Lily arrived in the house and went straight upstairs. She made certain that she bowed her head as she made her way into the house. She had no idea what she looked like, but her cheek bone still hurt like hell and her scalp was also hurting bad. On Lily’s way back, she had to touch her head to be sure that blood wasn’t coming out, or to be sure that that area of her hair that Don Grander had pulled hadn’t become bald.Lily got to her room and opened her door, but she was met with harsh resistance.“Who the heck locked up this room?” Lily asked angrily. She shook the doorknob again, willing the door to open, but to no avail.“Who shut this door?!” Lily asked, her voice hitting the roof.When she had left this house a couple of hours ago, she had left an open room, and she knew that Christopher had not been at home, so who had the guts to shut her bedroom door in her absence? Being here, Lily realized that it would be better to actually act like Ashley Grander, because the domestic work
"Shit! Shit! Shit!” Lily became frantic as she thought of what to do quick and fast.“He cannot see me like this,” Lily said to herself.“Ashley!” Christopher’s enraged voice reached Lily in the room again. This time around, the voice was closer, and for Lily to hear the pounding of his footsteps against the stairs, she knew that he was enraged, and that was when Lily remembered that she had actually stepped out with one of Christopher’s securities who she never came back with.In fact, after Don Grander was done hitting her, threatening her, and ensuring that she never did anything that would jeopardize their chances of getting what they wanted from Christopher, Lily had had to jump a bus to get back to the house. It wasn’t a big deal for her, because all her life, when she wasn’t walking, she was jumping buses. Anyway, Lily had ensured that she bowed her head low enough so that no one would recognize her, because that would be more dangerous. “What do I do now?” Lily asked hersel
After the agreement, Christopher grudgingly left.Lily knew that he was dying to have the discussion of her whereabouts that day, but he could not, because there was nothing he would have said that would have made Lily opened the door for him. Her face was still battered and swollen.Lily took the ice pack and placed it on her face. She sat on the bedroom couch and tried to close her eyes so that the ice pack would be able to work its magic, but then again, her head started banging. She could not tell if Don Grander had done any real damage to her head, especially internally, because she could not feel any blood, but the pain was so excruciating that it caused a dull headache at the center of Lily’s head. Lily used the intercom in the bedroom to ring Maggie.“Get me some painkillers for my banging head,” Lily said into the phone.In less than five minutes, Maggie arrived with some painkillers. Without turning to face her, Lily said, “Just drop it where you are and leave.”But Maggie h
“Excuse me?” Lily asked, stupefied.For a moment, she had lost herself and forgotten whom she was supposed to be impersonating. In fact, she was about to say that they had never met before it booted in Lily’s head that she actually called Ashley, not Lily.The lady cleared her throat and said loudly, “Um, I was complimenting your makeup.”Christopher didn’t hear what she had said the first time, because she had whispered the words into Lily’s ears alone, so when she lied and said she was just paying a compliment, Christopher looked at Lily’s face, and in that moment, Lily felt scrutinized under Christopher’s gaze, almost making her uncomfortable. She feared that he was going to see her bruised cheeks, and even know that she was struggling with a bad headache with the way he stared at her, but instead, he ended his stare with a look of irritation and disgust. Fortunately, he reserved that look for Lily alone, so no one else in the living room knew that he was giving her a bad look. In
Ashley, two nights before your wedding, you were found at a nude club, why?” The words rang in Lily’s ears; she could not believe what she was hearing, neither did she understand fully what was going on. If Rosa said two nights before the wedding, then it meant that it was probably the night that Ashley had been found dea.Christopher had not only been shocked, he was also enraged, so much so that he jolted out of his seat in a rage.“What is the meaning of this?!” Christopher charged at Rosa.Rosa got up in fear and she staggered back, trying to get away from Christopher’s wrath. “That question wasn’t part of the questions Aimee sent to my mail that you were going to be asking, so what is the meaning of the damn question?!” Christopher barked.“I am so sorry, Mr. Bridger,” Rosa apologized. She probably did not expect that Christopher would react angrily to her question, and for a moment, Lily thought that Christopher might know something about it, and if that was the case, then Li
Lily began to shake dreadfully.“Don’t you dare bring that game on me, Ashley, because if I have to choke out the words from you, I will,” Christopher threatened harshly.“I have no idea what she was talking about,” Lily answered.She was being honest, because in truth, she had no idea what happened that night, because she never even knew that that night had existed, but the good thing was that Christopher would not read meaning to her words.Instead, Christopher stared at Lily; a worried expression on his face.Lily was confused, because she could not tell why Christopher was looking at her with such expression. He was supposed to be mad with rage and forcing her to explain as he threatened, but instead, he was more worried than confused.“What is it? Lily had to ask.Christopher stared curiously at Lily for some seconds before he said, “Nothing.”Nothing? Lily could hardly believe it. Now, Christopher was acting all weird and strange, and she could not fathom what was going on. “Yo
It was the weekend and Christopher knew that he shouldn’t be at work, but he just couldn’t help himself. Not that he had work to do, but Ashley Grander kept giving him reasons to doubt her.“Something is not right with her,” Christopher said to himself as he sat on his swivel chair and pondered on everything that had happened.Then recently, after she had mysteriously disappeared and reappeared, she had been wearing this heavy makeup that had made her look funny in a way; it just didn’t sit right on her face. Christopher checked his expensive wristwatch again and waited. When he arrived at the office, he had also called Aimee Landon to show up at the company as well. Aimee arrived just about that time, making Christopher relieved.“Mr. Christopher, I am here,” Aimee said as she entered Christopher’s office.Christopher felt as though he was seeing Aimee in a casual outfit for the first time, but then again, he could not recall seeing her in anything other than her official outfits.
Lily had been feeling sick ever since she got back from the baseball game. She just could not shake off the feeling that not only did she see Don Grander there, but he shook hands with Joe.He shook hands with Joe!If anything happened to Lily’s brother, Lily would die. She literally lived for her brother, because he was all she had got, but now, more than ever, Don Grander had made her understand that he was capable of ending Joe’s life in a second. Lily thought that hitting her and grabbing her hair were all the threat and warning that she was going to get from Don Grander. She had no idea that he was going to get Joe involved. Lily only wished that Grander had left it at a handshake. Lily was restless as she paced about the room. She was supposed to be getting ready to fly off with Christopher, but Lily knew that she would not be at peace until she was certain that Joe was safe. Even though Don Grander already threatened that he would only kill Joe when she went against the plan,
“Monk!” Don Grander yelled at the top of his voice, almost tearing out his lungs. He was in his bedroom, and he paced furiously. Some minutes later, Monk rushed into his room.“Boss, you sent for me,” Monk said, confused, because he was just with Don Grander about an hour ago in the study where they talked at length.“Something has happened,” Don Grander said through clenched teeth.“What might that be?” Monk asked.“Before you and I went out, I was going through the original and fake document that I and Bridger signed before his demise, and the one that Benedict drafted for me which he showed to Christopher to make him believe and succumb to what we want,” Don Grander explained.“Okay…” Monk said, paying rapt attention to what Don Grander was saying even though he was wondering why Don Grander decided to go through the papers in the first place.It was as though Don Grander could read Monk’s thoughts, because he answered right away. “You know that this last deal is very huge; it is t
Aimee threw herself into planning this special event for Christopher and his company. He did not give her the full details, but she worked with what she had anyway.She had been busy contacting vendors and planners, making plans and readjustments; Aimee wanted complete perfection, because this was the event that she was banking on completely. She was fed up of waiting for Christopher to come by, and even though he had reinstated her with even better promotion, Aimee feared that Christopher had fallen for Ashley, and she could not let that happen.After this event, she would have exactly what was hers!Aimee was still in deep thoughts when her phone rang. When she checked the caller ID, it was the new man that she had hired to do her dirty business. The moment Aimee realized that Derek was no longer on board, she had had to find someone else. This time around, Aimee ensured that she went for someone who was fierce and dangerous.“What news do you have for me?” Aimee asked.Now that she
Lily covered her mouth in shock and dreadful fright as her heart slammed against her ribs. At first, she thought that Don Grander was going to hear her gasp, and she feared for her life. If she was caught hiding by the stairs and eavesdropping, she would be dead even before the actual time, but thankfully, Don Grander and Monk were too engrossed in the whole conversation to even hear her.“I just want this to be over and done with so that Emily and I can finally go for that vacation. We have already missed our flight and she is breathing down my neck…it can be really frustrating,” Don Grander said to Monk.Then the two men stopped right close to Lily, making Lily more afraid.She needed to get away from this mansion before they either discovered that she was here, or that the papers were missing. As far as Lily knew, no one saw her come in except the security at the gate, and hopefully, she would be able to get out before Don Grander declares that anything is missing.“When she steals
“What?!” Lily was stunned and afraid and alert.Her mind instantly went to Monk and Don Grander’s threats that they would kill Joe if she failed on any of her tasks.“Yeah, and it was pretty weird. It made me feel uncomfortable,” Joe said over the phone.She could feel the discomfort in his voice, and Lily’s heart broke into more pieces. She even began to wonder how much heartache she could take at once.“I really wish you were here, Lily; I feel safe with you around,” Joe said warmly and sadly. “It has been over a year, and this is beginning to look creepy to me. Even Rudney does not exactly know where you are,” Joe admitted.Lily did not think that Joe would think too deeply about everything. She hadn’t even really been thinking about Joe and how her absence might have affected him. More tears dropped from Lily’s eyes in pain and regret. If only she could tell Joe exactly what was going on, but then again, she did not even have the liberty of brooding about that for so long, because
Lily felt like she had been hit with a ton of bricks at the harshness and cruelty of Christopher’s words, and when she managed to look into his eyes, she could see all the emotions right there.“Let me say what I came here to tell you, please,” Lily begged deeply.“How did you manage to bleed like a virgin when everyone knows that you are not, huh?” Christopher asked bitterly and angrily.Lily opened her mouth to say that it was because she was a virgin, but no words came out of her mouth, and Christopher mistook Lily’s inability to say the words as guiltiness.Christopher shook his head. “You are my worst mistake, Ashley, and I blame myself for not fighting this arrangement when I was told. After this party, you are going to return to your father’s house discreetly until this whole crap of a marriage is over; I never want to see your face again,” Christopher said firmly.Lily squeezed her eyes shut as the words sliced through her heart. She felt like Christopher had literally taken a
Lily could not wrap her head around everything that the old maid had revealed to her.Ashley Grander was alive, and no one knew!A tiny part of Lily was relieved that she was, because after all she had found out about her, it just didn’t sound fair that she would have been murdered. Indeed, she played her game well. Another tiny part of Lily wanted to see Ashley, the only girl in the world that looked almost like her, but according to what the old maid said, Ashley was in a far away country where no one knew her and with a new identity. She was living with the old maid’s distant relative, and to ensure that she is completely safe, she and the old maid had had to keep off communicating.Ashley Grander was smarter than anyone Lily had ever met.Thinking away from her now, Lily thought about herself. As much as she was relieved that Ashley wasn’t truly dead after all the evil that surrounded her, she had been the unfortunate person forced into living her life, doing her job, and cleaning
“What?” Lily was stupefied.She could not believe that she had been played so well, but then again, a lot of questions were already running through her mind. Now, nothing seemed clear and she needed it to be, so she sat back down again.“You knew from the beginning that I wasn’t Ashley,” Lily stated.It was a statement that required an answered, a clarity of some sort.“Even if Ashley was truly dead, I would have known,” the old maid responded. “I raised her, you know,” she started as tears gathered in her eyes. “When her mother mysteriously and tragically passed, she was left in my care, and I loved and nurtured Ashley like she was my child. Do you know how heartbreaking it was for me to see her being constantly maltreated and punished?” The old maid asked.Lily could feel the raw pain in her heart as she spoke, and she shuddered at it.She would never be able to grasp the life of the wealthy and powerful. The more she thought she knew, the deeper the whole thing went. When she worke
After Lily left Don Grander’s house, she could not afford to go back to Christopher’s mansion. There was still Hedge’s threat hanging over her head, but now, even Christopher’s life, reputation, and company are at stake here.Lily did not want anything to happen to Christopher Bridger at all.Then something struck Lily; to use Ashley’s phone to get across to the old maid! Why didn’t she even think of that all this while? She could not believe that she had allowed something as helpful as that escape her memory. She did not have enough time now, as the weekend event is just a few weeks away. Lily knew that Hedge wasn’t joking when he made a threat to Christopher’s life, because if he could release the sex video he had of Ashley, then he could certainly try to kill Christopher.The thought of it sent shivers down Lily’s spine.Thankfully, the old maid’s phone rang, and Lily waited with desperate anticipation for her to pick up.“Please pick up. Please pick up,” Lily prayed, and eventuall
Lily could not stop thinking about what she read and the possibility of what might be. The thought of it made her really scared and confused.Was Ashley’s body found? What truly happened that made Don Grander and Emily believe that their daughter was dead?These questions disturbed Lily’s mind as Christopher’s driver drove her to Don Grander’s house. She would have loved to ask Don Grander these questions, but she knew him too well now. She knew that talking to him about it would raise suspicions, and if it did, he might want to get rid of her. The only person that Lily could have been able to ask without fear was the old maid, but she had been fired, and Lily did not know where to find her.“I have to find her by every means possible,” Lily told herself.Don Grander had to be the worst parent that Lily had ever known. How could a man treat his own daughter like that? Lily’s father might be dead, but when he was alive, he loved, provided for, and fiercely protected their mother along