Meanwhile, Zayne was crying uncontrollably in his room after what he had learned from his father. He couldn’t accept the truth, but his sobs suddenly stopped when he remembered something. He quickly stood up, grabbed his cellphone, and opened the tracking device. “Mommy’s alive! Mommy’s alive!” His tears immediately dried up, and he jumped for joy when he saw a red dot on the screen—indicating his mother’s location. He was sure it wasn’t the ravine where they claimed she had disappeared. “Mommy isn’t dead! She’s somewhere, and I need to go to her so I can bring her home. Daddy’s already worried.” The child hastily grabbed a bag, packed some of his things, and took cash for his journey. He rushed down the stairs and hid in a corner when he saw someone approaching. He planned to pass through the maids’ quarters since that was always the open exit. The servants had a separate pathway from the main house. Once he confirmed no one was around, he sprinted toward the maids’ qua
“JUST A MOMENT!” Claire shouted from inside as she had been hearing the knocks on the door for a while now. At first, she thought nothing of it since they were faint, but as the sound persisted, she was sure someone was there. “Z-Zayne?” Claire gasped as she opened the door and was met by her child, who immediately clung tightly to her leg. “I-I told you not to leave me, Mommy!” Claire froze at the child’s words, feeling him tremble with sobs. She quickly knelt to his level. “Zayne, shh, stop crying. Don’t cry anymore, Mommy’s here,” she said, embracing him again. --- THE NEXT DAY, Zayne woke up early and immediately left his room to look for Claire, but she wasn’t there. He went outside and saw his mother preparing breakfast. “Mommy!” Claire turned to the voice and smiled when she saw him. “Come here, Zayne, let’s eat.” At her words, Zayne rushed down and hugged her again. Last night, the child had fainted, terrifying Claire, so she immediately called for Faith
This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and events are products of the author’s imagination and are not intended to represent real individuals, particularly the respected royalty of Spain.~B.NICOLAY/Ms.Ash
“HAHAHA, don’t make me laugh, Kuya. That joke was so good,” Claire said with a shake of her head after a long silence between them. Timothy’s shoulders slumped in defeat—he had thought she would finally believe him, especially after seeing her confused expression. “Claire, I’m not joking,” Claire’s laughter slowly faded at her brother’s words, especially when she saw his face turn serious again. “You see, I’m the child of your father’s right hand, Claire—the King. My mother was the one assigned to find you and Auntie. Besides, Mama also wanted it because she and your mother were friends.” Claire’s brows furrowed at his words. Yes, she knew their mothers were friends, but it was hard for her to believe what he was saying, especially without proof. “I don’t have time for your jokes, Kuya,” Claire turned away from him. “Butterfly.” Claire froze mid-step. A moment later, she was startled when her brother suddenly approached her and pulled down the collar of her dress, making
(Claire’s Past) “Mama! Kuya!” The high-pitched voice of young Claire echoed throughout the palace as she ran down their grand staircase. The two siblings shared a room, and every time Clark, Claire’s older brother, woke her up, he would tickle her until she ran out. “Run, Claire! If I catch you, I’ll tickle you again!” “Mama! Papa!” The couple couldn’t help but laugh at their playful antics. They had grown used to this scene every morning. They watched as Claire rushed toward them and hid behind them. This was the usual morning scene in the palace—even the servants adored the siblings, always seeing them laughing and playing together. “Kuya Clark, don’t we have the same birthmark?” Claire asked her brother one afternoon as they lay in bed, resting. “Yes, look at this.” Clark raised his wrist and showed it to her. “Why is that so unfair? Mine’s on my shoulder!” Claire pouted, making her brother laugh. “Because you’re special! So never question your birthmark.” Clai
The battle began, and Claire managed to defeat them all. But once she got inside, she struggled and had to use guns taken from the enemies. She managed to take down half of them, but it wasn’t enough—she was exhausted. “Claire!” She turned around and saw her mother holding a gun. She smiled at this and fought again. “I-I’m not weak, Mom. I can save my brother!” Claire said as they stood close. “Have you lost your mind?! You could die here!” Amanda shouted, her eyes wide with fury, making the girl flinch. Claire had no other desire but to prove to her mother that she was just as important as her brother. Tears streamed down the child’s face as she pulled away from her mother to keep fighting. She quickened her pace, rushing to the very top where her brother’s captors were. “Claire!” her mother screamed when she saw her reach the top, but she couldn’t follow—too many enemies surrounded her. When Claire arrived, she kicked the door open, and the remaining guards turned to sta
“How is she, Doc?” Timothy asked the doctor he had called when Claire fainted. “I can see that she has recovered her memories now, but it may cause her some headaches since it’s been years since she lost them. These are her childhood memories, right?” The man nodded in response to the doctor’s question. “She’ll have a lot of questions, especially if her memories aren’t pleasant, so if possible, please guide her.” “Yes, Doc, I’ll take care of her,” the doctor said as he gathered his things. “I still advise bringing her to the hospital to check if any brain functions were affected by the sudden return of her memories.” “Alright, Doc.” After the doctor left, Timothy let out a deep sigh and sat beside Claire. “Claire, I hope you can accept everything. I know what happened in the past wasn’t good, but you’ll always be our princess—remember that.” Just as he finished speaking, he was startled when Claire suddenly woke up, sitting up in tears. “Kuya Clark!” “Claire! Clair
“I’m always by your side, Claire. Once a month, I come here to the Philippines to visit you and Mama,” The siblings sat side by side in front of their mother’s grave. After their reunion, they decided to talk in front of their mother while Timothy kept watch nearby—after all, he was accompanying two nobles, especially since the future King was present. “Always? Did Mama know about this?” Claire asked in surprise, to which Clark nodded. “She knew, Claire. I was the first to find you, and I kept it a secret from everyone, just as Mama instructed. You’re not at fault, Claire. Mama didn’t leave us without a reason—she had a purpose.” Claire frowned at her brother’s words while fidgeting with her hands. “A reason? What reason, Kuya Clark?” At her question, Clark turned to face her, his expression serious. “Your life was in danger, Claire. Remember those who kidnapped me? They were hunting you. And Mama… Mama didn’t die in a car accident." Claire froze at his words, a sudden fear
Zekiel had already decided to quit his job and go home to finally see his family—the family that gave him strength. As he was leaving the office, he grabbed his cellphone to inform Hero, but he froze when a flood of notifications came in one after another. His eyes widened as he read the last message: “Kiel, Claire still hasn’t come home! She’s been at the mall since this morning!” He was startled when the door suddenly swung open, revealing a worried Hero. “Claire is missing!” Without hesitation, Zekiel rushed out, with Hero following closely behind. They quickly got into the car, and while Hero drove, Zekiel immediately called Dylan. “Mansion ASAP, Claire is missing.” He hung up and called his other connections who might help track down his girlfriend’s location. “I was shocked when I read Quinn’s text. I was busy with work, so I didn’t find out right away,” Hero said seriously as he focused on driving. “I know. We need to find Claire now.” At that moment, Zekiel was
CLAIRE We’re currently riding in a large van, and I’m the only one sitting right in the middle while the others are in front and behind me. The fear I feel is overwhelming—not for myself, but for my children. If only we could fly straight to where the twins are, I’d do it just to be with them. I glanced around. The road we were taking was unfamiliar to me, and I had no idea where my American enemy was lurking. Zekiel! I’m sure he’ll worry once he finds out I haven’t returned yet. I need to text him. I leaned back in my seat and subtly observed my companions. All of them were silent, paying no attention to me. My cell phone was in the right pocket of my dress—all I needed was the right timing to take it out and send a message. A cold sweat broke out on my skin because I couldn’t afford to get caught. If they found out, they might drag Zekiel into this, and I don’t want to make things worse. I thought of a plan, so I slowly lay down and noticed them staring at me because of
“I saw that car on a CCTV. I tried to follow its route through other cameras, but strangely, the footage was gone.” Zekiel stared intently at the license plate number—it looked familiar, and he wasn’t mistaken. A moment later, he remembered it was the same one he and Claire had seen before. Just like then, only one camera had captured footage of that car. “Days ago, when Zoey was operated on, she wasn’t actually attacked at that time. Someone tried to kill her.” The other two widened their eyes in disbelief, staring at Zekiel. “Seriously?!” Dylan asked in shock, prompting Zekiel to nod. “The doctor told us everything—someone has been watching our daughter. So Claire and I decided to set a plan to catch the culprit.” “Wait, what plan? You and Claire?” Hero asked, confused. “Yes. We just finalized it earlier, and it turns out the car we found matches the one you saw.” Zekiel pulled out a printed copy of a black car. “That’s it! That’s the same car!” Hero exclaimed, makin
When Claire left, Zekiel went straight to the bed and saw the twins hugging each other. He approached them and gently stroked their hair. “Daddy won’t let anything happen to the both of you,” he whispered softly to the twins. “I’ll make sure whoever’s after your lives pays for it,” Zekiel said before standing up abruptly, grabbing his phone, and dialing a number. “Hide out within twenty minutes,” he ordered before ending the call and heading straight to their hideout. Meanwhile, Hero was knocked to the ground after being punched by a man waiting for him outside his office. After finishing his work, he had gotten into his car, only to realize another car was tailing him. He tried to shake them off but was cornered, leaving him no choice but to surrender. “Y-You won’t get me with just your punches!” Hero shouted back at the man, who only smirked in response. Two more men appeared, pointing guns at him. “Well, you’ll give in to this,” the man said, pulling out a gun from his
”We need first, to hack their CCTV cameras,” Zekiel said seriously as he typed on a computer, while Claire watched the footage appearing on the large screen above. She silently observed what the man was doing, and a heavy silence enveloped their surroundings. Claire kept her eyes fixed on the screen, studying how he was doing it. “Gotcha!” Suddenly, multiple CCTV footage from the hospital appeared. “Then what’s next?” Claire asked. “To review—we need to watch the footage from the time our child was in the hospital,” Claire let Zekiel continue checking the CCTV while she stared intently at the large screen, determined to spot the culprit. But contrary to Zekiel’s expectations, they found nothing. “Sht!” Zekiel cursed in frustration, slamming his fist on the table in disappointment. He needed to think of another way to find even the smallest clue. “Let me,” Zekiel glanced at Claire as she spoke, now standing beside him. “What?” he asked, surprised. “I’ll try,” Zekiel f
They were already on their way home because after that encounter, they didn’t stay much longer, especially since the weather was getting hotter. They only had lunch at a restaurant, and now the twins were asleep in the back of the car. While on the road, Camille suddenly crossed Claire’s mind. “Zekiel, where is Camille, by the way?” Zekiel glanced at her briefly, his brow furrowing because she had brought it up so suddenly. “That girl? According to Hero, she’s in jail.” “Jail? Why? Is she locked up permanently?” Zekiel’s frown deepened at her question. “What do you mean ‘why’? Of course, she deserves to be there! She almost got you all in danger because of her, and I won’t let that slide.” Zekiel’s grip on the steering wheel tightened, while Claire fell silent, lost in thought. ’In danger…’ she whispered in her mind before her eyes suddenly widened. “Do you think Camille was the one who did that to Zoey?!” Zekiel looked at her briefly. “Impossible, my life. She had jus
“Z-Zekiel, fine. I’ll introduce you to Mama, and we’ll visit her grave. But I have one question,” Claire said nervously. She didn’t want to reject him—it would hurt him, even though she did want what he was offering. It just wasn’t the right time. “Go on,” Zekiel replied quickly, making Claire sigh. “The kids, Zekiel. We can’t just forget what happened to Zoey. What are we going to do about it?” Zekiel fell silent, then immediately felt anger rise within him. In the brief moment of happiness with his family, he had forgotten about the person who had tried to kill his child. “I’ll find him,” Zekiel said firmly. “I’ll go with you, Zekiel.” He turned to her, his expression softening. “No. I won’t let you put yourself in danger, Claire—especially not while you’re pregnant.” “Who said anything about fighting? I’ll just help you plan and search.” Zekiel was taken aback—how did she know they were going to fight? “How did you know we’d be fighting?” “Huh? O-Oh—“ Claire flinc
“Daddy, I’m so happy that we are complete now,” Zoey said with a smile as Zekiel adjusted the blanket for her, while Claire did the same on the other end. “Me too. We’ll never be separated again, okay?” “Your daddy is right. We won’t let anything tear us apart,” Claire said sweetly, making Zekiel glance at her and smile, which she returned. “Goodnight, Mommy and Daddy!” Zayne suddenly said, already lying down and yawning, making them laugh before they settled in as well. “Goodnight, twins,” Claire turned off the lampshade beside her and hugged Zayne, who snuggled into her. Her eyes met Zekiel’s from the other side of the bed, their children nestled between them. ‘I love you,’ Zekiel whispered into the air, and the woman understood, replying softly. ‘I love you too.’ --- THE NEXT MORNING, Claire woke up early and saw that her family was still fast asleep. She quietly walked to the veranda and opened it to breathe in the fresh air. She closed her eyes, savoring the p
Everyone had dinner together after arriving at Zekiel’s house. The noise around them never stopped, especially because of the kids—Bea and Dylan’s child was there. “What’s your baby’s name again, Bea?” Quinn asked with a smile, holding the baby’s tiny hands. “His name is Fritz.” “What a beautiful name, baby boy! And you’re so cute!” Quinn cooed happily. “Do you want one like him?” Bea teased, grinning as Quinn nodded while playing with the baby. “Then tell your boyfriend that,” Bea added, making Quinn widen her eyes in shock as she stared at her friend. “How did you two even happen?! I was only gone for a few months, and now you and Kuya are together?!” Claire pretended to scold her friend, making Bea burst into laughter at her reaction. “W-wait! I had nothing to do with that—“ ”Oh, Claire! Quinn here loves me so much—she’s absolutely obsessed with me,” Quinn’s eyes nearly popped out when Timothy suddenly appeared. “You’re so shameless! You twisted the whole story!”