“Cayden, they are bringing Tori to her suite.”
Cayden stirred from his nap after Alicia nudged him on the shoulder. He opened his eyes and gazed at his stepmother.
He nodded and rose to his feet, following Alicia and Marcus walking ahead of him.
Their company reached the floor of Tori’s bedroom.
“The patient is still asleep from sedation, but you can stay in her room. Would you like to come in?” The nurse asked when they stopped in front of Tori’s room.
Alicia nodded, preceding the nurse who opened the door for them.
Inside, Cayden looked around. He could see that Alicia placed Tori in one of the exclusive rooms. It has all the amenities of a VIP room with a television, a WIFI connection, and a couch. It also has a small kitchen in the corner with a mini-refrigerator.
Cayden went to it and helped himself to a bottle of water. He sudde
Five years later. “Five minutes,” Wyoming grumbled groggily when someone nudged her shoulders, trying desperately to rouse her from sleep. She turned to the side to avoid being distracted from the precious shut-eye. The hands seemed persistent. They did not budge and instead tried to disturb another part of her body to elicit some response from her.It chose the back of her ears, targeting her ticklish point. Wyoming twitched, involuntary laughter coming out of her mouth, pulling away from those determined fingers as they searched the most sensitive part of her body. At the same time, she felt little lips kissing her exposed cheek. The lips felt soft and wet with saliva. “Ew!”Wyoming groaned, wiping her wet cheek with the back of her hand. “Connor, stop it. Mommy’s awake.” She held the little hands between hers and sat up in bed groggily, her eyes fixed on the little man scowling before her. “I had been trying to wake you up since breakfast, but you refuse to open your
“You’re spacing out,” Collins commented when he noticed her staring into space. A frown creased the smooth skin of her forehead. Wyoming stirred as if coming out of a deep slumber. She turned her head to face Collins, a question mark forming on her expression. When she saw the way he looked at her, she collected herself appearing nonchalant, and continued busying herself with her food. “It’s nothing.” She said and fixed her gaze on her plate. Collins studied her profile. Wyoming felt self-conscious. She knew Collins did not take his eyes off her, watching her like a hawk while she fiddled with her cutlery. It was disconcerting, having someone watch you unabashedly. Before, she did not mind Collins’ undivided attention. As a doctor, he used to observe her littlest movement, studying her responses and checking her overall condition. Lately, she felt differently. The way he looked at her affected her more than she wanted to admit. “Come on mom, eat up so we can leave the hou
“I can’t believe it! This feels all surreal.” Wyoming whispered to herself when she, Collins, and Connor stepped foot at the John F. Kennedy International Airport. Her eyes raked in her surroundings, drinking in the sight of the busy airport as people bustled about coming out of terminal 4. “This feels like a dream.” She commented yet again when they went to the carousel to claim their luggage. Collins glanced at her amused, while she watched the carousel for their travel bags.She spotted her medium-sized pink luggage at the same time Collins did and he pulled it out for her. He also pulled out Connor’s Spiderman rolling suitcase and lastly, his own travel bag.She felt a tug on her hand and looked down to see Connor looking up at her expectantly. “Mom, don't forget we are going to visit the Ellish Films studios.” her son reminded her. Wyoming nodded, pitching Connor on the nose. He looked quite adorable looking like an adult in his sneakers, white shirt, and small backpack.
The morning passed by quickly. Cayden focused on familiarizing himself with the operations of Ellish Films these past years. Though the concept for the expansion had been his brainchild, the implementor was his father, Marcus with the help of his best friend and the company’s COO James. He studied the company’s annual financial report, seeing that there had been a tremendous leap from when he abandoned the helm of its management.The intercom buzzed. He picked it up and listened as Thea spoke on the other end. “Sir, your grandfather is here.” After giving orders to Thea to let his grandfather in, he gathered the documents atop his table and placed them in the corner. “Daddy!” The little girl about five years old, holding his grandfather’s hand, pulled her hand away to run up to him when she saw him waiting with his arm wide open. Cayden picked up the child. “Ugh!” He grunted when he caught the child, holding her close to his face so he could inhale her sweet baby scent. “Who a
Cayden pulled his car to a stop. His eyes swept over the dashboard and accidentally saw the time. He was running late, and Tori is probably venting expletives in her mind right now. Worse, she’s dying to get her hands on his neck and strangle him. He was, after all, late for almost an hour. He had hoped to come in earlier than Tori, considering that he usually held her up, but the traffic had been a b*tch. He did not expect to be caught in a jam. The usual ten minutes it takes him to come here had been lengthened to an hour.He locked the car and jogged a few steps to the building. He hopes Tori would not mind him coming late this time, but that would be wishful thinking on his part. Tori, over the years, had become quite a stickler with time. Maybe, it had something to do with having a child. Children do not wait, she would often lecture him, openly nagging him when he comes in late for their appointments. Just as he was about to turn away from his car, he saw from his p
Ellish Towers.“Mr. Ellish, your eleven o’clock appointment is here,” Thea announced after ringing him a while ago. Cayden pushed his chair back to meet his visitor. “Mr. Goldman, it had been so long since we last met. So nice to see you.” Cayden spoke with confidence as he welcomed Lance Goldman inside his office. The short, bald man does not look like an executive of a television network. He had no air about him, and when you look at his eyes, they danced merrily like he knew the secret that could make the world dance to his tune. He may look ordinary, but the man is extraordinarily cunning in business. A genius in his field, and it had been to Ellish Films' advantage that Goldman Enterprises wanted to partner with him on Ellish Films’ newest venture. He had been up all night, studying the proposal made by Goldman Enterprises for partnering with them. They are bringing their animated movies to television, creating a series for syndication worldwide. It was a gargantuan mov
“What was that all about?” Lance Goldman inquired after Kate Ryder disappeared from their sight. Cayden shot him an apologetic look, speechless, still trying to wrap his head around the possibility that Wyoming lives.She did not die in that plane crash!Contrary to the final report issued by the international investigating body and the airlines themselves, Wyoming did not perish on that flight to London. She survived the crash and lived!The excitement caused a spark to twinkle in his eyes. He paced the floor of his office, not knowing what to do. From time to time, he looks at his phone, expecting reports from his security. He was itching to see her. For years, he had suffered silently, bearing the loss of her. His conscience gnawed at him since he knew that it was he who drove her away. He also suffered John’s cold treatment. Wyoming’s death caused a rift so wide in their families, precipitating an estrangement. John severed all ties with his family. Then an idea surface
When Wyoming’s eyes collided with the stranger’s familiar dark orbs, something clicked in her brain. She was reminded of a niggling dream where those same orbs figured incessantly, somehow knowing that the owners of those eyes had something to do with her forgotten past. Wyoming felt her body frozen. The ringing in her ears grew louder. Then her faint hoarse voice mixed with the loud sounds, creating a discordant note in her head. She did not know what happened next as she fell into oblivion, only resurfacing from a deep sleep a few hours later. She opened her eyes and cringed when she saw her surroundings, knowing instinctively where she was. She hated this place. For years, Collins prods her, cajoles her, and threatens her to meet her doctor’s appointment, but every time she does, an ache fills her knowing that another visit means another feeling of failure on her part. “Her blood tests and brain imaging report said she suffers from amnesia.” She heard someone speak