“No way,” Cameron disagreed, curling his lips at Kail’s suggestion. “I am not going in there tonight to watch you flirt with every female in a skirt.” Kail rolled his eyes childishly as Cameron drove his car into the club’s parking lot. “Dude, I don’t know what your problem is. Are you. . . are you gay? Is that it? Or not,” he took back his accusation when he saw Cameron’s scowl. He pursed his lips and thought of another approach to the topic. “It’s a club, man so it’s not my fault if there are women there. Besides, you enjoyed yourself the last time we were here.” Cameron looked away, afraid that Kail would discover how close the truth he really was. He had enjoyed himself because of that sexy singer. However, it would be pure torture to go back and stare at a woman who was taken. Did her husband even know what she was up to? What sort of man would allow his wife do such a demeaning job? It was none of his business but he could not help the bile of jealousy rising in his throat.
Liz froze, feeling the knife poke into her back relentlessly. Because it was dark, she could not see her attacker’s face and somehow, that made everything worse. “Ple-please, don’t hurt me,” she beckoned, pressing her palm against the inner pocket in her jacket where her night’s wages rested. “Then hand over the envelope, missy. I don’t have a lot of patience left.” Liz contemplated on her options. She knew some self-defense techniques but was fighting back really worth it? A vision flashed in her head and she saw herself bleeding on the ground. Her Annie would be alone with no one to take care of her the way only her mother could. No, it wouldn’t be worth it no matter how I look at it. There was no one passing by to help her and she would be gutted before she could scream. With a heavy heart, Liz dug her hand into her jacket and handed over her hard-earned money to the man behind her. He snatched it from her grip and roughly pushed her forward, making her stumble off balance
Huddling up in a stranger's car was the last thing Liz had expected to happen but the day had come with way too many surprises. For someone that fervently preached against strangers to her daughter, she realized she wasn't exactly the best teacher.“Is this the place?” Cameron's voice pierced through the silence in the car, causing Liz to drag her mind back to the present. Her eyes shifted from her hands to the building in front of her and she nodded slightly, confirming the location.The car eased to a stop as Cameron parked in front of Mrs Gladys home. From the dashboard, Liz could see it was way past 12am and she mentally braced herself. Nothing could help her escape the woman's wrath tonight.Stilling her mind, Liz pulled on the car's inner handle and got out of it. Cameron's eyes followed her movements as she made her way to the front door and even though she wasn't ready to admit it, she silently hoped he would go with her. Swallowing heavily, Liz dragged a deep breath and pres
“How do you find someone that doesn't want to be found?” Calista thought out loud with her eyes glued to the screen of the computer in front of her. Her search was getting infuriating as the minutes went by. Emily who had unsuccessfully tried to pry her away from the system, lifted her head up to stare blankly at her sister. Thankfully, Cameron had stayed with Calista—till she felt better—before leaving but the last thing Emily had expected was for her to go on a hunt for the mystery artist.“You don't.” Emily responded bluntly, returning her attention to the book in front of her. It was late in the night and she had an early morning flight to catch but she had risked her highly needed sleep to stay with an oddly hyper sister.Calista shot Emily a glare before moving her eyes back to the screen. Hell's Demon exhibitions and auditions were sprawled out all over the screen. Videos, pictures and even files that showed everything about the artist was displayed on the screen but nothing w
“What makes you think you can come in here and tell me what to do?!” A mask of confusion spread over Chad's face as he looked at the woman in the wheelchair whose presence and authority almost made him forget about her disability.She had a charged air around her that dared him to make a wrong move or to say something he shouldn't. Chad could see she wasn't in a good mood but he was curious as to why she had removed such a masterpiece from his…the public's eyes.Clenching his jaw slightly, he stared down at her and repeated words that seemed to rattle her further. “Hang the painting back.” her eyes darkened with rage and Chad mentally stilled himself for what was to follow.“You don't get to waltz in here and tell me how to run my place, sir. I'd advise you leave.” her gaze was unwavering and her voice was steady. If they were to get into a staring competition, she was sure to win with the way she was boring holes into his firm chest.Chad was oddly amused as his eyes strolled down he
It still surprised Cameron—till this day—how his sisters could be so similar yet completely different. When it came to caring for people, Emily and Calista were the same person but in terms of being strong headed and annoyingly stubborn, Calista owned the crown.“She's obsessed with someone?” Cameron asked, trying to understand what his sister had been telling him for over five minutes. They were at the airport, waiting for Emily's flight back to school and she had been unsuccessfully trying to get him to keep an eye out for their sister.Emily rolled her eyes, “Have you been listening to anything I've been saying?” it was obvious she was getting tired of repeating herself. “Cali has been obsessed with finding out the identity of an anonymous artist that according to her, wants to ruin her life.”Cameron's face was masked with confusion as he stared at his little sister. He needed Emily to shed more light on the matter but he knew that was very unlikely. Lack of patience was another q
Chapter 14“Hurry up, Annie. The cab is waiting for us!” Liz yelled out to her daughter as she raised her hand to hail a cab. It was almost 7pm in the evening and she was going to be late for her job at the club if Annie didn't haul her ass out of the house on time.Liz groaned loudly as she apologized to the cab driver, begging him to wait a little bit and rushed to the entrance of her apartment. “What were you doing and what's with the bag?” she demanded as Annie finally got out of the house, grabbing a huge bag along with her.The child giggled slightly, “May and I are hosting a late night party, mum. These are just some of the decorations we'd be needing for our party.” She flashed her mother a quick smile and shoved the bag into the backseat first before entering the cab.“Alright, then,”Liz said in resignation as she climbed into the backseat with her. “Let's get you to your party.” she signalled to the driver, telling him her destination and leaned into the seat as he drove off
The twin bond, as Cameron and Calista had always called it, was something they felt and no one except twins could ever understand or relate to. It had always been like that right from when they were kids and it ventured into adulthood with them.Their parents had gotten a glimpse of the amazing bond when Calista had been kidnapped while they were growing up. Cameron had actively shared in her pain back then and even now, he knew the ache in his heart was the same one in his sister's.It had been a hassle getting Calista back to her house after the day she had had but he had succeeded in the end. She was finally sleeping peacefully and he was headed home.Emily had not exactly been thrilled to hear he had left her alone but he had assured her that Calista was going to be alright. They both knew how stubborn she could be, staying with her till morning would only make her feisty when she wakes up.“I know you guys care about me but I am not a child. I can take care of myself, you don't h
EPILOGUECameron felt nostalgic, sitting down in the same seat he had been sitting—six months ago—when he met the woman of his dreams. She had walked on the stage with a grace only a swan could possess and she had captivated his attention and stolen his heart not long after. But compared to Cameron's first visit to the bar, he noticed how empty the bar was. It was heavily decorated—surprisingly—but also unoccupied. Cameron's eyes swept over the room, taking in every decoration that seemed to have been done with precision. Balloons, ribbons, candles, everything felt strangely comforting.He was still sweeping over the area with his eyes when the lights suddenly went out, leaving him in the dark. "Hey, is anyone here?!" He called out into the darkness, hoping someone would hear and come to his aid. It was odd that he heard no noise at all but what felt even more odd to him was the fact that he had agreed to go over to the bar in the first place.Calista had caller earlier and said some
"Don't you think it would be better to just ask her stuff about them? We know them individually but Liza knows them personally." Emily said to her knucklehead sister, knowing she had just found a solution to their six hour long problem but another one was secretly embedded in Calista seeing her suggestion as a good approach to things or if she wouldn't. Luckily for both of them, Calista bought the idea. "Why didn't I think of that sooner?" She asked no one in particular as she flashed a huge smile at her little sister, wondering how their parents had given birth to such a brilliant child. It wasn't like Calista and her twin brother, Cameron, were a disaster, it was just that, Emily was, well, better.But smart or not, Calista was in the middle of planning for the best proposal ever and she wanted everything to be perfect. Cameron had—unsurprisingly—entrusted her with the task of making sure everything went well with his proposal to Liza and Emily had just given Calista a stepping sto
Turns out reconciliation wasn't as hard as Chad had assumed it to be. It was just surprising how easily his family had accepted him back, as if he had not walked out on them over ten years ago. How could they be so loving after everything he had put them through? Chad couldn't wrap his head around the whole situation at all. But that wasn't all he was battling in as he stood at the balcony of his new apartment, looking down at the street just opposite his place. From where he was, Chad could see different people moving around in pairs and some, even in groups.Anyone could clearly see how different they all were, occupied in their little worlds, without any knowledge of what was to come next for any of them. But still, they kept moving, defying the odds over and over again and just basically living life the way they pleased. It was scary but very admirable. The strangers reminded him so much of Calista, the artist that had woven her way into his heart as unexpectedly as the rain wou
"I don't think we should be doing this every morning, Annie. I will be late for work and Calista wouldn't like you coming in late either. Do you want to upset your coach? I thought you adored her, it seems like I was wrong." Liza knew the best way to get her eight year old out of the house was by emotional blackmailing and at the moment, it was working perfectly.In no time, Annie raced down the stairs, carrying her carrier along with her. Liza found herself staring at her daughter and thinking about how things had changed so much in just two months. It felt surreal but then, change had always been a scary thing for her, this time wasn't an exception. "Are you ready, mum?" Annie asked with an accusing glare fixed on her face. Liza felt she was ready but according to Annie's standards of being ready, she was far from it. Her hair wasn't yet in its usual ponytail and Liza's bag was somewhere in the apartment, instead of her arm. But how could she get her bag as quickly as Annie wanted?
Waking up didn't seem as tiresome as it used to be anymore for Chad, infact, the start of a new day excited him–especially this day. It was the day he was finally going back home but that wasn't what was exciting to him. Just the thought of introducing a woman like Calista Axford to his family was thrilling. There was a chance that his enthusiasm would be shared but Chad was past caring. Calista was his and that was all that mattered to him. His father had always been a critically judgemental man and if anyone could thaw his ice cold heart, Chad was sure Calista was the perfect candidate for the job. Wasn't he proof enough of her skills?Chad couldn't believe he had walked into a random gallery and had met tye woman or his dreams. It was even more dreamy because he had never envisioned the kind of life he was now getting accustomed to. In his case, seeing really was believing. Calista's love was something he had to experience to believe it could happen to him. Standing up with a sm
“Are you sure you don't want me to accompany you to the hospital? It does'nt seem like thats the only place you'd be visiting today, though.” Emily spoke under her breath, watching her sister turn the wardrobe in and out, looking for an outfit to wear to her doctor's appointment. No, it wasn't weird at all that Calista suddenly wanted to put an effort into her choice of clothing. Weird was not the word, surprising was. Emily felt something was going on with her sister but she wanted Calista to spill the beans herself. It didn't make waiting for the reveal an easy task.Calista could barely see her sister's suspicious stare, her head had been in the wardrobe for what seemed like an eternity. Pulling herself out for a second, she shot Emily a blank stare, “What do you mean by that?” her question was as confused as the look she had plastered on her face.“I am not a child, Cali,” Emily retorted, moving towards the wardrobe. “I know something is up with you, something sweet and most like
Driving to Liza's place, Cameron found himself entertaining the same thoughts as Chad. Forever didn't look bad at all but how was he going to get there? How was he going to show this defensive single mother that he was ready to lend her a helping hand for a long time?Cameron was brainstorming when his phone started ringing, snatching his attention back to the present. He quickly turned off the radio—that no one was actually listening to—and picked up the call. Stephanie's voice echoed in the car, claiming even Annie's attention.“Good day, Sir,” she greeted politely, “I wanted to let you know that the contract has been drawn out for the deal but it requires your signature, sir.” there was urgency in her voice, it made Cameron feel uneasy. Usually, deals of this magnitude didn't require much stress.“Didn't we already do that in the meeting?” he inquired flatly, flashing Annie a quick smile. For some unknown reason, he felt she could sense his unease. “Alright then,” he said in resign
Chad's first thought was to kill Jason for going behind his back and selling off the painting but when he had been told who the purchaser was, he had wanted to kill himself instead. There was no other way around it, he just had to get to Calista first.As Chad rode his bike to the gallery, he realized he had no idea what to say to her. His initial plan had been to show her the portrait at the exhibition and then have her take it home as a present. But that would have been after Chad had revealed his identity as her anonymous artist.It was a simple plan, it should have worked. Only that it didn't work at all. Infact, it had gone terribly wrong. They had been too occupied—kissing in the balcony—and Calista had ended up leaving without seeing the portrait. Then, the potrait had ended up in Cameron's possession.I will just have to let her know that I am Hell's Demon and apologize for not telling her sooner, Chad concluded in his head as he pulled into the street that led to the gallery.
Motherhood, they say, always came with some exciting changes but to Liza, they were more terrifying than fun. She couldn't deny the fact that she used to enjoy it but with Annie growing older with each passing day, Liza found herself questioning her sanity, along with a good number of things.“Mum, you know the bus leaves in ten minutes, right?!” Annie called out to her mum as she hurriedly packed up her paintings. They never went early to anything at all and even though Liza detested tardiness, she had unconsciously become an ambassador of it.Breathlessly, Liza rushed into the living room, hauling her purse along with Annie's art equipments. That was the name for Annie's art supplies because she felt 'supplies' was a mundane word. The eight year old had put up quite a lengthy explanation —afterwards—and Liza had been forced to go along with it.Ignoring her very sweaty mother, Annie quickly grabbed the materials from Liza and started stuffing them into her carrier. The school had od