RAINI LAVERNEMy head was throbbing with pain, and I could barely see anything through the blurry haze. The sound of metal scraping against metal echoed in my ears, and I knew that something terrible had happened. I tried to move, but my body felt heavy and unresponsive. I could feel my life slipping away from me, and a deep sense of fear and panic set in.But then, I heard a voice. It was muffled and distant, but it was there. I strained my eyes to see who it was, but everything was still blurry. And then, I felt someone's hands on me, lifting me up and carrying me. The pain in my body intensified, but I was grateful for the warmth and comfort of the person holding me.As I was being carried, I tried to mutter something, anything to let the person know that I was alive. And then, I remembered his name. Zavier. I whispered it, hoping that he would hear me, that he would know that I was still here.The world around me started to fade, and I felt myself slipping away into unconsciousnes
ZAVIER CROSSI couldn't shake off the feeling of dread and worry that had been consuming me ever since Raini disappeared. Every minute that passed felt like an eternity, and I couldn't help but think about all the worst-case scenarios that could be happening to her.River and I had been searching all over town, asking people if they had seen her or had any information about her whereabouts. But so far, nothing had come up. It was like she had vanished into thin air.As we walked through the dark streets, I could see the worry etched on River's face. She had been a true friend through this ordeal,I had been searching for Raini for two days, scouring the city for any sign of her. My heart was pounding with worry and fear, every possible scenario running through my mind. I couldn't even begin to imagine where she could be or what could have happened to her.As I made my way down the street, my phone rang. It was River. I answered, my heart pounding in my chest. "Have you found her?" she
RAINI LAVERNE I woke up to the sound of the door creaking open, and there was the lady with the same eerie smile on her face. I tried to be cordial and asked her where I was, but her response left me with even more questions. Was I a prisoner or a guest? I didn't know what to make of it, but I had to keep my cool.She asked me what I wanted for breakfast, and I couldn't help but wonder why she was being weirdly niceI sat up in bed as the lady entered the room with the tray, and the smell of the food hit me like a truck. My stomach grumbled, and I realized I was starving. The lady placed the tray on my lap, and I looked down at it, trying to identify all the different foods.There was a plate of scrambled eggs, perfectly cooked with a sprinkle of herbs on top. Next to it was a mound of crispy bacon, the smell so strong that it made my mouth water. There was a bowl of fresh fruit, perfectly ripe and glistening with juice. And then there were the pancakes, fluffy and golden with a doll
RIVER LAVERNEAs I stepped into my house, I let out a deep sigh. The weight of the events of the day was still heavy on my chest. All I wanted to do was change into something comfortable and get back to Zavier's house to help with the investigation.But as I was heading to my room, my phone rang. It was my mum. I hesitated for a moment, debating whether or not to answer. But I knew she would worry if I didn't, so I took a deep breath and answered."Hey, Mum," I said, trying to sound as cheerful as possible."River, honey, how are you?" she asked."I'm good, just tired," I replied."That's not the River I know. What's going on? Is everything okay?" she pressed.I bit my lip. I didn't want to lie to my mum, but I also didn't want to worry her."Yeah, everything is fine. I just had a long day," I said, hoping she would drop it.But my mum wasn't convinced. "Are you sure? You sound...off," she said.I let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm sure, Mum. It's just work stuff. You know how it is."Th
RAINI LAVERNE I couldn't believe it when Bianca told me the masters wanted to see me. Fear coursed through me as I tried to imagine what they had in store for me. I looked over at Layla, who was now hiding in the hole again, and I wished I could have asked her for advice. But I knew I was on my own.As Bianca led me out of the room, I couldn't help but feel a sense of dread. The halls were dimly lit, and there was an eerie silence that seemed to hang in the air. I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched.Finally, we arrived at a large door, and Bianca pushed it open, gesturing for me to enter. I stepped inside and found myself in a lavish room with expensive-looking furniture and an ornate chandelier hanging from the ceiling. But my attention was quickly drawn to the two men sitting at a table in the center of the room.One of them was a tall, imposing figure with a stern expression on his face. The other was shorter, with a round face and a jovial expression that seemed
ZAVIER CROSS My heart was pounding in my chest as I watched the movements of the guards outside the abandoned warehouse. My team and I had been staking out the place for hours, waiting for the right moment to make our move. We couldn't afford to mess this up, not when there were lives at stake.Damon and Caleb were just as anxious as I was, their eyes fixed on the guards as we huddled behind a stack of crates. We knew we had to be patient, but the tension was almost unbearable.And then, as if by some stroke of luck, we saw an opening. The guard at the door walked away, leaving the entrance unguarded for just a moment. We seized our chance and made a run for it.But our luck was short-lived, as we soon ran into another guard. I tensed, ready for a fight, but to our surprise, the guard seemed friendly. He told us to go inside, that his boss wanted to see us.I exchanged a look with Damon and Caleb, but we didn't have much of a choice. We couldn't risk blowing our cover now. We followe
ZAVIER CROSSWhen we got home, I was skeptical of her claims, but I knew that since Giselle was my business partner, I could use that to my advantage and get more information out of her."So what's our plan now?" Caleb asked, breaking the silence in the room."We need to keep investigating," I said, "and I think Giselle is our best lead at the moment. We'll have to approach her carefully, though. We don't want to scare her off."Damon nodded in agreement, "I think we should split up and see if we can find any other leads while someone talks to Giselle. We need to cover as much ground as possible.""Sounds like a good plan," I said, "River, do you think you can keep an eye on Giselle and see if she leaves her house? Maybe follow her and see where she goes?"River nodded, "I can do that. But what should I do if she catches me?""Make up an excuse," Trinity Fay spoke up, "say you're lost or something. You're good at thinking on your feet.""Alright, I'll do my best," River said, determin
CALEB JOHNAs I approached River, I felt my heart racing in my chest. Seeing her always had that effect on me. I couldn't help but feel a bit nervous around her, despite how long we've been together."Hey," she said, smiling at me."Hey," I replied, trying to play it cool. "What are you doing out here?""I needed some fresh air," she said. "I've been cooped up inside all day."I nodded, taking in her appearance. She looked beautiful as always, but something was different about her today. She seemed more vibrant, more alive."I've been helping Zavier with the case," I said, wanting to impress her.River's eyes widened in surprise. "Really? That's amazing, Caleb. I didn't know you had it in you."I felt a twinge of disappointment at her comment. It was clear that she didn't have much faith in me, and I didn't blame her. I hadn't exactly been the most reliable guy in the past.But I was determined to change that. I wanted to prove to her that I could be someone she could depend on."I've
RAINIZavier looked at me for a minute, and it was as though he didn't believe what I just said about killing Trinity.For some reason I couldn't get over the fact that the dandelion mystery was back, in a way that looked most frustrating. Zavier had found the dandelion and came back with it, I could tell that the same person had been after me all this while.All concerns that it had been Giselle were far off from my memory since she had faced the same fate when she was found murdered in her home.Keeping all fingers crossed we had to wait just as he had said there was nothing we could do, then wait out all of this till it was over.All this would have been possible if I didn't get the anonymous call.I turned to look at Zavier who was sleeping and walked away to the bathroom to pick, perhaps I could tell what he was going to say if he listened or I wasn't sure if I could trust him enough just yet ."Hello?" I asked, filled with uncertainty."Hello." River voice came back trembling.I
ZAVIERWe spoke to the detective for more than twenty minutes giving him everything that was needed to find River, for me it wasike going through this ordeals again, the first time had been when I had to deal with Raini getting kidnapped and this was the second.Like the detective had told Bianca and myself there was definitely an insider there was no sign of anyone breaking into her apartment.Raini was obviously tired and perhaps hitting her second trimester was starting to weigh in on her as she was asleep as we walked down the hallway to her room.She was right there still asleep in her bed. I walked into her bedroom and sat in a chair close to the window near the bed.With the whole feeling complicated Iclosed my eyes and just took a moment formyself, taking in much breath as much as I could whole reflecting back on the entire situation.I haven’t had too many of these moments in the last few days, moments where I had to reflect on everything that was happening, the truth was
IRENEIt was still hard to take in and at the moment, my mind was racing at the moment.It was clearly on the wall, I couldn't miss it, not after how long I had stayed there with them. At that moment my mind was In a total mess.I stood right there with my head against his shoulder crying, perhaps if I had come in here a bit quicker I would have been able to save my sister.What I couldn't understand was why they had taken her."What did River say when she called?" He asked.I sniffed.With a shaky breath, I began to tell him about how she had called and why she had left in the first place.I explained why I didn't call him before leaving and everything from how I had felt angry when I got here and found nothing but the house in total mess.There was a lot to talk about and he listened to every bit of it. All I wanted to do was get rid of everything in my chest and get everything out in the open. I didn't hold anything back from him as I felt weak …Too weak." Why did they take her?"
IRENEI drove out of the car park as quickly as I could all that filled my mind while driving past the oak trees that surrounded the thick wood shrouding Zavier's home was the safety for my sister, the thought was heavy on my mind as the more I thought about it, the harder it was for me to comprehend.At the back of my mind was the question asking why she had spoken in such a haste, there was a sound of silence before ending the call and despite trying to get her it was certainly difficult to.I thought about calling Zavier but opted against it in my mind as I continued with my trip…The speed I was driving at was so much that it took the thought of the twins I was carrying to make us reduce the speed.As I drove out of the gates and as I did,II spent the next few hours trying to purge Zavier out of my mind, so I replaced it with other thoughts.Or at least my thought was replaced by the thought of my sister River.I purposely looked at my phone again,keeping her call on redial w
ZAVIER.“Stupid move today, man.” Bianca said to me as she sat on my office couch while looking at my face.She was looking at me,in a manner that seemed so complicated."Where did you say she went to again?" I asked since she was the only one that had been with her all this while.I flicked a glance toward her since she had been the only one with her when she had gone out.We were having a good conversation about how my time with Raini had gone.I rubbed a hand across my smile. “I just assumed that she would want to talk to me after what she did."“You assumed wrong,” she said dryly. “She is a woman, she doesn't care about all of this.""You all are complicated." I said, rolling my eyes.Bianca looked at me laughing "With all the shit you’ve done, and the fact that you lied it would be hard for her to trust you again."I sank a little further into the couch.“Everything I do is premeditated. I think about it —You don't expect that I will not tell her about all of this" I said look
RAINITwo quiet knocks sounded on the door, and I walked toward the door to get it opened.From the conversation I had with Bianca it was obvious I had to talk with him. I had been thinking about going to his room but didn't really have the confidence just before the knock came in.When I saw it was Zavier standing on the other side, I stood straighter at the doorway looking into his eyes.With his hair combed back, in a casual shirt and Jean, his countenance appeared welcoming and breathtaking at the same time.His eyes held my stare as I looked at him, in a way it looked as though it was filledwith cold resonance—perhaps he was still angry about what I had said earlier."Are you busy?" He asked."Yeah, not doing anything now." .Every synapses in my body raced as I stood back and watched him as he walked in.My eyes widened on him. As he walked Into the room making way to the window,he stood right there and looked out of the window.Shutting the door, I sighed deeply as I walke
RAINIBianca wasn't the first to warn me about the woman and now that it made two people tell me, it felt like the universe was screaming out something and I would be a fool not to listen.Trinity made her way back. There was an exchange between the two women as it looked as though she had heard something that was being saidIt looked not too certain that she must have heard her as if in a kind of distance."I have to leave, there is something I have to do."I merely nodded my head as I thought it was better she did before any altercations started up.I never expected that they would get along, Trinity never got along with anyone except me and I guessed it had something to do with me seeing the best in people.I walked with her to the door and after closing it behind her, I turned and smirked at Bianca."What?" She shrugged. "I am just telling you the truth. " You should really look into that girl."I sighed and fell back in my seat. I’d been excited about having her over but it look
RAINI-Everything was building up inside of me and I didn’t know the best way to make myself feel better than to cry.I felt so disappointed in myself for not being as strong as I thought I should be but there was nothing I could do.I wanted the best for my children and the fear that something might happen to them made me lose faith IN myself.I started sobbing, sitting up on the bed because the tears were not just coming, I felt Indulged and very weak to have to break down because of something like this.This wasn’t minor, this was my unborn kids and I was already failing as a mother and even before they were born.Just then I heard a knock on the door interrupting me and I immediately wiped off my tears.I wondered if my tears woke up someone but I didn’t think I was sobbing that loud.“It’s me bianca, I know you’re awake, Raini opens the door.” She said gently from the other side of the door.I stood up and walked over to the door and opened the door for her and she walked in.“Co
RAINI“Is there anything you can do to help me make sure they will be safe?” I asked in a shaky voice.My babies, how could they be in danger when they aren’t even in the world yet?“There is nothing. After using the drugs I think it should all go well but I can’t say.” The doctor said picking up her documents and ready to leave the ward.My heart shattered, I didn't know how I was supposed to react to something like this and why things have to get this complicated for me.I was managing to do everything and being my best for my unborn children but everything seemed to be fine till Zavier came back into our lives.“Are you sure there’s no expensive treatment we can use to make sure they would be safe? You can’t just put us on hold.” Zavier finally said walking ahead to the doctor:I didn’t know how I was supposed to feel about all of this but I knew for certain that any money from now I was going to flare out.“No, at this point after getting the drugs, there is nothing that we can do