Chapter 26“Get someone else to do whatever you are thinking about. I don’t have time for that” Brandon said rudely and with that, he ended the call.Hannah sighed softly and dropped the phone on the bed. She rolled her eyes and hissed slightly. She just hates Brandon so much that she feels like punching him in the face. “Mommy” she heard her kids call outside her room. She stood up from the bed and walked towards the door, she opened it and the kids walked in with their Nannies behind them. “Wow, mommy your room is so beautiful, “ the kids said and Hannah smiled at them. “Ma’am, dinner is served,” one of the nannies said and Hannah nodded with a smile on her face. “Common kids, let’s go downstairs for dinner,” Hannah said and the kids yelled happily as they ran downstairs to eat dinner.After they were done eating dinner, the kids sat in the sitting room while Hannah helped them finish their assignments.Just then they heard a knock on the door. Hannah raised her head and saw th
Chapter 27Immediately, Brandon walked out of the house, he hopped inside his car and lots of questions went through his mind. The Octuplets, why do they look so much like him? Maybe it was a coincidence, but he began to wonder who the father of the kids was. Meanwhile, Liam who was in the driver's seat stared at Brandon from the rearview mirror. “Do you think the kids are yours?” Liam asked, knowing what was going through Brandon’s heart. “Nah! It’s not possible. I have never met her, not even once. The day she came to my office was the first day I had seen her” Brandon said and Liam nodded in response. “What if she’s the woman from that night and the kids are Brandon’s? The resemblance cannot be a coincidence, it’s too much to be a coincidence, Liam thought but then he quickly shook off the thoughts. He wasn’t ready for another drama, Brandon already believed Rhoda was the girl from that night, he thought. “Are you going home now?” Liam asked “No, I need to meet with Mr. Don
Chapter 28A car came to a stop in front of the octuplets school. The Octuplets alighted the car with their backpacks.“Bye sweethearts” Hannah waved at them. “Bye mommy” the kids waved at her and rushed inside the school building. Hannah smiled as she watched them from inside her car, when they were out of sight, she ignited the engine and zoomed off but immediately a car collided with hers. Shit!! Is the driver blind!! Hannah thought as she opened the car door and came out of the car. The owner of the car climbed down from the car and opened her eyes in shock as she saw Hannah. “Hannah!” She called in shock and Hannah stared at her with no expression on her face. It was Rosa, Jeff’s mom. Hannah scoffed, she wasn’t surprised it was her, she was already getting old and she was sure her eyesight must have gotten so bad that she didn’t see her car.“You fucking hit my car, are you blind?” Rosa yelled at once and Hannah chuckled “Rosa, you hit my car. I should be asking you that q
Chapter 29Why do you have so much belief in Brandon? You sound like you are his mother. Anyone who hears you speak about him would think you gave birth to him and know him very well” Hannah said and Arianna swallowed hard as she smiled nervously.“No Of course not. You should know me by now Hannah, I believe in everyone and I believe no matter how cold-hearted someone is, there’s always a good side to that person” Arianna said and Hannah nodded in response. “What about the kids?” Arianna asked “They’ve gone to school, “ Hannah said “So, what would you be doing now? You should not just sit at home” Arianna said “I know mom, I’m currently thinking of buying a company here in Atlanta and changing the name to mine and the kids, or I'll try to build up one” Hannah said “Have you thought about the company you want to buy and the name?” Arianna asked “No, I’m still thinking about it,” Hannah said and Arianna nodded in response. “Once you find the one you are interested in, just let
Chapter 30“Welcome sir,” A maid said with her head bowed. She heard a knock on the door and decided to go open it and to her surprise, she saw Brandon at the door. “Where’s she?” Brandon asked and the maid quickly understood who he was asking after. “She’s upstairs in her room” the maid and with that Brandon walked past her. He climbed upstairs to her room, pushed the door opened and walked in without knocking. Hannah, who was sitting on the chair in her room, staring at the laptop in front of her, jerked up immediately when she heard someone barge in. “You!!” She muttered as she put her hands on her chest, trying to calm herself down. “What did you think you were doing by barging into my room? Shit! You scared the hell outta me” Hannah said, as she exhaled deeply.“Point of correction, our room, not yours. I own this room” Brandon said and Hannah rolled her eyes at him, wondering what he was doing at the mansion and her room. “Why are you here?” Hannah asked “Won’t you offe
Chapter 31Brandon walked out of the house and hopped inside his car. Just as he was about to ignite his engine, he heard his phone ringing.It was a call from Liam. He answered the phone call. “Brandon, when did you leave the office, I have been searching for you,” Liam said, sounding so worried. “I went out, is anything the problem?” Brandon asked and Liam paused before speaking. “I think we’ve got a big problem at hand,” Liam said and Brandon became alerted immediately. “What’s wrong?” Brandon asked “I just got a call from your grandma,” Liam said and Brandon exhaled deeply.“Speaking of the devil herself, what does she want?” Brandon asked “She’s back in Atlanta,” Liam said and Brandon felt his heartbeat increase at once. “Shit! When did she arrive? I thought she said she wasn’t going to come back till further notice and why didn’t she call me instead of you?” Brandon asked, already getting angry. “I don’t know, she said she wanted to surprise you. She asked me not to tell
“Where are you guys?” Brandon asked and Jayden told him they were in a grocery store downtown.“I’ll be there in a jiffy, “ Brandon said and with that, he ended the call.A few minutes later A Black Roll Royce pulled in front of the grocery store. Brandon and Liam Alighted the car in a rush to the scene of the fight. A lot of people were surrounding the both of them taking pictures. “Shit!!” Brandon said as he made his way inside the scene, there he saw Hannah on top of a woman punching her like she was a punching bag. “Hannah!!” Brandon yelled and pulled Hannah away from the woman roughly, making Hannah fall to the ground. Brandon stared at the lady who was on the ground laying weakly, who was now bleeding on her face. He quickly recognized her. “Rhoda!” He called out surprised. Rhoda recognized the voice immediately.“Brandon”, Rhoda called out as she managed to open her swollen eyes. “Brandon please take me to the hospital, I’m in so much pain” Rhoda cried out and Brandon s
Chapter 33 A Black Roll Royce screeched to a halt in front of Colby’s mansion. Hannah and the octuplets alighted the car, they walked inside the house with no one speaking with each other. The kids knew Hannah was so angry, they didn’t want her to yell at them, so they didn’t say a word. They’d never seen their mommy this angry before and worst of all, she got into a fight with a strange lady. “Go upstairs to your room, your Nannies will come to attend to you,” Hannah said and was about to climb upstairs to her room when Jayden called her. She turned towards him and he stared at her for a few seconds before speaking. “Your arm is bleeding,” Jayden said and Hannah stared at her arm. It was just a small scratch from the fight. “I’ll go clean it up,” Hannah said and walked upstairs to her room. She closed the door to her room. She walked inside the bathroom and took a clean bath. She walked out of the bathroom and put on simple nightwear. She sighed softly as she lay on the bed
Lucas had left the room to make some calls, leaving Hannah and Teresa alone in the dimly lit space. The air between them was thick with unspoken thoughts, with grief and frustration too heavy to voice.Teresa watched Hannah closely. She looked hollow—her eyes distant, her shoulders sagging under a weight no one could carry for her.“You okay?” Teresa finally asked.Hannah blinked and turned her head, forcing a weak smile. “Yeah.”Teresa hummed in response, clearly unconvinced. She reached into her pocket, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it with a practiced ease. Smoke curled in the air between them.“Do you smoke?” she asked, offering one toward Hannah.Hannah shook her head. “No. I never have.”Teresa chuckled, taking a long drag before exhaling. “Figures.”Silence stretched between them, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was the silence of two women who understood each other—different, yet bound by shared pain.“My mother-in-law used to hate me too,” Teresa murmured suddenly, he
Teresa sat in the back of a dimly lit bar, the scent of cigarette smoke and aged whiskey thick in the air. The place was quiet, the kind of underground haunt where no one asked questions, where secrets were currency, and where a person could disappear if they weren’t careful.She checked the time on her phone. Her contact was late.Across the table, Hannah fidgeted with the glass of water in front of her, her expression distant, lost in thoughts she wasn’t ready to speak out loud. Lucas sat beside her, his gaze locked on the entrance, his tension palpable.When the door finally creaked open, Teresa’s eyes narrowed as a tall, wiry man entered, his leather jacket scuffed and his face shadowed with stubble. He scanned the room before spotting her and sauntering over.“You’re late, Marco,” Teresa said, her voice edged with impatience.The man—Marco Ruiz—grinned as he slid into the seat across from her. “Good to see you too, Provenzano. You know how it is—hard to stay alive in this busines
Hannah stood in the dimly lit warehouse, her fingers clenched into fists at her sides. The stale scent of dust and oil filled the air, mingling with the cold fear settling deep in her stomach. The warehouse was one of many they had searched in the last twenty-four hours, but this one felt different. The moment she stepped inside, a weird sensation crawled over her skin, like a presence lingering just out of sight.Lucas moved beside her, scanning the rows of crates stacked high against the walls. His jaw was tight, his frustration barely concealed beneath his calm exterior. Teresa stood a few steps ahead, gun in hand, her eyes sharp as she surveyed their surroundings. They had all hoped—desperately—that this search would yield something more than dead ends and half-truths. But as the minutes ticked by, that hope was slipping.Brandon had vanished without a trace.Every lead they had followed led to nothing. Every whisper, every clue, every trail had been a carefully crafted illus
The night was thick with silence, the kind that felt like a living, breathing thing, pressing in on them as they stood at the edge of the abandoned docks. The stench of salt and rust filled the air, mixing with something darker—the unmistakable scent of blood.Teresa’s fingers curled around the handle of her gun as she scanned the area, her pulse drumming hard against her ribs. Her father was dead. That chapter of her life was over. But this? This wasn’t over. Not until she had him.Not until she had Brandon and brought him back to his family.“We should’ve heard something by now,” Hannah whispered, her voice tight with restrained panic.Teresa didn’t answer. She was thinking the same thing.The lead had been solid. Brandon had been held here—multiple sources confirmed it. The docks had been his prison. But as they stood here, surrounded by crates and shadows, the truth settled like ice in her veins.Brandon wasn’t here.And the blood on the floor was still fresh.Teresa crouched do
Teresa barely had a second to react before the door to her office swung open. The moment her eyes landed on the man standing there, a cold shiver ran down her spine. Her father.Bernardo Provenzano. The man she had once idolized. The man she had spent her entire life trying to please.And now, the man she had just betrayed.He stepped inside with a slow, deliberate pace, shutting the door behind him. The soft click of the lock sent her heart into overdrive.“Oh, my little princess,” he murmured, his voice filled with mock tenderness. But his eyes… they were filled with nothing but hatred.Teresa’s hands gripped the arms of her chair, knuckles turning white. Fear slithered through her veins, but she refused to let it show.“How disappointing,” he continued, shaking his head as if she were a child who had misbehaved. “I thought you were different. Better. Not like your mother.”Teresa inhaled sharply.His mother.For years, she had believed the lie—that her mother had been killed by a r
The beeping of machines was the only sound filling the hospital room. Jessica lay on the hospital bed, her skin deathly pale, her chest barely rising under the weight of the oxygen mask secured over her face. Wires and tubes connected her to the machines, keeping her alive, but just barely.Hannah stood frozen in the doorway, unable to move. The doctor’s words still rang in her ears, cutting deeper than any wound ever could.“She has a five percent chance of survival,” the doctor had said, his voice clinical, detached. “She lost too much blood, and the delay in medical care worsened her condition. We’re doing everything we can, but you need to prepare for the worst.”The worst.Hannah clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms. This was her fault. If she hadn’t suggested they escape… if she had just listened, just stayed put, Jessica wouldn’t be lying here, fighting for her life.And Brandon…A fresh wave of pain hit her. He was gone. Taken. She had watched him surrender himsel
The river had given them a chance, but it hadn’t given them freedom.Brandon collapsed onto the muddy shore, gasping for air. His limbs ached from the relentless current, but he didn’t have time to recover. Jessica.Lucas dragged her up the embankment, his breathing ragged. She was completely unconscious now, her body limp in his arms. The river had sapped whatever strength she had left. Her wound was bad—too bad. If they didn’t get her help soon…No. He couldn’t think like that.“Teresa,” Brandon barked, snapping back into survival mode. “Where’s the nearest hospital?”Teresa, still soaking wet, flipped open her laptop with shaking hands. Water dripped onto the screen, but she didn’t stop. “There’s one about six miles south,” she said breathlessly. “But there’s a problem.”Brandon exhaled sharply. “There’s always a problem.”Teresa gave him a grim look. “Bernardo’s men will have every major road blocked. They’re already watching the airspace. If we head to that hospital, they’ll find
The cave was damp and cold, the scent of moss and river water clinging to the air. Shadows stretched across the rocky walls, their flickering shapes cast by the distant glow of searchlights cutting through the trees outside. They had barely made it out alive.But they weren’t safe.Brandon pressed his back against the jagged rock, listening. Boots crunched against gravel just beyond the entrance. The soldiers were closing in. They had minutes—maybe seconds—before the cave was compromised.Lucas sat against the far wall, pressing his hand against Jessica’s wound. She was slipping fast, her skin pale, her lips trembling.“I can stop the bleeding, but not for long,” Teresa said, her voice tight with urgency. “But she needs real help, Brandon.”Brandon looked at Jessica’s barely conscious form, then at Hannah, who was up beside Teresa, shaking from the cold,she looked so pale. He had promised to protect her. He had promised to protect all of them.He clenched his fists. Promises meant not
The night was supposed to be theirs. They had escaped, survived impossible odds, and left Bernardo bleeding on the cold ground. But fate had other plans.They wondered how come he was alive. They had witnessed him go on his knees, blood all over him.The deafening roar of helicopter blades grew louder, sending shockwaves through Brandon’s chest. The floodlights cut through the dense trees, slicing through the shadows that had once been their cover. The tracker beneath the seat blinked like a taunting heartbeat—steady, unrelenting, and damning.Teresa’s fingers flew over her laptop, her breath ragged. “I need time,” she muttered, panic lacing her voice.“We don’t have time,” Lucas growled, yanking a rifle from the back. “They’re here.”Jessica shifted, barely conscious, her breathing uneven. Hannah took a deep breathe while having a second thoughts.Maybe she should just surrender herself to Bernardo and all this would be over. But Brandon here would rather die than watch her go back