Hyperion and Stacey were currently in his office while tension lurked around them. Even the mafia boss' secretary could feel the ominous aura trapped inside the office so he never dared go in. The couple had just finished arguing about what happened with the meeting with Mr. Devon.
"Are you really being serious about this? Have you not even considered my feelings? I already let the fact that you fucked my sister slide but taking her son to take care of him... no!"Stacey asked for the nth time.She just could not sit still and wait for her sister to take away what she already had. She would never let her take her husband away. NEVER. Even if Shantala had already given birth to the son of her husband, it was still not enough for Stacey to let go of her love. Hyperion, who was already tired of this argument, chose to remain quiet. He just knew that if he said another word, they would be shouting at each other again.Just then, a knock was heard on theBefore the clock even strikes 5 early in the morning, the Evening City Garden club was already closed as the workers were busy cleaning after another messy yet thriving night. Within its private rooms, women after women were retiring for the day after their night duty. One of them was Shantala Vien Arceo, who dashed away from her assigned room upon hearing that her youngest brother was waiting for her at the backdoor of the club.This was the first time that her brother came to her workplace even after she strictly told her family members not to go there whatever happens. Worried about what was going on, she got out of the club and dragged her brother away before anyone who knew him would see them there."How many times do I have to tell you that you are forbidden to come here? If you want something, then you should have called me," she scolded Lance. "You know that I do not want any of you getting harassed because of my work."Lance, who was in his senior year in high school, heaved
Shantala took her time walking on that aisle as she tried her best to simply look at the priest waiting for her arrival. She did not like the attention she was receiving because it somehow felt like she was still in that strip club she was working in with all the eyes of men on her. The faces in her peripheral view were only a few but all unfamiliar, especially the man waiting by the end of the aisle. What's more... Her heart was pounding like crazy that she was afraid it would break out from her rib cage. Even when she tried to take deep breaths to calm her nerves, it was ineffective. The sound of the violin being played echoed in the large church but it was overwhelmed by the fast-beating heart of Shantala. With every step, she walked towards her destination while her will of wanting to run away grew stronger but the thought of her sister being in her shoes made her waver. Getting involved with a mafia was already something one should avoid, thus, getting tied with one through a sa
Shantala woke up alone in a room where she could oversee the beach that was stained with fiery orange coming from the rising sun. She had been asleep like a log for the past night. Feeling a bit sore after what happened between her and her new man, she took her time getting dressed before leaving the room, hoping she would see Hyperion by the living room or by the kitchen. But much to her disappointment, there was no one else but silence in the beach house.With the emptiness that suddenly came dawning on her, she started to think that what just happened was simply a dream. That thought triggered a pang of pain in her chest but she still tried to tell herself that the wedding and their first union were real. She was about to go outside but she noticed the yellow note pinned on the refrigerator door."Urgent business. Will be right back as soon as possible," she read. Just below the small note was a name, Hel. Shantala thought that it was probably the real name of Hyperion. But inste
Shantala shuddered at Klauss' claim but she would never want to show that she was still afraid of him. It was for this reason that she knew he would be glad to see that she could still be under his full control. If he sees that, he would make use of her again and history repeats itself. It would be another nightmarish experience for her.Thus, she squared her shoulders and held her head high. "You do not own me, Klauss. What we had back then was nothing but a relationship in vain. I do not want to stay here any longer so just tell me what you want and let us get this over with."Klauss simply snickered as he leaned back on his seat without breaking eye contact with her. He must admit that he still liked how hard she tried to act tough when in fact, he knew that sooner or later, that façade she was building around her would collapse. It would only take a few tries of sweet-talking and he would make her surrender to him like how he did it in the past."I am going to look for your siste
"That's my sister's name," Shantala stated, pretending to be confused at the sudden call of Hyperion of her real name.She saw how the crease on his forehead went away and was changed into a sweet smile. It gave her a shower of relief seeing that she managed to evade that close exposure of the truth. Just as she thought, this man had sharper senses so she truly needed to be careful with both her actions and words."Well, you once told me that she was always away from work. Are you disappointed that she did not attend our wedding?" he asked.Shantala shook her head without saying another word. She just felt like if she commented on his statement, she might get exposed in no time. But in her mind, she said, “You actually married me so, of course, I attended.”Hyperion simply nodded before going behind the counter and filling a glass of wine. He stared at Shantala as he took his first sip and once again noticed that she seemed to be spacing out. He could not tell what she was thinking bu
Shantala stood quiet after and she was thankful that Hyperion did not press her any further about that matter. Only silence ruled over them while she pulled out her hanky and offered to cover the wound of the mafia to stop the bleeding. As she was doing it, she could not help but steal glances at the side profile of Hyperion who was now nothing alike to the man she saw at the altar during their wedding.Knowing that he was this mad upon discovering the truth that she was not Stacey, she was convinced that Hyperion truly had sincere feelings towards her younger sister. She could have still approved of their relationship if it made Stacey happy, however, the fact that Hyperion was a mafia made her disapprove. Not only was he doing illegal business but just like what happened to them a while back, Stacey could be caught up in his troubles against his enemies. That was something she did not want her sister to face. She did not raise her to face such kinds of dangers and would die at any
Hyperion watched Shantala walk towards his bed and sit on the edge."Come on," she said with all seriousness as if she was just asking for some dessert. "We're still married so it isn't wrong. Besides, we already did it before so there is nothing wrong with doing it again."Hyperion could not believe what he was hearing so he remained quiet and simply stared at her with disbelief. He did not know how to respond because first and foremost, he was in no mood to have sex. And second, the woman inviting him was not Stacey so he was not at all aroused even though Shantala looked exactly like her. He could not help but think how audacious she was to offer herself to him.Shantala rolled her eyes. "Don't act like you did not enjoy doing it with me at the beach. Doing it on the bed makes no difference... just minus the sea breeze and sounds of the ocean waves."Now that he was reminded of that and realized that he did enjoy it with someone besides Stacey made his ears burn red. He had not eve
"We can have a three-day vacation in Maldives," he added.Hyperion's proposal was rather out of the blue it took a bit of time for Shantala to process his words. She was sure that he did not really like her, especially since she managed to fool him during the wedding. But after a minute, she snorted."You are kidding me, right? That is not really a honeymoon but a simple cover-up for whatever real intention you are hiding," she said.But even though she had the feeling that the mafia boss was planning something, she still walked in his direction to show that she was interested. She did not even hesitate to sit on his lap and put her arms around him before looking directly into his ever-alluring eyes."So, what exactly are you planning, hm?" she asked.Just as he expected, Shantala knew that he was up to something. He smirked and clipped a few locks of her hair behind her ear before pulling her closer to him. Knowing that she was a woman whom he could just wrap around his thumb, the id
Hyperion and Stacey were currently in his office while tension lurked around them. Even the mafia boss' secretary could feel the ominous aura trapped inside the office so he never dared go in. The couple had just finished arguing about what happened with the meeting with Mr. Devon."Are you really being serious about this? Have you not even considered my feelings? I already let the fact that you fucked my sister slide but taking her son to take care of him... no!" Stacey asked for the nth time. She just could not sit still and wait for her sister to take away what she already had. She would never let her take her husband away. NEVER. Even if Shantala had already given birth to the son of her husband, it was still not enough for Stacey to let go of her love. Hyperion, who was already tired of this argument, chose to remain quiet. He just knew that if he said another word, they would be shouting at each other again.Just then, a knock was heard on the
"Hi! I am Tricia Miller, the substitute nurse sent by Sir Helios," the guest greeted. Linda was unsure of what to do so before letting her in, she went back inside to consult the nurse and Shantala. "What's the matter?" Lily asked. "A young woman came and said that she is the temporary substitute nurse," Linda replied. Lily stood from her seat since she had been expecting the nurse Helios mentioned before. She went to the door and escorted Tricia inside, however, when the guest and her patient saw each other, she noticed the change in Shantala's expression. "Replica A1?" she muttered, wondering why she would suddenly appear again after some time. Tricia smiled and replied, "That used to be my name but my real name is Tricia. And I will be your nurse for the upcoming days." Shantala actually doubted her since they were not on good terms during
It was almost midnight and Hyperion had just gotten back from the company after dealing with the trouble that one of his employees brewed. Though, it was not fully resolved so he had to return anytime soon. It exhausted him but still, it did not stop him from heading to the Devon's residence to check on Shantala.It's already been almost a week since he last visited and he wanted to see how she was doing. Upon arriving at the house, he stopped in his tracks when he saw the kitchen lights on. Curious about whoever was in there, he took careful steps in order not to alert the person inside. Though, he was quite sure that it was no burglar or anything of that sort since he had the entire house under surveillance.When he stood by the entrance, he immediately recognized Shantala even though her back was facing him. She was wearing a white dress shirt which was obviously not hers but Gavin's since it was oversized, falling right to the middle of her thighs, covering her
"How dare you show up in this place!" Mr. Devon roared. "Up until now, can't that fucking tiny brain of yours realize that the cause of my son's death is you? Or do you just have no shame at all that you still chose to stay even though you ruined his life?!"The stinging pain on her cheek did not really matter to Shantala because it was not any more hurtful than losing her husband. The accusation that her father-in-law made against her did not affect her as well because she knew who was really at fault.Despite having the chance of getting another slap from him, Shantala still looked back at him with no sign of fear. She could see how enraged he was but, for sure, it was not because he lost Gavin but because he lost the chance of marrying him off to Phoebe Romalia.She scoffed. "Instead of pointing your finger at me, why don't you reflect on the actions you did? Didn't you threaten him to divorce me that was why he returned here? Didn't you want him to mar
Back in Vidale City, Mr. Devon was currently playing golf with his business partners. It was his usual hobby whenever things were going quite well. In the middle of their conversation, he received a call from one of the bodyguards staying in his son's residence."Sir, I just spoke with the attorney. Both Sir Gavin and Miss Kierra signed the divorce papers," he reported."That's great, that's great," Mr. Devon responded with a smile before ending the call. "We should celebrate.""For what occasion?" one of his business partners asked.They knew that Mr. Devon rarely held any sort of party so it made them curious as to why he would initiate a celebration."For a new beginning."Thus, in no time, the mansion of Mr. Devon was filled with people from different elite families. He was a bit disappointed, though, since Mr. Romalia was not there to celebrate the beginning of their soon-to-be prosperous business. "Hey, Dad," Amelia c
Mr. Romalia was quite puzzled. The successful separation of the couple should be something that his daughter should be happy about. However, she looked rather exhausted and no hint of happiness was on her. Plus, he noticed a bruise on her cheek."What happened? Shouldn't we celebrate such great news?""Gavin is rushed to the hospital. It... It seemed like his condition worsened because of my negligence. I just realized that Kierra is the only fitting woman to be his wife. I'm giving up."Upon hearing her reply, Hyperion immediately stood."Mr. Romalia, I apologize but let us discuss this matter further some other time. I will contact you as soon as possible." Even before Mr. Romalia could respond, Hyperion immediately ran out of the mansion and got into his car. At full speed, he rushed to the hospital. He very well knows that he promised himself that he should stay away from Shantala until her relationship with Gavin was legally severed
Gavin could only look away while Shantala left the living room. Staring up at the ceiling, he tried his hardest not to let a single tear escape from his eyes.A little while later, Phoebe came in together with his attorney. The first thing that the Romalia heiress looked at was the divorce documents. Upon seeing the signature of Shantala, she was over the moon that she immediately pounced on Gavin."We are getting married!" she exclaimed.The attorney cleared his throat to notify the young heiress that he was still there. He gathered the papers and put them back in his case before returning his gaze to Gavin."I will take care of the rest and make sure that Ms. Kierra will get her alimony as soon as possible." After saying that, the attorney left rolling his eyes to the side upon meeting the gaze of Phoebe.The young heiress was about to charge toward him but she calmed herself with the thought of acting as the perfect wife and partner fr
This was where Shantala got confused. She was sure that the dead person in that room was her mother but how come her death was not reported? And how come the police confirmed that she was that person instead?"How did you do that?" she asked. "You know, the thing wherein the police saw that the body was you?""Chiavelli actually paid the officers who investigated the scene. Thus, they ended up confirming that I was indeed that person. But as for the body..." Valerie looked away as she pursed her lips.She waited for her, not wanting to rush her or anything.After a minute, Valerie added, "It was someone else's body with the same face as mine. It may sound absurd but a few hours before the engagement party, she suddenly came out of nowhere and told me to help her. She was beaten up and clearly, she was so scared. What was even weirder about that incident was that she introduced herself as Replica A0."Shantala's eyes widened as she remembe
Since Shantala got into an agreement with the attorney, she let him go to the house first. She will, later on, be going back home to make it look like she has gone somewhere else. She simply feared that if she and the attorney went together, Gavin would become suspicious. Wanting to take her time, she was about to go to the grocery store only to bump into Valerie and Chiavelli.And now that she saw the person who claimed herself to be the original Tricia Vexmore, the questions she had on the day her trial turned into chaos came rushing back to her. Only weeks had passed ever since that day but Shantala felt like it was already years ago due to the consecutive stressful events she had gone through. And instead of greeting her, she just stood there staring at her with wide eyes.Thus, Valerie took the initiative to start their conversation. Besides, this might be the last time they will see each other. Chiavelli also left for them to have some privacy."It's