(Lydia)I’m not going to lie, I really did not want to leave for L.A.I wanted to remain at home, spend time with the kids, and forget about everything that was waiting for me here.But I knew I had work. I knew this was something I was passionate about and I also knew that there was someone who needed my help even when they were not ready to admit it.Throughout the flight, the only thing that had been going through my mind was how to go about helping Clara.I had distracted myself from everything that happened back home that I had completely forgotten about the image of bruises down her arms. Now, they came back to me very vividly and I wanted to get my hands on the person who did that.All fingers led to Nathan and no one else. Only if I was able to make Clara say it, just once would also be enough for me to confirm.When I landed at L.A.X., Thomas had told me that there was a bodyguard waiting for me with my name on a board.Sure enough, at the front of the waiting line, there was
(Lydia)I walked out of the elevator and Roger followed me.Clara had still not said anything but I could feel her footsteps behind us. She had also gotten out of the elevator.As my room came into sight I opened the door with my key, and I had just taken a step inside when there was a thud and a loud wail. I turned around to see that Rogers had pinned Clara to the wall and was holding her into place.Clara tried to wriggle out of his hold but there was no use, he was too strong for her. “Get off me you!” she said, gasping and struggling.My mouth had dropped open at the sight but then I gathered myself again and said, “Roger, let her go. I know her, she’s part of my team.”Roger looked at Clara suspiciously and then back at me, “I don’t remember her face from the file containing the people you are close to or work with.”My brows raised until they were touching my hairline. Just how meticulous was this company?“She’s a new friend, Roger, you can let her go,” I told him, “You should
(Lydia)Clara calmed herself down before she started speaking again.“I don’t know when Nathan got to know you exactly, but I remember he started to go to theaters when he wasn’t interested at all. I think one of his director friends took him there because he seemed interested in starting a theater company and after that, it was like this switch had flipped. He seemed more and more interested in everything to do with some play that I don’t even know.”Dread started to build in my chest the more I heard what she had to say. A sick feeling spread throughout my body, making me want to throw up. I wished I could stop her talking, tell her that I did not need to hear anymore and that I had heard enough, but I knew that wasn’t the option.There was a predator ruling over the hearts of Hollywood and sooner or later, he was going to harm someone irrevocably. We needed to stop him before that happened, not let him roam around freely, acting like he was the sweetest person in the entire world.
(Thomas)“What do you think about it?” I asked Jack who was sitting in front of me in the office.We had met up early in the morning, ready to discuss another idea that I had for the golden jubilee. I wanted to hold a fundraiser at the event dedicated to people who struggled with memory loss. I had a list of causes and non-profit organizations that helped people suffering from memory loss in getting the help they required.There was another cause that I wanted to raise funds for. It was for single mothers and mothers requiring shelter after escaping from domestic violence.“I would be donating my fair share to these causes, of course, but I also wanted to have this fundraiser so other people could know about it as well. I will invite representatives from these organizations and ask them to give speeches of awareness. I think it would be good to do something like this,” I told him.Jack looked at me like I was a saint or something. “You’ve never done anything like this, or at least in
(Thomas)I didn’t know how and when I got to the hospital. My panic made me forget about anything else as I rushed through the parking lot and haphazardly parked the car. I was sure I was taking two parking spots but I didn’t care about anything at that moment.I immediately went into the emergency ward where I knew Miles had been taken in and immediately asked where he was at the reception. I followed a nurse through multiple hallways and rooms until she took me to a single room where Miles was.Tears entered my eyes when I looked at him lying down in the hospital bed looking so tiny and vulnerable. From what I could see, there were hives all along his arms.“Daddy!” Another voice caught my attention and Mabel’s small body collided with my legs. I immediately picked her up and kissed her forehead, “Oh, baby, what are you doing here?”She was wearing a face mask and spoke through it, “I wanted to go with Miles.”There was a teacher standing just outside of the room. She came over to g
(Lydia)Today marked two months since I last saw Thomas, my husband. My heart raced as I remembered the harsh words he’d flung at me the last time he stormed out.“I wish I never met you.”Those searing words had been endlessly echoing in my mind since that dreadful day.The shrill ring of the phone jolted me from my painful reverie. I glanced at the caller ID and my breath caught. It was Thomas. With trembling fingers, I answered. “H-hello?”“Lydia.” His voice was flat, devoid of emotion. “I'm coming home today.”Home. Was this house still home if he was not here? Despite the anger and hurt brewing inside me, part of me dared to feel a glimmer of hope.“You’re...coming back?”“For now,” he replied curtly. “We need to sort some things out regarding the divorce.”My heart sank at the d-word. Divorce. The gaping wound in my heart reopened, fresh pain seeping through. “But Thomas, I—”“I'll see you later today.” His tone was flat and withdrawn, the way it had been ever since I lost him t
(Lydia)Tears spilled down my cheeks unbidden as I watched him walk away, arm-in-arm with the woman who stole him from me.My heart was broken. I was left to pick up the shattered pieces of my once blissful life. My husband was a soulless stranger, the other half of my heart irretrievably lost. I could only pray that one day, the gaping wound he left will begin to heal over.Until then, I would go through the motions, forcing myself to move forward into a harsh new reality.A cold, unrelenting world where the warmth of Thomas's embrace was but a distant, rapidly fading memory.***“Albert, no!” my mother had screamed as my father hurled a fist into her eye. She had been screaming and crying. And is that the house that I had grown up in. My little sister, Ruby, would hide behind me. I would watch from the top of the stairs as a child. When I grew a little bit older, I began to fight. At first, Mama was grateful for the help. But, over time, I began to feel her resentment. It pierced
(Lydia)When I stepped back into the bedroom, I jerked. Sarah was standing there. She eyed me closely and inquisitively.“Are you pregnant?” she asked.My face went pale. “No … no, not at all,” I bumbled. I didn’t want even Thomas to know, let alone this ungrateful snake.Sarah’s eyes hardened into steel.“I’m going to murder both you and that stupid sister of yours if you are!” she frothed.I clenched my fist at the fact that she’d brought Ruby into this, but then caught an inkling of fear on her face. She was trembling.Seeing her face turn white made me feel a little bit better.I was about to talk back to her but realized that I now had a baby to think of. As a mother, I could not be petty. A mother … The thought inspired a clandestine delight inside me.“Why are you back?” I asked her instead. I eyed her hairstyle, a braided ponytail – it was exactly how I used to do it.This way, I had said to her, twisting a lock of her yellow hair into the intricate plait that I had made.“