101Fredrick’s POV I was fed up, fed up of everything going wrong in my life. No, scratch that. Not my life, Alora's life. In my opinion, it didn't exactly make a difference. Alora was my wife, my life, and whatever affected her, affected me as well. We'd been through so much together I'm the past, and sometimes, I always thought since we'd spent so much time together, just maybe it might diminish how and the intensity in which things that affected her would affect me. But I was wrong, very wrong. If anything, it only increased how much she affected me and what not. Shit. A sigh slid past my lips as I slid into my seat. It used to be very comfortable, but right now, I couldn't even stand the damn thing. Whenever my back came in contact with it, I would jerk back, and in pain no doubt. But I couldn't afford standing anymore. I'd been on my feet since last night, and they were killing me. With each step I took, my heels burned, and I honestly thought my feet would burn a hol
102Alora's POV This was hell, and I hated it here. A small groan slid past my lips and I tried my level best to muffle it. A dull ache spread through my back, and the sensation that register in my skin could be akin to a million and one needles bring pricked into my skin, all at the same time.I wanted to yell, but I just couldn't bring myself to do so. Why? It would only make matters worse.I tried to stretch, but it was a lost cause. In the last two days, I'd been in the same spot, with my hands tied back and legs bound like an animal waiting to be sacrificed. If there was anything that had changed, I would say it was just the paper bag. Whoever my captor was, had taken the bag off sometime when I was asleep, and the scene in front of me wasn't one I would have imagined in a million years. The room was dingy and dirty to say the least. While I sat hurdled in the corner, a table and two chairs sat in the middle. The walls were filthy and a stale stench wafted up my nostrils. I
103Eliaz POV I drummed my fingers against the table, a steady rhythm wafting through my ears. It was unruly and every bit obnoxious, but I didn't dare complain. In fact, it was the only thing keeping me sane. Anytime the thoughts threatened to make me run crazy, all I had to do was start drumming, and they would stop. Temporarily.I sighed. In all honesty, I wasn't sure it was working anymore. I'd been at it since I got back from work today, and it was beginning to lose its potency. I jerked up with a start, before deciding to push the thoughts out of my head. Thinking and dwelling on it wasn't going to bring any positive results, so there was really no use crying over spilt milk. Or in this case, an unanswered phone call. I allowed my fingers the liberty of scrubbing my face for a couple of seconds. While I did that, I caught sight of my phone sitting lazily on my desk, and it reminded me of an integral part of my day. I'd gotten a call from the directors today. They were
104 Fredrick’s POV I stared at the two people in front of me, and I couldn't help but frown. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't always a bad time in their midst, but I hated the fact that the only time we were together like this, was to discuss one single thing. Or more specifically, someone. Alora. I'd been struggling with something in the past couple of days, but one glance at my surroundings only proved my biggest fears, she was missing. Again. “I hate this.” I muttered. “Gathering every now and then because some bloody bastard just won't let Alora be! When the hell did she gather so many enemies?” “I highly think that question is unnecessary at this point.” Fredrick let out slowly. “now that we've identified the problem ,it's better to come up with a solution.” “Yes, I agree.” Laura chipped in. “Tell us everything that happened. From the start.” A small and petty part of me almost didn't want to do that. Why? When I'd first told Laura about Alora's disappearance, she'd
Alora's POV I'd been here for quite some time now, but I couldn't stop my eyes from darting from one spot to the other. It was exhausting, and my eyes were beginning to hurt, but I just couldn't bring myself to stop. I was panicking, and it wouldn't be too long before I broke down into an anxious meltdown. “Just calm down.” I muttered to myself. It was a weak attempt at trying to get my heart to stop beating in overdrive, but I didn't have any other choice. “You'll be alright.” But I wasn't. I wasn't alright at all. I exhaled deeply, before turning my attention to my surroundings. All around me, people bustled about. They were either carrying trays, or trying to secure a seat for their significant other. A few of the people in here had their babies with them, and from time to time, I didn't miss their loud wails, and on rare occasions, they small laugh of joy. Either way, the place was packed, and that gave me a safe sense of security. If he decided to mess it up or all o
106Alora's POV I knew the universe hated me, but this was beginning to get too much, even for her. I tried to keep out of trouble, but no matter how careful I was, I was landed back in more trouble, if not worse. Take this right now as a case scenario. I could still feel his palm pressed against my mouth, and believe me when I said it wasn't pleasant. His back pressed against mine, and while that was uncomfortable to a whole lot of people, it only heightened my fear and anxiety. Did he have a knife tucked underneath his belt or pocket? How about a gun? Or was there a pocket dagger that would press into my side if I dared to inch back even by a centimeter? I cursed underneath my breath. I wasn't overly superstitious, but at this point, I think it was safe to think that something was wrong with this city. Ever since I arrived here, it's been one problem or the other and I swear I was getting exhausted. “That's it.” The man behind me whispered, his voice cutting through my thoug
107Fredrick’s POV The lights in the room were completely out, save for the lone bulb that dangled from the ceiling. Up till this moment, I had no idea that something like that ever existed. Actually, it didn't. Before my arrival, I'd called up one of the staff and asked them to clear out one of the spare rooms in the house. When they'd asked if I wanted anything specific, I asked them to make it look very identical to an interrogation room. My first thought was a torture room, but I was quick to realize that I wasn't a part of the mafia. Yet. I scoffed at the thought of it. A ghost of a smile hung on my lips, but that was it. There was no way I could ever be involved in organized crime. I wasn't tooting my own horn, but I was too good for that shit, and everyone around me could testify to that, especially Alora. The small smile I'd managed to sport disappeared just at the mention of the said woman. What had started as a fun way of acknowledging the woman in my life, had slowl
108Alora's POV I was a nervous wreck, but I'd be damned if I let it show. Beads of sweat lined my forehead, and no matter how many times I wiped it off, it always seemed to come back. Every single time. I exhaled loudly. If it were up to me, I would be nowhere near here, but like every other time in my life I didn't have a choice. It was fight or die, and I was tired of being murdered day by day by my own shitty lifestyle. My eyes roamed the office, and even though I'd silently prayed it would make me feel any better, it didn't. It made me feel worse, and I was this close to darting out of here and never looking back. Mr Donald's table was empty as always, and void of every personal effects. All that sat on his table, was a lone name tag that seemed to have seen the worst moments of his life. Even his walls held nothing but a worn out clock who's ticks seemed to be on the verge of driving me crazy. If I had my way, I would have hurled my heels into the clock but knowing Donal
160Alora's POV I couldn't believe my ears, at all. I'd heard of moments when one would be so shocked, that one would be forced to think that time had somehow rolled to a halt. I'd experienced my fair share of that moment, but I never thought another occurrence could top the charts of the most shocking one. If anything, what had just happened now was something I wouldn't be forgetting in a long time, even if I died, or went into a coma. “You’re alone now, Alora.” his words echoed painfully in my ears. “Abandon Fredrick, sign over your shares to me, and we could go back to being a couple”. The words seemed to be on loop, and the more I tried to get his voice out of my head, the more they settled into my mind. As they did that, I struggled to find the motivation behind it all. Was he really that audacious for him to think that I was going to agree to his terms? Or perhaps he was delusional and was only playing a prank on me. I raised my gaze to meet his face. My eyes scanned the
159Alora's POV I was conscious, but for the life of me, I didn't even want to open my eyes. Call it embarrassment, or probably depression, I didn't care. All I knew was that I didn't want to feel like this, at all. I couldn't even remember the last time I felt this way. I'd been through hell and back, literally, from the contract being ripped from me the first time, to bring framed for something I had no idea about, to you g to jail, to dealing with Ethan and a whole lot of other troubles I didn't wabt to remember, I wasn't sure I felt the way I was feeling now, and i hated it. I let out a deep breath, before finally forcing my eyes open, and the all too familiar sight of my ceiling greeted me. I knew I should be happy, or at least feel a tiny bit of comfort, but no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't summon it. All that ran through my mind, were the events that led to this moment. It wasn't a lot, but it was still embarrassing. I'd passed out in the Inspector's office a
158Fredrick’s POV A small groan slid past my lips as I slowly peeled my eyes open. A dull throb spread through the back of my head, and all around me, but I didn't let it get to me. My body ached, and I felt like I was going to pass out again. My lungs burned, and even the side of my torso too. I had no idea why it hurt, but for the life of me, I couldn't even bring myself to check. More groans slid past my lips as I forced myself into a sitting position. My back came in contact with the wall behind me, and I regretted it immediately. Something slimy seeped into my clothes, and I jerked forward immediately. Even that wasn't a good choice, because the moment my hands came in contact with the floor, a burning sensation raced up my body. I scrambled to my feet, and my legs ached. I tried to walk to the other side of the room, but I just couldn't. With all the strength I could mutter, I found myself limping to a part of the tiny room I felt was clean enough. Once there, I pressed
157Alora's POV I paced around the room, my footsteps slapping loudly against the clear tiles. I hadn't expected the sound from beneath my shoes to be so loud, but in my defense, I also hadn't expected to end up here of all places too. What the hell was wrong with my life? Why was there always some evil plan lurking around in the background and waiting for the right time to rear it's ugly head? I pinched the bridge of my nose as I continued my pacing. While I did that, I didn't miss the angry glares that the other people in the room threw my way. Did I care? Not in the slightest. It was selfish of me, but if nothing was going well for me, then I honestly didn't mind ruining a couple of other people's day too. I shook my head slowly. For the past hour now, I struggled to comprehend what the hell had just happened. One minute, things were going relatively fine, if you excluded the missing funds, and the next, Fredrick was being arrested. Fucking arrested. My mind darted back t
156Alora's POV An additional week had passed since we started the real estate contract in earnest, and I knew I should be glad that things were beginning to shape up, but I just couldn't shake off the unease that lodged itself in my chest every now and then. It didn't always come when I was distracted, I only seemed to feel that way anytime I set my eyes on our two new employees, Marcus and Phineas. They'd been eagerly at work, making choices and decisions that were sometimes out of my reach, but there wasn't a lot I could say. I didn't agree with half of their thought process, but Fredrick was always ever ready to back them up. “This is the new innovation I was talking about.” He'd said. “let's just let them do their thing, I'm sure it'll come out great.” I had so many questions, but for the sake of global prace, I'd decided to shelf them, until today that is. I'd arrived at the office like any pretty normal day. Once in a while, Fredrick and I often did routine checks, to
155Alora's POV It'd been a week since we started the real estate contract in earnest, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't proud of myself. It was stressful and overwhelming, and in the past week, I could swear I'd lost count of how many times I wanted to give up. From the preparations, down to going to the site and managing the workers, everything was a lot. I'd cried to Fredrick more times than I wanted to, and at a point, i honestly deliberated giving it all up. “Do we really have to do this?” I'd said to Fredrick a couple of days back. “Is it really too late now?” “Yes.” Fredrick had let out admit a series of chuckles. “We can do this Alora. We fought so hard for this, from the very beginning too. We can't give up now. You're saying all of this because you're stressed. I'm sure once your vision starts coming to light, you'll forget all about it.” To further support his reassurance, Fredrick had taken me out to dinner. He insisted it wasn't a date, but just an avenue
154Alora's POV I wasn't one to look forward to office days, but I would be lying to myself if I said I wasn't excited this morning. I couldn't even hide it even if I wabted to. From the moment I woke up, I'd been in a beautiful mood, and nothing, absolutely nothing was going to change that. Apparently, my excitement had been passed to Fredrick as well, but he was doing a good job at keeping his in. After the interview slash live session a couple of days ago, it felt like our luck had turned around significantly. We had more partnership deals than we'd ever had since we got back and our stocks profit had skyrocketed more than expected. Fredrick and I had finalized the details for the real estate contract, and we officially supposed to start the project today. Fredrick had headed to the office earlier than me, just to make some final decisions before my arrival. I was so excited, that I literally completed my morning routine with twenty five minutes extra to spare. I tapped m
153Cynthia’s POV The sun was up, and shining, and I couldn't help but bask in it. I mean, who wouldn't, especially when I had a huge dick sitting on one of my fingers. I'd been wanting to get this ring for a while, but Eliaz never really came around to getting it for me. Now, I didn't have to wait around to be able to get what I wanted, I could easily get it for myself, and through Halo too. A wide grin made its way to my face at the mere thought of it. To the people at the counter and probably the other customers miling about the mall, they would probably think that I had gone psycho, but I knew better. I was psycho, but in a happy way. While the total cost of my goods was being calculated, I couldn't help but recall the events that led me to this moment. I saw my world crashing down the moment Eliaz thrust those DNA reports in my face. When Alora had said she was going to expose me, she really did mean it. I'd run her over just to stop her, but I guess I let a tiny detail
152Henry's POV A pungent smell hit my nose, and I fought the urge to throw up. I pressed my fingers against the bridge of my nose and my nostrils, but it did nothing to stop the stench from getting in. The stale stench had hit my nose the moment I got in here. One would think that with how posh the building looked from the outside, a small part of it would be bearable, but I guess I knew better now. I cursed underneath my breath as I walked to the other side of the shoebox of a room I'd been tossed into. Maybe the rancid smell wasn't coming from every part of the room. Perhaps I'd been unfortunate to walk to one of the walls where the stench was more prominent. But I was wrong, very wrong. Every part of this stupid room felt like it had been forsaken by both God and the devil. In fact, if someone were to walk up to me, just to tell me that this place used to be a dumping site for every sort of waste product you could think, then I wouldn't even bat an eyelid to doubt him. In