Thea's eyes fluttered open, greeted by a nightmarish scene of chaos. Wreckage surrounded her, and a fiery inferno raged just beyond the shattered window. In the dim light, she could make out the silhouettes of her parents, slumped and motionless.
"Mom? Dad?" Her voice barely escaped her throat, stifled by the pain coursing through her body. She strained to call out to them, but her hazy mind struggled to stay focused. Every movement was agony, and she winced, fighting to keep her eyes open.
Outside, voices called urgently, and then a figure leaned into the window.
"Over here! Someone's still conscious!" The rescuer's voice pierced the chaos, and strong hands pulled Thea from the backseat, her body protesting in pain.
Just as she was about to beg them to save her parents, a deafening explosion erupted, throwing her back. When her eyes cleared, she saw the car engulfed in flames, her parents trapped inside.
"Mom! Dad!" Her anguished cry filled the ai
“Hello, Thea? This is Sofia…”Thea had a hard time keeping her expression neutral as she looked up at Mrs. Kyle. But there was no fooling the woman.“Oh, hello. How may I help you?” Thea asked and Mrs. Kyle made a sign about putting the call on speaker. Thea Ignored her, there was no need for Mrs. Kyle to hear what she had to say. She still didn’t know whether to trust her or not too.“I, uh… I wanted to apologize for last night,” She said slowly.“Oh? This is unexpected…” Thea trailed off wondering why the woman sounded so remorseful about everything. She didn’t seem like she would be regretting anything she did last night.“I acted impulsively and was kind of aggressive,” Sofia said calmly.“Yes, you did. Which is making me less inclined to believe that you would feel remorseful from last night to today,” She said wondering if there was someone behind this attitude.“I heard some disturbing information about you and kind of believed it, I didn’t mean to treat you like that. I talked
Thea fixed Lucian with a stern, yet conflicted gaze as he leaned against the door, a sheepish smile playing on his lips."You can't keep being mad at me like this. Come on..." he prodded, flashing his endearing, boyish smile that, much to her chagrin, only accentuated his handsomeness."I can, and I will. I can't believe I did that in front of Mrs. Kyle," she lamented, her voice tinged with a mix of frustration and embarrassment. He cautiously stepped closer, reaching out for her arms."But she left the room before we did anything. You saw it too," he pointed out, trying to alleviate her embarrassment.She had indeed noticed Mrs. Kyle's exit, but Thea couldn't shake the mortification of letting herself be drawn into that impulsive kiss. Her cheeks burned with a rosy hue, and she sighed, her gaze dropping to the floor."Still, it doesn't make it any less embarrassing," she mumbled, and he tenderly took her arms in his hands, his fingers tracing slow circles on her skin.Her gaze lifted
Thea didn’t need to think to answer Sofia’s question. There was no need to hide the truth but she needed to hear her side of the story first. If her uncle was tattling about her because of what she did last time. This should be her responsibility. Something she should resolve before it got to affect Lucian’s inheritance.“If you’re asking if I begged my uncle for money then no, I did not,” Thea said confidently her tone steady and her eyes meeting Sofia’s who was looking at her with a critical gaze.“It seems like this is what your uncle is saying though. He went on about you barging in on his dinner with an associate and demanding money from him…” Sofia said, “To be honest, I thought that you needed money and this is why you got engaged to Lucian which made me worry about him.When I looked into it. I realized that you didn’t have access to your trust fund and that your mother left the account to your uncle so I directly assumed that you were in there for Lucian’s money. I doubted yo
“It feels like my house had been colonized by my wife and mistress and they happened to get along well,” said James, Thea’s Grandfather’s secretary as he leaned back against the kitchen counter of her grandfather’s house watching as Sofia and Mrs. Kyle went on about whether an old dress was or wasn’t appropriate for a wedding.“That in itself is a very scary situation to be in, James,” Her grandfather said with a sigh and James chuckled.“You sound like you know that too well, Grandpa,” Thea added and her grandfather completely ignored her comment while James gave her a wink.“When I told you to think about using the dress, I didn’t ask you to bring a fashion designer into the house. That woman is going to give me a headache with all of her questions,” Her grandfather complained as he watched Sofia examine the contents of the trunk sitting before her.“You’re not even the one answering them so what is it to you? Uncle James was the one answering all of their questions in the first pla
When Lucian stepped into the house, he was surprised to see the lights off. He finished his work early that day and decided to make the trip back before they were expecting him.Usually, by this time, the house would be bustling with Mrs. Kyle preparing dinner and Thea around the house somewhere busy with her research and course preparations. But the house was plunged in darkness and if it weren’t for the light on in the study he would have assumed that no one was home.Putting down his bag, he made his way to the side of the house where he found Mrs Kyle busy doing laundry. Surprised to see him she was startled for a moment before she spoke.“You’re back! I thought you said you’d be here tomorrow,” She said.“I finished early, where is Thea?” He asked and Mrs. Kyle looked away, “Is something going on?” He asked feeling dread fill him for a moment.He just talked to her earlier that day when she complained about Sofia taking her around for wedding preparations. Did something really ha
Thea made her way out of the changing room and sighed.“This is hopeless,” she told her friends.“That’s not true, we managed to do a lot today don’t let it bother you too much,” Sofia said patting her on the shoulder as she took the dress from her hand.It was the second fitting session. The first one ended as soon as Thea touched the dress and instead, they made do with the prototype Sofia had prepared to make sure that the design fit her well.They made a lot of progress last time, with Lucian by her side holding her hand all the time. She felt like she was able to overcome some of her baseless fears.This time, Sofia forbade him from coming in declaring that this was as far as he was getting away with this. The groom should not be able to see the dress.So instead he called Pen and Peter to stay with her in the changing room and see the dress.He was so dedicated to supporting her with this that she felt like crying sometimes.“I don’t know what to say. To be honest, I would like
Thea looked at the dress before her in awe for a moment as Sofia’s helpers rolled it inside. Peter whistled from beside her as he leaned back on the couch and Pen gushed at the dress. “Oh my god. It looks beautiful,” Pen said excitedly. Thea, unable to speak, simply nodded as she looked at the dress making her wonder if it was truly made for her. The dress has an off-shoulder neckline like her mother’s with overlapping sleeves. But there was something added to the sleeves, some embroidery and lace making it much more delicate and actually like a different dress. The A-shaped form flared to the floor gradually into a graceful trail with beaded shapes and some sort of translucent fabric which made the dress look almost ethereal. “Is that really based on my mother’s dress?” Thea asked hesitantly and Sofia nodded with a smile. “It’s the exact same design, although it would take time to enhance the dress to become like this. I think that it’s perfectly doable,” She declared proudly as s
“To think that we would be getting something like this…” Thea trailed off as she stood by the kitchen counter, “Do people even use this these days? Collage threatening letters…”Lucian rubbed the back of his neck seeming stressed as he gazed down at the colorful piece of paper on the counter a line forming at the side of his mouth.“I don’t know, but this is getting a bit too frequent,” He said tersely.“Delay the wedding or else… Or else what?” She asked lightly and Lucian looked at her with a raised eyebrow.“You seem pretty relaxed about this. It’s a threatening letter, you know…” He told her.“I know. I was the one who found it this morning. To be honest, compared to the bursting pipes in the venue. The closed-down cake bakery and all the ruined businesses that had to suffer because we chose them to cater for the wedding, this is quite straightforward. My conscience was getting a bit heavy,” She said and he sighed nodding in silence.Since they started preparing for their wedding.
“Oh lord…” Thea mumbled as she closed her eyes looking down at the book in her hands barely seeing the words.“Did you say something?” Lucian asked as he leaned forward on the kitchen counter to look at her.“No, nothing,” she said with a smile, and he nodded, going back to preparing whatever it is that he was preparing.Thea stole another glance at him, feeling her heartbeat faster at the sight of him in his unbuttoned shirt and waistcoat hugging his muscles in a perfect fit that made her almost swoon. It had been like this since she got back from the hospital, so much that it had gotten unbearable.At first, Lucian was simply more attentive, especially since she was having trouble dealing with the pain from moving around. He had been adamant about not leaving her alone to the point of intending to sleep on the chair bestie her!In the end, he slept the whole night on the bed beside her on top of the covers when she insisted that he shouldn’t sleep on the chair. He didn’t touch her n
For a while, it was quiet. An absolute quietness that was both peaceful and disturbing. There were moments like flashes when voices would reach her sometimes calling her name and sometimes talking amongst each other. But she was never able to pull through long enough to truly know what was going on.It was by the time that her awareness grew more alert when she heard them. The two distinct voices she knew so well.“How could you let this happen?! How could you when she was right beside you?!”“When are you going to stop blaming others for your own problems? You lost Thea because you acted like you could control her. Stop trying to blame me and start trying to figure out how to redeem yourself!”These words were followed by the distinct sound of a slap. And even in her sleep, Thea would later realize what truly went on that day.“…”“Are you alright?” Another voice asked.“Yeah… can you go check on him?”The silence that followed after that was deafening. Thea tried shifting her hand a
“You didn’t answer my question,” Lucian said in the same calm tone as if this man hadn’t just threatened to violate her in front of him. “Who. Is. Behind. You” Lucian enunciated each word coming out of his mouth.Thea’s eyes moved away from the sight before her to look at Lucian’s hands. They were clenched in tight fists that she could distinguish through the darkness. She didn’t need to doubt whether or not Lucian was provoked by this man’s words. Because she could feel the rage coursing through his tight muscles ready to spring out at a moment’s notice.The man paused looking at Lucian with a blank face, the smile completely gone as he looked at him. Thea thought for a moment that he was going to turn violent when he simply asked.“Why? Are you going to pay me more than them?” He asked.Thea felt instant relief when the man said that, if he could be convinced with money, then…“If we can reach a deal,” Lucian answered, and the man smirked.Something was wrong, seriously wrong. His e
Thea's head felt as if it was going to split in pain as she began to regain her consciousness. She groaned and tried to shift wondering why she was having another hangover when she didn't even remember drinking. That's when the memory of her last moment of consciousness hit her brutally like a slap.Thea opened her eyes frantically looking around her. In a panicked move that did nothing but kick her back to the concrete ground with a hard thud as her hands remained tied behind her back unable to do anything to block the impact.The air got knocked from her lungs and she gritted her teeth looking around her trying to distinguish where she was only to hear a voice from near her."Hey... It's okay, don't move abruptly,"Thea turned around and felt her eyes well up with tears as she looked into the blue eyes she had been trying so hard to avoid for more than a month."What happened?" She asked as she tried to sit up this time succeeding as she maneuvered herself up."We were kidnapped. I
"What the hell did you just do?" Thea looked back at her friend to find her looking at her with a deep frown as she held her phone in her hand mid-gesture as if she was too shocked to continue what she was doing."I asked him to leave..." Thea answered simply and Pen sighed."I know. I was there. But why would you do this? He came all the way here from his meeting and raised hell because they took you in like this,""Well. that's all pretense. We're supposed to be a loving couple after all. I just don't want him involved too much in my problems," Thea stated as she turned around intending to walk outside."Are you okay with this?" Pen asked."Of course. This is for the best," She stated feeling a pang in her chest at the words she uttered.Somehow, she could see Lucian's blue gaze as it filled with hurt when she asked him to leave. His face as he looked up at her on the stairs telling her that he wanted to be with her. "Are you sure you're okay with this? Didn't you go a bit too far
Everything was a lie… Every single thing. Every moment, every word, and every touch. Even the sincere moments of consolation that drew out her strength, and the silly fights over small things. It was all a well-orchestrated scheme to make her hopelessly fall in love. How ridiculous is that? Just how much effort did it have to take to make her believe this? A pang rang through Thea’s chest as she felt the moment of realization she had been avoiding for more than a month draw near. “Did you hear what I just said, Professor Keaton?” The detective asked and Thea looked at him a bit out of it trying to gather her thoughts. “Sorry, can you repeat that?” She asked as she looked at him. “I was asking if you knew something about the money. Your uncle keeps insisting that you used it for illegal activities and we can’t find any trace of it in your accounts,” the detective said making Thea sigh. “As I said for the fifth time. There are no unusual activities and the money went to charity,” s
"Professor... Professor Keaton!" Thea was startled as she looked back at her student who was looking at her with a worried expression on her face."Yes... Sorry, I was lost in thought for a moment there," She said with a soft smile."You seem more tired after coming from your honeymoon, Professor. Are you sure that you're okay?" She insisted and Thea smiled at the young woman and nodded."Of course, I was just thinking about something. did you want something?" She asked."Oh, yes. There was another bouquet for you from your husband. I left it in your new office, and the data from last week's tests are out," She said with a sly smile as she handed her the results printed on a document.As she looked down at it to find a little envelope on top."This is.." She began only to find her student already walking away with a grin."Came with the flowers!" She announced as she disappeared into the other side of the lab.She lifted the envelope to find her name written on it with the distinct
Lucian woke up with a start as his hand slipped from the edge of the table making him lose his equilibrium. Looking around him, he sighed when he realized that he was still sitting in the kitchen with the lights on waiting before his silent phone.He had returned home that evening from work eager to try and have dinner with Thea, knowing that she should be home before him. As he waited and waited, he realized that Thea was probably dining outside and had his meal in lonely silence mulling over how to win her over again.Walking through the house, he sighed at the unfamiliarity of the place. It was a new house even for him. A place he had been hoping to live in with her. Now that he was, he realized that just living with her was never going to be enough. Because even though she was by his side, she felt farther away than when she disappeared last month.Reaching for his phone, he took a deep breath and tapped the screen calling her phone. The call went straight to voicemail. Worry star
Thea walked into the coffee shop looking around for her friend. She waved at her from across the room, and as she was walking toward her, she could see that she wasn't alone.Thea paused giving an exasperated sigh as she glared at the grinning, other person, who wasn't supposed to be there. Instead of looking guilty or even bothered, he smiled at her and lifted his cup in greeting.Thea looked at the door ready to walk outside, but the sight of the mint tea waiting for her on the table made her hesitate. Making a split-moment decision, she gave in to temptation and sat down reaching for the cup and inhaling the fresh herbal scent."Told you that the tea would be a good bait..." Peter said with a smirk and Pen sighed."Sorry. He insisted on coming as soon as he knew that we were meeting," She said.Thea took a sip from her tea and savored it completely ignoring the two."Well, she's not answering my calls and she's never in her office when I visit. If I go to her house, Lucian will pro