IVY
The next place I found myself was in a dark room. I don't have any idea how I got there as the last thing I remembered was Santos and Chris lifting me. I attempted to stand up but couldn't. My hands and legs were tied to an unknown place. This was when I realized that this was more than what I thought. "Where am I?" Rhetorical questions started flowing out of my mouth as I kicked my legs and penetrated my body for an escape but couldn't escape. "Somebody help me! Help... Somebody please help me!" I screamed with my deepest tone but no help was coming- only my voice echoing in the background. I stopped screaming when I heard some footsteps. They became louder... Wait! The footsteps were approaching me. "Who is there? Who the heck are you?" I sounded rudely but the footsteps just kept approaching me but finally stopped. I could feel that someone was standing before me, not just someone- but someone I know too well. "Just tell me right now, who you are, you don't know me and you won't like it when I tell you who I am..." I threatened but the person pulled a trigger and pointed it right on my face. I yelped in fright. This was no longer a child's play! This is SERIOUS. "Will you keep quiet or you die?" A muscular voice echoed. That voice was not ordinary, I knew him. "Lysander?" I called out and the lights went on. That was Lysander pointing a gun straight to my face. I don't know why he was doing that but his face was so doomed like something terrible happened. "What's the meaning of all these, Xander? Why did you tie me to this wall? And where are we?" I inquired, my voice trembling in fear. He squatted and looked straight to my face, his eyes darting around my body with rage, he inquired "I will ask you for the last time, Ivy. Why did you stab Cameil?" I swallowed some spits as I shook in so much fear. I can tell that Lysander was ready to kill me if he was asked to and he just asked me a question that he won't believe my answer. "Answer me, Ivy! Why did you stab Cameil in her belly knowing very well that she's pregnant?" Lysander's voice added but this time, it came with a lot of echoing. "I didn't stab, Cameil! She did that to herself..." I responded but Lysander stood up with a yell "Liar! You are lying to my face even after seeing you stab her with my two eyes! I saw you stabbing Cameil. I saw the knife in your hands, you did that to her..." "You saw the knife with me because she threw it on my body!" I cut him off, my voice still trembling as usual. "And now, she lost her baby! She lost my only child you goddamn FOOL!" Lysander yelled with an uproarious voice and I shook my head vigorously. "NO, Xander! Camel wasn't even pregnant! She has been lying to you all these while and even did this to herself just to see it as a cover to defend herself from being actually pregnant... Believe me, Xander, she's a big-time liar!" I was still shaking in fear while I uttered all these- hoping for him to believe me but he only looked at me with so much disgust. I've never seen that amount of disdain in his eyes before. I can testify that Lysander doesn't love me but at the same time, he hasn't looked at me like this before even when he was mad. With the way he stared at me, he saw me as a murderer and one thing about him is that he hates Murderers because his dad was also MURDERED. Lysander stepped back a bit and clicked the trigger "An eye for an eye and a life for a life! You killed my unborn child, I will have to take yours...." He was about to release the bullets When someone opened the door. It was a doctor, Mr Yaren. He is the chief Doctor of Lysander's hospital, meaning we are in a hospital. "Mr. Steel, the patient has lost a lot of blood and needs immediate transfusion. Studies have it that her blood group was out of blood bank and we need immediate blood transfusion ASAP..." Mr Yaren halted and looked at me before continuing "Miss Cameil shares the same blood group with Mrs Steel. With your permission, can we have a blood transfusion?" "No need for my permission! Take her with you and secret as many pints of blood as you want, I don't care. Just make sure that my wife is alive!" Lysander responded and I shook my head in fear. If I'm not mistaken, Mrs Karen told me to stay away from any SURGICAL activities or TRANSFUSION as it may hinder the life of my unborn child. If this procedure goes on, I will lose my baby!{Cameil}The moment Asmita uttered those words, my heart skipped a beat.My lips trembled as questions flooded my mind like a crashing wave."The hidden CEO of WASTON Group is coming over?"I looked up at Asmita. She had already made the statement — so casually, so confidently — like she had no doubt at all.And that confidence only deepened the chaos swirling in my head.The CEO?Wasn’t Becca Moore the hidden CEO?How could she possibly be coming here when no one even knows who she really is?I was still battling with the whirlwind of thoughts when another guest voiced the exact same questions that were echoing in my mind.> “How are you so sure the unknown CEO is coming? Nobody even knows who she is. Let’s say she shows up—how will we even confirm it’s her? You don’t know who she is, I don’t either. So who’s going to verify her identity?”I found myself nodding unconsciously at the man’s words.He had just asked every single question I was asking myself.I turned back to Asmita, won
{Cameil}Asmita stepped onto the stage and took the microphone. I watched her closely, wondering what she was about to say. Deep inside, a flicker of anxiety stirred—what if she decided to bring up everything I’d ever said to her? The thought circled like smoke in my mind, thick with paranoia.Even though I doubted she would actually rat me out, the fear that she might say something to put me in trouble gnawed at my nerves. Still, I forced myself to settle down, bracing for whatever she had planned.She stood there for a moment, smiling at the crowd as they chatted and sipped on their drinks. Then suddenly, she flashed me a strange kind of glare—sharp, knowing—and turned back to the audience.“I’m pretty sure most of you have been excited to see what I’ve prepared for this party,” she began, her voice smooth and confident. “But before I announce anything, I want to take a moment to appreciate every single one of you for coming to celebrate my return to this amazing country—after all t
{Cameil's POV}Everything that happened today left me in complete disarray. The stress was unbearable. My mind was spinning with the weight of the truth behind the earring—and how it was all beginning to unravel.I sat in a quiet corner, sipping my drink slowly, trying to pull myself together. The memories kept replaying in my head like a cruel movie I couldn’t turn off.From the very beginning, my plan had always been simple: get rid of Asmita. I wanted her gone—off the hook entirely. Ivy’s growing suspicion was becoming impossible to ignore. The way she looked at me… the way she asked questions… the way her eyes lingered just a second too long.She was starting to connect dots.And I couldn’t afford that.The only way to protect myself was to shift all the blame to Asmita. Make Ivy believe that she was the monster behind it all. That way, I’d prove myself innocent in Ivy’s eyes. That was the plan.I took another sip, the drink doing little to calm my nerves.That day, I had ordered
~IvyI still couldn’t fully comprehend what Ethan was saying. Everything was happening so fast that my mind could barely catch up. I hadn’t expected the truth to come out this soon—definitely not like this.The plan had always been to expose Asmita’s and Cameil’s devilish ways to the world. That was it. I never imagined that Ethan had another card up his sleeve. Never did it cross my mind that my own secret—the one I had guarded for so long—would also be laid bare today.Trying to piece together everything, I furrowed my brows and turned to Ethan.“Ethan,” I began carefully, my voice trembling slightly, “I understand that this might seem like the perfect chance to reveal who I truly am. But have you thought about how unrealistic this sounds? There’s no way the public can suddenly accept that I’m the hidden CEO of the WASTON Group when they have no idea I’m even showing up. How do you plan to make that happen? It won’t make sense for me to just walk on stage and declare that I’ve been
~IvyI let out a slow, satisfied grin. Ethan’s plan was pure genius. How could he even think of something this perfect? It wouldn’t just expose those witches—it would drag them straight to jail. Finally… justice would be served. Justice for my son.“This will be the perfect chance to expose those two bitches, Ivy!” Rach said, excitement flashing in her eyes. “It’ll be like a movie—one wild rollercoaster they never expected. Especially when they’re the ones who dug their own graves!”Ethan nodded firmly, then stepped closer. “Everything you’ve been fighting for all these years is finally coming true, Ivy. Everything you cried for, everything you lost… today, it all comes back to you. Especially the justice for your son. Tell me, Ivy—how great does that sound?”I nodded, my voice trapped in my throat as tears slipped down my face. Memories poured in like a flood—sharp and cruel.The moment the doctor handed me the pregnancy report. The way I smiled when I saw the word positive. How I al
~IvyHearing that Ethan had a plan, I immediately rushed toward him, curiosity burning through my veins.“What’s the plan, Ethan? What is it about?” I asked eagerly, hoping his idea would finally give us a way to expose those heartless witches.Rach leaned forward beside me, her voice filled with determination. “Yes, Ethan. We’re all eager to hear what you’ve cooked up this time. Tell us what we need to do to finally bring those devilish women down!”Ethan took a slow breath, his eyes darting between us before he finally spoke. “I just came from the auditorium,” he said calmly. “The living room is already filled with guests. Lysander is there, Cameil too. Cameil’s mother and father showed up as well—and even Lysander’s mom is sitting right at the front.”Rach and I exchanged quick glances as Ethan continued, his tone growing more deliberate. “A lot of guests are present. There are representatives from different NGOs too. But do you know the best part of it all?”We both shook our head