WASHINGTON, SEATTLE 2022
~ANASTASIA~If I say I was shocked, it would be an understatement because it wasn't what I was feeling; Hudson was a murderer; he killed innocent Americans for I don't know what reasons, and Vivienne knew because here she was pleading that Hudson would never hurt me and that he had his reasons.I rubbed my belly, trying to calm down, while Daniella, who was now sucking a lollipop as she had spit the gum, was looking at me, waiting for my decision.“I'm glad I did my research because clearly, you wouldn't give me a job here,” she said, smiling.“Don’t let her get to you; Hudson can take care of this,” Vivi said, which made me slowly turn to her, raising my brows.“By killing me? Trust me, I'm not alone; I have a friend, and if anything happens to me, she will post everything on social media, including this conversation.”“W-who are you?”“Just a diner girl, when I was found, I knew I had to be a step ahead of you all because yoWell, standing here was not going to answer my question, so I barged in and demanded answers. Dad and Hudson looked shocked and shaken at the same time. Dad tried to distract me by greeting me, but I made it clear to him that I heard him asking Hudson to keep his secret.“What is my father keeping from me?” I turned to Hudson hoping he could answer me. Well, I was not sure if Vivienne had already told him that I knew, but I also knew his reaction would help me tell. “What secret must you keep for him, Hudson? Was my father part of your criminal act? Was he your accomplice?” I questioned Hudson, and instead of giving me an answer, he ran his hands through his hair as if stressed. I mean, this is the part where he defends himself; why wasn't he doing that?I don't know; I guess a part of me still wanted to believe he was a good man.“Martinez—your father will tell you himself, I made a promise,” he said, and with that, he walked toward the door, and I watched him leave.
~JIMENA~That Maddison lady who wanted to work with me hasn't been taking my calls. I had changed my mind. I mean, after what William said, I was left with no choice. Working with her was my only option since my mother decided to steal from me and run—I wasn’t going with her plan to divorce William as I knew William, he might have just agreed. Well, Maddison or whoever her name was wasn't taking my calls, and neither was her phone going through.I've been here in this big house alone and draining myself into alcohol as that's all I had; Carol was not even here with me; she always made excuses, and Nicole, well, I couldn't even count on that one as she hated me; she said it to my face; she didn't like Ana, and neither did she like me. She even said at least when her brother was with Ana, he would give her money, as now he didn't give her more than what she needed.My life had stopped; I wasn't getting any offers, the jewelry company was closed—William closed it before he
~ANASTASIA~I wasn't expecting the tag to say something good about me; I rubbed my eyes, and there it was: everyone was there apologizing to me. The tag turned out to be a video of Jimena and William checking into a hotel, back when I was still William's wife.People were there talking crazy about Jimena, how she came between me and William.Now I was glad for the first time it wasn't something bad, but somehow I felt for Jimena; she was pregnant, and a few weeks ago something similar to this happened, but it went down, but this one seems everyone in Seattle was on it, as some were even wishing that William and I reconcile. It was crazy, as I would never get back with William. Sure, he was the father of my children, but he was a part of this. He allowed Jimena to come between us. I mean, not like there was ever us, but still, William was as guilty, just that society always blamed women for men's mistakes.Most of these people were feeling pity for my daughter; they w
~JIMENA~Ending the call with my cousin, I searched for Ana’s contact and hesitated for a moment before I pressed the call button; Gia had just given me an idea without even knowing it.It went through but she didn’t pick up; it went to voicemail, so I tried again, but there was no answer. Well, I expected that, so it didn’t bother me at all. Placing my phone down, I poured myself another glass—finishing the bottle.After taking the wine, I hid the bottle under the bed before getting in bed. Well, thank heavens for alcohol, as I was able to fall asleep immediately because, with everything going on, I was sure that without the wine, I would stay up pacing like a crazy woman.I had set an alarm, so I got up as soon as it sounded. Turning it off, I went straight to the bathroom and took a bath. It took me about an hour to be ready because I hadn’t left the house in a month, I hadn’t shaved my legs, washed my hair properly, and of course, my eyebrows were looking so weir
~ANASTASIA~I didn't get why Jimena was calling me; I didn't even know why I still had her contact. Well, it went to voicemail, but she tried again. Okay, she was now disturbing my daughter's sleep, so placing it on silent, I placed the phone on the dresser and then went to bed, joining my daughter.The next morning, I got up to Ivy saying she was hungry. I called for one of the maids to help her get cleaned before getting her a morning snack. Now, this is not something I often do; I usually wait for breakfast, but with the way she has been behaving lately, missing William, I just allowed it so she could feel better.After the maid took Ivy to her room to prepare her, I took my phone as I was a little curious about what Jimena wanted. I thought maybe she had texted, but there was no text from her; instead, there was a text from Hudson reminding me of my doctor's appointment.I didn't respond but made a mental note to call him later so I could meet him; I really neede
I didn't get what she was doing here until she showed me a pregnancy test. Looking at the purple, I quickly recognized it; I took it a few months ago when I was still living with William.I tried to deny it, but when she mentioned Harriot, I panicked. Harriot was my doctor, and he was the first to know about the pregnancy, but my question was, why did he tell her?She then went ahead and told me she had all the reports; she got them from Harriot. She was even threatening to call William if I would be difficult. She asked me to choose whether I would speak to her or William. Well, she was better off, so I agreed to speak to her.We went to my office, and there she shocked me by asking for a job.“I want to be your model.”“What? Why?”“Well, first off, I'm a model, and being your model means my career is back; you'll also be paying me a big fat check, so…”“We both know money is not what you're after.”“You're right; if I work for you, the media will s
Okay, this was crazy. If there's anyone I trusted the most, it's Harriot. He was loyal and definitely never took advantage of anyone, especially his patients. I asked Jimena if she was sure, and she said she was sure.“I had an affair with him; how else do you think I got the information about you?”“What information?” Daniella jumped like a maniac, “Tell me and I'll pay you a thousand dollars, cash now.”“Wait, what? Who are you, and what makes you think Jimena takes bribes?”“Fifty, just name your prize.” Daniella, who was in pain a few minutes ago, was suddenly fine, as she seemed rather more interested in my secrets.“Okay, first of all, I am here because I need to protect my millions. I'm Mrs. Rogers; I have a card with no limit, and if I tell you, then my deal with Anastasia would go off, and I need her more than the millions, so nah, no price.”“Oh, I will get it out of you, one way or another; you obviously don't know who I am,” Daniella said before t
I was in shock. I never expected Vivi to go to such lengths to frame Harriot, and I never expected Harriot to cheat, either. After Vivi narrated everything, from the cameras to hiring her brother's man, Matt, I mean, she told me Hudson didn’t know about it, but I doubted that. Well, I didn’t know what to do. Harriot was my friend, and sure, cheating on Vivi was not cool, but I had to hear his reasons first.I told Vivi I had to hear Harriot out, as she planned to keep him there for five years, and then she would do everything in her power to get him out, like releasing the original intentional footage of Harriot being drugged; she had it, but she wanted to teach him a lesson.Now, when I told Vivi I had to hear Harriot out, she reminded me of why I had to hear Hudson out, too, so I promised I would give her brother a chance to explain as well—even though deep down, I knew nothing he would say would change the fact that he was a criminal.After Vivi got back to work,
~ANASTASIA~It's been days; I don't know if it's been a week, weeks, or a month; it wasn't honestly important.“Oh yes, finally this girl has been fooling them for a long time now,” I excitedly said and stuffed more popcorn into my mouth. “Let's see how she will get out of this one,” I said, and yes, I was talking to myself.I continued watching for a few more minutes before I heard Hudson's voice.“Are you sure you don't want bacon?” He asked for the hundredth time now.“I'm good, but if you will be so kind, I would like five more cupcakes.”“One.”“Thank you, alright, you two have a good day,” I said as Ivy kissed both my cheeks before taking her backpack. Hudson also bid me goodbye by kissing my forehead, then he asked if I needed help washing my hair.“I can do it if you don't want a hairstylist to do it.”“I'm good, but if you're worried about me, get me more snacks on your way back, okay?”“Okay, Dahlia is here, you're safe, and you can
Those imaginations worked as I went forty minutes without cursing or causing an accident.When I reached the city, I drove straight to the ranch, as he owned a ranch here and liked staying there at times when he was grieving or maybe getting away from the First Lady.Of course, security was tight; most of them knew me, but they still had to confirm my presence and search me. After that was cleared, I was led in, and of course, I found him in the stables, feeding horses.“My dear old friend,” he said, then took me in his arms, clapping my back.Now even with this happening, this man was like a father to me, considering I was seventeen when I met him. He is the reason I and my family were still alive and living well; otherwise, we would be in the streets or worse, dead.“Mr. President.”“I was just telling Daisy you were coming to see us, isn't that right, Ana?” He turned to the white horse, and yes, you heard it right. The white horse's name was Ana; he named
I was trying to make sense of everything when Gabriella asked a stupid question. I mean, she knew I knew the president was in Fall City; why the hell did she ask me that stupid question?“Get to the point, Gabriella,” Rowan said knowing I didn't have the patience.“I think what Gabriella is trying to say is that the president is in Fall City, you found Maddison in Fall City, with the footage and the call history, it’s obvious the president is in it,” Matt explained, and again I already figured that out, although his explanation made it make sense.“So the president didn't, or let's say doesn't, want you and Mrs. Frost to be together,” Dahlia added.“Correct, but for him to go to these lengths, creating a whole new identity must be deeper than just wanting you back as his fixer,” Rowan said, making me nod and say that I wanted the reason.“None of us for sure know the reason, only him.” Gabriella answered, and I turned to her and then patted her back, saying she w
“Why are you calling me?” I asked as soon as I picked, as this was the third time—I missed the other two.“He told me you knew.”“Knew what?”“The secret—why… why the hell didn't you tell me, I wanted to marry her?” He sounded drunk, like why would he be drinking this time when he was supposed to be mourning? Yes, I could judge, as when my dad passed, I never sat and cried or maybe went and drank my life out. I immediately matured as I started searching for ways to provide for my family, so instead of drinking, he could be there helping Santiago arrange everything—it was his damn father for God’s sake.“I don't know what you're talking about.”“Of course you do, and I—” I ended the call before walking into my apartment; I didn't have time to deal with drunkards.“Found anything?” I asked as I removed my coat.“Wait till you hear what Rowan found,” Gabriella said as she came toward me and handed me a packet of warm chips and a drink, I took it but placed it on the table as this wasn't
~HUDSON~After Maddison narrated everything to us, how the attorney who represented her offered her a fresh start, she didn't accept it at first, but when he told her that he who was supposed to help her would work against her, that he would make sure she spent the rest of her life locked up even when he knew she was innocent, well, she was left with no choice but to accept the deal.Everything else happened in the blink of an eye after she signed the agreement. Next, she woke up in a hotel room with a new identity—her look was completely changed, including her fingerprints.She told us how she had two phones, one to connect with them and another for her fake normal life.Unfortunately, she didn't know who they were, as she only received instructions through the phone from meeting one of them, who was covered. Then, going forward, her first task was to seduce me. Now, that was the first night I bumped into her in that club, so initially, we were supposed to have a one-night stand if h
Vivi told me how Hudson saved them as their home and properties were almost taken, how Hudson started providing for them, and they were confused at first as he was just seventeen, but they needed the money, so no one questioned him. He saved them, well, until a few years ago when Mom died; she found Hudson in the hospital.He first acted like it was just a coincidence until she showed up unannounced at his apartment, and there she witnessed Hudson watching someone get killed and doing nothing, instead, he was the one giving the order. She confronted him, and that's when he told her it was what he did.Vivi explained how Hudson didn't tell her everything, as she figured it all out by herself by putting one and one together. She spent a week just investigating him until she arrived at a point where Hudson and the man who was a vice president at that time worked together.She found out how he took care of people who didn't want to vote for him, how Hudson even ordered the d
~ANASTASIA~Opening my eyes and realizing it was early morning, I got up and walked straight to the bathroom. I don't know how I got on the bed or if I imagined William was here; it was honestly not important.After the shower, I walked into the closet where I threw on the first pajamas my eyes landed on, ready, and tying my hair into a messy ponytail, I walked out and headed straight for my computer. I searched through the CDs, and when I found Dad's favorite, I inserted it before moving to the music.I kept dancing, repeating the song, until someone opened the door without knocking.“Want to join me?” It was Vivi; she didn't respond. She shook her head and asked if I was okay, which was honestly a weird question. I mean, did I look sick to her? I was here moving my body.“I need to talk to you about your mom.” She said, and I didn't want to listen at first, but she insisted, saying it was important. Wanting to get over it, I sat on the floor after pausing the m
I let the shoes fall to the floor as I tried to defend myself by trying to remove Hudson's hand from my neck, but his grip was tighter, and all my efforts were in vain. I didn't understand why he was still holding onto me when he could just easily move me from his way.Okay, I'm not weak, especially not after how I've spent the last month in a gym, but Hudson, it's like he was trained to do this.I didn't want to beg him to free me as that would be so low of me, so I tried all means, but nothing moved him. It's like he wasn't there anymore, and I swear if it weren't for those breath-hold training sessions, I would be cold by now.Well, I was now losing it, and just as I thought I was going to fall, a voice sounded, which made him free me.It was Vivi.I struggled and coughed, trying to catch my breath, while Vivi came to me and tried to help.“I hate him, but doing this won't solve it. I called him here.”“You also asked him to insult me?”“Of course
She asked me to sit with her so she could show me a video of her graduating from high school. I understood what was happening to her, so without giving her trouble, I agreed as I removed my shoes and sat next to her on the floor.“I have Cheetos; do you want?” she asked as she pulled out a basket full of snacks, “I also have popcorn and Snickers; it's a long movie; better not watch on an empty stomach.” She said, raising an eyebrow. She was looking at me while I didn't exactly look into her eyes. I still tried to read her face, and trust me, she looked normal, which was weird.I hesitated, and then when I saw she was getting tired of waiting for my reply, I nodded, agreeing, saying I wanted Cheetos.“I love chips,” I said, taking it from the basket.“I know you do; Ivy loves it too. That's one thing you two have in common: both have the same taste for food.” Her voice now scared me because there was no crack, and she was aware that Ivy was our daughter.“I'm sorry for your loss, Ana.