Feeling better now. Thanks for all of your kind comments. Lots of love, Latton Ripley ***DON'T FORGET TO ADD THE STORY TO YOUR LIBRARY, #Comment #Like #VOTE #HannahSmith #GoodbyeMyLove Feel free to check my other stories here: Hey, Stranger! and Alpha's Last Chance
Denise wanted to stay and make sure that Hannah and Xander wouldn’t have any alone time together, but she couldn’t take the embarrassment any longer. In a miserable state, she ran out of the venue, to her car, and sped away from the place.While driving, she can’t throw away the memory of the gazes and judgment of the people at the venue.She can’t help but reminisce about what had happened to her after the scandal from 4 years ago. She grew too bold and lost everything she had.From an upcoming star to a nobody in just one night. ~Just childhood friends. Nothing more.~~We're never going to tie the knot~She repeats Xander’s words through gritted teeth.“You promised me the world, Xander! How dare you deny that we are going to get married and declare that you love that scoundrel ex-wife of yours.” She yelled. Her eyes are red in rage.MEANWHILE…At the auction…Xander made his way to Hannah, who'd been talking to different guests. Exchanging pleasantries and business information.“S
Xander’s lips quiver in shock and rage as he sits in Toby’s car. Toby sat in the driver's seat while Xander was in the front passenger. Toby starts speaking, unaware that Xander's mind is somewhere else.“As per Yuri, when he got to the agreed location, Charles Thompson was already there signing the contract for Fort Worth. Aside from you, Yuri, Ashton and I no one else knew about his meet-up. Toby explains with sadness in his eyes. He heard no response from Xander and thought his friend was already thinking that it was Yuri’s fault.“I think… Heck… I know none of us would leak the information. I called for a tech guy to check our phones and computers to make sure no one bugged us. I would suggest waiting for the results before doing something drastic,” he suggested.Xander was looking at Toby, but none of his words got through to him. He can’t process any of his statements.He is still shaken. He couldn’t believe that Hannah would betray him and work for the very person he hated to
Lani and Katarina were having breakfast in the dining area when one of the maids told them that Denise was waiting for them in the living room.Katarina’s brows furrowed, she knew what happened last night, and for her, Denise deserved the attention and embarrassment she got. “Why is she here? Should we tell her to go home? My brother’s not here anyway.” She voices out.Lani huffed. “So what if Xander’s not here? Denise is still the daughter-in-law that I deserve.” She replied, clueless about the news circulating the internet.Katarina wanted to tell her mother about it but chose to stay quiet. She knew her mother would not listen to her.Denise, on the other hand, sat on the couch and took advantage of being alone. She began looking at the photos on display and albums on the table. Frantically searching for Xander's teenage photos.“I didn’t expect to miss Ashton at a time like this. If he is here he will surely help me.” She mumbles under her breath while recollecting the reason for
Hannah had just finished having lunch with her friends and most of them excused themselves to go to the restroom and smoking area. Hannah and Clarise were left at their table waiting for them so they could continue bonding.Clarise slowly inches close to Hannah and gives her a light kiss on the cheek.Hannah smiled at her. “Aren’t you clingy?” She commented playfully.Clarise laughs, and then her gaze turns serious. “I’m happy that you stopped dyeing your hair black. It means you finally forgave yourself…” She mumbles then let her words linger.Hannah’s movements were put to a halt, she narrowed her gaze and lowered her head. She soon nodded. “I just wish I could have been a better daughter…” She uttered. Her eyes reddened.“You are. You have no idea how good you are,” Clarise stated while patting her back.Soon her eyes welled up, and the gloomy rainy weather brought Hannah back to her childhood.Hannah was only 12 years old when her mother suddenly left. No letters. No last words.
Hannah never told anyone about her apartment being burglarized as she didn’t want them to get worried. “Who would do such a thing?” She couldn’t stop speculating. “What do they want? They didn’t take any money or jewelry.” She mumbles as she changes the locks on her unit and adds a deadbolt on every door and window. She was so preoccupied with her tasks that she didn’t notice a man standing in her doorway. “What’s with the change of locks? Did something happen?”Hearing the familiar voice, Hannah almost jumped from her seat.She turned her head to face him, “Why are you here? And how did you know where I live?” She asks, her tone unfriendly.Xander entered her home uninvitedly and then closed the door. “I need to speak to you. It's important.”She sneered, "Will you leave if I don't want to speak to you?'He crossed his arms. "Stop this act of yours."She scoffed, "This is not an act, Mr. Miller. You should leave. You're trespassing." She uttered, then slowly backed away from him.S
“I’m sure it's Hannah!” Denise cried out to her father. As she bites her nails in anxiety.Hector grabs her hands to stop her from destroying her nails. “You must stop this madness, Denise. She doesn’t have the pendant and aside from that… If she really is Xander’s savior, why on earth would she hide it? Why not use it to her advantage? Huh?” He pointed out.“So stop this. You are destroying yourself.” She breathed rapidly as if she had been running for a while. “No… No… I know it’s Hannah. Believe me, Dad…” She uttered derangedly while holding her father's arms.Hector could only see her madness slowly drowning her. “How I wish I had another child.” He thought to himself.She held her father’s arms tighter, “What if… What if… We make a copy of the pendant. So that when Hannah chose to use the ‘savior story’ and show the pendant to Xander I could simply accuse her of copying me?” She suggested.He grunted, “Are you fucking insane? Do you want to get caught in your own lies?” He scream
Lani reached the Miller Mansion with her head lowered. Defeat was written all over her face, “How am I the one on the losing end?” She asked herself as she stood motionless on the staircase.She stared blankly at the steps while her hand was firmly holding the handrail.She's supposed to give the money to Hannah and once she takes it she'll call the police to accuse Hannah of robbing her but none of it happened.Instead, she was insulted by a woman she calls a waste of space, a subhuman.And now Hannah has the biggest leverage there is and Lani is unsure how much information she knows.Lani held the handrail tighter at the same time as her face contorted in fury.Soon she began to reminisce about the last fight she had with her husband. “I trusted you. Love you and this is how you repay me? You were nothing but a bastard and I took you in. I gave you my name.” Bernard yelled at the top of his lungs. The veins in his forehead and neck were swelling in contempt and fury.Far from the ca
'RING!''RING!'It's Saturday morning...'RING!'Hannah was awakened by the sound of the doorbell.'RING!'She took her phone and checked the time. It’s only six in the morning. “Who could be bothering me this early on a weekend?” She yelled internally while frantically running to the main door. The non-stop ringing of the doorbell is triggering her headache. 'RING!''RING!''RING!'"Dammit! Stop it!" She screamed.She took a robe and hurriedly peeked at the peephole.'RING!''RING!'She grunted and did not open the door, “What do you want, Miller?” She yelled.Hearing her voice he stopped pushing the doorbell, “I’m here to talk to you about the cases you filed against me.” He replied calmly.“I think your lawyer should speak to my lawyer regarding that. I don’t want to talk to you.” She shouted while leaning at the door.After speaking, she didn’t hear any response. She thought he had left but when she glimpsed through the peephole he was still standing outside her door. This time sh
In the blink of an eye… Months had passed and Ashton still hadn’t proposed. He started to become busy with his company, despite that not even once did the ring leave his pocket.During that time a lot of things happened. Charles had successfully dominated the shipping business and ended Hannah’s contract. She’s free to work for any company she likes. Toby continued to visit Xander and was happy to know that he was starting to respond to psychotherapy.Lani is still in maximum prison, and she is treated like a slave by everyone. She never thought in a million years she would be pushed around like trash by women half her age. That she needed to massage someone's callus feet just to have protection from other inmates.Aside from the hellish treatments, no one had visited her ever since she moved there. Ron even stopped sending her letters. She never felt alone and helpless in her life.Meanwhile, for Clarise and Zane, the day they had been waiting to arrive. It's a love story more than a
In Hannah’s ward. It was already 8 pm when Ashton returned. When he got to Hannah’s room, only Heidi was in there. “You’re back,” Hannah uttered in glee. She could sense that he was a bit calmer than before.“Have you eaten?” Heidi asked Ashton. He shook his head.“I’m buying us some food. Hannah wants some pasta. How about you? Anything particular you want?” Heidi asks. “Let me buy the food for us,” he suggested.Heidi shook his head, “You stay here. You should be resting not roaming around.” She insisted. “You kids stay here.” She added as she headed outside.He smiled and swiftly walked to Hannah to hold her hand. “I asked Clarise to buy me a hair clipper.” She blurted out while showing them to him.He narrowed his gaze, “Why?”“To cut my hair. So it will grow back the same length as my bald spot, and it would be all-natural. My hair grows back fast and it would be presentable enough at the time of Clarise and Zane's wedding. Would you help me cut my hair?” She asked as she ha
At Texas Southwestern Medical Center...“Ashton, where are you going?” Cyrene asked as she watched how his son got up from the bed and headed outside.“I want to see her. Where is she?” He replied in worry.She sighs, “She’s in the next room. Her friends are in there, and she’s still asleep. So calm yourself down. You just had 14 stitches on your chest and leg,” she explains.He shook his head, “I’m fine—”.Before he could finish his sentence, beeping sounds from the other room roared in the air, followed by shouting and cries.“Nurse!” “Nurse!” He heard Clarise and Zane’s voices in the hallway.He stood up immediately and checked what was happening.“Ashton!” Cyrene yelled, but all she could do was follow him.He entered the room next door and there she was being coaxed by Clarise and Zane to calm down.She’s having nightmares. Keeps seeing that she'll wake up in captivity and seeing a hospital ward is not helping her condition. She felt like she was still trapped in the cabin.She
After lunch, Zane and Clarise drove to one of their vendors.Zane couldn’t stop staring at his soon-to-be wife. She tried her best to smile, but she could not hide the uneasiness in her movements.He could no longer take it and finally voiced out his concerns. He closed the binder he was holding, "Do you want to postpone the wedding and wait for Hannah to return?" He asked in a soft voice.She shook her head, "She won't like that. She would hate to know that we delayed our wedding because of her. Aside from that, we have already paid for our vendors," she explained.He sighs, “I don’t want to say this... You know that... I love Hannah. She’s like a sister to me but… What kind of friend leaves her friends like that? She knew we were getting married, and she just left.” Her hands trembled. He felt fear in her. She inched close to him and glanced around the room, “The type that’s been abducted.” She said in a low voice.“Abducted?” He repeats in a louder tone.She covered his mouth imm
~Toby and I tried to call you, but you didn’t answer.~Ashton’s voice woke up Hannah from her slumber.“Ashton?” She called out. Her eyes expressed glee to hear his voice. She glanced around only to realize she was still trapped inside the room. ~You know I need to go back to dating~~You know I need to go back to dating~His recorded voice kept on repeating for a few more hours. Shortly, Xander arrived with a smug look on his face. “You’ve heard the recording. Ashton is back to his old ways. Drinking and partying with a random woman in the bar, like the filthy animal that he is. He'll sleep with anyone available.” He says mockingly.“Do you still think he is better than me?” He added as he caressed her face.She evaded his touch by hiding under the blanket. She remained silent. There’s a part of her happy that he is moving on with his life, but she can’t ignore the fact that it hurts so badly. It's like confirmation that she has already lost her chance to be happy.“How long am I i
Hannah woke up with the smell of savory food in the air.She could feel her stomach gurgling. “Are you hungry?” Xander asks her. She nods. He smiled eerily, “I made tomato soup and salad. Come get your food.” He suggested as he motioned at the table. She slowly rose from her bed, but before she could take her first step she noticed one of her feet was chained to the bed. There was confusion on her face. She slowly turned her head to him.“What games are you trying to play this time?” She asks with a trembling voice.He shrugs, “Say ‘Please’ and I'll move the table near you.” He uttered. “I will even throw on a piece of bread if you sound a little sweeter.”She doesn't want to do it, but she's hungry, thirsty, and weary. She lowered her head to hide how annoyed and angry she was, “I want to eat, please.” She uttered in a low sweet voice.He moved the table near her and then patted her head, “See, that’s not hard, is it? I knew you just needed to be retrained to be obedient. If you
Ashton’s hands are sweating. Now that his and Clarise’s suspicions were proven correct, he needed to act fast to look for Hannah. Despite that, everything must remain in secrecy as one wrong move might alert Xander, and he might move her somewhere farther away. As he stopped his car at the intersection traffic light, he began to utilize Galvin and his team to help him search for her. He dialed Galvin and he was soon answered. “Galvin, how are we on the list of Xander's properties?” “Check your email. I just sent it to you.” He replied.“Good. I want you to do something for me. Station a person in the Miller Mansion and document any movements.” Ashton demanded.“Sure, anything else?” Galvin uttered. Ashton sighs. Something is bothering him. First is the letter, then Xander is staying in the Miller Mansion, while Hannah is in Asia.It doesn’t add up and it doesn’t make any sense. A dozen questions are inside his mind. “Did Xander threaten her to write the letter, and she chose to l
“Come on, eat your pancakes,” Xander suggested as he pushed the paper plate at her.She began stabbing her food with the plastic pork in exasperation. “What did I ever do to you for you to treat me like this? You already know the truth that I’ve saved your life and this is the thanks I get. Imprisonment in this place…” She yelled at him. He raised his arm, and she flinched in fear and shielded her head with her hand. He lowered his arm and sighed deeply. “Why won’t you just be obedient? Like before?”She laughs mockingly, “And where will it take me? Years of misery? Whatever I do, you end up hurting me.” She remarks.“You don’t understand I’m just protecting you from making more mistakes in your life.” He explains.“How about you protect me against yourself? Let me go and never show yourself ever again,” she suggested.He shook his head, “I can’t. I won’t.” He held her shoulders firmly, “You’re the only one that genuinely cares for me, and you’re the only one I have.”“I used to car
Ashton effortlessly carried the boxes of Hannah’s files inside his room. Searching for anything that might point to where she is.But all he could find were the documents about her research into Denise, Lani, Ron, Donnie, and Hector Reese and the crimes they committed.On how she will convince Donnie to bring down Hector and Denise. While reading through the mountain of paperwork she had, he felt so proud of the effort she put through.“You are so amazing,” he mumbled.He then remembered Clarise’s words.~Someone might have threatened her.~“Xander,” he thought to himself.Soon he decided to message the investigator to get him a list of all of Xander’s property as he might have her held captive. “If he took her, could she be in the Miller Mansion?” He asked himself.Soon Toby’s statement lingered in his head.~He locked himself inside the mansion.~He starts pacing back and forth as he questions everything that has happened.“But… If that’s the case, how did he get her? If she’s in A