Sitting at his own office desk, Maxmilian Philips swallowed his cigar and put it in the ashtray, staring at the computer in front of him. A knock on the door sounded. "Hello, sir. I brought you some water and coffee."And of course, that was Michelle, who even after all the confusion and eventual death of Mariana, was still in office.Max just stared at her and thanked her with his eyes as he clicked and typed.The woman with red hair tied up in a bun, social uniform, and lips painted crimson felt the icy stare of her own boss, but said nothing. Propping the tray on the table, she took the opportunity to examine her lover further."He's so tense. Are you still sad about the death of your ex-wife?"Maxmilian's dark eyes almost pierced through her."Michelle, I'll let you ponder the question itself rather than answer it."Shocked, the secretary puts one of her hands on her waist."Why are you talking to me that way? I haven't done anything to you.""Of course. I'm sorry, Michelle."The
!James flips through the newspaper page, sighs, and puts it back on the nightstand next to the bed. Mariana, who is reading a book, notices the obvious disturbance in the man."What's wrong?""The lack of news is driving me crazy, to say the least.""We knew it would take some time for Daniel to find out everything he could to help us. His absence is a good sign.""Do you really think so?""I do.""Well, I think we're too confident, and something terrible has probably happened to that detective. You know our phone call was tapped, and the police in this town already know who we are. We're trapped."Mariana sets the book aside and places her hand on her belly."I thought you were a little more confident than that.""And I was. But...""But?"Initially, James says nothing, just stares at a fixed point on the wall.Mariana insists, "But?""But it's been two weeks since we last had contact with him. And so far, we haven't received a single sign of life.""Don't be silly. What about the s
"Are you not going to invite me in?" Maxmilian's brother asks, opening a charming and inviting smile. But his eyes showed anything but happiness.Still in shock, all James can do is take two steps back and make room for the man to pass.Mariana comes out of the room to see what's happening and immediately stops in her tracks. Before she can say anything, her ex-brother-in-law goes straight to her."Well, well, well. My dear sister-in-law."He looks her up and down, paying particular attention to her nightgown, and raises his eyebrows."You look fine.""What do you want?" James asks, closing the door and crossing his arms shortly after."Aren't you even going to offer me some water? A coffee?""Get to the point," Mariana also crosses her arms, trying her best not to show fear. "What happened? Why did you come here?""In case you haven't noticed, my dear," he places two fingers under the woman's chin, "you're not the one in charge here.""Let her go!" James makes a move towards Maxwell,
As James packs his bags, he paces back and forth as if he wanted to grab Maxwell's neck with his own hands. Sitting on the bed, trembling and still unable to believe the worst news she could receive, Mariana simply intertwines her hands and gazes at some invisible point on the wall.With crossed arms leaning against the bedroom doorway, Isabella's youngest son stares at the curly-haired man as if he knows his true violent intentions. Then he turns his gaze to Mariana."You suddenly became so quiet. What's wrong? Don't you like the moving plans?"There is scorn and mockery in his voice. The girl looks away, as if she could ignore his presence."Please, leave her alone," James pleads, still finishing up Mariana's things."And what did I do? It was just a simple question."As if the journalist's patience was wearing thin, which it was, James stops what he's doing, stands up, and coldly stares at Maxwell for a few seconds before speaking:"Mariana had a recent bleeding, and we received de
Maximilian Philips looks from side to side before entering the dark building at the end of the street, its glass doors preventing any curious onlookers from seeing what goes on inside.As expected, as soon as he takes the first steps on the dirty and dusty ground floor, two menacing brutes approach him, not seeming very inclined to ask before striking."Your boss summoned me," he says as a greeting, raising his hands in the air. One of them holds a small envelope."What's the password?" one of the brutes asks."Great White Shark."Seconds of silence.The other brute, who could very well be the twin of the first, juts his chin to appear larger and superior. He snatches the envelope from Maximilian's still-raised hands and opens it rudely.After counting the hundred-dollar bills, he signals to the other man, who starts frisking Maximilian from top to bottom. The entire operation takes less than twenty seconds."He's clean," Security One growls, as Maximilian mentally decides to call him
The entire journey is silent, tense, and absolutely terrifying.Not because Mariana has been attacked or frightened by Maxwell; in fact, the driver and now the new watchdog didn't even look at her while driving the black sedan with equally dark tinted windows.But knowing that James was officially out of the game, even if he claimed to have a plan, was a terrible sign that they wouldn't easily escape from that impasse.The only thing that gave her a glimmer of hope, albeit not much, was knowing that Daniel, somewhere, was gathering as much information as possible about the woman's ex-husband and, of course, uncovering any connections it might have with Isabelle and Maxwell.It was almost dusk when the man made a turn onto the dirt road, entering a partially hidden terrain surrounded by lush trees and the surrounding landscape.The approaching house appears quite large, albeit strategically camouflaged. All Mariana can see is the garage gate approaching, along with the windows with clo
Mariana runs toward the window, driven by the desperate need to escape the situation. Her heart beats fast, and fear mixed with determination drives her forward. However, before she can reach it, Maxwell moves quickly, blocking her way.He holds her by the arms firmly, his gaze now filled with anger. The tone of debauchery is completely gone, giving way to an expression of restrained fury."You shouldn't have done that, Mariana," he says between his teeth, his voice full of menace. "I gave you a chance to follow the rules, to be safe. But you chose to disobey."Mariana struggles to free herself from Maxwell's grip, but her efforts are in vain. He is much stronger than she is, and his determination to keep her under control is relentless."Let me go!" she screams, fighting back the tears of frustration and fear that threaten to escape. "I will not stay here as a prisoner!"Maxwell stares at her with an icy stare, his eyes filled with contempt."You don't understand, Mariana. There is n
The bar was incredibly crowded.Disguised appropriately, doing everything possible to avoid unwanted attention, Maxmilian sipped on a glass of whiskey (which tasted terrible, but he couldn't complain) next to a supposed stranger.The men and women entering the bar, mostly tattooed and grim-faced, barely looked each other in the eye. Silently, they would only request their daily dose of whatever drink they preferred, then glance around, observing everyone who came and went.A man nearly tripped over Maxmilian's foot, but wisely he stepped back against the wall to avoid a collision with the oblivious man. The stranger smiled."Well, you seem fine," he murmured."Do I? I suppose it's a habit."The stranger chuckled."Apparently, it runs in the family."That could mean anything. Max raised an eyebrow."So, when will I see him? We've been here for almost two hours.""Keep your impatience to yourself. We didn't bring you here for no reason."Resigned, all the businessman did was audibly sig