“You’ve come!” Mrs Leon beamed from behind the others, pushing past them to welcome her favourite son, Bruce and his wife.Bruce returned his mother's greeting distractedly as his gaze darted between the company of DJ, his father and the strange lady.“They came in early and are already leaving because his fiance seems to always fall sick at important events.” Mrs Leon took the liberty to explain to Bruce who was staring at DJ, surprised that he was on his way out.“Sarah!” Mr Leon addressed his wife by her first name. He was totally disgusted by her behavior.Mrs Leon passed him an unapologetic look, eyeing her husband for reprimanding her in front of the kids.Bruce turned to his brother, ignoring the angry glares being exchanged between his parents.Bruce didn't like this. He wanted a chance to gloat over his achievement to his brother. He wanted to see the hurt and bitterness on DJ's face as DJ's rights were being passed on to him.“Why are you leaving so soon?” He asked. “The din
“How could you let this happen?” Tony rebuked Knox who had the lines of worry embellished all over his expression.He had just stepped out of Ashley's Ward where he just finished examining her. He was still standing by the door when Knox approached him. Ashley had to undergo a minor surgery to stitch back her open wound. Knox had left the concerned group, DJ and his brother at the far end of the hall to speak privately with Tony. “How is she? Will she be alright?” Knox questioned, ignoring Tony's reprove. His concern was focused more on the girl, Ashley, his daughter.He had almost died in the instant he received the distressing call from DJ. He immediately made arrangements for Ashley to be taken to Dr Tony. A doctor who was familiar with her medical history.“She suffered a major concussion. The wound reopened. We had to stitch it again… Thankfully, she's stable now.”“And?” Knox asked anxiously, fearing the worst. It was a question Tony understood and he gave his honest response.
“What did you just say?” DJ asked as he strode into the room.Bruce followed behind him. He had helped DJ carry Ashley to the car when she fainted at their house. The ambulance was taking forever to arrive and DJ didn't want to wait doing nothing, so he insisted on taking Ashley to the hospital himself.Mr Leon had suggested that Bruce drive his brother to the hospital as DJ was not in the right frame of mind to drive.Bruce ended up bringing them to the hospital. He was just about to leave after DJ expressed his sincere gratitude when they glanced over to where Knox and Dr Tony stood by the door to Ashley's cabin.The rush with which Knox had charged into the room alerted DJ that something was wrong.He quickly sprinted for the door into which Knox had disappeared. He wanted to find out for himself what was happening with Ashley. Bruce instinctively ran after him and they were met with Dr Tony's announcement. His reaction was just as the same as Mr Knox's.“How old is the pregnancy?
The ground spinned under Mr Knox's feet. His heart skipped many beats and raced when it picked up. He felt as though his essence was seeping out of him.“Ashley?” He whispered.Ashley suddenly jerked her chest up and her eyes bulged, growing wide like saucers. The ECG machine beeped rapidly as she propped her upper body as though she was taking her last breath.Dazed, Mr Knox tripped back. His senses picked up and he ran for the door, darting his gaze between the path before him and the epileptic Ashley on the bed.Knox yanked the door, poked his head out and yelled out to Tony who was thankfully still waking down the hallway.“Tony! Come fast! I think something is wrong. She woke up… She…” Knox stammered in his agitation.Tony was quick on his heels. He pushed past Knox and stepped inside the room.DJ and Bruce, who had stayed back, waiting by the cabin after their argument, followed behind Tony.“I… I don't know what happened… I… She woke up… Looked at me… Opened her eyes. Then all
Ashley had lazily opened her eyes to the unfamiliar room. As her heavy eyes roved around the room, trying to figure out where she was, they met with the eyes of the strange man staring worriedly at her. “Who are you?” She asked. Her voice barely above a whisper.She watched as the man's eyes flew wide with fear.“Ashley?” He said.It was a vaguely familiar call and in that instance, it hit her. The sharp piercing pain at the back of head. Memories of a past locked in the deep recess of her mind and that of the past few days collided, clashing and battling for dominance in her mind.Lilian, Ashley, Bruce, DJ. Who was she? Her heart raced. Her pulse palpated. She felt a decline in her insides before she gave in to darkness.The faint voices, so closed yet so distant, floated in her mind. She could faintly hear the conversation between two people. She felt exhausted. The fierce mind battle she had fought had drained her. Now she was focusing on calming her racing heart.There was no w
Tears pulled at Knox's eyes. She remembered him. She didn't forget her new life. He was grateful that he hadn't yet again lost a daughter. Everything would be as it were. He would be her father and she would be his daughter.Tony on the other hand was thankful that his practice would not not be affected. He didn't deny the fact that what he had helped his friend do was illegal and he feared the consequences.DJ was happy that he wouldn’t again be a part of her forgotten memories and he wouldn't be starting all over again in winning her trust.Only Bruce had a neutral expression. He was only glad that such a beautiful girl didn't lose her life.Tony smiled at Ashley. “That's good.” He commended her. Tony turned to the nurse. “Have you given her the injection?” The nurse nodded in response.“You should get some rest now.” Tony told Ashley. “You’ll need to regain your strength.”“When do I get discharged?” Ashley asked. “I want to go home.” Dr Tony was taken aback by her question, but
It had been a week since Ashley was discharged and she was beginning to feel better. She had rested, regained strength and strategized. Fueled by her need to get revenge, she couldn't wait until she was fully up to par to begin executing her plans.She looked at the diary of Ashley she had been reading before dozing off the previous night. She had learnt so much about the dead Ashley from those pages.It was vital for her to understand the pattern of things in the Knox's household. For her plans to be any successful, she needed to get power and money, lots of it.And the one way to achieve that quickly was through her father, Mr Knox. Ashley smiled at the thought.Her diary had stated just how much Knox wanted his daughter to take over his company but for her stubbornness and grievance at the old man, she had refused. Stupid girl.That was the old Ashley. This new one would work her way to the top of the business. She had to make Mr Knox know of her interest.There was a soft knock on
Paul squinted at her. He was well aware of how daring and mischievous Ashley could be, but he couldn't understand what her intentions with joining the business was about. Ashley and the family business were two worlds apart that could never liaise.“Who are you?” He blurted out.Ashley, who had returned her attention to her meal, without raising her head, lifted her eyes and looked at him.For a moment, her stare caused the hairs on Paul's neck to rise. He thought she was behaving strangely, like a possessed being.“Ashley?” He called as though testing if she would answer the call.“Paul.” She returned as she forked the last piece of her meal into her mouth.She picked up her napkin and wiped at the corners of her mouth, watching him while he stared at her in wonderment.“Can we start now?” She raised her brows in question at him.“Start what?” “You have to brief me on how the company works, remember?” She said. She was unfazed by the way he was looking at her.He stood up from his s
“It's done.” Pamela scurried behind Ashley as her wide eyes trail Ashley's back as she enters the office and beeline for her seat. “So quickly?... Did he see you?” Pamela asked. “No.” Ashley took her seat. “I didn't go as me. I used a proxy.” She said with a satisfied heave. “Wow! So now you own the company?” Pamela asked with incredulity. “Now I own, Bruce.” Ashley smiled. “But he doesn't know it yet.” Pamela gasped and let out a chuckle. “Oh my God! You finally got what you wanted.” Ashley's gaze fixes straight past Pamela. Her mind, brooding and brewing. “Not yet. I still have many scores to settle. One of which I haven't been giving a lot of attention to.” “What's that?” Ashley raised her eyes to meet Pamela's. “Rachel.” “That bitch!” Venom dripped from Pamela's voice. “She won't be one for long. I intend to strip her of that snarky attitude of hers.” Excitement flicked through Pamela's eyes. She had always, always hated Rachel and her ‘better than everyone else's atti
A towel wrapped around his waist, Bruce dried his damp hair with another towel as he walked out of the bathroom. His head still ached from his drunkenness last night. Rachel entered at that moment and Bruce smiled. His erection springing back to life very quickly. Ashley had stirred a lot of steam in him the previous night. He had wanted to let some of it out on his wife after the party. But he had slept off waiting for her. There was a lot of cleaning left to do and Rachel had deliberately stayed back to supervise the maids that night. She didn't want to be anywhere near Bruce as she was still very mad at him. She wanted to talk to him but needed to simmer down. Bruce smiled and tugged the towel around his waist loose, freeing his díck. He walked towards her with a smug smile. “You came back late last night.” He said as he made his way to her, hoping she would welcome him like she always did. “I didn't think you'd notice.” Her voice was tight. He reached her and spread his ha
Ashley left DJ's place floating on cloud nine. She headed straight to the office after making a stop at her house for a change of clothes, all the while pleasantly humming to herself. She reached her office and paused at her door when she heard movement from inside. She had earlier met Benita on her way up and was certain it couldn't be her inside. Slowly, she peeled the door open. “Pam?” Pleasant surprise adorn her tone. Pamela, who had been busy setting down files that needed Ashley's attention, raised her head, glanced at Ashley and continued her work. “Good morning.” Pamela muttered under her breath. The telltale of annoyance tinged her tone. “I thought you said you wouldn't be coming in today?” Delight coursed through her voice at the sight of Pamela. “You need to sign these.” Pamela responded in a tight voice. “They are due next week.” Ashley strode into the office, her gaze fixed on an unsmiling Pamela. She placed her bag on the table and walked up to stand in front of
Ashley wakes up to a pair of eyes watching her with love and admiration. She scoffed and chuckled groggily. “Don't tell me you stayed like this all night.” She said in between stifling a yawn as she stretched her muscles to wake. DJ grinned. “What if I did?” Ashley rolled her eyes. “Creepy.” She twisted her head to check the digital clock on his nightstand. DJ rolled his eyes. “Lemme guess, you have to go.” Ashley chortled. “Accurate guess. I just need to handle a few things. And I need to see Pamela too.” DJ furrowed his brows. “You see Pamela every other day.” He said pointedly. Ashley sighed. “This is different. We had a fight last night after we left your brother's.” DJ lifted his brows and whistled. “That bad?” “Yup!” She responded, pulling the covers off her body to reveal her nudity. “She already texted last night that she wanted the day off today.” “Can she just do that?” DJ asked, his eyes raking the perfect symmetry of Ashley's body, feeling his member ha
Ashley shut the voice in her head constantly scolding her for spitting hurtful words at Pamela. Pam had been right. Maybe she was controlling, acting like an overbearing mother. And even though she didn't trust Thomas, she couldn't have at least respected Pam and tolerated him. All he did was help them. Grateful for the walk, she had enough time to reflect and simmer down. She would apologize to Pam. She reached her house and saw the car parked in front. She recognized the car as DJ’s. She glanced around and was pleasantly surprised to find DJ, but stunned to see him seated on the cobblestone step. “DJ?” She quickened her steps and met up with him. “Why are you sitting out here? Why didn't you go inside?” She asked, her gaze darting to the house, wondering if someone had asked him to stay out. “The maid who answered the door said you weren't in but would be back soon, and I didn't want to wait inside alone.” “You could have called me.” “I didn't want to disturb you.” She passed
Pamela's heels clicked angrily as she matched past Ashley. “Pamela.”. Ashley stopped her. “You should see these.” she dug her hands into her purse to fetch out something. “I got my hands on Bruce's financial record. And you won't believe what they contain.” “Good for you.” Pamela said sarcastically, not bothering to take a look at what Ashley had in her hands. “Are you alright?” “These damn signals.” Pamela muttered cusses under her breath. Her finger punched her device as though she was in a fierce battle with it. Frantically trying to book a cab, the reception on her cellphone was in opposition to her wants. “What are you so worked up about?” Ashley asked, catching up to her. Pamela ignored her, kept pressing on her phone, exiting and re-entering the app as she received the same service unavailable response. “Argh.” Pamela groaned in frustration. Ashley stole a glance at the screen. “Let's get to my house. I'll ask a driver to drop you off.” Ashley suggested seeing that P
Pamela eagerly got in the front seat, her interest in Thomas no longer subtle. “Thank you so much.” She buckled her seat belt, her gaze not once flickering off the young man. Thomas glanced at her. “It's no problem. Where're you girls headed?” “Up East.” Pamela answered. “Up East?” Thomas exclaimed. “That's on the other side of town.” He pointed out. Pamela chuckled. “Yes. Ashley's father lives on that side. And she lives with him.” “So what brings you all the way out here?” “Business. We are expanding our horizon, moving our business this way.” Pamela responded genially. “Oh!” Thomas nodded, understanding flooded his mind. “Yeah. We had our debut exhibition here sometime last month. A small awareness about our brand.” Pamela chortled. “I heard about that and I wouldn't call that small. Although I didn't attend, I saw a glimpse of it all over the net. It was a great show… Awesome designs… I couldn't get over the number two collection.” He chuckled. “So much so that I place
Ashley went back down. Her mission for attending the party had been a dead end. But not entirely unproductive. For one, she had Rachel in a messed up corner. That alone was enough to make up for the night. And it brought her great joy. The other, she got her hands on something very important. Something she could use to bring Bruce down. As she reached the base of the staircase, she weaved her gaze through the crowd to where she had left Pamela. She hissed. Pamela had moved. No longer in the same place. She would need to find her. She plowed ahead and blended into the crowd, darting her eyes through the small cluster of people, looking for Pamela. It didn't take long before she spotted Pam, intently focused in a conversation with a strange man. Ashley walked up to them. She heard Pam giggle girlishly as she closed in on them. Who was this man? And why was Pamela entertaining him? “Pamela.” She called, but her call went unanswered. “Pamela!” Ashley called forcefully. This tim
Bruce smiled at her. “I'll see you down stairs.” He gave her one long last look, his eyes lingering on the flesh of her exposed cleavage. With great effort, he peeled his gaze away. He adjusted his tie, tugged his jacket before he stepped out. Not once did he consider he was leaving a stranger in his bedroom. Not once did he think she should have gone out before him. As stupid as they came, Bruce went down, back to his party, leaving her there, in his room. Ashley had never seen a more fóolish ídíot than Bruce. It made her wonder what she ever saw in him before. Now alone, Ashley looked around the room. It felt like a cemetery. Everything in it was dead. It was nothing like the home she had created with warmth and love. The room had been restructured and repainted to suit Rachel's preference; bland. But of course, what could she expect from Rachel who knew nothing about love and warmth. She sighed. Her fears, confronted and defeated. Now only a painful memory. Taking one las