Syrus’s POVSyrus was almost close to his destination when he ended the call with Vivian. Sometimes, she could really be insensitive and downright naive, and it always pissed him off, just like now.He needed to see Ken; the text message Syrus got from him was too disturbing to waste another minute.Syrus arrived at a hotel somewhere in the city, and judging by the exterior of the hotel, it was quite a discreet place, which was good. The last thing he needed now was to run into someone he knew, or a bloody blogger.He could not afford a bad PR right now.Syrus entered the hotel and went straight to the receptionist.“Good day, sir,” the receptionist greeted warmly. “Welcome to our hotel; how may we be of service to you?” She asked nicely.“I am here to meet up with someone,” Syrus said tightly.He was already feeling sick by the mere thought of seeing Ken after all these years. What had started as a friendly beginning for both of them had turned sour, and Syrus could remember what riv
Syrus’s POV“Don’t you dare,” Syrus threatened darkly, the veins on his forehead popping out.Ken threw his head back and laughed mockingly, and this made Syrus more furious. He wanted to grab Ken and strangle him. Ken had always been the prick he had been years ago when he knew him, and now, just like every other time that he had known Ken, Syrus regretted the very day he got to know Ken. “Why all this fuss, huh?” Ken taunted Syrus. “I already touched her. I felt her skin under my fingers,” Ken said, releasing pleasurable moans as he did, and enjoying the rage he saw in Syrus all together. “I put my hands in her body and touched her, maybe in ways that you never did,” Ken continued.“You only did your job as a doctor. Quit this foolery!” Syrus barked.Ken sipped from his small glass of champagne and smiled evilly.“It hurts, doesn’t it?” Ken asked, cocking his eyebrows arrogantly. “You know I was doing way more than my job, Syrus Vale,” Ken said.Syrus closed his eyes as his heart s
Vivian’s POVThree hours later after Syrus dashed off, I still hadn’t come up with an idea on how to get Syrus back to the apartment, and more importantly, get the money from him. I had tried every possible option and ruled them out almost immediately.“What do I do, my goodness?!” I asked myself, exasperated.I wasn’t used to these kinds of situations, and thinking for hours was beginning to wear me out. Without hesitation, I called Belinda. I know we weren’t exactly on speaking terms, but she was the only person I could think to call in situations like these. Belinda always knew what to do.“If you are calling to apologize, then forget about it,” Belinda said, still sounding upset.“Do you really mean that?” I asked, sounding like a little child and hoping that it would work. It had to work anyway, because this was my only hope.“Yes, I do,” Belinda said. “Work is a little tight now, Vivian; I can’t spend longer time on the phone,” Belinda added hastily.I knew that whether or not B
Vivian’s POVSyrus stared at me, and it was obvious, just like the sound of his voice, that Syrus was troubled, but I knew that this wasn’t the time to show concern by asking what the problem was.“You lied to me?” Syrus asked, his anger rising to the surface.I opened my mouth to talk; whether it was to explain why I did what I did, or even apologize, I could not exactly tell, but Syrus did not even give me the chance, as he walked over to me menacingly.“What do you think this is, huh? Do you think everything is a joke to you? Why would you tell such a lie?” Syrus asked angrily.“I just wanted you to come, because…” I started talking, but I stopped when I felt pain in my lower abdomen.I winced and held my stomach, and I became frightened when the pain increased. It felt as though the babies were moving, but in a chaotic way that sent shots of pain through my body.Syrus looked at me with a more disgusted expression than a worried one. “What is it?” He asked in a sneer.“Syrus, my s
Georgia’s POVGeorgia lounged by the pool in her bikini, sipping from a glass of a very expensive wine, and just enjoying nature. She could see the hotel gardens and tall trees from where she sat, and it just gave her some sort of peace. Georgia had the best time of her life touring London in the last couple of days, all expenses paid. This was her first tour as a star, and she could not get over the sight, food, culture, exhibitions, and of course, body treatments that she had enjoyed. It was as though it should never come to an end. “I did this all by myself,” Georgia said and smiled to herself. Nobody ever achieved anything by being the good guy or good girl, and Georgia knew, especially from experience, that even those highly wealthy and influential families had also done some dirty things in the past that would destroy all they have ever worked for if they ever got to the public, and they guarded those dirty, ugly secrets with everything they had.The only person Georgia hadn’
Vivian’s POVI looked at Syrus and wondered what conditions he could possibly have, but regardless, I would take any conditions from him as long as I got the money needed.“What are the conditions?” I asked him.“I know you are very stubborn, but I am not joking about this, Vivian. If I give you this money that you have requested, you promise to stick to my terms?” Syrus asked.I began to grow upset. “I already told you to state your conditions, right?” I said harshly.“The thing with people is that they always agree to terms, as long as it suits them and as long as they are going to get something, but when it is time to stick to the condition, they bail out,” Syrus said, and he was freaking right.I knew that if Syrus mentioned any conditions right now, I would accept without blinking, because I was in a desperate condition now, but then again, what difficult condition could Syrus possibly demand?It would only be nearly impossible if he mentioned being his wife again, because that i
Vivian’s POV“Are you sure?” The doctor asked, looking skeptically at me. Both questions, the one he asked previously and this one now was directed at me, but somehow, Syrus managed to steal the show. The doctor sensed that something was amiss, especially in the manner with which Syrus jumped on the question. Anyway, I was just as perplexed and skeptical as the doctor.“Yes, she is sure,” Syrus answered quickly again, then when he saw the questioning look on the doctor’s face, he quickly adjusted and said, “We are sure.”The doctor looked at Syrus as though he was looking for something that Syrus wasn’t saying, before looking at me, as though I was in some sort of terrible situation with Syrus and he wanted me to confide in him, so that he could rescue me, but I could not even bring myself to say anything else.Or maybe I was too shocked to say a word.The doctor cleared his throat. “Well, um, I asked because I noticed she was checked, and I just wanted to know…” the doctor was sayin
Syrus’s POVSyrus could have pressed Vivian on the reason she needed such a huge amount of money, but he could not focus on that right now.Even as he drove back home, he could not stop thinking about his encounter with Ken, and the doctor’s questions. Ken hadn’t lied when he said he touched Vivian, and that made Syrus more upset than he had ever been. He wished he could strangle Ken himself, but according to law, he couldn’t. Worse still, Ken knew a dirty secret of his that could ruin Syrus’s life forever.“Damn, I wish that never happened,” Syrus said painfully.He had no idea what to do about Ken yet, but he knew that he would rather die than let Ken get anywhere close to Vivian, or his babies. Once the babies are born, Syrus decided that he would protect them and keep them as private and safe as possible. They meant the world to him, and he could not wait to officially meet them, but first of all, Syrus needed to do the needful. Even though he had given Vivian a huge sum of money,
Syrus’s POVAs I drove back home, I could not help but ponder on the words of Anderson. I tried to get him to tell me what he meant, but he kept insisting that I should meet my mum.“She is the right person to tell you all you need to know,” Anderson had said tiredly. “It is not in my place, because your father made me swear not to tell you.”Syrus wasn’t even thinking about his father, because he had stopped seeing him as his father years ago. He was more concerned about what his mother knew that she wasn’t telling him. Syrus was certain that he knew everything that happened between his parents. He eavesdropped. He overheard, so what else could possibly have happened that he didn’t know about? Syrus could remember his father coldly telling his mother that he was done with the marriage. Syrus could also remember the sound of his mother’s hurting voice, and her plea for him to leave his mistress and focus on his family, but he had been adamant. Syrus’s father had slammed the door and n
Vivian’s POVI still could not get over the shock of what Marie said to me about Mr. Vale reaching out to Syrus and Bonnie without getting a response at all. All these years, from what I got to know about Syrus and his family, their father never made an attempt to reach out to them after their parents got divorced. In fact, he had practically abandoned them, but now, Marie had just given me the side to the story that I never knew existed. I knew I shouldn’t take all her words for it simply because she was a kind woman. A woman in love could practically cook up lies just to make her out as the better woman. Any wife who was being cheated on would be mad as hell; I was a perfect example. After what Syrus did to me, there was no way I wouldn’t be cross with him. I had even decided to keep the triplets to myself, so I totally understood the grievances of Nancy, even though she was a mean and callous woman to me. Anyway, Marie didn’t get the chance to continue because I had to get regis
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