CHAPTER 23 MARK'S POV I shook my head, dismissing the idea. "No, Damien. I don't think Sofia would be a good fit." Damien's expression turned quizzical. "Why not, Boss? She's qualified, and—" "I said no, Damien." My tone was firm, cutting off further discussion. The truth was, I couldn't shake off the feeling that Damian's suggestion was motivated by ulterior reasons. Their lunch together still lingered in my mind. Was Damien using this job offer as an excuse to spend more time with Sofia? The thought sent a pang of unease through me. I knew I had something to protect but was it my ego or my relationship with Sofia? Damien is good-looking and his charm and charisma made him a magnet for attention, and I couldn't help but wonder if Sofia was immune to it. "Find someone else, Damien," I said, my voice firm. "Sofia is not the right person for this role." Damian's eyes narrowed slightly, but he nodded. "Understood, Boss." As the day wore on, my mind wandered back to the conversa
CHAPTER 24 AUTHOR'S POV Mark's anxiety escalated as the driver expertly navigated the evening traffic, racing toward St. Michael's Hospital. He clutched his phone, Sofia's panicked voice still echoing in his mind. "St. Michael's, right?" Mark confirmed with the driver, double-checking the destination. "Yes, sir," the driver replied, his eyes meeting Mark's in the rearview mirror. "We're almost there." As they pulled up to the hospital entrance, Mark's impatience grew. He burst out of the car, slamming the door behind him. The automatic doors of the emergency room swooshed open, and Mark rushed inside. His eyes scanned the crowded waiting area, frantically searching for Sofia. He spotted a nurse station and hastened toward it. "Excuse me," Mark said, his voice urgent. "I'm looking for a woman. She's with my daughter, Joey Carvajal. They were brought in –" The nurse's sympathetic expression calmed Mark slightly. "Can you describe her to me, sir?" Mark rattled off Sofia's feature
Chapter 25 Mark's Pov I wanted to come home early for a change when Damian rushed to my office, I was surprised at first because I gave him strict orders to follow my wife today. "Boss you need to see this" He panted stretching his phone towards me and I took the phone from him puzzled by his behavior, then my eyes caught the pictures on the screen. My wife was sitting with a man in a cafe, this must be the friend she talked about but unfortunately, his face wasn't visible. She was stupid enough to go to such an open place, "There is more" Damian interjected and I slid on the next, he was holding her hand at such close proximity. I clenched my fist and my grip on the phone tightened, "Where did you get this?" I asked and he hesitated before replying. "The Internet is trending at the moment" I sighed and loosened my tie so I could breathe properly, how could she be so stupid to go to that cafe it's like a spot for many reporters, this seemed like some sort of trap and s
Chapter 26 Sofia's Pov I can't believe we were being followed and now Mark is looking for Damon, this isn't good I need to fix it and leave my friend out of this mess. I headed for the kid's room and found out they were already asleep, both were in their beds all curled up and sound asleep. That put my mind at ease and I picked up Lois toys that were lying around and kept them inside one of the shelves, I left for my room after that to freshen up. While taking off my clothes I thought about how to turn this whole situation around, without involving Damon and if he is now being targeted by Mark that means he is in danger. He didn't do anything wrong and he was only trying to cheer me up after he saw me crying, since when did I become such a paparazzi magnet I'm not even that famous. I put on a bathrobe and pick up my phone to check the comments about me, maybe I will find something useful there to use it my advantage. My hand tightens on the phone as I read each comment
Chapter 27 Sofia's Pov I was able to manage to get to the bathroom and I recalled asking one of the maids to get me painkillers the other day, I reached for the shelves and opened it taking the bottle of pills. I dry swallowed two pills and leaned on the wall waiting for the pain to subside first before moving, after twenty minutes I was sweating profusely but the pain was getting less and I was able to stand up straight. This isn't cramps and I have no idea of what is going on with me, it's as if my insides were being shredded and sewed back together, I decided to put it behind me for now I need to get my shit together and dress up before his mother arrival. I remembered what they did to me that day and sighed, the pain stopped and I straightened my posture. I can do this and whatever his mother says today I will just ignore her and apologize for the humiliation I was causing, I know she wouldn't fall to rub it in my face that I'm unfit for her perfect son and grandchild
Chapter 28 Mark's Pov Sofia's scream made my men pause and I held my hand out for them to stop, she looked so pale I walked over to her side and she lifted her gaze. Her whole body was trembling and she was on the verge of crying, "You want me to let her live?" I asked and she nodded as tears streamed down her pretty face, I reached out and wiped the tears with my thumb. I hate seeing her cry and to think I'm the cause of her tears made me feel guilty, I forgot she was too fragile and what happened at our wedding must have traumatized her, and she isn't a fan of violence from what I noticed, "But she humiliated you and she refused to apologize at you" I reminded her in case she forgot how they treated her at the party. "But you can't just kill someone because of that, she's your cousin, right? I will be fine" She said in a low voice, and I didn't think before pulling her into my arms. She was still shaking and I patted her back until she relaxed in my arms, I turned to face
Chapter 29 Sofia Pov I smiled as he walked out of the house it was a relief that he didn't kill anyone because of me, his family would have hated me forever and his mother would have made it her life purpose to throw me out of the house. I headed for the kid's room and Joey was fast asleep while Lois was playing with his toys as usual, I exhaled in relief they would have heard the gunshot and I kind of didn't want them to see their father like that, after all, they are still kids and it might affect them. Protecting Carl from my abusive father has made me realize how important it is to keep kids out of any violent environment, it's my job to shield them from these things as their mother. I went downstairs for breakfast and took my phone along with me, I found out I wasn't trending as much as before and most of the articles were deleted. But that doesn't solve anything because people would know that my husband is responsible for it, I need to do something and Mark didn't men
Chapter 30 Mark's Pov I had never been so scared as I was when I got here and the doctor recommended we do the surgery, and I was shocked how can she have fibroid at such a young age. It must have been hard for her and her mother died when she was still a teenager, then her father is the most stupid shitty father I have ever seen. I should kill that sick fuck for neglecting his children like this, she might have noticed the changes in her body but she was too busy taking care of the family. I called him yesterday but he didn't pick up, I already sent one of my men to pay him a visit and I found out he wasn't staying at his house and he only came to change his clothes. That man will soon be in jail for the amount of debts he owes at the casino, he doesn't even pay attention to his son at home although I made sure the little boy was alright he still lacks a parent figure. Sofia filled the gap and now that she is gone, he is all alone. I called Damian before heading to her
Mark pov This isn't Sofia, this can't be my wife! What have the boys been teaching her all these while? For once she didn't look my way nor did she even ask who sent the girl to spy on her, just pure torture no questions no flicker of emotions in her expression only rage in her eyes. "Don't worry we will start now, the pain will eventually subside and so will my kindness for the likes of you" She hushed the girl as she wailed and begged. "I will tell you everything!" The girl screamed but my wife was already fixated on performing her surgery or whatever this is. "I'm not here to ask for anything, I just want to get rid of that ache in my broken heart and take my trust back. Who knows I might feel better after this" She shrugged and started stitching the arm she cut despite the girl's screams of agony she didn't stop and my feet were rooted to the spot as I watched. The panic of what was going on and also the feeling of denial, I must be dreaming, right? My wife hates seeing blo
Chapter 80Mark's Pov I had to go see it for myself and true to their words it was purchased by no other than my mother, it came as a huge shock to me and I wondered why my mother would do such a thing. After I dismissed them glad that this time they were useful I left for the basement, which was another torture ground for anyone caught in suspicious acts inside my home. It was hidden underground and soundproofed so my wife never knew of it not even Emily knew of it too, but I ordered one of the guards to bring Sofia in when she arrived home. I already called Enzo and he is currently on his way, the maid was bonded to a chair and she had passed out at some point. I don't usually torture women although I know better than to underestimate women like my father did, I still had a scar from when I was twenty years old and came across a female agent. She whipped my ass like a child and I have never felt so ashamed and powerless still I couldn't bring myself to fight her properly, my f
Chapter 79Mark's Pov I don't know why Sofia has been avoiding me since our conversation two days ago, I tried several times to talk to her but she used every opportunity to run away from me. I was always in my room working on my laptop when I received a phone call from Damian, just like Sofia wished I let her handle the business for now and added a lot of guards to follow her everywhere. She was only going to the warehouse to check on things with Damian's assistance, if they were to secure a shipment or make a transaction Damian and Enzo would handle it. I wasn't foolish enough to endanger her life even if she wished to be aware of everything, I don't want anyone to know about her or think she has any relations with my work. Most especially my rivals even my business partners I can't trust anyone, so I omitted some parts of the job to her because her request could cost me her life. She said she loved me, yet she didn't even bother to hear my reply, I'm certain she thinks I don'
Chapter 78Sofia's Pov "We went to the same high school and college before I dropped out, he also left before I dropped out. Anyways did I miss anything today?" I said before Damon could reply and Bruce started filling me the details of what I missed today. He is a real chatterbox unlike his cousin who wouldn't stop staring at me, Fabio might have noticed because he moved closer to stand behind me. This is definitely going to get to Mark but I should focus on now instead of thinking of what will happen later, we chatted for a while and Damon joined the conversation a few times. He left about an hour later and I felt like I could breathe when he finally left, "You shouldn't have invited him without my permission" I hissed at Bruce and he gave me a surprised look. "But I thought you guys talked about it, Did he send you a text or did you block him?" He whispered back at me. I furrowed my brows in confusion not getting what he was trying to say, "So you did block him, he told me ab
Chapter 77Sofia's Pov I escorted Mark to his room and he forced me to take a nap with him, I gave in because I didn't want him to start thinking of other creative ways of making me stay which I knew I might fall for. I woke up to find an empty bed and I sat up immediately but was relieved to find him smoking on the balcony, "Shit! You are awake" He put the cigarette on the ashtray. "I thought we talked about this, no smoking" I scolded leaving the bed. "I needed something to keep me occupied" He countered and I shook my head as I approached him, "How about I keep you occupied instead" I smirked and that got his attention. "And how do you intend to do that?" He asked but I only smirked instead of replying to his question. I went down on my knees and his eyes widened, "What? Do you not want me to do it?" I asked seeing the perplexed look on his face. "It's not necessary" He replied in a hoarse voice and I blinked in shock. "Why?" I felt ashamed of even thinking I could do this,
Chapter 75Mark's Pov My head banged against the stirring wheel as glass shards cut the skin on my face, and the car somersaulted twice rolling down the hill. The truck had stopped when the damage was done and by the time my car halted, I couldn't feel my arms but I knew I needed to leave this place as soon as possible because the rest chasing me with the sports car would come looking for me. The car was upside down and I managed to get out groaning as I felt pains all over my body. "Shit!" I cursed taking my pistol, I could hear yelling and running footsteps coming towards me so I stood up and ran into the woods. It will be better to find a way to save my head before I kill them, I limped away from the wreckage ignoring the pain in my right shoulder and my legs I ran. They were chasing me and judging from what I noticed it was seven of them, including the truck driver and whoever was with him. "Find him!" Someone barked and I hid behind a tree checking if I had enough bullets,
Chapter 75Mark's Pov My head banged against the stirring wheel as glass shards cut the skin on my face, and the car somersaulted twice rolling down the hill. The truck had stopped when the damage was done and by the time my car halted, I couldn't feel my arms but I knew I needed to leave this place as soon as possible because the rest chasing me with the sports car would come looking for me. The car was upside down and I managed to get out groaning as I felt pains all over my body. "Shit!" I cursed taking my pistol, I could hear yelling and running footsteps coming towards me so I stood up and ran into the woods. It will be better to find a way to save my head before I kill them, I limped away from the wreckage ignoring the pain in my right shoulder and my legs I ran. They were chasing me and judging from what I noticed it was seven of them, including the truck driver and whoever was with him. "Find him!" Someone barked and I hid behind a tree checking if I had enough bullets,
Chapter 74 Sofia's Pov I couldn't sleep and no matter how hard I tried I just ended up tossing and turning, I reached for my phone on my bedside checking if I had any recent notifications. Mark didn't even bother to call even if it was late at night, could it be that he thought I was asleep? I swiped to unlock my phone and dialed his number. "The number you are trying to call is unavailable, please leave a message after the beep" I frowned and hung up, this was the first time his voice went straight to voicemail, I called again but it was the same then I got worried. Is he okay? Did something happen? Was it the reason why his men were at his house today? I immediately called Damian, it's was 11 pm but I'm sure he might still be awake, and after the second ring he picked up. "Mrs-""Where are you right now?" I asked getting out of my bed, Rachelle would be sleeping in her room right now and maybe she won't notice me leaving. I just had a bad feeling about this and after heari
Chapter 73Mark's Pov There was nothing I hated not that incompetence, and right now I was irritated and livid. My hackers got a lead on the person sending me those texts and now they suddenly lost it! They came the signal was a glitch and I wanted to bury bullets in the heads so I could see if they were actually real or holograms. "You are telling me, we lost whoever it was in just three minutes? What the hell am I paying you for?" I barked at them. "I'm sorry boss, we are working on it" Damian apologized on their behalf knowing fully well I might shoot them if I hear the word 'sorry' from them when I have already heard them repeat the same pathetic words several times already. They got to work typing can't but I know it was futile, whoever this person is he or she is very good at hiding and it's pissing me off. Even worse Reid was out of the country for an ongoing investigation, so he was out of my reach I have to rely on these blockheads for now. My phone vibrated in my pock