The uncomfortable silence that was starting to build up was suddenly interrupted as her phone rung. She didn't hesitate as she brought out from her chest pocket to answer the call and realized it was from Milan.“Is something wrong…?” Sheila couldn't help but get worried as she made to pick the call, she gave Ryan a quick apologetic stare. “Please, excuse me for a moment.”Ryan nodded curtly, and Sheila flashed him a quick smile before answering the call. “Hello, Milan.”“Ms. Sheila…!” Milan exclaimed, her voice filled with trepidation as well as excitement. “It's good to hear your voice after all this while, Ms. Sheila.”Sheila smiled in appreciation, flattered by Milan's words of compliment. “I know, right?” She cited simply, still smiling. “Why did you call? I notice you did not sound too good, how is Ms. Fellers?”“Ms. Fellers is… far from well, she's not doing too great.” Milan replied, her tone subdued. “—and that's actually why I'm calling, Ms. Under a week, things have managed
Gerald got a call from Aunt Elsie earlier that morning, asking him to come to the company. “Why…?” Gerald had nonchalantly asked her. “Why are you asking me to come over out of the blues? I thought you pointed out that I don't belong there —but now, you are asking me to come over?”“Come on, Gerald. It's not what you are thinking, I have no interior motives for this.” She told him on the phone in reply. “I'm sorry for what happened yesterday, so I want us to talk things out like grown-ups do.”Gerald wasn't sure if he should trust her words, considering how cunning she was. But on the other hand, he concluded she might mean no harm, as she has said. If she had some moves up her sleeves, she would never have asked him to meet her at the company of all places.Gerald decided to trust his intuition, at least, for once, and gave in to her request. He arrived at the company a few minutes to noon, as they agreed on. As he walked through the door, he was escorted by two of the company's secu
It's been two days since the scandal between Gerald and aunt Elsie happened, he has been locked up in the cell without knowing the reasons for it —he doubted if it's what happened that triggered his arrest.He sat in the cell, his eyes fixed on the floor as different thoughts ran through his mind. He did not regret his actions but blamed himself greatly for letting his emotions get over him —he had successfully ruined everything for himself!He's been stuck in the cell for two days with no way out, and he wondered if he's ever going to get out soon. He wasn't feeling any pity for himself, but towards Ciara —he wondered if she'll be okay under aunt Elsie's mercy, and her son too.Gerald's heart was heavy as it clenched tightly in his chest. The monotony of the days seemed to stretch on for an eternity. He wasn't sure how much time is gone for the day —time seemed to stand still.The sound of the door opening jolted him out of his stupor. He looked up to see the warder standing there, a
Aunt Elsie smiled broadly, she was right about him. Only someone like him will be needed —he had managed to read her perfectly without getting close to her. She was impressed, and that will only make her want him more.“I don't bargain, yeah…" She uttered, admitting to his words. “—but I'm ready to do so, if it'll please you.”“What do you mean by that?” he asked, his curiosity piqued. “Why would you change your usual tactics just to please me? What do you want from me?”Aunt Elsie's smile widened, she was glad he didn't bite her head off this time —instead, she loved the curiosity in his eyes; that was what she wanted from him anyway, not otherwise.“I've found myself smitten with you, Gerald.” She replied, her voice taking a different turn. “And I would do anything to get what I want from you —I'm not afraid of bargaining this time because I know what I want, and I want it badly.”Gerald was no in for her twist and turns, he wanted her to say whatever thing she's got for him and let
Gerald's eyes blazed in fury as he banged his hands dangerously on the table, separating them from each other. “I rather remain in this hole than be at your mercy or listen to your petty orders! You can't make me do your bidding!” He growled at her.“Tsk, tsk!” Aunt Elsie twitched her nose in disappointment, unmoved by his rage or threats. “Then what would happen to Ciara? I told you; that your reaction and obedience will determine Ciara's fate, didn't I?”“What are you going to do to Ciara?” Gerald demanded, his heart beating against his rib cage. He couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to her. “Tell me what you want, and I'll do it. Just don't hurt her.”Aunt Elsie's lips stretched into a thin smile, she was loving the desperation in Gerald's eyes —he's the perfect pawn in the game. “I'm glad to see that you're willing to cooperate.” She said, satisfaction evident in her tone. “You're a smart man, Gerald, I think we can work well together.”Gerald hated the way she was ta
Gerald was pushed aggressively back into the prison, and the warder locked the gate immediately, throwing the keys into his pocket. Gerald hissed in pain as he forcefully hit his knee on the cold floor, bruising it in the process.“I wonder how long you are going to last here with the nonchalant attitude you are putting on, man!” The warder scowled disapprovingly at him, resting lazily on the gaze. “You won't even last three months here —you will be lucky if you do.”Gerald's eyes widened in shock. Three months…? That's a whole lot of time to be detained in a prison, how is he supposed to cope in this kind of surrounding for that long period of time without even knowing his offense? The thought of spending three months locked up in a cell was terrifying as it made his stomach dropped.It was hard to imagine being stuck in such a small space for so long, with nothing to do and no one to talk to. Gerald tried to think of ways to pass the time, but his mind kept returning to the same tho
“But what if he doesn't?” The boy asked, his eyes widened in fear. “What if you are just making false promises to me just because you are feeling deeply sorry for me…?”Aunt Elsie's eyes widened in shock at his choice of reply. “What do you mean, Herzl?” The surprise and shock she felt was evident in her voice, Herzl had managed to take her unannounced. “Why would you say such a thing?”“Because I'm afraid he might not come back to me again.” Herzl uttered truthfully, but his voice was low and fear was evident in it as he speaks.Aunt Elsie's heart sank. She hadn't expected the boy to doubt her so much. But it was understandable, given his young age and the emotional turmoil he was going through. She had to think of a way to convince him, to make him understand that she was telling the truth.“Herzl, I would never lie to you.” She said, her voice firm and serious. “I know this is a difficult situation, but I promise you that I am telling the truth. Your uncle Dwayne loves you very muc
The hospital waiting room was less crowded and with very few people but was filled with the sounds of beeping machines and people talking. Aunt Elsie led the way, holding Herzl's hand tightly as they made their way to the front desk.The receptionist greeted them with a wide smile and asked how she could help them —she seems new, so aunt Elsie wasn't bothered by the question and decided to reply to her casually.“We're here to visit my niece, Ms. Fellers.” Aunt Elsie said, her voice firm and polite. “She's a patient here.”The receptionist typed on the computer for a moment, then looked up at them. “I see, Ms. Fellers is in intensive care, so I'm afraid you won't be able to visit her.” The receptionist explained, her tone sympathetic. “Only immediate family is allowed in the ICU.”Aunt Elsie felt a surge of frustration, almost forgetting the fact that she made the rules herself —but still, she's an exception to it. She knew that there was no way she would be able to convince the rece
"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