“What makes you reluctant to see a doctor? I just want some clarity. Are you sick or what?”The reprimand, of course, came from Ed—via a phone call. Otiz might have given up on taking Ruby to the doctor, but he still reported it. After lying down aimlessly, Ruby sighed inwardly, moving to sit up.“I was just carsick. I went too far,” said Ruby.“You shouldn’t be so easily swayed by Lori. If you’re not well, don’t go along with her plans.” Ed immediately assumed Ruby went out because of Lori's persuasion.“I wanted to go out. Not Lori. I was just bored at home.” Ruby corrected him, not wanting Lori to get any unnecessary blame.“I’ll rest at home now.” Ruby promised earnestly, hoping to end Ed’s interest in her condition.“As you should. Don't listen to Tia Mia, either. You don’t need to think about anything she says.”“Yes.” Ruby answered with a slightly hoarse voice, holding back tears. Of course, she had moved. When Ed defended her, Mia's insults didn't appear or feel as bad.“Get s
“LEAVE THIS PLACE!”Ed shouted while lying on the back seat, clutching his bleeding ear. The bullet missed only slightly, not quite hitting its mark. It was definitely aimed at Ed and came very close.If he had been sitting straight, the bullet would have hit his back.“More than one!” As the side window behind them shattered, Otiz yelled in panic.The different shooting directions indicated that their enemies were not only tracking them from behind, but also from the side. They'd been watching from the beginning.It was clear they weren't driving since Ed's was the only car on the road.That's why Ed ordered Otiz to leave the road immediately, to avoid remaining a target.However, driving while dodging bullets was no simple task. The car was a moving target, but the fact that they managed to hit Ed’s ear meant the shooter was very professional. Moreover, the gunshots were silenced. They were accustomed to performing tasks with precision. If they couldn’t escape, there was a high chan
Ed groaned, feeling a blow to his waist, while more shattered glass rained down on him.Ed squirmed as his body was pinned against the seat, but he managed to break free.“Otiz? Otiz!” Ed shook Otiz’s shoulder but got no response. Ed had to leave the car before caring for Otiz.At any moment, the person targeting him would come to check if the target was dead. But Ed took a moment to grab his phone and send his location.His men were there to guard his field from thieves.“Otiz.” Ed shook Otiz's shoulder once more, but his head still hung limply. Ed didn’t know if he was alive or not, and he didn’t have time to check. Ed forced the car door open with a kick and crawled out.“Damn it.” Ed murmured in response to the sound of metal clashing. Another shot. They knew he was out of the car.Ed immediately rolled away, taking cover behind the bushes and trees near the car, making as much
"TITA!"Ruby called again, but her view was cut off as Pedro quickly shut the door. Ruby was trapped again.She shook her head as she inched backward, staring at Pedro, who now managed to smile. Despite the pain in his face, he couldn't hide the victorious grin."Don't come closer!" Ruby screamed."Why not? You agreed yesterday." Pedro approached, grimacing."Did you forget or...""Don't touch me!" Ruby slapped away Pedro's outstretched hand, then dragged her body up to stand.Ruby ran away, grabbing anything that could be used as a weapon. This was Ed's study, however. There were only books and pens on the table.Ruby threw everything at Pedro, but it was met only with laughter. Pedro didn't even try to chase her as she frantically ran around. He merely ensured she didn't get near the door."There's no point in running," Pedro said, laughing again as Ruby finally stopped, standing still with a desperate stare. The windo
“Ed, wait! ... Wait!” Pedro dragged his body away as Ed stepped closer."I allowed you to stay here because of Tia. That’s the only reason, and now you dare to play with fire?” Ed hissed, picking up Ruby’s phone from the floor and turning it off. It was an important witness.“No, I didn’t! I was just joking!” Pedro defended himself weakly, begging and screaming as Ed grabbed his head.Ed yanked Pedro’s hair, dragging him closer to Ruby, who was lying face down with her shoulders shaking. Crying. A pitiful state.“YOU CALL THAT A JOKE?!” Ed shouted, throwing Pedro’s body against the sofa.“Yes… Really. You don’t understand, Ed. I tried to resist, but I didn’t want to. I have Mia. Why would I look for someone else? But Liz tempted me! I didn’t mean it!” Pedro begged, touching Ed’s feet.But that foot quickly kicked his head again,
Ruby couldn't speak or ask any questions during the journey because Mia drove without caring about anything other than reaching their destination.Ruby, whose condition had already been less than optimal from the start, felt even worse. She opened the car door as soon as Mia braked, vomiting tea onto the ground.“What’s wrong with you?! Come on, hurry!”Mia seemed truly blind to Ruby's dreadful state, pulling her back inside without any concern.“Wait!” Ruby finally snapped, breaking free from Mia's grip after almost falling over. The building they entered looked like a warehouse.It was a spacious structure with a high ceiling and bright lights, filled with numerous boxes of unknown contents, and the floor was uneven. Because of this, Ruby struggled to walk.“What’s wrong with you?” Mia, impatient, turned around, glaring at Ruby, who was bent over, taking deep breaths.“Why
“Don’t touch her!” Ed pushed Mia away from Pedro, and she began to cry.“Please don’t do this, Ed. He couldn’t have...”“Shut up.” Ed growled, then stood in front of Pedro, extending his hand and signaling for Ruby to come closer.Ruby was still confused, but she moved closer. Ed was the only person she recognized in the room beside Pedro and Mia. She felt safer near Ed.“I heard Liz say you’ve been trying to seduce her since she came to the house.” Ed had heard it. Ruby's yelling had already been loud enough, and it echoed throughout the area.“I… didn’t…” Pedro seemed to shake his head while trying to blink his swollen and bruised eyes. Then tears ran down his cheeks, which were no longer brown but purple and blue.“It’s all… not…”“Are you still going to say I was seducing you?!” Ruby cut him off, sensing that Pedro was going to defend himself with another lie.At first, Ruby felt pity for Pedro's condition, but it's possible that his injuries were well-deserved. Despite everything
"Señora? Can you hear me?"Ruby was trying to open her eyes when someone tapped her shoulder."Mm.. yes." Ruby blinked rapidly, feeling a bit confused because it seemed like many hands were touching her."Thank goodness. Please don't panic. You are in the hospital, and we are checking your condition."Ruby saw clearly and realized that the person speaking to her was a doctor."No!" Ruby pulled her hand away and pushed away the one that was about to prick her with a needle. She didn't want any doctors touching her."Eh? Señora, you were brought in unconscious. We need to know what made you pass out." The doctor was puzzled but also intent on being insistent."No. I'm fine. I want to go home." Ruby again pushed away his hands and sat up."What's wrong with you?"Ruby jolted and turned. Ed was there, standing a little distance away. Ruby lowered her head, clutching the blanket that covered half her body, hiding her panic and fear.Ed motioned with his head for the doctor near Ruby's bed
“Such chaos,” Liz lamented as she watched the crowd of rowdy children, who had become the main guests at her wedding.“Yeah, I didn’t expect it to get this wild either.” Ruby sat beside her, watching AJ hand out chocolate-covered strawberries to the other kids.He wasn’t alone—Claud, Val's second child, was helping him. They eventually grew close, even though their conversations were sometimes limited because Claud was more fluent in Italian than English. Still, they got along well enough.“How did it all start?” Ed frowned.“I don’t know.” Ruby was also unsure.“Maybe I shouldn’t have agreed when AJ asked.” Liz deeply regretted it.Somehow, AJ had convinced Liz to provide a chocolate fountain for her wedding, and it had become the source of chaos. The younger children were enjoying it, but soon chocolate stains appeared on the white tablecloths, as wel
"Do I have to? I already checked that document yesterday. Can’t you do it instead?" When Ed saw another email from Otiz, he complained.It was a financial report. Since Matteo had spread his investments in every direction—across more or less thirty companies—the financial reports Otiz received came from all directions, across different types of businesses. Ed hadn't anticipated this.Being an investor wasn’t as straightforward as it seemed. He still had to work.“You’re the one who has to check it. I’m just the middleman,” Otiz firmly refused.He could refuse because the request was made over the phone. Perhaps if they were face-to-face, Otiz would be more compliant. He was no longer blindly following Ed's orders, carefully sorting out what should and should not be done. He was only responsible for delivering financial reports, not reviewing them.Ed grumbled. He was quite used to reviewing company pa
"‘What do you want to show me?’ As she approached Ed, Ruby inquired.She left AJ's side; he was busy reading a story to his two younger siblings. Elena and Elisa sat quietly, either really listening or getting sleepy. It was already time for their afternoon nap."Read this," Ed shifted, making room for Ruby to sit beside him, and handed her a phone displaying an article in Spanish. Less than two hours had passed since the publication of this hot news story.Ruby didn’t pay attention to that, though, because she was immediately stunned by the headline.‘DEA ARRESTS MAJOR MEXICAN CARTEL AND EXPOSES BILLION-DOLLAR BUSINESS NETWORK’"What... you...?" Ruby turned pale and panicked, of course."Read it to the end," Ed said, pointing to the rest of the text that she had not yet seen.Ruby read quickly and frowned. There was no mention of Ed or Rosas anywhere. Only Reyes. Marco Reyes. He was the story's
Two black vans speed down a deserted road. It was already nighttime, and they were the only ones there. The end of the road was in sight—a black iron gate.“Ram it!”A shout rang out, and the vans didn’t slow down. The passengers inside, all dressed in black, held on tight as a deafening crash echoed.The gate fell, bent, but opened. The two vans barged through and stopped right in front of the brightly lit house.“Get in and kill everyone!”Another shout, and the people inside the vans scrambled out, storming into the beachside house. Some were carrying firearms; others were wielding clubs.However, as they entered, everyone froze. No one came to greet them. The house was supposed to be full of guards, which was why they had come in numbers—ready for a confrontation.In reality, what greeted them was silence. Not a single person appeared, even though the house was brightly lit.“
"AJ, don't make Abuela tired!" Ruby reprimanded AJ for running away with something, while Mia pursued him.But it was impossible to make AJ stop, especially since his younger siblings were laughing joyfully at his antics. Elisa and Elena had just learned to walk, and they happily followed him around.AJ couldn't stop when he had such an audience. Mia seemed to be scolding him, but everyone knew Mia could never really be upset at AJ.Ruby had to step in, followed by Ed to watch over Elisa and Elena. Although falling on the sand wouldn't hurt, the beach had sharp rocks that could scrape them."Mommy! They should chase me! Don't pick them up!" AJ didn’t want his little sisters to be carried away and stop the fun."Alright," Ruby said, intending to supervise them closely."How about we take a vacation?" Ed abruptly proposed the idea, having just finished reading a message on his phone."Hm?" Ruby was surprised. There had been no suc
"Here."Ed gave Otiz a handkerchief to wipe away his tears. If it had been just a few, he would have let Otiz cry—and wiped the tears with the sleeve of his jacket.The problem was that Otiz couldn’t stop crying. He had already been emotional when Ed stood beside him at the altar, and it got worse when he saw Lori walking down the aisle, escorted by flowers. It was all too beautiful and dazzling for his eyes.“Sorry,” Otiz stammered, wiping the remaining tears from his face.“What are you apologizing for? At a wedding, shedding tears is not considered inappropriate. You're just too happy. No one will blame you.” Ed gently patted Otiz’s shoulder and then turned his gaze forward.Of course, Lori was the focus of the event. Her choice of dress was perfect, blending seamlessly with the entire garden decor. Flowers, ribbons, music, and all the other elements were carefully and precisely chosen—now showcasi
Ed tapped his finger on the glass in his hand. His eyes were fixed on a single point—Marco Reyes.The man was speaking with Otiz. Nothing important. Marco was just making small talk, and Otiz was doing the same—being polite, answering Marco's questions about his law firm's progress. Ed actually needed to speak to both of them, but he chose to start with Marco first.Ed just needed to gesture with his chin, and Otiz understood immediately. He excused himself, making up a reason, and left Marco alone."I need to talk to you," Ed said as he approached."Oh? What is it?" Marco immediately followed Ed, moving to the quiet side yard. The other guests filled the living room."I want you to handle the shipment to Ecuador and Brazil next week."Marco looked as if he had choked. This was incredibly surprising. Ed had never let him touch the South American market before. Ed had always handled it himself. Marco had only been managing North A
"Mommy, I want to try! You be Elena, and I'll be Elisa."AJ reached out his hand, asking for the milk bottle from Ruby. He wanted to try feeding the babies—and he chose Elisa.Usually, Tita was around to help Ruby, but today Tita was busy, so Ruby had been on her own since earlier."You can, but please be careful, okay? Don’t let her choke, and don’t squeeze." Ruby guided AJ's hand to hold the bottle filled with pre-warmed breast milk, helping him apply just the right pressure so it wouldn't press too hard against Elisa's lips."Wow! Look, Mommy! She's drinking!" AJ exclaimed happily, eyes sparkling with joy. This was the first time he was directly involved—doing something for his little sister. AJ usually watched, but at first he was afraid to hold the babies. He would look in awe but wouldn’t dare touch them.“See? It’s not a big deal, right? You don’t have to be scared anymore.”&l
From their disheveled appearance, it was clear that Liz and Asher had either just rushed out of a room or possibly run over here. One thing was certain: as soon as they heard the news about Ruby, they had hurried over."Where? Ruby... You're pale. Why... It shouldn't be happening now."Just like Lori, Liz was out of breath as she approached Ruby, panicking. The news had shocked everyone. Liz had already planned to stay in Puerto Vallarta next week to be there for Ruby when she gave birth.Of course, Liz no longer lived at Ed’s house. She had managed to buy her own apartment.“I’m fine, and they’re fine too. But the nurse hasn’t brought them here yet. Calm down… breathe.”Ruby was already able to speak clearly and now had to calm Liz down. She was the one lying down, barely conscious, yet had to reassure everyone else."Are you really okay? No problems? Any complications?" Liz touched Ruby’s bo