NOVAI checked the time on the wall clock, heaving in disappointment. Why wasn't he back home? It was late enough. Sighing, I got up from the sofa, and paced the floor, occasionally twirling my lustrous blonde hair. I was unable to contain my excitement despite the disappointment. Today happened to be our second wedding anniversary, and I have wonderful news for my husband. One I couldn't wait to share with him.I had just sat down on a loveseat when I heard his car drive into the property.The sound of the door opening caused me to rise. Despite my anger at him returning late, I placed a smile on my face. At least he remembered to return home to me.Dashiell staggered into the sitting room and tossed his suitcase on the floor. His jacket was nowhere to be found, and his shirt was unbuttoned, almost to the fifth one.He looked towards me, his emerald eyes burning with a ferocity I knew too much. He was drunk.“Welcome back,” I said with a forced smile as I walked towards him. Dashiell
The sound echoed in my ears as I stared at the door. Powerless. Tired. Hurt. Different emotions went through me, but more was the feeling of disappointment. How did it turn out this way? It was supposed to be perfect. I had planned everything, from how I would break the good news to him as we ate dinner, only for him to dash my hopes like it was nothing. Wiping the tears from my face, I reached for my bedside drawer and removed the test results from it. Staring at it, I recalled how happy I was at the news. After two years of marriage, I was finally pregnant. And I thought this would bring his heart closer to me. I didn't blame him for all that happened over the years. Just like me, he was driven into this marriage after we had a one-night stand. Which was why I felt having this baby would smoothen things over for us. I believed he would start treating me better than before, but at that moment, I couldn't see any hope in that. Not with the divorce paper staring at me. Clutchin
DASHIELLI frowned at the phone, wondering what it was she wanted to tell me. It didn't sound like she had signed the papers, since she didn't reply to my question when I asked. Puzzled, I ran my fingers through my hair. Nova was such a difficult nut to crack.“Who was it?” Lilith demanded the moment I dropped the phone, running her manicured fingers on my chest.“No one important.” I reached towards her and brought her face closer, so I could place a kiss on her cheeks. “It's no one,” I repeated.I wasn't lying about that. Nova was no one to me. I was only with her because of her conniving plans. Had she not gotten her family involved after she promised to let things slide, I wouldn't have been stuck with her.“No one important?” She pouted, peering down at me as she was sitting on the table while I rested on my chair. “Why do you look stressed after that call? Was it from your wife?”She called the word wife as if it stank.“Mm.” I nodded, tossing the phone to my table. There was no
NOVAI prepared dinner for tonight, knowing he would be hungry since I didn't send any lunch to him today. I wasn't as excited as I was last night because I knew that whatever happened tonight would make or mar our future.The moment I heard the door open, I got up from the couch, gulping, when he came into focus. He had changed out of the blue shirt he wore this afternoon when I went to his office.Frowning, I wondered how he got a change of clothes. Did he buy it or…“What do you wish to inform me about?” He demanded as he dropped his briefcase on the table, glaring. “Where are the papers? Have you signed it?”“Don't you at least need to sit?” I asked, forcing a smile. I would lie if I said his words didn't hurt. He made it sound as if being a moment with me was work.“Not when I have something important to do,” he snapped, with his eyes narrowed at me. “I know how tremendous at tricks you are, Nova, and I'm not ready for any of that. Where are the papers?”I gulped. This wasn't ho
Stunned, I could only watch as he carried me up the stairs. I expected him to walk over to my room like he had always done, but Dashiell, always full of surprises, carried me towards his room.A gasp left me when he opened his door. “This isn't my room,” I whispered“I know," he responded as he stepped in and closed the door with his feet before he carried me over to his bed.For the first time since we got married, he placed me on his bed. His room had always been off-limits to me. He warned me never to step into it, and I obeyed him.“We are in your room,” I repeated, hoping he would realize we were in his room since he seemed not to be in his right mind.“I know.” Smiling, he placed a kiss on my forehead. "Haven't you always desired to be brought in here?”“I have, but….” I gulped, looking up at him as I tried to tell myself I wasn't dreaming, that this was happening. “You haven't brought me to your room before,” I whispered, trying not to break whatever spell I had held him with.
He changed after that night, shocking me more than anything else. I wondered how someone could have a 180-degree turn in a night. At first, I assumed this was his ploy to get me to let my guard down, for him to strike, but nothing happened.I watched him for a week, waiting for it.Dashiell, who had always stayed late in the office, started returning early. Just like now. I had just finished making dinner when I heard the front door opening.“I'm back,” he announced as he walked into the kitchen.I turned to watch him, grinning as he strode over to me. He didn't hug me. He knelt in front of me and placed a kiss on my tummy. “How is my darling?” He rubbed my stomach, smiling. “Dad is back, did you miss me?”I felt a pang at his words and actions, knowing I didn't matter to him. The only reason he was doing this was because of the baby.I knew why. When I visited Mama Kaka today, she told me about his grandfather's will. Having this baby would mean he has to secure the other part of hi
DASHIELLI twirled the pen in my hand as I went through the lists for the summer gala.A knock on the door interrupted me. Lilith walked in with a smile, holding a mug of coffee in hand as she strode over to me. “Hello, Darling.”“Oh.” I blinked, smiling as I got up from my chair. “Hello, sweetheart. How was your trip?” I stepped around the table, to her side.“I'm not happy, you realise that, right???” She dropped the coffee on my desk before turning to confront me, pouting.“Why?” Puzzled, I watched her walk over to me and wrap her hands around my waist. She placed her head on my chest and peered up at me.“Why didn't you call me during my trip? I was expecting your calls, you know?” She pursed her lips, sulking like a kid.“Oh, that?” I smiled as I removed some strands of hair from her face. “I figured you were busy, which was why I didn't call.”“Busy?” She removed her head from my chest and stepped back, frowning. “How busy could I have been not to pick up your calls?” She asked
NOVAI locked the door, and left the house, waving at the security men by the gate as I hurried out. Though Dashiell asked me to let one of them drive me to Mama Kaka's house, I opted to use a taxi. This way, I could walk a little, to exercise before heading over to her house. I had just walked a distance from the house when a red Camaro stopped in front of me. Frowning, I walked past it, humming under my breath. A few steps away from the car, I heard my name.Whirling around, a scowl came over my face when I noticed who it was. Lilith, the bitch. She was leaning on the hood of the red Camaro, twirling the keys in her right index as her gaze levelled on me. I could see the contempt in that stare. She looked like she was sizing me up to know where to start from."What's it? What are you doing here?" I demanded, surprised to see her close to the house. Was meeting Dashiell in the office not enough for her?"Dashiell sent me to pick you up," she said so casually like this was something
Brion was discharged three days later. Unlike the past few days, he could stand now without being tired or helped. The doctors believe he will recover well at home. After getting discharged, I took him and the kids back home. Dashiell was still getting treatments. They would have discharged him with Brion had it not been for his legs. The doctors wanted to keep him in the hospital for a week more, to check on his recovery. I just prayed everything would work out perfectly. Two weeks later, I drove him back home. Amaya came over to stay in the hospital with him so I could return to work. We had been gone for days, and the shareholders were making snide remarks about it, so I had to return to take care of the office while he recovered. The past few weeks have been a busy one for me. There were piles of work waiting on my desk for me when I returned, and I had to also combine it with Dashiell's. Had it not been for Benita's help, I would have drowned in work. She was such a darling, h
The doctor removed the IV drip before I could visit Dashiell. Ben led me by the hand, keeping me steady as he took me over to the room. Brion and the kids hadn't been alerted yet, so they didn't know we were back. My phone was off, so I hadn't gotten a call from him — yet. However, I knew it was only a matter of time before he called the police to report about me.The moment I opened the door, my eyes locked with that of a shocked man. Emerald eyes bore into mine the second I stepped into the room. "Nova?” He whispered, his voice shaky. He looked like he was imagining me because he lifted his right index and rubbed furiously on his eyes before it landed on me. “You are real?”I nodded, as tears rolled down my eyes. Dashiell was a shell of himself. Just a few days in captivity, and he had gotten so lean, I hardly recognized him. His skin was pale, almost translucent, and his cheekbones jutted out sharply. I was frozen, staring at my lover, and imagining how much he had suffered to l
When I came to, I was lying on a bed. The scent of disinfectant in the room made me realize where I was. I slowly sat up, grimacing at the pain in my arm. I had a bandage wrapped around my biceps, one that was stained with blood.The monitor next to me beeped as if it could sense my discomfort. Wincing, I leaned on the bed as I looked around the empty room. From the looks of it, Ben took me to the clinic I left Brion in. Heaving out a breath, I closed my eyes as images of the last time I was awake assaulted me. A knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. Snapping my eyes open, I looked towards it as it opened and Ben stepped in. “Thank God you are awake,” he said as he walked over to my bed and sat beside me, relief etched on his face. “Welcome back. You've been out for hours.”"Hours?" rubbed my temples, trying to clear the fog. “What of Gabriella?”“Dead. You did a pretty good number on her. The police have agreed to rule it out as self-defence. As she was an offender, it's not
“Where is Dashiell?” I asked after a few seconds, still wondering why she hadn't attacked me. I figured all it would take was a little talk before we get down to business. “Dashiell?” She made a face at that before a knowing smirk took over. Getting up, she glanced towards the stairs, which seemed like it had seen better days. The stairs didn't look like they would last for another year before caving in. Just like the rest of the house, it was dying — most times, I always believed houses were entities. She snapped her fingers and three men appeared from a door behind where she stood, their chest bare, showing off muscles that must have taken years to build. My heart skipped as I gripped the pistol in my hoodie tighter. I knew it was about time for the fight. But I doubt I could take the men on. Gabriella alone? I could. “Do you assume the gun you hid in your hoodie will help you, darling?” She smiled, her eyes crinkling at the sides. "How?" I was dumbstruck by the question. “How
It looked just like the place someone as shady as Zoey would be. As I approached, I noticed the overgrown yard and weeds sprouting through cracks in the pavement. Nature had reclaimed the property, wrapping vines around the porch pillars. I slowed my pace, my senses on high alert. Something felt off. Though Ben's hidden presence reassured me, my heart continued to thud like a bass drum in my chest. I took a deep breath and stepped onto the porch, the wooden boards groaning beneath my feet. The door creaked as I pushed it open, and I called out, “I'm here.” My voice echoed through the empty corridor. At first, nothing happened, until I heard a rather familiar voice asking me to come forward. I looked back at the place Ben was likely hiding in before I fully stepped in and closed the falling door. I shivered as I walked forward, guided by the dim lighting in the hallway before I arrived in the sitting room. A figure sat perched on one of the sofas, the minute I walked in. “Hell
I got dressed for the operation. We didn't return to the hospital because I didn't think it was necessary. Brion would undoubtedly try to talk me out of my plans, which was why I didn't attempt a return there, not until we had gotten everything sorted. Today, I vowed, would be the day I bring Dashiell back home. He had stayed too long with Zoey. It was time for him to return, to his home, to me and the kids.“Ready?” Ben turned to me, lifting a brow, when I stepped out of the motel I checked into to change out of my clothes. I had a bulletproof vest under a hoodie.To cover my guns, I stuffed them into the pockets of my hoodie, waiting until I got an excellent location to conceal them. “Ready,” I confirmed, adjusting my hoodie to ensure the bulletproof vest wasn't visible. “Well, as ready as I can, for a dangerous mission,” I added with a smile. Though I was feeling as nervous as hell, and it felt like my heart was about to leap from my chest, I acted like I was okay. Yeah, perfectly
Suddenly, I was moving, being pulled towards a police car. Officer Maxwell's hands were still on my shoulders, guiding me into the back seat.As we sped away from the scene, I felt like my world was crashing down around me. My thoughts were all over the place. The drive to the hospital seemed like an eternity. It felt as if someone trapped me in a nightmare, one I was unable to wake up from.As we arrived at the hospital, I saw chaos. Police cars and ambulances were everywhere. People were running, shouting.I felt like I was going to throw up.After parking the car in the only space he could find, Officer Maxwell guided me out of the car. I stumbled, my legs weak. I wasn't physically weak, more like my emotions were getting the better of me. Thankfully, Brion was outside. However, my eyes were drawn to the little ones with him. The tears I didn't know I was holding back rolled down my eyes as I rushed towards them, feeling suddenly energetic. I knelt in front of my kids, hugging th
I complied, lying flat on the ground as the officers approached. They quickly subdued the third man, who was still trying to escape, and took the others away. I laid on the ground, thinking of a way out, until I looked up and saw Officer Maxwell walking over to me with a frown on his face. “Is that you, Nova?” He demanded, closing the distance between us. At his approach, the police officers standing around me made way for him, each watching him intently.He reached down and helped me up from the ground, passing a handkerchief to me so I could wipe the dirt. Smiling, I took it from him and started cleaning the dirt on my body. From hiding behind the bush to lying flat on the ground, I looked like a mess, like I barely survived. “Do you know how dangerous your moves were, Nova? You could have gotten yourself hit?!” He yelled at my face the moment I finished cleaning up. “Why are you so damned reckless??!”“I didn't get killed, did I?” I lifted my shoulders in a shrug, acting like I
“Are you really going there alone?” Brion lifted a brow, watching me get dressed for the assignment. Surely you're joking, right? Are you messing with me? I should have known that was what you were doing.”"Not in the slightest. I am heading out solo. I still have my gun with me, remember? If it turns out to be a trap, I will shoot those damned bastards right in their eyes. He must have found the promise in my gaze amusing, as he chuckled and covered his mouth with his right hand. “Though what you said right there is funny, we can't ignore the enormous elephant in the room. That is far too massive for that. You, Nova, aren't going anywhere without informing the police. I don't want to lose you, and I know the kids don't. We still need you, and —”“You are making this sound dramatic.” I rolled my eyes at him as I checked my reflection in the mirror. I didn't dress up. I just changed my style. Instead of the beautiful flowery gown I wore this morning, it was now a black shirt and blac