“She wasn’t well fed that’s the reason she couldn’t struggle enough. The good thing is, it didn’t do any harm to her already injured finger. She will be able to get rid of the finger sling in a few days.” The doctor gave Marwick a clear report.River was lying on the bed and was silent ever since they were back.Nobody from the office staff knew what happened. Not even Gerald came to know about it. Jeff was still nowhere to be found.Once the doctor left, Marwick rushed to her side, “Honey,” he moved her disheveled hair off her face, “Everything will be fine.” He said kissing her forehead and taking her in his arms, “I am so sorry, I couldn’t keep you safe. I am so sorry, love.” He leaned his cheek on her head.She blinked and closed her eyes. She was still shaken by the events of this morning. Marwick had brought her, back home.Aniya was residing in the guest bedroom. She wanted to leave, the moment she got back her consciousness, but Marwick didn’t let her go. He insisted her to st
“Where is Aniya?” Marwick asked Greta the next morning. “Sir, when I woke up, she had already left.” Greta told him, “How is Ms. River? I think I should go to her room. She must be awake and might need my help.” Greta bowed her head a little and was about to turn away when Marwick’s voice stopped her. “Ms. River is not in her room. Last night, she slept in my room.” Greta kept her eyes focused on the floor, “She is still sleeping.” Greta nodded and attempted to speak, “I… I want to share something with you, sir. I don’t know if you would like me to as I am just your servant and …” “Come on, Greta. What is it?” “I …” Greta hesitated. “Speak up, Greta.” Marwick wanted to go back to River. He didn’t want her to wake up alone in bed. “Just a little before dawn, I woke up and came out of my room to fetch some water I saw…” “Yes?” “I saw Ms. Aniya … she was coming out of your room,” Greta started fumbling with her fingers in nervousness, “I just wanted to let you know so that… I m
“Hello,” Aniya didn’t bother to look up when she heard Derek. She was not supposed to come to the office today due to whatever incident happened yesterday. But she was here. Maybe to run away from the reality that Marwick could never be hers. Or to have a single peek at him. She wanted to see him, meet him. She wanted to believe that maybe River Brower or River Brown was a girl, but they got intimate because he just wanted to console her. But Aniya was also scared. She was the one who saved River. Why Marwick couldn’t spend the night with her. He just visited her room accompanying the doctor. Asked her to take her medicine. Made her gulp down the sleeping pill to help her relax her senses. Ruffled her hair and left the room. Without saying a single word. Why? Why did he choose River? Unfortunately, Marwick didn’t come to the office and Aniya had lots of time on her hands in his absence. That was the reason she decided to come to the office café for a cup of coffee. “Aniya!” Dere
Aniya was sitting beside him in a luxury car and was feeling underdressed according to the occasion. Though Derek had specifically told her that it was not a date but for some reason she was getting date vibes. “Relax.” Derek tilted his head to have a better look at her, “Don’t freak out. We are NOT on a date. Remember?” he didn’t want to miss this first chance to go out with her. He was happy that at least she agreed to dine out. “I should have worn something else, I guess. It’s been quite some time since I last went on a date,” And got a good fu*ck. She thought silently. “Why? No! You look beautiful, Aniya,” Poor Derek seemed to get nervous now due to her insecurities. “Sure?” she turned her face sideways and saw a smile gracing his lips. “Yup. Cent percent.” They both didn’t know what to talk about. “Do you like music?” he asked her, realizing how little he knew about her. She shifted in her seat and looked outside the window, “Who doesn’t like music, Derek? I love music,”
“Once we catch the man who is after you, I will go back to my daughter.”“Can you make a sketch of my daughter? If possible, also capture the expressions on her face.”“I am about to get married. My girlfriend is expecting again.”“She is my little Nina. She also walks backwards. Once my girlfriend will deliver twins, we are planning to get married.”There were so many things, so many happy moments with Jeff. She wasn’t able to forget any of it. She looked up when she felt Gerald squeezing her hand.“Jeff would never return, G. He has gone. Forever!” She closed her eyes and rolled her lips between her teeth. It felt like her heart would stop beating due to the pain that was gradually increasing.“H-he had become my friend. He told me that I reminded him of his daughter. I think every girl used to remind him of his daughter. That day when we were about to get on our bus, he told me that Aniya also reminded him of his daughter.” Her tears were streaming down her face.Gerald was there
“Hey. How are you doing?” Ashton Garner asked Chad who got consciousness last night and was now lying on the hospital bed. Chad nodded his head and licked his lower lips. He was feeling thirsty, but doctors had asked him not to take too much water right now. “I am good,” Chad said in a feeble voice, “I am so happy that you are here.” Ashton held his hand and leaned on the side chair placed near the bed, “Why would I leave you alone? You are a very important man and the job you are capable of. No man can do it except you.” Chad couldn’t understand what type of job, Ashton was talking about. He was just thankful that he didn’t leave him. Unlike his family, Ashton was by his side. “Mr. Garner. You were right. River is not a boy.” He stopped when felt a shooting pain in his head, “You… you knew it. Right? I was after her thinking that he was a boy. Why didn’t you stop me?” This was poking Chad’s head, ever since he got consciousness. Chad could not take out the image of her hanging b
“Hello!” Aniya jumped in fright when she heard a whisper too close to her ear. “Gosh! Derek! Grow up!” she placed her hand on her chest to normalize her speeding heartbeat, “What are you doing here?” “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” he gave her a sheepish smile, “I am good but what about you?” “Me?” she touched her fingers to her face, “What happened to me?” “You look pale, Aniya.” He took the seat opposite to her and then gestured towards the nearby chair, “Where is River?” “I – I don't know,” Aniya tried to show him that she was busy with her work. The image of nak*ed River lying beside a nake*d Marwick kept popping up in her mind. “Strange thing is even Gerald was not here for this important meeting. For some reason, Marwick is acting like an angry Ape. He had been so unreasonable throughout the meeting. He was giving everyone these unrealistic targets that are next to impossible to achieve.” “Is he angry?” she asked him, and he nodded at her, “Yes, why? It seems you did
(One month later)Aniya had been staring at the LED screen where a detective series was being played, but her mind was somewhere else. She had been observing Marwick for one month.The little friendliness he used to show her, had completely gone. He had been a different person. He rarely spoke, he never smiled, and he had become a severe workaholic.There was no sign of River Brower. Chad was arrested a month ago. The moment he was out of the hospital, he was taken to the jail. His property was put up by his wife’s lawyer.He still didn’t know who had hit him on the head and Marwick made it a point to keep Aniya safe. He didn’t want to drag her name in court trials.Even if there would be a need Aniya didn’t have to worry about it. Because it was all done in self-defense.She tried to hold her yawn and twisted her neck only to find Derek sleeping beside her on the couch. The poor man decided to watch the detective series because Aniya loved it.She couldn’t hold the smile and started