As I left the office, Rufus drove me home. The weight of the situation clung to me like a heavy clock, suffocating and relentless. The drive here felt endless, each passing mile filled with thoughts of uncertainty and dread. I was never going to forgive myself for what I had done, seriously. It was messed up in so many ways, and now Karma had come to pay me back. When we finally arrived at the compound, we were let in and Rufus parked right in front of the mansion. The door was opened for me by a guard and I got down. The whole thing about Linda and the mysterious folder was no nothing compared to what I was hiding. How did our marriage come to this? All these lies, and secrets. It sickened me. When I entered the place, it was quiet, the only sound echoing through the empty rooms was the ticking of the clock on the wall. Maybe Linda was asleep, oblivious to the storm that my actions had caused. I headed upstairs and proceeded to enter our room. It was midnight already and to my m
I peeled myself from the bed and sat up. I could feel the hunger chewing on my intestines, I really needed to get something to eat. But before I could do that, I replied to Chris’s text. I told him that I understood and that I had no issue with him leaving me without telling me. Then I proceeded to reply to Fallon’s text. I told her to send me the address and I would be there, but that if it was about the deal that she was offering, my mind still was not going to change. She then replied, ‘Forget about the meet-up, I have other plans.’I stared at the message for a few seconds and then shrugged lightly. I did not mind. I needed the day anyway; to be able to relax and do some deep thinking. Getting out of bed, I headed for the shower. I removed my clothes and stepped under the warm spray, letting it wash away the remnants of sleep and uncertainty. The water cascaded over me, soothing my tense muscles and calming my racing thoughts about everything that had been going on, if only f
I knew. I knew that she was not here for small talk or pleasantries; she was here to assert her dominance, to remind me of my precarious position in her grand scheme of things. She was here to show that she was the puppet master and I was just the puppet. I tightened my grip on the edge of the table, forcing myself to maintain a facade of calm despite the shaky and bitter feeling that sat within me. “I have already told you, Fallon. I am not interested in your deal. I never was, and will never be. I made my decision.” Her smile faltered for a fraction of a second before she regained her composure, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly. “Oh, I’m well aware of your decision, Linda. I have been aware of your loyalty to your husband.” “Did you even see what was in the file that I sent you?” She continued. “You mean that file that you had a stranger drop at my feet, pretending that it was a mistake?” I raised one of my eyebrows.“To-ma-to, to-mah-to,” She replied, rolling her eyes. “My
Her words hung heavy in the air, a stark reminder of the cruelty and injustice that had befallen her family at the hands of their ruthless enemies.“Oh my god,” I whispered as I took in the information. She could not be lying, she obviously could not. I could see the pain in her eyes. I could almost feel it, myself. “My father was targeted by their thugs,” Fallon said, her voice barely above a whisper now. Her eyes were glossy, causing my heart to break. “He was brutally attacked, left for dead in the wreckage of his own mine. By some miracle, he survived, but he was never the same. The trauma…it changed him.” Tears welled up in her eyes, and I instinctively reached out to grasp her hand in a gesture of comfort and solidarity. Despite the type of relationship that she and I had, at this moment, we were bound by her pain. “If you don’t mind me asking, did your father return to work? Did he ever try to make the Kingston pay?” She chuckled dryly, taking her hand out of my hold. “He’s
My heart burned as I saw these things. I’m not going to lie, I was leaning more into helping her now. Everything she had explained…everything was true. She had not been lying just to get me to help her. I was holding the proof in my hand. But why couldn’t she use this to take them down? It looked like this folder had everything that she needed. Then it dawned on me, she obviously may have tried already. And imagine, even while working with the FBI and chief of police here in China, she still could not help her and her family get justice. The Kingston were basically above the law, considering that they were at the top of the social ladder. They had everything, the power, the connections, the money; every damn thing. I looked at the photo once again, a pang of sympathy washing over me. Despite the anger and desperation in Fallon’s demeanor, there was an undeniable vulnerability captured in those eyes of hers. It was a strong reminder that behind all that toughness was a woman burde
As Chris shifted uncomfortably beside me, I could sense the weight of his unease. His attempt to deflect my questions raised some suspicions in me but I tried to put it aside for now. “The gold,” I repeated, my voice steady despite the turmoil stirring within me. “What do you know about it?” He chuckled as he raised an eyebrow. “The gold that my family stole?” He ran his hand through his hair, some of his confidence returning. “Why do you say it like that? Who even told you that we stole gold?” Fallon had already explained it all to me, and she had even given me all the evidence I would need if there were any doubts left in my mind. “So you know about the gold?” He hesitated, his eyes flickering with uncertainty. “Linda, I…I don’t know much about it. It’s just a rumor, a story that has been passed down through my family. I never thought much about it, and I’m surprised that you even know about it.” He shrugged lightly. I studied his face, searching for any sign of deception. But
Chris blinked in surprise as the papers scattered around him, his expression shifting from snugness to confusion. He glanced down at the documents, then back up at me, his eyes widening with realization. “Linda, what is this?” His voice trembled slightly, almost beyond notice, but I did catch it. He was trying to maintain his facade. I stood tall, my heart pounding with a mixture of anger and frustration. “It’s the truth, Chris. The truth you have been avoiding. The truth about the gold and everything else.” He scrambled to pick up the papers, his hands shaking a bit as he sorted through them. His lips moved silently as he read, absorbing the contents of the folder. His face paled, and I could see the color drain from his cheeks. “You knew about this?” He finally managed to choke out, his voice strained. I nodded, my anger still simmering beneath the surface. “Yes, Chris, of course, I knew. And I have been trying to get you to tell me the truth, but you kept lying to me.” He loo
His silence was loud, very loud. A part of me wanted him to beg for me to stay, for him to assure me of his love. I wanted him to apologize and tell me that everything was going to be alright. I wanted him to tell me the truth about his family and that he would help Fallon. But all those were just in my head. They were not real. And no matter how badly I wanted them to be real, they wouldn’t. So I decided to break the silence. “I’ll stay at a friend’s place for a while,” I continued, my voice steady despite the whirlwind of emotions that were dancing in me. “Just until we figure things out.”He made a small sound with his throat before speaking, “You barely have a friend here, Linda. What are you doing?” Having him say that out loud made my heart do a weird thing. I never really noticed that he was right. I had no real friends here. My life was back in the United States, here was just felt like I was on vacation or was a tourist. I really needed to figure things out. And trust me
Linda’s POVWe managed to get out of the burning room, and I swear I think I got a few burns but the adrenaline drowned the pain out. We were headed out and had no idea where the exit was due to how much smoke and fire was assaulting us from almost everywhere.The pinching pain in my belly was growing and as much as I tried to brush it off, it was getting harder to do with each step that I took.Suddenly, the roof caved in and fell to the ground causing us to be separated by angry flames. I was stuck on the other side and Chris and the others were away from me.Fear filled me and I took a few careful steps away from the raging fire. “Help!” I exclaimed.“Keep calm, Linda. We will find a way to get to you, but for now, I would recommend that you keep moving.” He pointed towards the ceiling.When I looked up, I saw that the fire was eating it up, it could fall at any second. “Okay!” I said loudly, so I could be heard above all the commotion. When I turned around to start moving, I was
Linda’s POVI had never been so scared in my life, the room held a tension that I could not describe. It felt like a nightmare, a real one.It felt like I was hallucinating all of this, but deep down, I knew that I was not. This was real, and it was something that I could not escape from. “Please, think about the baby,” I begged Mr. Kingston, tears flowing from my eyes and snot running down my nose.“Did you think of the baby before you and your friends decided to f*ici up my life?” He asked, dark humor dancing in his eyes.“Light them up,” he said, walking away. In seconds he was out of the room. Kirby flashed me a sad look before her features hardened again. She then walked out, the doctor guy following her.I sniffled and then sobbed out even more. I was beginning to smell gasoline, the smell was overwhelming. Sh*t, they were going to burn us up. My vision got blurred for a few seconds before I blinked the tears away, making it clear again.The door opened and I saw Kirby and th
Linda’s POVThe call went through but after a few rings, there was no answer. My heart was thumping in my chest and more tears threatened to spill from my eyes due to fear.“You better hope she answers, we are on a tight schedule,” Kirby warned me in a hard tone. I was praying for that too. “Call her again, maybe her phone is on Do Not Disturb,” I tried to find an explanation.“Hmm,” She mumbled in response before deciding to make the call again. This time, Fallon answers on the third ring.I let out a breath that I did not know I was holding. Kirby brought the phone close to me and put it on speakerphone. “This better be important, because I’m very busy right now,” Fallon said, it sounded like she was on a busy street because I could hear the sound of cars and people being people in the background. “It is,” I replied. “Fallon, I need your help; Chris and I have been kidnapped. The like went quiet for a few seconds and then she broke the silence. “Linda?” “Yes, Fallon, please…hur
Linda’s POVBeing bound was not a nice experience, the ropes were so tight that every time I would try to move, they would pinch my skin.But I had made my decision, I wanted to come out of here alive. I wanted my baby to come out of here alive, so I was going to do everything I was told to do no matter how messed up it would be.Kirby and the guy who I thought was a doctor soon walked out of the room, leaving me with the guy who was not too far from me.I knew it was a man because of his build but I could not tell who he was. He was wearing old and ragged clothes and seemed to be unconscious because his head was bent over in a weak way.“Are you okay?” I asked, attempting to see if he was awake even though I felt he was not. There was no reply. So I sighed and then glanced around the room, looking to see if I could find a way of escape, but it seemed like the only way to get out here was through the door.There were two windows in the room but both of them had iron bars that did not
Linda’s POVThe car soon came to a stop, it had been a long ride. “Take her inside,” Kirby commanded and the Doctor did as he was asked. He opened the door and got down before gesturing that I do the same. I did not want to be hurt and did not want my baby to be hurt either so I did as he told me. I got down from the car and glanced around. It was now dark but the lights from on the property were impressively bright. Acres of land stretched from both sides that I looked at, and a huge stood not too far from me. It looked like a castle. It was stunning but it had a dark energy that caused my heart to skip a beat. I already knew who was behind this. I mean, I had my suspicions at first but they had now been confirmed. The thought of Chris entered my mind and I felt a heaviness that I could not ignore. Why did they have me tell him that I was on a street that we were miles away from? Had it been a way to get him alone so they could harm him? Oh my gosh, I did not know what I would do
Chris’s POVKidnapped? The word rang in my ear over and over, and I could barely hear a thing after she had said that. The car behind mine honked loudly and I was pulled out of my trance. “Clink Street? You said you’re being held at Clink Street?” I needed to make sure that I had heard her right. “Yes…” Her voice broke before a shudder followed shortly after. Then the call dropped. I tried to call but there was no answer. So I tried again; again and again. And with the cars honking behind me as I was parked at the traffic light, blocking their way, I knew that I had to put it all aside for only a few seconds. My mind raced as I tried to make sense of what had just happened. Lind, my wife, was kidnapped. The thought was incomprehensible, surreal. But I could not afford to dwell on it. I had to act, I had to act fast. With a deep breath, I refocused on the present. The light that was was still green, so I finally drove and ignored the road rage that I was getting as I pulled to the
Linda’s POVMy heart skipped a beat, a cold fear gripping me as I realized something was terribly wrong. Panic surged within me, but I tried to keep my voice steady. “What do you mean, you lied?” I demanded, my voice trembling despite my efforts to remain calm. Dr. Adam’s smile faded, replaced by a chilling expression that sent shivers down my spine. “You, Linda,” He said softly, his ice blue eyes locking onto mine with unsettling intensity, “You’re not going to another room as you already can tell, you’re going to a little place called ‘Pay Back’.” I immediately jumped out of the wheelchair and tried to run for my life but I fell to the hard ground. We were in the parking place, basement level. “Help!” I screamed at the top of my lungs but it was like there was not even a soul there. As I hit the ground, pain shot through my body, but fear propelled me to my feet again. Adrenaline surged through my veins as I fought to escape, but Dr. Adam was quick to react. He grabbed my arm lik
Linda’s POVI could barely speak, the pain overwhelming me as I doubled over on the bathroom floor. Every fiber of my being screamed with agony, and I feared for the safety of my unborn child. I already knew what it was, what was causing the pain. This was not my first rodeo, it was not the first time that it had happened. Aunt Maze and William rushed into the room, their expressions filled with alarm as they saw me writhing in pain. “What’s going on?” Aunt Maze exclaimed, her voice tinged with worry. I struggled to find the words amidst the agony that consumed me. “It’s the bullet…it’s moving and must be hitting one of my organs,” I managed to gasp out, tears stinging my eyes as another wave of pain washed over me. Fallon’s eyes widened with realization. “We need to get her to the hospital, now,” She said urgently, her voice plastered with panic. With her support, I managed to rise to my feet, the pain still stabbing at my abdomen with each step. Aunt Maze and William sprang int
Linda’s POVMy heart skipped a beat at the revelation, the gravity of the situation sinking in. The Kingstons had vanished without a trace, the police had no way of knowing where they were. I wanted to ask how that was even possible. But I already knew the answer to that. Power, money, and influence. They had found a way to disappear because of who they were. “What do you mean disappeared?” Chris demanded, his voice smeared with urgency. “How could a prison transport vehicle just f*cking disappear?” Sergeant Thompson’s tone remained solemn. “We are still trying to ascertain the details, but it appears to have been a deliberate act. We suspect foul play.” “Of course, there was,” I heard Fallon say under her breath before letting out a string of curses. The car we were in was more of a van and we could all fit in easily. My mind raced with so many possibilities, each one more terrifying than the last. Had all of this been orchestrated from the start? Was he planning revenge right n