Edna stands in front of the closet, thinking of what to put on. She isn't really in the mood to give herself a headache just because she can't decide what to put on. She settles for a long sleeve silver dress and black cone heels. She puts it on and goes into the room to find out that Keith is already dressed up. He is putting on a two-piece brown suit with some simple men's suit and for a moment, she is taken aback. She hasn't seen him looking this good as cleaned up since their wedding and he has nearly forgotten just how handsome he is. His hair is combed back and is absolutely stunning.She doesn't realize that she is lost staring at him until he turns around and looks at her. He is trying to put a wristwatch around his left hand and he is finding it difficult. "Do you need help with that?" She offers. He seems surprised that she is making such an offer and she is too, she thought she hates this guy. "Sure. " He shrugs. She drops her purse on the table and takes his left ha
Malik runs his hand through his hair in frustration and Edna can't tell that she has gotten herself mixed into something really deep. " Ramona lost her mum at eight and her elder brother and sister at fifteen. " Malik starts in a troubled voice. " She has been depressed, had drug problems all through her life. The only reason she is so spoiled is that her father is scared that she would sink back into the dark."Edna's lips parts in shock and her eyes won't even blink, she had no idea. "I didn't– I didn't know. " She breathes. "Yeah, right. " Malik grunts. " It doesn't matter if you knew or not. You shouldn't be so mean to her. ""Malik–"He doesn't wait to hear what she has to say, he turns around and leaves, shutting the door after him. Her hand goes to her mouth and her heart falls to her stomach. She can't believe that she has been so mean to the innocent girl, she had no idea. Aside from the fact that she was kissing Keith, Edna knows that she has been mean to the girl. Th
Edna wakes up with a light head, it's so light that she can't immediately remember the details of last night. It starts to come to her back little by little and she remembers it with a sigh. Is she sad or happy? Well, she doesn't know. Last night didn't go like it normally did. She turns on the bed, but she can't find Keith. She sits up and pulls up the duvet over her naked body and rolls to grab her phone. A text message is waiting to be read and she opens it immediately. It's from Kim and it sounds urgent. "Hi boss, it's Kim. Mister Jackson came in very early today and he is requesting to see you immediately, something that has to do with your brother. PS, he is not in a good mood. ""Shit." Edna holds her hand over her face and exhales. Mister Jackson has found out about Philip and she knows that it's not going to be good. She figured that he would find out soon, but she never thought it would be this soon and even though Malik has said something to his Dad already. She
Edna can't believe this, but she manages to put strength into her legs and walk out of her father-in-law's office. She was in for real trouble and is just lucky that she got out of it so easily. Thanks to no one but Malik. Immediately after she steps out of the office she meets Dimore waiting for her. Her bag is still in his hand as he faithfully waits for her. He walks towards her as soon as he sees that he is out of the lion's den. "Hey, Dimore. " She pushes a strand of her hair behind her ear. " Can you just go on to the office? I am going to be there soon. "He nods and leaves, she turns and walks in the opposite direction. She is looking for Malik, she owes him a lot for this that he has done for her. She finds him on the way to his office, he seems to be heading there too. "Malik. " She calls, but he ignores her. She knows this because two ladies who happen to walk on this floor turn around as she called him, but he didn't. She waits for the ladies to disappear through t
Once in a few months, Mister Jackson makes everyone come to dinner at his place for what he calls "family time." He claims that it's a long-aged tradition that he has kept in his family and that helps everyone to build a strong relationship and to love each other. It's rather perplexing because his sons have been doing it since forever and if anything, they hate each other. Edna has been added to the list of family members since the day she got married to Keith and that means that she has to attend the meetings too now that she is family. She is dressed up already, waiting for Dimore to come and pick her up, but as she waits, she texts Keith for the hundredth time. Keith has disappeared on her again and this is in fact not new to her. She is very used to him vanishing for as long as a month and only for him to return later on. The first time that he did this she panicked and called her father-in-law. The police were contacted and Keith was beginning to be searched for and like a
Edna is buried in work. It looks like it's just her and this large number of files, floating in this sea of calculations and careful evaluation when a knock is heard at the door of her office. She raises her eyes and they rest on Malik. Since they had become cool, he has been coming to check up on her now and then, but right now the serious look on his face tells that this is not a casual and friendly visit. He raises a file in his hand and waves it to make it clearer for her to see. She squints, wondering what it's supposed to be. "This is the report of the proposal from the Germans. " Malik walks towards the table and drops it on the table and sits down. He has his hand against his chin, the way that looks like something is bothering him. Edna uses her index finger to pull it closer to her and she opens it, flipping through it, her eyes scanning for what is bothering him. "I don't understand. " She says. " I thought this was agreed on, already concluded?""That's what it looke
" This is the wildest that the competition has gotten between Jackson's companies and another.""I can't believe that Mister Jackson can go that far to get what he wants. ""The man is way on the extreme side. How could he temper drugs meant for public consumption?!"" The Tide pharmaceutical company has been shut down, but Mister Jackson is yet to address the company..""It's his doing, I am telling you this...."It's hard to concentrate when these debating voices keep coming from the television. The Jackson company is in trouble and this time around, it seems that Mister Jackson has bitten more than he can chew. "Concentrate, people. Concentrate. " Mister Jackson shouts from where he is seated. He is being prepared for the impromptu press conference that is going to be held in a few minutes. Edna is being prepared too. Her face is being powdered and her hair is being retouched. Even though she looks very cool on the outside, Edna is freaking the hell out. This press conference
The last thing Edna hears is the loud bang as the bullet leaves the gun and comes at her with full blast. From the angle he shut from, it's obvious that he was aiming for her head. In confusion, she took a few steps backward and that's what saved her life. The bullet goes through her abdomen, knocking her to the floor as her eyes begin to shut. She faintly gears the screams of people and from under the table, she sees many feet running around in confusion. She doesn't know what she feels right now. The pain is too much that she is too weak to feel the real impact of it. Blood is gushing out her side and the warm liquid is soaking up her dress. Her first instinct is to try to stop the blood with her hand, but she is too weak to lift it up. She hears her own exhale as her eyes blink very slowly, waiting for death, or whatever is coming for her. "Edna?" Someone shouts her name. She feels herself levitating off the ground and she thinks that it's her spirit leaving her body, but
EpilogueMalik is tired, he has hardly slept for more than two hours in the past three days. The reason is that he is putting together the last of his affairs. After all, he is moving to Italy. He has done a lot in the past days which includes making peace with his father's enemies, Tide and Devan gold. It wasn't easy making peace with them, but he did. He paid for their damages and informed them that Jacksons' company is now under new management. He also proposed business deals to them and from what he saw, he will run the company more successfully. He is also discussing a change of name for the company, he wants it to bear his mother's name because she deserves it. He can't forget his brother too. Even though his brother has been the biggest asshole, he was still his brother and for that, he has made a huge donation to a rehabilitation program, Edna did the same. As for his father, he is still mourning the "loss" of his business, but he is not going to suffer. He still has a
Malik has never felt more nervous in his life. He was bold when he told Edna that he wanted to talk with her parents. He was bold when she told him that they are ready to meet with him. He was bold when he drove to the restaurant one fine evening from his hotel room, but the moment he saw her intimidating father, he lost all his courage and his heart fell to the pit of his stomach like a deflated balloon. Her mother didn't see him, she is reading through the menu and talks to her husband, who has locked eyes with Malik. He still feels the impact of the man's punch from the night before. He smooths his hair back, adjusts his jacket, and walks into the restaurant. It's not full, that's because this isn't New York. "Hello. " He says to both of them but he doesn't take his seat. Edna's mother frowns and drops the menu back on the table. Her father only nods at him, that's it. He feels pain so heavy in the back of his throat, but he composes himself. He can't believe that they hav
Both Edna and Malik knew that this was coming after all Malik was just spitting all the unknown facts at him. Edna feels a rumbling in her stomach and she feels like it's just her baby getting scared too. Malik drops the papers in his hand and for the first time, he smiles. He smiles at his father's misery and he even laughs at it. "Well, Dad, you have always thought we were fucking, turns out we were. " He grins like he is fucking proud of himself. "What?!" "I'm responsible, Dad. " Malik breaks it down. " At least it's still your grandchild. "Mister Jackson jumps up to his feet as if his chair just caught flames and he points a finger at Edna. The flames in his eyes are so hot that she is scared she is going to get scaled. "You!!" He screams. " I have always known that you are a good-for-nothing piece of shit, I should have killed you when I had the chance. "Even with all his angry bursts, he doesn't go close to Edna and Malik just leaves him alone to go rant. " I took you
Edna feels like she has just melted into her chair, all numb from her head to the heels of her toes. "What?!" Her voice is so small that it doesn't sound like hers at all. Malik doesn't give her any answer, he is having a staring contest with his father. The tension is tight in the air, they won't say a word to each other. Malik looks calmer but his father looks like he is a bomb that is going to go off any time soon. Edna swallows down an imaginary lump in her throat but she still doesn't feel better, it's suffocating. " Malik. " She turns to him. " I don't understand what you are saying. "He turns to her and gives her hand a little squeeze. " Don't worry, it's all going to be cleared in a few minutes. "She nods and keeps calm, she believes him. He turns to his father and that glare returns back to its place. He leans back against his chair, but not his father. " We are listening, Dad. " He shrugs. " Why did you do it? Why did you kill your favorite son?"" Malik, boy. " Hi
True to Malik's word, a call comes in from the front desk that someone is waiting for her at the reception. It's a good thing that she has put on her clothes and gotten prepared for the person who would be picking her up. She locks up her room and walks to the elevator. As the elevator lowers to the ground, she wonders what Malik is up to. She gets out of the elevator and walks into the reception. There are a lot of people there, but when she sees Rollins, she knows that it's him. Maybe because he is putting on such a fine suit or because she has seen him a few times with Malik, he is one of the few people that work directly for Malik and not his father. He smiles and walks up to her and bows to her respectfully. " Good morning. " He greets. " Good morning." She answers with a very bright smile. " This way, ma'am. " He leads her out of the hotel and towards the parking lot. She sights the white SUV even before they get close to it. He walks ahead of her and opens the door for
Edna's face turns white as Anna's confession is not something that she saw coming. Anna too never wanted the marriage? She didn't want to get married to Malik? That's wild. Anna laughs when she sees how surprised Edna is and she walks to the edge of the bed and sits on it. She crosses her legs over each other and pulls a pillow close to her. She glances at Edna and she understands that she wants to sit beside her. She does too and now they are so close that they can feel each other's body heat. " But did you really believe that those tears were real?" Anna laughs. "Yeah, I have been so worried about you. " Edna says. " I have always wanted to call you but if I left you would still be mad at all of us. ""Nah. " She waves off. " It's kind of a huge relief for me too, so it's all good. "Edna is so confused right now. "But you were so excited about getting married. " Edna can't let this go so easily. "No, I pretended to be so happy because I wanted to make my parents happy. " S
It looks like a war front in here as everyone is yelling words around and pointing fingers at each other. Malik steps down from the altar and walks down the aisle. He pushes the door open and walks out, no one stops him. Ramona rushes after him after she gets over the shock, but Edna can't. She is too frozen to move. Edna is calmly holding onto herself. She feels like everyone is going to notice how fast her heart is beating against her chest and they are going to know that she had something to do with this. He said he loves her, he told someone that he loves her. She feels terrible that Anna isn't going to get married again, but Malik said he loves her. Anna lets out a scream of agony. And falls to the ground. Edna rushes to her side and holds her up. Her family rushes to her side and her brothers take her in their arms. Her mother is crying with her, wiping her daughter's tears instead of hers. Her father looks mad, the angriest that Edna has ever seen and she watches him loo
The knocks come again and it is just as loud and terrifying as thunder. "Malik, open the fucking door, I need to speak to you. " His father sounds angry. He beats against the door with his fist and Edna fearfully watches the door quiver as if there is an earthquake. Malik is perfectly calm and doesn't move an inch to get to the door. Mister Jackson doesn't go away and each time he knocks, it's louder than the last one. He is somehow convinced that Malik is inside his room and he is not leaving until he speaks to him. Edna is so scared that she is tempted to walk to the door and open it. She will then fall on her knees and explain to Mister Jackson that it's not what he thinks. There is a slight chance that he would listen and that means she is presently just overreacting, but there is a chance that he is going to make a big deal out of this since he already hates her. Since Malik isn't moving or saying a word, maybe it's better if she doesn't say anything too. Malik grabs her
Edna holds tightly to Malik's word. Her family thinks that she is crazy and now she has taken to the idea too, maybe she is really crazy – maybe a little bit. If not, what sane woman would go to attend the marriage ceremony pregnant for the groom and even though she is friends with the bride? She has never admitted it – she had kicked out the thought in her head too, it keeps coming back though – but she wishes that the wedding could be off so that she can have Malik to herself. She is happy for Anna and she would be even happier for her if she is going to be married to someone else, but it has to be Malik, right?She knows that a failed wedding ceremony is going to hurt Anna, but she still wants to give Malik a chance to come through as he said. His plan of coming through doesn't involve him going on with the wedding. She doesn't want to be the bad person in this case, but she can't just help it. Her father kills the engine and turns to her. He takes off his baseball cap and put