Lana’s POV “Do you think we should invite Fred to the dinner?” I asked, putting on the pair of earrings Cameron had purchased for me for the dinner. The emerald glistened under the light of the chandelier above us, deflecting its rays elegantly. They were beautiful, but I was not in the frame of mind to fully appreciate them. I pulled on the strands of my hair next, willing them to sit in place so I could attach pins to them. “If you think it is necessary,” he answered, coming to stand behind me. His hand slipped around the small of my back. “But if you ask me, I will say you should give it time. He just lost his sister; let him mourn.” Once again, he was right. Cameron was always right. I had only thought it was better for him to be around people; it would reduce the pain he felt. “Technically, I am her sister too.” I joked. Cameron nodded. “He was closer to her than you were.” Obviously, he did not get the joke. “Just give him time. For now, I would like for you to be here,
Lana’s POV We sat atat a round table facing AndréAndré and the detective—Michael, if that was even his real name. Sally’s face had taken on that seriousness thatthat she usually donned when she was in the courtroom,courtroom, and she eyed the detective with something akin to disdain. “I want to know what this is.” She stated that her voice was flat and void of any emotion. emotion. “Why did you place a spy in my house? What did you hope to achieve?” she scowled at André and then at the detective. “I just wanted you to be fine.” Andre commented;; the frustration in his voice was crystal clear. Sally gasped and placed her hand on her chest. “How very kind of you!!” her voice dripped with venom. "Suddenly, you are concerned about my wellbeing. Am I supposed to fall at your feet and thank you for such kind gestures?” Andre’s helpless gaze strayed to my face, and I shrugged. Sally had every right to be upset, and I was not about to go and tell her that she was taking things too far
Lana’s POV Andre was intent on proving himself to us, and that led him to bring out his computer and access the Ranhold database, and that was also what led to us finding out that he had been booted out of it. His access was now restricted, and it came as a shock to him—to all of us—that if the CEO of a company was locked out of his own database, what does that mean? Andre was pissed, and the rest of us could only watch as he made several calls back home, although it did not look like this would be rectified soon. We had no idea what he intended to access using the database, but at least this had succeeded in proving one thing: Andre and Freda were not on the same side, at least not in this fight. Sally said nothing after that—at least, nothing to counter Andre’s loyalty—and it looked like she and Marcus might make up after all. Cameron and I returned to our room a little while later, leaving Andre to sort things out with his company and Sally to sort out her feelings with Marcu
Andre’s POV I was a fool. I had been one for a long time without even realising it. Still, it was not too late for the tables to turn, and it was time they did. My mother had had me under her grasp for a long and it was a shame it took me so long to realise who she really was. I was sorry—to myself more than anyone else—that I was more of a victim in her web of lies, deceit, and endless plotting than all the others combined, but no one would ever know. When I was finally in the privacy of my room—thankfully, Marc was not here—I let out the tears I had been holding on to. I could not believe the calibre of person my mother and her influence had reduced me to. Her greed had seeped into me at some point, and I had failed to see that there was more to life, especially when you were with the people you loved and who loved you back just as much, and because of that, I had lost two beautiful women. It was her fault; I had no one to blame but her. Still, I had to accept the fact that s
Andre’s POVCartonica was indeed one of the most beautiful places to exist, and we had not even walked for that long. The soft crunch of leaves and twigs beneath our feet provided a soothing accompaniment to our chatter-less walk, filling the air with a gentle rhythm. In the distance, my eyes spied high-rise buildings radiating the rays of the evening sun and imbuing the rest of the surrounding buildings with their warm glow, which illuminated the vibrant hues of the city. “I’m glad we came out here,” Sally said from beside me. Her voice had an otherworldly tinge to it. It was as though she was far away, even when she was right beside me. “I never knew such a beautiful place existed.” She took a deep breath in, and from the corner of my eyes, I could see the tension in her shoulder. “So peaceful.”At a loss for words, I could only nod in agreement. Although, for a moment, I had been distracted by the peaceful facade that we walked around through and the air, which scented like a co
Lana’s POVThe panoramic night view of the country of Carica from the balcony of our suite was bedazzling. It had a calming effect on me, and the longer I stood in front of the railing, glass in hand, staring at the dust of twinkling stars scattered about the horizon, the more I felt I could fly. I just opened my hands wide enough. “Let us move here permanently.” I said this as I felt Cameron’s arms curl around my waist. “The kids would love it here.”“But then they would miss their school and all the friends they have made.” He placed a kiss on my cheek. “The change would affect them at this stage, and what about Lukem? It’s still young and growing.”I shrugged. “The kids will adapt. They always have.” Turning around in his arm, I returned the kiss. “And I don’t give a damn about Lukem. We will be happy here.”Cameron threw his head back and laughed. “You know you don’t mean that. Lukem is like your child, and you wouldn’t just give her up.”“Don’t assume that. We would be happy her
Lana’s POV“Is there a problem?”Of course there was none; I hoped there would be none. But my heart would not stop beating, and my imagination would not stop conjuring unlimited thoughts, all of which were worse than the former. “I used to sit with her here.” He continued in that lilting tone. I was sure that if I looked into his eyes in that instant, I would catch the memories as they unfurled in his vision. “We would sit here for hours just watching the stars. During that time, I used to feel content. Happy even... I wanted her to be happy; she worked a lot for me, and I would have done anything to pay her back.”Including giving her my life. I thought wryly, though I did not voice out the thought. I glanced instead at the twinkling stars and tried to imagine him with Kathy, sitting on this cold but oddly comfortable bench, stargazing. Was this how they were? I thought. The same way he and I were now, only that they were no strangers to each other. They had both been familiar w
Lana’s POV“Thank you for coming, everyone.” Fred's voice sounded melancholic. Although his expression was stoic, it was not hard to see that he was hurting and that the cool facade, which he was trying very hard to keep up, was slipping. “This way, please.” A lady, who I assumed to be the cremator’s assistant, gestured towards a narrow hallway. “How are you holding up?” As we all staggered behind the assistant, I whispered to Fred. “You should join us for dinner after this. We’re not close, but I’ll not advise that you should be alone during this period.”Fred opened his mouth to speak; the look on his face said he was going to turn down my request, but Cameron chipped in. “She’s right. A dinner after all this is over would be a good way to send her off with only good memories, and you should be there. Grieving all alone can be hard, and we would love to be there for you.”The atmosphere around the crematorium was sombre when we arrived. The assistant who had escorted us into the