After sending William away, Rosaline carried her bags as she went inside.It was late morning, but all the lights in the house were still on. Tessa was sleeping on the couch in the living room.Looking at the tear stains on her face and dark circles under her eyes, Rosaline could tell she was having a rough time.Tessa was strong and would never cry easily. Most of the time, her tears were always related to Grammy’s death.Rosaline panicked, seeing her like this.She dropped everything and called her gently. She caressed her hair just like Grammy used to caress theirs.Tessa uttered weak ‘Grams’ in her sleep and pulled her hand, half-hugging her to sleep.Tessa was never clingy.Rosaline wondered if the events from the previous day had shaken her up.She did not wake her but hugged her tightly, squeezing herself on the couch as she caressed her hair.When her hand was sore, she switched to the other hand and continued to caress her hair.When Tessa woke up after three and a half hours
Rosaline pretended to leave the house and went halfway towards AR Mansion before turning back.Rosaline and Tessa had been friends for almost their entire life. They both knew each other well.Tessa knew Rosaline felt guilty for putting her parents in a spot. And even towards her for being hurt and almost raped. But she knew it was not her fault.Tessa could not contain her fear, but she could keep Rosaline from the truth.She did not want her best friend worried and blaming herself. If worse came to worse, she would get therapy, and Rosy would never have to know.She sent her away and had someone in the hotel follow her to a small distance to ensure she left for real.When they confirmed she had, she heaved a sigh.She then did a few things to kill time and keep herself from overthinking.Rosaline, on the other hand, also knew Tessa was not well, and she was hiding something from her.She pretended to leave and even drove more than halfway through to ensure she believed it. Then she
Rosaline came out of her trance when she heard her phone ringing.By then, the water had gotten cold, and her skin had wrinkled.She took a quick hot shower and changed into a full-sleeved t-shirt and pants.She applied some make-up to hide the redness of her eyes. But she could do nothing for the swelling.It was already fifteen-odd minutes when she returned the phone call.It turned out to be William’s father. It took her by surprise.She was even more surprised to hear him requesting a meeting.Strangely she asked him if William knew they were meeting, only to get a negative answer. She asked him to keep it that way. She told Tessa she was going out as Leena called for something urgent.Tessa did not doubt it as Leena was going to Bellum city in a few days.Since Rosy acted fine and did not want to talk about things, she could only let it go.When Rosaline arrived at the teahouse as requested by Anthony, she got ushered into a private room.“Uncle!” Rosaline greeted the man who wa
Rosaline, Tessa, William, Jack, Leena, Tris, Ella, Amy, and Peter arrived within fifteen minutes of each other. Albert and Felix had something to do, so they did not show up.The party went well. Lots of chit-chats, teasing, eating, and drinking. They all passed the wedding gift to Rosy and thanked Maddox for being generous with the treat.When the party was over, Jack asked Lina and Tessa to drop Leena off and asked William to go to a place with him.Rosaline just rolled her eyes and asked Jack to play nice.Jack and William walked for some fifteen-odd minutes when they reached school. “Rosy, Tess, and I studied here.” Jack pointed out.“But even before that, Rosy and I had been friends. Her parents are old school. They have not bought a single piece of furniture. They have custom-made everything.”“My family lives five houses away from theirs, so my father had been the permanent employee of the Daynes.”“I used to go along to help him out and befriended Rosy. But even before that,
Jack was relieved after hearing that.He had gotten to know William while working for him. So, he could somewhat understand his character. Besides, he was Tristen’s brother and Tessa’s alumni and boss. They knew he wasn’t a nasty person.He seemed thoughtful in his interactions with Rosy. It was evident in minor things.“That’s good to know. Remember your words because if you ever hurt Rosy, I will make your life miserable. I may not be successful. But, I assure you, I will try my fucking best. And my Leena will support me.”“I know. Thank you for telling me this. At least I won’t be caught off guard.”William sighed at that.He felt like he had picked a rock to hit his foot.“It’s good to know that she has always had you and Tessa Johnson with her. As much as I hate that she relies on you more than me, that you know her better than me, I am truly thankful that you guys have always been her rock.”“Well, you will have to live with that. Leena had trouble with that for a while, but sh
William finished his tea in a big gulp, set his cup aside, put down her cup, and pulled her into his lap.Rosaline did not know what he was up to, but she got comfortable straddling him.“My dearest Rosaline, are you giving me an explanation?”“Huh? Did I?”“Mhmm.”“I did not realize I was doing that.” She sighed.“That’s even better.”“How so?”“Because it means you love me more than you admit. I would rather it is this way than the other way around.”“Hahaha! You make a good point.”“Talking to Jack made me realize I still have a long way to go before I have you reasonably figured out.”“And what would you do when you do that?”“Pursue you every which way, so you are stuck with me forever.”“You are so sweet. I love you.”William was shocked as he had not expected her to say it that soon, or even like that amid laughter.“What?”“I love you, William. I did not even realize when I fell for you in such a short time to boot.”“Do you mean it?”“When you were drugged, I realized I liked
By the time Rosaline orgasmed, William was very uncomfortable in his lower body.He settled her down and kissed her before he tried to leave and go to the washroom to relieve himself. But unexpectedly, she pulled him towards him and asked him to be gentle.He was dumbfounded, but she did not give him the chance to react as she kissed him deeply and urgently.“I love you so much, William. I want to live with you, create memories, grow old, and die in your arms.”She muttered in between her kisses.He barely responded to her as he was too high to register what was going on as they blended into one.He was gentle and incredibly patient with her as he focused on making her feel good.He uttered sweet nothings in her ear and worshiped her body while she reciprocated with equal enthusiasm.When she yelled in pain and bit him on the shoulders, he paused, kissed, and caressed her until she stopped biting him and started kissing him.He slowly and gently let her set the rhythm. He only sped
On the same evening, Tessa had a visitor. A woman showed up at her place asking for her. She introduced herself as a therapist for the army hospital and announced that she would be her therapist and personal trainer for the next two months.She would also prefer to stay in the hotel if Tessa didn’t mind.Tessa stared at her dumbfounded.The woman explained that Commander Brown had sent her.Tessa excused herself and called William but did not get a response.She called Rosy, but she had switched off her phone. She could only make the living arrangements for her as she had all the credentials. Moreover, she needed it.Tessa was stubborn but not an idiot. She would not refuse the help she needed.Besides, she thought it was William’s father’s way of apologizing for what his mother did.After making the living arrangements, she invited her for a cup of tea, and they started talking about the plan.The women had come prepared. She asked Tessa to spar with her to determine her strength a
William lay on the bed with Rosaline in his arms and little Parth in his crib on the side. “Lexi?” William whispered. “Hmm?” Rosaline hummed in his neck. “Falling in love with you is the greatest achievement of my life. Thank you, darling. I never knew I could be so happy that my heart feels like it’ll overflow.” William said emotionally. “Don’t steal my line. That’s how I feel. With you by my side, I feel invincible.” Rosaline murmured. “I love you so much.” He said hoarsely. “I know. I would argue I love you more, but we both know that’s not true.” Rosaline giggled, peppering kisses on his neck. “Don’t do that!” William sighed. She teased, “Do what?” “Our son is here. We can’t do anything, so don’t provoke me. Besides, you have not healed yet.” William answered. “Teasing you is no fun. You have better control than me.” Rosaline complained. “You should be happy about that. I want you more than you want me.” William teased. “I have noticed our desire for sex and food follow
Everyone had gathered at the AR mansion early as Asteria was to bring Rosaline and William’s baby.Tessa jumped first and ran to the door.She could not snatch the baby from Asteria’s arm, and Asteria would not give him away.They argued as they reached Rosaline’s side.The silent baby finally made a cooing noise as he leaped at Rosaline.“You heartless brat, I have been looking after you for two days, and you did not even speak to me once,” Asteria exclaimed, making everyone laugh.She had become much more cheerful in Apex city. She was unrestrained and happy.Everyone was waiting to hold the baby.Leena whistled and said, “Don’t crowd around him. Give him some breathing space. Rosy will introduce everyone to him.”They all grumbled and sat down.Jack had to grab Tessa and Albert by the collar and make them sit.Meanwhile, the baby rested his head on Rosaline’s shoulders but kept facing outside.“Don’t be mad at Mamma. Mamma was busy. Look, Mamma brought Dada home.” Rosaline convince
Danial, Isabella, Rosaline, and William went to the Scott family mansion.They had identified and reported the spies to the authorities.Someone had screened the entire mansion for hidden bugs.They enjoyed a lively dinner. It was the most peaceful meal in over five months. They shared what was going on and celebrated the reunion.They had planned to fly to Apex city the next day.They had given a week off to everyone in both companies except the support staff. It was to gear everyone up for the drastic changes that were to happen in Scott Group and to set the pace they would pick up at AR Group. Finally, William and Rosaline were alone in their bedroom.He hugged her close as soon as they locked the door.“You worked so hard,” William sounded sad.“It was the only time I had gotten physically involved. I only worked from the sidelines and helped the rescued people. It was emotionally draining to see so much suffering.”“But I tried my best to channel it into helping others, spreadin
Rosaline tried to soothe her.“Forget those vile creatures. That phase in your life is over. It’ll never go away, but it’s only a past now.”“The baby is innocent. It’s 29 weeks old now. Already fully formed.”“That gives you three options - you can keep the baby.”“You can abort it.”“Or you can wait a few more weeks. After the 34th week, we can do a c-section. The baby will be kept in a NICU until it is ready to be taken away.”“It’ll have a very high chance of survival after 34 weeks. You need at least six weeks for your physical injuries to heal anyway. You will be in the hospital regardless.”“And even if you want to abort, you’ll have to wait two weeks before your other injuries are healed enough for the procedure to be safe for your body.”“You can sleep on it and make a choice.”The girl looked at her and asked, “If I give birth, what will happen to the child?”Rosaline answered, “Depends on what you want. You can leave it in CARE if you don’t want to raise it. I promise the c
Rosaline broke the silence before the reporters could ask anything.“This little girl needed 30 stitches to heal the wound caused by rape. I had qualms about signing the consent form to terminate the pregnancy, which she called a monster. It would have undoubtedly torn her already vulnerable body apart.”The host silenced the reporters and played another clip.It showed a hospital bed and a young woman with a big pregnant belly. Her face was blurred, but she looked young.A police officer took her statement while a nurse and Rosaline stayed in the room.“Miss , let me confirm the details as you have mentioned previously. You met Peter a year ago in a cafe. He asked you out, you refused, he started to harass you, and then you filed a complaint against him.”“We found the complaint in the FIR box in the police station of south branch-9, which is close to your house. You and your parents met with an accident five days after you had filed an FIR.”The girl trembled, and Rosaline hel
Rosaline asked.“Whose permission do we need to terminate any possible pregnancy? They are too young to consent to anything, and god knows when we will find their families.”She slumped down and leaned on the wall as she sighed.“On top of everything, I don’t want them to have to carry a pregnancy to term. Under a proper environment, there is a chance they might heal and have a life, a family, and a future ahead. Let’s protect that.”“Thank you, Chief!”“Can we also get permission for the girls to choose if they want to return to their homes or stay in CARE?”“I suspect one of the girls got sold by her family. The others were in unwanted, improvised conditions. Only the 13-year-old seems to come from a loving family. If they don’t have a healing environment at home, let them stay in CARE. When they are better, they can move out anytime they want.”“Thank you, Chief. I will get the documents from you and prepare them after I get checked at the hospital.”“Don’t worry! I won’t mess with
A reporter asked a question that was not related to the case.“Miss Dayne, there are rumors that all the rescued rape victims get forced to have an abortion before being admitted to CARE. Could you shed some light on the matter?”The host replied, “Please keep the questions limited to the case.”Rosaline smiled at the host and answered, “That is not true. But I think I should be able to answer more clearly if your question was specific.”The reporter was stunned but soon asked, “Is it true that you have signed the consent form for abortion for the rape victims who were underage?”“Yes, that is true.”The reporter sneered, “In that case, it is true.”Rosaline countered, “I think you should get your facts straight and understand the nuances while discussing a sensitive topic.”“I have signed a consent form to terminate the pregnancy caused by six months of continuous rape of an 8-year-old who was in no way capable of sustaining a pregnancy on her physically undeveloped body that needed
Chief Green continued after the reporters quieted down.“After an in-depth investigation, we uncovered some evidence which indicated Mr. Jackson Senior’s involvement in the accident of Mr. Andrew Scott’s pregnant wife.”“Mr. Jackson Junior’s involvement in missing funds and misappropriation of money and resources within Scott Group subsidiaries came to light. We also found evidence of him bribing many staff members of Scott Group.”“Ultimately, there was evidence of their involvement in child trafficking. It linked both cases together.”“Furthermore, Mr. Jackson Senior was the leading investigator of the case of Mrs. Andrew. He was also the senior leader overseeing the capture of the suspect - Peter.”“However, there was no motive linking them, and their accounts were clean. And the evidence was not enough.”“So, we had to dig deeper, and we uncovered Mr. Jackson’s sister, who had wanted to marry into the Scott family, had gone missing and was presumed dead two years before Mrs. Andre
“You bitch, you called the cops,” Michael said venomously, spittle spraying from his mouth.“Someone is indeed helping you from the inside. No wonder we failed three times.” Rosaline said calmly.“Hahaha, you are smart. No wonder you found all my hideouts. Too bad you can’t catch me, though.” He sneered.“For what you did to those little girls, I will make sure you get caught, even if it’s the last thing I do,” Rosaline vowed.“Those little cunts were so tight. I am getting hard just thinking of them. The youngest one, how old was that bitch again? Ah! 8, 7 when I bought her. She was one feisty bitch, so much like you. When I shoved myself inside her, she begged until she passed out. One day, I will make sure you do the same. I won’t kill you today. I am going to fuck you bloody first. And, you won’t be able to do anything because you can’t touch me.”Michael punched her on the stomach, spat on her face, and left.Rosaline took a minute before she managed to stand.She took off her ea