Chapter 4

It was early in the afternoon when Aiden got back to his place. Since getting back from the meeting room, he was fuming as he remembered his project getting rejected to be signed just because of Cannon.

He knew it was just the beginning and being a member of the Elite Panel, he couldn’t go against Cannon's decision. Now a days he was earnestly wishing a panel like that shouldn’t have existed. If he could, he would have gotten out of the panel but that was out of the question now.

Seeing the stock of his favorite wine, filled, he sat on the chair with a thud after taking few bottles of wine and a glass and putting them on the table. He went on filling the glass and gulping down that in a go. The more he was thinking about it, the more he was enraged.

Laya, his wife saw him once while talking on the phone but thought of leaving him alone for a while. She knew the reason for his foul mood. But what she could do? She was expecting Aiden to go on with another plan like always but found him doing otherwise.

When Aiden didn't seem to be stopping anytime soon, she let out a sigh and approached him. Though she almost yelled at him, "Stop it. That's been enough now." Aiden didn't seem to care a bit.

"Everything got destroyed. Every plan of mine fired back to me just because of that bitch." He mumbled being all frustrated and gulped down the left of wine from his glass.

Laya sat beside him as she got the glass away, "Who? Evana?"

"No, Elaine." Aiden turned to Laya, "She went on playing as per Cannon's gesture as if nothing matters to her except his words."

Laya knew it from the day she had seen Elaine at that Party of Mr. Arthur. With the way Elaine was staring at Cannon at that time, it was clear to her. It was all over her face. Either Elaine loved Cannon or she was damn good at pretending.

Laya had told it to Aiden but he bet on it to be the second case. He thought Cannon had threatened her or something to get Elaine doing whatever he wanted.

"But I can't believe Cannon handled his desire even after getting drugged to such an extreme level." Aiden was so sure that nothing happened between Cannon and Elaine. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have listened to him till the very end. He thought to himself.

"What do you mean?" Laya didn't know anything about it. Aiden spoke up about his work of drugging Cannon's drink that night at the club without even realizing it while hating the fact that his last plan also failed.

"I even made sure Cannon had reached his place directly to.."

Before Aiden's words were completed, a tight slap fell on his cheek. Aiden's head almost got hit the table. Laya was bewildered but she tried to help him.

Mary stood there glaring at Aiden. Neither she did know all this nor she could believe Aiden would have stooped this low to drug his own brother to mess up his already messed up married life.

"Let Ethan get back from his business trip. We will talk to you two then." Mary uttered coldly as she made her way out of the mansion.

She had to talk to Cannon. She had to talk to Elaine. She thought and got into the car.

"Cannon's place."

She uttered as she leaned back against her seat and closed her eyes.

Nodding at her, the driver revved the engine and drove away to reach the destination.

When she got to know about Evana disappearing that day before the wedding, she didn't have the time to think properly about what to do. That time as she noticed Elaine considering about none but Cannon only when Ethan, her husband, Cannon's father asked her to marry Cannon. She was staring at Elaine thoughtfully for a while until she reached a decision.

That day she also got forcing Elaine like her husband because she seemed to be a nice girl to her, unlike Evana who had left Cannon for whatever the reason.

Cannon was always abandoned by his family and now the love of his life. And she knew after this betrayal, Cannon would be broken given his past and their behavior towards him since his childhood.

She knew she had failed as a mother but she wanted Cannon to be happy. She wanted someone beside Cannon to take care of him. She didn't know why but she believed Elaine would do that.

She knew she was being selfish, not caring a bit about Elaine but she went on forcing Elaine. And to keep Cannon in the dark about the replacement of the bride, she added the veil thing.

That's why she tried to talk to Cannon several times to get his misunderstandings cleared about Elaine. But Cannon didn't give her the chance. Now Aiden's words were frightening her. What if Cannon had really..

No. Mary forcefully cut off the line of her thought going in that direction.

~~

Don't you even dare to go near our shop.

Cannon stared at the handwriting on the note closely. He opened the briefcase only to get shocked to see the money in it.

Where did she get this money? He got asking himself. The money she got from her modeling was still with Cannon. Elaine never asked for it.

The envelope remained untouched for a while and so was the ring on it. He was about to make his way to Elaine's room to get the answer but before he could do that, Bella appeared at the entrance and saved her from the trouble of walking.

"Elaine has left this place. I know it's not my place to say but still, I would like to say that you should have stopped her from leaving. I don't know what had happened between you two but Elaine never intentionally hurt you."

Cannon turned to Bella as she uttered the word again and this time leaving some extra emphasis on the word, "Never."

He didn't say anything to Bella as she walked out of his sight. He stood there thoughtlessly until his eyes fell on the envelope and it demanded his attention.

He stepped forward and reached his hand to get it. As he took out the documents and his eyes scanned it, for a moment he was dumbfounded. His eyes got stuck at her signature on the divorce papers.

Elaine Marshall

Though he didn't want to feel sad, he did.

His words from last night echoed in his mind. He could feel he crossed his limits but her act was nothing less. He was bound to get mad.

How could she think of being like this when she was still his legally wedded wife!

She stared at her signature again as he thought she should have done it sooner before..

His thinking process got interrupted as Neil, his butler appeared at the door and asked for his attention, "Sir, Ma'am is here."

Before he could realize it, the word was already out of his throat, "Elaine?"

"No, it's me." Mary, Cannon's Mom entered the room and then turned to Neil, "You go."

Guessing the heavy air in the room, Neil didn't wait for a moment after listening to Mary otherwise he would have waited there like always until Cannon responded to him.

Mary had gotten here all the way praying but the words of Bella had already got her enough worried and let her know that her prayer wasn't going to get answered.

Not at least now.

Cannon glared at her, "Why are you here?" getting totally pissed off that he still had things to go through for this day.

Mary could feel she was equally at fault in all this, for having his cold behavior. She was never a mother for Cannon. She was never there for Cannon when he craved her little attention.

She should have stopped Ethan or at least tried to stop him but she didn't. She should have let Cannon know about Evana's disappearance without going with the veil thing. She should have tried harder to talk to Cannon. But she didn't. She might have been good at business but when it came to Cannon, her son, she was nothing but a failure.

Without bothering Cannon's cold words, Mary stood there firmly. If it was some other time, she would have left being hurt at his words but not today. She had taken enough of his coldness. But not now. She had to sort the things out and she wasn't going to budge not before completing her say.......