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~ANASTASIA~I couldn't believe William was standing in front of me and asking such a ridiculous question.“You know well what I'm talking about, my daughter?” He came close to me, and I moved back, chuckling in disbelief, “This is not a joke, Anastasia; my daughter's life is at risk here.”“And so now you care? I mean, that girl is four years old William. Where were you all those years?”“What are you talking about? You took her from me. If anyone should be complaining about that, then it should be me.” He didn't sound like he was joking or anything, which was what pained me the most; he always had to blame someone else for his mistakes.“Okay, I don't know what drug you took, what you drank, or what came over your head, but this is not funny; unlike you, I value people's lives, so leave.”“I should leave? Ana, is it that you want to punish me using my daughter? You want me to take you back if I want to see my daughter?” He came close to me, and I kept moving backward; I couldn't stan
~ANASTASIA~Alright, I know I said William might have taken alcohol or drugs, but trust me, these were cheap drugs. Yes, he was high on cheap drugs because how dare he even say such a thing?I should attend his engagement party with Jimena? What was I—a robot?But I didn't want him to stay any longer, so I forced a smile, grabbed the invitation card from him, and asked him to leave.“I'm only leaving because Jimena needs me,” he said as he took out his ringing phone. Of course, Jimena; it was always her; she always needed him.When he finally left, I slammed the door before letting out a scream.“Aah!” I ran my fingers through my hair; I was going to scream more when the door suddenly opened and the last person I expected to see came in.“Dear, are you okay?” It was Carmen; she tried to touch me, but I pushed her hands away. “You need to calm down; stress is not good for the baby.”“Oh, so you know?”“Dear?—”“Don’t you dare call me your dear!” I raised my voice, “I'm not your daughte
~ANASTASIA~I was still in shock; a tear rolled down my cheek, which wasn't caused by the pain but by the fact that my father had slapped me. Never in his life has he ever raised his hand at me. Not when I was a spoiled heiress, the times I recklessly spent money, or the times when I was just a child and tore up his most important contract, so why…why now?My hand gently rubbed my cheek even when I didn't feel the burning pain anymore; it was just in my chest.“I will not allow you to disrespect my wife. Not when she hasn't found her eternal rest,” he said, his eyes filled with tears.“Calm down,” Carmen said, now rubbing his back.“I will tolerate everything but not my dead wife's disrespect. You know how much I loved her, how much her death affected me, so how can you even think to say such a thing?!” He questioned, his whole body was shivering, and I knew he was very upset.“Oh, it did? You were just a husband, I was her daughter, her last born. How do you think I felt seeing anot
~ANASTASIA~Just like Carmen instructed, I rushed to call Margot, who, when she heard, asked me to call Dr. Luke while she rushed to him. I was too shaken, so I asked one of the servants to call Dr. Luke.Dr. Luke arrived almost immediately, and I was now waiting outside Dad’s bedroom with Carmen while Margot was inside.I wanted to know what was going on, so I kept pacing outside the door while Carmen stood still.“He's going to be okay.” She said, but I didn't respond as I kept pacing. It was all my fault; why did I have to be this evil? I caused so many people pain, first it was Hudson, whom I publicly embarrassed by sleeping with William, then William, who I forced to marry me even when he loved someone else, then taking Ivy from her father, and now my father. “Come with me,” she said, which made me stop and turn to her. “I have something to tell you.” She added, when I looked hesitant, Well, I knew whatever she had to say had to do with my dad, and so I agreed and went with her
~ANASTASIA~I couldn't stand and blame myself; I had to fix this. Grandmother died with the wish; Mom died with that same wish. I will not let my father die leaving that wish to someone else; I will help him fulfill this wish even if it means marrying Hudson, even when he was like a brother to me.I walked out of the library with Carmen following behind. I didn't hear what she was saying, and I didn't care.When I reached Dad's bedroom door, I didn't wait as I walked in.“Ms. Anastasia?” Dr. Luke didn't expect me to enter without knocking, but I didn't care as I walked to the bed where Dad was lying; my heart skipped a beat when I saw his dry lips, but before I could scream, Margot said something that calmed me down.“He just needs thirty minutes of rest and he will be okay.”“I think it's time she knows.” I heard Dr. Luke say, and I knew what he was talking about, but I ignored him as I walked to Dad, sat on the bed, and took his hands into mine—they were so cold and I still couldn't
~ANASTASIA~It still felt like a dream; William had finally agreed to let me go. I didn't want him to change his mind, so I quickly rushed to my bedroom, took a quick shower, and then rushed down. I informed Margot where I was going before heading out.The driver took instructions seriously as he drove at a fast speed. I was still fixing my makeup in the car, so when I was done, I realized we had arrived at my jewelry company, ‘Adira Jewels.’ I stayed frozen as looking at it reminded me of Grandma; she always brought me here even when I was just a little girl. She told me how I would one day take over from her and make her proud. I thought she was going to be with me when I did, but, well, life really is unpredictable.I snapped out of my thoughts when I saw a car park in front of us; it belonged to William, so I knew it was him. I couldn’t believe he got here so early; if not that Dad was dying and I needed to marry Hudson, I would feel bad that he couldn’t wait to get rid of me. I
~ANASTASIA~I didn’t have the answer to that. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t realize I was biting on the pen and that William’s and the lawyer's eyes were on me because when I snapped out of my thoughts, I almost jumped.“Mrs. Rogers, you do not look ready.” The lawyer said while my eyes traveled to where William was supposed to sign, I was shocked to find that his name was already written on it.Seeing that broke my heart; I mean, he had never loved me, not even one bit, so of course he was going to sign it, and besides, I'm the one who asked for the divorce.Without wasting much time, I positioned the pen on the striped line. I was going to write my full name on it when I heard William sigh heavily. I looked at him and was shocked to find that he was forcing his eyes shut while making a fist.I knew he was impatient; he wanted me to sign quickly, so, turning back, I used all my strength and wrote my full name on it.“Alright, it’s done. I will send each of you a copy of
~ANASTASIA~My eyes roamed her body from head to toe. I was shocked to see the clothes she was wearing, a very short dress that barely covered her thighs and very high heels, and for a second it made me question if she was really pregnant, but again I knew she was, as William and she had spent the past four years of our marriage together.“Jimena, what do you want?” I asked as she was looking around as if searching for something.“Oh, nothing.”“Then leave.”“Of course I will, but not until I tell you this.”“You know you don't need to threaten or tell me how much William loves you anymore; he's all yours.”“I know that, but I'm not here to tell you that; I'm here to ask you to sign the divorce.”“W-what?”“Of course, you know William doesn't love you; his ego won't let him sign, but if you know what's best for you, then you'll sign.”“I already signed the divorce agreement, so I don't know what you're talking about.”“You what? I mean…” She cleared her voice. “That's good. Is that wh
~ANASTASIA~Last time I saw William was two years ago, yes, two years at a family dinner when Trey proposed to Nicole. From there we've only spoken through phone calls.Life has been chill and peaceful for a while now, and there has been no single drama; it almost felt like a dream — like I was dead and had gone to heaven.Okay, who do I start with, Vivi? Yes, Vivi and Harriot worked it out, and as we speak they are in Africa on a tour. Hudson and I were there last year after the tragedy, and let's just say it filled my cup as I managed to forget and found myself again.Carmen was back in Seattle, doing just fine; we speak at least once a day. Santiago, well, I don't know how it happened, but he was now with Julliete, yes, Julliete. I didn't know he had a thing for her, but well, they were together, and I must be honest, she was much better than Gianna.The day I was in the hospital, I told him about Alexander being his father. I mean, Gianna mentioned he chose me over her, so I felt
…It's been a few months since the whole drama; Hudson was the hero; he saved my babies, and I was grateful but not happy if I'm being truthful.Everything fell back into place, well for everyone, as they were all trying to move on; Mom and the priest got together.It turned out he never wanted to be a priest in the first place, that he was forced.Well, Nicole was with Trey, he still hasn't forgiven me. He always said that, and I didn't honestly want his forgiveness; I was just happy he was making my sister happy, even when I failed his sister.Life was – well, I had air in my lungs; that's all I can say now.I focused on my company and my children, of course.I got up very early and got to work. I didn't even have breaks; I always returned home late, sometimes even slept there. I would just take an hour to go and spend time with my children before heading back to either my lonely home or to the company – I've been resting in my penthouse lately.I was driving from Ana's home; it was
The beeping sound of machines forced me out of unconsciousness. Now the pain wasn't much, and I knew I was treated.I didn't really lose consciousness earlier; I was still very much aware of everything. I just didn't have the energy to respond, but after what I've heard, I was in a good mood. Ana was worried for me; she even almost went into the operating room with me. She still cared about me. She still loved me. I knew it!I don't even know why I doubted myself for a second. Man, she loved me; she can't just wake up and unlove me after all the sacrifices. I didn't even want to talk about Jimena at this point; even hearing her name irritated me. She broke my marriage. She broke my family.I felt someone caress my hand, and I knew those soft hands well. It was Ana. I will never forget how soft her hands felt. Yes, years back I pretended like I didn't care, but deep down I loved it.I felt my lips stretch into a smile as I opened my eyes. Of course, I was going to pretend to be in pain
~WILLIAM~Hudson had succeeded in keeping Ana from me, but I didn't give up. While I was searching for our babies, I also took lessons. I had to be better for her.If I wanted her back, then I had to make sure I was worthy of her. The past months have been a regret — I realized my mistakes.She was an amazing woman, the mother of my children; she deserved the world. I was a fool for chasing Jimena while she was giving me her whole. Fuck! The mistakes we make.It pained my heart to see that I was losing her. The way Hudson treated her – god, I was tired, slowly dying inside.Today was the Opulence, and I came here to support her.I was sitting in the crowd, next to celebrities, she tried to make conversation but my mind was on Ana.I was not sure if this was her revenge, but I was done. I couldn't do it anymore. She won; she won. I… fell for her.I told her I would never love her, but I was wrong because right now she was all I could think of, and they say love is like a drug, and I c
“I'm going to end this once and for all; you'll die, we’ll cry about you, and I'll replace you,” she said before forcefully dragging the woman who was earlier lying on the couch, whom I've now learned was Karen.She then forcefully removed the sack from her head and then sat her up. I saw she also had tape on her mouth but was conscious as she was shaking her head, eyes full of tears.Gianna, just like her anger, was aroused by looking at her, started slapping her, so hard, and the ‘twark’ slap sounds echoed in the room. I think she gave her like twenty slaps before she landed about two kicks and then massaged her hand.“You said I would not achieve anything; look at you now, bitch, at my mercy!” She snarled, now making me scared, as the Gia I knew wasn't like this.No wonder Vivi never liked her; it's like she knew she was this evil. Well, Vivi always asked me to stay away from her, but I never listened.“You know I was going to kill the both of you with my bare hands, but time…” She
I silently listened as Gianna narrated everything, from how she killed Susanna to seducing my brother and then drugging me and William. Yep, that was my weakness: hot men. I was young back then; I was an heiress with zero problems, so I thought I could be with only the hottest. Well, she took that as my weakness, and you know the result.“You were my ticket to wealth, and the fact that you are that woman's daughter made me want you to suffer even more. Oh, I almost forgot, Trey.” She outlined her chin and smirked before she told me Trey was like that because of her.“I'm the one who made him addicted to drugs and gambling. I started small, offering him comfort. Of course, I had to use your situation. Each time William made you look like a fool, he would beat himself about it, saying he was failing his mother…” She laughed before she told me how she first gave it to him in his coffee and then later took him to a casino in pretense to relieve stress.Now I don't remember clearly, but th
I've been asking Gianna what her motive was, but she didn't respond; she asked me to shut up, so I did as she threatened to give me more slaps.I silently watched, still not able to feel my heart; I don't know how I was alive at this point.Then after a moment, the man came back with a tray and two glasses, one of juice and another of water.“Give it to her!” Okay, I don't know why she had to scream everything; the Gianna I knew was soft. Was this perhaps her clone?The man forced the glass into my mouth, but I refused to take it. What if it was poisoned?“Take it, Ana, or I'll ask my partner to kill one of your babies; we only need one anyway.” I quickly opened my mouth and took the water. “You should have juice; we are celebrating your funeral. I'll have alcohol, of course.” She walked to the dresser, and I watched as she poured herself a drink.After pouring it into a short glass, she took it and then let out a moan before describing the taste and then saying the brand's name and a
Just like Gianna had ordered, they started kicking me in my stomach so hard that I now fell on the floor with the chair since they used a rope to trap me on it.I couldn't take the pain anymore and I started whimpering.“Good, now give her the scar.” I heard her say, and I don't know what scar she was talking about, but when I felt them push the rope on my stomach, I realized what they were trying to do.“N-no, please, no.” I hated scars!“Yes, yes, please.” Gianna mocked, “You thought you could just leave a scar on me and go free? No, bitch, you messed with the wrong girl.”I felt someone tear the dress using the knife, and I felt the blade on my skin. Okay, the way they hesitated showed me they really didn't want to do it, so I started pleading with them, but they were not listening. The blade went into my flesh with every move sending electricity through my veins, and just as I thought it was going into my stomach, Gianna raised her voice, stopping them.“Sit her up; I think she's
I would lie if I said my heart was beating faster than normal because I wasn't feeling it. It's like it had just stopped. The fact that I was still breathing and standing alive was what made me know it was still there.I could hear Gianna's voice from a distance. I didn't realize my assistant was now holding the phone for me. Of course, she asked others to give us the room.“You have three seconds to respond, or I'm dumping them in the sea. Do you know they are still alive? The doctor even said they are very healthy and that they have strong genes. I guess a Roger does that, right?” She chuckled, sounding so evil that if I didn't know her voice well, I would believe she wasn't Gianna.“Please don't… Don't hurt my babies.”“I won't if you bring yourself here. I know you know how this works. I will send you the address. No police, guards, or those maniac demons fighting for you, deal?”“Yes, yes, deal.” I quickly said, before the call cut; it only took a second for a notification to com