Calvin’s POVUpon Becky’s idea, I decided to come to this stupid pub. I was not even in the mood for it, but she forced me. She even invited my friends to come to the party so that I could have fun. But ever since I arrived, nothing has changed. I was still upset with everything that was happening around. Somehow, I couldn't keep my mind off the case tomorrow. I was anxious about it. “Calvin, come on!” My friend Jonathan said, “Why do you look like that? You’re finally going to get rid of your dumb wife. Aren’t you glad? You should be celebrating.” He was right. I should be celebrating, but I wasn’t. I was too sullen. Thank god, Becky wasn’t around, or else, she would have felt bad seeing me like this. She really wanted me to have fun today. “I don’t know, man. I can’t seem to have fun anymore.” “Well, look over there. There’s a hot chick right there. Maybe she can cheer you up?” Following his eyes, I looked toward the dance floor. I spotted the woman he was referring to but her
Cassie's POVThe atmosphere inside the court was cold and quiet. Despite the chilly weather, I could feel myself getting clammy in my palms, having to constantly wipe them clean against my pants. For the past half hour, Enzo and his associate Mark have been counselling me as to how to answer the attorney’s questions, and no matter what, I should not lie to make up for any slip of the tongue. “We have everything we need, and if we can keep the tide in our favour, there is no way we’re losing this case.” Enzo said, “Be confident, Cassie. You have done nothing wrong, so let the judge see that.” I kept repeating his words in my head until my thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of the judge. As soon as my eyes recognized him, my breath hitched in my throat. Enzo didn’t miss my reaction to him, so he quickly turned toward me and asked, “What’s wrong?” “That man..” I said, “He’s George Halsted, right?” “Yes.” Enzo replied, “That’s the judge. What’s wrong?” “He.. he’s our biggest r
I widened my eyes in surprise. This was golden. How did he manage to get his hands on those documents? Becky looked toward Calvin in helplessness, and Calvin seemed equally surprised with it. He didn’t see that one coming either. If I were to guess right, he had no idea that Becky was drunk that night. “I.. the documents are not true..” Becky said.“Not true?” Enzo said, “We’re talking about Westwood Hospital, which is the largest and most renowned hospital group in the country. Are you trying to say their basic studies of blood alcohol levels are untrue? That’s going to be another lawsuit in itself then.” “I.. but I wasn’t the one driving that day!” Becky said. “How does it matter what I drank? Maybe someone spiked the drink.” “Right, that’s where I want to bring in this file, which reports the survey of the vehicle after the accident. Since there is no CCTV footage available, our best shot at determining who was driving the car that night would be this report, which claims that
Before I could even react, the judge kept asking. “How do you know that?” “Because Cassandra had asked me to help her harm Becky.” She said, “She meant to eliminate Becky from the picture so she could have Calvin all to herself. But I did not comply with her, and that angered her. She threatened to end my career if I revealed her intentions to anyone, and knowing that she came from an influential family, I kept my mouth shut. Later that night, I got to know that they met with an accident and that accident almost cost Becky her life.” “You’re lying!” I cried out in angst. “I never even spoke to you that night! You are lying!” I couldn’t control my anger. I knew I was not helping my case with my sudden outburst, but I could no longer sit idle like that because she lied her way through the conversation. I never did anything to her. What would she gain out of something like this? Does she even realize what sort of consequences I would have to face because of her little stunt? “Mr DeL
“The trial has concluded. Ms. Cassandra Harper Anderson has been convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to life imprisonment!”The final judgement pierced through the silence of the courtroom, echoing through its vast hallways. Lifetime imprisonment?!I didn’t hear a word beyond that. All at once, those two words seemed to be the only things I could make sense of. I never realized till now that it would take merely two words to pause your life and crumble everything that you’ve built in it so far.How is this possible? How could the judge be so biased? Was he bribed by Becky? I couldn't help but anxiously glance at Enzo.Enzo and his associate falling into a deathly silence driven by astonishment and denial. On the other end of the room, laughter and celebrations began. Hugs were exchanged, congratulations were conveyed, and victory was celebrated. Becky leapt into Calvin’s arms, and he dipped down to meet her for a kiss. The new couple celebrated their win over their enemy, an
Enzo’s POVI vividly remember the time when Cassie left me. It was decades ago when her adoptive parents came to take her to her new home. Cassie was reluctant to go. She didn’t want to go at all. When her new parents asked her why, she said she didn’t want to leave me. I wonder if she even remembers that episode now, but it was something I could never forget. It felt like the first time someone was choosing me, the first time someone cared about me. Ever since then, she remained a significant person in my life. As she eventually left me that day, it felt as though she was taking a part of me too. Somehow, nothing changed till this date. I watched as the police took her away, standing by myself all alone and helpless. She didn’t even look at me as the vehicle moved, perhaps she couldn’t bring herself too. The farther she went from me, the more unreachable she seemed. With every passing second, I realized that I was losing her once again, and something within me told me that this ti
Cassie’s POV Life inside the prison was exactly how I expected it to be. Miserable. There was no life, no beginning, and no end. It was a vicious cycle of doing the most mundane things, with not a soul to talk to, not a confidant to vent to. One just had oneself, and one had to make peace with that. The only time I saw people was during breakfast, lunch and dinner when people were fighting for their share of food. The quality of treatment of convicts was poorer than I’d expected. I had to fight for basic needs such as food and clean water. Since we were here after committing a crime, nobody deems us worthy of receiving such basic commodities although the government provides it to us. Apart from the food breaks, we are allowed an hour in the morning and another in the evening to spend outside the confines of the cell, and most people engage in an activity or service in the prison to kill time. I was reluctant to partake in any of those activities, simply because I knew I didn’t bel
A nurse was called to tend to my wounds, but not a single soul asked me how I acquired it. I guess nobody spoke about such things in a prison, as they merely did not care for the safety of the prisoners. There was no place to complain about the issue either, so that left me with just one option: comply. I had to comply with the unsaid rules and norms of this place and give in to the power of other people when they demanded it. If I had to survive in this place for the rest of my life, I had to be submissive to its demands and my fellow inmates. But I could not do that. Even if I tried, how long could I possibly dance to someone else’s tunes? Surviving here was a challenge in itself, and listening to other people’s commands was another task altogether. “I need to make a phone call." “Are you sure you want to waste your phone call so soon? It’s been just a week since you’ve come here. Mind you, you’re only allowed one phone call per month.” The guard said. “I’m sure,” I said.
Enzo looked at me and then back at the crowd, and then finally, a grin broke out on his face. “Wow.” he said, running his eyes over everyone. “That’s… my friends from college and my… how did you get them all together?” I shrugged, “After a month of thorough planning.” “I can’t believe you did this.” He said, “This is brilliant. Thank you so much, Cassie.” “You’re welcome.” I smiled. ”Now, let’s go.”One by one, Enzo’f friends and colleagues came up to him to meet him, but my eyes were looking for Sara. I found her at the far end by the bar, enjoying a drink with Mark, but her eyes were set on Enzo. She deserved to be here with us. “Oh, Emmy.” I heard Kelly’s voice coming from my side, distracting. I grinned as Emmy effortlessly slipped from my arms into hers. “Look at her, she looks like a darling.” She then looked toward, impressed, “Cassie, I must say. You completely transformed this place. Well done.” “Sara was of tremendous help, really.” I said, “I could not have done thi
Enzo’s POV I felt a small nudge on my stomach as I woke up. Assuming it to be Cassie’s limb, I ignored it. However, the nudge soon tickled it and then I felt something wet. My eyes opened to look at Emmy crawling on my chest, trying to bite my skin. A smile tugged at my lips upon the sight of her adorable face. Picking her up to my face, I placed a kiss on her cheek. “How did you come here, darling?” I mumbled as I shifted to my side. And right then, I saw it. A small cupcake was resting on the bed with a note that read: Happy Birthday Daddy. I widened my eyes in surprise and grabbed my phone to check the date. Damn. I really lost track of time. “Happy birthday, baby.” Cassie grinned, leaning down to kiss me on the lips. “First birthday with our daughter, aren’t you thrilled?” “Absolutely,” I said as I watched Emmy. She was making weird, excited noises now, eyeing the cupcake. Her hands were reaching out toward it, and I scraped off the frosting on top to place it on her lips.
As I went back home, I wondered what all of that was about. The man seemed weird, but should I tell Enzo? I was worried that he was already so stressed with everything at work. I was sure he would be overthinking with this even more. The last thing I wanted was to burden him, so I guess I would have to keep this one to myself. What Kent Rover said could’ve been a result of a massive ego hurt and nothing at all. In that case, there was no reason to alert Enzo. If he approached me again, then I would talk to Enzo about it. As I went home, I found Sara and Emmy playing in the living room as usual. However, what was strange was that Mark, Enzo’s associate, was added to the mix. And from the way Sara was laughing at whatever he had to say, I could tell that they were having a rather good time. “Hello.” I said as I walked in, “Didn’t expect you here, Mark.” He gave me a casual smile as he looked at me. “I’m sorry. I’m running errands for your fiance, please don’t mind.” “Not at all.”
As his rough hands caressed my skin, I couldn’t help but succumb to the pleasure. He was masterful at his craft and I’d long lost my immunity against his ways. Everytime he touched me, he set me on fire, and I very willingly submitted myself to him. Even though I knew he would be my doom. Despite my annoyance with him, one simple touch from him made me melt like a puddle. I was weak for him once again. But I hated being like this. I hated that I had no self control over this man. I couldn’t let him overpower me like this. He could use this as a tactic to make up with me every time I was upset. As if the Lord heard my concern, Emmy’s cry reached us. We sprung apart at once, staring at each other, dumbfounded. “Is that Emmy?” Enzo asked, gasping for breath. “Yeah,” I mumbled with an equally raspy voice as I pulled away from him. “I’ll check on her.” He was reluctant to let go of his hold on my body as I pulled away. But finally, he gave in, his shoulders slumping down as his bod
Later that evening, after Enzo was done with work, he walked in on me laying in the bathtub. His shoulder slumped, an exhausted sigh leaping out of him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think you were here.” “You want to join?” I proposed, knowing very well that he was dying for a bath. “I don’t mind.” Although he was still giving me attitude, he could not refuse the tempting offer I gave him. Without a word, he stripped naked in front of me and descended into the tub across from me. I couldn’t help but give him a disappointed smirk, “How long are you going to continue this?” “Continue what?” “This.” I said, motioning toward the distance between us. “Giving me the cold shoulder. Ignoring my calls. Throwing me unnecessary shade.” A hint of a smile touched his lips. “I like the peace it's bringing to my life. I might continue with this for a bit.” My mouth fell open. The bastard. Right then, Enzo grabbed my right foot from the edge of the tub and pulled it toward him, lathering it with som
It took me a week to finally get back to work. Leaving Emmy with Sara was still not feasible, so I decided to start working from home for now. My team missed me back at the office and told me that they’d want to have me in person. But they were relieved this morning that they could see me at least on videocall. I was currently waiting for Raymond to join our private call whilst looking over the notes I made. As soon as the call connected, his face appeared. “Hello, Cassandra.” He said, “It’s great to see you after so long.” “You too. I’m excited to be back.” I said, holding up my notes, “And I came prepared. Shall we start?” “Yes, right away.” We spent the next hour discussing the project and coming up to date with what was happening. I noted all the issues Raymond faced and promised to fix them from our end. “So that’s it then?” He asked. “Yes, just one small thing. Completely off topic.”“Shoot.” “Do you know what’s up with Enzo? I can tell him there’s something at work tha
Much to Enzo’s annoyance, I made sure Sara and Enzo sat at the table for breakfast. Enzo could tell that I was doing this on purpose, but he was polite enough to not call me out on my tactics. He simply poured himself some juice and got to eating. “So, Sara.” I said, “What are you studying at college?” Enzo glared at me, but he listened to her anyway. “I majored in English literature.” She said, taking a spoonful of salad into her mouth.“Oh, that’s interesting.” I mused. “Yeah, I didn’t get to finish it, though.” She said, “I had to drop out of college within eight months since I couldn’t afford the tuition. My scholarship was revoked halfway, and well…” “Why did that happen?” Enzo asked, “Your scholarship.” “Ah, well. The company that was funding my education went bankrupt.” She said, “I had no choice but to quit.” “And your father?” He asked, “He couldn’t help out?” She scoffed, “My father has been dependent on me for three years now. There’s no way he can help me.” “What
“What were you thinking?” Enzo hissed as soon as it was just the two of us. When I asked Sara if she would like to be Emmy’s nanny, she was stunned. It took her a good minute to understand the pros and cons, but when she realized how much we were willing to pay, it was a no brainer for her. She said yes instantly. Poor girl was working three jobs right now. If all went well, she could quit two of those for the pay she would be receiving here. However, the only person who was not happy with the entire set up was Enzo. “Enzo, don’t tell me this isn’t a good plan.” I said, “She is a reliable person, and she has good instincts. I mean, you’ve seen how she was with Emmy. And we desperately needed a nanny anyway.” “Yes, but Sara isn’t the only person available for the job.” He said, “God, she’s my sister. You don’t know if I want her in my life.” “You don’t?” I asked, “Is that what this is about? You can’t stand the sight of her anymore?” “That’s not it.” He gritted his teeth, “I do
Cassie’s POV Three weeks later, Enzo and I sat in our living room, waiting for our guest. It took him all these days to finally see the meaning in my words, and he decided to meet his sister now. “Where is she?” He said, glancing at his watch. “I’m running late.” “Gosh, Enzo. Give her a minute. She is in the elevator.” He let out a ragged breath. I could tell that he was nervous, but he wouldn’t let it show. This was how he’s been acting all week, as though meeting his sister was not a big deal. He was hell bent on proving to me and perhaps even himself that her presence in his life won’t matter too much. But I knew how much of a difference it would make. Especially if she was nothing like the woman he was making her out to be in his head. Right then, I heard a knock on the door making me stand up at once with a hopeful smile. I went to the door and opened it, and it revealed a familiar young woman. She looked just as pretty as when I last saw her, but anxiousness made her face