Rene stared at Alex, trying to process her abrupt instructions. The tension in the room was palpable, and he couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about the whole situation."Take a seat," Alex repeated, gesturing to a chair in the center of the room.Rene hesitated for a moment before complying, his mind racing with questions. "Why am I here? What's going on?"Alex remained stoic, her expression unreadable. "You're being assigned a task," she said curtly, her tone leaving no room for argument.Rene furrowed his brow, feeling a knot of unease tighten in his stomach. "A task? What kind of task?""You've been placed in the cash handling position at the financial department of the company," Alex explained matter-of-factly.Rene's eyes widened in disbelief. "Cash handling? But I... I don't have any experience in that. Why me?"Alex's lips curled into a slight smirk, though there was no warmth in her eyes. "That's not for you to question. Just follow instructions."Rene's heart
Minutes later, after the transaction was done, Rene left the bank, the receipt for the deposit tucked securely in his pocket.Everything went smoothly than he thought it would. Yet, after he hailed a cab back to Rossi Enterprises, his mind was still buzzing with thoughts of the peculiar encounter and the weight of the responsibility he had just handled.It made less sense that the Rossi who hated him to the bone would trust him with such a position. But then again, it was Maria who did, and he wasn't sure if she was doing all this to prove to her family that he could be trusted.The thought of her helping him out to gain her family's trust made Rene smile faintly, feeling less trouble the more the idea crossed his mind.When he arrived and walked into the building, he spotted Alex in the lobby, near the receptionist's desk, a look of stress on her face as she glared at her watch.Rene approached her, his expression was stern as he called out. "I have deposited the money. Here's the re
The cell grew colder as the hours passed, and Rene sat at the edge of the bed, staring at the bars in front of him as he tried to reconstruct in his mind what had happened in those chaotic hours that brought him here. His thoughts kept backtracking to Maria... her silence, her coolness, and finally, her apparent betrayal. The jingle of keys and heavy footsteps of an approaching guard drew him out of this trance."Flores," the jailer called out. "Get up. Somebody posted your bail."When Rene looked up to stare at the guard, his face held confusion, and he mumbled, "Bail? But who?""Don't ask me. Just get your stuff and be grateful that someone has 25,000 to waste on someone like you," the jailer replied and unlocked the cell door. Slowly, Rene stood to his feet, feeling both relieved and suspicious. He followed the guard back to the processing area, where they returned his clothes. Slipping out of the orange jumpsuit, he felt a strange sense of normalcy return as he put on his cloth
There was a long moment of silence between the father and son before Rome replied, "I knew someone would. Besides, you needed to learn a lesson about the kind of world you've stepped into. It's not a game, Rene."Suppressing his anger, Rene closed his eyes, trying to process his father's words. "And what lesson am I supposed to learn from being accused of stealing from my wife's family?"Sounding almost disappointed, Rome's voice turned stern again. "That you're in over your head. That family will eat you alive if you don't learn to navigate their games. I have paid a lot of experienced people over the years who taught you how to survive... You have had lessons from the best of the best. But now it's time for you to learn how to adopt."Rene let out a sharp breath, tension brought on by the weight of his father's expectations settling on him once more. "So what now? Maria's friend dropped the charges. Where do I go from here?""First, find out who set you up," Rome advised. "Someone w
Gunnar sat in his cell, staring at the wall with a blank look. He was thinking about his mother and just how desperate their situation had become. The weight of allegations against him was upon his mind, like a great chain, binding each move he made.A key scraping around in the lock jerked him out of his thoughts. The cell door slid open, and a policeman stood there, expressionless. "Your mom's posted bail for you. You're free to go.""She what?" He muttered under his breath."Don't think you are in the clear just because you are a free man today. The fact that your mother has this kind of money to spend has only proven our suspicion further. There's no way she had fifteen thousand in savings as she claim. We are watching you, and the moment you slip up, we will lock your ass up for good.""Fifteen thousand?"Gunnar stood speechless, his eyes blinking. Slowly, he got to his feet and began to follow the officer down the hall, through processing, and finally into the lobby. There, stan
Suddenly, Rene stopped laughing, and his expression turned serious. "You're right. I have no idea what you've been through. But what I do know is that people like us... those who have fought for everything they have... we have to be smarter. I've been set up myself, accused of things I didn't do. I'm telling you this because I know how easy it is to get caught in traps set by others."Taking aback by those words, Gunnar's anger cooled slightly, curiosity replacing his initial rage. "What happened to you?"Not sure if he could trust him just yet, Rene hesitated for a moment before speaking. "I married into a wealthy family, and now I'm being accused of stealing from them. It's all a setup, by this lady at work and a teller at the bank... I know if I can just get the teller to confess... ahh... but doing that is going to be tough... So, I kinda know how it feels to be caught in a situation where the odds are stacked against you.""Did you though... steal from them... your wife's family?
As silence settled between the two, Gunnar studied Rene with an intensity that gave Rene almost a little discomfort. Though he was widely experienced with people and could read them easily, without a doubt, it was clear that Gunnar wasn't one whom a person could fool easily."Since you refuse to tell me your true identity, then will you at least answer me this much: do you have a plan?" Gunnar finally asked, breaking the silence.Rene leaned back, his fingers tapping out a rhythmic pattern on the table. "The plan is simple: get Erica's confession. She is, of course, the key to clearing my name and exposing the real thief."Gunnar's eyebrow rose. "And you think I can help with that... how?"Rene nodded. "Unless I'm wrong, you have connections, and your presence can be... very persuasive. And what I want to do here is for her to sweat without feeling in danger enough that she'd want to turn to the authorities."A slow smile spread across Gunnar's face. "I can do that."Rene felt washed
Opening his eyes, Rene felt a deep ache in his back, and he rose, stretching out his bones as he stared around the living room of Ruby's home. Although it was the worst sleep he had had in his life, he was grateful that the old lady allowed him to stay the night when he asked."You are awake?" Ruby's sweet voice floated in from the kitchen, followed by the comforting aroma of fresh coffee and sizzling bacon.Rene smiled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yes, ma'am. Sorry for the intrusion last night. I really appreciate your hospitality.""Nonsense," Ruby said, appearing in the doorway with a tray of breakfast. "Any friend of my son is welcome here. Besides, it’s been a long time since we’ve had guests."Rene's eyes lit up at the sight of the food. "Thank you, Ruby. This looks amazing."Ruby set the tray down on the table, beaming with motherly pride. "Eat up. You look like you could use a good meal."After digging into his breakfast, Rene paused two bites in and asked, "Where is Gunnar