THEA"You should go home to rest, I'd watch over her." Sebastian must have said that five times before I agreed to him to stay back while I go home to take a relaxed nap. The hospital didn't have what it takes to having a stress free sleep.At last, I agreed and went home. In less than five hours, Lily was back home. Sebastian said she was fine and the doctors said that there was no reason to keep the girl waiting. The moment I held her in my arms again, I felt a sense of overwhelming love and protectiveness. However, along with these emotions came an intense fear that gripped my heart. I couldn't shake the thought that my daughter could have spent more days in the hospital, or that something terrible could happen to her at any moment.The pain was so excruciating that it brought tears to my eyes. I couldn't bear the loss of Lily, she had been my driving force, the one why I know all things are possible. Because while I had nothing, she was there, she was growing and was smiling, she
THEACora picked the perfect dress to suit my skin tone and still give me that glow. I wasn't the biggest fan of red, but this maroon satin dress said otherwise. It had a large slit in the front that went from my upper thigh all the way down to my legs. The back was strapped with ropes that weren't tight, knotted in a beautiful pattern. The silver chain had a shiny moon pendant that matched my earrings, and the entire look was a showcase of royalty. Cora clapped her hands together as I got out of the dressing room. My little baby Lisa also jumped and clapped, like she'd seen her favorite cartoon character. I could tell she was also excited about the dress. She ran from the corner to come hug me. "I love this one, mummy." She said smiling with all her teeth. I bent to lift her up into my arms."My precious jewel, and mummy loves you. Shouldn't you be in bed, dear?" I asked her. She placed her head on my shoulders without answering me. She must have still been weak from all the treatmen
TYLERParty in Manhattan never goes wrong.Upon entering the party, I was immediately struck by the grandeur of the venue. The space was elegantly decorated with opulent chandeliers I was sure was imported from Italy, the exquisite floral arrangements, and tasteful artwork adorning the walls. The atmosphere, vibrant and filled with lively conversations, laughter, and music.I took note of the large number of attendees present at the party. The room, bustling with people from all walks of life, many of whom I recognise and have done bussiness with. This diverse crowd includes successful entrepreneurs, influential celebrities, respected politicians, and accomplished professionals from various fields.I knew this kind of party would bring in more reputable investors, and damn, I need them in my bussiness, so I got myself a fashion wear to look as good as possible, even if it means ruining my bank account. I choosed an outfit that exudes sophistication and style. I went for a tailored bla
TYLERWho cares if Thea Andrew treats them like that? Well, it's me.I stumbled into my apartment and tossed away my tuxedo jacket, the weight of the night heavy on my shoulders. The party had been a blur of laughter, music, and flashing lights, but now that I was alone in the silence of my own space, thoughts of Thea consumed me unwillingly.I managed to get to my room and collapsed onto the bed, feeling the exhaustion seep into my bones. My eyes was opened for a while until I laid flat, trying to decipher what just happened today.She was filthy rich, fucking rich! And, I dare not think she accumulated so much by herself. She couldn't dare, she left without nothing and if not for my money and her fake name, she wouldn't have lived up till now. But, looking at her, I knew she worth more than she ever did, she was rich. To be invited to that party means she must be known amongst the rich. Was it her husband that was rich? Or she came with a male friend? Even though, no man will adore
THEAI almost couldn't say that to him, when he came closer, everything was awakened again - the locked up need to wrap my arms around him and beg him to make love to me just as he did five years ago. It was an uncontrollable desire that I had felt also last night when I saw him, but I survived.Lord! He had changed, now he looked good looking, neat and even his voice was deeper, richer and full of life. I just couldn't help but appreciate his looks and I hated myself for even loving anything about him. I wished I could stamp his face and rain curses on him, I wished I could paint him bad before those investors. I knew the better half of all the investors, and I could make them not invest in his business but I wasn't so bad. Although, I hated him, seeing him again last night and him daring to walk up to me, asking me how I was surprised me.At that moment, I wanted to kill him, I wanted him to drop dead. He had the guts, the audacity to walk up to me, thinking I was going to talk nice
THEAAs I drove into the garage and stepped through the front door of my house, a wave of exhaustion washed over me. The weight of the day's events pressed heavily on my shoulders like Hercules body weight threatening to crush me under its damned burden. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes as I went up the stairs, it was threatening to spill over and betray the facade of strength I had been wearing all day - particularly in that closet, with the man I hated now. But I couldn't let myself break down. Not now. Not when things were finally starting to look good for me and my company, all thanks to my workers and Sebastian.I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself, and repeated a mantra in my mind: "Tyler will not be the cause of my breakdown. Tyler will not be the cause of my breakdown. Tyler will not be the cause of my breakdown." I kept on saying that, hoping I will live up to it.Because why not? It had been a long and hard journey to get to this point. My company had be
THEAI wanted to smack the smirk off his face. I probably hadn't given him enough kicks the last time. I don't know what gave him courage but he sure had plenty coming here and staring at me in the face. I loved how unsettled he was at the meeting, I wish I had said something to bring down his ideas but they were actually interesting. I didn't know he'll be heading the project, I wouldn't have involved myself in it. After the party, I didn't want to see him again. But seeing him look all messed up and tardy made me happy. It made my insides turn due to unending joy. I craved his downfall.There was nothing left of Father to fight for again, since he left us and disappeared into thin air, so I had to build my own empire against Tyler and then crumble his. My biggest regret was trying to fight for him in the first place, but all those disappointments were truly worth it, as they made me who I was today. I hadn't still thought about how to tell Tyler about Lily. He'd want to have more in
THEAMy persuasion was useless. Deep down I was glad that it was. I watched as Sebastian burned with fury, wanting to charge at Tyler on my behalf. Lily was still distracted by her game pad and I was glad. I thought about the reason I came back to this shit hole. To find my father, and to give this monster a taste of his own medicine. The restaurant wasn't so crowded, at least not with familiar audience. There were no cameras either, and no awkward press outside. Tyler was alone and there was no one to guard him, both inside and outside. I smiled. It was the perfect opportunity for me.I tried playing the nice card first, so Sebastian would be more infuriated. I also tried to consider Lily for once, seeing two grown men fight wouldn't make much sense. She was an intelligent inquisitive child, and she'd start asking unnecessary questions. I wanted this to be in closure, and I wanted no word of it to escape. Unless Tyler wanted to tell himself which I was sure he wouldn't. I kept glanci
THEAI excused myself and went outside. I didn't want to imagine that Tyler left without telling me. He was all smiles when we were planning the surprise birthday party, he couldn't leave without a word. As I stepped outside, lashed by the cold fingers of the wind, I was taken aback by the sight of someone sitting on the staircase. For a moment I stood still, then remembered that the person's clothes looked familiar. It didn't take long for me to figure out it was Tyler and when I cleared my throat, he turned back, his eyes fixed on me with a mix of awe and longing. My heart skipped a beat as I made my way towards him, my senses heightened by the tension between us."Hey," I said softly, sitting down next to him on the step. "What's going on? I thought you left."He chuckled and turned to the moon, his eyes still filled with wonder. "that," he replied, his voice barely above a whisper as he pointed to the cloudless sky. He continued to stare at the moon for what seemed like minutes un
THEAI saw him first before Lily and I immediately went to stand in the doorway. Lily was by my side, holding a welcome home banner she designed herself and I was holding one too. I couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions.Excitement to see Tyler again after a whole lot of time and then the thought about how he would react to the party. As I thought of that, a hint of sadness washed over me and I immediately deleted it from my mind. Although our time together had been cut short by his accident then I was glad he was fine.He would be receiving the rest of his treatments and recovering at home. The doctors said he was healing well, but I knew I would still see the faint scar on his chest, which would be a reminder of the traumatic event that had brought us together - Lily's kidnapping. I took a deep breath and stepped forward when I saw him enter the house, holding out the banner. "Welcome home, Tyler!" I exclaimed, trying to sound cheerful but deep down I was bursting with excitement
THEA"Why do you care about Tyler after all he's put this family through?" This question rang in my head. How would I explain it? Yes, Tyler had helped us, but it wasn't enough for the amount of care I felt entitled to show him.I looked up and met father's gaze, he stared at me expectant of a reply. "When you left, I and Cora moved to Manhattan." I watched his eyelids flutter at the mention of Cora, no doubt he was starting to get emotional."Things were pretty rough, I struggled to build an enterprise from the start before deciding to come back here in quest of revenge against Tyler, but as life would have it; things changed. A lot of things changed.""What changed?""I found out Tyler had a pretty good reason for leaving us, I couldn't really blame him. All he did was try to save us, everybody including you. Also..." I trailed off, unsure of how to break the news of Lily to him."Go on, I won't judge you." I didn't really care about his judgement, I just wasn't sure it was right to
THEAMy eyes were closed and I felt like I was in a different world as the remaining drops of tears escaped from my eyes. I wasn't sure how long my head was bent or if I had drifted off into thought, but the next thing I felt was a tap on the shoulder softly.I paused for a minute to wipe off the corners of my eyes before almost jumping off my chair eager to hear anything from the nurse, maybe then I would calm down. "How is..?" I rose my face from the edge of the chair, but couldn't complete my statement as I stared at the face which stared right back at me. Was this real?The walls of the reception began to revolve around me and for a second my head went blank. Was I dreaming? Someone wake me up, I found it hard to believe. Hard to believe that after so many years of neglect, my father would show up to the hospital in search of me because this was definitely not a coincidence.It wasn't a coincidence that he chose to walk into this particular hospital, pass through the outer lobby a
THEAThe slap that led to all of these replayed in my head. Maybe I did blame myself earlier for Lily's abduction, afterall it was me Sarah was mad at. But now that I think about it, if she had just been sensible and didn't raise her hand to hit me, maybe we wouldn't be here right now.If anything, I hated Sarah more than ever now for whatsoever she put Lily through. Lily looked like a shadow of herself and it scared me so much. Judging from the little I had seen of Sarah, I could imagine she starved my baby of food and most likely put her through pain. She looked frail and she didn't deserve to go through all of these at such a young age.I didn't know when the tears began to fall from my face neither did I try to stop them, I let them flow freely while hugging Lily tightly. "I missed you so much and I'm sorry baby. I'm sorry I let you out of my sight," I whispered into her ears."I'm sorry Lily," Tyler apologized. I resented him a lot because I trusted him to keep watch over Lily as
TYLERI gripped Thea's hand as we sat in the car ready to go to the location. Inputting the coordinates into the GPS, I stared at her and nodded my head "let's do this.""Hell yeah, let's get our daughter back."Inwardly, I knew I was scared, but I couldn't show it. The maniac like laughter of the kidnapper over the phone scared me, what if she was mentally unstable? What if she doesn't release Lily after everything? There were so many what ifs in my head, it was hard to concentrate."Are you okay?" Thea asked as I drove."Sure I'm fine, I just want to get Lily back," I lied."Take a left turn ahead."As directed by the GPS, I turned into the pathway which looked like it led into the woods. Thea's breath hitched audibly as we kept on going and lost track of humans and normal surroundings."You'll arrive at your destination in a minute," the GPS informed.There was a cabin out front and I wondered if that was it.My phone screen lit up with a text message from the kidnapper, we were be
THEAI heard the woman's sinister laughter as she said, "Anything? Are you willing to sacrifice your own life for your daughter? You would do that?"As I saw the tears welled up in Tyler's eyes, I saw he choked back his emotions, probably because he did not want me to break down into tears. He couldn't lose Lily as much as I couldn't, I saw in his eyes that he loved that girl more than gold and silver and when he said, "Yes! I'll give anything if it means Lily's safety. Just tell me what I need to do and where you want to get it from." I knew this was true love from a father to his daughter.I was shocked that Tyler was ready to give everything for the sake of Lily and I knew how much he had suffered to take his company to great heights. I had always known that he was a driven and ambitious person, but I had never realized just how much he had sacrificed for the sake of his business. He had sacrificed a lot, he built up my father's crumbling company. As I thought about it, I could ima
THEA"I just want my daughter..." I said that in my mind after calming my nerves. I sat on the warm sofa, but to me, with my heavy heart, it felt like I was on a cold, vinyl chair in the hospital or the police station, my heart was heavy with worry and my mind racing with thoughts of my missing daughter, Lily. And Tyler, sat across from me, his eyes filled with a mixture of guilt and determination, the policeman was still around and he worked a great deal before I calmed down.From where I sat, I knew Tyler wanted to reach out to me, he did reach out, apologising but I pulled away from him, my anger and resentment still raw. "What good are your apologies now, Tyler? Where is Lily? I trusted you with her."Tyler didn't look at me, he faced the policeman directly. His jaw clenched in determination. "We need to find her. I can't just sit here and do nothing, waiting for your men to find herThe man nodded, his heart heavy with grief. "Yes, we need to find her. And trust me with this, I
THEAIt'd been three days without my baby. Although she wasn't so much of a baby anymore, her absence hit me hard. It gave me time to reflect on many things but I was so used to her presence, it left me longing to see her. Tyler couldn't even call me in the midst of his enjoyment with my daughter. She's his daughter too but she was mine for now, I did raise her on my own. The way things had taken a turn still surprised me. I wasn't so sure if my decisions, but they seemed the best fit for the situations at hand.I bought a new bow and a new game pad on my way to his house. It was going to be a surprise visit, I wanted to catch them in the act. I wondered which games they could have been playing. Sometimes, seeing them together brought tears to my eyes. I had a lot of regrets, but I couldn't count giving birth to my daughter as one. She'd been my greatest blessing. My own father abandoned me, and I know it was unfair to keep the secret of her father away from her. They bonded anyways,