“Nicolai, what’s the update?” I asked, urgency lacing my voice.“Amethyst, it’s happening sooner than expected. The warrant has been approved. The police will be at your company shortly to make the arrest. Are you prepared for this?” His tone was serious, yet a hint of encouragement underlined his words.“I’m ready,” I replied, determination solidifying my resolve. “Just tell me when they arrive.”“Stay near the entrance. Keep your composure. This will be a shock for them,” he instructed. I could almost hear his heart racing through the phone, mirroring my own.After I hung up, I paced my office, anticipation swirling in my gut. Victoria watched me, her expression a mix of excitement and apprehension. “What are you thinking?”“I can’t believe this is finally happening,” I said, glancing out the window at the bustling street below. “After all these years of lying and manipulation, they will finally face justice.”A few moments later, the door swung open, and a couple of police officers
Days passed since the arrest of the Sanchez couple, and a sense of relief washed over me. Justice had finally been served, yet I felt an unsettling void. With my mother’s murderers behind bars, I grappled with the aftermath and the next steps I had to take.Then Nicolai stepped in, his unwavering support shining through the tumult. “How about we celebrate?” he suggested one afternoon, a glimmer of excitement in his eyes. “A dinner date?”I hesitated for a moment, the idea both thrilling and daunting. But gratitude swelled within me. Nicolai had helped me find closure, and perhaps a date would help me step out of the shadows of my grief. “I’d love that,” I replied, my heart racing with a mix of nerves and anticipation.He offered to pick me up, and I spent the following hours preparing. In my room, I sifted through my wardrobe, finally settling on a sleek, midnight-blue dress that hugged my figure perfectly. As I applied a light touch of makeup, I caught a glimpse of my reflection. I l
GIDEON'S POVI walked into the hospital, my heart racing after the meeting with Amethyst. I never thought someone could have such an effect on me. Her aura was overwhelming, and I found myself completely captivated by her presence. The way she commanded the room made me feel like a mere puppet, and I hated it. I was supposed to be in control—especially now, with Alexa lying in that hospital bed.I knew I had to confront Amethyst. She’d made it clear that if I didn’t meet her demands, she’d withdraw her investments from my company. The thought of losing everything I worked for was suffocating, but so was the reality of leaving my wife alone in the hospital while I bowed to someone else’s will.As I stepped into Alexa’s room, I was hit by a wave of guilt. She looked at me with that mix of hurt and frustration that made my chest tighten. “Where have you been? Amethyst? Right?” she asked, her voice shaky.“Yes I had to meet Amethyst,” I replied, frustration creeping into my tone. “She’s t
Just as I was starting to gather my thoughts, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out, glancing at the screen. Mr. Sanchez’s name lit up, and my stomach dropped. It was too early for good news.“Gideon,” Mr. Sanchez’s voice came through, shaky and filled with emotion. “We’ve been arrested. They’ve got us locked up here, and we need your help.”I stopped in my tracks, the world around me blurring. “What? What happened?” My heart raced, images of the Sanchez family flashed in my mind—hardworking, kind, always supportive of Alexa and me.“It’s Amethyst. She’s behind this,” he said, despair lacing his words. “You have to believe me. She framed us, Gideon. She’s using us to get to you.”I felt the weight of his words settle like a heavy stone in my stomach. “I’ll be there,” I promised, a sense of urgency flooding through me.I turned on my heel and sprinted back toward the house, adrenaline pumping. As I burst through the door, I found Alexa still in the kitchen, her back turned to m
GIDEON'S POVAs I arrived at the police station, determination surged within me. I had to confront Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez about their past and Amethyst’s claims. The truth was the only way to fight for them—and for Alexa.After checking in with the receptionist, I made my way to the visitation area. The fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, casting a stark glow on the faces of the Sanchez family. I spotted Alexa sitting across from her parents, concern etched on her features as they whispered urgently to one another.“Gideon!” she called out, relief flooding her eyes as I approached. “I was hoping you’d come.”“I need to talk to your parents,” I said, my gaze shifting to Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez. “It’s important.”“Just be careful,” she warned, her voice steady but laced with an unspoken weight.I approached the table, locking eyes with Mr. Sanchez. “I need the truth,” I said firmly. “Did you kill Amethyst’s biological mother? Are you really her parents?”Their faces shifted instantly, shock
Cool evening air slapped me across the face as I stepped out of the police station, jolting me out of the haze of the past few hours. I paused, letting the weight of everything settle upon me, before I made my way to my car. With each step, uncertainty weighted my feet, and Alexa's confrontation replayed like a haunting melody that couldn't be shaken off my mind.Once I got into the car, I shut the door. It echoed in the silence of the night as I searched for my keys in my bag with a nervous heart as I started the engine and left the parking lot. The streetlights glimmered with flickering lights on the passing streets; I hardly noticed most of it because I was dazed."What have I gotten myself into?" I groaned, clutching the steering wheel.Amethyst's pain hung in my mind, like a web of lies those who were supposed to care for her had spun around me. I was stuck, torn between two women who deserved my attention but pulled me in different directions.I drove past the park where childre
AMETHYST POVVictoria leaned against my office door, arms crossed and eyebrows arched in curiosity. “So, how’s your heart in all this dating Nicolai? You’ve got a deal to marry him, right?” Her question pulled me from my thoughts, where I’d been grappling with my feelings and the tangled web of my past.I took a deep breath. "I love everything that Nicolai has done for me, but I am just not ready to get married yet," I said squarely."He can wait for me. My priority is still Gideon and Alexa. I have undone business that needs to be resolved first." I glanced at the framed photo of my mom on my desk, reminding me why I was inspired to seek justice.Victoria drew closer, with a worried expression on her face."You mean your ex-husband and your sister? I thought that you had some closure after the Sanchez couple got arrested."."Closure, yes, but it's not enough," I shot back, my voice laced with frustration."Justice was served for my mother, but I still have this burning need to make G
The crisp night air surrounded me with quiet, humming city sounds as I drove myself to Wild Flower Eats. I slid into the leather coolness of my car and the lavender clung in the air when I turned the engine on. Bathed in the soft lights of streetlights that glistened across the dark expanse of the roads, streets seemed to promise in low whispers something new. Part of me, maybe the smallest part, wondered if this was the night; if this was the night when I let go of all the chains I'd built to lock myself in.I was driving across the city streets; with the windows open, night breeze was sweeping into my windows, and my fingers would go tapping on the steering wheel to the beat of the song that seemed to dance in rhythm with my mind. I did not even know what was happening between us—was it something beyond attraction? Or was it just a desperate cling for a semblance of normalcy in the chaos that made up my life?I realized for the first time in a while, Nicolai made me feel safe at lea
The door to my office slammed behind Nicolai, his presence still lingering in the air like a storm cloud. I stood there, fists clenched, heart racing, as the sound of his footsteps echoed down the hallway. For a moment, I thought I might collapse under the weight of his words. “You owe me, Amethyst. You’re not getting out of this.”I tried to steady my breathing, tried to push the anger and frustration aside. I was done with him. Done.But even as I forced my thoughts to calm, I could feel the storm inside me building. Nicolai hadn’t come to talk—he had come to control, to make sure I stayed trapped in a deal I had made in a moment of weakness. He wasn’t going to let me walk away, but that didn’t mean I had to roll over and let him take everything.I grabbed my coat, my movements sharp and deliberate as I marched out of my office, my heels clicking on the floor with the same intensity that burned in my chest. As I reached the elevator, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Nicolai’s eyes
As the finality of the words echoed in my mind, I slammed the phone down onto the passenger seat, my breath coming in sharp, uneven bursts. The engine hummed louder in the quiet, but it did nothing to drown out the storm brewing in my chest. My grip on the wheel tightened until my knuckles were white, the car speeding through the dark streets as though the road could outrun my thoughts.Gideon. Nicolai. Both of them seemed to be haunting me, lurking at the edges of my mind, tugging at the threads of my past like they thought they had any claim to me. But they didn’t. I wouldn’t let them.I had promised Nicolai I would marry him. I hated how his words echoed in my mind, how they pushed into my thoughts no matter how hard I tried to ignore them. He had helped me bring justice to my mother, had fought alongside me when I needed it most. And in exchange, I had given my word—my promise—that I would marry him. A deal sealed in the chaos of a moment, but a deal nonetheless.I closed my eyes
As I drove through the empty streets, the cool night air creeping through the cracked window, I focused on keeping my grip firm on the steering wheel. The hum of the engine was a dull noise against the thundering thoughts in my head. My pulse still raced from the confrontation with Nicolai, but my mind was more preoccupied with the man who had shown up uninvited: Gideon.I shook my head, trying to clear the confusion swirling in my chest. It had been so long since I’d seen him, and yet, here he was, right when I least expected it.Gideon. I could still feel the weight of his gaze, the way his presence seemed to fill every space between us. But no matter how much he tried to be the hero in my life, I wouldn’t let him back in. Not after everything.The past was filled with too many scars, too many broken promises, for me to entertain the idea of letting him slip back into my life. What he did to me, what we had, couldn’t be undone. I wasn’t some helpless girl waiting for him to save me
Nicolai groaned, shaking his head, clearly dazed from the punch. Blood dripped from his split lip as he glared up at Gideon, struggling to get to his feet. “You think you can just show up and play the hero? You don’t know what’s going on, Gideon.”“I don’t need to know the details,” Gideon shot back, taking a step closer to Nicolai, his presence towering over him. “I just know you’ve hurt her enough. And I’m not going to stand by and let it happen again.”I stood frozen, still reeling from the shock of the scene unfolding in front of me. Gideon. Gideon was the one who had intervened. It had been so long since I’d seen him, let alone spoken to him, and now here he was, protecting me—when I least expected it.Nicolai, still on his knees, wiped the blood from his chin and glared up at both of us, his voice dripping with venom. “This isn’t over,” he spat. “
“Meet me at Marble diner,” I replied.Later that evening, I found myself waiting in a quiet café downtown, the place I had arranged to meet Nicolai. It was a small, secluded spot—ideal for a conversation I had no intention of backing down from.My phone buzzed in my pocket. Nicolai’s name flashed on the screen. My thumb hovered over the notification for a long moment. Should I answer? Should I make him wait?Finally, I clicked open the message.I’m here.I took a deep breath and stood, my posture straight, my expression set. No hesitation. I wasn’t about to let my emotions get the best of me.It didn’t take long before he appeared, cutting through the crowd like he owned the room. Nicolai’s eyes locked with mine instantly. Despite everything, I could still feel the old pull between us—but it was no longer enough to make me falter.He reached the table, his usual confident stride faltering for a split second when he saw the steel in my gaze. I didn’t move as he sat down across from me.
Days had passed since that conversation with Nicolai. The days felt like a blur, a haze of conflicting emotions and unanswered questions swirling in my mind. Every time I tried to focus on something, my thoughts inevitably drifted back to the phone call with Gideon, and the way Nicolai’s voice had cracked with emotion when I’d confronted him.It was almost like I was living in two worlds. There was the world with Nicolai, where everything felt so close to being perfect, where I wanted to believe in us again. And then there was the world with Gideon, a world full of regret, accusations, and a past I couldn’t seem to outrun.I tried to push it all aside, to focus on the present. I had to move on. I couldn’t let Gideon’s words—or Nicolai’s mistakes—ruin everything.But when I arrived home that evening, something felt off.I pulled my car into the driveway, the sound of the tires crunching on the gravel a familiar comfort. I grabbed my purse and walked towards the door, my mind still tang
The days that followed were suffocating, each moment heavier than the last. Alexa moved through the house like a shadow, her presence only a reminder of what we had lost, what I had lost. She continued her routine—making breakfast, cleaning, pretending that the life we had built together was still intact. But the more I watched her, the more I realized it was all just a charade.I stayed distant. I couldn’t bring myself to be near her, not after what had been said, not after the truth had finally come out. I kept to myself, retreating into the silence of my own mind, where the weight of the last few days pressed down on me like a physical force. The house felt colder than it ever had before, as if it were rejecting me, as if I were rejecting it. And Alexa? She felt like a stranger now.One morning, I found her sitting at the kitchen table, the same spot where we used to share coffee and talk about our days. Her hands were wrapped around a cup, her eyes distant, lost in thought. I stoo
“Alright,” I said, the words slipping out like a vow I’d made to the devil himself. “But after this, it’s really over. No coming back. No regrets.”The relief that flashed across her face was brief, almost imperceptible, but I caught it. And then it was gone, replaced by the resolve that had brought her here in the first place. She pulled out the papers from the pocket of her robe and set them on the desk with a crisp rustle. The sound echoed in the room, loud and final. I glanced at them, the ink on the page both freedom and a death sentence.With a steady hand, she signed her name, the motion so deliberate, so final, that it made my stomach twist. My heart squeezed in a way that made no sense, as if the world were shifting beneath me, changing forever.“It’s done,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.The weight of those words settled deep into my bones, and I stood there, rooted to the spot, as she turned and walked out of the room. The silence she left behind was deafening,
The tension in my chest was suffocating as I stared at the bartender, the question ringing in my ears: Was it worth fighting for?My jaw clenched, the stinging ache of regret and desire coiling deep inside me. I took a deep, shaky breath and looked at the amber liquid in my glass, the fire of the whiskey biting at my throat, numbing the chaos in my mind.Amethyst. Her name brought an ache that felt like it would crack my chest open. She deserved so much better than me. And yet, the thought of losing her forever was unbearable.I knew it was stupid, reckless even, but I couldn’t stop myself. I would fight for her, no matter how many times Nicolai pushed his way into her life, no matter how many times I screwed up. She was worth every battle, every scar. But I was running out of chances, out of time.“It’s worth fighting for,” I finally admitted, my voice barely more than a whisper, raw and vulnerable. “But I don’t know i