"Who sent you?" Nina asked, taking a long look at the five men in front of her, silently assessing their strength. She figured she could probably take them.The station was less than a hundred meters south of the alley. Even if she couldn’t fight them all off, she could make a run for it. The men didn’t know what was going through her mind. They assumed her silence meant she was scared to leave the car. After all, a petite woman like her, faced with five bulky men, should be quaking in her shoes. It was already impressive she hadn’t lost her composure. As for fighting back? That wasn’t even on their radar. There was already a huge gap in strength between men and women, and it was five against one. Even if Nina wanted to fight back, did she really have what it took?“Come on, sweetheart, you don’t need to know who sent us," the leader sneered, eyeing her up and down. "Just get out of the car. Cooperate, and we might be gentle. Otherwise…” He let his voice trail off as he scann
If all three of them teamed up, they should have had no trouble handling one woman, right? But they quickly found out how wrong they were.Nina twisted the leader’s arm into a lock, stepping around him and landing a hard kick to his lower back. He gasped in pain, unable to straighten up as she kept a firm grip on him. He tried to threaten her, “Let me go, or I’ll pump you full of our strongest stuff. You’ll be begging like a dog.”Even in their organization, that drug was rarely used. But Nina paid no mind to his threats. Even if she let them go and tried to play nice, it was obvious they wouldn’t suddenly be friends. These guys were ruthless and had come with a mission to capture her for their twisted experiments. Her only option was to fight with everything she had. Giving in would only lead to something worse than death.She released him with a twist and kicked him hard, sending him stumbling forward into the second guy, who was too focused on Nina to react. His punch, meant
Nina took deliberate steps toward the leader. He pushed himself up with his hands and instinctively scooted back, fear flashing in his eyes. This woman was brutal. She hadn’t held back at all, and he was feeling it, especially his back, which he suspected might actually be fractured.“D-Don’t come any closer,” he stammered, attempting to sound threatening. “If you touch us, the organization behind us won’t let you off.”Nina’s expression was all scorn. “Do you really think I’m that naive? Even if I let you go now, your organization wouldn’t just let me walk away. And besides, do you think you’re that valuable?”She didn’t sugarcoat it. To her, they were just the organization’s lapdogs, only good for carrying out orders. If they succeeded, everyone would be pleased, and their organization would give them their due. But now? They had failed miserably.“Even if I do let you go, do you really think they’ll let you live?” she asked, pressing the point.The leader fell silent, clenc
She stood still, deep in thought. After waiting for a moment, the leader grew impatient. “I can also tell you about a secret treasure,” he said, leaning forward. “Whoever possesses it can be truly wealthy beyond measure. Miss Nina, come a little closer. This is something I’ll only tell you.”The lure of such a fortune was hard to resist, and, just as he had hoped, Nina’s curiosity got the better of her. She took a few steps closer, and at the right moment, he pulled a small syringe from his pocket and lunged forward, aiming it at her arm.Did he really intend to betray the organization? Of course not. No matter how tough Nina seemed, she was just a woman in his eyes, easily manipulated. A mention of treasure, and she had fallen for it. If he managed to inject the serum, it would take effect in less than five minutes, and by then, it wouldn’t be Nina calling the shots. She would be the one on her knees, begging them.As he envisioned his victory, something unexpected happened. Ni
Over at Nash’s office, he had just finished his meeting and decided to call Nina. Judging by the time, she should have been home by now, so he dialed the house number.After a few rings, the call connected, and Orion’s sweet little voice came through the line. “Hi, Daddy!”“Hey, buddy. What are you doing answering the phone? Where’s Mom?” Nash’s tone softened as he spoke to his son.“I don’t know,” Orion replied with a little sigh. “Mom left after she got off the phone with you and still hasn’t come back. I was going to ask you why you kept her so long.”Nash’s brows furrowed instantly. Something didn’t feel right. Nina had left the office a while ago, and even if she had run some errands, she should have been home by now. “Orion, is everything at home okay? Any strange people showing up? Is everything normal?” Nash asked, his voice growing tense.Orion yawned, then wandered into a room, turning on the phone to check the surveillance footage. The yard was empty except for two se
Nash circled the area, calling Nina repeatedly and even asking passersby if they had seen her, but he kept coming up empty-handed. Just as he was on the verge of despair, a familiar voice called out from behind him.“Nash.”It was Nina! He quickly turned around and ran to her, pulling her into a tight embrace. “You scared me to death. I couldn’t find you, and you weren’t answering your phone. I was terrified something had happened to you.” The thought of losing her was unbearable. He knew he couldn’t go on without her, not with Orion and Gemma needing both their parents. They were so young and needed the love and security of a complete family.“I’m so sorry,” Nina murmured, rubbing his back gently. “I was giving my statement to the police, so I put my phone on silent. I’m really okay. See?” She reassured him, showing her arms. “I didn’t get hurt. This blood isn’t mine. It’s from them.”He finally relaxed a bit, though his concern lingered as he looked her over. “But still… ther
She had no intention of arranging a get-together just yet. With the situation around the organization still unresolved, meeting up with Lydia and Quincy could only risk drawing unwanted attention toward them. It would be putting them in harm’s way.“When we get home, I’ll reach out to Quincy. I have a project at the company that I’d like to collaborate on with him,” Nash said. He was considering collaborating with Quincy because he trusted his integrity and knew Quincy would approach the project with commitment, regardless of its scale.“Why don’t you just focus on driving?” Nina suggested. “I’ll reach out to Lydia instead and send a quick text. They’re probably both busy at this hour.” She pulled out her phone, found Lydia in her contacts, and sent a cute emoji. With no immediate reply, she left it at that.As they pulled up to their house, Nina barely had time to step inside with the takeout before Orion came running up to her. He didn’t even notice the bag in her hand as he wrapp
"Orion, you're amazing. You’re such a good kid, always willing to share," Nina praised her son, quick to reinforce his positive traits. As a mother, all she wanted was for her son and daughter to grow up getting along, supporting one another. After all, besides their parents, they were each other’s closest family.Nash held Gemma in his arms, pacing around the living room a couple of times before finally placing her back in the cradle under Mrs. Watson's care. With dinner ready, the three of them headed to the dining room, sharing laughter and stories over the meal.After dinner, Orion ran off to watch cartoons, while Nina, with some time to herself, picked up her phone. She opened her messages and was taken aback to see Lydia’s response: "Next Monday, I’m meeting Quincy at the county courthouse. We’re getting a divorce."Nina could hardly believe her eyes. Just recently, Lydia had shared the news of her pregnancy and now she was talking about divorce? It seemed so surreal. For a
“Why don’t you stay home and take care of Charlie? With you watching over him, I’d feel completely at ease. Besides, I’m earning enough money now. You don’t need to worry. I can more than provide for the both of you,” Ben said, his tone gentle but firm.The Lucas Corporation was massive, and Ben’s past work as a lawyer brought in astronomical fees, starting in the millions. Financial security was never a concern for their family.Jamie shook her head. “The work I’ve done before was all over the place, but didn’t you support me in doing it? What’s this sudden change, Ben? You’re switching sides faster than flipping a page!”Her decision to return to studying law had been encouraged by Ben himself. But now, hearing him say this, it felt like he was wavering, as though he wanted her to stay at home. Stay at home and do what? Take care of the child? To Jamie, this was an opportunity she couldn’t let slip away. It was her chance to prove herself. “That’s not what I meant,” Be
Lila visited Summer, whose condition had visibly deteriorated. “Looking at you now, do you regret any of it?” Lila asked. If Summer hadn’t been so fixated on Ben, she wouldn’t have ended up this way, consumed by obsession. Summer gave a bitter smile. “With so many twists and turns in life, who even has the right to speak of regret?” She reached out and held Lila’s hand tightly. “Lila, let my experience be a lesson to you. Make sure you see things clearly and never do anything foolish for someone who doesn’t love you.” It was sound advice, and Lila couldn’t help but feel indignant on Summer’s behalf. But her indignation was meaningless. Back then, all she had wanted was to make things difficult for Jamie. In the end, it had backfired, leaving her worse off. “I’m sorry, Summer,” Lila said remorsefully. “I couldn’t even help you get justice. I still carry that guilt.” “You don’t owe me an apology,” Summer replied gently. “You came to see me and cared enough to thin
Jamie sighed, knowing Ben was trying to comfort her. Though she still felt a little wistful, she quickly let it go.What she didn’t expect was that the boys’ whispered conversation would continue from the car all the way to the dinner table. Even while eating, they huddled together, making it clear no one else was welcome to join their secretive chat. Noticing how little food they had touched, Jamie tapped the table with a hint of exasperation. “Alright, you two. Mealtime is for eating, not whispering. Didn’t your teachers teach you that at school?” Charlie immediately recognized that Jamie wasn’t joking this time. She was genuinely a little upset. He quickly straightened up, putting on his most obedient expression as he picked up his utensils. “Got it, Mommy. I’ll eat properly now.” Jamie then turned her gaze to Orion, who, sensing her sternness, also sat upright and promised to focus on his food. With both boys settled and eating obediently, Jamie felt satisfied and
Ben glanced down at Jamie’s hand tightly holding his own. A faint smile flickered in his eyes, but the somber look on his face didn’t fade completely. Jamie noticed and assumed he was still upset. Unsure how to console him, she simply kept holding his hand, refusing to let go. That was precisely what Ben had intended. “It’s about time to pick up Charlie, isn’t it?” Jamie finally finished reading the case file, stretching as she glanced at the clock. It was already 4:00 PM. Preschool ended at 4:30, so if they left now, they would arrive just in time. Ben had already grabbed the car keys. “Yeah, let’s go.” Fortunately, traffic wasn’t bad, and they arrived at the preschool quickly. Jamie was scrolling through her phone when she suddenly said, “Nina messaged me. She’s busy today and can’t pick up Orion. She asked if we could swing by and get him.” They exchanged a look. Ben didn’t seem fazed. Picking up one more child didn’t make a difference to him. Jamie, ho
Most of the people nearby didn’t know what had happened. They simply listened to the man’s loud retorts and, judging by his confidence, began to cast skeptical glances at Jamie.“She looks so young. Why is she acting paranoid? How ridiculous.”“I don’t think it’s paranoia, it’s overconfidence. They say too much confidence is a sickness, and she clearly needs treatment.”“Oh, come on. I think she’s actually really pretty. Why are you all so hostile toward her? Honestly, the guy could’ve been snooping like she said. She did mention it was about her documents.”Hearing at least one voice defending her warmed Jamie’s heart. She turned and gave a smile to the young woman who had spoken up.The young woman froze for a moment, her face unexpectedly turning red. Embarrassed, she quickly looked down, pretending to sip her milk tea.Jamie didn’t linger on the moment. She refocused her attention on the man, her tone calm but firm. “I never said you were staring at me. You were clearly tryin
The girl's death was caused by her being forced to run laps despite being on her period. She had requested to be excused, but the teacher denied her request. Left with no choice, she pushed through, only to suffer a severe hemorrhage. She wasn’t treated in time and tragically passed away.The school defended itself, claiming the blame didn’t rest solely on them. They argued the girl and her family bore significant responsibility. After all, they reasoned, no one else had any issues during the drills. Why was it only her?Jamie’s frustration boiled over as she read through the case materials. “A school this shameless actually exists!”Ben tried to calm her. “Take it easy.”She took a deep breath, then sighed after a long pause. “You’re right. There are too many cases like this.”The idea of valuing a life at a mere $5,000 sounded absurd, but it wasn’t uncommon in reality. Examples of such injustices were everywhere, stemming from the lack of clear legal protections.“And that’s no
“Whose legal documents are these?” one of the investigators asked.“They’re mine,” Jamie replied. “I’ve been using them to prepare for a competition.”After she explained the situation, the investigator handed the documents back to her and issued a warning, emphasizing that such legal materials should not be present within the company. With that, they left.The man, clearly stunned, called after them, his voice rising with disbelief. “Did you even check properly? He’s a lawyer! How can a lawyer run a company as its president? Isn’t that against the rules?” The officials followed the direction of his finger and turned to look at Ben. Their expressions shifted into something between amusement and confusion, as though the man had asked an absurd question. “His law license was revoked a long time ago,” one of them stated plainly. The man froze, then shouted in denial, “That’s impossible!” “Why would it be impossible?” The official frowned, his tone growing stern. “When his l
Ben wouldn’t let Jamie fight his battles for him.He pulled her behind him, shielding her, and addressed the crowd with a cold expression. “If that’s the case, let’s have the authorities investigate.”Jamie stared at him, stunned.She understood the saying, “A clear conscience fears no accusation.” As long as Ben had nothing to hide, there was no reason to be afraid. But these people weren’t here for the truth, they were looking for trouble. It was likely orchestrated by their defeated opponents, timed to create chaos. Even if nothing incriminating was found, the media would seize the opportunity to smear them.Ben was doing this for her, disregarding himself completely.She was touched, but also anxious. She wanted to pull him back.However, Ben wasn’t budging this time. His warm but firm hand enveloped hers, silently telling her not to stop him.“What’s the matter? Afraid?” Ben asked, his hands casually in his pockets, raising an eyebrow with a hint of defiance.The loudest
“There’s a surveillance camera overhead, just so you know,” Ben said coldly, his gaze sharp as a blade. “I get it that you’re here to stick up for Summer. But let me be clear: whatever happened between the Lucas family and the Larson family is none of your business.”He held up the empty glass, his tone unwavering. “That drink was a warning. Don’t even think about testing my limits.”Jamie was his limit—his bottom line. He wouldn’t allow anyone to harm or disrespect her.Lila’s voice rang out, dripping with mockery as she addressed the gathering crowd. “Did everyone hear that? He’s threatening me with a drink as a ‘warning.’ Anyone here would agree this behavior is out of line. And all because I said a few words?“Ben Lucas, someone like you will get what’s coming to you!” Lila snapped, her voice sharp and bitter. “Doesn’t anyone wonder why someone who was doing so well as a lawyer suddenly gave it all up to become a CEO? Doesn’t everyone know lawyers aren’t supposed to engage in b