“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
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
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
Seated in her new office, which was a masterpiece of modern elegance, was Isla, whose aura of calculated grace radiated strongly in every corner of the room. Rather than the usual custom-made suits she usually donned to the office when she was still the CEO of Hila jewelry, she was wearing a stunning turquoise blue dress, with its off-the-shoulder design this time around, revealing her delicate collarbones which were adorned with a simple but exquisite diamond necklace. However, regardless of how stunning she looked, her face was bunched into a disdainful mark, her left fingers tapping rhythmically on the table and her mind momentarily lost in some other place, as her eyes constantly darted to her phone which was before her. Barely a few minutes later, while still seething uncontrollably, her phone began to ring, and she quickly snatched it from the table. Instantly, her lips, which were painted in rich, pepper-red lipstick, curled into a smirk, as a hint of malice instantly flicke
Zoe returned home late in the night after a long day at work, had her bath, and changed clothes, before she went to the most quiet place in her house, which was tucked away in the farthest corner of her house, while carrying a bowl of neatly cut fruit in her hands, shortly after she went over some office papers in her study desk. Though feeling tired and stressed out with her entire body extremely sore, she knew she just had to visit the room to do a review of the last discovery she made. Turning on the light in the room, she moved to the wall by her Eastside, and instantly raised the white veil she had pulled over the series of photographs which were pinned in neat rows and newspaper clippings. Each was marked in red. Some had the letter ‘X’ written on it boldly and definitively, while others had circles drawn around faces in the pictures, and were connected with taut strings of thread that crisscrossed like a chaotic spider’s web.Carefully, Zoe sank onto the plush armchair that
“You want to find out the truth too, don't you?” Zoe stared at the cryptic and blunt sentence that flashed in her eyes as soon as she slipped her phone out of her purse, when it sounded with a soft chime signaling the arrival of a new message. She had just stepped out of her car after they arrived at the underground parking lot of the mall, when she received the message that had her pausing on her tracks. Her heart skipped a beat and a cold shiver traveled down her spine immediately she read it, as her head turned sharply to the left and right, to see if the person who sent the message was somewhere around her. ‘Who could have sent this?’ She wondered, her eyebrows furrowing high in worry, as she tapped the screen on her phone, ready to reply to the message and ask who the person was. However, she restricted the urge to do that, cautioning herself that it was not the time for impulsiveness, as she slipped the phone back into her bag, straightened her blazer, and made her way t
Sitting slumped in his high-backed chair, with the city skyline stretching out beyond the window behind him, Andre’s hand rested heavily on the armrests of his chair, his chest rising and falling in shallow, controlled breaths, even if the storm that was brewing inside him was anything but calm.He had gotten yet another rejection. Another blow to his pride. He had poured days into crafting the new proposal, painstakingly aligning every detail with the vision he thought Malcolm wanted for their flagship company. And yet, the same words were delivered to him again. “It doesn’t fit our strategy.”The words rang in his ears, colder than the polished marble of the boardroom where they had been uttered, and he swore he almost punched Malcolm right at that moment in his face. He made him feel like a fool again! He effortlessly dismissed his proposal yet again. “You have to be very cautious. Though Malcolm is sitting back, he is watching you with his might! Do not make mistakes. Just wai
The door to the room slammed open with a crack like thunder, and Andre emerged from his room, his face a storm of furrowed brows and clenched jaws. The sound of his shoes clacked so hard as he strode down the hallway that led to Irina''s room, his breath coming out in uneven huffs, and his hands balling into fists at his sides. There was a wild urgency in his eyes amid a simmering frustration that seemed to radiate off him like heat, as he burst into his mother’s room without knocking. Irina, who was in her dressing room while getting ready to step out for an anniversary event, was visibly startled by the noise of the abrupt entrance in her room, as she rushed out instantly to see what the ruckus was all about. “Mother!” He called sharply, “Who else had been to that room?!” He demanded heavily, his voice heavy with anger and anxiety. “What do you mean?” Irina scrunched her eyebrows up in confusion, as she stared at him with questioning eyes, almost stumbling against the large s
What?” his eyes widened in surprise. “You ruined me,” she repeated, her voice breaking the more it felt like someone had physically ripped her heart out, “You don’t even know what you’ve done. You…” She couldn’t finish, the sobs wracking her body too powerful as she fell to her knees again, the sound of her sobs cutting through the stillness of the late evening. “Do you know I can never be happy no matter how hard I try?” She continued, as she shook violently as if her soul had split open.Malcolm's face became frozen with pity and anguish as he watched Zoe break down before him, in a way he had not seen in a very long time. His heart ached so much when he watched her so broken, as he instantly squatted beside her. “What is wrong?” His voice trembled with pain, as he reached out to her tentatively, his hands fearing that she might not like that he touched her, “Please, Zo,” he beckoned, “Talk to me.”Suddenly, as if compelled by those few words, Zoe raised her face to meet his eyes
Zoe returned the same day after the most traumatic news from Emily hit her, and was barely in her mind when she boarded the plane back to California. Instead of calling Zara to meet her at the airport on arrival with a chauffeur as planned, she boarded a cab instead and arrived at the estate very late that evening. As soon as it dropped her off in front of her house and turned back to leave, she stood for a few minutes, her mind blank about what to do or where to go, with those haunting words echoing in her mind. “I am so sorry. I never should have taken you. You do not deserve all of this.” The pain and grief of being told the darkest truth of her life was too much for her to bear. It shattered her heart so much. ‘Goodness! How could… How could this even happen to her? How?’ Zoe couldn't stop thinking about how miserable she had been her entire life. She wondered how things would have turned out if had gone to her real mother and father. Then she would have been showered with so
The rain had just begun as a soft drizzle in the evening, and Malcolm was there when it did. He was sitting on a chair in the balcony of the rooftop room in his house where he hadn't been for the longest time since he moved in, and realized how beautiful the entire estate from that view was. He also realized how palpable the amplified loneliness and unusual serenity of the place was, just from staring at the entire view from where he sat, but couldn't dwell in it as usual because his heart was burdened by the thought of someone. Her. The person he had worried even more about ever since his encounter with Andre. He wished he could call and talk to her. He really wished he could. But at the same time, he wanted to respect what she wanted too. However, it was hard doing that. What Andre had said couldn't evade his heart. He knew he might stop at nothing to get to her just to get back at him. As the drizzle turned to an increased droplet of rain, Malcolm's eyes continued to fix on the
A low, choked sob escaped Emily's lips and she struggled for breath, while tears began to spill down her wrinkled cheeks, as her eyes, watery and unfocused, locked onto the figure in front of her. “I… I am so sorry,” she whispered with a voice strained with pain, as her gaze trailed across Zoe's face as if searching for something. “I didn’t mean to do it, okay?” Emily blurted out again, as her voice trembled with misery, “I was jealous and was so stupid, so I ruined everything. I ruined our years of friendship, and ruined your happiness too. I made you miserable,” she reached out to Zoe with a trembling hand, as her hands cupped her cheeks. “Jasmine,” she choked out again, “I'm sorry for coming between you and Fred. I…..I.. tried to covet him for myself and I agree. But, it was because, I thought… I thought he was everything. And to be honest, he was. He was kind, he was rich, and he was changing your life. And I… I hated it,” she began to confess, her words raw and unfiltered. “I
Her steps were heavy, slow, and hesitant as she walked through the hallway that led to the VIP ward that her mother had been transferred to, with her heart thumping erratically as if it would jump out of her chest anytime soon. “Make her tell you,” her grandfather's words echoed in her ears again, the more the sound of her heartbeat increased its volume in her ears. Zoe continued to move closer to the room, as she swallowed hard, the fear of what she might hear, suffocating her mind the more she continued to conjure thousands of scenarios in her mind. As soon as she got to the door and grabbed the handle, she paused for a moment and closed her eyes tightly, and drew small sips of breath. ‘Whatever she was going to hear, she just hoped and wished it wasn't going to be a cruel twist in her already shattered world.’Pushing the door open, Zoe's eyes caught the sight of Emily, who was sitting upright on the bed with her back facing the wall, with her thin frame swaddled in a hospital
Dressed in a stunning black, corseted lacy dress, that danced around her in a big umbrella of gathered flaring net, Zara stood beautifully at a corner of the party, while subduedly drinking from the flute of champagne she had in the grasp of her fingers. While basking in the beauty of the launching event and carefully observing all that was going on around her, her eyes barely left Zoe, who was on the other side of the open-roof room still holding conversations with people. However, Zara noticed that after she held a conversation with a man that seemed to break the conversation she was having with a group, she picked a glass of champagne and drank from it in a single gulp. ‘Strange. She hadn't been drinking all evening,’ Zara thought to herself, as she looked away, wondering if she was finally loosening up from being so uptight and restless since the day before. But, she could not ignore it when it seemed like she had counted three glasses already, and it seemed like Zoe wasn't go
Languidly, Malcolm made his way into his living room right after he arrived home, and left all the lights in the house off, the same way it usually was, whenever he was having the worst day ever. Today was one of them. He was able to find the stairs because of the dim lighting that hung on the walls in the living room, as he slowly climbed upstairs, and entered the first room on the left, slamming the door shut. Instantly casting away his coat, tie, and briefcase to where they should be, he pulled his suit, socks, and shoes, and walked into the bathroom to stand under the shower to wash the day's stress off him. He stepped out shortly and changed into clean clothes, before he immediately collapsed on his bed, his mind storming endlessly with worry. As Malcolm remained on the spot for a few minutes, his eyes deeply buried into the gold-colored ceilings that were above his face, because he couldn't stop thinking about his encounter with Andre almost an hour ago! He couldn't stop
Unable to book a flight to where Emily was admitted, was the hardest thing for Zoe to do in the past few hours after she left her grandfather's place. There was just a day left until the launching of her newest jewelry collection, and she could not afford to miss the launching party. Not as the CEO. Curiosity had made it difficult for her to focus on work throughout the office the next day, because she just wanted to know the truth about her birth once and for all. The only hypothesis that was ringing in her head after putting so many pieces together as a possibility, was a reality that was enough to drive her insane just at the mere imagination of it. It was too heavy to even accommodate her thoughts. She had asked Zara to plan her entire schedule for the day and next, as well as book a flight for the night after the launching party for her. She planned to get to the root of her confusion once and for all. There were still many answers she had unanswered already. As Zoe che
Marcel struggled against her tight, feisty grip as he grabbed her hands and overpowered her, before jerking himself free from her grip, almost causing her to fall back. His breath came fast, his chest rising and falling with fury, “I have nothing to say to you,” he said calmly, as he began to straighten the creases that formed on his shirt because of the way she had grabbed him. “What?! You have nothing to say to me?!” Isla lashed out angrily, seeing that he was about to enter his room, as she dragged him back from leaving with every ounce of her power and might. “After what you did to me? After you betrayed me and joined forces with my enemy to take over my company?!” she spat with a fireball of fury, her eyes threatening to scorch him on the spot, “You, of all people, knew what that company meant to me. Why would you do it?! I had to travel miles just to come and see you in this rat hole you have pathetically hidden.”“Do what exactly?” he continued to speak with a low, enthusias