The room was eerily silent at evening, and the soft sounds of birds chirping and whistling could be heard from the room, as well as the rhythmic beeps of the life support machines that were planted beside the bed, while monitoring the rise and fall of Zoe's heartbeat. She had been lying there for what felt like an eternity, her chest rising and falling with shallow breaths that seemed barely strong enough to keep going. And by her side was Malcolm, whose hand was wrapped gently around hers in the same way it had been for hours, his eyes fixated and never leaving her. He was hoping desperately in his heart that she would wake up, since it had been the tenth day already without any hope of her waking. Just as he was about to adjust the covers that her fragile body was wrapped in between, his heart skipped a beat, upon noticing what he thought he had hallucinated about. Her fingers twitched at the slightest movement, but it was enough to send a jolt through him as he turned instantly
Marcel sat on the balcony of his apartment with a weary expression etched on his face, the more he tried to call the same phone number he had been trying incessantly for days now, which kept giving the same response. As if that was not enough frustration, his mind could not drift back to the memory that he wished he could bloat out of his head, because he hated that it bothered him so much more than he cared to admit.‘What had he done wrong? He was pretty sure he hadn't done or said anything. So why?’ Were the questions that kept seeping back into his thoughts as much as he tried dismissing them. He dropped his phone angrily on the table that was before him, as he picked up the glass of champagne he had been drinking from initially, the fruity flavor he usually liked in the sparkling white wine, suddenly tasting sour because he couldn't stop thinking of Audrey. It had been days since they unexpectedly met in the restaurant where he had agreed to meet someone, and he moved on as us
A sleek black car glided to a halt in front of the grand, towering mansion after driving through the gate, and Malcolm, who was driving the car, turned to look at Zoe sitting beside him, his heart aching at the sight of her pale face and the dark circles under her eyes. Her fragile body was slumped against the leather seat of the car, and her gaze was distant as she stared out at the mansion. She looked so small and weak in a way that made it evident that something was wrong, and it tore at him to see her like that. Swallowing his worry and resisting the urge to touch her, he spoke up, his voice soft, almost pleading, “Are you sure you are ready to leave, Zoe?” he asked, searching her eyes for any sign of the pain he knew that she was hiding. “Yes, I am,” her reply was curt. “You need more treatment and more time to heal. Can we return a little later when you are properly healed?” He hoped that she would give a positive response, even when he knew that she had made up her mind.
Making up her mind, Zoe stood up from where she sat, and returned to her room instantly, without saying any further. She spent minutes in the bathroom redressing her wound herself even if it wasn't so easy and was quite painful, and took every necessary drug she was supposed to take for the day. From the suitcase that she had brought with her, she pulled out the phone that Malcolm gave her after she woke up, which surprised her when he gave it to her as if she had not lost it before. Her mind quickly drifted back to how he said he was able to locate her, after her phone went off during their call, and how he instantly made his way to her company only to confirm that she had been abducted. “How were you able to find me?” she had asked him when she finally started responding to treatments, and was able to talk without feeling so much pain. Though she still seemed so pissed at him and kept him walking on eggshells around her, she couldn't help but ask. “You might get mad,” he feared,
Zoe sat in her opulent but suffocatingly quiet villa, with her world sinking around her, while trapped in nothingness and pain, even if she was surrounded with beauty and luxury. She laid limply on the couch in the living room as she stared blankly at the ceilings, the memories of the last conversation she had with Francis Sinclair before she left his house, playing on a loop in her mind, each word a hammer blow to her already fragile spirit. She had stood across from him when he caught her standing in his room, with her heart pounding in her chest, as he stepped closer, his face now visible from a short distance, and she could see the hardness in his expression. “So you came to ask me that? I thought you knew I wasn't home,” his cold voice outrightly snapped in a low and dangerous tone, willing to offer no compromises. “How would I have known?” Zoe remembered the head of the maids telling her, but she feigned ignorance at that moment as she swallowed, “I thought you were not goin
“Zoe, is this truly you? Is this your voice?” Martin could not believe the person that was speaking on the other side of the phone, his eyebrows furrowed so high. “Yes, it is me,” Zoe's voice came out as soft as possible. “Goodness! Goodness! How have you been so distant?” Martin, who sounded like he would cry in relief, asked her, his mind still reeling that Zoe suddenly called him, after he had been trying to contact her for weeks. Zoe's left hand rested on her temples, as she rubbed them softly, feeling so apologetic that she had been a terrible friend, “I am truly sorry, Martin. A lot has been going on lately,” her voice was low and shildy. “I thought you cut me off. I thought you……” his words got caught so heavily in his throat as he struggled to breathe, unable to process his emotions all at once, “I was sad, to be honest. I thought I did something wrong.” “I am truly sorry for everything I might have made you think or assume. It is just that…it is just that I have been goi
Huddled in a corner of her room was Audrey, whose knees clung tightly to her chest, her breath coming in short, panicked gasps, each one caught in her throat as if she were drowning in the thick air of her fear, while struggling to hold her tears. She had read the message that was sent to her phone over and over, the words blurring together every single time, as fresh tears welled up in her eyes, a terrible ache plaguing her head. Every time she tried to blink them away and put herself together, the terrifying message occurred to her again, with the choking realization that someone knew what she had done. The sender’s identity was unknown, but the intent was clear; they had her in their grip, and they weren’t going to let go.She pressed her hand to her mouth while trying to stifle the sobs that shook her body, her heart wrenching with an asphyxiating dread that threatened to choke her. ‘Who in her husband’s family knew? Who had discovered her secret? Was it Irina? Ivy? Isla?’ The
Malcolm returned home two days after he dropped Zoe off at her grandfather's house, and ordered those that were in charge of the tracking devices connected to the bracelet to put it off as he had promised her that he would, till she would be able to get rid of it herself. The maids all had shocked expressions on their faces when he appeared in the mansion, and were more surprised because he came in without Zoe, leaving them perplexed in the wonder of their wrong speculations that both of them had been together throughout their absence. As usual, he went up to his room without speaking to anyone or giving an avenue to be asked where he had been, and why he had been so distant without communicating to any of them. That was how they had always been as a family. Before pushing the door to his room open, he stood outside his room for a few seconds, his eyes lingering on the door of Zoe's room which was just opposite his. And even if he knew that there was no way she was inside the room
ZOELVA’s luxurious structure, erected tall, reflected the shining bright lights of the afternoon sun from the east, with its luxurious designs radiating across the core and surroundings far and beyond the huge city. Inside, shoppers went from floor to floor, wandering wide corridors that were lined with top-tier brands, with staff moving around to guide and direct everyone in the most orderly manner. Groups of families made their way to food stands, their laughter and shouts mingling with the savory scents of sizzling burgers, crispy pizza, and sweet, sticky treats. On another side, fashion enthusiasts, elites, and socialites were gathered around numerous designer boutiques, their eyes fixed longingly on the glossy displays of haute couture, while others anticipated getting their hands on the most sophisticated top-notch tech devices. Amid the crowd’s awe and excitement and the hubbub of purchasing endlessly and engaging so many sections in the mall, a moment of stillness fell int
The small studio apartment Ivy sat in was dimly lit, because she left the lights off, with only a small table lamp to illuminate the room. The air of the surroundings was heavy and filled with the staleness of days-old dishes in the sink as well as the faint scent of spilled wine on the threadbare carpet. Every surface of the apartment bore the weight of her gloom with stacks of unopened bills, piles of dirty laundry, and empty bottles left lying on the floor which portrayed too many lonely nights. For weeks, she had lived this way. Isolated, enraged, shrouded in bitterness, and sinking in despair, ever since the incident with Isla that made her get on Malcolm's bad side, and Andre's sudden return which she never expected in her life to see coming. And even if she had been so joyful to see her brother who was back from his supposed death, after they had mourned him for years, she could not believe her mother would quickly replace her with Isla, who she had condemned just a few w
“You are around,” the gloomy and almost fading voice mumbled with a heavy heart, as soon as he heard the phone click on the receiver of his call, just a few minutes after dialing. It was at the most unexpected moment when he had tried the same line he had been trying again and again in futility for the past months, that it went through and the owner of the phone answered. It took him willpower to hide his shock. “Yes,” Zoe's voice came out placidly, devoid of any overt emotion as she answered curtly. Malcolm's eyebrows arched so high in astonishment because he had expected a sarcastic reply from her or a brutal hangup, as his brain ran out of the right words to articulate as a response to the answer she gave him. His voice crackled through the line of sullenness, laced with an uncharacteristic mix of vulnerability and hesitation as he said the most random thing that came to mind, “Your things are still in the room as you left them,” he informed her as if she didn't remember. “You
In just a few days of Zoe having her hands so busy with signing deals and contracts after the launching of ZOELVA, it was already becoming the busiest, most-talked-about destination in town.Shockingly, some of the most iconic foreign brands began to set up their flagship stores with massive storefronts and bold displays, their designs extravagant yet tasteful there, as if they had all been waiting all along. Top-tier local designers and retailers held their own space also, blending a cosmopolitan elegance with a touch of local charm. From the management to the customer service desk that began work in just two days, every employee worked with an intensity that matched the mall’s electric energy, and quickly adapted to the pace, which was astonishingly fast given how new everything was.With their unique uniforms and all of their movements conveying confidence, they smoothly guided people, answered questions, and handled endless transactions with ease. Media houses, and top magazines
Isla bolted out of her room almost at the speed of light as soon as her eyes caught the most shocking news of her life while surfing the internet, and getting prepared to leave the house. Her face instantly flashed with an overwhelming shock and a mix of disbelief after she had checked more than ten media outlets to confirm the news, and scrolled endlessly while watching videos from the launching event from the previous night. Her lungs dropped to her heart and her stomach sank with fury and a profound shock that stole her entire breath away, as she charged down the hallway of her room toward her mother’s room while holding her phone tightly in the grasp of her hand as if she was going to crush it. Her thoughts tumbled over each other, each one more impossible than the last, as she tried to process the news that had shattered her world and left her almost insane with hatred. As soon as Isla abruptly parted the grand doors to her mother's room open and left them swinging with a ter
“I am sorry to inform you, but the blood test results of persons A and B did not match. They are not biologically related.” Zoe stepped into her house after the launching party had ended, and somehow the excitement she had in her all night after her grand launch became the talk of the town, died instantly. As she stepped inside her new home, an unexplainable heaviness washed over her.Her phone vibrated just as she sauntered in and slouched upon her favorite chair in her living room, and as she glanced at the screen and picked up, she heard the most confusing words she couldn't even grasp almost immediately. “What did you say?” she pressed the phone closer to her ear to be sure she heard right, her eyes twitching uncontrollably. For a moment, she didn’t breathe.“I am sorry to announce to you that the two people in the results that have been forwarded to your email are not biologically related. Therefore, the bone marrow transplant cannot proceed.” A few weeks ago, when Zoe finally
The golden air at the moment, which held an air ambiance that opened the world of grand luxury and sophistication, filled the nooks and crannies of the new mall where its launching event was being held, whose name had just been announced a few hours ago. ZOELVATop elites began to saunter into ZOELVA mall, where every inch was polished with fine marble, and was designed with mind-blowing architectural expertise that exuded grandeur, designed to leave them thoroughly marveling and awed by the sight that stole breath from their lips. The glass walls had clear panes that were interspersed with opalescent beams that captured and reflected light in all directions, and giant tiers of diamond chandeliers hung in the main atrium, each crystal strand swaying subtly with a familiar melody, while casting the most artistic light pattern on the marble floor below. The huge ballroom for the event was alive with whispers, laughter, and small talk from the elites that were in attendance, ranging fr
It was impossible to miss. The newest, grandest mall which stood in gleaming glass and steel splendor of great luxury and opulence, with its gigantic structure, stretched so wide, and covered an almost unimaginable number of square meters. The intricate details in its architecture whispered of wealth and exclusivity, and every floor was rumored to be filled with unique boutiques, lavish dining experiences, an indoor oasis lined with lush greenery and trickling water fountains, an entertainment area with a cinema of virtual reality lounges, and a rooftop garden overlooking the city below. The construction of the mall had been shrouded in secrecy for months after the redevelopment of the area was instantly announced, and now its opening and launching event was the talk of the town, flooding every news outlet and social media platform. Everywhere, people wondered what conglomerate owned the huge work of art. #Mall of century #Biggest in the city #Magnificent Mall #Top entrepreneu
The grand front door of the Meyer swung open with force and rattled against the wall as Isla stormed into the grand lobby, and then the stairway, her heels striking the marble floors with a force that echoed through the long hallway, revealing the intensity of her anger. Her face was scrunched up in anger and despair, and her voice was loud and quivering with frustration, as it dissipated into the air before anyone had even noticed her arrival, knowing she would definitely find them there. “She is back!” she cried out in frustration, as her fists clenched her sides, and her body quivered with anger, as she strode into the living room where her mother and brother sat, “Zoe is back, mother!” Ever since Andre returned home and the family ended up dividing, the only person who was not shocked by the announcement or new arrangement was Isla. It was as if she had known what had been going on behind the scenes before the plan finally became public, and couldn't help being bothered like