The sun streamed through the curtains of the entire mansion, signaling that morning had arrived. Mary woke up and, to her surprise, founda a letter addressed to her on her bed. The sender was her beloved grandfather, Albert. She opened it and read its contents.[My dear granddaughter,Today is your
"Mary, are you awake? Can I come in?" a deep voice called out.She turned around. It was Maximus's voice. She regretted still being in her pajamas and walked over to answer the door."Hi, Maximus!" she said as she opened the door."Hello! I have this for you. My grandmother said it's your birthday!"
Meanwhile, Mary remained seated, watching the waves come and go. Even though her family had a good standing in her country, she had never been able to visit the beach. Her father was very strict with her, often sending her to boarding schools. Weekends were for doing homework because if not, she wou
Mary walked ahead and entered the quaint shop filled with cakes of various flavors. The attendant promptly approached her with a warm smile."Hello, Miss! Would you like some cake, or will you be heading to the café?""Hmmm…" Mary turned to the man beside her for guidance."We'll head to the café,"
"Well, thank you! That's a compliment, and I'll take it," she said, smiling."Now that your father isn't here and you've just turned 18, what do you plan to do?""Well, for now, I can't do much. But when all of this is over, I want to take my things and…" She paused as a thought crossed her mind. Ma
"No, how could I? That's your cake!""Yes, but I'm offering it to you.""No, I can't accept!""Come on! If you don't eat, then I won't either!""You know that's blackmail, right?""No, it's just a show of affection!""What a way to show affection!""Come on! It won't hurt!"Seeing how insistent she
“Maximus, please, don’t take my daughter away from me! Please!”Maximus woke up suddenly from his brief nap and immediately grabbed his wife’s hand to wake her up. It seemed like she was having a nightmare.“Mary, wake up! Calm down, wake up, everything’s okay!” he said, gently shaking her.She open
Suddenly, a deep sense of sorrow washed over him, and he began to feel short of breath as he remembered how just a few weeks ago, she would be waiting for him in the living room with a big smile, saying, “Maximus, dinner is ready! Come on, get comfortable, and let’s eat!”Her broad smile made him fe
As if fate itself wanted to set things in motion, the time had come. Laura, Lucius, and Maximus left the house together.The younger siblings saw them go, but they didn’t think much of it. Lately, the three of them had been leaving without saying where they were going, so this time didn’t seem any d
"Dad?""Come in," Maximus said, still checking his inbox."What’s going on, Maximus? Why all the secrecy?""Alright… Serenity’s wedding is over, and Lucius, I know you’ll be heading back to New Zealand soon. Moriarty won’t give me another extension, so we need to move forward with whatever decision
Another day passed at the Evans residence. The family was gathered for breakfast while Diana ran around in a rush, realizing she was running late for work. Maximus, ever the bad influence, kept telling his future wife not to worry so much, but it was impossible—Diana was always incredibly respectful
"Come here," Maximus said, opening his arms.Laura walked over and hugged him."My girl… Never apologize for standing your ground. Never—hear me? Never apologize for defending what’s yours. Honestly, I can’t picture the scene, but I wish I could’ve seen it.""Dad… This is embarrassing. I’ve never ac
Maximus, Diana, and Adele arrived home. Little Adele was completely exhausted—her day out had been long and tiring. For Maximus, spending time with his granddaughter filled his heart and eased the anxiety of what was coming.Laura heard her father arrive and immediately left her room to see him.“Da
After that long conversation between Laura and Magnus, the latter went to Maximus’s study, found a number, and made a call."Joseph George..." Magnus said into the phone."Magnus? What a surprise! This is amazing. A call?" said a raspy voice on the other end of the line."I wish I could say the same
Laura arrived home, and though the drive had given her time to calm down, she was still shocked by everything she had said. She had researched Alice George before, but she never imagined she would actually use that information to intimidate her.Without meaning to, she had proven that a part of her
"Miss, we should leave now," Benson, her bodyguard, urged."Relax, Benson. I’m almost done," Laura said calmly, crouching down in front of Alice, who was still on the ground. "Listen carefully, Alice. Never. And I mean never refer to my daughter like that again. Because I promise you—you don’t want
For a few seconds, Laura was frozen in place, staring in shock at the woman storming toward them, cursing and shouting. But then she snapped out of it—this time, she wouldn’t allow Alice to cause a scene."Adrian Brown! So this is what’s had you acting like an idiot?" Alice George shouted, furious.