SHAWNA“Phoebe!", I yelled and rushed downstairs with her. Blood had smeared the place she was lying on.“Mom." I heard her weak voice over my racing heart.I carried her up into my arms, and just at the same time my mom rushed out from the room she was in with the boys.They all started questioning me but were all shocked at the sight before them.I took Phoebe straight into the car, placing her in the back seat. The boys and mom cornered me before I could get to the driver's seat.“What's going on Shawna?" Mom asked me, the boys were trying to open the car's door, but the child's lock was on.“She fell down the stairs mom, I need to get her to the hospital now!" I rushed out.“Let's go to the hospital together then." She wanted to get into the car with me but I stopped her, finally thinking straight.“No, you'll relapse before we get to the hospital. Stay here with the boys, I'll keep you posted." I jumped into the car and locked all the doors.I know how much they'll all want to go
SHAWNA“Phoebe?" I called out in a little voice, my voice was very weak.Liam looked down at her to see what was happening with me, he looked equally shocked.I moved closer to my daughter, placing my hand on her chest, and I got nothing. She wasn't breathing any longer, that always only means one thing which I refuse to believe is what's going on.“She's no longer breathing! You both should fucking do something!" Liam yelled at them both but they were still unmoved.“Fuck you two, you'll regret it!" he yelled and took her further into the hospital himself.I was too shaken, stood still even when Liam was walking away with my daughter, my legs were too weak to move, my mind numb and eyes just clouded with too much tears.I watched helplessly as Liam was stopped in the middle of the lobby by two security guards. He looked like he wanted to hit them in the faces if not that he was carrying Phoebe.Just as an unimaginable level of anger overtook my entire form, a familiar figure started
SHAWNA“Are you all ready to go now?" Liam asked my mother and me. It's the morning after the incident with Phoebe.Grandfather had people on guard all night to stay with her so I didn't have to stay with her all night, I'm just on my way to the hospital this morning with Mom.Billy and Jasper have gone with their nanny this morning, they'll go to see their sister in the afternoon. But for now, it's just my mother and me.“Yes, we just finished," I answered him."Let's go then.” He walked out of the house with both of us behind him, we got outside and entered his car, zooming off immediately.“Are you going to a job interview today, Shawna?" Mom asked me when the ride started.“No, why did you ask?" “Well, you're dressed like that." She shrugged.Truth be told, I was dressed in office wear, but I tried as much as possible to make it look casual too. I wore a white pants trouser and a flowery shirt that was mostly black.“I took the heiress position from Grandpa,” I announced. I've be
EUGENE “I like that! I like that!" I grinned at Kyle, who beamed happily at me. I didn't even need to tell him before he knew he was meant to throw them out, and I like him for that. “Look at how helpless she looked, I like how today is just going for her," I grinned evilly. “I know right, let's just go to where you were going, they don't deserve this level of attention, they're low lives and it should remain that way." Kyle wrapped his arm around my shoulder. We walked towards his car and got in, his driver looked like he wanted to say something with how he kept glancing back. “Just spill it already, Frank," Kyle ordered him. “I just wanted to tell you that your brother was in the hospital too, I saw him go in.” He said. My heart skipped a beat when he said that, I felt the pressing need to be there already, I didn't want to go with Kyle before, but hearing that Damien would be there made me enthusiastic. “Really?" I asked out loud. Kyle glanced at me with the sudden shift
SHAWNA Phoebe's excited face when she saw me walk in warmed my heart a lot. I also went straight to her and wrapped my arms around her in a warm hug. “I've been waiting for you Mom!" She said out loud that my mother who was resting her head on the edge of the bed woke up. I broke the hug and looked into her eyes with a smile on my face, the color on her face and skin had returned fully. “I know baby, I'm here now. How are you feeling?" I asked her. "I'm fine now. I want to go home to see Billy and Jasper already, I miss them so much.” She pouted. "We're going to do just that, we'll get you out of here today, I know what it feels like to be stuck in a hospital room,” I said as I caressed her cute, chubby cheeks. "Did the doctor say she can go?” My mother asked with confusion in her voice. "I plan on seeing him in his office now,” I answered her. "Yay! I can't wait!” Phoebe squealed. "I'll go see the doctor now so we can start going home.” I ruffled her hair and stood up. Just
SHAWNA “What do they want this time? Anyways, I'm sure they'll leave when they get tired, I don't have any time at all today." “They look quite determined though, like they'll stay there till you come out even if it's night. I honestly wonder what rubs through their head, what do they want with the heiress now?" Liam asked me back. “That's their headache, not ours. They'll leave when they get tired. How's work today by the way?" I changed the topic entirely. “Everything is going smoothly, I got the best news from you today since I started my company." He smiled. I only smiled back at him, I've not even done up to half of what he has done for me, Liam is one of my biggest supporters and rock, he deserves all the good things in life. “You're closed from work right?" I asked him, seeing how relaxed he looked and his loosened tie. “Yes." “Good, can you please accompany me to my children's former school? I have one or two things to do there." I asked with a smirk on my face. He see
EUGENE I rushed into the house to see my parents pacing around the living room, my dad looked more conflicted. “Mom, I'm here now, what happened?" I asked as I dropped my bag on the couch, my heart was racing wildly in my chest, I knew already that something wasn't right. “Haven't you seen the news already or you've been out gallivanting around? The Lancaster empire now has a new heiress.” My father growled. This is not a trivial issue, my father rarely raises his voice, but when he does, it has to be that the matter is out of hand, there's no other way out at all. "I saw the news, but I don't understand what's going on, why are you both so riled up?” I frowned, "We're still struggling to get the acceptance of Mr Bryan Lancster into our business and he's not budging at all, finding a new heiress who's faceless as we speak will make this hard.” My mother butted in. "And the Lancasters are our only hope at rising again, so we have to get them to be partners with us, how do
DAMIEN I saw them come out of the building and instantly regretted coming out of my car at this point too. The last thing I want to do is talk to Eugene right now. “Damien!" She yelled out my name before I could avoid them, making me cuss it. Her mother turned too but Eugene walked towards me, making her mother come forward too. “What are you doing here?" Eugene asked when she got to me, I wanted to give a snarky comment that whatever I was looking for was none of her business but for the sake of her mother, I swallowed it. “I'm here to see someone,” I replied, trying as much as possible to not sound rude or anything. "Good afternoon, Damien.” Her mother greeted me herself. I didn't know if she was being normal or just because it's me but I answered since she's older and wasn't raised to be rude to anyone. "Good afternoon, ma'am. How's the family?” I asked her politely, pocketing my hands. "We’re all fine, you know, apart from the little setbacks we're experiencing in the
PHOEBEI felt like I’d been holding my breath the whole night, but when Uncle Richard finally gave his answer, it was like the air rushed back into my lungs.“Well,” he said with a small chuckle, wiping his mouth with his napkin, “the truth is, we’re a wealthy family. Very wealthy. Ramon chose to keep that hidden because he didn’t want gold-diggers. He wanted someone who’d love him for who he is, not what he has.”There was a beat of silence.Then Billy blinked. “Wait… you’re saying Ramon’s been pretending to be broke?”“Not broke,” Uncle Richard clarified with a grin. “Just… simple. Down-to-earth.”Everyone at the table was stunned. I couldn’t help it, I let out the tiniest giggle. Then a bigger one. And before long, laughter started to ripple around the table. Even Jasper cracked a smile. It was like the whole room finally exhaled.I glanced at Mom and made a small, sneaky wink. She caught it instantly. Her lips curved just slightly, and then she gave a quick nod.“Phoebe,” she said
RAMONI didn’t expect her to say that.“You want to invite my uncle to dinner?” I asked, blinking like I didn’t hear her right.Phoebe nodded, brushing her hair behind her ear. “Yes. I think it’s time. Everyone’s going crazy over him, and I just… I want to clear the air. If they meet him, maybe they’ll finally stop judging.”I rubbed the back of my neck, confused. “I mean, sure, I guess, but… I don’t know. He’s a quiet guy. He doesn’t do… dinners with strangers.”“Then ask him,” she said, giving me that look, half hopeful, half determined. “Please, Ramon. It matters to me.”I sighed and nodded slowly. “Okay. I’ll talk to him today. I can’t promise anything, but I’ll try.”“Thank you,” she smiled, squeezing my hand.Later that evening, I made my way to Uncle Richard’s place. He was outside on the porch, drinking tea like always, flipping through one of those thick history books he loved. I walked up and dropped into the chair beside him.He glanced at me over the top of his glasses. “Y
PHOEBEI slammed my door shut behind me, fuming. My chest felt tight, and my head ached. I couldn’t believe they all did that behind my back. Like, I couldn’t think for myself. Like, I didn’t know what I was doing.I threw myself onto my bed, letting out a long sigh as my face sank into the pillow. I wanted to scream. Maybe cry. But I didn’t. I just lay there, sulking in silence, trying not to overthink the whole night.A gentle knock came on my door about an hour later. I rolled over, expecting maybe my mom or dad. But to my surprise, it was my grandmother.“Can I come in, sweetheart?” she asked softly.“Yeah,” I muttered, sitting up.She walked in slowly, her warm smile softening the tension in my chest a bit. She sat beside me, her hand gently rubbing my back in that calming, rhythmic way only she could manage. Something about her presence always made the storm inside me feel a little less wild.“I heard there was a little storm downstairs,” she said lightly, trying to lift the moo
SHAWNAThe moment we stepped into the house, I knew something was wrong. The air felt thick, voices were raised, and all I could hear was arguing coming from the living room.“What’s going on here?” I asked, stepping in with Damien right behind me.Phoebe, Billy, Jasper, and Winnie all froze. The tension in the room hit me like a wall. Phoebe’s face was flushed, her arms folded tight across her chest. Winnie looked caught in the middle. Jasper had that tight-lipped, stubborn look, and Billy’s hands were resting on his hips like he was trying to keep himself from saying something worse.“Can someone explain this?” Damien asked firmly, eyes scanning all of them.“It’s nothing,” Phoebe said quickly.“It doesn’t sound like anything,” I said. “We could hear the shouting from outside.”“It’s about Ramon and his uncle,” Jasper muttered.Damien raised a brow. “Ramon?”Yes,” Winnie jumped in. “I told Billy and Jasper something earlier…about Richard, Ramon’s uncle. I recognized him from years a
PHOEBEI was tired. I just wanted to get home, take off my shoes, and crawl into bed. But the moment I walked into the house, I felt the tension hit me like a wall.Winnie was sitting on the couch.And my two brothers, Jasper and Billy, were standing next to her, arms crossed like bodyguards. The look on their faces said everything.“What’s going on?” I asked, closing the door behind me.Winnie stood up slowly. “We need to talk.”“I can see that,” I said, dropping my purse on the side table. “But what I don’t get is why you’re here… with my brothers.”“Phoebe,” Jasper started, “Winnie told us about the man you ran into at the mall. The one holding hands with that girl.”I blinked. “Richard?”“Yes,” Billy said, stepping forward. “She said he looked familiar and he happens to be Ramon’s uncle.”I froze, my heart suddenly pounding in my chest. “She told you that?”“Yes,” Jasper added with a serious look on his face. “And we think you need to be careful with this whole issue. It seems lik
RAMONMy uncle, Richard, stepped in like he owned the place, as usual. He looked around briefly and then narrowed his eyes at me.“She’s gone?” he asked.I nodded and moved to sit on the couch. “Yeah, just left.”He shut the door behind him and walked over, not wasting time.“What’s going on with Winnie?” I asked before he could even sit. “She recognized you at dinner. She’s not some random girl, you know. She’s sharp. You’ve been warning me about staying focused, but you’re the one slipping now. What exactly is happening?”My uncle paused by the chair, but didn’t sit. He rubbed his chin like he always did when he was buying time.“She just arrived,” he finally said. “I wasn’t expecting her to recognize me. It’s been years since I last saw her, and even then, she was still in school.”“So she does know you?”“Yes,” he sighed, finally sitting across from me. “Her father is one of my business partners. We’ve done deals together, some clean, some… not so clean.”I leaned forward, frownin
RAMONThe night started simply. After Phoebe told me everything that happened at the mall with Richard, I could tell it had been weighing on her. I wanted to take her mind off things, so I asked her out to dinner. Just something nice, somewhere quiet. I picked this cozy little restaurant I liked on the west side of town. Nothing too fancy, but it had a warm vibe, soft lights, and good pasta.Phoebe seemed excited when I picked her up. She smiled the whole car ride, playing with the radio, teasing me about my terrible playlist.“Ramon,” she laughed, “do you only listen to '90s rock ballads?”I chuckled. “Hey, don’t disrespect greatness. This is vintage mood-setting.”She rolled her eyes, but I could see the blush on her cheeks when our hands brushed on the gearshift. I liked her. A lot. And tonight, I just wanted it to be easy. Normal.When we got to the restaurant, Phoebe told me she’d invited Winnie to join us. I paused for a second.“She’s still suspicious of me, isn’t she?” I asked
PHOEBEIt was hard to ignore the odd tension in the air when we bumped into Richard and his… companion. Despite my initial surprise, I greeted him politely. “Hi, uncle Richard. Fancy running into you here.”He smiled, a bit awkwardly, as if he hadn’t expected to see us either. “Phoebe, Winnie, good to see you both.” His smile seemed genuine enough, but there was something in his eyes that made me think he was hiding something.Winnie, always the one to break the ice, stepped forward. “Hi, Mr. Richard. We didn’t expect to see you out here. Who’s the lovely lady?” Her tone was light, but I could tell she was curious, even more so after the awkwardness of the moment.Richard shifted a little on his feet, clearly uncomfortable. “Oh, just a friend,” he said quickly. “Nothing to worry about.” He didn’t even make eye contact with the woman beside him as he said it.Winnie didn’t seem convinced. “Are you in a hurry? We’ve barely seen you since… well, a while ago. We’ve missed the good chats,”
PHOEBEI blinked a few times, staring at Winnie like she had just told me unicorns were real.“What did you just say?” I asked slowly.“I said I know that man,” she repeated, still staring at the photo on my phone. “The one standing behind you two in that picture. Ramon’s uncle, right?”“Yeah,” I said, glancing at the photo again. “That’s Richard. Why?”Winnie raised an eyebrow, her tone serious. “He came to our house a while back. Twice, actually. He met with my dad.”I laughed, half out of shock, half because it sounded so ridiculous. “Winnie… your dad is basically a billionaire. Why would he meet with Richard? Richard owns like… nothing. He’s not exactly in your dad’s league.”Winnie didn’t even flinch. She stood there with her arms crossed, her brows slightly furrowed, clearly unamused. “I know what I saw, Phoebe,” she said firmly, her tone serious. “You think I’d forget something like that? The second I saw his face in that picture, I remembered. Same smile, same eyes, even the s