I wonder if Eric ever really saw it—how happy I had been with Mina.I wonder if he could tell that the fact there is no wedding, whether that means I’m with her or not, is tearing me apart inside.And I wonder if he even cares.Does it matter to him if what Mina and I had was real? Does he care that she made me happy? Or is he only focused on himself, on what he thinks he’s won?The thought lingers, heavy in my chest.But I don’t want to entertain him, so I say, “I’m glad that you’re happy. Can you leave now?”Eric grins wider. “I brought you a gift.” He pushes the box closer to me. “I knew you weren’t going to marry her. I just knew. I was like, my father? To do that to me? Hell no! And I tried to tell people that you wouldn't actually marry her, but they didn’t believe me. Can you believe it? I just knew it. Thanks, Dad.”He stands up, still shaking his head, convinced of his own delusion. “I just knew you were always going to be on my side. I just knew you wouldn’t choose her ov
I know Tomas here under the title of a butler, but in reality, I hired him as security. He started as a bodyguard, but having visible security inside the house made things uncomfortable. So, he took on the role of a butler to keep people at ease.No one expects a butler to be security. No one suspects that he watches over everything—over the house, the estate, the staff.He's the real manager of this place, the one who keeps it all running.And over the years, we’ve formed a kind of friendship.I wouldn’t say I have many real friends, people I can truly talk to, be my true self. But Thomas—he’s different. Sometimes, when I have things weighing on my mind, I talk to him. And over time, he’s proven to be very wise and have very good advice.So, yes. He became family. A friend. Someone I trust.If I were asked to name my closest confidants, Thomas would be one of them.Now, as he steps into the office, his face is grim.He doesn’t need to ask why I called him here.He already knows.And
I raise an eyebrow, caught off guard but also amused by his actions. “Who?”“Don’t play dumb,” he snaps. “I want to see Mina. She hasn’t been seen. She hasn’t been heard. She’s not picking up my calls. She and I had a lot of plans. We had an understanding, and she’s not doing her part. Today is supposed to be her wedding. I was supposed to be in her wedding, but zip! Nothing from her. And my mom just tells me there’s no wedding.”He steps closer, his face twisted in anger.“Where is she?” His voice rises. “Did you kill her? Where did you bury her body? Did you kidnap her, where did you lock her in this house?”“Treyson, are you okay?“ I ask him, This little boy must be insane.“Wherever you hid her, whatever you did…. I am going to find out.““ It's too early in the morning to deal with this,” I mutter under my breath.For now, I just want him gone.“Get out of my house,” I say, turning around to go back to the bedroom.But no—he runs in front of me, standing there as if he can block
MinaI woke up today, and the first thing I did was laugh.Today was supposed to be my wedding day.But instead, it was going to be the day I severed ties—with Emerson, with my family, with the life that had been planned for me.Today was the day I set myself free.Sitting in this house all these days, I used the time to grieve. To mourn what I thought I had, what I knew I had lost. I allowed myself to feel everything—anger, sadness, regret—but then I decided.I was moving on.I wasn’t going to let Emerson control me. I wasn’t going to let him dictate my life, tell me what to do, or make decisions for me.Yesterday, I bought a ticket.I was going to Rio.When I first told Emerson about it—during our argument—it had been an impulsive idea, something that slipped out in the heat of the moment. He brushed it off and dismissed it like it was nothing.But it had taken root.The more I sat in this house, the more I realised—I had nothing left here. No friends. No family. Not even the man I
"What do you mean, what the hell is going on?" I snap, pushing myself up slightly despite the pain in my leg. "I should be the one asking you that question. What the hell are you doing here? How are you here? Why are you even here? What’s going on?"Trey stares at me, his brows furrowing as if I’m the one acting irrationally."Were you leaving?" His voice is sharp, confused. "Where are you going?""I'm very confused about what is going on here," I fire back. "Why the hell are you here?""Why wouldn’t I be here?" he counters, folding his arms.I exhale sharply,"You cancelled the wedding. You’re not living in the mansion. You disappeared—" He shakes his head like he still can’t believe it. "You know, I thought Emerson had actually done something to you, that prick. I actually thought he abducted you."I blink. "Abducted me?""Yeah. You don’t know how some people’s minds work, especially when it has to do with matters of the heart" he insists, his expression serious. "I mean, you’re you
I look back at Trey, and he must see something in my face because he says, "I'll get it."Knock, knock.This time, a voice follows."Mina? Is everything alright in there?"Trey groans and strides toward the door before I can stop him.He swings it open. "Hello, old man—""Where’s Mina?" Thomas interrupts, dismissing what he said. "I need to see her. I need to know she's okay."Trey scoffs. "What, you think I came here just to hurt her?"Thomas barely acknowledges him. "Mina?"I step forward quickly before this turns into something. "I'm fine, Thomas," I say.He studies me for a moment before nodding. "Okay. I just wanted to make sure everything's okay.""Everything's fine," I assure him. "Thanks."With another nod, Thomas turns and starts leaving.I close the door behind him, exhaling before I go back to sit down.Trey is watching me, curiosity flickering in his eyes."So," he says, tilting his head, "the two of you really broke up. You're not together anymore?"“In what language d
But the real question is—how far is he actually willing to go?“Hello, Taki. Here’s what I want you to do,” Trey says into his phone, his voice smooth, calculated. “Get the video. The police report. Get those eyewitnesses—the waitress from the restaurant. Yes, do a whole spread. Make sure a person living under a rock gets it. My mother will handle the legal stuff.”I grip the door handle, ready to leave. Ready to walk away.But something stops me.Am I really doing this?I know I’m furious with Emerson. Beyond furious. But am I really ready to leave, knowing what I’d be leaving behind?Would I be able to go away with a clear conscience?Some people would say it has nothing to do with me. That, it’s not my problem. It's not my fault that Emmerson acted that way……But I feel responsible.If I hadn’t been in that position with Trey, Emerson wouldn’t have acted the way he did.He thought Trey was assaulting me.And yes—Trey was assaulting me.And Emerson? He was just trying to protect me.
“Come on, let's go,” Trey says as he takes my bag and starts helping me out of the door.But the moment he takes it, he shakes it and says, “What’s in here? It’s so light. Do you even have any clothes in there?”“It’s fine,” I tell him, trying to brush it off.But then Trey, being Trey, suddenly changes direction from leaving the house to getting back inside. He puts the bag on top of the sofa and then just opens my luggage like it belongs to him.“Trey, what are you doing?” I ask, my voice rising. “Why are you opening my suitcase?”“I want to see what you packed in here,” he says, completely unaffected by my reaction. “You’re a girl. I know how girls and clothes are, and this is too light. It’s almost like there’s nothing in there.”I rush to stop him, but he’s already opened the suitcase, revealing the meagre pieces of clothing inside. I can’t help but feel embarrassed as I see the sad, barely there pile of clothes he’s uncovered.He looks at me with disbelief, shaking his head. “
She looked at me with that twisted, dark smile, the one that told me she thought she had won. As if she had accomplished exactly what she came here to do. But she was still standing in my room, still breathing the same air as me, still existing in my space, and I couldn’t take it. The anger, the pain, the years of resentment came over me. My voice came out in a scream, raw and filled with fury. "Get out! Get out, get out, get out!" The door burst open. A nurse rushed in, followed closely by Trey. His eyes darted between me and my mother, concern into his face. "What’s going on?" he demanded. "Mina, what happened?" I pointed a shaking hand at Kristy. "I don’t want to see this woman ever again in my life!" My voice was hoarse, but I didn’t care. "I’ll get a restraining order if I have to. If I ever see you again, I swear I will make you regret it." The words cut through the air.
She looked at me for a long moment before speaking again."I am willing to give you another chance." She announced.A surprised cough escaped my lips. "A chance?" I repeated, narrowing my eyes. "A chance to do what, exactly?""A chance to prove that you have wished no ill for your sister," she said firmly. "To prove that you actually are part of this family."A disbelieving chuckle slipped past my lips, but my mother didn’t flinch. She pressed on as if she truly believed she held all the power in this conversation."You’re going to call Eric," she continued. "You’re going to tell him that everything that happened with Trey was wrong. You're going to talk to Trey and convince him to tell Eric that maybe he was lying. Just… find something. Make up anything. But make sure that Eric calls Rita, apologizes, and takes your sister back home where she belongs."She said it as if the matter was settled as if she had the final say.
By the time we turned back towards the room, we noticed that the doctor had already left. I guess there had been too much crying in the room. I found myself laughing. "I'm so happy, Emerson." He grinned, his excitement evident. "I'm even happier. You don’t know how I’m feeling right now. I want to—" He let out a breathless laugh. "I want to dance. I want to jump with joy. I want to scream it from the top of this building. I'm going to be a dad, Mina!" "And I'm going to be a mom," I said, my voice breaking as fresh tears welled in my eyes. Emerson's expression softened. "Oh my God, why are you still crying? I don’t think it’s good for the baby to cry so much." "I know," I sniffled, wiping my eyes. "I’m going to try. I really am. But I don’t know how to stop—I’m just so happy." At that moment, my stomach let out a loud rumble. Emerson chuckled. "Looks like our baby is hu
The doctor’s expression remained calm. “Did you drink every day?”I shook my head quickly. “No, not every day. Just occasionally.”Guilt flooded me. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry. I—I didn’t know I was pregnant.” My voice cracked, and the tears returned, burning the back of my eyes.The doctor placed a hand on my shoulder, squeezing gently. “Mina, it’s okay. You didn’t know.”I hiccupped on a sob. “But what if I—”“Listen to me,” she interrupted firmly, “You and the baby are healthy. Tomorrow, we’ll do a full examination, and so far, everything looks good. The important thing is that you know now. And because you know, I trust that you’ll take better care of yourself from here on out.”I sniffled, nodding, still feeling the weight of my mistakes.“But I need you to stop panicking, Mina,” she continued. “Stress will raise your blood pressure, and that’s not good for the baby. Right now, I just need you to focus on resting and
I just sat there, staring at Emmerson. My tongue felt heavy like it was weighed down by all that I couldn’t bring myself to say.“Come on, what is it?” Emerson urged, his voice softer now, careful. “Tell me whatever it is. We can go through it together.”But there was fear in his eyes. A fear that told me he was bracing himself for the worst.I opened my mouth, but no words came out.Before I could even attempt to find them, Trey spoke up. “We’re still waiting for the results. There hasn’t been a concrete answer yet.”Emerson exhaled, his shoulders losing a fraction of their tension. “What do you mean, concrete answer? What did the doctor say? What could it be?”“It’s fine,” I said quickly, nodding as I squeezed his hand. “Just wait for the results.”He looked at me, then at our intertwined fingers, and for some reason, my hands were trembling.Then he turned to Trey. “Treyson, can I talk to you aside for a minute?”Panic spiked in my chest. I clutched Emerson’s hand tighter. “No.
Trey looked at me, his expression unreadable, but there was something in his eyes—sympathy, maybe even sadness. His voice was quiet when he spoke again.“You’re pregnant, Mina.”I stared at him. The words didn’t make sense. They bounced around in my head, refusing to settle.“It’s not possible,” I said, a hollow laugh escaping my lips. It carried no joy, only confusion. “What are you saying, Trey? I can’t be pregnant. I… It’s impossible, okay?”I didn’t even know what I was saying anymore. My mind scrambled for explanations, for reasons..... This couldn't be true.Trey didn’t argue. He simply took my hand and placed it gently on the bed between us. His grip is grounding.“The doctors just confirmed it. You’re a hundred per cent pregnant.”“But how?” I whispered, shaking my head violently, as if denying it hard enough would make it untrue. If I accepted it if I let this idea take root in my mind, only for it to be ripped away later… I wouldn’t survive that. I couldn't.“They’re wrong,
I exhaled and looked at him. "Eric, you're just a bad human being. You slept with my sister, got her pregnant, and you were about to marry her. And not once did I attack you. Not once did I go to the papers and say, 'I broke up with Eric Blackwind because he slept with my sister.' That would have made headlines. I could have made a lot of money from your Betrayal. But I didn’t."I shook my head, disbelief coursing through me. "But the minute you found out I was with Emerson, you—" I scoffed. "You acted like I had committed murder... As if I had done something that deserved a death sentence. You acted like the real person that, deep down, you really are."Eric bowed his head, his voice barely a whisper. "I'm sorry. I know I'm not a good person. I'm selfish and arrogant. I'm all those things. I'm evil. I am all that you accuse me of and more"His fingers curled into fists, his jaw tightening before he spoke again. "And you know I didn’t want to divorce you.
"You!" Rita’s voice sliced through the air like a dagger, her finger trembling as she pointed at me. "This is all your fault!" She accused, her voice filled with bitterness.I blinked, frozen. "What did I do?""You did this to me!" she screamed, her face filled with rage. "You turned Trey against me! And now you’re turning Eric against me too! You’re turning everyone against me!" She cried bitterly.I stared at her in shock and disbelief. "Are you serious?"Her chest heaved. "It was always you. Always you!" she spat. "Mom always complaining about you. Dad would always talk about how smart you were, and how nice you were. It was always Mina this, Mina that! It was almost like I was invisible."Oh. So that’s what this was about.I exhaled sharply, shaking my head. "So this is about our childhood?" I asked, arching a brow. "About how you felt ignored while mom never spared me a glance? Did we have the same childhood? Mom adores you.
"Don't say that," Rita cried, her voice cracking with desperation. "Please, don't say that."Eric’s face remained cold, without any emotion. "You destroyed my life." His words were sharp, cutting through the air. "You told me you loved me. You promised me a family because you knew how much I loved talking about having a baby of my own, about having a family. But you? You were never who you pretended to be."Rita shook her head violently. "No, Eric, please—""What were you after, really?" Eric went on, his voice filled with disdain. "Always speaking ill of Mina behind her back, always trying to turn me against her. Now I see your true colours. I don’t know if it’s the hate you have for her or if it’s the money you were after. Because you spent more money than Mina ever did while we started dating until we got married, you spent ten times more. And I let you—because I wanted you to be happy. But to realize this about you now....?"His jaw clenched as he exhaled."No, Eric, stop saying t