That night, Mr. George came home late after attending an important invitation for a project planning. He didn't invite Mark, thinking his son must be busy preparing for their upcoming wedding.As usual, whenever he traveled without Mark, Mrs. Anna insisted that he use a driver. He had rarely been allowed to drive himself lately because of concerns over exhaustion. His advancing age made it necessary for him to be more compromising and dependent on others.On the way home, unexpectedly, one of his tires went flat. He had to get out of the car and let the driver search for a repair shop. Deciding to take a taxi, he provided his address and focused on his phone. He had been reviewing some documents that his secretary had just sent, trying to match the data with the recent meeting results to decide if the project would be profitable for his company.So absorbed in his phone, Mr. George didn't notice the driver taking a different route, not the usual one leading him home. Suddenly, he real
In the morning, even before Mark could head to the police station, he was shocked by a message from an unknown number on his phone's messaging app. When he opened it, the message contained a photo of Mr. George after an accident, lying by a river in an unknown area. Mark nearly screamed when he saw the worrying condition of his father in the photo. There were bloodstains on his father’s shirt inside his suit, which had torn in several places. Without thinking, he immediately called the number that sent the message, but there was no response. He sent several threatening messages and questions, but there was no sign of them being read or replied to. "Mr. Edo, please come to the house. I need help tracking a mysterious number. Someone sent me a picture of Dad injured somewhere unknown," Mark said while forwarding the image to Mr. Edo’s number.Mr. Edo acted quickly. He also noted down the sender’s number to have their IT team check it. While waiting, they speculated about where the pho
And finally, the long-awaited day arrived. The Bagaskara family's house had been lavishly decorated for the important once-in-a-lifetime moment between Mark and Aileen. Aileen’s extended family from Mataram had arrived the day before and stayed at her apartment to ensure they wouldn't be late for the marriage ceremony and reception. The invitations, which numbered no less than a hundred people, came in waves, filling the yard which had been set up for a garden party, much like Lisa's party from before. The only difference was that the theme here was Mediterranean, whereas Lisa’s party had been modern and contemporary. The akad nikah ceremony took place at the large mosque near the Bagaskara home, attended by close family and a few necessary witnesses. Naturally, there were also a few showbiz reporters covering the wedding of such a prominent figure in the city. Mark successfully recited his vows in one smooth breath, and everyone cheered "SAH" when the imam asked the formal ques
Two months after their wedding, Aileen discovered she was pregnant because her period was late by more than a month. So, the menstruation she had on their wedding night was the last one she experienced after marriage. After that, she didn’t have any until a pregnancy test confirmed two lines. "Is it true, darling? Are you pregnant?" asked Mark, looking very enthusiastic. Aileen was so moved that she couldn't speak. She had, of course, hoped to get pregnant right away after marriage, but she never expected it to happen so soon. "Thank you, darling. I’m so touched. I'm going to be a dad!" said Mark, jumping around with joy. He immediately ran downstairs to share the good news with his parents. "What? Aileen is pregnant? Alhamdulillah!" Mrs. Anna exclaimed. She was so happy because she had requested from Aileen and Mark that they wouldn’t delay having children with contraception. Mr. George was just as happy and cheered when he heard the news. "Finally, Pa. Next time, we wo
The family was filled with happiness when Aileen finally gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Deborah Fredina Bagaskara. The smart and chatty little girl became a source of pride for her parents, as well as for her grandparents. The house immediately came alive with the arrival of the first grandchild in the Bagaskara family, which had been rather quiet in terms of descendants.Deborah’s birth story was quite an adventure. Aileen had cravings as her due date approached, and her parents had warned her to stay home. However, Aileen insisted on going to Monas (National Monument) to see the tower up close. “My goodness, darling. What a ridiculous request is that?” Mark was frustrated because he was in a dilemma: everyone had forbidden him to fulfill his wife’s wish, but as her husband, he couldn’t bear to deny her. During her pregnancy, Aileen had rarely asked for anything unusual.He felt terribly guilty if he didn’t fulfill her request. So, that afternoon, he decided to take Aile
"Check the document. Otherwise, you'll regret not finding out sooner."Aileen was reminded of the warning words of the mysterious Mark. The arrogant man with the enigmatic appearance had joined the marketing department a month ago."What the hell does that mean?" Aileen grumbled to herself as her hands searched for the file she wanted.The man's performance immediately baffled Aileen, the head of marketing. And here she was, sneaking into the Director's office to follow Mark's absurd suggestion.Her eyes widened as she read a document with a title on it. "Ah, here it is!" she muttered.She quickly opened it and flipped through the pages to find the one she wanted. Pulling her cell phone from her pocket, she snapped pictures of the report's summary pages.Occasionally turning her head toward the door, Aileen ensured the secretary did not re-enter the room. She was now concentrating on taking pictures. Her heart was pounding. It felt like a bomb would go off at any moment when the door
"Then what Mark said is true," Aileen muttered as she tapped her pen on the desk.With her eyes still occasionally fixed on the file, she picked up her cell phone and dialed the man's number."Yes, Ms. Aileen?" a voice asked from the other end of the line."Could you come to my office, please? There's something I'd like to discuss with you," Aileen replied, ignoring her reluctance to ask the man to come to her office as if they were partners who always got along well."All right, I'll be there in ten minutes." The man on the other end of the line then ended their conversation.Aileen was surprised to find herself reaching for a small mirror from her bag to correct some makeup on her face. She tried to catch her breath so as not to look too nervous."Come on, Aileen. Why do you look so tense to meet him, huh? Damn!" She cursed herself for being so out of control.She was not used to being awkward around men, especially when the man was below her in the office. But Mark Miller was diffe
The booming voice of the man in his early forties did not shake Mark and Aileen's resolve. Both stood where they were, looking straight into Mr. William's face."Good afternoon, Sir. I'm sorry, we didn't mean to make a scene outside your office, but we need to talk to you as soon as possible, so...""Tell me here as soon as possible. Or if it takes longer, I'll let Laura listen and take notes. I'm in an important meeting with a client," Mr. William replied quickly."Um, actually, we'd like to have a word with your important client, if you'd let us, Sir?”"What do you mean? And who is this gentleman, Ms. Aileen? Isn't he a new employee in your department, transferred from another branch?" Immediately, Mr. William turned to Aileen, whom he had gotten to know well during his two years of service."Uh, this is Mr. Mark Miller, Sir. We have an important matter to discuss with you immediately." Aileen finally replied, summoning all her courage.She was not afraid of Mr. William. It was just