Thanks for reading. So, Imela told Oliver the truth and it worked for them and though they had to push the getaway, they are now on it. Visiting their old apartment. How do you think this will play out? Your thoughts as always are welcome. The votes yesterday shot our book ranked 22 on new gem!!! Hurray. Thank you!! Love you all
After we made breakfast, we ate, and while Oliver rearranged the table, I helped with the dishes. He finished with the table and came to the kitchen to give me a hand. The dishes weren't much, and I told him I'd do them, but he insisted. I confessed I hadn't done the dishes in years, and he told me it was all the more reason not to touch them.I made faces at him, and he kissed it off.I sat on my favourite couch, which was close to the window, and read through Happy Place by Emily Henry. The book was on my to-read list while we lived here. Oliver had gotten me a collection when he noticed I loved the author's work. I couldn't take them when I was leaving, because though they belonged to me, he bought them. I was picking up where I left off.The space next to me dipped, and I glanced up to find Oliver scrolling through his phone. He took my legs and placed them on his lap so he could play with and caress them. This is how it was once. On lazy days, we took laziness to another level.I
The following day was Sunday, and Oliver invited me to the church he had frequented this past year. I agreed, and we bathed and drove over at 9 a.m. to join the service. I haven't been to a church in months, but being here was enjoyable. After the service ended, we grabbed food from the only open restaurant as we drove home. We ate after coming home, easing our hunger and regaining our strength. Oliver asked if I was up for one more outing, and when I said yes, he told me the outing time was 4 p.m. today. The weekend getaway had been great, and I knew it would only get better. I spent the rest of the day reading The Happy Place by Emily Henry. Oliver spent a longer time on his phone, and this time, unlike yesterday, he placed multiple calls and only came to sit beside me when it was almost time to go out. I didn't ask what was up because he would tell me when the time was right. "Do you have a specific place in mind, or are you about to take me hiking around the city?" I cocked a br
My heart dropped, and my stomach turned in a bad way as my eye lingered on the gun pointed at me. The face clicked in my head, and I gasped. Red beards, blue eyes, and a terrifying demeanour I couldn't forget. I had dreamed many times and seen this face. This was one of the two men who attacked me over five years ago and later threw me off the Harvard Bridge, hoping to drown me. He was back after five years, hoping to finish what he had started back then. Ivory probably learned I was behind her arrest a week ago and her pending trial and sent her thug to end me. How did he get in, though? The apartment was secured, and it was still locked when Oliver and I entered not long ago. He must have gotten in while we were out somehow. I stood unmoved, not wanting to risk getting shot. "Do not make a sound," he said, stepping forward. "Whatever she's paying you, I'll double it." I proposed to him, but he looked unwilling to take the offer. He cocked the gun and walked towards me. When he
Cecil never left the picture; she had been in it all along. She wanted everything I had, and all she had done had been geared towards getting it. She wanted me dead but would also kill Oliver if she couldn't have him. People like her were insane and had no moral code; they would gladly trample on what they couldn't have, just as she was doing now. She probably had the key to this apartment and had given it to Gail to sneak in, carry out his mission, and sneak out. It was her all those years. She had ordered these men to kill me; she was responsible for Elena's death. The snake had it in her all along. She wanted me dead just as much, and she wouldn't mind hurting Oliver if he got in the way. The snake!!! With the truth out for me to see, my perspective had changed. If I stay here and keep silent, waiting for rescue, Oliver will die tonight. If I did something, we might see another day. "Do not hurt him, Gail; I'm over here!" I spoke up, stepping out with my hand raised. He turne
After we arrived at the hospital, the doctors took Oliver into the ER to extract the bullet wound still in him. I needed a shower—a hot, long shower—but I also needed to be here, and this was more important.I received a shirt from the store since all I had underneath the blanket was my blood-covered bra. I called Robb, informing him about his son's state and what hospital we were in, and then I called Nina and told her to inform Seth.I called Marcel after getting off the phone with Nina and told him where we were and what had happened. He told me he was heading out. I told him it was late, but he told me he could come along with Benjamin, which put my mind at rest. I asked about Ocean, and he told me he was fine and sleeping in his room. That reply made me feel a little better.The first to arrive were Nina and Seth, who looked extremely worried about their brother. They bombarded me with questions, but I only answered the ones I could. Nina asked how I was doing, and I told her I
I needed the seven hours of sleep I got after I came home. My body, taking cues that it was at home and on my bed, shut down and locked in to get me everything I needed. I didn't complain because after waking up, I called Nina, who told me Oliver had yet to regain consciousness.With this sleep, I would focus on what I needed to do before returning to Oliver's side, where I belonged.I received a call from the police station a few hours after I got home. Marcel followed me, and while Caesar drove, Benjamin stayed beside him in the front seat.Harrison Mars was already waiting at the station when we arrived. Marcel called him. He asked how I was doing, and his tone held concern. I told him I was fine, and he told me only to give information relevant to their question, which I did after I stepped into their questioning room.The police disclosed the discoveries they had made so far, and the cell phone found in Gail's pocket had a number. They traced the number and saw that it came from
Oliver's POV."I love you too," I replied, smiling, and she touched my face to wipe my tears. "What about him? The attacker? What are the police saying about him then?" I asked as she pulled away.She exhaled, "The man who attacked us was one of the duo that attacked me all those years and later attempted to drown me. I was wrong about who he was, though. All these years, I thought Ivory had been behind my attack, but she wasn't. She denied your accusations because she had no clue about them. It wasn't Ivory; it was Cecil. She tried to have me killed, and this was her third attempt on my life. The first time I was attacked, the men she sent wanted it to look like suicide, and the same with the second, and even yesterday, Gail wanted it to look like I took my own life. I thought Ivory sent them until he shot you and was going to kill you without thinking twice. Ivory loves you too much to want to cause you harm. That left room for one more person. Cecil, she wanted me dead and would ad
Imela’s POV. Last month went by slowly. Oliver was discharged after two weeks in the hospital, and Cecil was arrested after multiple pieces of evidence linked her to Gail. We also learned that the second man in the duo died a few weeks before my attack. Gail confessed to killing him when he declined the job to hunt me down for the third time and kill me. Their trial started with Cecil facing life in prison. While in police custody, we discovered Cecil was not pregnant, despite making Oliver and the world believe she was. It didn’t surprise me. She was sick and twisted in the head and would use every and any means to keep Oliver trapped with her, including faking a pregnancy. The news of that, as well as our attack, had taken over all celebrity news with attention and speculation on Cecil’s ongoing trial. I had gotten a few invitations from TV hosts asking me to come and speak about my experience on their shows, all of which I declined. I also got a few suggestions to write a book ab
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