*Andrea*It had been a few weeks since I'd gotten back from the hospital. Nora was dead, Lucas was recovering and Austin and I had gotten some semblance of peace back in our lives. I'd managed to convince Alejandro to have a talk with Williams and it was the most difficult thing I had ever done. Alejandro had refused to speak about him for days, always asking me to please change the topic whenever I brought him up.And I had. Every time.As much as I had wanted them to make peace, my loyalty lies with Alejandro and I had never wanted to force him to do something he wasn't ready for. Fortunately after a few more days, he'd loosened up and we'd had the conversation. He'd kissed my head, letting me know he would never go back to being buddies with him but he was willing to make peace just for Lucas. They'd met at a restaurant a few days later.Alejandro had not wanted him in the house.Alejandro had given me a summary of how the talk had went. He'd made Williams understand that they coul
*Alejandro*We were at the airport, dropping Lucas, Alison and Williams off. Williams was heading back to Florida and Lucas was traveling to attend the conference and manage the company's branch over in Florida. Fortunately, Jane had been able to get it postponed and since I'd already promised Lucas he could attend on my behalf, I wanted to keep my word. Alison, of course, was going with Lucas. She'd already said her home was wherever Lucas was. Everyone was expecting them to get engaged any day now."I'll miss you, auntie Alison," Austin said, trying his best to hold back his tears. Alison picked him up and gave raining kisses all over his face. Watching them tugged on some unknown part of me. Alison had become a huge part of Austin's life. Whenever Andrea and I couldn't have him with us, he was always with her. I couldn't imagine how they both felt now that she was moving temporarily.She kissed his cheek for the last time before letting him down. "I'll miss you too buddy," She sai
*Andrea*I was extremely nervous.I tapped my cell phone and glanced down at my phone, realizing I was only a minute or so away from my boyfriend's place. Releasing an unsteady breath, I put my phone back into the front pocket of my hoodie, pushing my hair behind my ears and looking around. It somehow felt like my reason for going to Lucas's place was floating boldly above my head for the world to see.I pressed my lips together, bracing myself.Lucas's house came into view. The word house was putting it mildly. Lucas lived in fucking paradise. His father was an extremely well known multi billionaire and though I had never met the man, I'd seen his face splashed a couple of times on TV and newspapers. Plus, he was practically never around. Which was probably the reason why Lucas had chosen to live in one of the penthouses in front of the actual mansion his father owned.There was no reason for him to live somewhere else.His father had more than enough. Lucas and I had met at one of t
*Alejandro*"Okay, be sure to keep me up to speed," I said to the manager of my company in New York before ending the call and looking out the window. I had arrived in Florida late in the evening yesterday so I'd had to check myself into a hotel. I decided to rest for a few hours this morning before calling my personal driver to come pick me up. I let out a deep breath, resting my head back against the seat from where I sat in the owner's corner. Home, sweet home. A part of me had hoped that Lucas would come pick me up from the hotel. It had quickly become rather obvious after I'd waited for more than three hours that he had no intention of coming. The house came into view in a blink and I took in the mansion I'd built years ago with my well-earned money. My attention shifted to the penthouse Lucas occupied but I got the feeling from how quiet it was that Lucas wasn't at home.Figures.He'd known I was going to arrive today but he hadn't bothered to at least be here when I arrived. H
*Andrea*Here I was, sitting beside the richest silver fox and father to my cheating ex. Looking at him, I couldn’t believe that I was the one who had just mischievously flirted with him a few minutes before. “You said your name was Anna, right?”I opened my mouth to correct him and stopped myself almost immediately. Anna was the name I had given him. As much as I knew he wasn’t close with his son, I wouldn’t risk the chance of him finding out about me until my plan was well and truly executed. I smiled coyly at him, though it was because I thanked the universe for making things flow smoothly and efficiently for me. All I had to do tonight was to seduce him to get him to bed.‘Yes, I am Anna, and you are Alejandro Costa,’ I replied. A waitress dressed in a black and purple skirt suit approached our table. She nodded at me and smiled at Alejandro before stealing a glance my way. I looked at the short outfit she had worn, and she looked comfortable in it, a stark contrast to the mic
*Alejandro* After being gone for a while, Anna came back looking a little flushed, with her cheeks red and a strange smile. I couldn't help but ask if everything was fine. “oh, it's nothing,” she said, brushing it off. I didn't try to push it, so we kept talking. After a while, I realized the bar was beginning to get empty. I looked down at my watch; it was already late. “Do you wanna go somewhere else?” I asked. “Yeah, sure,” she answers without hesitation. We walked out of the bar together, leading her into my already waiting car, and asked my driver Sam to take us back to a particular apartment that I owned. He gave me a questioning look, knowing fully well that I only go to that apartment when I want to be alone. I gave him a little nod to assure him he didn't hear wrongly, and we were on our way. It didn't take long before we arrived at my apartment. I alighted from the car, going round to open the door for Anna, and then we made our way towards the apart
*Andrea* The Uber was already waiting for me outside when I walked out of Alejandro's apartment. I got in fast, greeting the driver and telling him the address as he drove off. I rechecked the message to confirm what I saw. Alison's message stared back at me. ‘Hey, where are you? Lucas is here.’ My body revolted at the message, and I couldn't believe Lucas had the nerve to show up late at night at the apartment. I would have loved to spend a little more time with Alejandro, but I had to cut the time off to go and face my cheating ex-boyfriend. I sat back in the backseat, massaging my temples, this is not what I needed now. The car stopped abruptly. “We are here.” I peeked out the window; we were already at my house. I wish the ride had been longer so I could be ready to face Lucas. I got down, closing the car door behind me after paying the driver and walking slowly towards the door. I took a few deep breaths before opening the door to my apartment. I walked in, shutt
*Alejandro* I opened the door to the meeting room filled with directors. I walked straight to my chair, and they all stood till I had my seat. I was in high spirits. My day has been going well. I pulled the chair back and took my seat behind the chair. I opened the laptop on the top of the table. Mark, one of the board of directors, passed me a file, and I flipped it open. “This contains a report on the mail which has been built in the city's outskirts,” he said. I nodded. I flipped through the file. There were so many errors. “Who prepared this?” I asked. Everyone went silent; the air became heavy. I raised my head, not hearing anyone speak. I looked around. Everyone's attention went to a cranny-looking girl with enormous, round-rimmed glasses. She put up her hands unsteadily and stood up. “That's Lisa. She is from the planning team,” Mark leaned closer and whispered. She looked so young; this seemed to be her first time organizing something big. I was in a good m
*Alejandro*We were at the airport, dropping Lucas, Alison and Williams off. Williams was heading back to Florida and Lucas was traveling to attend the conference and manage the company's branch over in Florida. Fortunately, Jane had been able to get it postponed and since I'd already promised Lucas he could attend on my behalf, I wanted to keep my word. Alison, of course, was going with Lucas. She'd already said her home was wherever Lucas was. Everyone was expecting them to get engaged any day now."I'll miss you, auntie Alison," Austin said, trying his best to hold back his tears. Alison picked him up and gave raining kisses all over his face. Watching them tugged on some unknown part of me. Alison had become a huge part of Austin's life. Whenever Andrea and I couldn't have him with us, he was always with her. I couldn't imagine how they both felt now that she was moving temporarily.She kissed his cheek for the last time before letting him down. "I'll miss you too buddy," She sai
*Andrea*It had been a few weeks since I'd gotten back from the hospital. Nora was dead, Lucas was recovering and Austin and I had gotten some semblance of peace back in our lives. I'd managed to convince Alejandro to have a talk with Williams and it was the most difficult thing I had ever done. Alejandro had refused to speak about him for days, always asking me to please change the topic whenever I brought him up.And I had. Every time.As much as I had wanted them to make peace, my loyalty lies with Alejandro and I had never wanted to force him to do something he wasn't ready for. Fortunately after a few more days, he'd loosened up and we'd had the conversation. He'd kissed my head, letting me know he would never go back to being buddies with him but he was willing to make peace just for Lucas. They'd met at a restaurant a few days later.Alejandro had not wanted him in the house.Alejandro had given me a summary of how the talk had went. He'd made Williams understand that they coul
*Alejandro *I held onto the stretcher as the nurses rolled Andrea away. The stainless white walls and strong stench of disinfectant were the last thing on my mind as one of the nurses hurriedly called the attention of a doctor. I fisted my hands helplessly when the doctor asked me to wait outside, watching as they rolled her into the room. I brought my fist to my lips, shaking my head and trying to control my rising panic.I lowered myself on the chair in the waiting room, tapping my feet impatiently on the floor. I hated hospitals. It was filled with such sad people. A woman pushed a man on a wheelchair passed me. Kids ran around the waiting area, oblivious to what was actually going on. It wasn't hard to imagine what I looked like. My hair was a disheveled mess and sweat clung to my skin.I looked at my watch. It had only been two minutes since Andrea had been in the room but it felt like an hour. I stood up and paced around the hallway , unable to continue sitting in one place. Ho
*Andrea*I was pulled forcefully along the rough ground barefoot. My clothes were torn, and because they held my leg, walking became hard. But I bared all of it, hoping I would get through this. “Make her walk faster; we must make sure the piranhas have dinner on time.” Nora was in front, leading as they dragged me. “You don't have to do this, Nora. Don't do this,” I said. I can't imagine my son living without his mother. He had just gotten his father back after five years of living without him, and now Nora was about to make him lose his mother. I didn't want to watch this; I just couldn't.“Shut your mouth, or I'll make you shut it,” Nora warned. “We are close to the lake; you Should save that strength for the initial struggle; oh lord, it will be so fun to watch you.” She let out a laugh, and I wanted to run a dagger through her mouth and cut off her tongue.We soon reached the lake, which had a small bridge and railings. We stopped. “Nora, we don't have to go this far,” I said
*Andrea*I don't know how Lucas came here. But what shocked me the most was that Nora could have him tied like this next to me. One of the men had hit him hard on his head, causing him to lose consciousness. My heart tightened as I watched Lucas groan in pain before dropping to the floor. How could a mother be this heartless? What bothered me more was that it was Lucas who was here. Alejandro should be the one here, not Lucas. I had left through a place where, though it was dark, there was still a CCTV camera there, so why was help not coming? When I saw one of the two men with Nora carrying Lucas up, I asked, “What are you doing to him?” To Nora, I said, “he is your son, so why are you doing this to him?” I expect her to yell at the man who had hurt Lucas and to go pat her son; that's what I'd do. That's what every mother would do. But at that point, I had forgotten that not every mother would kidnap and threaten someone with a gun.It didn't take long for Lucas to regain his co
*Alejandro*The night has to be the longest night I have ever had. I looked back to the early hours of that day. Things had gone well; we had all been happy. All I had to do was to divorce Nora and get back my life. Andrea and Austin. But who would have thought that I would lose both of them that same day? I would never have imagined. I did all I could to find them, but everything led to a roadblock. It was frustrating. But I had to put up with it. I wasn't going to lose hope. I know I can find them.I don't care if I have to flip the earth over. I will find them. I spent the night watching one footage or another, checking everywhere I could, and getting the police involved. Alison didn't sleep either, and neither did Lucas. The following day, when he left to get a few things for us, I stepped into one of the empty rooms, and for once, I felt tears gather in my eyes.I didn't allow them to fall, and I will accept that it may take longer to find them.I was to meet with the inspec
*Andrea*Austin stood still, not moving, “Momma,” he called. From the corner of my eyes, I could see that Nora was trying to stand up.I wasn't going to allow that. I leapt on her and held her down. “Austin, please run. Don't worry about mama. Go and get help for momma.” I yelled, and he ran out of the room.Nora struggled under my hold, but I kept my grip on her tight. I would not allow her to move. Never. Not until Austin was fully out. She pushed me away and aimed for the door. But I hit her head hard with my hand, sending a blow across her head that made her go back on her knees. I don't know how far Austin can go, but I knew I had to keep Nora down so she wouldn't call on her men for as long as I could.I walked to the door, but before I could step out entirely, she pulled my hair and dragged me into the room, “Go after the child, go after the child.” She kept shouting while trying to stop me from running. I couldn't see what was going on behind the door as she closed it, but
*Andrea*It felt like I was dreaming. My mind kept retracting back to the entrance. We had just stepped in, and he had run after Alison. I could still see Alison walking towards me alone. When she said she didn't see him, we went ahead and searched for him immediately. At first, I thought he was just being mischievous as always and promised to scold him in case of further occurrence. But after searching the restrooms and the hallway and not finding him anywhere, I began to feel uneasy. Then we had to search around the hotel. I searched outside; maybe he had run out. But he wasn't outside. After searching for over twenty minutes and not getting any sign of him, worries finally sipped into my heart. I couldn't hold back anymore, and tears began to roll down my eyes. I called Alejandro immediately.We'd been searching for over two hours, and he had yet to be seen. When Alejandro told me that he had been tracked, I wept; that meant my son had been kidnapped. He had been taken away.
*Alejandro* I had just stepped out of my car when my phone rang. I picked up the call immediately when Andrea’s name appeared on my screen.I had been delayed as a result of traffic. Lucas got out from the other side. “We are here, Andrea, sorry just give us…”“We can't find Austin,” her voice rang out from the other end. I removed the phone from my ear, stared at the screen, and placed it back. “We can't find Austin. We came together, but he's gone. He's not in the restaurant. I don't know where he is. We've been searching over thirty minutes…” she was breaking down. I stopped on my track, my entire mood flipping.“What do you mean?” I began working, taking large strides. “When? How?” She didn't respond; she just kept sobbing. Noticing my change, Lucas asked, “Dad, what's wrong?” I ended the call, “Austin has gone missing,” I said, running towards the entrance like a madman.I didn't mind the curious stares I received immediately after entering the hotel.I looked around, but A