"Come in..." Miriam heard Ryan's voice from inside. She breathed in and slowly push the door open, going in afterwards."Did you receive your promotion letter already?" Ryan asked immediately Miriam entered the office, without sparing her a glance."Yes, quite a while ago." She nodded in reply. "I'm yet to read what's written in it.""Aside being the member of the board meeting and my personal assistance, I feel like you need a specific post to hold." He said, still not sparing her a glance. "You are no more my personal assistance but the vice president of operations, and you are going to be taking on a bigger role in the company now."Miriam did not smile nor show any concern or gratitude towards her new post, she only stare blankly at Ryan. "Are you going somewhere, sir?" She asked him instead as she watch him pack and arrange some files.Ryan paused what he was doing and turn to her. "Yes..." He simply stated. "I'm not just going somewhere but... vacating my office too."Miriam kne
It was evening, and it hadn't been long since Ciara had returned from her place of work. She was on her system right in the dinning section after dinner had been taken with Herzl and uncle Kent's wife, Elsie, that now resides with them.Elsie was always with a smile on her face whenever she was busy in the house or not —even if she was heartbroken and still in grief due to her husband's death, it did not hinder her from her usual personality.Herzl, who was watching his favourite show, jumped down from the couch and went for the remote, switching off the television. He was wearing a displeased look on his face as he dragged his feet towards the dinning room, whinnying and grumbling under his breathe.“Mom…" He called out with a stern expression on his face, his arms folded across his chest —he was standing before his mother, his hard gaze on her.“Do you want something, son?” Ciara requested in reply with her gaze still at the system, her fingers doing their usual wonders on the syste
Left alone in the reception, Milan was contemplating on her decision. She sat on her seat behind the shiny desk, clad in a charcoal hue skirt and a black heels to match with her dress.In the past few days of being assigned as Ciara's secretary, she has managed to become her eyes and ears, managing to gain more of Ciara's trust than she ever thought she will —as promised, she was trying her best and almost pushing over her limits to show her dedication to the company.She kept glancing over at the framed door, her ears itching to hear the sound of the door opening, but none was forthcoming. She sighed, a little apprehension mixed with the thrill of the idea she already formulated in her mind.A moment later, the elevator gave out a soft chime, breaking the silence of the quiet reception area. Its grand double door switched open, revealing Ciara, who strode into the reception area. Dressed in an elegant ivory silk bloused that paired with her high-waisted pencil skirt, she gave off an
The telephone on Ciara's desk buzzed with a beeping sound as it vibrated slowly, jolting Ciara off her realm. She was busy going through the proposal the company had received in the past few days, with all her attention directed on it.She hesitated before picking the receiver up, placing it softly on her left ear. “Hello…" She uttered lazily, her voice was dried with no emotion in it.“Hello, Ms. Ciara.” The voice rang against her ear from the receiver, it was low but audible enough to Ciara's hearing. “This is Milan on the line, ma'am.”“Oh, Milan.” Ciara repeated slowly. “What is it? I'm in the middle of something important, your message should be delivered fast and keep it short too.”Milan nodded, even when she knows her boss couldn't see her at that moment. “Sure, ma'am. It's about the Vizio's Corp, I already did as requested, ma'am.” She said, maintaining her professional demeanor as she speaks.Ciara was impatient, not wanting to know whether she's done with her talk or not, s
Ciara sighed as she dropped the call and returned her phone in the chest pocket of her shirt. She turned towards Milan quickly, her brows raised.“How many minutes do I have to spend on the road before I get to my destination?” She requested, her voice demanding as she tries to sound interested in the enquiry.“It's a twenty-five minute drive from here, ma'am.” Milan replied to her hastily, sounding calculative. “Since it's almost half past six, you should be there on time, ma'am —right before the scheduled time, I guess.”Ciara nodded slowly, her bored expression on her face. “Oh, I see.” She blurted out. “I should get going, so I won't be the one to delay him.”“Is it okay for you to go alone, ma'am?” Milan enquired, threading her words careful, and her voice was filled with concern. “If you are feeling otherwise, I'll suggest you should allow me to go with you, Ms. Ciara —just In case you are not comfortable with him.”Ciara's lips curled up in a sly smile. “There is nothing to wor
Mr. Vizio's car arrived at the restaurant where the Feller's Firm had reserved for the brief meeting. He was mesmerized by the environment as he nodded in satisfaction, this was very much up to his taste —just as he loves it.“It means the company owner herself is loaded too.” Mr. Vizio said to his personal assistant.“Yeah. Who doesn't know the Feller's Firm in the States?” Mr. Vizio's secretary, Blake, responded with a rhetorical question. “The company might be quite popular in the States, but no one knows who has been operating the company for the past few years except her staff —it's only proven that she's a female.”“Quite an interesting story, I would say.” Mr. Vizio uttered with a lopsided smirk. “She's not only loaded, but a woman with secrets and her company has popularity in the States?”“You are right!” Blake nodded in agreement. “There are many rumors surrounding her, though —some rumored that she was too young to handle the company alone then, since she inherited the comp
Despite the early hour, the small chapel was beginning to fill up with people —and the air that was starting to tense up wasn't welcoming or cheerful.Groups of people stood huddled together in hushed conversations, their breath visible in the chilly air. In the front row, a woman sat alone, her shoulders shaking with silent sobs —it was aunt Elsie.A few rows back, two men sat with their heads bowed, their faces etched with sorrow. As more people filed in, the chapel became crowded and stifling.The air was heavy with the scents of flowers and grief. Soon, a lady clad in a black lengthy gown and a black hat to fit strutted through the marbled floors of the chapel, joining aunt Elsie —her face was clouded in pains and maybe guilt.At the front of the chapel, a casket rested on a simple stand, flanked by two vases filled with white lilies. The scene was eerie in its stillness, despite the heavy weight of sadness.As the appointed time drew near, the murmurs in the crowd died down, leav
Ciara and Herzl were both sitting in the large sitting room, both of them were engrossed in the late evening show they were both watching.The soft door on the oak door snapped them out of their world back to reality as they both turned their heads towards the door.“I'll go get the door, mom…" Herzl volunteered and made to get up, but Ciara's reflex kicked in as she quickly grabbed him by his wrist, pinning him back on the couch.“What's going on, mom? Why didn't you want me to answer the door?” Herzl asked, a puzzled look on his face.“I… I have a bad feeling about this…" Ciara said, her eyes darting between the door and her son —she did not understand why she was having that kind of feeling all of a sudden.“A bad feeling? What do you mean?” Herzl asked, trying to make sense of what his mother was saying.Just then, the knock came up again, this time more insistently. The two of them looked at each other, their faces pale with fear —why would anyone knock on the door instead of rin
"There she is..." Jamel whispered but audible enough to Alex's hearing, who only nodded with out a reply as he strode towards Ms. Carter. They both exchanged pleasantries before he had his seat opposite her."It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Carter." Alex said as he sat down. Ms. Carter looked at him with an inscrutable expression, her green eyes glittering."The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Alex." she replied, her voice smooth and calm. "I understand you're the CEO of The Williams cooperation. It's quite an impressive company, I've heard lots about it."Alex smiled slightly but it was enough to brighten the atmosphere. "Thank you, but I'm hardly the only one responsible for its success. I'm lucky to have a great team." He uttered, still maintaining his slight smile. "A great team, and a great leader." Ms. Carter vocalized with a few head nod. With out much further ado, she cleared her throat, deciding to go straight to the point. "I supposed you are yet to find a shareholder yet, or ha
The long ride was slow and as well as a quiet one too. Alex sighed for the umpteenth times, unable to fathom the reason behind his sigh that seems not to be coming to an end — of course, he has many reasons for his continuous sigh, but he could not pinpoint which one of it was gnawing at him.Though his mind and thoughts seems to be in fuzzy, he managed to forced his focus on the wheels —he can't repeat the same mistakes twice and this time, he might not be lucky enough and might lose his life. Alex did not want that to happen to me once again, he dreaded the thought of it. He had almost seen death once —he won't face it this time.He's currently facing a lot but losing his life shouldn't be the thought on his mind. His mother —he had stressed her enough with his continuous and never seems to end escapades lately, should he add more to it? No, right? And his daughter too, what would happen to her if she's left behind? Times like this, Alex wished he could turn the hand of time and go
When Lisa walked into her office, she was surprised to find that Judas was not there. On a normal day, Judas would be the first one to greet her upon her arrival. But today, he was nowhere to be found. Lisa was confused and concerned, so she decided to call him to find out what was going on.When she pulled out her phone, she quickly dialed Judas's number. The phone rang and rang, but there was no answer after two try. She had wanted to dial the number for the third time but shrug it off, and decided to keep her phone.Just when she was about to do as thought, the phone rang, vibrating softly in her grip. She checked the caller — it was Judas. With a deep frown settling on her face, she reluctantly picked the call. "Hey..." Judas hailed dryly from the other end. "Sorry, I screened your call. I was about parking when you called so I couldn't answer the phone." "Where are you?" Lisa questioned instead, ignoring his excuses. "I just entered my office and find it empty — you aren't her
"I know what I'm saying is true, Lisa." Andy insisted, seeing the doubt in Lisa's eyes. "Since you left for Los Angeles and made me the acting chairman, my father has been pressuring me to take over the company." Andy went as far as explaining every little detail to Lisa not leaving one out of it. He went as far as telling her how Xavier left home since he refuse to dance to his tunes and even him going to apologize to his father thinking maybe he had change. Lisa was dumbfounded after listening to all what Andy had said, even though she had expected those cunning men not to back away easily. The one she mostly find hard to believe was Xavier cutting ties with his son over his petty greed but since it's coming out from Andy's mouth, she has no other choice than to believe it. "— I shouldn't be saying this, but I can't let them hurt you. I've watched you grown up and I see how kind and considerate you've been..." Andy muttered slowly in conclusion. "I won't possibly be at peace if I
As Andy stood there, staring at his father, he knew that their relationship was irreparably broken. No matter what he said or did, he would never be able to repair the damage that had been done.The man standing in front of him was not the father he had once known and loved. He was a stranger, a man consumed by greed and ambition. He was lost to him forever.Slowly, he turned and began to walk away. He didn't look back, didn't say another word. He simply left, and never looked back.Andy couldn't help but wondered how his father had turned this way — at this stage, he's beyond repair and no matter the amount of words said could bring back his old self which seems to be lost forever.‘Am I really doing the right thing?’ He asked himself, giving his actions a second thought. ‘Leaving him and walking out of his life the moment he's alone and needed someone by his side, is it really okay to desert him like this?’He's not alone, he has his brother who are always supporting him, no matter
"Whether it's sinful or not doesn't matter to me." Xavier cut his son off, matching his angry tone. "Did you think I wish to remain hidden while that bitch enjoy all the luxury to herself and her illegitimate kids?"Andy would have calmed down a bit but his father was only adding more fuel to his anger. "How dare you, father..." He uttered repulsively, trying to defend Lisa. "Why would you speak such ill words of her and her kids who had done nothing wrong against you?""Nothing wrong, eh?" Xavier muttered with a scoff. "Her existence alone has wronged me greatly. Now that I'm into it already, I won't back down until I see her got ruined completely."Andy shook his head sideways, the look of disgust that was on his his face deepen. "You aren't worth living with, Mr. Xavier. It's a good thing you left me on your own." He said with scoff. "I see why mom left you two decades, taking Stephanie along with her.""You..." Xavier yelled with anger written all over him, pointing his index fing
Ever since Andy could remember, he has never been anxious as he is at the moment. He wasn't even sure of the best words to say to his father when he see him. It was at that moment it all dawned on him that he has not planned all of these well enough which made him let out a low but tiring sigh.The moment Andy stepped in and as though his father had been expecting him to come, Andy was welcomed by his father's blazing gaze — if only looks were capable of ending one's life, Andy was sure to have dropped death on spot."What is this ungrateful brat doing here?" Xavier's thundered in anger, his voice laced with hatred and he did not hesitate to give his son that same look as well —hatred, anger, frustration and fury! He turned towards his brother's direction. "Fred, why did you allow this boy in?""I think he has something to say to you." Fred muttered, though audibly to Xavier's hearing with a slight shoulder shrug, collapsing on the nearest couch. "Let's listen to what he has to say. H
It was barely past noon when Andy had returned home from work that afternoon, he couldn't come back home the previous day because it was already late in the night when he finished from the theatre room so he took his rest at the hospital instead. Andy sat on his favorite couch with a heavy sigh of relief but his relief did not last more than a few moment, because his relief was swallowed with his gnawing feeling of emptiness. Everything seems empty to him — and he felt as though he's alone in the whole big world. He knew something was amiss somewhere and tried figuring it out. Alas! He figured out that it was the absence of his father. He had missed his father's presence in the house, his nagging and miss seeing his scowling face as well —all of these had made the past five years bearable for him but for the past one week, he has no one else to do all of these to him. Andy couldn't help but blamed himself for the emptiness he was feeling, he was the one who had sent his own biolog
Once they were gone, Lisa let out a sigh of relief. She was glad to have a moment to herself, and she was looking forward to the peace and quiet. Although she couldn't help but feel a bit guilty about sending the kids away but she had things to discuss about with Judas.Judas moved closer and sat down on the seat opposite Lisa's desk. Lisa, as well, sat down in her usual position, her eyes fixed on the man before her. His facial expression says it all, of course he has a lot o say to Lisa and could not wait to be permitted so he could relay his words. "It seems you have something to say, Judas." Lisa finally voiced out after observing Judas for a while. She's not too blind not to have noticed —she knows Judas too well. "What have you come up with this time around?" "Uh, yeah." He nodded his head in agreement, adjusting slightly on his seat. "You can guess..." his voice was drawling and far from usual.Lisa raised her left brow slightly. "Beats me. What are you up to this time, Jude