It's Sunday already, and Alison is still reeling from the nightmare she had the previous night, although she had no intention of telling Travis about it.They were both alone in the kitchen trying to make breakfast, when Alison's phone rang.She didn't take the first call, as all her attention was on the pancakes she was making. Her phone started to ring again, and left without a choice, she turned to Travis.“Please, pass me the phone.” He picked it up, and without checking the caller ID, he handed it over to her. “Who's calling?” She asked, her hands stained with flour.“I have no idea, you should check.” He replied and she nodded. Her heartbeat accelerated the moment she saw who the caller was. “Officer Carlos.” She muttered and took the call.“Good morning, sir.” She greeted, moving away from the cooker. “Morning Alison, how are you and Travis doing?” He asked and she nodded, forgetting that he couldn't see her.“Very well sir. How are you, and how is Aunt Megan?” Alison asked
“All of these finally makes perfect sense.” Travis whispered, connecting the dots in his head. “First, Raquel shows up in Chicago, then she starts bumping into me everywhere, threatening me and swearing that if she cannot have me, nobody else would.”“So, you had your suspicions all along?” Carlos asked the obvious question and then sighed. “Anyway, the only issue here is that she did not successfully pull you and Alison apart, and most definitely she's going to strike, again.”Oscar and Travis shared puzzled glances before turning to Carlos. “Is the mess she created on his reputation not enough?” Oscar flared.“Well, although I have no idea about whatever is going on in her mind, I'm pretty sure she would strike again because even if the damage has been done, she hasn't gotten to her goal, so…” Carlos trailed off his mind drifting to the criminals he had to deal with, and whose direct confessions he'd heard.“So, what now?” Travis panicked. “Nothing much for now… except that were j
“Confront Raquel, and tell her what exactly?” Travis asked. “Hey, I know you've been trying to get rid of my woman, Alison and you conspired with the elite men, Bruno, particularly, and they went against you, to attack my wife, and not me?”“Exactly.” Alison replied and the room went dead in silence as they tried to make sense of her words. “How does that work, please?” Megan asked. “I mean, I've never heard that kind of advice, ever.”Carlos who was silent all along,and trying to picture the scenario Travis's word just painted, finally spoke up. “That's a good one.”“How?” Megan and Travis chorused.“I deal with criminals everyday, and Alison read law, we've all done criminal law at some point so take the advice well.” He started. “If you can let Raquel know that you're already aware of her plans, the chances of her plotting something against Alison will be slim.”“So, after the confrontation? What next?” Travis asked with a chuckle. “I know Raquel really well, and I can tell she is
“Ah!!” Raquel yelled and threw her phone against her standing mirror, shattering it. “How dare Travis! How dare him not trust me? How dare him reject my offer?”She ruffled her hair in frustration, wondering why Spider wasn't there yet. Her mind drifted to Travis once again and she shook her head. “How did he even find out? I don't want to believe that there is a mole in my circle, else it would not end well.”“Ah, I hate Alison! I hate Bruno! I hate all of them.” She yelled and grabbed a pillow and threw it at her table, shattering all the cosmetics on it.“You do not have to break things to prove that you're angry, Raquel, you do this every single time!” Spider snapped, walking into her bedroom. “They are obviously better ways of handling your emotions.”“Who the fuck do you think you are, Spider?” She snapped back. “You are not going to tell me how to act or react or how to live my life!” “And you think I'm interested in doing that? Look, Raquel, I'm starting to get sick of your
“Hey, where did you get this photo from?” Alison asked, running after Travis.“Come on, I'm not posting it. I'm just taking a careful look at it.” He replied, taking his hands off. “Just stop running after me and I would let you have a look at it.”“No way! Trav.” She pouted and then hugged him tightly. “Just let me see it, please.”“You have always been beautiful, Alison.” He whispered, staring at the picture on his phone. “Look, we made the perfect match.”It was a picture of her and Travis in high school. A week had passed since the discovery of Raquel's involvement with the scandal, and both Alison and Travis were avoiding the subject.They knew that they were going to talk about it eventually, but they wer not interested in talking about it, at least not during the previous week.“Fine, if you're not going to show me, can you at least stop joking around?” She pouted.“It would not have been so much of a big deal if a certain person didn't have her arms wrapped around me…” he tr
The silhouette of Bruno's figure stood by the window of his bedroom, staring out into the beautiful city of New York, enjoying the night view with a lot of thoughts running through his mind.“Why can't I just get my mind off the fact that Raquel Castro is up to something?” He asked himself and sighed.After their last time together, she totally cut off from him, he tried reaching out to her once, but she totally ignored him.A part of him kept holding onto the idea that she was going to leak his conversations with his mum to Travis, as she threatened.“What's the way out?” He mumbled and grabbed a stick of cigarette from his lampstand and a lighter.He lit the cigarette but the moment he put it between his lips, he totally lost interest, and dropped it in the ashtray.“How the fuck did I get involved in all these mess?” He asked himself for the umpteenth time and ruffled his hair in frustration. “Cigarette does not even interest me anymore.”He stared around the room and fragments of
**TWO MONTHS LATER**It's been over three months after the break out of the scandal, which is already slowly dying down. The press conference helped to keep the shareholders abreast about everything that was going on, and stop them from withdrawing, while curtailing the wagging tongues of the public and giving Travis a break from all the stigma.It's finally the day for the final trial and judgement for the case Alison pressed charges for against Mrs. Francisco and Bruno Francisco.For the custody of Master Theo Francisco. She was also sueing Mrs. Francisco for attempted murder, and forgery, while Bruno was standing trial as an accomplice.Alison is already dressed and has her files and all the evidence she intends to tender to the court, in her car.She kept pacing around the living room nervously, with a lot of thoughts running through her mind. Deep down she was really scared of what the outcome of the trial was going to be.“Alison, I think you really need to calm down, and get a
Alison couldn't utter any words, not like she was overjoyed, or overwhelmed, she just didn't have the ability to react, especially not at that moment, What would she even say?She remained mute as she watched Bruno and his mum get led by the cops to a van, the one that was eventually going to drive them to jail.As they walked out, being led out like criminals, Alison couldn't stop staring, as a sudden feeling of guilt overwhelmed her.Was that all? The whole vengeance she spent so much time fighting for, was that everything or more was still ahead? It did not taste as sweet as she imagined it would, rather, it was bitter—You know the taste of bitterness that just keeps enveloping your taste buds, the more you keep sipping the more you yearn for more. That was exactly how she felt.She just stood there, no longer conscious of her environment or her achievements, all she could do was stare into space.“Hey, pretty lady! I told you, didn't I? I said you were going to make us proud, and
Travis tried to trail Raquel, but she was nowhere to be found, apparently she had already gone too far.“Fuck!!” He groaned in annoyance, punching his steering and screaming his lungs out. “I've lost everything!”Before he could stop himself, tears began slipping down his eyes. He got to the side of the road and parked.“Why did I let it get to this point?” He asked himself, ruffling his hair in frustration and crying out. “Now she has gotten what she wanted and is nowhere to be found.”He tried to calm himself down but it just was not working out.‘why not just head home, hopefully you would meet her and explain everything.’ His subconscious mind suggested and Travis shook his head.“I fucked up already, what explanation is going to make sense to her?” He muttered, his eyes already red from crying and his fists bruised.Eventually, he decided to drive home, not knowing exactly what to expect, but hoping for the best nevertheless.The drive was rough, with Travis growing more emotiona
“What the hell is going on here?” Alison yelled in shock, and Raquel got off Travis thighs, deciding to play the victim.“Sweetheart, what is she still doing here? I thought you said you were no longer with her?” Raquel asked Travis, pointing at Alison and crying. “I should never have trusted you again in the first place.”“Alison, I swear I can explain.” Travis whispered getting off the couch and swiftly going over to hold Alison.“Don't touch me!” She snapped, slapping his hands off her. “I should have known that this is what you were up to when you suddenly woke up and created the idea that you were going to work from home.”“Cupcake, it's not what you think.” He said going on his knees. “I promise you, I was actually working from home.”“It can even be what I think, but what I saw Travis… this bitch was straddling you and you didn't even push her off, what is she even doing here? And what does she mean by you said we'd broken up?” Alison asked, feeling her feet grow cold then she
The notion that ‘time flies’ had never made more sense to Alison. Just like yesterday, she was fighting to get her son back, then she lost him, and now three months had passed already. She had finally embraced the fact that her Theo was gone and she was never going to see him again. Deep down, she was grateful to Travis, who had always been her knight in shining armor, walking her through every single stage of grief. She finally opened her heart to Karen, Megan and Carlos, letting them comfort her. Although Alison never believed the saying that ‘time heals’ she'd a testament to that. “You're awake?” Travis muttered with a small smile as Alison tried to sit upright. “How was your night?” “It was good, I mean… I slept well,” she replied and smiled back at him. Her gaze caught the time on her clock and she gasped. “It's 8am, already? I have to get to the office.” She said and swiftly got out of bed. “Wait, you're resuming, already? You sure you are ready?” Travis asked, with
“I can't keep watching her do that to herself.” Travis murmured, as he sipped from his drink at the bar. “It's been more than two weeks already, and she is still refusing to talk to or see anybody.”Oscar sighed and then patted Travis’s back softly. “You've got this boss. Although Miss Alison needs som time alone, you should be by her side, comfort her and and reassure her that you're always going to be by her side and she hasn't lost her only reason to live.”“I had no idea you were really good with advice.” Travis chuckled lightly, and took a sip of his drink. “She's extremely vulnerable at this moment, and I am too…it's difficult consoling her, when she keeps blaming herself for everything that has happened.”“The more reason you have to be there for her, help her get rid of the emotional trauma.” He said, his expression unreadable. “It's better that way, so she doesn't feel like she's alone.”“I'll try to do that, and I hope she'd finally agree to go out. I can't watch her in that
Tears, pains, guilt, regrets and sorrows suddenly redefined Alison. It has already been a week since Theo's death, but to her it was no more that yesterday.Words of encouragement came in through one ear and went out through the other, leaving her drowning in despair and a walking shadow of her former self.“Where did I go wrong?” She asked no one in particular, as she sat alone in the room Theo spent his last week in. “Why do forces seem to be standing against my happiness? One moment, I'm at the verge of achieving my dreams, and the next minute, it's like everything has been turned upside down.”Travis who had been watching her from the door which was slightly ajar, shook his head in pity.“For how long will you keep doing this to yourself?” He finally asked. Alison didn't flinch despite how sudden his voice came, neither did she react, she just remained motionless, holding tightly onto Theo's bloodstained clothes, as if they were going to disappear if she let them go.She had ins
After running over Theo, the person behind the wheels smirked triumphantly and drove off without bothering to wait.When he had gotten to a reasonable distance away from them, he pulled the mask over his face revealing Spider.“Too bad, the little boy had to pay for the sins of his parents.” He repeated Raquel's words from the last time and then dialed her number.She answered on the first ring.“Hey spider, what's good? Did you succeed?” She asked, panic obvious in her voice.“You don't trust me?” He asked proudly. “To think that they made things easier for me, I didn't have to trail or…”“You're saying the kid is dead already, right?” Raquel cut him off impatiently. “Not yet, but with the level of harm I caused, I doubt he will survive it.” He reported.“Are you already on your way back here?” Raquel asked, and he could hear a hint of disdain in her voice.“Why asking?” He asked back.“Don't come back to the Cartel yet. Those people are smart enough, they would have you trailed and
**ONE WEEK LATER**“Travis, do you think I am a bad mother?” Alison asked, one morning before breakfast. She was seated before her mirror, staring at her expression, while Travis sat on the bed behind her, working on his laptop.“Where is this coming from?” He asked, clearly shocked by her question. “This is not about Theo, is it?”“It's him, and I just can't help it.” She muttered, then a tear slid down her eyes. “He does not seem happy, I have tried my best.”“He will come around very soon, it's not so easy moving away, and then blending in with new people just immediately, try to understand him.” Travis explained, keeping his laptop aside.“It's been a whole week already, Travis! I spent years praying for the day when he would finally be by my side, and call me mom without interruption. I longed to hold him in my arms and play with him…” she chocked on her tears, swallowing the bile that rose to her throat. “And now that I finally got the chance to do so, he isn't even happy.”“Hav
Alison couldn't utter any words, not like she was overjoyed, or overwhelmed, she just didn't have the ability to react, especially not at that moment, What would she even say?She remained mute as she watched Bruno and his mum get led by the cops to a van, the one that was eventually going to drive them to jail.As they walked out, being led out like criminals, Alison couldn't stop staring, as a sudden feeling of guilt overwhelmed her.Was that all? The whole vengeance she spent so much time fighting for, was that everything or more was still ahead? It did not taste as sweet as she imagined it would, rather, it was bitter—You know the taste of bitterness that just keeps enveloping your taste buds, the more you keep sipping the more you yearn for more. That was exactly how she felt.She just stood there, no longer conscious of her environment or her achievements, all she could do was stare into space.“Hey, pretty lady! I told you, didn't I? I said you were going to make us proud, and
**TWO MONTHS LATER**It's been over three months after the break out of the scandal, which is already slowly dying down. The press conference helped to keep the shareholders abreast about everything that was going on, and stop them from withdrawing, while curtailing the wagging tongues of the public and giving Travis a break from all the stigma.It's finally the day for the final trial and judgement for the case Alison pressed charges for against Mrs. Francisco and Bruno Francisco.For the custody of Master Theo Francisco. She was also sueing Mrs. Francisco for attempted murder, and forgery, while Bruno was standing trial as an accomplice.Alison is already dressed and has her files and all the evidence she intends to tender to the court, in her car.She kept pacing around the living room nervously, with a lot of thoughts running through her mind. Deep down she was really scared of what the outcome of the trial was going to be.“Alison, I think you really need to calm down, and get a