Hayden-When I heard the gunshot, I flinched behind Dominic. I was afraid to look, as I wasn’t sure who Lexus had shot. I heard a commotion around me, making me want to see what was happening. Looking around Dominic, I saw Lexus lying on the ground with his mother crying as she sat by his feet.“Is he dead?” Dominic muttered, but he didn’t move away from me.Agent Leo moved over to where Lexus was, knelt beside him, and felt for a pulse. “He is dead.”Only after confirmation that Lexus was dead did Dominic move away from me. “Although things are finally over, it is a pity he didn’t live long enough to face his crimes.”“Cuff her.” Agent Leo motioned toward Lexus’s mother.“Wait!” I rushed forward and blocked the FBI agent who walked toward Lexus’s mother. “Can’t you let her go?”“It is okay, Dear.” Lexus’s mother patted me on my back. “This is for the best.”“But from my understanding, you haven’t done anything wrong. You even helped us.” I didn’t know why I was trying to help her, bu
Hayden-Since Lexus was no longer in the picture, everything seemed a lot calmer. In the last four weeks, Dominic and my father have been working to bring Fox Ink back to its former glory. They also worked on other businesses.I wasn’t involved with anything as much as I wanted, but it didn’t matter. I still owned the companies my grandfather left me, but my father and Dominic wanted to help me smooth things over. It didn’t bother me too much since I didn’t know the first thing about running a business.I offered to give my father the companies, as he should have been the one to inherit everything, but he declined. Once the companies were in shape, he just wanted to teach me to run everything. He told me that if he had been younger, he wouldn’t mind, but a lot of things have changed while he was in a coma.There were still things he needed to learn. He did agree to help manage things for a few years until I gave birth and the child was old enough to start school. My father also remind
Hayden-Once he bent over, I secured the blindfold around him and led him out of the house. I guided him to the passenger seat of his Jeep, helped him inside, and shut the door. Once in the driver’s seat, I moved the seat up a little before starting the vehicle.It didn’t take long to arrive at the venue. Lily was waiting for us, holding the wedding dress in her hand. Tristan was also waiting with a broad smile on his face. I knew I could trust Lily by getting Tristan prepared. He had a tuxedo similar to Dominic's, except the colors of his tuxedo were opposite of Dominic’s.“We are doing a double date.” I told Dominic as I got out of the car.Another thing to report: Tristan and Lily were officially a couple. This surprised me at first, but I realized I saw it coming once the shock wore off. Lily admitted they had been dating for two months, but I didn’t learn about it until two weeks ago. I didn’t know if they would have a happily ever after, but at least they both seemed happy curre
Hayden-“We have something to talk to the both of you about.” My mother said after we finished eating breakfast.Almost every morning, it was more of a ritual for the family to sit together to eat. It was the only time we were able to spend time together. I was in my senior year of high school, so I rarely had time to be at home between classes, cheerleading, debate team, advanced college classes, and hanging out with friends.The same went for the rest of the family. My mother was a surgeon at the hospital, so she spent a lot of time away from home. My father died when I was young, but my mother remarried six years ago. Not only did I get a stepfather, but I also got a stepbrother.My stepfather was a businessman, but I was pretty sure he lied about his job. A few times, I found blood stains on his clothes. My stepbrother, Dominic, was the same way. He was four years older than me and getting ready to graduate from college.Every so often, Dominic would return home late at night with
Hayden-It has been four years since I received the most devastating news of my life. Four years of living with the most profound regret of my life. In less than a month, I would graduate from college, and I was already dreading the day.I was tempted not to graduate at all. Knowing my family died at the same time I was on stage receiving my high school diploma, I didn’t feel like I deserved to graduate. If it weren’t for my best friend, Lillian Conner, whom I call Lily, I would have considered ending my life on the day that I was supposed to graduate.It would be a bittersweet way to die. I had gone as far as writing a suicide note, but Lily had found it and convinced me not to. I met Lily on my first day of freshman year, and we have been friends and roommates ever since. At first, I hadn’t wanted to be her friend, but she pestered me endlessly until I gave in.Her life was almost as tragic as mine. When she was a senior in high school, her family had been killed in a car accident.
Hayden-Arriving at the bar, Tristan led me to a table in the back of the room. We sat in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes until a waitress arrived to take our order. I was relieved when he ordered a few shots and a couple of mixed drinks for each of us.“I can see that you are tense.” Tristan said after the waitress returned with the shots and then left. “I thought you might feel a little better with a little liquid courage.”I took the two shots that he placed in front of me and downed them one after another. It didn’t take long for the shots to take effect. It wasn’t enough to make me feel drunk, but it did loosen me up a bit.For the next hour, we chatted about random things. I learned he was the vice president of Fox Ink, one of the largest publishing companies in the world. I told him about my career goals, and for once, I was looking forward to it.Even if the booze was easing my troubled soul, I started to believe that I would eventually be able to let go of the past en
Hayden-“Daddy!” The female cried.Looking up, I saw the unknown female crawl over to the dead man, leaning over his body and shaking him. The more she shook him, the more he bled. As the pool of blood increased, so did the bile in my stomach.I felt the urge to vomit again, but I couldn’t move. With wide eyes, I watched as the female cried over her father’s body. I should have listened to Dominic when he told me to leave. If I had, I wouldn’t have been responsible for killing someone.Despite the female’s protest, she was hauled to her feet and dragged to the door. One of the men who came with them picked up the man I shot and carried him away on his back. The female’s red and swollen eyes met mine when they were at the door with a deadly glare.“You will regret this day.” The female screamed as she was pulled out of the room.Once they were gone, I looked down at my trembling hands, still clutching the gun. Although I knew I didn’t touch any blood, my eyes played tricks on me. Dropp
Hayden-“What is all this?” I asked, sitting down at the table.Dominic was still in the kitchen, with his back turned toward me. I didn’t think I would have much of an appetite, but I couldn’t resist leaning forward and grabbing a piece of bacon off one of the plates. As I took a bite, I looked up just as Dominic turned around.Forgetting about the food, I stopped chewing and stared at Dominic. He wore an apron over a black dress shirt with rolled-up sleeves. Balancing two plates, he walked toward the table. Ever since I have known him, I have never seen him cook.This was also the first time he had ever seemed domesticated. At the same time, a dangerous energy was surrounding him, giving off the perfect balance. It took me a moment to realize I was staring.Forgetting the food in my mouth, I swallowed and almost choked on the bacon. Covering my mouth as I coughed, I reached for the water next to my plate. Taking a few gulps, I set the cup down and patted my chest.“I didn’t know wha
Hayden-Once he bent over, I secured the blindfold around him and led him out of the house. I guided him to the passenger seat of his Jeep, helped him inside, and shut the door. Once in the driver’s seat, I moved the seat up a little before starting the vehicle.It didn’t take long to arrive at the venue. Lily was waiting for us, holding the wedding dress in her hand. Tristan was also waiting with a broad smile on his face. I knew I could trust Lily by getting Tristan prepared. He had a tuxedo similar to Dominic's, except the colors of his tuxedo were opposite of Dominic’s.“We are doing a double date.” I told Dominic as I got out of the car.Another thing to report: Tristan and Lily were officially a couple. This surprised me at first, but I realized I saw it coming once the shock wore off. Lily admitted they had been dating for two months, but I didn’t learn about it until two weeks ago. I didn’t know if they would have a happily ever after, but at least they both seemed happy curre
Hayden-Since Lexus was no longer in the picture, everything seemed a lot calmer. In the last four weeks, Dominic and my father have been working to bring Fox Ink back to its former glory. They also worked on other businesses.I wasn’t involved with anything as much as I wanted, but it didn’t matter. I still owned the companies my grandfather left me, but my father and Dominic wanted to help me smooth things over. It didn’t bother me too much since I didn’t know the first thing about running a business.I offered to give my father the companies, as he should have been the one to inherit everything, but he declined. Once the companies were in shape, he just wanted to teach me to run everything. He told me that if he had been younger, he wouldn’t mind, but a lot of things have changed while he was in a coma.There were still things he needed to learn. He did agree to help manage things for a few years until I gave birth and the child was old enough to start school. My father also remind
Hayden-When I heard the gunshot, I flinched behind Dominic. I was afraid to look, as I wasn’t sure who Lexus had shot. I heard a commotion around me, making me want to see what was happening. Looking around Dominic, I saw Lexus lying on the ground with his mother crying as she sat by his feet.“Is he dead?” Dominic muttered, but he didn’t move away from me.Agent Leo moved over to where Lexus was, knelt beside him, and felt for a pulse. “He is dead.”Only after confirmation that Lexus was dead did Dominic move away from me. “Although things are finally over, it is a pity he didn’t live long enough to face his crimes.”“Cuff her.” Agent Leo motioned toward Lexus’s mother.“Wait!” I rushed forward and blocked the FBI agent who walked toward Lexus’s mother. “Can’t you let her go?”“It is okay, Dear.” Lexus’s mother patted me on my back. “This is for the best.”“But from my understanding, you haven’t done anything wrong. You even helped us.” I didn’t know why I was trying to help her, bu
Dominic-As soon as I saw the flash of metal, I reacted. Lurching forward, I pushed past Agent Leo. I didn’t care about anything other than preventing Lexus from harming Hayden. Putting myself between Hayden and Lexus, I grabbed the blade of the knife with my hand.“It is over. You have lost.” I ignored the pain of my palm being cut open as I kept a firm grip on the blade.With my free hand, I removed my mask. Lexus released the knife and stepped back right into Agent Leo’s hands. Dropping the knife, I wrapped the mask around my injured hand. As Leo tried to cuff Lexus, I turned around and pulled Hayden in my arms.“You all tricked me!” Leo screamed.“Dominic?” My chest muffled her voice.“It is me.” I tightened my hold on her as I thought about how close I came to losing her. “I never should have pretended and let you be the one to expose him.”“Wait.” Hayden wedged her hands between us, shoving me away from her. “This was your plan?” She looked from me to Tristan, then to Agent Leo,
Hayden-Upon arriving at the press conference, I was a bundle of nerves. Throughout my school years, public speaking had never been my thing. I could perform in front of an audience, but this was a lot different. It helped that Alexander stood in front of everyone with me since he handled the inheritance.“I knew you would do the right thing.” Lexus covered the microphone and leaned over to whisper. “Don’t worry. If you do your part, I will release your friends.”Little did Lexus know that Lily, Tristan, and my father were in the crowd wearing masks. Taking a deep breath, I tried to keep my emotions to myself so he wouldn’t suspect anything. Nodding my head, I looked down at my feet.“First, I want to address that Dominic Fox was recently hit by a car and passed away. Although there have been issues between us in the past, we were good friends. Some time ago, I bought many shares of his company because we planned to join Parker Publishing and Fox Ink to embark on a path to lead the wo
Hayden-Over the next couple of days, news about Dominic’s condition blew up. Other than the day Lexus announced he would hold a press conference, I haven’t been able to return to Fox Ink. Almost everyone had been fired, including Tristan. Lexus brought over his employees to keep Fox Ink running.I had almost announced that I was the company's largest shareholder, but Tristan suggested I wait. Agent Leo informed me that the press conference was the perfect opportunity to bring Lexus down. I thought I would be able to do something to save Fox Ink from Lexus, but there wasn’t anything I could do.“Isn’t Tristan supposed to be here by now?” My father rolled his chair out of the kitchen, carrying a plate of sandwiches.“I got a text from him an hour ago, informing me he would be late.” I leaned back on the couch, crossing my legs under me.“Any news about how Dominic is?” He placed the plate on the couch next to me.I had a craving for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, so my father want
Hayden-When I woke up, I was lying in a hospital bed in the same room as Dominic. “How long was I asleep?” I asked Tristan, who was the only other person in the room.“Twelve hours.” Tristan stood from his chair and came to sit next to me on my bed. “How are you feeling?”“Fine.” I turned to look at Dominic, who seemed to be sleeping. “Has he woken up? How is he?” I returned my attention to Tristan.“He hasn’t woken up, and there is a chance he won’t, at least not for a while.” He diverted his gaze.Lifting the covers off me, I climbed out of bed. Walking a few feet to Dominic’s bed, I sat beside him. As I had done with my father, I held his hand in mine. I said nothing, afraid I would start crying if I tried.“Hayden?” Jack’s voice came from the door, so I turned to look at him.“What is it?”“Your father woke up.” Jack’s eyes moved from me to Dominic and back again. “If you want to stay here, I can tell him you won’t return now.”“No. It’s okay.” I placed Dominic’s hand back on the
Hayden-Sitting beside my father, I waited for him to wake up. His breathing tube was already removed now that he was breathing on his own. Other than choking on the tube, he hadn’t fully woken.“How long do you think it will take?” I asked Jack, who was sitting in the room with me.“I don’t know, kiddo. I am still blown away by all of this. He has never shown any signs of waking in all the years I have been taking care of him. I don’t know what you said to him, but whatever it was, he must have heard you.”“Do you really think he heard me?” I moved my knee on the bed and rested my hands on it, still holding my father’s hand.“He must have. Before he ended up like this, he had told me that your mother was pregnant. I can still recall the sound of his voice when he told me. Your dad was excited about being a father. I wish he had had the chance to watch you grow up.”“You two must have been close.” I muttered as I glanced at him.He rubbed his hands over his face and sighed. “We were c
Dominic-I hadn’t wanted to leave Hayden, but Agent Leo said it was urgent that we meet today. By now, he should have received everything to convict Lexus. We still had to be cautious, but at least this was almost over.“Thank you for seeing me today.” Agent Leo greeted me after I entered the safe house where I had stayed after he had rescued me from the police station.“If you hadn’t told me it was urgent, I wouldn’t have come. Hayden just found out her biological father is still alive, although he is on life support.”“You should have said something. I would have come to you.” Agent Leo motioned toward the chair across from him. “Since you are here, we will make this quick so you can return to her side.”Sitting at the table with Leo, I scanned the numerous papers scattered around the table. “What is all this?”“I have compiled everything we need to handle Lexus. I also have new leads on everyone who he is working with. Lexus has been busy lately, meeting with a lot of people, all o