Leo’s POVI remained in the secret room, accompanied by the police captain and a detective, while the two detectives remained in the interrogation room. There wasn’t much they could do since the perpetrator remained silent until he was sure his family was safe and in front of him.The middle-aged man’s face remained downcast, staring at his dirty nails. However, there was something that made me think there was something wrong with him. To be honest, in terms of appearance, he didn’t look like a criminal who chose a shortcut to get some money. But, he may choose a shortcut when he has no more options because human life faces choices that must be chosen at all costs.The captain came out of the secret room and re-entered with three cups of coffee. He gave one cup to me, then sat down beside me.“It looks like things are going to get complicated,” he said mysteriously.“Why?” I asked, looking at him in wonder.“When we arrested him at his house, one of my colleagues found a woman lying c
Leo’s POV“But he had the heart to kill my wife for his gain. Ok, if that’s what he wants, I’ll teach him a lesson. Anthony is a ruthless man who will do anything to achieve his desires. He has two targets, James Oswald and Minister Vladimir. He had a grudge against James Oswald for not helping him when his company was almost bankrupt. The country’s economic condition was not good. He applied for a loan from the bank, but the reasons for rejection given by the bank made little sense. Eventually, his company closed down. He and his family were forced to live in a slum. Not long after, he could bounce back gradually to become one of the richest men in the country. But his grudge never went away. So, the kidnapping of Minister Vladimir’s son twenty years ago was his doing,” the man replied.One detective handed him a bottle of mineral water. The middle-aged man reached for it and downed the entire contents. Then, he put the empty bottle on the table. His eyes gazed at one corner of the t
Leo’s POVI ran after the captain to the second floor. In the distance, I saw a team of police officers gathered in front of the door of a room, brandishing their guns towards the inside.Could Anthony be inside that room?The captain and I walked closer to the room. I hoped Anthony wouldn’t commit suicide or escape so that the case would be solved quickly and Sir Jason could live in peace. As I stood in the back row, I was shocked to see Anthony holding Miss Clara, his daughter, hostage. He was pointing a gun at her head.What kind of father is he?“Stand back! Everyone, back off! Or I’ll shoot this girl in the head,” he threatened. His face looked serious, his eyes looked sharp, and his hands weren’t shaking at all. He was seriously threatening us and it wasn’t just a playful threat.“He’s not pretending,” I said to the captain.The captain nodded, agreeing with me.“What are you going to do?” I asked the captain.“I’ll try to negotiate with him,” he replied. Then, he stepped forwar
Jason's POVArriving at the police station, Leo and the captain took me to a secret room next to the interrogation room. I saw a man I knew well sitting with his head held high, staring at the two detectives directly in front of him. He was grinning and the look in his eyes was unfamiliar to me."Anthony?" I said spontaneously."Yes, sir. Anthony is the mastermind behind everything that happened to you. He has a grudge against Sir James and Minister Vladimir. You are just his victim," Leo replied."Is there any evidence or witnesses against him?""Yes. The witnesses are his men and Miss Clara and the confession that came out of Anthony's mouth. The police summarized his testimony, and he signed the documents without objection. He had no other way out but to confess, so that his sentence would not be too severe. Also, the weapon used to kill his wife was found in a safe in his bedroom. The blood DNA on the knife matched that of his wife. The police had to dig up her grave again to take
Lizzy’s POVThe meeting room inside the minister’s house was spacious and decorated like a typical party venue. Two long tables were placed on the left and right sides of the room with plenty of food and drinks on them. To the left and right of the table were chairs and several sofas for the guests. Several maids were seen walking around carrying trays and strollers filled with food.Rose was holding Harry, while I was holding Anya’s hand. I didn’t expect the number of guests that night to be so many that there was a lot of noise in the room. I invited Anya and Rose to get some food while I waited for Jason to finish introducing himself to the guests.After taking some food and putting it on the table at the end of the room, Anya and Rose sat down to enjoy the food while watching the guests passing in front of us. Occasionally, Rose complimented the dresses worn by the female guests that night. They all looked beautiful.Half an hour passed, and Minister Vladimir was still busy introd
Lizzy’s POV“Lizzy, who’s in the hospital?” Mia asked.I looked at Mia while sobbing, “J-Jason, I don’t know what happened to him.”Mia hugged me, trying to calm me down. “Maybe he’s just sick. Hurry, go to the hospital so you can feel better.”“Alright. Please take care of the kids,” I replied while wiping my wet eyes.Mia touched my shoulder. “Calm down, Lizzy. Everything will be fine. Trust me.”I nodded twice. After that, I walked toward Anya and Harry, who were still playing on the back porch.“Anya.”Anya came closer, “Yes, Mom.”I knelt and held both of her tiny hands. “Listen to me. I need to go to the hospital right now because your dad is sick. You don’t have to worry. All you have to do is to be good and obey Mia. Understood?”She nodded, but curiosity still got the better of her. “But, Mom. Is dad okay?”“Yes, he’s fine. You don’t need to worry. I’m going now. Remember my words.”“Ok, mom. Love you,” she replied as she hugged me.“Harry, come here,” Anya called as she wave
Lizzy’s POV“Oh please. I’ll take you,” Doctor Gilbert replied.“Thank you.”We walked down the hallway of the hospital, which was quite crowded. After passing through two long hallways, we finally arrived at the VVIP room. Doctor Gilbert opened the door and let me in.As my feet stepped into the room, I saw Leo sitting by Jason’s bedside. When he realized someone had entered the room, he hurriedly wiped his wet eyes and stood up. That’s when he saw me standing next to Doctor Gilbert.“Madam,” he said as he stood away from Jason’s bed.My heart beat faster when I saw Jason lying helplessly with his eyes closed.My love, why was this happening to you?I turned my head and saw Doctor Gilbert checking the records on the patient’s table beside the bed.“Doc, is he sleeping?” I asked curiously. I was afraid that Jason was unconscious and the worst possibility was that he would never regain consciousness. That was the thing I was most afraid of, and I didn’t want or expect that to happen.“
John’s POVAs I stood in front of Jason’s bedroom, I saw Lizzy hugging him as she cried. I wish she was crying for me. Ironic. Her tears were only for Jason and never for me.I opened the door and closed it again slowly. Realizing someone had entered the room, Lizzy spontaneously stood up and stared at the door. That’s when our eyes met.“J-John,” she said. Somehow, her voice sounded so melodious, even beautiful, that it could enter the deepest recesses of my heart.If so, why was my love unrequited?“Lizzy, how are you?” I asked.“Fine. How are you? I haven’t seen you since my wedding. I thought you went somewhere or moved countries. But seeing you here in good condition makes me happy,” she said. I saw her pink lips and the slow movement of her voice aroused desire in me. I wanted to grab and bring her closer to me and kiss her tiny lips many times. But, once again, I was reminded of the fact that the woman standing before me with her puffy eyes and clumsy demeanor was my stepbrothe
Jason’s POV One morning, when I was just coming out of the bedroom, Mia and Hannah walked toward me. Their faces looked happy with smiles on their lips, like sunflowers in summer. I wondered what had happened to them. They were standing right in front of me, holding hands. “What’s wrong with you two?” “We have good news,” they both replied. “Ok. What’s the good news, then? I have to wake Anya up because I promised to accompany her to play in the park.” “We’ve found Lizzy and Harry. You don’t need to wake Anya up because she’s already up and having breakfast. She’s ready to go pick up her mom and brother,” Hannah replied. Anya’s bag that I was holding fell to the floor. I had to convince myself many times that the news I heard that morning was real. For a moment, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “Really? You’re not playing games with me, are you?” “We’re serious and we got this news from Sylvia, Lizzy’s mom. They are now in Forca City. They opened a bakery and a coffee sho
Margaret’s POV I saw James enter the room. The angry look on his face was as sinister as a soldier ready to execute a death-row prisoner. His eyes stared at Nathan and me. The sweat was pouring down my forehead. I noticed that Nathan’s body was trembling and his hands were clenched into fists. Suddenly, Nathan knelt before James and lowered his face. “Sir, please forgive my impudence. I came here because I missed Mrs. Margaret so much. I confess I love her and she loves me. We had an illicit relationship in the past, but it ended because Mrs. Margaret felt guilty about you. On this occasion, I beg you to let her go so that she can be happy. She is suffering by your side. If you love her, please let us live happily.” James let out a long sigh. His eyes looked up at the ceiling of the room. “Is that what you want, Margaret? After all the years we’ve lived together.” A feeling of guilt rushed over me. I was like a child at a crossroads. In front of me were two roads that were both cov
Jason’s POV“Damn! She’s not here.”“Is there no resident named Lizzy Ford or Lizzy Oswald? She is a thirty-year-old young woman, then an eighteen-month-old baby boy. Please recall the woman’s physical characteristics. The information we received said she lives in this apartment,” I asked the guard.The guard’s expression was flat. He let out a long sigh, as if annoyed by our question. “Sir, I’ve been working here for ten years and my memory tells me that there is no female resident in this apartment with the physical characteristics you mentioned. If there were any residents with such physical features, I would have said so earlier. I showed you the list of names of the residents here. Is that not enough? I hope you won’t make a scene.”“Ah, sorry. My brother didn’t mean to make a scene. We were just panicking and sad because we couldn’t find the person we were looking for. I hope you understand,” Hannah replied with a big smile.“Alright. If there’s nothing else to ask, I’ll get bac
Lizzy’s POV“Mom, is it them?” I asked.“Y-yes. Then, what’s your plan? If we go after them, wouldn’t that mean your agreement with Minister Vladimir is off? I’m afraid he’ll do something bad to us if the deal is off. He won’t hurt Harry, but he might hurt you or both of us. But whatever you decide, I’ll support you,” Mom answered.“I-I miss him. But, I can’t go to them. It’s not like Anya is with them.”“Yes. There are only a few men dressed in black with them. If you’ve decided, let’s hurry and get out of here,” Mom said.“Let me look at him for a while longer.”“Lizzy, let him go. Let’s go before they realize we’re near them,” Mom said.We hurried away from there and we deliberately took a spot that was crowded with visitors so as not to be seen by them. However, unfortunately, that day the mall was full of visitors because in Malia there was only one mall and coincidentally it was a long weekend, so many people went to the mall.“Lizzy, come with me. I have an idea,” Mom said. She
John’s POV“Because she didn’t want to worry you. All this time I knew nothing about her illness until one day I heard moaning in pain from inside Elsa’s bedroom. Worried and curious, I knocked on her bedroom door a few times, but suddenly the moaning no longer sounded. When I asked her, she said everything was fine. However, the moaning could be heard almost every day. The curiosity and worry I felt were getting the better of me. I finally forced open the door to her room and saw her lying on the floor, whimpering in pain while holding back tears. I ran over to her, then I yelled for her sister, and asked her to call an ambulance. The clinic in our village has an emergency ambulance,” Sheila replied, wiping her wet eyes. Her tears did not stop flowing.“So, what happened after that?”“After she was rushed to the clinic and examined intensely, the doctor declared her illness to be severe. The clinic in our village could not treat her illness. Therefore, Elsa was referred to a hospital
John’s POVI stood in line at the ticket counter. I looked at the screen hanging above the ticket counter for the schedule of trains operating that day. Thirty minutes later, after waiting in line for a long time, it was finally my turn to buy a ticket.After mentioning the destination city, the ticket seller immediately gave me a sheet of tickets for the train that would depart in forty-five minutes. While waiting for the train to arrive, I sat in a coffee shop and ordered a cup of coffee and a plate of spaghetti. Maybe it was because I had eaten nothing since morning, so the spaghetti tasted good and was gone in no time.During the meal, I tried to call Sheila’s cell phone, but her number was unavailable. The same was true for Elsa. So far, her cell phone has never been inactive. Elsa always made sure her cell phone and number were active.What’s going on? What exactly happened to you, Elsa?That afternoon, I couldn’t get in touch with either of them and even when the train to Vanor
Hannah’s POVI woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of breaking things and the commotion on the first floor exactly one hour before midnight. I hurriedly put on my sweatshirt and slippers and left my room. Just before descending the stairs, I noticed that the living room of Jason’s residence was quiet and dark. The lights in the dining room were always on. So, from the second floor, I could see the light reflecting into the living room from the dining room.Then, where did the sound come from?From the direction of the kitchen, I saw some maids running to another room on the first floor. Could it be Jason’s workroom or his bedroom?As my feet descended the stairs, I heard Mia call, “Hannah, what’s wrong? What’s going on? I heard things breaking repeatedly.”I turned to look at Mia, who was shaking in the cold. “I don’t know. What if we check together? I saw the maids running into a room?”“Oh no, Jason. Let’s go there,” Mia said. She had a panicked look on her face.We hurr
Lizzy’s POV“Thank God, you’re home. I came to see you.”“Are you alone?” he asked. His eyes widened as they scanned every corner of his front porch.“Yeah.”“Come on in. It’s freezing outside. I’m sorry if the house looks so chaotic because I have to do a lot of things by myself. Have a seat here, and I’ll get you something to drink. Coffee or tea?” he asked after putting away some things and putting them in a box. “Tea. Thank you.” Then he left the living room and entered the kitchen.I saw that the living room of Steven’s house was in complete chaos. Most of the couches were covered with piles of clothes. On the table lay a lot of snacks, then at the end of the room lined up dirty-looking shoes. In addition, since setting foot in the house, there was a terrible smell. I didn’t know where it came from. It was like the smell of dirty clothes that hadn’t been washed for a few weeks or a damp house that hadn’t been cleaned.From the direction of the living room, I saw that the door of
Lizzy’s POVAfter the beach trip, I never saw Steven again. The working hours where I worked were divided into two. We used to call them the morning shift and the night shift. The morning shift works from nine in the morning until three in the afternoon, and the night shift works from three in the afternoon until nine at night. Each employee gets a week to work the morning shift, and a week to work the night shift.For that week, I worked the morning shift, so my work hours finished at three in the afternoon. But, usually, we morning shift personnel don’t go straight home. We would sit by the restaurant and sip a cup of coffee and some leftover snacks from the kitchen that could not be sold to customers.If there are a lot of leftovers, we will wrap them up and take them home. However, if the leftovers aren’t too much, we’d eat them together at the side of the restaurant while chatting away. Enjoying the afternoon and waiting for the sun to set, watching the originally bright sky turn