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Chapter Sixty-Eight
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2021-04-11 02:58:55Jade pulled the slick black Mercedes up to the Lehigh Country Club, hoping Jonathon would be there. If not, she would at least get to say hello to her friends. She opened the car door and glanced around. His car would be parked in the back, in one of the valet spots.
The first time she'd ever come here, she thought it was extraordinary. The high pillars of the pale cement building reminded her of the White House. The branches from giant oak trees had reached out and formed a shaded canopy over the parking lot. It had appeared so elegant, and she felt like an impostor as security opened the doors for them. She recalled being so nervous that day that she had clutched onto Jonathon's forearm so tightly he had to tell her more than once to relax her grip.
Now it didn't seem as remarkable to her. It looked old and weathered, and if she looked closely enough, she could see the thin cracks zig-zagging up through the cement of the building. The plush trees were now barre
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Rendezvous Chapter Sixty Nine
Jonathon was standing near the entryway, having a conversation with a man that Jade had only briefly met years before. Their eyes connected as she sauntered towards him. Smiling, she stood diagonally to them and patiently waited for the man to finish speaking."Jade," Jonathon's voice sounded nervous as he acknowledged her. "I wasn't expecting to see you here.""I know, it's been a while, hasn't it?" She used her overly cheerful voice, "Could I speak to you?" She glanced at the man, hinting for him to get lost."Sure, if you'll excuse us," his head tilted at the man, in a slight bow.They walked in silence down the long corridor, the echoes from their shoes reverberating against the walls. His eyes stared down at the floor; while his hands were casually shoved into his pockets. Jade hooked a right into a library, seeing that it was deserted. Perfect. She led him to the far corner, crossing her ankles as she settled onto a plush leathe
Last Updated : 2021-04-13Rendezvous Chapter Seventy
Back at the table, Jade apologized for her sudden departure and sat back down. The waiter had already brought out her meal, but it was still warm. She picked up the fork and knife and began slicing her food while listening to the ladies chit-chat with each other."So, Jade," Laura was pouring herself a glass of water, "Are you up for a tennis match after this? We could really use you on the court. A few weeks ago Rachel got a black eye from Andrea's swing."Jade glanced over Rachel, but there were no marks left on her face. "I'm not sure if I'm even allowed," she answered, "The whole strenuous activities and having balls flying at me..." she stopped as everyone stared at her like she'd grown two heads. She looked at Andrea, "You didn't tell them?"Andrea shook her head, "I didn't think it was my place to.""Tell us what?" Laura leaned forward.Jade grinned, "Oh my gosh, I thought you all knew. I'm pregnant."
Last Updated : 2021-04-14Rendezvous Chapter Seventy-One
Jade held onto the bend of Miguel's arm as he escorted her up to the front door. It was painted charcoal black, which matched the slated shutters on the face of the house. Her heart pumped nervously, filling her eardrums with a whooshing sound that made her feel both clammy and woozy, like she'd had a bit too much to drink.His mother lived in a stately home—a white brick, two-story nestled in the center of three hundred and eighty-two acres. There were rows of orchards spanning out for miles in every direction. A little plot of the yard surrounding the home was enclosed in a white picket fence. Above the blanket of snow were trimmed hedges, seasonal shrubs, and even blooming flowers. The tall house had four massive pillars on either side of the entry door. The large windows wrapped around both levels, along with a wideset wooden porch: the antebellum period, her favorite type of architecture.Miguel reached out his index finger, pressing the doo
Last Updated : 2021-04-15Rendezvous Chapter Seventy-Two
His mother stared at them with skepticism, petting the dog's head. "Tell me your brother was only joking, Miguel. You can't be thinking of getting married again. It's so soon. You just divorced that Nadine girl...""My ex-wife's name was Nadia, mother, and Jade and I are getting married," Miguel replied, "Before you say anything else, we didn't come here to ask for your permission."Her jaw slacked, "For heaven's sake, I just now got the reporters to stop circling me like a bunch of buzzards. Couldn't you wait a good five or ten years before you make the headlines again? Give us all a break. My surgeon can't keep up with these stress lines you're giving me." She clearly was going to give her opinion, whether Miguel wanted it or not.Vivan snorted, "Sure, and by that age, your child could be the ring bearer or the flower girl.""Dear, the adults are talking here. Why don't you be a good girl and go play with your paint set?" His mo
Last Updated : 2021-04-15Rendezvous Chapter Seventy-Three
The room turned to black as Jade flipped off the bedside lamp and then fell back onto the pillow with a loud sigh. She pulled the thick blanket up to her neck and wriggled underneath it until she was comfortable. "Goodnight," she spoke softly, facing away from Miguel.She heard the mattress shift and then felt his fingertips lightly stroke her back underneath the blanket. "I'm sorry," he replied, his voice swollen with sorrow. Jade took in a deep breath. There was so much she wanted to say, but at that moment, she was too tired to talk about any of it. The interview, or interrogation, whatever you called it, had emotionally drained her. It was the first time she'd ever sat down and laid out her life story to anyone."I'll be fine, Miguel. I just want to get some sleep." She closed her eyes, visualizing the scenes as they replayed in her mind."You don't have to do this," Miguel had cautioned as Jade had sat in the center of the sofa,
Last Updated : 2021-04-17Rendezvous Chapter Seventy-Four
Jade didn't look back as the car pulled away from the house. She leaned against the headrest and closed her eyes, ignoring the ache in her temples. They felt sore and heavy, just as they had when she'd mourned her father all those years ago.She only hoped that Miguel's family understood that she wasn't leaving because she was upset with them. Jade just needed time to digest this new information and heal all over again. There was no way they could've known that her mother hadn't been honest about the circumstances behind her father's death. Nineteen years of living with this tale had all come unraveled in a matter of seconds. Why did her mother fabricate the story? Jade could only assume it's because she didn't have the heart to tell her child the awful truth. Her father chose, like a coward, to end his own life. The lawyer explained that he was undergoing an investigation. The bank had become suspicious that he'd taken undocumented loans out for himself, and he kne
Last Updated : 2021-04-18Rendezvous Chapter Seventy-Five
Jade pulled off of the freeway, turning into a busy corner store. There was still half a tank of gas left in the car, but she figured it wouldn't hurt to fill up anyway. At this point, she wasn't even sure where she planned on heading from here. Getting her car from Miguel's apartment was out of the question unless she wanted the security guard to alert him the moment she had arrived. Her eyes gazed down at the sparkling ring on her hand, trying not to let the guilt eat at her. There was nothing she could have said or done to convince Miguel otherwise; he would have never agreed to this. She sighed. She had to at least call him, if not to tell him this won't be forever. She loved him, but leaving was the best thing for her and their child right now.Jade made her way inside the store, pausing to survey the man sitting behind the counter who was scratching off lottery tickets. He glanced
Last Updated : 2021-04-19Rendezvous Chapter Seventy-Six
Jade's eyes fluttered open an hour before the alarm went off. Birds were chirping outside the window, not the sound she wanted to be woken up to. She let out a groan and tucked her head under the blanket.The smell of coffee was seeping from the lobby next door, enticing her to get out of bed and request a cup. After all, there wasn't a coffee maker in the room, and she wondered if it was intentional. Jade slid her feet into the houseshoes before making her way to the office. A wall of morning dew hovered above the sidewalk, dampening her skin."Oh good, you're awake," the receptionist greeted Jade as if she'd been expecting her sooner."I could smell the coffee from my room," she chuckled, wrapping her arms around herself."Help your
Last Updated : 2021-04-20
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Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Nine
Grace is the divine power that inspires virtue in humans and gives us the strength to endure difficult times. Grace Elizabeth Santos was born on June 29th at 3:17 pm. The first time Jade laid eyes on her, she believed her daughter was absolutely perfect in every sense. She never truly understood what love was until she laid her eyes on her daughter and cradled her tiny, pink body in her arms for the first time. It was the most magical moment she'd ever felt. Grace came out screaming, wide-eyed, and confused by the strange cold world, but the moment she heard the sound of her mother's voice, she froze and just blinked, listening for her. "I could lay here forever studying her features and adoring every little movement and noise she makes," Jade whispered as she softly hummed to Grace who was sleeping in her arms.&n
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Eight
"Time keeps slipping away from me," Jade thought to herself, sipping on a cup of morning tea as she gazed out the window. Her drink had already gone cold. Was her memory failing her? How many days had passed? Sunrise, sunset, sunrise, sunset, she tried to count them all, but it was difficult—fuzzy like static on the television. At this point, nothing made sense. One moment it was two in the morning, and she was lying in bed next to Miguel, and the next, she was here, sitting in this chair, having a cup of tea. She didn't know what was real or which memories she could believe.She was losing her mind, just as her mother had.Miguel had to have known that there was something wrong with her, although she attempted to conceal it. There had been no way to explain to him how she ended up in the ocean, drenched from head to toe and nearly frozen to death. She couldn't explain it. She couldn't
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Seven
The following day, Jade had been medically cleared to leave the hospital. After signing a mountain of paperwork and receiving follow-up care instructions, she began getting dressed. The clothes alone brought a comfort she had greatly missed. Miguel had run out earlier that morning to grab her something to change into for the flight home. She couldn't exactly leave there in nothing but a thin hospital gown, and the clothes she had been wearing were now somewhere in an evidence bag. "One pair of black leggings, slippers, and an oversized t-shirt," Miguel beamed as he placed the shopping bag on the hospital bed, proud of himself. Even if there wasn't currently an assistant around to fulfill the task, he was determined to get them both out of that hospital room. After she was officially discharged, a nurse wheeled her down the elevator to
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Six
Their reunion had been long-awaited, but as Miguel sat diagonally from her in an armchair in the corner of the room, sorting through the emails on his cellphone, she couldn't help but feel like there was a rift between them. She turned the television on to watch the five o'clock news. Lieutenant Davidson had mentioned that he would be giving a statement to the press that evening, and he'd even stopped by to ask her if there was anything she would or wouldn't prefer him to mention. She'd decided to give him her own brief statement to read.The top of the screen read 'LIVE' in big, bold red letters. "Are they really outside right now?" Jade questioned, seeing the camera was angled at the front doors of the hospital. Her room was positioned somewhere in the north wing. She wondered how many people had driven all the way to Pittsburg just to film this.She turned the volume up as
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Five
Lieutenant Lyle Davidson leaned forward in his chair, rubbing over the scruff around his chin. He was heading into his second double shift, and the week had only started. He flipped the page, scanning over the investigative report one last time. It was unfathomable that this woman was good for it. Her demeanor definitely had him fooled. When one of his detectives had first sent over the file to him, he thought, for sure, the boyfriend had something to do with it. Shit, wasn't it always the boyfriend in cases like these? At the time, it had seemed cut and dry. Some arrogant rich guy gets a chick pregnant, and then she suddenly turns up missing? Babies born out of wedlock could bleed a man dry, and money was one hell of a motive. Hell, it wouldn't be the first time he'd had a case like this come across his desk.A smile crossed his face as he snapped the folder shut. Between the physical and forensic evidence collected at the crime scene and Jade Meadows' affidavit, he had
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Four
The sounds of the hospital were unmistakable, and Jade recognized them before she even came to. Machines continuously beeped around her, footsteps paraded in front of the doorway, and an elastic band that was tightly wrapped around her abdomen monitored the baby's heartbeat— swish, swish, swish.She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, glancing around the small room. The walls were painted a flat pale blue, and the miniblinds on the windows let in a beautiful stream of afternoon sunlight. The tables and windowsill were lined with dozens of flowers, cards, balloons, and teddy bears. They'd been pouring in, all sent to her from strangers.The doctors had transferred her from triage to a private suite earlier in the day. From the moment she'd uttered the word 'kidnapped,' it was like she'd set off an alarm throughout the building. It felt like a million p
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Three
Jade was startled awake by a thud. Lying on the tiny bathroom rug, she didn't dare move. She was frozen in fear, not exactly sure what or who was out there. She hadn't meant to fall asleep, but it had been the first time in months she'd been without the lock around her ankle. It was so relieving to know that she free from her chains, even if she was stuck in the bathroom. She wondered if Marianna was there. The woman didn't usually come back for several weeks at a time, but Jade thought that perhaps she'd called Eduardo, and when he didn't answer, she'd rushed back.She listened carefully to the surrounding silence, only hearing the vibration of her trembling breath. The house was silent; there was nothing. No footsteps or voices. Just her and the ghost of Eduardo. "Hello?" She finally called out. If it were Marianna, perhaps she would open the door, and then Jade could overpower her.
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-Two
Jade already knew that he'd allow her upstairs after Nadia had left. They always fell back into their old routine, and as predicted, after breakfast, he unchained her. It made her feel twenty pounds lighter. She'd nearly forgotten about the scissors wedged against her breast and had to stop herself from reaching up and touching them to make sure they were still there. She glanced back at the mattress as they walked towards the stairs, him in front of her. The scissors hadn't fallen out. She thought about pulling the scissors out right then and there and stabbing him but then decided against it. Knowing her luck, he'd probably fall backward on top of her and she'd die under his weight.That's not why she couldn't do it, though; it was because fear had a way of paralyzing you. She'd been here for months and never screamed out to his family for help, never attempted to escape. Why? Because females tended to l
Rendezvous Chapter Eighty-One
Sometimes it was nice to be able to hear what's going on upstairs, and then there were days where Jade would rather shove sharpened pencils through her eardrums than listen to one more second of Nadia's neurotic voice. The lunatic had woken up bright and early that morning and had been raging ever since. Their voices carried through the walls depending on where they were standing, giving Jade little bits of their conversation. She surmised that Nadia doesn't like his cat. "Well, at least it's not me that she's going all schizo on."Their conversation waded in and out like a tide, "I'm not getting rid of her!" Eduardo declared as the keys jangled in the door. "Ahh! Breakfast, at last." Things never seemed to operate smoothly while Nadia was here. Jade liked that he had a routine. It made captivity easier, not having to question what was going to come next constantly.
