“I'm really sorry to put you in this ordeal, Heart. If only I could do this on my own, you wouldn't be in a difficult situation,” Cassandra said apologetically in a hoarse whisper. Her desperation showed in her teary red eyes.“You don't have to apologize,” I replied, gently pushing her back to the bed when she tried to get up. “Let's not forget that it's all my fault you ended up with the flu. You haven't had a decent sleep since you’ve been watching over me in the hospital for weeks. I also bet that you’re not eating well because you’re worrying over your financial problems and, above all, worrying about my condition.”Cassandra didn't reply. Instead, she sighed and closed her eyes. Glad that she finally stopped struggling to get up, I straightened and surveyed her room for a medicine kit if she had any. Her room was neat and organized; it didn't take me long to spot the white plastic box on top of her dresser labeled "MEDICINE KIT."I grabbed the plastic box and looked for medicine
“No, Lily. It's Lia. Not Cassandra,” the stunning woman corrected me. A tear fell from her eyes, and she quickly wiped it away with a handkerchief she fished out of her handbag. “I'm your best friend. Don't you remember me?” she asked shakily. Her doll-like eyes were wide as she surveyed me from head to toe, as though she couldn't believe she was seeing me.Closing the distance between us, the woman touched my shoulders, then felt my cheeks before her hand went to cover her wide-open mouth. “You're not a ghost!” she gasped. “You're real!” she added. Her hands went to her head as though she were having a headache at that moment.Not knowing how to react, I kept my mouth closed while watching her with fascination. This might be a prank, I thought to myself, but I still wondered how she managed to change into something elegant, put makeup on her face, curl her straight auburn hair, and slip into Fleur De Lis Hotel in such a short amount of time.Another thing that puzzled me was that ins
The room suddenly went dim, and the spotlight found its way to me. My eyes momentarily fluttered closed at the sudden blinding light. But even with my eyes closed, I could still feel everyone’s gaze fixed in my direction.Why is everyone’s attention on me? I couldn’t help but ask myself, wondering if I did something terrible that I wasn’t aware of. However, after thinking hard and long, I recalled not doing anything wrong, and somehow I felt relieved at that thought.For a moment that seemed to last an eternity, the world stopped spinning. Even the soft, mellow music from the orchestra stopped playing, and the room felt quieter than before.Silence reigned inside the room. If a feather dropped to the floor, surely it would be heard as it landed.Slowly, my eyes fluttered open. After my eyes adjusted to the light, I surveyed the crowd and found everyone still looking at me with mixed emotions on their faces. Shock, surprise, disbelief, and joy were just a few of the emotions I could na
“I'll make them pay for what they did to you!” Those words echoed in my head harshly, triggering a series of memories to flash. I abruptly pulled to a stop and stood in place like a statue while blindly staring ahead, as a blurred scene played in my memory like a defective film.A sudden headache hammered my head hard. At the same time, my eyes gradually became hazy, and my surroundings began to spin until I couldn't take it anymore, and bile rose in my throat.“Lilibeth? Are you okay?” a woman's voice whispered in my ear. I couldn't see her face with my head bowed, but I recognized Sophia's voice.“Lilibeth, please speak. You're making me anxious,” the old woman said beside me as she held my right arm while Sophia held the other to keep me steady.My lips parted to speak, but no words emerged.“Argggh!”The hammering in my head intensified. My legs lost their strength, and I collapsed. A scream emerged from someone’s lips when I lost my balance and fell, but before the cold, hard flo
"I'm pregnant!" The news dropped in front of me like a bomb. My lips parted wide open, but no words emerged from my mouth. For once, my brain stopped functioning, and I didn't know what to do. A number of emotions swelled inside me, and I felt as though I was about to burst into tears.Happiness, disbelief, worry, and sadness swirled inside me all at once. Happiness because I would finally have another child after waiting for years. Disbelief because I still couldn't believe the heavens had finally listened to my pleas and granted my prayers. Worry because my OB-GYN once warned me that if I ever got pregnant again, it would be delicate. Lastly, sadness because the child in my womb would never have the chance to know his or her father.But despite the number of emotions swelling in my chest, one ruled above the others: the feeling of blissful contentment at the knowledge that a life was growing inside me.My hand, as if it had a mind of its own, felt my still-flat stomach. Tears stung
Natalia Romani stood in the middle of their honeymoon suite with a deep frown carved on her flawless forehead. Her gaze drifted to the empty bed, and her frown turned into a furious scowl as she noticed her husband was gone."Damn you, Greyson Gabriel Bradford! Damn you! I wish you were dead already!" she hissed under her breath while her fingers balled into fists at her sides.It was the fifth day of their honeymoon, and it was also the fifth day he escaped from their honeymoon suite without her notice.She marched to the expansive built-in cabinet on the side of the room and hurled the door open. The other side of the cabinet, where Grey's clothes hung, was now empty.Fuming with rage, she closed the door of the built-in cabinet with a loud bang before skittering to the bed to check if Grey's suitcase was still underneath. What she found was an empty space.He left her and took his clothes with him!She got to her feet and brushed her fiery red hair in exasperation. Unable to contai
The day after I was discharged from the hospital, the doctor signed my discharge papers since my medical results were all normal. My baby was in good health, and so was I. My mind was at ease leaving the hospital since there was nothing I had to worry about.Though the Phoenix family had stayed with me the whole time, I still hadn't been able to talk to them privately about what they were planning to do with me. They hadn't brought up the topic either, but I knew they would when the right time came. Perhaps the right time would happen after we got home. And speaking of home, Sophia and Philip insisted that I now stay with them.Until now, I still didn't believe Sophia to be my mother and Philip to be my father. Things had happened so suddenly and without warning. I'm still wondering if it's just a dream.What if they made a mistake? What if I'm not really their missing daughter and they just jumped to conclusions because I looked like Leilani? I couldn't shake those questions from my
As I slowly made my way to the door, I filled my lungs with air. I swallowed hard and pulled the door open.“WELCOME HOME, LILIBETH!” everyone inside the room greeted me in unison the moment my feet stepped inside.I swallowed the lump in my throat and then looked up at them, smiling. The Phoenixes are my family, and they wholeheartedly accepted me as their own, so what more could I ask for? Despite the number of misfortunes in my life, God was still good to me. He gave me an incredible gift in the form of the child in my womb and a family who loves and cares for me.“I'm glad to finally have you here, darling.” Leilani came to me and laid a soft peck on my cheek. “You make this old woman very happy.” She then gave me a smile that made her look ten years younger.“You're not that old,” I told her. “In fact, you could be mistaken for my mother. Who would guess you're sixty years old?”A wide grin appeared on Leilani's lips. “I'm flattered to hear those words from my only granddaughter,
**ONE YEAR LATER**Days had turned into weeks, weeks had turned into months, and the months had turned into a full year, but the bouquet of flowers, boxes of chocolates, and romantic letters never stopped coming. Not even for a single day in the entire year.With the amount of effort Grey had put into his courtship, it was hard not to soften and fall for him even more—especially when he visited home every single day to continue what he called “courtship service,” which included being a gardener, a car repairman, an electrician, a plumber, and sometimes a cleaner.I once told him it wasn't necessary for him to do anything like that since we are in modern times. Men no longer woo women and their families by doing house chores, but Grey was stubborn and wouldn’t stop. He told me it was his way of showing respect and dedication to me as his wife, so I allowed him to continue what he was doing and just enjoyed the moment while he was at it.After his ceaseless dedication, Grey's hard work
A few seconds later, the soft voice coming from the bed made Grey and me abruptly pull away from each other so we could look at the bed. We both saw our son looking at us. My heart jumped, and I immediately went to Dylan’s side and grabbed his hand.“Mama.” It was the first word that came from his lips. The sound of his voice made my heart swell with joy. Despite being away from me for years, he had never forgotten that I was his mother. I was so happy that tears welled in my eyes. From looking at me, Dylan’s eyes shifted to his father. He opened his small mouth and, in a soft voice, mumbled, “Papa.”Grey's throat moved as he swallowed hard. I could tell by the way he sucked in a deep breath that he was trying to contain his emotions. “Yes, my little boy, papa is here,” Grey replied, his voice thick with emotion as he spoke. Crossing the small distance between him and the bed, he gently pulled Dylan into his arms. He was trying his best not to burst into tears, but his eyes clearly sh
“For our children, Lily,” he replied, looking me straight in the eyes.For our children… Yeah, for Isabelle and Dylan… But was that enough reason for me to stay? I thought to myself, wanting to actually hear him say that he wanted me to stay with him because he loves me.Grey continued, “I know if you leave, you will take the children with you, and God only knows how long it will be before you return here so Dylan and Isabelle could be with me again. I know I could visit them anytime if you're in Europe, but it wouldn't be enough for me because I want to be with them all the time… I want them to have a complete family, which I never experienced in my life.” His eyes filled with even more emotion as he said those words.Even though I never experienced having an absentee father and an abusive stepmother raising me, I knew that it wasn't easy. To say it was hard was an understatement. Perhaps ‘hell’ would be the right word to describe the situation.Grey had the luxury that everyone want
The room was quiet and still, and for a moment, I thought I was alone. However, when I opened my eyes, I saw that my whole family was inside the room. The only one missing was my grandmother, Leilani, who I bet wasn’t allowed to leave the house considering the time of the night. Slowly, I got up from the sofa. As I did so, I cast a brief glance at the wall clock and was actually surprised to see that it was past three in the morning, which meant I had slept for a straight two hours. Feeling refreshed despite the short hours of sleep, I felt somewhat relaxed, and as the rollercoaster events of last night rushed into my thoughts, I realized how surreal it felt, as though what had happened was only a dream.My gaze surveyed the room, looking for Grey, but he was not inside Dylan’s room.“Lily,” my mom called after she finally noticed I was awake. Everyone in the room looked at me, and they all wore the same worried expression on their faces. I bit my lower lip at the sudden rush of guilt
Grey said nothing. I expected he would snap and lash out at me for keeping the truth from him all this time, but his silence was the reaction I didn't expect. The lack of reaction on his handsome face filled my chest with tension. I would rather see him angry and furious than see that blank expression on him.I held my breath, waiting for him to say something, but even after a minute passed, he didn't open his lips. The only sound I could hear was the hum of the monitor and the thunderous sound of my heartbeat as I prayed he would express how he felt.Please speak… Get mad at me… Lash out at me… Those were the words I wanted to tell him, but I couldn't let them escape my lips.The silence that seemed to go on forever was shattered when he finally opened his lips. “Why did you keep the truth from me, Lily?”His achingly soft voice left a sting in my heart. I bit my lower lip, folded my hands in my lap, and kept the tears from falling down my cheeks as I replied, “It was the best thing
The police finally arrived. Too tired to even move, I stayed in my place. I didn't know how long I'd been seated on the ground until I heard footfalls approaching behind me. Without looking back, I knew it was Grey. I just knew it was him.“Lily?” His soft voice confirmed my assumption, and he pulled to a stop beside me, kneeling on the ground. I raised my tear-streaked eyes to him and saw panic and fear shining through his hazel-green eyes.“Is Dylan alright?” The words barely emerged from his lips. He looked at me with a wretched expression on his face. That must have been the same look on my face when I first thought Dylan was gone.“He's still weak, but Dylan is alright, Grey,” I replied, warm tears flowing down my cheeks in abundance.Grey slumped beside me. The weight he seemed to carry heavily on his shoulders disappeared as he let go of the breath he wasn't aware he was still holding. His hands covered his face, and he stayed that way for a while.“Grey?” I called weakly, wond
Ash landed on the floor, groaning in pain, blood leaking from the grievous wound in his right shoulder. He thrashed and cursed under his breath as he struggled to stop the bleeding, but the pressure he applied wasn't enough to stem the crimson liquid from flowing.All the while, my hawk-sharp eyes remained fixed on him. Just in case he tried to attack or escape, I'd shoot him—not in the shoulder this time, but somewhere more fatal so he wouldn't be able to move again. My fingers were cold and shaking, yet I didn't move the gun away from him for a second, fearing he would take the chance to grab the weapon from me and reverse the situation.“Untie yourself, Grey,” I told him. My eyes remained locked on Ash as I removed the ring from my finger and tossed it to where Grey was seated. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him pick up the ring, push the button, and the dagger popped up. He began to cut the rope with the small dagger. “Damn, how did you manage to cut the rope with this?” he mu
The shot reverberated inside the room, mingled with the sound of my own horrified scream. I closed my eyes and waited for the pain to strike. I even expected blood to flow from my injury, but there was nothing. Counting a few more seconds, still nothing happened. No wound and no pain. Reluctantly, my eyes opened, and I found Ash looking at me with a sinister grin on his face. The terror he saw in my expression pleased him in a horrible way. He crossed the distance between us and pressed the muzzle of the gun against my temple.The moment the cold, hard metal touched my skin, terror swelled inside me until it grew to the size of a monster. I could barely breathe. Without looking in Grey's direction, I knew he was feeling the same way, watching the gun pressed against my temple. The deafening sound of my heartbeat resounded in my ears, and I wondered if the two men could hear it too. Perhaps they couldn't at all, but I felt as though the world had stopped turning, and the only sound I c
My lips began to tremble. The deafening sound of my heartbeat resounded in my ears. This isn't happening, I told myself as my gaze remained locked on Natalia's dead body, which resembled a pale mannequin. She sat upright on the sofa, her long hair cascading down her shoulders and falling to her lap where her fingers were crossed. She looked alive and dead at the same time. I even tried convincing myself that it wasn't her, that it was just a mannequin, but I couldn't fool myself.I swallowed deep and hard. My eyes snapped shut. I counted to ten, then opened my eyes again, but she didn't disappear, which I had expected. She looked so real, and the thought alone sent shivers down my spine because I knew I would end up just like her if I didn't escape from my captor.“Holy shit,” Grey hissed under his breath in pure disbelief as he finally managed to get up and followed my gaze. “It's Natalia… It's not a mannequin like I thought at first,” he added, confirming my biggest fear. I was stil