “Uh… no. Why would you ask me that?”“Don’t lie to me, Amani. I saw you crying when I walked in.”I force myself to hold his gaze, despite the exhaustion in my limbs and the dread in my bones. I don’t want Bhyron getting involved in whatever issues I’ve got with Henry. Things could get incredibly messy.I clear my throat, deciding to change the subject; “why did you save me?”Bhyron’s eyes darken dangerou