Justine glanced at the flash drive as it landed in front of him with his mouth sealed, telling and proving to me that he knew something about the incident. Guilty beyond a reasonable doubt is my verdict. Yet he never told me anything since I got discharged from the hospital after a long two months fighting in a coma. Instead, he advised me to forget about the incident and live with him for good. Whatever his reasons are, I wanted to know the truth, not his side of the story, but the truth. "Everything in this flash drive tells me a lot of stories, Justine," I continued, "and do you know what kind of story has been telling me right after seeing the footage? The side of the story where I believe you are the person behind the incident. So, if you are not going to tell me, to at least defend yourself, I will believe with what I know - that you have been lying to me all this time." Finally, Justine did something apart from being frozen while listening to my lecture a
'The audacity to interfere with my paycheck!" Mauricia's furious yell broke my eardrums. She stepped foot into the office with her feet moving forward without stopping. I was about to say something when Mauricia struck a hard slap right straight onto my face. Hard enough my soul was almost thrown away from my body. "How dare you cut off my salary, you ungrateful whore!" she growled. "Not because my son knelt before you, means we are going to. I will never bow before you, Yvanna. You don't deserve my respect, bitch! you're nothing compared to me." Similar to Jennie and Jennifer, I also cut Mauricia's salary in half and donated their halves to the foundation I built intended for those employees who were maltreated by the company - by Muaricia and her husband. All of them don't deserve to receive six figures a month for not treating everyone fairly. All our employees were working hard, day and night, to maintain the company's noble image. What I did, not telling t
Seeing Mauricia shut her mouth without asking further questions as if she just got scolded by her parents was like I was watching an intense drama on television. To make it more annoying, I smirked at her. And it worked when Mauricia bent the tip of her brows while looking at me in the eye, filled with excitement. "I know you better than Yvanna. You are more ruthless and heartless than me. Do you think I would believe you now?" he added. "Don't blame your Mom, Norman. She knows nothing about her. Look what happened to her shopping malls. She remained clueless about her people smuggling our inventories behind her knowledge." "I already knew that, of course," she defensively replied. "It's just I felt pity for them if I am going to do something about it. Please, believe me, Norman. That woman is poisoning your mind. You shouldn't believe in anything she said." Norman removed Mauricia's grip before he departed his seat and dropped his butt on the other chair. His acti
As we walked through the crowded school hallway, flanked by two police officers, the sound of whispers and murmurs filled the air. With my hands cuffed and the weight of judgment on my shoulders, every student we could pass through stared at me with contempt and suspicion. But I know deep inside me I am innocent and didn't do anything wrong, even if I was too embarrassed to meet their gazes. "Do you have any idea what the hell is going on?" "Isn't she the mayor's wife? So, it's true that she cheated on her husband?" "She deserved to be locked up in jail. People like her must not be part of this school. I even heard that she was having an affair with one of our professors." "It's not just that. Didn't you guys hear what she did last night? That woman beats her husband's two sisters in the toilet room. She better not get back to our school. She's an embarrassment to our prestigious university." Out of the corners of my eyes, I saw their faces - classmat
Since I found Justine betrayed me, I couldn't find it in me to trust men. I started to build up walls and became hesitant to open up. It might take a lot of time and effort to learn to trust again. However, it is crucial to give ourselves and others the chance to rebuild trust. Tanner hadn't done anything wrong with me yet. He saved me from those monsters in the precinct. Fifteen years. They claimed that I'd be locked up in jail for fifteen years, the price for what I did to Jennifer and Jennie. I can't live and rot in jail without sending them to the burning hell first. "But you must tell me what exactly happened in the toilet room so I can defend your case," he added. "Can you do that for me?" "Do you really believe me that I didn't do all that to them?" I asked. Tanner was put into profound silence as he focused his undivided attention on the road ahead of us. His sudden silence tells me that he isn't similar to the police officers. "As your attorney,
But instead of pushing him away, I stayed on his shoulders and continued weeping until I woke up on my bed and found out it was another day. I looked around, trying to remember what happened last night. instead of Norman, I found a few cotton balls coated with blood, which I believed, was mine, and a medical kit. What was more startling was that my clothes were already different from what I wore yesterday. Then I hopped out of bed and went outside to look for Noah. But to my surprise, a lot of police officers are wandering the mansion. "Wha's going on?" I asked Mr. Emilio as soon as I reached the living area. "Good morning Mrs. dela Vega." To extend his greetings, Mr. Emilio bent half of his body. "It's about Jennifer and Jennie. They were arrested this morning." "What? For what ground?" I asked. Not that I hated it but I was just surprised like everyone else. "Where's Norman anyway?" "The mayor was trying to negotiate it with your attorney, Ms. Summer. Ev
"Do you need me to bring you to the hospital?" he added, this time, in a worried tone. He did not even let go of his hands from me, thinking I might fall again. "That's not necessary, Mr. Emilio. I'm good." I replied before I voluntarily removed his hands from me and stood still. "I'm just delighted that finally, for the very first time, I got the justice I deserved." Mr. Emilio frowned as he followed me to the car. "Are you sure? I mean, you might be overwhelmed after what happened to you these days." "I already lost count of how many times I was admitted to the hospital, Mr. Emilio." That's one for a fact. "Don't worry about me. Noah and Norman claimed that I was the strongest woman in the world. I'm still alive after Mauricia beat the hell out of me." We then took off as soon as we were settled into the car. Behind and ahead of us were police patrol cars assisting us back to the mansion. The reason Mr. Emilio kept an eye on me was because he got an order fro
"What do you mean what am I talking about? Aren't you the one who brought those food containers to my office?" He frowned. "If I'm not mistaken, those food containers even had our business' main logo. Those were limited edition food containers and our family only have those in the world." The first time someone delivered his office a bouquet of my favorite flowers and the second one was boxes of my favorite chocolates. What is this man really up to? Is he on drugs these days because of the never-ending problems with his evil family? So I opened one of the food containers, out of curiosity, and the smell of my favorite sweet and sour seafood dish lingered in my nose and was stuck in my throat, luring me to indulge my rumbling stomach for at least a bite. Is he fucking kidding me? Whoever delivered those things to his office knows everything about me. I started to wonder what could it be next time. Or perhaps those were supposed to be mine, but whoever that person
The tick-tock of the clock in our world has seemed to stop, accompanied by the heavy weight of the sensation rested on our helpless shoulders. His back rested on my chest, arms lying on both sides, and his smiling face pointing at me. "Why, Norman? You could have run away and saved your life. Why did you catch the bullet for me, huh? I'm not worth it. Have you forgotten I still hate you?" "Because I love you, Yvanna," he spoke out. "Remember those flowers, chocolates, and food containers?" I nodded as my tears kept pouring down my cheeks like an open faucet, especially when he started ejecting a bulk of blood from his nose and mouth. "Someone gave me that kind of idea eight years ago," he added. "I don't know how to make it up to you so I copied what you did when we were in college. When you confessed your feelings to me and wanted to be my girlfriend. Do you still remember? Because I do remember everything, Yvanna. That was also the day when I started to get annoye
Mr. Emilio attempted to snatch the phone from me but I swiftly dodged his grasp and held onto the phone tightly. Then I slid to the corner to make sure no one could interrupt our conversation. "This is how it is, Yvanna," he continued. "Finally, I can seek my revenge on the person who ruined my life in the past sixteen years. You should join me." "But you kidnapped him, Tanner. The police officers are also looking for you." I responded softly as if my lips hadn't moved a bit, still hesitant about his proposal even if it tempted me. Tanner's continuous laughter roared like thunder from the other line of the phone. "Police officers?" he asked with conviction. "Are you kidding me? How do you think I managed to get him out of prison without being noticed, Yvanna? Police officers are nothing but frugal. With the right amount of money, they will help you no matter how hard and impossible the jobs are." After giving it much thought, I agreed to Tanner's proposal which was
In the middle of the profound conversation, Elaine approached and showed us something we did not expect. Something I never expected to get leaked. "Mr. Emilio, are you aware of this?" One of the company's lawyers blurted in disbelief. The utter disappointment was written in everyone's faces apart from me. The news Elaine showed us was the footage of Norman having sex with another woman. "No, I'm not even aware Norman had an affair with another woman. And I barely recognize her." Mr. Emilio defensively replied. "Her name is Kristine Kate. And I am well aware of the existence of that footage because someone sent me a copy of it a few days ago." I confessed. Everyone's sharp eyes were pointing at me as if they were suspecting me. Can someone assist me to my office? I am going to check the flash drive in my drawer. And for the record, I didn't leak the footage." "I'll come with you, Mrs. dela Vega. I have to get something on my desk too." Elaine proposed. Without asking further ques
The next morning, everyone in the mansion was swamped but excited apart from me as it would also be the same day Norman and I would have our second wedding. What I discovered in front of Justine's apartment remained a huge mystery to me. Norman did not come home last night because it was in our tradition that the couple must be separated on the day of the wedding and will meet at the church. But since I have nowhere else to go, my parent's house is on the other side of the world, I used the mansion while Norman used the dela Vega Group and Companies building. "Smile, Mrs. dela Vega," says the makeup artist who has been preparing me for almost an hour. "You are about to get married but you looked like the entire weight of the world fell onto your shoulders." "Why? Do you have any regrets about remarrying the mayor, Mrs. dela Vega?" her assistant asked. Regrets? A lot. If and only my family was born as rich and powerful as the dela Vegas, only a fool would remarr
"Wait, do you, by chance, are you the one who...?" I couldn't bring up the question when we have someone with us in the car. So I decided to wait until we reached the office. Last night. It took Norman almost an hour to get back to the rehearsal dinner after sending Veronica and Malia out of the hotel. But I have no idea what he and his security guards did to them outside, and why he took almost an hour to get back. Not that I don't want the two dead, the news was just too sudden. As soon as we arrived, I quickly headed to my desk to start working. Norman followed me, lost in his thoughts, I can tell. He dropped his butt on the couch next to my desk and fixed his eyes in one direction - toward his uncertainty. "Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. dela Vega!" Elaine greeted us with a smile after the successful rehearsal dinner last night. Based on my abrupt observation, she hasn't heard of the news yet. "Here's your cup of coffee and tea, Mr. and Mrs. dela Vega! Enjo
"So you mean that one of those cops could have killed the man on our way to his house?" I continued his statement when that was what I believed. He nodded. "Or more. And that's what we need to know. And I highly suggest you work on it behind Tanner's knowledge." "You want me to stab Tanner behind his back? Have you forgotten he's my lawyer?" I asked, debated to be precise. "Tanner was pretty convinced earlier that you agreed to the result of the cops' investigation regarding the case. Better keep it that way. I'll recommend a loyal police officer who can work on the case with confidentiality." Then he asked me to get his phone from his left pocket to search for the contact person. I believed Norman had nothing to do with the attempt of killing me so I agreed to his proposal. And, of course, for our conversation to be put to an end. After getting the man's contact information, a deafening silence dominated the rest of the travel toward the hotel. Fifteen minut
After the call ended, we continued the photo shoot, buying enough time to better think about what to do in this kind of situation. Putting my situation into words, I was having second thoughts about whether I should tell Norman about my deal with Tanner or have to face and tell Tanner myself about remarrying Norman. Either way, I don't know the answer once I picked one when both of them were not to my advantage. There are no choices that won't hurt anyone in the middle of the process. "Do you mind if I ask what time will the rehearsal dinner be?" I asked Norman as soon as Noah and I were settled in his car. "Why? Do you have any other appointment that I am not aware of?" He asked back. "Tanner and I will have a meeting at three. He said that he had something to tell me. Perhaps it has something to do with the case he's working on. Would you like to come with me?" I proposed, with the hope that he would say no. "Why can you just reschedule that meeting?" Lik
"Let go of us, Yvanna!" Veronica cried out as she attempted to remove my hand from their hair. "We didn't do anything wrong." Malia debated. "In fact, we are someone else's escorts." A few security guards attempted to break us apart from after catching a glimpse that it was me, they backed out. Instead, they followed us outside the building. The moment we stepped foot outside, I pushed the two harder. Hard enough they both stumble to the rough and muddy surface of the ground. Their once glimmering expensive evening gowns are now stained with dirt and mud. And I have no regrets dragging them away from the event. "Do you think I am that fool enough not to notice what you two are doing to my husband?" I growled at them. "Even if you were someone else's escort, doesn't mean you cannot flirt with him." Veronica and Malia burst into tears as they looked around. Hundreds of flashing cameras surrounded us, catching every angle of the commotion. Malia tried to cover her face with her bar
"Come on, Mom, Dad! Can you just hear me out, please?" I insisted as I tailed them heading out of the mansion. "Get back, Yvanna!" Dad exclaimed. He and Mom doubled their pace toward the main road. "We don't have a daughter now. Go back to that hell of a place." I was about to stop them from hopping into the cab but they took off at the speed of light, leaving me alone in the road. "Please, get back inside, Mrs. dela Vega." One of the security guards followed me and helped me up as I dropped my knees to the rough surface of the ground. "Let me follow them on your behalf instead." The man next to him proposed. "We'll keep you posted once we can talk to them." They then hailed a cab and took off. I attempted to hail a new cab but two new security guards appeared and begged me to get back to the mansion as it was a strict order from Norman. Leaving with no other choice, I went straight to Noah's room. "Mom, are you alright? Are you crying? Did those evil hurt