Georgia’s POV“You need to get him to marry you.”Those were the firm words of Nancy that kept tugging at Georgia’s heartstrings. For the first time, Georgia highly respected Nancy, because she was a woman who got everything she wanted, and at last, her son turned out to be the CEO of Vale company. Georgia had wanted to leave, but Nancy insisted she slept over. “You are family now,” Nancy had said. “Begin to act like it.”Georgia had been ecstatic that she was already accepted by Nancy and Bonnie, and she knew that it would not take much for her to get Syrus to accept her too. She had to act up and claim what was supposed to be hers, but Georgia did not end up like her. Nancy did manage to get Syrus’s father to marry her and even had two children for him, but at the end of the day, he still left her to be with the same woman he had loved from the very beginning. Nancy did not exactly say that, but Georgia knew from the way Nancy told the story to her that she knew that Syrus’s father
Vivian’s POVI cramped myself in the store room trying to sleep, but the sleep was not forthcoming.I could not stop thinking about how hurt I was. At first, it seemed as though I wanted to regret leaving the apartment, but then again, my self-worth and dignity which Syrus had destroyed over and over again were on the line. I knew that without Syrus Vale and his financial support, I could take care of myself and my babies, especially now that it seemed as though my family had accepted me now.Well, except for Ted.The last time that I had seen him was when he appeared at my door and warned me to stay quiet about the pictures that I had seen, and I noticed that he had locked up the room. I couldn’t say a word of it to dad or Manny, but I couldn’t just let it slide as though I didn’t see anything as disturbing as that. For now, I was more bothered about my predicament with Syrus and the recent development with Georgia to worry so much about Ted, after all, he was free and back home now.
Vivian’s POVI got up and followed Manny to the living room, because I was more interested in getting away from that hurtful and regretful thought than what he even wanted me to see.“What is it?” I asked Manny.It was not until I left the store room that I realized that I had no clue what Manny wanted me to see. It could be something I wasn’t prepared to see, and I had just followed him without asking.“It’s on the show,” Manny told me.I scrunched up my nose in disgust, because I wasn’t a fan of watching shows. In fact, they made me really sick. I wanted to turn back instantly, because I was certain that whatever Manny wanted me to see would be irrelevant, but then again, I didn’t, because I was not fully accepted back into the family, and the earlier I did what they liked, the better for me. At least, I just believed that it would help me get closer to them. Deep down, I wanted to mend every broken fence so badly that I was literally ready to do right about anything. They were the o
Vivian’s POVI began to breathe faster, and I could not even tell if it was a panic attack or not; it had never happened to me before, but I felt as though my heart was giving way because of the headline.I didn’t have anything I particularly hoped to see, but even if I had thought about it, I would never have come to this. Manny noticed my mood and he came closer to me, worried, and he paused the show right after.“Do you need me to turn it off?” Manny asked, worried about me.“Is…is this what you wanted me to see?” I managed to get the words out.My voice was shaking.“Yes, because I thought you might want to see it, but I never knew that it would trigger you,” Manny said apologetically. “I could turn it off right now,” Manny added.I saw that he meant it, because he had already taken the remote and was about to switch off the TV, so I shook my head.“Leave it on; I will watch it,” I told Manny.My voice was shaking a little, but it was firm.“Are you sure?” Manny asked and I nodded
Vivian’s POVI laid on the bed and cried bitterly and regrettably.Syrus’s response was clear and audible. I listened to the full conversation between Syrus and his mother, and in the end, he had chosen his inheritance over me.“You were such an idiot, Vivian,” I told myself in regret.My mind flashed back to standing in front of dad, Manny and Ted, and Belinda, and telling them that I chose Syrus over all of them, but now that it was Syrus’s turn to choose me for once, he blatantly refused.I felt used. I felt foolish and stupid. I felt horrible.It was because of my actions that my family had experienced everything that we had gone through. So many things had gone wrong since the day I left my family for Syrus, yet, he could not do the same for me, and that was why he had stood with Georgia right in front of the camera with smiles. My heart broke into a million pieces, and just when I thought I could not hurt anymore, my heart ached some more. I wanted to just die as I cried and cri
Syrus’s POV“As an institute for business in this city, we are here to sign and seal the deal, as we have officially decided to award Mr. Syrus Vale a contract, just as we have told him during his party,” Mr. Dobson, the head of the City’s Business Council said confidently.They were all seated in Syrus’s boardroom; Syrus and his lawyer, Davis, and members of the City’s Business Council that came along with Mr. Dobson. After Mr. Dobson’s declaration during the small party hosted by Syrus’s mother for Georgia’s pregnancy, they had scheduled an appointment there and then to seal the deal at Syrus’s company.“Thank you, Mr. Dobson,” Syrus told the lead representative, knowing how important and big this deal was to him.Once it was signed and sealed, a general public announcement would be released to the general public to inform them that Syrus’s company had been included in the list. It was a rare opportunity that rarely came, and one that would boost up the company in a few months; som
Syrus’s POV“What the heck?!” Syrus groaned in pain just as he tasted blood in his mouth.It made him recall the first time that he had received a punch from Vivian’s father; when he and Vivian had gone to announce their engagement. Syrus could remember vividly, and that was majorly the reason he had stayed away from her family completely. In truth, he had disliked them, because that had been Syrus’s first punch.“Are you sick in your family?!” Syrus bellowed in pain.He feared that Manny would have broken a tooth, and if that was the case, Syrus swore that he would make Manny regret his actions with everything he had.“How dare you?!” Manny roared in anger, so much so that he almost made Syrus and everyone else in the boardroom.“What gave you the right to come in here and act like a beast?” Syrus asked as he felt the taste of blood on his tongue. The spot where Manny’s punch had landed on his face ached like hell, which was even enough reason to get Manny arrested.“What gave you t
Vivian’s POVI was in the kitchen making lunch when I heard the door open. I smiled as I stirred the pasta; Manny was back in time for lunch as I had just finished the cooking. He had left some hours ago saying he wanted to make a quick stop somewhere and that he would be back soon. Anyway, I decided to make something delicious for him and me, and that was after I had ensured that dad had taken his medication and was resting properly.“In here, Manny!” I called out; there was excitement in my voice, and even I could feel it.The moment a shadow fell on me from the kitchen door, shiver ran through my spine, and fear gripped me; it was Ted, not Manny.“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the jolly little sister of the family,” Ted sneered.I felt the heat of his words on my skin and my heart began to race faster. Then I managed to turn, but it did not prepare me for the rage and bitterness that I saw in Ted’s eyes.“Why did you come back?” Ted asked angrily and bitterly.I swallowed hard, try
Syrus’s POVSyrus stared at Anderson, and even though it was a little dark because it was quite late, he could see how deteriorated his condition was.“Anderson,” Syrus said through a rasped breath. He had no idea that Anderson had gotten this worse. Syrus might have been busy and occupied with other things, especially with all that had been going on with him recently, but he always ensured that Anderson’s medication bills were paid in full, including his salary and other bonuses, which was why he was shocked to see Anderson in this situation.But Anderson was smiling.“You took longer than I thought. I thought I was going to die without seeing your face,” Anderson said.“I shouldn’t have taken this long to come,” Syrus said and meant it. “I didn’t know that the illness had eaten this deep into you,” he added.“No man is ever going to live forever, Syrus. The most important thing is that they are on the right path,” Anderson said through labored breath. “I am not a sad sick man livin
Syrus’s POVSyrus drove through the city at night, trying to maneuver his way around.He could barely recall the address, but he knew that he had to locate it. Years after Anderson introduced Syrus to the Frenchman and Syrus was able to bring the company back to its feet, he kept Anderson employed. His mother never liked it. In fact, she antagonized Syrus for years.“You should fire him, Syrus. He maintained a close relationship with your father even after knowing the pain and heartache he put us all through,” Nancy repeatedly told Syrus.“That would be you asking me to fire all the board members and senior staff, mum,” Syrus had told Nancy, but she had been adamant.“Then fire them and replace them all if need be!” She had said fiercely.“Mum, these are people who have worked hard in the company. They know exactly what they are doing. I cannot fire them out of the blues and just replace them like a pair of shoes. It could bring down the company, and you know this,” Syrus had argued r
Vivian’s POVMarie wiped her teary eyes and continued, and I was more curious than ever to hear all about it.“So instead of Vale to have an impersonating staff member fired, he asked me out for dinner,” Marie said.“In front of everyone that he had already bragged that he was getting you fired?” I couldn’t help but ask.One thing I realized about this conversation which Marie began without warning is that it eased whatever we were both feeling in our hearts. Before now, Marie had been troubled about Mr. Vale’s health, and I had been troubled about the revelation I got about my family from Leon, but now, we both just seemed happy. It was as though the love that she shared; the same one I had resented before now was a soothing balm to me. It reminded me of the love and thrill I had felt with Syrus when we initially met years ago. It had been intense and deep, and it had been the best time of my life, and surprisingly, the memory of it did not fill my heart with anger as it usually woul
Vivian’s POVI stayed with Marie in the hospital after we took Mr. Vale to see his doctor at the hospital. We hadn’t exchanged a word, and there wasn’t even a need to. As we sat close to each other, I heard Marie mumbling words of prayer to God for Vale. I couldn’t hear the words she spoke, but somehow, I was deeply touched. As much as I would love to resent them, there was no doubt that they loved each other like never before.“Marie?” The doctor called.We both stood up straighter and looked at him. Marie had been so soaked in her supplication and I had been immersed in her devotion to him that we both hadn’t noticed the presence of the doctor.“How is he?” Marie asked instantly. I found myself praying and wishing that nothing bad would happen to Mr. Vale. Not that my feelings towards him for abandoning his family had changed, nor my feelings towards Marie for taking a man away from his family had changed, but I still didn’t want him to die.If I didn’t want someone as dangerous as
Syrus’s POV“I have been asking you if you have anything to say to me, but you keep evading the question,” Nancy said as she stood in Syrus’s bedroom. Bonnie was also present.Syrus felt like a piece of shit, because of the news that was flying around on the internet. He should have known that confrontation with a man like Ken alone was a bad idea, but then again, no one knew this part of Syrus’s life. Even Vivian who almost got to know, Syrus managed to keep her in the dark, but now, things were slowly getting out of hand. Ken had been so good and smart with what he was doing that he ensured that his face was faced out of the camera. The only person the world could see was Syrus, and of course, to them, he was trying to kill an innocent citizen simply because he was wealthy and powerful. Syrus had stayed holed up in the house, because right now, he could not bear to face the judgmental faces of everyone that knew him, including the colleagues that he hired himself.“What the heck
Vivian’s POVThe revelation I got from Leon still had me reeling with shock. Hearing that Dad had used up our inheritance and wanted to give me out in a contract marriage to pay off his debt, I had thought that that was the height of betrayal from my family members, but this was worse than I could take.Ted now had blood in his hand!I shuddered at the remembrance of it. Thankfully, when Leon brought me back to the house, Marie and Mr. Vale had been too engrossed with having their lover’s time together to even notice that I was drenched in dread, so I had just delivered what I was sent and I went into my room. I could not even bring myself to eat anything. In fact, the thought of food made my stomach retch.This was no longer a case of drug dealing; it was a murder case. First of all, Ted had gotten involved in drugs, which was even a great crime in the country. Then he had killed Jane in cold blood simply because she had betrayed him. To make things even scarier, he had planted a pi
Syrus’s POVSyrus got home at past midnight, drenched and drained. His mission with Ken had failed woefully. After asking Ken that question, Ken had laughed at him to scorn.“If you didn’t, then who did?” Ken had asked without remorse. “You were the one with the wedge hammer that day; I only walked in and saw that you had just murdered the Frenchman,” Ken had said.Syrus had almost fallen defeated, because on a face level, that had been what had happened, but Syrus was determined to get to the bottom of it. More than anything else, he wanted to get this guilt hanging over his head; this guilt that Ken was now threatening to use against him. Syrus was a businessman, and he knew what deadly scandals could do to his company. Once the news got out and the world knew that he had murdered someone, he would never recover from it, and Syrus had gone too far to let anything stop him now. He had sacrificed too much to let a sin from the past crawl up to destroy everything. “I don’t remember an
Vivian’s POV“I still want to know,” I told Leon insistently even though my heart was pounding greatly.I was asking myself if I truly needed to know about it, because Leon’s words sounded dreadful, causing my heart to beat faster than usual. Maybe I should just let sleeping dogs lie, especially now that I had gotten far away from Ted, but how far away can I ever possibly get? Each time I think I have successfully run away from a problem, it pops right back up and stares at me squarely in the face. For instance, the last person I expected to run into in this peaceful town that I had gotten a job was Leon, the same man whom I had seen with Ted who had a dangerous look in his eyes. These were signs that I could never actually run away from my reality. There was Ken and the conniving inspector that I had fled from. There was Ted who had verbally threatened me right in a house that I had called home for years. I couldn’t continue running away from difficult and harsh truths, especially the
Vivian’s POVI waited for Marie’s package to be brought to me, but it was taking longer than necessary.“Ma’am, please how much longer is this going to take?” I asked, because my legs were beginning to get weak.“A little while longer,” the attendant responded politely.I waited and waited, and I wondered why it was taking so much time. I began to feel sweaty and hot in my stomach, and extremely uncomfortable, but I did not know what else to do.“Here,” Leon turned.I almost jumped out of my skin when I heard his voice. Then I turned around and saw him holding a glass of juice. “I have been watching you, and you look like you are about to pass out,” Leon added when I didn’t make any move to collect the juice from him.“Where did you get this from?” I asked him skeptically.“There’s a restaurant just by the corner,” Leon answered, his hand still stretched at me.I took the juice from Leon, because I realized that I highly needed it, especially with how long I have been standing and wai