Unknown POV “Why is it taking this long? The previous one wasn’t like this, so what’s happening?” I snarled, my eyes blazing with anger. “You have one fucking job, and you can’t deliver!”“I apologize for the delay, it’s more difficult because of the lady, she tends to be more careful and somehow manages to bypass all my traps”.“Then create more!” I yelled, rising from my chair, “Why then are we paying you? Or do you have a better plan on how to achieve this?” I asked the maid we had planted in Zayn's house. “I have tried, but she’s not eating the meals and when she does, nothing happens, it’s either we change the poison or wait until the child is born, and then we eliminate”.“No! Never! We can’t take the risk of waiting until she gives birth, we have to do it now that the child is still in the womb”.I paced around the room, thinking of possible ideas to achieve this when the maid chipped in, “Perhaps we could go ahead with the second plan, getting a stronger poison, I’m sure th
AVAI stood up abruptly without saying a word and walked out, ignoring Cassandra calls as I headed straight to the parking lot.I opened the car settling in, My head was racing with different possibilities on how Ethan was able to know my location, two times.Was it my phone? Did he perhaps put a tracker on it? I checked quickly, but couldn’t find anything.“What happened? You just rushed out”. Cassandra asked, entering the car, and I turned to face her, “How did he know?!” I snarled, my lips trembling, “He’s stalking me, no way it was a coincidence”.My heart was racing, and I was—struggling, I couldn’t breathe properly!“Calm down, Ava!” She interrupted patting my back, but I couldn’t, “I don’t even know what you’re talking about, do you know, Ethan? Make me understand”.“How was he able to know my location?” I replied, my voice sharp, “That freak has been sending me creepy messages, and now he dares show his face, lying that he doesn’t know me!”Cassandra’s expression changed fr
AVARunning….Panting….Screaming….The only sound pounding in my ears was my raging heartbeat, and harsh ragged breathing, as I ran blindly down a cold dark street. ‘Damn it! Damn you!’ I screamed, my hair pouring over my face drenched in sweat, as I turned down a corner in an abandoned alley. My limbs were shaking. In fact, it felt like I'd fall and shatter like a bag of broken bones. Sweat was pouring out every hole on my skin, and my head was jumbled with mad thoughts. Stones cut into my bare feet as they stretched as wide as they could go, propelling me forward dangerously, ‘Anyone! HELP!’‘Ava.’ His voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once, ‘You can't run,’Ethan. He was in the distance before me when I'd actually been running from him. How?The shadows covered his face, but I could see his long smile, curving wickedly, and in his hands was a knife.I turned, racing backwards, as I curved into another dark corner, backing into the wall where I fell into a
AVA'S POV.I groggily walked down the stairs, my body heavy with fatigue. After the argument with Zayn, Sleeping had been very difficult, and waking up with morning sickness and joint pains was something I was dreading. Every day into the pregnancy seemed to come with new challenges. Sophia’s loud laughters could be heard, and I made a silent wish hoping she wasn’t on the dining table, but I guess it was too late—I reached the foot of the stairs and sitting on the dining table was Zayn alongside Sophia. A sad smile found its way to my face, she looked so happy that he was finally giving her his attention.I couldn’t interrupt them…. That’s what I kept saying to myself, but deep down, my heart was torn apart. My stomach gave a low rumble and I heaved a deep breath before walking down to the dining area, only to stop for a second time. There was Sophia, her eyes lit in delight, as she ran her hands through his hair.“What did you do to it? It's softer. No lies,” she laughed, and t
AVA I entered my room, making sure to lock the door before letting out a deep breath. My mind was reeling with so many things, most especially—Zayn’s touch. I plopped down on my bed, closing my eyes as I reminisced the moment. He had a way of making someone want him badly, my hands trailed down my laps and I parted them open slowly, I just needed to release the tension building inside me. I felt a flutter in my chest and a growing warmth between my legs, Zayn’s image filled my mind as I found myself slipping my fingers into my core My breathed hitched as I continued starting slowly, my mind filled with thoughts of Zayn lips, his touch, his hands. My legs trembled as I increased the pace, a low moan escaping from my lips. I slipped another finger in as the image of the night we had sex flashed through—I envisioned his lips sucking me down there, and my body arched, yearning for his touch. It was wrong—I shouldn’t be doing this….yet I couldn’t stop. The pleasure was intoxicatin
AVA'S POV.“I’m sorry, but I can’t accept your offer”. Andrew glared at me, his face turning into a scowl, “Why?!” He asked, his voice rising, “Why are you hell-bent on destroying this beautiful relationship?”The way he switched up from calm to anger was shocking, “I can’t leave yet, Zayn and I have built a friendship over the months and I know how important this baby is to him. I’ll leave after delivering the baby.” “You’re willing to give your baby to a man who forced you here and stole all your rights just to bear his heir? I never knew you to be this stupid, Ava”.I stood up, “You never knew me in the first place, I believe this conversation is over and…” He cut in, “Don’t you fear for your life?” he asked a sinister expression on his face and I felt a shiver run down my spine, “Have you forgotten how the other surrogate died? She was killed!”“If this is meant to scare me, I’m sorry to disappoint, but it doesn’t. He promised to protect me and I believe him”. I replied, my voi
AVA'S POV.I remained calm, as I digested the information, there was a lot going on in this family. Here I was thinking he cared about Sophia and Zayn’s relationship not knowing he has something crucial to gain if I had left. Cassandra nudged me slightly, “I don’t want you to overthink this. I just shared this information with you so that you would know that everything is not as it seems”.“But why?” I interpreted, “Why so much hatred in this family? Did something happen?”There had to be a reason why none of them were close, they all seemed like enemies forced to be in a family.. Casandra heaved a sigh, “It’s a lot and I can’t begin to explain, you won’t even understand” She replied, her voice low and soft.“It's like spiderwebs, weaving in and out of each other. They're all tracing back to one root, but you can't even find it. It's a tangled mess. And our family is just that. We've been complicated from the onset. And it's not just something that started with us. We were born int
AVA'S POV. “What are you implying, then?” Cassandra asked, her voice shaking, “I knew you blamed me for her death, but you kept denying it, Why would I hurt Lucy?” She added, tears streaming down her face. My mind was reeling with different thoughts. Cass never told me she knew the previous surrogate that died and finding out now. Could it be that…..No!! Cassandra wouldn’t. She is kind-hearted, and Zayn was only thinking this way because of the hatred he had for her. “You claim you have always wanted to made amends but the last time you came here was when Lucy was pregnant, and now you are back claiming to want to make amends with me, I know your tricks Cassandra”. My gaze flickered to Cassandra, and coincidentally, she also did. Her eyes were teary, and I could feel my heart racing, the only question in my mind was, “Was she also part of the persons who wanted my baby dead?” “You know what I’m done! This is the height of this, Zayn” She blurted out, her voice lou
AVAI’ve lost count of how many days I've stayed here. Escaping proved more difficult than I thought it would. The other day I found out that Carter had changed my name, and even created a new passport.How he was able to do that in my unconscious state still amused me. Everything about the house was creepy, from the colors of the room, to the old maid, to the numerous bodyguards. Who knew Carter, Zayn's supposed bodyguard and trusted servant, could be this rich? I’ve not been allowed to leave the house and anytime I ask why, Carter's excuse was that I am not strong enough to start moving out. And when I persisted, he said I didn’t have the right clothes to go out with. And so today, he decided to get me the ‘RIGHT’ clothes. The sound of his horn broke me away from my thoughts. I didn’t need a soothsayer to tell me he’d arrived. I hurriedly went into the room and laid down on the bed. In no time, the door was open ajar and Carter walked in. This has been the normal routine of com
CASSANDRA I stepped out of the house for the first time in two months. I couldn’t leave the kids for a second with the fear that my mother would strike. Seconds, minutes, days and now two months, I have cried every night and woken up to different nightmares. Her face haunted me—I could still remember how she looked when she found out I had betrayed her. Guilt was killing me slowly, and it only worsened when I looked into Zayn’s eyes. I see him struggling every time, the other day I found him crying in the garden. The last time I’d seen him like this was when he lost his mother, and it hurts that I partook in his pain. I was stupid, wicked and misled. Sometimes I felt like coming clean, but that will make him hate me and distance me from the kids I’d vowed to protect with my life. And now, I was in my car, going to see the mastermind behind all this—Rebecca Beckham. My mother. I was done hiding, it was time to stand up to her. It was a three-hour journey and
ZAYN It’s been 74 fucking days since I last saw her. Papers, files, documents, and lots more were scattered on the table, all contained clues and places I’d already searched. But I wasn’t stopping anytime soon.If I have to, I’ll search the whole world for her. I refused to accept that she died. It seemed too convincing. The shrill of my phone rang loudly, and I didn’t bother checking it, “Any news?” I asked, immediately, my voice hoarse from days without proper rest. It was my agent, Noah. “No sir.” He responded, “But one thing is confirmed, she is not in the waters. In all my years of expertise, if someone dies in the water, the current always returns to the body after a few days, a week, or even a month. But in Ava’s case, there’s nothing to show even after continuous searching.”I heaved a sigh of relief. This was what I wanted to hear—that she didn’t die in the water, that’s why I asked them to search.This was also confirmation that Ava was RESCUED. She had been pulled out,
AVA The door creaked open, and I shut my eyes immediately, pretending to be asleep. I could hear footsteps coming closer to where I laid. And then—strong, sweaty hands roamed around my body and I felt like I was being pricked by a needle. I already knew who it was…his fragrance was choking the hell out of me. His hands reached my chest and I stiffened. What did he want to do? My heart was racing and just as I was about to hit his hands off, the shrill of his phone rang. His hands left my body as he stood up, I heaved a deep breath. “Blackwood speaking.” His irritating voice spoke out, and I peeked my eyes open to see him by the window. “I can’t believe it worked. The universe seems to work in my favor.” I froze, my ears listening attentively, I couldn’t hear what the other person was saying but from Carter's response, I already had an idea. “She doesn’t remember a thing, Noah!” He squealed in delight and I tightened my hands underneath the bed. “I’m not let
AVA What was he saying? Christopher? My husband? Why was Carter telling lies to me? Or were we in any sort of trouble?Every nerve in my body screamed at me to react, to shout, to call out the lie—but I didn’t. Something about the way he was looking at me…the way his words were so carefully chosen… told me this wasn’t just a misunderstanding.This was a setup.My heart was racing beneath the calm facade I put on my face. The last thing I could recall was the sound of the gunshot…falling from the cliff and sinking deep into the river. And then…darkness clouded by vision. But here I was, Alive and Awake with Carter spilling lies to me. My eyes scanned around the room before landing back on Carter, he had a smug expression on his face. “Where are we?” I asked, my voice low.My body ached so bad, especially my legs and I could barely sit upright. “My love, we are home.”Home? This didn’t look like home. The vicinity didn’t even look familiar, and it made me wonder where I was.
CARTER.United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi, Cleveland Clinic, 9am. The sound of the beeping machines was the only thing that could be heard in the room. I walked to where she was laying down…looking so pale but her beauty remained untouched. She was still as beautiful as ever. Infact the most beautiful lady I have ever seen. I heaved a deep breath taking a seat beside her, my eyes fixed on her. I couldn’t stop wondering— what if I didn’t get there in time? When I called that fateful day, and she didn’t pick my calls, I knew something was wrong. My men confirmed it when they spotted her car speeding out of her house. We tracked her location but by the time I got there, it was already too late. The divers began their work and Ava was found deep in the water. It was a miracle that she still had a faint heartbeat. We made sure to clean all our tracks before leaving the vicinity. Treatment commenced immediately in New York but when I discovered Zayn still believed she was alive I had t
ZAYN. I staggered into the house, my head spinning. This had been my daily routine for two months now, and I didn’t care. Ava has left a deep void filled with darkness in my heart and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t bring myself to accept she was dead. I ended up getting drunk every day, so I could see her in my dreams. Immediately I stepped into the sitting room, the light was turned, and I covered my eyes with my hands. “Who the fuck is that? Turn off that light!” I yelled, my head pounding. “When are you going to stop this?” Cassandra’s brittle voice spoke up, “For goodness sake, Zayn, it’s 4am in the morning, and you have been in the bar all day.” She continued, “You think this is what Ava would want? You drinking yourself to stupor?” “I …w…wasn’t drinking.” I lied. She scoffed, “You reek of alcohol, Zayn. From your clothes to your scent, everything about you and it’s so infuriating since you’re supposed to be a father of newborn babies.”
ZAYN I heard it. A gunshot. My stomach twisted as I redialed her number, but it wasn’t going through. Without hesitation, I dashed out of my office—running. I didn’t care about the stares I was receiving as I shoved past anyone in my way. The last words of Ava kept ringing in my ears. “Save the kids…” My breath was ragged as I ran down the stairs. I couldn’t wait for the elevator. The panic…the fear… in her tone shook me to the core. They are in danger. My family is in danger! In minutes, I was at the parking lot. I got in my car, my hands trembling as I started the engine. “Nothing is going to happen to them.” I kept muttering to myself, like a prayer I was trying so much to believe. I tried her number once again, but it kept redirecting to voicemail. My heart sank. With one hand on the steering, I called the police. “Ava and the kids are in danger.” I said, my voice laced with urgency, “I need your men at my house, now.” The ch
AVA My eyes widened in shock as tears threatened to fall from my eyes….Casandra…was the…. “Fuck you!” I yelled at her, “What did I ever do to deserve this from you?!”I trusted her.I thought we had a sisterly bond, but she wanted me dead all along. She couldn’t look me in the face and from where I stood I could see a teardrop from her eyes.“Why the hell are you crying, you witch?” I continued, as tears rolled down my cheeks, “Zayn warned me….he did! But I choose to trust you.”Why did everyone I trust always end up hurting me? She raised her face to look at me, “I… I’m sorry, Ava…it wasn’t supposed to happen like this. This is not about you, and I’m so sorry you got dragged into all this, but it has to happen.”What was she saying?“What…”“Oh, dearest Ava,” Sophia cut in with a smirk on her face, “let me answer your questions.”She stepped closer, the gun still in her hand, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction.“Cassandra has never been the angel you thought she was…..remember Am