(Lydia)I knew that it was crazy to ask him to stay. But I knew that there was no way that I was ever going to be able to manage to pull through the night without him. I half expected him to say no, to return to his fiancée, and to leave me alone to deal with all of this.If he would have done that, I would have been fine. I had taught myself to pull through things. But right now, in this particular moment, I felt incredibly vulnerable.The whole world felt unfamiliar and scary and I did not want to go through this without him. I did not want to go through the pain of being apart from my children, of not knowing where they were or how they were doing while they were in a situation as dangerous as this, without the man who had, with me, brought them into this world.He had not been there when they had been born. He had not been there for their first three birthdays. But this – and especially because of the way that our relationship had changed and evolved over the last few weeks – I c
(Thomas)Lydia had been sobbing into my chest for the past hour. I did not stop her. I wanted to help her process her grief, her fear, and her pain in that moment. I could understand how she felt: helpless, terrified, and weak.To be honest, I could feel the same things, too.Outside, Mother was making calls to many of our associates: business partners with political allies, government officials, police officers, and even a member of the intelligence. She was going to pull every last string until the children were safely back home.I wanted to go out there and make the calls in her stead, maybe even go to the houses of the people who I knew could help. But, right now, I needed to be here for Lydia.She had fallen asleep crying and I had gently shifted her, trying to grab a cushion on my side and rest her head on it. But she had stirred when I had moved. So I had slowly shifted her head into my lap and put my feet up so that she could rest comfortably.I could feel the gentle rise and
(Lydia)My stomach was twisting itself into knots. I didn’t know whether it was guilt about allowing this to happen, worry about what could happen to my children, or both of these at once.All I knew was that I should have absolutely not trusted my father. I began pacing up and down the hallway.Upstairs, Mama had locked herself up into her bedroom. I knew that she was chain-smoking in there.“We’ve gotten in touch with intelligence,” Thomas said to me.I paused. I ran up to him. “Do they have the location?” my voice was frantic.Thomas slowly shook his head, his eyes large and his mouth small with worry.“THEN WHAT WAS THE POINT OF BRINGING IT UP?!” I snapped.I was too out of my wits to be able to deal with my emotions right now. And I honestly could not understand why Thomas would not understand that.He stared at me, a little shaken.Margaret walked slowly up to us.“It’s going to be fine, Lydia,” she said, but her voice was quiet and her skin was ashen.“It is not going to be fin
(Lydia)“Relax,” Thomas said, “It’s only 6 a.m.” My mouth was dry as sandpaper. I sat up straight and searched frantically for my phone. It was on the table in front of me. My head had started spinning from stress already.There was no text from my father.“Have we found out anything?” I asked Thomas.Once again, he shook his head. “I’ve called everyone I know, but all of them have requested time to track your father down.”I frowned and crossed my arms. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to help!”Thomas’s mouth fell open. “I’m sorry, what do you mean by that?!” he confronted me.“I mean that of course you wouldn’t be able to do anything about helping find the children because you’ve simply never been there for them!”“I’m sorry, Lydia,” he said, “I did not even know they existed until a couple of months ago!”“And whose fault is that?!” I exploded.I heard a creak at the door and spun my head around, ready to bark at whoever was standing there too.To my surprise, it was Adam. He was carr
(Ruby)I hadn’t been able to sleep all night. Mabel and Miles were like my very own babies. I had nursed them, fed them, and raised them. I could not imagine anything happening to them.Ever since I had found out, I had been trembling.Jack had been awake with me all night and throughout the morning. I had been pacing the backyard and he had been standing by me, steady as a pillar. I broke down multiple times during the night. Jack held me together every single time. He had put a shawl over my shoulders and murmured comforting words over and over again.“We’ve got both the police as well as the intelligence after them, Ruby,” he had said, “I’m certain the children will be unharmed.”I was so grateful that he was here through all of this.I could not understand how my father could do such a thing. All my life, he had insisted on playing the villain in our lives: he had hurt Mama when Lydia and I were younger and he hadn’t allowed her to attend Lydia’s wedding either.I simply could not
(Lydia)One hand on the steering wheel, I connected my phone to the Bluetooth speaker. Driving rashly terrified me. Ever since the accident, I had had a slight fear of high speeds in cars. But, at the moment, it didn’t seem like I had an option. I had to get there quickly for my children. Swallowing all of my trepidation, I put my foot down further on the pedal.I had passed the National Park. And I had long since left all greenery behind. My head was aching. My mouth was dry.“Call Thomas” I said to the AI assistant, keeping my eyes straight ahead on the road.I heard the dial tone but he didn’t pick up. Frantic, I repeated the command. He didn’t pick up this time either.“In five hundred meters, turn right,” the GPS assistant instructed me.I readied myself to spin the steering wheel.“For the love of God, Thomas!” I gritted through my teeth, “Don’t bail on me now!”I glanced at the GPS. I was only fifteen minutes away now. I slowed the car down a little and realized that I hadn’t s
(Lydia)“I see you,” my father said, “You and your little act.”He raised his arms up into a deranged gesture. “Oh, I’m such a good mother!” he said in a high-pitched imitation of me, “I pick up my children from school and shower them with hugs and kisses.”“Well where,” his voice became thick and angry now, “is the money then?!”I could not say a single word. On the side, Mabel and Miles sat whimpering in their gags.“Tsk, tsk, tsk, Lydia,” my father clicked his tongue, “I’m amazed at what you’ve done.”He sauntered over to a small black canvas bag and began to fish something out. I heard metal clunk inside it.My eyes darted over towards the twins and I shifted a foot to take a step towards them.The old man pointed his eyes at me and then cleared his throat.My father stood up. “Ah,” he said, holding up a hunter’s knife, “Here it is!”He walked up to me. “Are your children,” he breathed into my face, “really less precious to you than money?”“I’m not like you!” I yelled, pushing hi
(Lydia)Mama was in the ICU. She had been there for the past three days. I could not believe that she would have risked her life like that. She was too old and feeble to take glaring risks such as these. The police had caught my father’s companion but there had been no trace of my father yet.It appeared as though he had vanished into thin air.“I’ve got the intelligence on his tail,” Thomas had told me firmly, “There is absolutely no way that he is going to get away with harming our children.”Mabel and Miles had been very shaken after the incident. It pained me to no end. I had spent the entirety of their lives trying to ensure that the environment around them was always safe, comfortable, and free from drama.And, yet, they had endured something as gruesome and morbid as a kidnapping.The thought kept shattering my heart to pieces. Ruby had been trying her best to revive the children. Jack had brought them an entire basket full of toys and kept bringing in new flavors of ice cream
(Lydia)By the time I reached Ruby’s apartment, I could hardly breathe. My legs burned from climbing the stairs two at a time, but I didn’t care. My mind was racing, filled with every worst-case scenario I could imagine. Ruby’s phone going unanswered and her not showing up at the mansion had sent my thoughts spiraling into dark territory.I pounded on her door, my fist landing hard against the wood.“Ruby? Open up! It’s me!”The hallway was eerily silent, my frantic knocks echoing off the walls. I pressed my ear to the door, hoping to catch even the faintest sound of movement inside.“Ruby, please! Are you okay?”The seconds stretched unbearably. Then, finally, I heard the muffled shuffle of footsteps. Relief surged through me, but it was fleeting.The door opened just a crack, and Ruby appeared, peeking through the gap. Her face was calm, but her eyes held a flicker of something…annoyance? Discomfort?“Lydia,” she said, her voice carefully even, “What are you doing here?”I pushed th
(Lydia)I spent the car ride back home in relative silence, my thoughts consumed by everything that had happened in the past few months. The whirlwind of Nathan’s threats, Jack’s complicated relationship with Ruby, and Mama’s illness. It felt like I was constantly running a marathon with no finish line in sight.Now, as I crossed the threshold into the house, a surge of relief washed over me. At least for a few hours, I could breathe.My speech in the Assembly Hall had been well-received and I was grateful for that. What I had done was a long time coming because I had been worried about Mabel and Miles’ school for quite some time. Ever since they came home one day and told me what the kids were talking about, I had a thought in the back of my mind that this was going to be a problem moving forwards. And it was.Well, I hope all of that was settled now. As I walked into the living room, I saw Mama sitting in a recliner, bundled in a blanket despite the warmth of the room.“Back alread
(Ruby)I left the boutique in the afternoon to go to my apartment. I had some chores to do and I knew the apartment was probably a mess. When I reached there, I immediately started to do laundry. It took time, but I got it done just in time.As I folded the last of the laundry, I couldn’t help but think about what to eat since I’d planned to grab a quick bite before heading to the mansion to look after Mama. One of my workers was closing the boutique for me today, a rare reprieve I desperately needed. I had just gathered my things when a knock at the door startled me. I paused, glancing at the clock. I wasn’t expecting anyone. Peering through the peephole, I saw nothing but the empty corridor. My first thought was that it might be another bouquet. Curiosity got the better of me, and I opened the door. What I saw made me gasp so loudly I nearly dropped my bag. “Jack!” He was on his knees, his face pale and sweaty, twisted in pain. Blood stained his shirt and pants, and his han
(Jack)The tension had been building inside me all morning, a storm of frustration and unanswered questions I couldn’t shake. Thomas’s decision to meet with Nathan still gnawed at me. It wasn’t just the secrecy of it, though that alone was bad enough, it was the recklessness. The risk. But as much as that boiled my blood, there was another matter weighing heavily on my mind, and this one had a name: Marco.By midday, I’d had enough. I wasn’t going to get anything productive done sitting in my office, stewing over things I couldn’t control. I grabbed my jacket, told my assistant I’d be out for the rest of the day, and headed for Amanda’s apartment. If anyone could give me answers about Marco, it was her. When I reached her apartment, Amanda opened the door, her eyes widening slightly in surprise as she asked, “Jack? What are you doing here?” “We need to talk,” I said, stepping inside before she could protest. She frowned but didn’t argue, closing the door behind me. Her apartme
(Ruby)The boutique was quiet that morning, the kind of peaceful hum that made it easy to focus. I was in the back office, hunched over my sketchbook, refining designs for a new collection. My desk was strewn with fabric swatches, colored pencils, and notes scribbled on sticky pads. A rich emerald green satin caught my eye, and I reached for it, envisioning how it could drape into a gown. The chime of the boutique’s door opening filtered through the walls, followed by the light footsteps of customers browsing. I barely looked up, trusting my small but capable team to handle the sales floor. “Ruby,” Mia, one of my new hires, called from the doorway. She was a petite girl with a shy smile who had started just a week ago. I glanced up, pushing my hair back from my face, “What’s up?” “There’s a man asking to see you,” she said, shifting nervously, “He’s...um...he looks important.” I frowned, setting my pencil down. Important? My mind immediately went to Adam. Maybe he was here t
(Lydia)I stretched my arms, glancing at the clock on the nightstand. The sun was peeking through the horizon and today was the day where I would be taking a stand in front of all the parents. I shoved thoughts of Clara and her cryptic messages aside. That mystery could wait. My focus now was on standing up for myself and my children against the parents who had dared to insult us in such a vile way.Mabel and Miles were already awake, their chatter filling the house as they got dressed for school. It was good to see them so excited about returning to class. Their enthusiasm fueled my resolve. I joined them in the kitchen, ensuring their breakfast was hearty enough to carry them through their day.Thomas came down just as the kids were finishing up. He looked slightly more rested than he had the previous evening, though his demeanor was still a little distant. As he grabbed his coffee, I walked over to him, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Good luck at work,” I murmured, my hand brush
(Lydia)The clock on the wall ticked steadily, its sound the only companion to my restless pacing in the living room. I glanced at the door for what felt like the hundredth time, waiting for Thomas to come home. My meeting with the principal had gone better than expected, or at least, I had managed to secure a proper confrontation with the other parents. But the weight of it, the anger I’d felt earlier, was still coiled tightly inside me, waiting to be shared. Finally, the sound of keys jingling at the door broke my train of thought. Thomas stepped in, his tie loosened, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His shoulders sagged, and there was a faint crease between his brows, the kind that appeared only when he was genuinely stressed. "Hey," I greeted softly, walking over to him, “Rough day?”He nodded, offering me a tired smile as he leaned down to kiss my cheek, “Just one of those days. Work’s a mess right now.”I wanted to press him for more, but the lines on his face told
(Thomas)Standing by the massive floor-to-ceiling window in my office, I watched the city skyline, its usual vibrancy dulled by the fog in my mind. The weight of what I was about to do settled heavily on my chest, but I couldn’t back down now. Nathan’s trial loomed on the horizon, and his request to meet one last time echoed in my thoughts. There was no way to shake the feeling that this meeting might hold the key to something vital, even if it came at a personal cost.I picked up my phone and scrolled to Aiden’s number. He answered on the second ring, his voice as sharp and precise as ever.“Thomas,” he said, “I assume this is about Nathan.”“It is,” I replied, my tone flat but resolute, “I’ve decided to meet him.”There was a pause on the line, long enough to make me think he might object outright. Finally, Aiden sighed, “You’re sure about this? You understand what you’re walking into.”“I’m sure,” I said, “But I want to make something absolutely clear. This meeting stays between u
(Lydia)Walking into the principal’s office, my hands felt unusually steady. The incident from a week ago rang in my mind, those mothers standing in front of the school, blocking my way, their condescending smirks and venomous words spilling out like poison in front of my children. I had been humiliated, sure, but more than that, I was enraged. Not because they had said those things to me, but because Mabel and Miles had heard every single word. It wasn’t just me they had attacked, it was my family, my children. And no one, not even a clique of overzealous parents with too much time on their hands, was going to make my children feel unworthy or unsafe.The principal’s office was predictably neat and orderly, the faint smell of coffee lingering in the air. She was a woman in her late fifties with kind but firm eyes and she greeted me with a professional smile when I entered.“Ms. Lydia, please have a seat,” she said, gesturing toward the chair opposite her desk.I sat, straight-backed