Georgia’s POVGeorgia lingered in the restaurant after Bonnie left. Thankfully, Bonnie had payed for everything, and Georgia ensured that she would not be telling another soul about it, including her mother. She still had a couple of hours on Bonnie’s reservation before she would have to leave, so that would give her enough ample time to think and plan about her next line of action.Georgia called the waitress; she wasn’t satisfied. She didn’t take much when Bonnie was here, because she did not want to come off as hungry, poor, and desperate. Anyway, once she is able to get the necessary information she would use to blackmail the silly interviewer into doing her bidding, she would bounce back financially, or even better. Georgia had a good feeling about this, and she could barely wait.“Is Bonnie’s card still an open one?” Georgia asked the young girl.She remembered clearly that Nancy and Bonnie always left their cards open when they dined here, which means that for the duration of
Vivian’s POVI arrived at the address that Syrus sent to me and alighted. I paid the driver from my purse, but as I opened my purse, the threat note stared at me in the eyes, making me startle a little, and bringing dread to my entire being. I was able to shake off my dread, gave the driver his money and he sped off.Then I turned and walked towards the house number. Instead of waiting for Syrus to come out and get me after calling him, I simply tried the door and it opened quietly, and I slipped in.I guess I still had bits of the coffee shop and the town in me, because before I found myself there, I wasn’t used to entering rooms without knocking.As I entered quietly, I overhead Syrus talking on the phone, and from the tone and words, I knew immediately that it was his mother, and my guts told me that he was being scolded for bringing me here.“Some things will never change,” I said and Syrus turned to me in shock.“Vivian,” he called out breathlessly. “You are here already. I was w
Georgia’s POVGeorgia had been smiling since her recent discovery. It was pretty obvious that Belinda was the engineer behind her disastrous interview, because Vivian was the only person she was currently antagonizing.“The slimy bitch,” Georgia cursed angrily. “She has always been the one fighting for Vivian,” Georgia said, because she remembers everything all too well.She knew that even Belinda did not recognize her too.“I am going to make sure they all pay for this,” Georgia said to herself with a determined grin. She was already on top of the game. Since Vivian was back in town, and Belinda tried to sabotage her interview, she would ensure that she dealt dangerously with both of them, but first of all, she needed to start with the silly interviewer. So Georgia went all the way to her apartment; the address the private investigator sent to her, and luckily, the interviewer was at home.“Brenda,” Georgia said when she opened her door.It was the first time she was actually addre
Vivian’s POVThe apartment Syrus rented was really nice, much to my surprise, although not entirely, because of the kind of man he was, and for someone who had camped in a room for weeks, I was more than grateful, although I didn’t say it out loud.“Does this place look okay?” Syrus asked me after we entered.His show of concern was strange to me, because I was married to Syrus Vale, and he was not exactly this nice, sweet, and concerned about me. If he had remained loving and caring like when we first met, I would never have divorced him.“Yes,” I said without giving too much expression or emotions away. There was no need to fawn over this gesture, because first of all, he was doing it for his babies; if I wasn’t pregnant for Syrus, he probably would never have picked up my call in the first place, and secondly, I did not want him to think I was at his mercy.We were still very much divorced.“Do you need anything else?” Syrus asked, his eyes going to my stomach again.“I told you
Vivian’s POV“Vivian. Vivian?” I snapped out of my reverie when Syrus’s voice of him calling my name kept ringing in my head.“Are you okay?” Syrus asked, looking at me with deep concern.“Yes, I am fine,” I said, shaking my head to get rid of the thoughts in my head.I was reminiscing on that night when I had happily and freely given myself to Syrus in an apartment just like this one when his words had interrupted me. I shuddered at the thought of things almost replaying itself years later; we were both alone, standing in an apartment.The only difference was that now, we are divorced.“Are you done? You can leave now,” I told Syrus, causing him to be surprised at my dismissal. But I just wanted to be alone, at least, until the effect of what our past that I just reminisced cleared from my head, and also, I needed time to think deeply about what happened to me in the last couple of days, and the way forward. Having Syrus here would prevent all that.“Are you sure everything is fine
Vivian’s POVAfter the tight hug that lingered for minutes, we finally untangled and I led Belinda into the living room.Having her around just felt downright relieving and so right.“Vivian, what happened?!” Belinda was the first to speak.I guess she was the first to come out of whatever emotions it was that kept us quiet, and just taking in each other. It felt like I hadn’t seen Belinda for years. This was nothing like the time I left to be with Syrus; now was just extremely different. I just feel that with what I experienced, I had come to realize that the people who have been in my life are very special.“It’s a very long story,” I said.“One of which I have all the time in the world,” Belinda said, staring at me.“Don’t you have a job to be doing right now or something?” I asked lightly.“I see what you are doing, but I should tell you, Vivian, I took the rest of the day off just to be with you,” Belinda said. Then she stopped abruptly and she looked at me. “First things first,
Vivian’s POVBelinda threw her head back and laughed when I asked her that question.“Belinda, what did you do?” I asked her again, eager to know.“I didn’t do what I wasn’t supposed to do,” Belinda said vaguely, but I was not having it.“What are you talking about?” I asked her, my curiosity nearly overriding me.“Okay, let me give you the full gist, since you are this eager,” Belinda said.“Please do!” I said.We both settled in the bed, holding and hugging each other tightly, yet tenderly. It was as though we had been apart for eternity, and now that we were together again, we were afraid that being slightly apart might make one of us disappear.“That day when I left, I got a call from my clique of friends,”“You have a clique of friends now?” I asked Belinda, slightly jealous. All these years, she was the only one I ever had as a friend, even up till now, so realizing that Belinda got a whole bunch of friends and shared friendship with other people that I was not a part of just g
Georgia’s POVGeorgia arrived at home in a lighter mood, because a few minutes after she left Brenda’s apartment, she got a call from Brenda.“Have you changed your mind?” Georgia teased. She already knew the answer, but Georgia just enjoyed toying with her victims.“No, I haven’t,” Brenda responded, and from the sound of her voice on the phone, Georgia could tell that she was still shaken.Very good, just the way Georgia liked it!“I wanted to inform you that the interview video has been deleted completely, and it would never be out in the public,” Brenda said.“How am I certain that this isn’t a lie just so that I would not expose you?” Georgia asked.She was not a fool. In fact, she was way smarter than a bunch of people, and she knew how these things worked, because she had been in the game long enough, which was why she did not even talk about her other blackmail request yet.“Because you have just been crowned our star of the season,” Brenda announced.Georgia could not believe
Georgia’s POVGeorgia stayed hidden in that spot and watched everything play out. She had planned everything with Adrian, but she needed to be sure that nothing was going to go wrong. Georgia watched Bonnie give Adrian a side look, and she raised her nose up.“All of you from wealthy homes are always looking down on people at first look,” Georgia said to herself in disdain.She was familiar with that kind of look all too well, because when she was trying to make her way to the top, she faced a lot of criticism from wealthy and influential people. Georgia also knew that if she wasn’t where she was now, Bonnie would not give her a first look at all.“Well, all that is about to change,” Georgia said as she paid attention to the pair. She arranged it in such a way that made her hear everything they were talking about.“I am waiting on someone, and you are in her seat,” Bonnie said in her rich, proud, and sophisticated voice that made Georgia want to drag off all the wealth and influence
Georgia’s POVIn private now, Georgia held her hand to her chest and released the breath that she had been holding.“That was freaking close!” Georgia said in shock.While she sat there and watched the banter among Syrus, Nancy and Bonnie, Georgia had been praying that Bonnie wouldn’t be pressured into telling the truth, thereby mentioning her name.She was really smart enough to have told Bonnie to wire it over to her, because she knew without a doubt that Syrus definitely tried to trace that money. “I have to think of something,” Georgia said to herself in thought.She received the mail of her officially approved contract with the TV show, which meant that the money would soon be paid to get. It also meant that she would soon begin her tour. All things seemed to be working well for Georgia. Now, her only problem was Bonnie. Georgia had a deep feeling that if Syrus applied just the right pressure, she would slip. She knew Bonnie and the soil she was made from. Bonnie was too soft at
Vivian’s POV“Twenty thousand dollars?!” For a moment, I thought my ears were playing tricks on me, but from the look on Manny’s face, I knew he was not joking. Why would he? Who would joke about something as important as this?Manny took a seat, dejected. He looked like he was dressed for work, but I couldn’t ask him.“Dad’s medical bills certainly shouldn’t have cost that much,” I said with certainty. Not like I had any valid proof, but I just couldn’t believe it at all. “You weren’t here, Vivian, so you have no idea what it was like,” Manny said.There was still the underlying tone of anger and resentment which I just recently figured out, and it really broke my heart. Well, I guess everyone in my family now officially hates me.“I know that, but…” I tried to talk, but Manny interrupted me.“What about that Jane girl?” Manny asked out of the blue. I blinked several times, because for a moment, I could not understand Manny’s question, and he noticed my confusion.“The girl you m
Vivian’s POV“What does that even mean?!” I asked, angrier now.“What doesn’t it mean? Vivian?” Manny responded, equally upset, even though we were both equally trying to keep our voices down so that we would not wake dad up.“He does not want to see you, or speak to you! I wouldn’t even have let you in if he was awake!” Manny spewed.His words hit me like a punch in my guts, making me stagger backwards. So this was what life had become for me. My dad who accepted me when I returned after the divorce no longer accepted me.“This is not fair!” I said as hot, bitter tears began to fall from my eyes. “This is not fair at all.”It was as though my words aroused the anger that Manny had been trying so hard to keep at bay.“It is not fair? Vivian, do you have any idea the pain you have caused us?!” Manny bellowed. “First of all, you ran off with a man that none of us approved of!” Manny said.“I know that. I know that,” I was crying now, in deep regret.“That alone, caused dad to have his f
Vivian’s POVAfter Belinda left for work, I began to contemplate whether or not I should go. I wouldn’t have gone if Ted hadn’t been taken away, which should have given me enough confidence, but now, I just felt horrible going, because all this problem was because of me.I hadn’t spoken to Manny since the last call when he told me to run to safety. Maybe he must have been trying to reach me, but my phone was switched off.“You don’t have all the time in the world to contemplate, Vivian,” I told myself, because if I don’t go now, I might not catch Manny at home before he goes to work.So I got dressed and left the apartment, taking the key with me.On my way there, my heart began to pound heavily, and I wondered why I was feeling this way about visiting my family. I used to be very comfortable around them, and even though we have had our rough patches, we were still a family.Standing in front of the door now, I inhaled and exhaled.“You have got this, Vivian,” I encouraged myself befo
Vivian’s POVI have been reminiscing on the things that Belinda revealed to me, and I could barely make sense of it.I watched Belinda getting dressed for work as I stayed lazily in bed, my mind trying to understand everything.“Vivian!” Belinda practically yelled my name, making me snap out of my reverie. “Jeez, you were lost for a moment,” Belinda said.“No, I have been here,” I lied, and Belinda knew I was lying. I really do not understand why I lie to her when she could read me like a book. “I have been talking for about ten minutes, and you completely zoned out, so stop lying to me,” Belinda said.“Okay, what were you saying?” I asked, somehow sensing that she was yapping about silly things.After talking at length yesterday, I had pleaded with Belinda to spend the night with me. It was my first night in the apartment, and I did not want to sleep alone. Trauma from that small town still haunted me greatly; which was even why I switched off my phone. Thinking about it now, I had
Syrus’s POV“Mum, do you have an idea what Bonnie did? Did she tell you? Are you also in on this?” Syrus asked his mother, fuming.He had gotten a worrisome call from the family’s finance officer who expressed his deep concerns about how huge amounts of money was being withdrawn from the family account. First, it was Bonnie, then Syrus, and now Syrus was requesting for another amount of money.Syrus would be really upset if his mother was in on this.“You can at least start by talking first, Syrus,” Nancy demanded authoritatively.Georgia just sat there watching the family drama, and hoping to God that Bonnie would not be forced into mentioning her name, otherwise she would be doomed. This was the only family that she pitched her tent for now.“Bonnie had five thousand dollars wired out of the account, and I demand to know what she used the money for!” Syrus bellowed.“So you refused to answer mum’s question, but you want to force me into answering yours, right?” Bonnie stated stubbor
Georgia’s POVGeorgia was upset and disappointed at Bonnie for making her waste her time going all the way to that property only to discover that there was no one there.In as much as she would like to, she could not show off her anger and disappointment towards Bonnie. If she didn’t need both mother and daughter to reach her goal, she wouldn’t bother with a dumb head like Bonnie.“Sometimes, being born with a silver spoon just makes them really stupid and silly,” Georgia said to herself, referring to Bonnie. Georgia was not particularly a fan of these rich kids, because half of them were not remotely as smart as she was, and that was because they had everything practically handed over to them in a platter of gold.Georgia arrived at Syrus home, and for the first time, she really hoped that Syrus would not be at home. She did not want to see him, at least not now, and she was still very upset that after that interview, he never bothered to reach her. Instead, he had gone to be the kni
Georgia’s POVGeorgia arrived at home in a lighter mood, because a few minutes after she left Brenda’s apartment, she got a call from Brenda.“Have you changed your mind?” Georgia teased. She already knew the answer, but Georgia just enjoyed toying with her victims.“No, I haven’t,” Brenda responded, and from the sound of her voice on the phone, Georgia could tell that she was still shaken.Very good, just the way Georgia liked it!“I wanted to inform you that the interview video has been deleted completely, and it would never be out in the public,” Brenda said.“How am I certain that this isn’t a lie just so that I would not expose you?” Georgia asked.She was not a fool. In fact, she was way smarter than a bunch of people, and she knew how these things worked, because she had been in the game long enough, which was why she did not even talk about her other blackmail request yet.“Because you have just been crowned our star of the season,” Brenda announced.Georgia could not believe