I'm so sorry for the lack of chapter yesterday, everyone. I made this one a little longer to make it up to you <3
“You’re not even going to try to answer me?” Millicent asked, when the silence in the room began to last too long. "Or are you buying time to think of a way to turn this situation around and convince me that everything is fine? After all, I'm very easy to fool, apparently." Her hands balled into fists, but she couldn't even recognize if what she was feeling at that moment was anger.“Millie…” he murmured and hearing him say her nickname like that, as if he really cared about her, as if somehow he was also suffering, only revolted her more."I asked..." she growled, her voice firm, even though she felt as if something was unraveling inside her chest "If that was your plan from the beginning. You made me think this was all my idea when, in fact, you had planned every detail so that I would have no one else to turn to other than you..." her hands started to shake slightly, but she refused to show it "I thought we were helping each other when I suggested that partnership, but... In the en
There was an elephant in the room at Millicent’s house.And she was fully aware it was herself.“Give her some space, Massimo.” her mother murmured outside her room, but, as no one among the Bianchis was exactly silent, Millie could hear every word "She'll tell us what happened when she's ready. She's no longer a child who needs our help dealing with her own feelings.""And what do you expect me to do? For me to stand here, pretending like I didn't notice that she was hurt again?!" her father growled "Did you see how she acted after she came back from the office? She couldn't even look us in the eye without looking like she wanted to cry. And now this news that Sage Carpenter asked to step down as her bodyguard?! Something happened! And I'm sure it has something to do with Evan's oldest son! I knew I shouldn't have let him so close to her after we found out what his brother did! Now my daughter is heartbroken again and it's all the Carnby's fault…!”“Don’t make a hasty decision, love.”
“So… Are we just going to leave him like that?” Isaac was still lying on the couch in the middle of his living room when that question, coming from Dominic, reached his ears. Not that it would have encouraged him to move, anyway. There didn't seem to be any strength within him to do that.“He brought this on himself.” Vincent snorted, dismissive "I warned him a long time ago what it mean involving the Bianchi girl in our plans. And, most importantly, I warned him about developing feelings for her. If he's now paying the price for not listening to me, then that's entirely his problem. Leave him there pretending to be a corpse, if that's what he wants."“You’re always a great help, old man.” Dominic snorted "I've told you this several times, but I'll say it again: just because you want to risk your life all the time in the mafia's sights doesn't mean we both have to do this too. Isaac has the right to want to have a wife, get married, have a family and all that. In case you don't rememb
"And I think this will be enough for us to close the contract with the actors. What do you think, Ms. Bianchi...? Ms. Bianchi?"“Uh… Yes.” The sound of her name being called by one of Laura's friends forced Millicent to snap out of her thoughts and at least pretend she was paying attention to what they were saying "That's great. Please keep me posted."“Uh…Of course.” The woman exchanged a quick glance with Laura, as if she was doubting whether Millicent was the one they should be discussing these matters with "The casting coordinator is here somewhere. If you give me a moment, I can find him and bring him here. They have a lot more details on the matter than I do. If you'll excuse me."“Thank you.” Millicent smiled, trying to sound as focused and interested as possible, but obviously not enough to fool anyone. Not even that woman whose name Millie hadn't memorized, much less Laura.“If you can’t pay attention to what’s being said, then why did you come here today?” Laura questioned h
"What...? What did you just say?" Millicent gasped, but instead of answering her or at least appearing aware of the shocking words that had just come out of her mouth, Laura simply sighed and turned her back to her, beginning to walk away.“I knew I should have waited longer to talk about this with you…”"Mrs. Poulin! Wait!" Millie stuttered, starting to follow her around the room, needing to control herself to keep her voice low "Mrs. Poulin...! Laura! You can't just say something like that and leave...!""Stop making a fuss. I'm not leaving." Laura suddenly grabbed her wrist and only then did Millicent realize that they were now on a small balcony at one end of the party room, hidden from all the other guests. “I just don't want to talk about it in an environment where anyone could overhear and tell Emma.”“So… You… You really are…” Millicent had to hold her own head for a moment, feeling dizzy “But… How is it possible that Emma has a daughter and no one ever knew about it…?”“Becau
"Massimo, could you stop staring at my sister, please? It's kinda rude." Dante said, in a forcedly light tone, but it didn't get a single laugh from everyone around.Millicent already knew her revelation about Laura wouldn't be received with tears or an outburst of joy. Even her aunt knew this, apparently, since Laura had arrived at the Bianchi mansion early in the evening, as if she was hoping that no one else would be there to hear her tell the reason Millicent had invited her. However, even knowing what could happen, it was still a little embarrassing to be standing there in the middle of that room while all the adults stared at each other in silence and the children played outside. There weren't many people in her father's office, at least. Her aunts Lucy and Ruby had left earlier and she had only managed to gather her parents, her grandfather and Dante, as well as his wife, to hear probably the most shocking news of their lives. Now, everyone was looking at each other as that dee
“You better not be planning on doing things yourself, Carnby.” Commissioner Wilson growled on the other end of the line, but Isaac didn't pay enough attention to even get angry.“If you're frustrated because your bosses didn't give you permission to break into Ugo's nightclub today like you wanted, then it's not my fault.” Isaac snorted, watching the city's night lights outside the window of his apartment, while Vincent tapped his cane impatiently against the floor "Would you rather I refuse Ugo's call and completely lose the trust that took us over a year to gain?""I know what you're capable of, Carnby. So you better keep a low profile today and don't do shit just because you don't have a wire on! Remember, if you lose your damn life, then you've fucked up all of my team's hard work.""Thank you for your concern. I assure you that I am not that eager to leave this world and waste your precious work." Isaac sighed, as it wasn't exactly like Commissioner Wilson or anyone else knew that
"If you want to make me believe that you were looking forward to seeing us, Ugo..." Vincent didn't let the tense silence in the car last more than a second, lighting a cigarette so calmly that anyone would believe there wasn't the slightest danger in that situation "You're not doing very well. In case you've forgotten, I've been in those big guys' shoes for years. I know you never surprise with the best of intentions."“Oh, that way you’ll make me hurt.” Ugo laughed, taking a long drag on his own cigar “I could have paid more attention to my other commitment and left you two planted in the middle of my club, but I didn't do that, did I?”“I can’t say that’s a lie.” Isaac sighed, keeping his emotions strictly under control "The less time we waste, the better it will be for all of us. I think you probably already know that, earlier, one of Evan's investors called me. Several of them are already starting to rethink their little pet peeve and are willing to support me as the new CEO, as lo
Sometimes, Isaac missed how his life was half a year ago.It was equally terrible, of course, but at least he wasn't so aware of it. He could fill his days thinking only about revenge and living as if the only truly functional organ in his body was his brain. But now, here he was, haggard and miserable, only because the rusty thing inside his chest had decided to work. At least, before returning to America, he didn't miss anyone or suffer from the same loneliness that had accompanied him since his birth.Now, even in moments like this, when he should have been focused only on his plans, all he could think about was Millicent.With a heavy sigh, Isaac took a step towards the underground parking lot of his building when the elevator doors opened. That day was being especially difficult because he still hadn't managed to shake off the tension from the previous afternoon, when Dominic had almost ruined everything by allowing Millicent to overhear part of their argument. At least, she didn
Millicent had spent almost the entire day on the phone without actually speaking. She had dialed the same number over and over again, with adequate intervals between calls, of course. She wanted information, not to be a nuisance. However, as her time at the office drew to a close, she was ready to give up for another hour and get ready to leave, until, to her shock, that last call finally went through."Hello, Mrs. Bianchi. I was hoping you'd call again. I'm sorry we didn't answer sooner.""Don't be sorry, Tyler. You shouldn't worry about anything other than your mother right now." Millicent responded to the youngest Davis son, a boy she knew was the same age and attended the same school as Alessandro “I just wanted to know how your mother's condition is."“She’s… Stable now.” Her heart sank at the way he avoided using the word 'fine' "She woke up for a while this afternoon and managed to eat, but... She's still very much in shock. She even asked if everything that happened on Sunday
Silence took over the room for a moment, so deep that Millicent could swear she could hear everyone's heartbeat there. Just like her face was at that moment, everyone had expressions of shock, worry and expectation, as they waited for Emma’s reaction…With the exception of Massimo, who has a huge Machiavellian smile on his face.Emma's response, however, was probably nothing like either of them expected. First, her face filled with shock and terror, which was certainly quite predictable. But instead of starting to scream and deny, as Millicent thought she would, Emma remained silent, as gradually the horror on her face gave way to anger, then shame, sadness and, finally, resignation.“So…” Emma’s voice trembled, just a ghost compared to how she was acting a moment ago. “It’s really you, isn’t it?”“What did you give me?” Laura sneered, indifferently.“You… You still look like him.” Emma said that with her eyes focused solely on her own hands, nervously twisting the skirt of her dress
"Massimo, if we're going to do this, then I think you should at least try to hide your mocking smile. I don't think anyone will have any doubt that our intentions are not good if they see you entering my mother's house." Dante sighed, straightening up in the seat of the limo they were all in, clearly nervous."What are you talking about? That's my normal face." Massimo shrugged, that smile only widening “Can’t a man be in a good mood anymore?”“You don’t even know what Laura’s plans are for tonight, Massimo.” Alice lightly elbowed him, "She's not necessarily going to make a fuss or embarrass Emma. If you're expecting a show, you might end up disappointed."“Well, I could certainly use some entertainment, but I don’t care.” "I would love to see Emma's expression when she finds out that we all know she has her own illegitimate child, but just being able to walk through her house tonight and look into her face knowing that is enough."“I just hope that whatever Laura is planning really co
"Why did you come back?" Millicent questioned, frustrated "You clearly left not only your name and your life, but also your entire past behind. Anyone can see that you got the happy life you wanted, alongside your husband. So... Why now? If you didn't come back for so many years, even knowing the kind of person you had left Isaac alone with... What changed?"“I always wanted to go back for Isaac.” she stated, shrinking "But... Circumstances were never favorable enough... Until he became an adult and it seemed to be too late. But, I never left him helpless. Neither he nor my brother." Imogen chewed on her lower lip "I shouldn't have been surprised that Vincent suspected I was alive. He was always good at seeing more than other people were capable of. That was one of the reasons I left Isaac. I knew his uncle would protect him, especially after he turned 18. I just didn't expect Vince to involve him in his damn revenge plans!" Imogen growled "He should have left Isaac alone! Help him go
“You can start talking.” Millicent snapped, after several minutes had passed, lengthening that terribly uncomfortable silence between them “That's what you came here for, isn't it?”"Yes, I..." Imogen's voice shook, almost breaking "It's just... I think I spent too much time trying to forget the past. Talking about it isn't as simple as opening your mouth and letting the words come out." She massaged her own throat for a moment, as if it were actually a physical pain “How much… How much do you know about what my life was like, when I was still Imogen Carnby?”“I know what your son and your brother told me.” Millie sighed "I know your relationship with your father wasn't good and your marriage with Evan was terrible. But, I still don't think that justifies it..." “Terrible is quite a kind word for my situation at that time.” Imogen interrupted, with a dark smile "It's not like I blame Vincent for not knowing how to tell my side of the story properly. He was preoccupied with his own pro
"That's why I'm going to take action, Millicent… Millicent? Millicent!" Laura’s voice gradually rose on the other end of the call, until it pierced Millicent’s thoughts “Can you hear me?”"I'm sorry, Laura, I..." Millie sighed, supporting her head with her free hand "I'm just a little distracted. Today was... A long day.""You've been saying that all week. Frankly, Isaac Carnby isn't worth that much that you're losing sleep over him." Laura grumbled and Millicent had to bite her tongue to keep from admitting that, besides him, her mother was also haunting her all the time lately. “Did you even hear what I said?”"Yes. Uncle Dante had already mentioned at our last dinner that he received an invitation to Emma's ball. Not that it's a surprise. It's been like this since I can remember: they fight, he moves away from her and then Emma tries to get closer. I think she lives in eternal denial that her son has completely moved away from her." Millie sighed “But… I admit I didn’t hear the part
"Take a sip of water and pull yourself together, Ms. Bianchi. I don't think either of us are going to get out of here anytime soon if you keep sitting there shaking, instead of talking."Millicent tried to swallow the lump in her throat as she looked up to see Isaac's uncle placing a glass of water on the table in front of her, before sitting down on the sofa, his hands folded on top of his cane dismissively. He could have let her in, but his manner wasn't exactly friendly. She had hoped that he might simply shatter her theories the moment she mentioned her sister's name, whether by sending her away or yelling at her for mentioning Imogen Carnby's name out of nowhere.Yet there he was, completely silent and staring at her as if he were waiting for a confession. And honestly, Millicent was indeed feeling like she was being interrogated, even though they were both silent.After all, how exactly was she supposed to say she had seen his dead sister, without sounding crazy?“I… I’m sorry f
Millicent had promised herself that she would no longer approach Isaac. And, theoretically, she was fulfilling her promise. She was back in the building where they had met so many times to make love, spend the day together or just talk. Not even she was in denial enough to say it didn't affect her, especially after the cold and indifferent way Isaac had treated her days ago... But, what really mattered was that she wasn't in danger of finding him there at any moment. She had made sure of that…Even if it meant joining forces with someone else she hadn't yet forgiven.“Everything is clean.” Sage said on her side, typing message after message to her team "His car is already miles away. And, if by any chance he decides to come back, I'll make sure you have enough time to get out of here safely and discreetly."“Thank you.” was all Millicent replied, without much enthusiasm.Being around Sage again reminded her of the friendship the two shared. Or rather, she thought they shared. Knowing