Aimee Landon had taken it upon herself to hire stylists for Christopher’s dress fittings for the party. This was often the job of Trisha, but now that Trisha had been fired and Christopher was yet to get a replacement, Aimee gladly took it upon herself. “He must look dashing and impeccable, and no one in that party must come any close!” Aimee barked orders at the stylists as they styled Christopher in his bedroom. Another reason Aimee was over the moon with joy was because this gave her the opportunity to not just be in Christopher’s house, but in his room for the very first time. Usually, Christopher should have been styled at their studio, but because Aimee wanted this rare opportunity, she paid them extra to come to the house and style Christopher. Christopher was not comfortable with the idea of it; he preferred to go to their studio to get styled, because he hated having strangers in his mansion, but Aimee managed to talk him into accepting. “I think they are doing a good job,
Lily paced about in her room.“I have to do something,” she said to herself frantically. “I can’t just stay locked up here without knowing what is going on,” Lily thought deeply. “What is Don Grander was referring to Joe?” Lily shuddered at the thought of that.She knew she had to do something…or try, at least.Lily gently opened the door and looked around the aisle left and right, and she saw no one. Maybe Don Grander and Emily had forgotten about her, because aside from eavesdropping on their conversation, she had not heard Emily’s voice around.Taking the risk, Lily tiptoed downstairs, careful not to be seen. In the living room, she sighed in relief when she noticed that no one was there. Then swiftly, she made her way to the kitchen. Fortunately for Lily, she saw the old maid chopping some vegetables, but then again, the reserved one was also there.“Ashley,” the old maid called when they both turned and saw Lily.There was something about the reserved maid that made Lily quite un
“Are you there now?” Don Grander asked Monk.Monk sat in his car outside the hospital as he talked with Don Grander over the phone. He had just arrived, but he knew that he could not stay parked in that spot longer than necessary.“All you have to do is get in there, get access to his word, and smother him,” Monk rehearsed the whole process that he had cooked up in his head over and over again.This was a government hospital, and he knew that what he was about to do was very risky. If he got caught, he would rot in jail. Monk never shied away from assigned duties, but he wished that Don Grander had assigned the same person he hired to find out if Benedict died or not to simply complete the task.“Yes, I just got here,” Monk answered, grounding his teeth.He looked around the premises and everyone went about their businesses innocently. His eyes fell on the hospital’s entrance, and Monk swallowed hard. The state government never took lightly to crimes, and Monk knew the consequences. H
Lily was glad that she had been able to get back to her room without getting caught even though her attempts were futile. It was not until she was back in her room and pacing around again that she remembered that she could have called Rudney. “Gosh, Lily! How could you forget such a thing?!” Lily berated herself. The one person that would have picked up was Rudney, and yet, she did not remember to call him and ask about Joe. Anyway, Lily blamed it on the fact that she was agitated and also trying to hurry up. Then her mind went to her call to Christopher. “It has just been a couple of days that I have been away, and he is already going about with Aimee,” I said to myself jealously. Since when did Christopher start giving his phone to Aimee as though she was his secretary, and what were they doing together at that time? Lily had heard soft music playing in the background; were they out on a date? Lily scoffed. “Christopher never cared about me…or Ashley, and coming here was just
Lily could not tear her eyes off the TV. Christopher and Aimee looked like the perfect power couple, and a pang of jealousy shot through my veins. First, it was Aimee picking up Christopher’s call, and now, they were both attending the same party together. From the guests shown on TV, it was obvious that it was an elite party, and Lily could not deny how impeccably handsome Christopher looked. Among all the people in the crowd, Lily’s eyes continued to pick Christopher out, but then again, seeing him also meant that she would see Aimee glued to his side possessively.“Do you see what you have caused?” Emily’s voice rang out, cutting through the moment as she made her way downstairs.I turned quickly and looked at Emily, fear enveloping me all over again. For a moment, watching Christopher, Lily had almost forgotten her current predicament.“I…it’s…” I stuttered, not knowing what to say.Emily came and stood beside Lily, and Lily cowered in fright, thinking that Emily was going to gra
I am Ashley Grander. I am wild and reckless. I have been to many countries like…” Lily began to read through nuggets about Ashley that Emily had given her.“You will have to start from the beginning and relearn everything, and commit the new ones to memory, because if you fail again this time around, you will not be punished; you will be killed,” Emily had told her as she handed the piece of paper to Lily.So Lily had gone back to Ashley’s bedroom and had begun to digest everything written in the paper with vigor and determination, but her mind kept drifting back to Christopher and Aimee at the party. Something good had obviously happened to Christopher Bridger, but Lily could not think about it without thinking about Aimee.“That is your next assignment.”Those were Emily’s words, and Lily knew now more than ever before that she could not fail. She dared not fail otherwise she would not only die, but Joe would also die. Lily now worried less about Joe, because no one had mentioned a
The party had ended about an hour ago, but Christopher was stilled held back shaking hands with men that mattered most in the countries, and already signing business deal.It was a new dawn for the Bridger Empire.As Aimee stood by and watched, she could not help but smile. Yes, she loved Christopher Bridger deeply, but now, she loved him ten times more. It swelled her heart watching him climb that stage, and more, that she was right there with him.“As it should be,” Aimee said to herself.She wondered why Christopher couldn’t see that she was his perfect match. Ashley would not have known the next thing to being Christopher’s anchor for tonight if she had been available, and Aimee was more than happy that she had had to do a little dirty act just to get this moment for herself and Christopher.She smiled triumphantly as she watched Christopher interact with people whose deals were capable of shooting up his company as her mind drifted to what she had had to do for him to earn it.Wh
“Are you almost done?” Lily Bashwood asked Rudney as she glanced at her watch for the fifth time in three minutes and tapped her foot against the magnolia floor of Top Taste Wine shop.“Hey, um, could you spare me another fifteen minutes? I just need to wrap this up real quick and we will be good to go,” Rudney said.But Lily checked the time again; if she waited on Rudney, she would not be able to catch her brother’s baseball practice, and it would really break his heart.“Honestly, Rudney, it’s fine. We could always do this tomorrow. You don’t have to walk me to the bus station every freaking evening,” Lily tried to dissuade Rudney.The look on his face indicated that he did not want Lily to be on her own. “I could be really fast,” Rudney pressed.“Sorry!” Lily said stubbornly as she opened the door to the shop and walked into the street. She was not a baby that needed babysitting, and one day, she hoped that Rudney would understand that. Lily walked towards the bus station, whistl
The party had ended about an hour ago, but Christopher was stilled held back shaking hands with men that mattered most in the countries, and already signing business deal.It was a new dawn for the Bridger Empire.As Aimee stood by and watched, she could not help but smile. Yes, she loved Christopher Bridger deeply, but now, she loved him ten times more. It swelled her heart watching him climb that stage, and more, that she was right there with him.“As it should be,” Aimee said to herself.She wondered why Christopher couldn’t see that she was his perfect match. Ashley would not have known the next thing to being Christopher’s anchor for tonight if she had been available, and Aimee was more than happy that she had had to do a little dirty act just to get this moment for herself and Christopher.She smiled triumphantly as she watched Christopher interact with people whose deals were capable of shooting up his company as her mind drifted to what she had had to do for him to earn it.Wh
I am Ashley Grander. I am wild and reckless. I have been to many countries like…” Lily began to read through nuggets about Ashley that Emily had given her.“You will have to start from the beginning and relearn everything, and commit the new ones to memory, because if you fail again this time around, you will not be punished; you will be killed,” Emily had told her as she handed the piece of paper to Lily.So Lily had gone back to Ashley’s bedroom and had begun to digest everything written in the paper with vigor and determination, but her mind kept drifting back to Christopher and Aimee at the party. Something good had obviously happened to Christopher Bridger, but Lily could not think about it without thinking about Aimee.“That is your next assignment.”Those were Emily’s words, and Lily knew now more than ever before that she could not fail. She dared not fail otherwise she would not only die, but Joe would also die. Lily now worried less about Joe, because no one had mentioned a
Lily could not tear her eyes off the TV. Christopher and Aimee looked like the perfect power couple, and a pang of jealousy shot through my veins. First, it was Aimee picking up Christopher’s call, and now, they were both attending the same party together. From the guests shown on TV, it was obvious that it was an elite party, and Lily could not deny how impeccably handsome Christopher looked. Among all the people in the crowd, Lily’s eyes continued to pick Christopher out, but then again, seeing him also meant that she would see Aimee glued to his side possessively.“Do you see what you have caused?” Emily’s voice rang out, cutting through the moment as she made her way downstairs.I turned quickly and looked at Emily, fear enveloping me all over again. For a moment, watching Christopher, Lily had almost forgotten her current predicament.“I…it’s…” I stuttered, not knowing what to say.Emily came and stood beside Lily, and Lily cowered in fright, thinking that Emily was going to gra
Lily was glad that she had been able to get back to her room without getting caught even though her attempts were futile. It was not until she was back in her room and pacing around again that she remembered that she could have called Rudney. “Gosh, Lily! How could you forget such a thing?!” Lily berated herself. The one person that would have picked up was Rudney, and yet, she did not remember to call him and ask about Joe. Anyway, Lily blamed it on the fact that she was agitated and also trying to hurry up. Then her mind went to her call to Christopher. “It has just been a couple of days that I have been away, and he is already going about with Aimee,” I said to myself jealously. Since when did Christopher start giving his phone to Aimee as though she was his secretary, and what were they doing together at that time? Lily had heard soft music playing in the background; were they out on a date? Lily scoffed. “Christopher never cared about me…or Ashley, and coming here was just
“Are you there now?” Don Grander asked Monk.Monk sat in his car outside the hospital as he talked with Don Grander over the phone. He had just arrived, but he knew that he could not stay parked in that spot longer than necessary.“All you have to do is get in there, get access to his word, and smother him,” Monk rehearsed the whole process that he had cooked up in his head over and over again.This was a government hospital, and he knew that what he was about to do was very risky. If he got caught, he would rot in jail. Monk never shied away from assigned duties, but he wished that Don Grander had assigned the same person he hired to find out if Benedict died or not to simply complete the task.“Yes, I just got here,” Monk answered, grounding his teeth.He looked around the premises and everyone went about their businesses innocently. His eyes fell on the hospital’s entrance, and Monk swallowed hard. The state government never took lightly to crimes, and Monk knew the consequences. H
Lily paced about in her room.“I have to do something,” she said to herself frantically. “I can’t just stay locked up here without knowing what is going on,” Lily thought deeply. “What is Don Grander was referring to Joe?” Lily shuddered at the thought of that.She knew she had to do something…or try, at least.Lily gently opened the door and looked around the aisle left and right, and she saw no one. Maybe Don Grander and Emily had forgotten about her, because aside from eavesdropping on their conversation, she had not heard Emily’s voice around.Taking the risk, Lily tiptoed downstairs, careful not to be seen. In the living room, she sighed in relief when she noticed that no one was there. Then swiftly, she made her way to the kitchen. Fortunately for Lily, she saw the old maid chopping some vegetables, but then again, the reserved one was also there.“Ashley,” the old maid called when they both turned and saw Lily.There was something about the reserved maid that made Lily quite un
Aimee Landon had taken it upon herself to hire stylists for Christopher’s dress fittings for the party. This was often the job of Trisha, but now that Trisha had been fired and Christopher was yet to get a replacement, Aimee gladly took it upon herself. “He must look dashing and impeccable, and no one in that party must come any close!” Aimee barked orders at the stylists as they styled Christopher in his bedroom. Another reason Aimee was over the moon with joy was because this gave her the opportunity to not just be in Christopher’s house, but in his room for the very first time. Usually, Christopher should have been styled at their studio, but because Aimee wanted this rare opportunity, she paid them extra to come to the house and style Christopher. Christopher was not comfortable with the idea of it; he preferred to go to their studio to get styled, because he hated having strangers in his mansion, but Aimee managed to talk him into accepting. “I think they are doing a good job,
Lily felt better than she had been, and for days now, she hadn’t set eyes on Don Grander or Emily. She wondered if they had forgotten that she was here. She also wished that Christopher would come again to take her away from here. Lily got up from Ashley’s bed and checked herself in the dressing mirror. Her face, arms, and legs were the same, but her back was filled with scars from Don Grander’s whips. As Lily managed to look at the scars in the mirror, tears began to flow from her eyes. Never in her life had she experienced this depth of pain, much more being scarred by it, and Lily regretted the day that Monk had seen and kidnapped her. “If I had just waited for Rudney like he pleaded with me to, I would not be here right now,” Lily said as she sobbed bitterly and regrettably. Then her mind instantly went to Joe! She had been so immersed in pain that she did not remember to think about Joe. The last time she had tried to ask Monk about him, she did not get a response. Ashley
Benedict opened his eyes when he heard the door opening; it was the nurse that was coming to give him his medication.“Good day, Mr. Benedict,” she greeted warmly. “It is so good to see that you are awake. How are you feeling?” She asked.“How long have I been here?” Benedict asked.The last thing he remembered was that he was lured out of the bar he usually frequented in his drunken state and then he was hit by a bullet before he could even fathom what was going on. He might have been drunk, but Benedict knew for a fact that someone had shot at him and almost gotten him killed.Only that he was not fortunate or quick enough to see who that was.“About a week now,” she answered as she went on to check Benedict’s vitals.Benedict tried to turn, but he felt a jarring pain shoot through his left arm. “Ouch!” He groaned in pain.“Take it easy, Mr. Benedict, you are still healing,” she told him.Then she picked out the drugs he was supposed to take, gave them to him, and gave them to Bened