/-Skylar-/She sat there looking all bossy and authoritative, her legs crossed. The arrogance in her stance made me want to turn and walk right out of the door. “Ma'am, she's here,” the guard bowed. I glanced at him, wondering why I even agreed to get into the car with him in the first place. Maybe I should have questioned him properly but I desperately needed information on that artist and now, I was being forced to face a woman who believes I am sleeping with her husband. Ex-husband, to be precised. “Good job, Mario,” she nodded in approval then to me, she signalled to have a seat. I sat down just as she asked. “I assume you know who I am,” she said with an air of arrogance like she was royalty. Now I wish I hadn't met her earlier, I would have gladly told her no, just to see her reaction. “I know that you are owing my husband a huge sum of money which is why you are forced to stay by his side,” Gwendolyn went on while I stared with a blank face. “What if I told you that I wil
/-Skylar-/I didn't know what to expect now.The artist being a woman was a whole game-changer. Now, I couldn't possibly guess who she was and I knew there was no way Declan would be reborn in a woman's body, right?But then again, I couldn't just jump to conclusions. “Can you take me to her?” I asked him. “I told you it was about a year ago. There is no guarantee that Sally will still be there,” he groaned.“Mario please…” I tried begging. “I have already told you who she is but I am not obligated to take you to her. You know her name, find her yourself,” he said. Wow! I guess we're doing this the hard way then. “Fine! Since you won't tell me, I better just head home and tell your boss that I went somewhere interesting today,” I shrugged and his expression immediately changed. “Are you threatening me?” He frowned. “Why should I? It's called accountability. I'm just going to go back home and tell Kai all about where I've been and who the tour guide was unless, of course, you ar
/-Skylar-/Ten seconds passed and I was still staring at the girl that used to be in utter shock. I looked at her in confusion and then at Mario, who didn't understand seem to understand what was going on. “How… how did you get this?” I asked her. A small smile played on her lips. “I'm guessing it finally found it's owner, huh? Selling close to a division house does have it's advantages. That would be $7.20 please.” I was even more confused. “I'm not talking about the price. How do you know her? Who are you?” I asked, taking a step closer to her. Her smile immediately vanished as she slowly stepped back. She seemed frightened like I was threatening her or something. “What are you doing, Skylar? You're scaring her,” Mario held me back but I shrugged his hand off. “I asked a question,” I said icily. “Fine! You're right. It's just my imagination. I have a very creative mind and…”“Bullshit!” I cut her short. “The details are way too accurate for it to be some imagination. Who th
/-Kai-/I wasn't one to start a fight.However, I didn't mind bringing down hell on anyone who dared to touch my property and in this case, that property was Skylar. There was simply no way I was just going to stand back and watch Taylor lay a hand on Skylar and get away with it. A rational part of me still insisted that I was going too far. I barely knew this woman and yet, I was here, ready to rage a war with Taylor for her sake. “Sir, are you sure about this?” Anders asked. “What happened? Are you getting cold feet already? You were the one who said you hated seeing her like that, right?” I shrugged. “So you're doing this because of what I said?” He raised a brow. I knew he was baiting me but I wasn't going to give in to his antics and actually confess that seeing her battered made my heart tug in ways I'd rather not experience. “What are you waiting for? Let's go in,” I said, opening the car door. “What are we really going in there to do? The last time he came, he said his
/-Skylar-/My first thought when I arrived at the mansion was to ask Kai about the painting but thinking about Mario's words again, I decided against it. Kai was nobody but my annoying boss, nothing more. He wasn't in when I checked so I headed to my room for a long shower. After showering, my head felt clearer now and I began thinking about the events of the day. Lisa said they were two women, one of them being Amelia so who was the other one and why on earth would they be working together?I tried to think of all my possible enemies back then and my enemies now to see if they atleast shared the same qualities. I started with myself and unfortunately, I was in no way similar to Skylar. From everything Ava told me, we didn't share a single thing in common. I thought about Lisa and Sally. The were almost the same. Cunny, mischievous and very obsessed with Declan. Then I thought about Kai and Declan. Declan used to be a womaniser before I met him. He had many mistresses, and Kai w
/-Taylor-/“What the hell happened here?” I demanded. I stopped by at the hospital to take a look at my sisters and all I met was chaos. They were still on life support, thankfully but there was something new. Both of them had inscriptions on their hands that read, STAY OFF MINE.A slow, burning rage ignited in my chest as I stared at the message carved into their skin. My jaw clenched, my fists curling so tightly that my nails bit into my palms.Kai.This had his name written all over it.I turned to the guard stationed outside the door, my voice dangerously quiet. “Who was here?”The man hesitated, sweat forming at his temples. “Sir, it was…”“Spit it out,” I snapped, stepping closer.“Kai Alloway,” he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper.The room seemed to shrink around me. The walls, the beeping machines, the sterile scent of antiseptic, it all blurred as red-hot fury clouded my vision.Kai had walked into my space. Had gotten past my men. Had touched my sisters.I exhale
/-Skylar-/The file dropped in my lap, and I looked up. “What is this for?” I asked.“Your next target,” Kai simply answered. “Let me know once you get it done. Anders will go with you.” I couldn't help but notice how cold he was towards me. The haunting look in his eyes, like he was just there but his soul was somewhere else. A place full of pain. The Kai I was used to was an insufferable teasing bastard. He would look for every possible way to rile me up but for some reason, he has been moody today. “Are you okay?” I asked just before he reached my bedroom door. “Yes,” came a one-word answer, and he left. Another sign that something was seriously up with him. The Kai I knew would have smirked and probably asked who I was worried about. I convinced myself that I didn't care what he had going on and took a look at the file he gave me. Shortly after, another knock came and I assumed it was Anders.“Come in,” I answered and the door opened to reveal Anders. “I see you are already
/-Taylor-/“Who did Sally say she found?” My mother asked. It was the first time I was seeing any sort of emotion on her face.“Raven Ampleton. The woman you have been searching for,” I answered and she got off the stool. I watched her walk past the countless candles to get to me. This had become a part of her for years now. She barely did anything other than set up this semi-shrine of hers and practice different things.“Who is she and where is she now?” My mother demanded. “I tried to get her to tell me mother but she refused. She insisted on meeting you instead,” I answered. She cursed under her breath. “That sneaky little snake! Always doing everything to plant herself where she is not needed.”I didn't understand what that meant but I didn't care enough to ask. “She had only one job. To locate everybody on my list and send that information across and the first person she finds, she suddenly demands a meeting with me?” She huffed.“I made it very clear that you would be pissed
/-Skylar-/After what seemed like forever, the boys were finally asleep. I was set to be discharged in the evening.Kai sat opposite me, silently, thinking of something I suspected that I already knew. I tried not to rush him but watching him was becoming painful and bothersome. I had to break the silence, no matter how much I wanted him to think. “Well, can you tell me what you're thinking now? It's about the children, right?” I finally spoke. “Who are we going to leave them with? They can't lose both parents, Raven,” he said. “They haven't. You can just let Gwen go,” I said and he looked at me like I just blasphemed.“What?” “You heard me, Declan. There is no need to hold her captive. I'm very certain that your boys have dealt with her enough. There is no need to make this more complicated than it should be,” I shrugged and he stood up, backing me instantly.“I can't believe you're making this suggestion. Let's take aside the fact that she tried to kill you. Gwendolyn is a horri
/-Skylar-/I woke up feeling unusually drained and weak. The lights were almost blinding and I couldn't open my eyes properly.“Daddy… she's awake!” I heard a child's voice. Who the hell was that? My eyes fluttered open and I had to blink repeatedly to keep the light off my eyes. “Raven!” Kai's voice followed and his cologne hit my nostrils as he sat beside me. My vision cleared and I realized his sons were also in the room. A hospital room to be exact. I could smell the drugs and antiseptic. What happened to me?Did that mean that Gwen was here? It was a little weird for her because the woman didn't even like me. She has no reason to be here. “How are you feeling baby?” He asked me.“I… why am I here?” I asked him. My mind was completely blank so I didn't remember anything.“You were poisoned,” he told me. My heart skipped a beat. But it seemed like that was the trigger word because everything came flooding back and so did my suspect.“Did you find how did it?” I asked and his ey
Days later/-Sally-/We were all gathered. Me, Amelia, Diane and about two other people I had no idea about. Diane had explained that the reason we were sucked in by the magic was because we all had strong ties to Declan and her. “What's taking them so long? We've been here for over an hour,” Amelia was the first to complain. I said nothing. I already knew he was having fun with that Raven girl. It wouldn't surprise me if they suddenly decided to stay here. “Let's wait a little longer,” Diane said. She was unbelievably calm for someone that desperately wanted Declan dead. I looked at Amelia who simply looked away.I hope whatever plan she made doesn't immediately backfire. If Diane could still be dangerous in the human world, that means she was going to be terrifying in our timeline. I really wish I could sit this one out. I was caught in the crossfire last time. I would rather not involve myself with fights that had almost nothing to do with me. What I experienced the last ti
/-Kai-/My knuckles turned white against the steering wheel as I swerved into the hospital driveway, tires screeching to a stop. Nurses and an emergency staff rushed toward the car the second they saw me carrying Skylar out, limp and burning up."She's been poisoned," I said sharply, my voice barely holding together. "She was fine this morning. She just ate breakfast and then…""Sir, we'll take it from here," one of them interrupted, but not unkindly.I didn’t want to let her go. Her hand was still curled loosely around my shirt like her body knew it needed me even if her mind had already faded.I bent down, kissed her forehead. "You’re going to be okay. I swear it."Then she was gone, wheeled through double doors I couldn’t follow her through. My arms felt painfully empty.The second I was left alone in the hallway, I dialed Anders “Track every single person that walked into the mansion in the last twenty-four hours. I want footage. I want names. I want blood.”There was no hesitati
/-Skylar-/Anger flashed in their eyes but I couldn't even hide my amusement. They were the ones asking for it anyways. The girls stepped forward as if they stood a chance against me but Kai pulled me behind him. “That's enough!” He snapped and they blinked in surprise. “You two were hospitalized, weren't you? How is that the first thing that came into your mind after waking up was to attack the person that put you there? Did you not learn your lessons the first time?” “Are you seriously defending her now? She was the one…”Kai turned his back to them, clearly uninterested in whatever they had to say. “Let's go baby,” he said softly. “I'll make you something to make you feel better.” I smiled at him and allowed him to take me away. As we walked away, I threw them a smirk and their shocked faces morphed into angry faces.Even if they didn't say anything, I knew they were swearing at me and that made it even more funny. On getting home, Kai picked up the breakfast tray he dropped
/-Skylar-/Ava's death was still fresh in my heart. Most nights I couldn't sleep. I had countless nightmares about that day every time I shut my eyes. Crying myself to sleep was now a routine. I didn't even realise how much I loved her until I lost her. To think it was all my fault. Four days. That was all I had before I saw that murderer again. Before I o my ever viewed her as a victim of circumstances. But now, now I hated her guts. Especially since she killed an innocent girl unprovoked. A girl that was naive enough to threaten her with the police. She was going to pay for this. She had to pay or I would never be able to forgive myself. “Raven…” Kai called and I blinked away the furious thoughts. “Breakfast?” He already had a tray in his hand but I didn't have the appetite for food now. “I… I'm not really hungry,” I told him and his face dropped. I hated that look in his eyes but I just had to reject it. If I threw up right after eating it, it would be a lot more painful tha
/-Skylar-/I hit the ground running and hurried to Ava's side."No, no, no!" I gasped, catching her before she collapsed completely. Her body was trembling, her wide eyes filled with shock and pain as blood seeped from the wound in her chest. My hands were shaking as I pressed them against the injury, desperate to stop the bleeding. "Ava, stay with me! Please!"She coughed, her lips parting as if she wanted to speak, but only a weak wheeze came out. Tears burned my eyes. This wasn't supposed to happen. She had nothing to do with this. Diane had no right—I snapped my head up, fury roaring through my veins. "You bitch!" My voice shook with rage as I glared at the woman responsible for this. "I’ll kill you!"Diane merely tilted her head, her expression unreadable. "Anger won’t bring her back, Raven."I snarled, gripping my blade. She thought this was a game. She thought I wouldn't make her pay. But before I could lunge, Ava weakly grasped my wrist. "Sky… don’t…"My heart clenched. Even
/-Skylar-/I decided to pay Ava a visit. I was so caught up in my own life that I forgot that Skylar had a freaking best friend. Kai was out with Anders so I decided to visit her alone. Even though he told me to tell the driver to take me wherever I wanted to go, I was more comfortable using a cab. I had this strange feeling that I was being watched. I took a glance around but I couldn't find anyone suspicious. Then almost on insist, I entered the cab just a few seconds before the bullet sped past me, hitting the side mirror of the car behind. What the fuck?What is this now?The cab driver was frightened of course and drove off without a second thought. It was a good thing, even though it was somewhat annoying. It didn't take long for me to spot the bastards who shot at me. I wasn't even in the mood to have a conversation with them, to know who sent them or anything. I just wanted to return the favour and go see my friend. I took out my trusty blades. Yup, still wasn't a gun pe
/-Taylor-/“We need to find that girl.” I looked at them in disbelief. They just woke up and all they can think about is causing more trouble? After everything that happened?“She must not get away with what she did to us. She has to pay!”I didn't say a word as I watched them discuss amongst themselves. They didn't even notice the scars on their hands. They were busy obsessing over the girl that put them in the hospital. “We won't go easy on her this time. That good-for-nothing had the audacity to lay her jands on us. By the time we are done with her, she will regret being born.” “Are you two done?” I cut them short and their attention turned to me. “Brother…” They pouted simultaneously. “Can you even listen to yourselves? You just woke up and all you are bothered about is the girl that put you here. Did you even notice the marks on your hands?” I huffed and they looked down at the same time. Their eyes widened with horror as they screamed.“What is this?” “Who did this?’ “Wa