"Come on, Solomon, let me go with you guys," I whine and beg Solomon for the hundredth time. We had arrived hours ago, and Tech had rented us a house across the street from Eddie's summer home. Solomon, the twins, and Tech are on the tablet screen discussing the plan to save Sarah while I make food for them. Tech had Someone deliver groceries early on enough for a few days. He had everything prepared before we even arrived.He wants to tell me I can't join him and the twins to rescue Sarah. I wanted to take part in this mission. I felt guilty towards Don because he accepted working for Eddie because of his mother, who is held captive. I never knew Eddie could stoop down low like that, using a human being as a person's weakness. That lets me know how much of a monster he is.Leo.My mind thought of my son, who shares the same blood as Eddie running through his veins. Calling Eddie a monster means Leo is a spawn of a monster. I never see Leo that way because he is also a part of me. My
I shift to the right side of the bed and then, in seconds, turn to the left. I kept at it for a few minutes until I rose from the bed, shaking my leg and biting my lower lip."How long do I have to wait here?" I mumble to myself. Solomon and the others had only left thirty minutes ago and half an hour before the deadline.I glanced at the square device that Solomon gave me in case one hour was up, and I pressed the button to contact Tech.The nervousness and restlessness are more considerable than waiting patiently for them to return. They are professional, but what if something happened? I can't just sit here and be worried. These are Don's most trusted friends, like brothers from another family. Since all of this has happened because of me, I'm doubting that I make things right.But how do I do it?I can't take down one of Eddie's men. I'm familiar with handling a gun, but if I were to go up against one, I would be fucked.I shake my head. "No time to be a wuss, Claire."I approache
"Don?" What is he doing here? "What are you doing here?" In the dark, I could see his blue eyes darken as he asked me that question. Before I can open my mouth, we both hear the guards coming from inside the house. Don put me down and grabbed my hand, leading us somewhere to hide. He found the shed and had us both inside. He pulls me close against his chest as my ear is pressed to hear the sound of his beating heart. "Have you seen her?" Says one guard as they are close to the shed. Don and I stay quiet. I feel his movement, grabbing something behind him, positioning himself to shoot anyone who finds us here. "No, but if Mr. Petrograd finds out we lost her, he will kill us all." "I don't see why he is obsessed with her even before she was the boss' fiancé." "Shhh...shut your damn mouth." Says a second guard. "There are stories about Mr. Petrov before coming here to America." "Like what?" "These are just rumors, whether true or not, but he once blackmailed his country's govern
Upon entering the house through the kitchen door, Don and I made our way to the door that leads to the basement. We ran to the bottom until we found the apparent vault door."Is this it?" Don approaches the door and touches it."Yes, I heard one of Eddie's men talking about a woman staying here and figured she could be your mom." I stand next to him. "Eddie got mad at me for asking about this and figured that his reaction tells me he is telling the truth."I advert my eyes on Don and see his jaws clench and his eyes darken. "Don, why does Eddie have your mother? All I know is he only has her to take leverage on you, but this has gone too far to use a mentally unstable woman."His hand was then made into a fist. He put down his hand and turned to face me with a worried expression. I'm not too fond of how he looks at me like that because I feel he has something to tell me—something else he has not told me about."Is this another secret?" I ask.Don nods and says, "Yes.""Should I be wor
Entering the large vault inside, what an ordinary bedroom would look like. It was tidy enough for a woman in her late 40s or early 50s to tidy enough to fit her personality. On the walls are paintings that show off her creativity."M-Mom," Don stuttered, too shocked.I hear her call out to her in a sorrowful tone as my eyes travel to the woman sitting on the chair leaning forward, making her hand gently stroke moments with her brush as she paints on the unfinished canvas. This woman's poster shows off how elegant and refined she is, her long dark brown hair in a long braid draped over her shoulder as her eyes are focused on the painting, unaware of our presence.In the corner of my eyes, I see the heart monitor and the IV drip with the wire and tubes connected to her.After she leans back to check her painting, she suddenly notices us and flashes us with a smile. Her dark, soft eyes met mine. "Hello, may I help you? Are you the new nurses?"I glance at Don and find him grinning; his e
"CJ. CJ. CJ? Where are you, my cute apo*?"I giggle softly while I hide under the table as Naynay searches around the kitchen. She looks at her feet and walks around, hearing her opening cabinets. I giggled some more until she stopped, and I covered my mouth from laughing."Where could that little one be?" She says in playful confusion. "Could she be in the closet? Or in this bag of rice?""I'm here!" I announced to her in a loud voice."Oh! I hear her but don't see her."I crawled out of the table and peered at her as she opened the upper cabinet. "I'm over here, Nay nay!"Naynay turns and looks down with a surprising look. "Oh! There you are. I didn't see you there."I ran to her from under the table, and she picked me up. The feeling of love coming from her always warms my heart. Although his skin was wrinkly and she smelled like crushed roses, it didn't matter that her warmth would be the same forever. I miss this feeling.Suddenly, the feeling of my grandmother's warmth turns we
Solomon ran fast but needed to be faster.Carrying two women weighing at least two hundred pounds is weighing him down. He may be built, but he isn't Superman. After thirty minutes of running through the woods, Eddie's men caught up to us. Solomon had to do whatever it takes to lose track of us. He had us in hiding behind a tree big enough for this oversized man while Eddie's men and dogs sniffed us out."Solomon, what are we going to do?" I whisper to him as I see moving lights from a distance and dogs barking as they close in on us. "We are about 5 miles away from our pinpoint location. The twins should be there waiting for us.""What about Don?" Worries kicked in my stomach as I touched my baby bump protectively. "I'm worried that he is already fighting with Petrov."I don't doubt Don can win against the most cunning and lustrous man on the planet. I worry that he will be killed."Don't worry about the boss," he says with a confident grin. "Petrov may be a monster, but no one me
"Then that means," I look at Sarah, sleeping in my arms. "Sarah, is your mom too?""Right again, my dear Claire.""But I thought Vera is your mom?""That bitch is no mother of mine. She had to treat me like one because she was infertile. My dad had raped Sarah when she was his nurse, my old man still can shoot his little army, but Sarah didn't love my father. A month after I was born, Sarah left me. She joined the army to be their nurse and soon had an affair with Don's father as she was later pregnant with Don. But because Don's father was already married, she had to let go of the man she loves and live with her brutal boyfriend raising Don."I continue to listen to this side story of Don's life mixed in with Eddie. "Don had all the attention with Sarah to the point where she had forgotten about me. At the age of eight, I hired someone to look for Sarah. Vera never loved me; I already knew she was not my birth mother. So I sought out my biological mother." Eddie let out a chuckle an
Half a year later It's months since the death of Sarah. After her death, Don brought her back to California for a proper funeral. Everyone was there, even those who did not know Sarah came to give them their condolences. Mourning and grieving about the death of a loved one, a mother who raised Don and his friends. To make things depressing, it also rained. I remember Leo tugging on me, his arms around my waist, unsure how to express myself. I told him after coming home that Sarah was his grandmother. He wanted to meet her, but she told him she would be in God's palace with his great-grandmother. Before the funeral, Don couldn't accept Sarah's death. He would be his usual self, but everyone in the house knows how much he is grieving. He would in his room not interact with his family and friends. I would take his food to him and bathe him even though he's a big man, even though he is acting like a manchild. I would occasionally wash with him, but I had no sexual desires, only closenes
"Then that means," I look at Sarah, sleeping in my arms. "Sarah, is your mom too?""Right again, my dear Claire.""But I thought Vera is your mom?""That bitch is no mother of mine. She had to treat me like one because she was infertile. My dad had raped Sarah when she was his nurse, my old man still can shoot his little army, but Sarah didn't love my father. A month after I was born, Sarah left me. She joined the army to be their nurse and soon had an affair with Don's father as she was later pregnant with Don. But because Don's father was already married, she had to let go of the man she loves and live with her brutal boyfriend raising Don."I continue to listen to this side story of Don's life mixed in with Eddie. "Don had all the attention with Sarah to the point where she had forgotten about me. At the age of eight, I hired someone to look for Sarah. Vera never loved me; I already knew she was not my birth mother. So I sought out my biological mother." Eddie let out a chuckle an
Solomon ran fast but needed to be faster.Carrying two women weighing at least two hundred pounds is weighing him down. He may be built, but he isn't Superman. After thirty minutes of running through the woods, Eddie's men caught up to us. Solomon had to do whatever it takes to lose track of us. He had us in hiding behind a tree big enough for this oversized man while Eddie's men and dogs sniffed us out."Solomon, what are we going to do?" I whisper to him as I see moving lights from a distance and dogs barking as they close in on us. "We are about 5 miles away from our pinpoint location. The twins should be there waiting for us.""What about Don?" Worries kicked in my stomach as I touched my baby bump protectively. "I'm worried that he is already fighting with Petrov."I don't doubt Don can win against the most cunning and lustrous man on the planet. I worry that he will be killed."Don't worry about the boss," he says with a confident grin. "Petrov may be a monster, but no one me
"CJ. CJ. CJ? Where are you, my cute apo*?"I giggle softly while I hide under the table as Naynay searches around the kitchen. She looks at her feet and walks around, hearing her opening cabinets. I giggled some more until she stopped, and I covered my mouth from laughing."Where could that little one be?" She says in playful confusion. "Could she be in the closet? Or in this bag of rice?""I'm here!" I announced to her in a loud voice."Oh! I hear her but don't see her."I crawled out of the table and peered at her as she opened the upper cabinet. "I'm over here, Nay nay!"Naynay turns and looks down with a surprising look. "Oh! There you are. I didn't see you there."I ran to her from under the table, and she picked me up. The feeling of love coming from her always warms my heart. Although his skin was wrinkly and she smelled like crushed roses, it didn't matter that her warmth would be the same forever. I miss this feeling.Suddenly, the feeling of my grandmother's warmth turns we
Entering the large vault inside, what an ordinary bedroom would look like. It was tidy enough for a woman in her late 40s or early 50s to tidy enough to fit her personality. On the walls are paintings that show off her creativity."M-Mom," Don stuttered, too shocked.I hear her call out to her in a sorrowful tone as my eyes travel to the woman sitting on the chair leaning forward, making her hand gently stroke moments with her brush as she paints on the unfinished canvas. This woman's poster shows off how elegant and refined she is, her long dark brown hair in a long braid draped over her shoulder as her eyes are focused on the painting, unaware of our presence.In the corner of my eyes, I see the heart monitor and the IV drip with the wire and tubes connected to her.After she leans back to check her painting, she suddenly notices us and flashes us with a smile. Her dark, soft eyes met mine. "Hello, may I help you? Are you the new nurses?"I glance at Don and find him grinning; his e
Upon entering the house through the kitchen door, Don and I made our way to the door that leads to the basement. We ran to the bottom until we found the apparent vault door."Is this it?" Don approaches the door and touches it."Yes, I heard one of Eddie's men talking about a woman staying here and figured she could be your mom." I stand next to him. "Eddie got mad at me for asking about this and figured that his reaction tells me he is telling the truth."I advert my eyes on Don and see his jaws clench and his eyes darken. "Don, why does Eddie have your mother? All I know is he only has her to take leverage on you, but this has gone too far to use a mentally unstable woman."His hand was then made into a fist. He put down his hand and turned to face me with a worried expression. I'm not too fond of how he looks at me like that because I feel he has something to tell me—something else he has not told me about."Is this another secret?" I ask.Don nods and says, "Yes.""Should I be wor
"Don?" What is he doing here? "What are you doing here?" In the dark, I could see his blue eyes darken as he asked me that question. Before I can open my mouth, we both hear the guards coming from inside the house. Don put me down and grabbed my hand, leading us somewhere to hide. He found the shed and had us both inside. He pulls me close against his chest as my ear is pressed to hear the sound of his beating heart. "Have you seen her?" Says one guard as they are close to the shed. Don and I stay quiet. I feel his movement, grabbing something behind him, positioning himself to shoot anyone who finds us here. "No, but if Mr. Petrograd finds out we lost her, he will kill us all." "I don't see why he is obsessed with her even before she was the boss' fiancé." "Shhh...shut your damn mouth." Says a second guard. "There are stories about Mr. Petrov before coming here to America." "Like what?" "These are just rumors, whether true or not, but he once blackmailed his country's govern
I shift to the right side of the bed and then, in seconds, turn to the left. I kept at it for a few minutes until I rose from the bed, shaking my leg and biting my lower lip."How long do I have to wait here?" I mumble to myself. Solomon and the others had only left thirty minutes ago and half an hour before the deadline.I glanced at the square device that Solomon gave me in case one hour was up, and I pressed the button to contact Tech.The nervousness and restlessness are more considerable than waiting patiently for them to return. They are professional, but what if something happened? I can't just sit here and be worried. These are Don's most trusted friends, like brothers from another family. Since all of this has happened because of me, I'm doubting that I make things right.But how do I do it?I can't take down one of Eddie's men. I'm familiar with handling a gun, but if I were to go up against one, I would be fucked.I shake my head. "No time to be a wuss, Claire."I approache
"Come on, Solomon, let me go with you guys," I whine and beg Solomon for the hundredth time. We had arrived hours ago, and Tech had rented us a house across the street from Eddie's summer home. Solomon, the twins, and Tech are on the tablet screen discussing the plan to save Sarah while I make food for them. Tech had Someone deliver groceries early on enough for a few days. He had everything prepared before we even arrived.He wants to tell me I can't join him and the twins to rescue Sarah. I wanted to take part in this mission. I felt guilty towards Don because he accepted working for Eddie because of his mother, who is held captive. I never knew Eddie could stoop down low like that, using a human being as a person's weakness. That lets me know how much of a monster he is.Leo.My mind thought of my son, who shares the same blood as Eddie running through his veins. Calling Eddie a monster means Leo is a spawn of a monster. I never see Leo that way because he is also a part of me. My