Lana sat in the depressingly massive office space, staring at the mountainous stacks of paper sitting before her in a very neat manner as a million thoughts crossed to and from the thresholds of her mind. She tried her possible best to make it make sense to her in a way she knew wouldn’t. Cameron had not told her he had a family; no, he never mentioned a family in her hearing, and now that she knew about it, she couldn’t help but fight the feeling of doubt and uncertainty that was slowly finding her way to the memories of him that she held sacred. Restless, she stood up from the chair and paced to and fro the office space, not even knowing where she was itching from. She took her phone and went to his office upstairs, not looking for anything in particular. On getting to the door of his office, she met the secretary prancing out of the office. “What were you doing?” she asked suspiciously. “I went to supervise the cleaner and made sure she did her job the way she’s supposed to,”
The company’s cafeteria, known affectionately as “The Hub," was a warm and welcoming oasis in the midst of the bustling corporate landscape. The aroma of freshly cooked food wafted through the air, enticing employees to take a break from their desks and gather around the tables. Known for its warm and inviting atmosphere, the Hub boasts comfortable seating and vibrant décor, and the menu is diverse and affordable, offering a range of options to suit various tastes and dietary needs. The Hub serves a mix of classic comfort food, international cuisine, and healthy options, all at prices that were streamlined to suit the needs of the middle- and low-class workers of the company. From hearty sandwiches and soups to flavorful curries and stir-fries, there’s something for everyone. Lana watched as employees lingered over their meals, the hum of conversation and the clinking of utensils against plates creating a sense of community and camaraderie. The Hub seemed to be more than a place to
The thirty minutes were shorter than he had anticipated, and with the assistance of the embedded computer in the car, he effortlessly navigated his way to the carefully structured city of Singer. As he drove, he tried to remember some places or roads but discovered that most of the structures he was familiar with were either bulldozed off or renovated to look like something new. He remembered how the TV presenter had described Singer on a programme in the past year. ‘Singer, the capital of the famous Cartonica offers a home to all and many; businessmen and women, industrialists, students, entrepreneurs, and even thieves, loafers, and criminals will have somewhere to put their heads. Home to the Myers Dual Islands, one of the most beautiful chains of private islands in the region, it boasts the most entrepreneur-filled city of the year. When you are thinking tourism next, think Singer, the city of skyscrapers.’ He turned away from the busy motorway to the more private road that led
“Why is the house void and empty? Where are all the maids?” Cameron questioned, taking in the beauty of the hallway as they walked past it. “They are retired to their quarters, sleeping. You know how Mother always capitalises on retiring to bed early,” she replied, taking Cameron down another trip through memory lane. “Yeah, yeah, I do.” He chuckled, trying to keep abreast of the moment. “Welcome back; you’re finally here after all these years.” She spun back to look him directly in the eye and raised her hand to caress his face, suddenly realising how tall he had become. “How long has it been? Fifteen years?” Cameron nodded his head in approval, suddenly ashamed of how long he had forgotten this place he had once treasured. “Go to bed now and rest well; we’ll visit Mother first thing in the morning,” she urged, opening the door of his long abandoned room for him. “I’ve had it cleaned and arranged, but I also made sure it was exactly the way you left it. Welcome back home, princ
“Becca? Are you with me?” His voice jolted her back to life, pulling her away abruptly from her reverie. “Yeah?” she answered, looking around the room like a chicken that had just witnessed the sacrificing of her mother. “I had been talking with you for over five minutes now, and you were not responsive.” “Five minutes? Was I lost in thought for five minutes?” “A little more than that. I was about to ask you what happened to mom.” “Well,” she started, “she had this coronary artery disease. It’s a heart condition where the lungs do not seem to have the strength to carry the blood to the heart, and the heart also doesn’t have the strength to pump enough blood.” “I didn’t know you were a medical prodigy,” he commented. She shrugged, staring daggers at him. “That was how the doctor described it. Now, coronary artery disease doesn’t have a cure; it can only be mitigated by pills and a change in lifestyle. But then, in the worst case, a heart transplant would be the only pathway ou
The churning blades of the helicopter rotated faster, and the vehicle glided smoothly above the city’s towering skyscrapers towards the hospital. Cameron looked out the window, enthralled by the breathtaking view of the landscape that his seat offered. It was going to be short, and he was pained by that. Before they knew it, they started their descent on the hospital rooftop, where a big ‘H’ sign indicated the helipad. With practiced accuracy and precision, the internationally recognised and decorated retired Air Force pilot put the big bird down without any hassle, with officials on the helipad opening the door on both sides. As the elevator slowly fell floor by floor, Cameron’s mind couldn’t help but get flooded with anticipation and anxiety. Even without seeing his sick mom, his soul was already getting filled with sadness at what he might meet, and in a corner of his heart, he prayed that his elder brother would not be there. They got inside the hallway and walked to the desig
The whole Myers family couldn’t help but cry as they became reunited with Cameron, the second son, after fifteen years, especially under these circumstances. “Where’s Nolan?” Cameron asked amidst sobs. “As usual, he’s out on another conference in the Maldives. He’s trying to get the government to score a contract that would bring Singer’s islands and archipelagoes to a whole new level of tourism, just like the Maldives. “He’s trying his possible best, you know? And he misses you.” “I doubt that,” he countered, his voice lowering to almost a whisper so he wouldn’t hurt his mother any further. The doctor on duty came inside the hospital with a nurse, carrying a tray containing some glass bottled liquids and some syringes with a plate of food beside it. “Good morning, Mr. Myers,” the doctor greeted. "Morning, doctor,” both father and son replied in unison. The doctor, confused and shocked, looked at the both of them with questioning eyes. “Oh, he’s my son. The prodigal son,” hi
The doctor staggered and readjusted his step, walking faster to match up with Becca’s speed, as she didn’t look ready to release any of the two men from her grip. She walked briskly, ready to do anything possible in the whole wide world to bring her mother back from the verge of oblivion and nurse her back into the best of health. On getting to the ward, the attending doctor was already there, with the nurse by his right hand, checking the administration of proper medicine. He looked surprised to see Doctor Pella in the room, accompanied by the acclaimed Cameron Myers. He tried to hide his expression, albeit unsuccessfully. “What have we here? The popular Doctor Pella?” "Yes, it is me, in the very flesh,” he answered while making his way to the screen, monitoring her readings. “This disease seems to be in the final stages. Have you tried angioplasty?” "Yes, we have. The artery keeps contracting after the surgery. The one we did previously was able to buy her just one more week.
Andre’s POV Two Years LaterMy mother was upset that I had gone behind her back to sabotage her. To sell her company to that little brat—that is what she refers to Lana as now—who knew nothing about business, but I did not have to tell her that it was either that or see her remanded in prison. To watch everything I had and everyone I loved taken away from me. I did not need to tell her that we were lucky we had a choice. The poor girl had no choice back then and had to take life as it was handed to her. My mother would live—abort sourly—but at least she would still live. We could build back the company even if it took a long time. Thankfully, all she had back then was a minor heart attack. As for the little brat, Lana, she and Cameron got married two years ago and have spent the last two years of their marriage touring the world.I was envious of the love they found. The comfort they gave each other, the strength in their numbers, but as time went on, I too was beginning to live wi
Lana’s POV The house was still the same way I remembered it. The chairs, the arm stool, and the and the settees All of the arrangements were still the same, and it struck a chord of familiarity within me. I settled into the plush armchair and watched Andre move towards the bar, his demeanour calm and composed. It was hard to reconcile this composed man with the man I had known years ago. Andre returned with a glass of red wine, just the way I liked it. He handed it to me, then sat across from me. “Have you come to a conclusion regarding what we discussed?” I crossed my legs, one above the other, and stared blankly at him. “Regarding what exactly? The only thing I remember that we have yet to talk about are the kids and how we’ll split their days between us. Other than that, I don't think we have any unfinished business. Except you are talking about signing the documents, which would see me as the new CEO of Ranhold.” Andre heaved a long sigh and rubbed his temples. Was he beginnin
Lana’s POV We spent the next week gathering evidence against Freda and meeting with potential witnesses who could testify against her if we were to take her to court, but it seemed as though that would not be needed. It was some time towards the end of the week when what was going to be our break happened. It came in the form of André getting a recognition award. I had no idea what his relationship with Freda had been like following everything that had happened lately, so I cannot talk about that. But upon receiving the award, Freda was so happy with her son that she decided to allow him to make certain decisions that regarded the leadership of Ranhold. In the past, André had been nothing but a figurehead. Although he sat in the CEO position, his mother, Freda, usually handled all the decision-making, and everyone knew this. He was useless, and if it was important that his signature be appended to a document, he had to get permission from Freda first before doing it. But now, all
Lana’s POV Back at my apartment, we laid out all the new information we had gathered. It felt like we were finally making progress, and the weight of uncertainty was beginning to lift. But then a call entered my phone, which was going to either bring everything crashing down on us again or continue pushing us forward.We had laid everything on the table in front of us, and we were about to start sitting through them when the ringtone of my phone shattered through the peace, quiet, and anxiety that had settled over us. Sighing and thinking it was from one of my colleagues at Lukem, I pulled the phone from my pocket and paused when I saw the caller ID displaying on my screen.“Hmmm... Andre.” I said it out loud, alerting the other guys to who the caller was. Without waiting for their response, I swiped on the screen and placed the phone in my ear. “Hey, Andre.” I greeted. “What’s going on?”“I found something.” He announced. From over the phone, I could not make out the time of his vo
Lana’s POV Fred smiled warmly, taking a seat beside Clara. “It’s been a long time, Aunt Clara. We have so much to catch up on, but there’s something important we need to ask you about first.”Clara looked at him. “Of course, anything. What do you need to know?”Fred glanced at me, and I handed Clara the letter. “We found this among my father’s papers. It mentions a promise to protect you. We need to understand what happened.”Clara took the letter and began reading it. As she read through it, I noticed the change in her expression. She took a deep breath and glanced up at us. “This... this brings back memories I thought I’d buried. Your mother and Mr. West were the best friends I ever had. But there was more to it, and it brought trouble or would have brought trouble had Mr. West not decided to act in what he believed to be the best interest of everyone, including your mother. Fred’s face lightened up, as did mine. “What do you mean?”Clara sighed. “Secrets.” She whispered. “Anne an
Lana’s POVFred shrugged. “She hinted at societal expectations and family obligations,” he replied. “But she didn’t give specifics. I think she knows a lot more than she’s letting on.”I nodded slowly. “My father never mentioned anything about your mother or you and Kathy. And I started going through his papers; maybe I would find something.”Fred’s expression softened. “I’m sorry you had to find out this way, but it is not to be helped. I cannot say I know how you feel or what you are feeling right now. Finding out that a person you think you know has another side, which you have no idea of, can really do something to you.”I reached out and touched Fred’s hand briefly. “We’ll figure it out together. I have some of my father’s old letters and documents that might help us piece things together. Maybe we can confront Freda again with more concrete questions? What do you think? Right now, she’s the only person who can give us answers, and we are not even on good terms.”We returned to m
Narrator’s POV Freda’s smile faltered for the briefest of moments, a shadow crossing her eyes before she quickly regained her composure. She leaned back in her chair, interlacing her fingers and resting them on her desk.“That’s quite a heavy topic, Fred,” she said, her tone now more serious. “Why are you suddenly interested in this?”Fred shrugged. “Perhaps after Kathy’s death, I realised something. I just want to know why he abandoned my mother, why he chose his other family above us, and why he caused us so much pain and loss. I want to understand all of these things; perhaps it would help me forgive, let go, and move on.”A shadow of a smile crossed Freda’s face. “Ahhhh... I guess it runs in the family then.” Fred narrowed his eyes, wondering what she meant by that statement. “I don’t understand. What runs in the family?”Freda stood to her feet and approached the floor-to-ceiling window, which offered a great view of the city. From here, he could view the city’s skyline and wat
Narrator’s POV Freda’s office was located on the uppermost floor of the skyscraper that acted as Ranhold’s headquarters, a detail that made Fred pause as he stepped out of the taxi five minutes ago. He blinked against the rays of sunlight reflecting off the monolithic structure of steel and glass, momentarily blinded. The reflective surface mirrored the city below, creating an illusion of infinite depth.The other buildings around it were similar in their grandeur, each with its own unique design. For the umpteenth time since his arrival in the city, Fred was reminded of how little he had traveled. There were places outside of his known world yet to be explored, and this city of steel and glass was one of them. He had spent—wasted—five minutes entranced by the sleek, modern design, temporarily forgetting his purpose for being there.Pulling himself back to reality, he straightened his suit and approached the entrance. The revolving glass doors spun smoothly, ushering him into a grand
Lana’s POVI took tentative steps towards the bouquet. Whether unconsciously or by some reflex response in our system, we all had taken steps away from the bouquet. For some reason, we felt threatened by it. This was not the first time we would receive threats disguised as gifts, and I guess that has taught us a lesson. Slowly, I pulled out the card in the bouquet and glanced at Cameron and Sally, who both gave me curt nods. I opened it and began reading it aloud. “Congratulations on Zoe’s recovery. Best wishes for the future. – Freda.”The room fell silent as the implications of the message sank in. Sally was the first to break the silence. “Freda has acted once again. First of all, it was an almost dead bird on my door, and now congratulatory bouquet?”My grip on the card tightened. “Is this supposed to mean something?”Cameron stepped closer, resting his hand on the small of my back. “Hey, we’ll keep our guard up. She’s only trying to play mind games, but we won’t give her the sat