When the elevator doors opened again, Daniel, Mr. Boone, Elrod, Madden, Laurier, Viotto, Fox, Caddel, Francis, and Mr. Amana walked out, carrying briefcases that seemed heavy for their aging bones to carry. A frown immediately settled on Elijah's face when he saw them with those briefcases, he pinched the bridge of his nose, groaned, and said, “You ten, stop right there!” A nervous glance clouded their eyes as a look of hesitation settled on their faces and the ten of them halted in their steps. Drawing a deep breath to calm his annoyance, Elijah walked over to them, and then asked, “What’s in the briefcases that makes them look heavy?” The men exchanged confused looks between themselves as if asking each other whether they should answer or just keep their silence. “Papers,” Daniel replied in an annoyed voice as he glanced at the floor before looking at Elijah and asked in irritation, “Can we go now?!” “Nah, not with the briefcases... You can't.” Elijah stated calmly as he sto
Watching her daughter's leg bouncing up and down, Miss Grace smiled weakly, and then she left the chair, sat at the edge of the bed by Peach, and rested her hand on her thigh, causing her to stop.“I remember those days that you never wanted to leave my side..." Miss Grace said softly, and Peach looked up at her in guilt.“It's not that I want to leave now, but I want Elijah to come..." Peach whispered, pressing her teeth into her bottom lip. "Ugh, now that I have said it, I get what you mean. But mama-""I am just teasing, and... Realizing that you are a woman now with a husband to go home to, and... I am happy for you, honey." "I am sorry that I seem anxious to go home. I am just worried about Elijah because... Well, it's the Hayes, and he's in the middle of this chaos and I am scared...""Honey, Elijah is-"The sound of the room doorknob turning startled both mother and daughter, and they turned their heads, looking at Elijah."He is here for you," Miss Grace whispered as she f
The soft texture of the sheet as Elijah brushed his hands against it made him immediately open his eyes, and whisper, “Peach!”The storm of panic he felt softly faded when he sat up and saw her at the table, focusing on a pile of documents with scrabble-up sheets scattered around. Her attention was solely on the papers that she didn't even notice him staring at her for a long while before he got off the bed, stretched out his shorts legs, and walked over to her with a smile. “Morning, beautiful,” Elijah said in a low voice, resting his palms on the table to lean over and kiss the top of Peach's head.Slowly, she looked up at him, tilting her head up a bit so that they could lock eyes as she said softly, “Morning,”And then she studied his face with a warm smile before focusing back on the paper, her messy morning hair falling over her forehead like a curtain and his white t-shirt neck slacking off her shoulder.“I left you in this exact spot and went to bed... Did you get enough sle
Frowning, Bryan rubbed his temple with his index and middle finger, and then let out in anger at Joey's remarks, “Get out,” A look of disbelief fell over Joey, who started to laugh hysterically at the request. “Out?? What the hell is wrong with you?... You are seriously choosing that… over me!” Joey shouted, pointing at him accusingly. “This is bullshit man!!! I trusted you!!” “Fuck off, Joey!!” Bryan screamed back at him. “That will not be necessary.” Elijah casually said, making everyone turn to look at him, stunned by his comment. Calmly, Elijah walked past the two, sat down on the black leather couch, and crossed his legs over the other, looking Joey directly in the eyes and adding, “You are desperate for money, ain't you?... The ego of one can be very blinding... So you can either sit and let's talk or walk out. Your choice.” A look of reluctance covered Joey’s face as he clenched his jaw shut tight, and then he scoffed, mumbling, “What can you offer me?” “Nah, it doesn
The room was quiet as the silence dragged on as Elijah and Bryan sat there, relaxing on the couch, now that Curtis, Hosah, and Joey had left them alone. “Well, I don't know why I underestimate a Maxwell... But I thought you were going to find Joey's words offensive and not want to work with him.” Bryan broke the silence. “And miss the opportunity of correcting my image in the eyes of someone who acted out of ignorance?... After today, what do you think Joey's impression would be of me... still the same or...?” Elijah paused and looked at Bryan. “He seemed to respect you-” “And he didn't have that for me when I first walked in here... Have you ever worked under someone you have wronged and had to live up to correcting your image with them, every time you see them?” “He’s going to be very careful around you, from now on, always remembering his mistake.” “Exactly. Now, isn't that more fun watching the one that disdains you in your face, spent his days respecting your opinions an
The silence in Mr. Bamford’s office was ruined when his door cracked open, making the chief constable raise his gaze to see Elijah and Ryan, and he immediately dropped his pen, resting back in his seat with a small smile tugged on his lips.“Good morning, Mr. Darius and Mr. Katz.” Mr. Bamford let out as he watched them approach him. “Please take a seat.”At first, Ryan seemed shocked that Mr. Bamford knew his last name, and then he remembered that he gave the chief his bar card.After Elijah and he sat down, Mr. Bamford studied Ryan's face with this suspicious glint in his eyes, and then he turned to Elijah, saying in a dead-serious tone, “You are not the man you claim to be.”The silence in the room after that statement was deafening. It was like someone had turned up the volume and it took them a moment to realise that there was no sound other than that of their own breathing.The calmness in Elijah's eyes didn't fade as Mr. Bamford held his gaze on him, waiting for him to say some
The silence in the lobby was ruined by Daniel, Mr. Boone, Elrod, Madden, Laurier, Viotto, Fox, Caddel, Francis, and Mr. Amana’s steps as they walked through the front door of Investistic Co.The ten men looked confused, seeing that Elijah was not there to greet them, and only Dice with a bunch of security guards were standing in the building, and some guarding outside.Since they recognized Dice from the other day, they approached him, and knowing Elijah's instructions, Dice smiled softly at the men, giving them a welcoming atmosphere.“Where are Elijah and Peach?” Mr. Boone asked him.“My boss will be here soon, but in the meantime, you guys can wait on him in the board room.” Dice said, keeping his face calm while looking into their eyes.“This is crazy. Why host a meeting if you can not show up on time,” Mr. Elrod said, frowning hard.“Please follow me to the conference room.” “Ignoring me, I see.”A faint smile was the only thing he got from Dice before he walked off, heading fo
In the left corner of the casino, at the red leather couches, Elmer Hayes sat with his table covered with expensive wines and snacks. A couple of young girls sat on his right and left side as he and his old friends sat around a mahogany table in front of him, drinking and Elmer took the deck of cards in his hand. “Okay... this time, I am going all in!” He laughed loudly, slapping the cards together on top of each other before pushing them into the center of the table, “I bet five million dollars on this one...” Immediately an awkward silence circled among his friends and he instantly noticed their disturbed and hesitant gazes toward him. “Don’t be such a mood killer and place your bets!” Elmer smiled, trying to diffuse the tension around him. “I don't have that kind of money to bet on cards...” His friend Lucas said looking at the cards and Elmer could tell he was lying by the expression on his face. “Come on man we're all good here... just make your damn bet and play, no
This is the end of Elijah and Peach's chapter. I am thankful to everyone who has been with me from the beginning of this book till this very moment. The success of this novel happened because of your support. For the gem, coin, Reviews, and comments, I appreciate it all. This was one heck of a journey that I am glad to bring to an end. There are so many of you readers whose comments about your love for this book literally inspired me to update and finish it, and for all the positive energy most of you brought to this piece of work, I will forever remember those heartwarming comments.Goodbye.Signing out,Author Rever.
“Piki, stop.” Dan cried, afraid that she was going to get punished because of him.The noise coming from the children's section got the grown-up's attention, and then they hear a little girl, “Piki is beating up Kelvin.”Immediately, Peach and Elijah ran to the backyard with the other adults, and when the kids saw Elijah coming towards them, they split up, giving him access to his daughter.“Get off him, Piki,” Elijah said, frowning as his daughter raised her fist to strike Kelvin in the face again. “Now!”When she refused to listen, he grabbed her by her jumpsuit and pulled her off Kelvin, hugging her in his arms.Immediately, she started crying on her father's shoulder, choking on her tears.“Now what are you crying about?” Elijah said, caught between wanting to discipline her and comfort her.“Kelvin kicked my gift and hurt Dan!! I just wanted him to stop being mean to Dan!!” Piki cried, hugging her father's neck.Looking down at Dan, Elijah saw the cut on the back of his hand, and
Six SUVs in rolls came to a stop in front of the Syldavia Supermax prison, and five of their doors immediately opened and a bunch of men in black suits rushed for the third car's back door.When one of them opened it, Bryan Checks stepped out, adjusted his coat, and walked into the building. When the security on duty saw him, they immediately saluted him, and Bryan nodded before walking past them. “He’s such a faithful son. Even though his father is in prison for posting threats to the life of the president and important government officials and trying to kill him, he still shows up here every year to visit him.” A guard said as he watched Bryan walk away.“Yeah, he's a great son.” The other guard mumbled under his breath.A while later, after following all the prison procedures, Bryan was placed in a room with his dad cuffed to the table.“Get out of my face!!!” Mr. Landon screamed as loud as possible. “I don’t wanna see you! Get the hell out!!”A smirk played on Bryan's lips as he
The breathtaking garden in the back of the Maxwells mansion was extremely decorated with white tents with a makeshift ceiling designed with floral chandeliers.The altar was framed with a few oversized floral arrangements. It was simple but extremely elegant, and even the weather seemed to be in a good mood that day.“Da-Da!” Piki shouted in Mrs. Maxwell's arms when she saw Elijah approaching them from the opposite direction. “Dada! Dada!“There’s my Princess,” Elijah said when he reached them, grabbing her from in his mother's arms and kissing her cheeks repeatedly as her wild laughter filled the air. Then he looked at his mother and said, “I can't believe I am doing this for the third time again.”“You know what they say. Third time is the charm,” Mrs. Maxwell replied, smiling. “This time you and Peach are in a better place in your life. Piki is one year old, and you guys have given yourself a long time to heal from the past. Now, you two can seal your future again and start a new
“Three months! She's three freaking months,” Elijah mumbled, looking down at his baby and smiling at her in her crib. “Can she stop growing?”A laugh escaped Peach’s lips as she stared at her husband standing over their daughter's crib and then she walked over to him wrapping her arms around his waist, saying, “She is not going to stop growing. You have to prepare your heart to watch her become a woman.”“I don't want her to...” Elijah said as Piki grabbed his hand, trying to pull it into her mouth. “There’s nothing we can do about that, honey. All we can do is be there for her and record her growth, so we can have something to look back on. That's why today is important.”“I know, babe… Honestly, I can't wait for them to meet her.”A knock on the couple made Peach let go of Elijah and walked over to the door, and when she opened it, Miss Grace was standing there with a smile on her face.“Matt and the others are here.” Miss Grace said, causing Elijah to raise his head and gaze at th
Like a madman, Deacon opened fire on the SUV, bullets flying everywhere as he screamed, “Go to hell!”As the sound of bullets hitting the car from every angle, Matt, Dice, and Rookie kept their head down, and Matt could hear Elijah screaming from the other end of the call, “Matt, say something! Please! Are you guys okay?! Is anyone Hurt? Fucking tell me something, anything!”“We are okay, boss!” Matt shouted back, because of the deafening sound of the fires.Finally, silence ceased the atmosphere, and immediately, Dice raised his head, feeling glad that he was working for Elijah because of how built their vehicles were, and even though the car took a lot of hits, a single bullet didn't penetrate the car.Staring at Deacon, Dice immediately guess that he was out of bullets, and with a fifty-fifty chance that that was true, he jumped out of the car, causing Rookie to scream, “Dice, no!”When Deacon saw him coming toward him, he turned to run for his car, but like a wild cat, Dice lunged
With a smile on his face, Elijah held Piki with one hand, and in his other hand, his phone as he walked around the garden.It took a moment for his call to get answered, and when Bryan's face appeared in the video call, he blurted out, “I can not believe I am saying this, but congratulations, Senator Checks on winning the election.”It grew silent for a second, and then both men burst into laughter, excitement clear in each of their voices. “Thanks, Bro,” Bryan said after they had caught their breath. “For everything. I mean it from the depths of my heart. Today wouldn't have been possible without your help.”“I was just paying my debt to you.” Elijah teased, and then said with a bit of remorse in his voice. “I am just sad that I couldn't be there in person today to watch you speak to the public. But all of my men are going to be there to show my support.”“I appreciate that. Also, you got Piki and Peach to be there for, so I understand.” “Yeah,”The call went silent for a split sec
The sound of Piki screaming made Peach feel for Elijah, her fingers poking his nose and eyes as her palm rubbed against his face, and she whispered, “Babe, the baby is crying.”Sleepily, Elijah opened his eyes and then closed them, moaning out a breath as he mumbled, “I am up.”Yet, he was still laying with his eyes closed, but another scream from Piki made him jump from his sleep, shouting, “I am up, baby! Daddy is up!”Then he jumped from the bed, rushing to her crib, and reached into it, scooping her up and cradling her, singing nonsense words at her that made Peach giggle sleepily.Even though the two weeks of taking care of a newborn were challenging, Elijah refused a nursery for the baby, allowing her to sleep in his room, and denied the offer of a nanny. His heart won't let him trust a soul other than his internal family around his daughter, after everything that he and Peach had gone through.“Shush,” Elijah murmured quietly at her, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Is your p
Early that morning, Madam Maxwell was a bit on the edge as she walked around the kitchen, tasting and giving instructions for every meal the maids were preparing. Her eyes would occasionally flicker from stove to pots and pans, her lips pursed in concentration. Finally, the sound of Miss Grace's voice drew her attention to the kitchen doorway when she heard, “Elijah, Peach, and the baby are home.”A look of raw excitement came over Lisa's face and she smiled widely as she rushed out of the kitchen with Miss Grace following closely behind.When they got into the living room, both their eyes were wet with tears to see little Piki in the car seat that Elijah was hoping for, and suddenly, the two days of waiting felt worth it for both grandmothers.Not wasting a second, Miss Grace ran to Elijah while Mrs. Maxwell rushed for Peach and they pulled the couple into a tight hug.“Thank you, Elijah. Thank you.” Miss Grace cried at her son-in-law.Even though Elijah was trying to keep up the t