They pulled away, and Oliver's head turned around. His eyes landed on me, and they immediately grew murderous. He released Cecil and stormed towards me. I tried to hurry away as fast as my legs would take me, but my back collided with the pillar, and panic came to my face."Oliver!" I whimpered out."I told you I didn't want to see you. I didn't want to hear your voice, and I didn't want you anywhere near me. What the fuck are you doing here?!" He sneered at me, and I trembled all over."You moved on," I mumbled, but he heard. "With my best friend?""You were fucking my brother while being married to me." He countered, "Or did you come to lie and deny?"I had no memory of what happened that night, and the harder I tried to remember, the blanker it became. I had no feelings for Seth. Yes, I kept the things from him because Seth and Cecil begged me to. I was with Seth only because Cecil didn't want to be alone with him. I thought I was a helpful friend-a good friend.Cecil had planned th
My heavy lashes fluttered, but seeing came a few seconds later. I found myself on a bed in a white, empty room, and I stayed, unable to move; all I could do was stare at the white ceiling with its chandelier hanging over me. It illuminated a golden light, and my senses tried to make calculations of it. It was beautiful and peaceful, and though I couldn't remember much, I knew I had not felt this way in a while.Was this heaven? Was this my heaven? If it was, it wasn't so bad; the peace and beauty were like none other, but this wasn't heaven. There would have been much joy, happiness, and people if it were. Also, I would be able to move.I wanted to move, though, but I couldn't; I couldn't move my head or my mouth. The only thing I could move was my eyes, which scanned as much of the big room as possible. My eyes found a beeping monitor above my head, which made it hard to spot, and beside it was an IV pole with a drip on it, connected to my hand. I noticed I had a respiratory mask ove
Four years later“Well, what are we looking at?” I asked as Marlo, my cousin, projected his presentation on the screen for me and the eight other board members to see.“Expansion, Ms. Garcia,” he answered. “The Garcia Group has dominated the European market since its inception. I believe it is time to expand.” He concluded with pride that I couldn’t wait to tear down.“We are the most dominant financial firm in Athens, Paris, Australia, and South Africa,” Kian Lopez, a board member, countered. He, too, seemed not to get the point Marlo wanted to make.“They aren’t the biggest market; the United States is,” Marlo argued.His research plan was half-baked at best, and he wanted us to run in and approve it just because he presented it.“The United States market isn’t the best place to expand, at least not with your presentation. We don’t just look at the country’s market size and decide on expanding our firm. We look at economic stability, security, competition, the availability of resour
Ocean was the best thing to come out of the hell I lived through four years ago. I didn’t think he would even make it after everything I went through, but he was a fighter from the beginning. The world didn’t want us, but here we were, shoving our middle finger back at themFour years ago, my life took a significant turn I never imagined: I met my father.Marcel Boris Garcia is a Russian-Spanish billionaire businessman. What were the odds that instead of drowning, as my attackers intended, I would be found by my biological father?After my recovery began, I asked Marcel about my mother, Otaria Barau, and he told me what he knew about her. She was the woman he met and fell in love with after he visited Port Harcourt.He had separated from his wife, Felicity, a year prior, and meeting my mother was a breath of fresh air. Their love story would not last because Felicity returned after seven months, wanting them to give their marriage another shot.When he told my mother, she was brokenhe
"You wish to return to the States?" Marcel asked as I told him that Garcia's Group might be going to the States after all."Not return, but rather to move the firm there, papa. I took time to review Marlo's presentation, and after considering all the odds, I saw we could make it work," I answered.In the last week, I dedicated myself to Marlo's insane proposition, trying to make it work. I had to tear it all down and rebuild it back up. I would have thrown it into the trash and left it there, but things changed."Pensaste que la idea de Marlo era el suicidio. (You thought Marlo's idea was suicide.)" He pointed out.I didn't like Marlo's proposal because it lacked depth. He probably saw the "Land of Opportunity" and thought it was for him. He lacked vision, and it showed in his rash decisions and actions. As I pointed out during the board meeting, there was more to research before considering expansion. He didn't do his homework, but I have. I also never thought I'd want to return to
Oliver’s POVThe door to my office flew open, and the angry Ivory marched towards my desk with a stack of files in her hands. She looked pissed, and I knew she was about to tell me why, even though I was not interested."Well, come in.” I ushered dramatically since she didn’t do the courtesy of knocking. “And it is nice to see you, Mom.”“What the hell is wrong with you?” She exploded, and her high-pitched voice made my head ring.“I am not a magician; I will not know unless you tell me.”“Do not play coy with me, boy. The finance team returned with their annual report, and the company has lost more this year than it ever had.” She said that and threw the documents at me, causing them to fly everywhere. “At this point, we will be lucky if anyone will offer a hundred thousand dollars to buy this company when we declare bankruptcy, and we will because we are at an all-time low."She placed her hand on her waist and took the well-known Ivory's stance. "Do you have the desire to run every
Cecil went on a girls’ trip to Puerto Rico this morning and said she would be back in five days, and that wasn’t long enough.I love Cecil, and she has been there for me through a lot, but some days, I feel suffocated by her presence, which is the last thing I want.I couldn’t tell her this because the last time I opened up to her about how I felt, she cried for three days and made me feel like a horrible person. It was best to leave her alone and only wish her away in my mind. It was best for my sanity and her happiness.“Speak of the devil,” Vivian said after pulling out his vibrating phone. “Hello, babe.” He said and shifted away.I instructed the bartender to keep it coming while I drowned in my thoughts and sang along with the music playing to distract myself from that cuteness. It must have been longer because I felt a tap on my shoulder, and it was Vivian.He had a mischievous grin, and I was not too fond of that look.“Have you ever done something crazy?" he asked, his grin lin
The door to my office opened, and Vivian walked in with a broad smile on his face. “I saw the news, man. Congratulations.” He said.I smiled, dropped my pen, and leaned against the chair. “Thank you.”He sat and crossed his legs majestically. “So tell me, were you nervous?” He asked with a curious brow.I was nervous when I asked Imela to marry me, but with Cecil, “No, I wasn’t.” I replied with a shake of my head, adding, “When it’s time to make the move, you know.”His eyes flickered, and he nodded. “I guess I will take a thing or two from your book of confidence and follow in your footsteps with Julie.”I wanted to tell him there was only misery in store if he followed my path, but I didn't want to dash his confidence to the ground.“Have you shown Julie your tattoo?” I asked, changing the topic.“I’m meant to show her in person, not over the phone,” he answered, giving me a duh look.That made sense.There was no way around it, so I was just going to ask. “Do you remember much of w
Three months later "You can stop here, Caeser; I will walk on from here," Imela said as the gate came to the cemetery gate. Caeser turned off the car and got down to open the door for her. She told him she would not be long, and he waited for her. She stared ahead at the gravestone not so far from her and walked towards it. "It's been a while, Grandma," she said, placing the red rose on the grave and sitting beside it. Today was the perfect day to visit because Imela had less work on her plate, which made her close early. Having already had it in mind to visit sometime this week, she headed here after leaving the hospital to do the needful before going back home. The last time she came to see was a few days after Christmas, and that was six months ago. She had so much to say then because a part of her felt she was going crazy and needed direction and focus. Since then, she hasn't found the time to return to the series of events taking place around her. "I want you to know that Oli
Third POV Max was almost done with his tie when Nina stepped back into the room. “I just got off the phone with Imela,” she said, slipping her phone into her purse. They were getting ready for Jayden’s release party. It was a get-together and celebration with family and close friends only, and since there wouldn’t be many people, Sir offered Lockwood Corner for the night. It was a secluded VIP corner in his club in the heartthrob of the city. There will be music, drinks, and fun. This would be Jayden’s official welcome. His final hearing was this morning, and with the new evidence that came to light, the judge had no choice but to exonerate Jayden of the charges of drug trafficking. With the news of his release came the need to celebrate the victory. The troublemakers will not pass up this opportunity. Nina was already dressed in a red maxi dress, which stopped over her knee. Her blonde hair was in a neat bun, and her makeup highlighted her already attractive features. Max's eyes g
Joe's body hit the ground with a loud thud. I gasped and took to my heels, running into the bushes around the building as fast as my legs could take me. I didn’t have direction; I just didn’t want to die. I heard another gunshot, and pain shot through my shoulder the next second, taking me down. The gun had grazed my shoulder, and the protection I got was from my dress. I hid behind a tree in the woods, keeping my presence there as minimal as possible. I heard careful footsteps heading to where I was, and I knew it was Cecil's. I had to calm down and calculate my next move if I hoped to stay alive. I counted down the last step, and the first thing I saw was the gun held out. With calculated risk, I reached for it, and we both struggled. Finally, I took it from her hand, but before I could point it at her, she slammed her palm against my hand, and the gun fell out into the bush. I threw a quick fist, which met her in the face, and before she could recover, I kicked her onto the gro
Imela's POV Cecil's phone rang, and she pulled it out of her pocket to look at it. "It's Dad," she said, stepping back from Joe. "I have to take this; keep an eye on her." She instructed before stepping away from the room. Joe stood at the door with his hands folded over his chest. He had kept his gaze anywhere but near me. It didn’t take a genius to know he was only in this to make Cecil happy. Sad, he didn’t know there was no way to make a crazy person like Cecil happy. He was as much a victim of Cecil and Marlo as all of us were. “I understand.” I told him, and this brought his attention to me. “What?” "Why you threw your life away for her? You love her, and we will do anything for the one we love.” I replied. “You hurt her; she believes she has to do this because of what you did to her.” His defensive response came, sounding like someone brainwashed by love. “Cecil is not a bad person; she has been judged, misunderstood, and abandoned by those she once called family. You did
"I was never crazy. It was you all along." Imela said as Cecil got down from the Jeep and walked towards the uncompleted building on the left side of the road, and Joe pulled her along. Cecil and Joe had taken Imela out of the Garcia Group firm and into the parking lot, where she saw Benjamin unconscious beside the car. She tried going to him, but Joe held onto her and pulled her into the black Jeep parked opposite her car. "You killed Kimberly and framed me; you killed Elena; you tried to kill Ocean, just like you tried to kill me many times. Did you kill Chan, too?" Imela demanded. If Chan were alive, he would have uncovered the truth that Cecil was out and behind everything a long time ago. He had died suddenly at the beginning of it all, and she had believed the McCann brothers had done it. That wasn't true; Cecil was behind the murder of Detective Chan. The satisfied look that appeared on Cecil's face further proved it. "He helped you put me in prison; he had it coming. Beside
Oliver's POV Flashback I made my way over to where Nina stood, waiting for me outside the restaurant. I didn’t know why she had decided to meet outside today when we had always met at my place. We hugged and walked into the restaurant for lunch like every Saturday. After I got my place, she began coming there, and we would cook and eat and catch up on everything we had missed out on during the week, from study to work and everything. “You know, when you said you wanted to see me, I thought you would come to the house like you used to,” I said as we took our seats at the table on the left side of the restaurant, close to the window. She gave me a half smile and said, “I cannot come; Cecil is there.” She didn’t try to hide it, and most of the time, we have just moved on from the discussion altogether. She disapproved of Cecil, and I saw it in her body language and how quiet she tended to be whenever she was around Cecil. I brought Cecil along for her last birthday party, and Nina
Trigger Warning! Violence in this chapter Third POV It all started a year ago. “The first time I saw you, I knew a day would come when I would need you,” Cecil said as she stepped towards Gloria, a splitting image of her. She had met her when she travelled to Puerto Rico on vacation two years ago. They didn’t look so alike at first because Cecil had red hair, a thin eyebrow, and pink lips, while Gloria had blonde hair, a full eyebrow, and red lips. Cecil could also tell Gloria was financially struggling, and it showed in the way she was dressed. Cecil didn’t know why, but she wanted Gloria close, so she helped her into the States, waiting for her to get her papers. After the sentence was carried out, Cecil reached out to Gloria, telling her to play out her part, and in return, she would get her the papers she needed. She already had connections with not only the correction centre but also the warder, so leaving the prison was easier, and all Gloria had to do was pretend to be her u
Imela's POV Jean’s words echoed in my head. The result of the many tests showed I couldn’t have killed Kim; there were more than the two of us at the apartment; someone else had killed her and framed me for it. They had hoped I wouldn’t wake, having injected me with a high dose of lead and solvent. Waking up had thwarted their plans, and the test results vindicated me and showed my innocence.I wanted to think of who could have been responsible for this. I didn’t want to say Cecil; after all, she was in my head. I couldn’t give her credit. Cecil was in prison, and even if she wasn’t, she alone couldn’t have pulled off all of this. There was someone else—someone close to me, someone who knew me and could influence my mind.My phone rang in my bag as I stepped out of the car, snapping me out of my thoughts. I thanked Benjamin, who held the door open for me to step out and pulled the phone out of my purse to see Nina as the caller ID. I answered and pushed open the door. “Nina, hey,” I
My lashes fluttered, and I released a loud yawn. I covered my mouth to reduce the noise so I wouldn’t wake Ela up, but when my hand dropped from my face, I found her already awake and sitting in bed. “You are awake,” I said, noticing her intense gaze on the ceiling. “I remember,” she said. I pulled myself up to sit down, and my brows furrowed, wondering if it was what I was thinking, but I waited for her to keep speaking. “Not everything, but I remembered how I got to Kimberly’s apartment. She called me and sent me her address. She was going to call off the engagement with Marcel and wanted me to hear her reasons first.” She said. “The police checked your phone after you were arrested; they didn’t find a call or any such message,” I told her. Her gaze moved to me. “I am telling the truth.” “I believe you,” I replied, meaning every word. Getting this memory back was a miracle, and this meant there were more than two people in Kim’s apartment, as at the time of her death, the thir