“Reyona, I need you to understand that this has nothing to do with me deliberately lying to you or anything. I just felt it was no longer necessary, you know.”Okay, now she was sure of it. Something was up.“What?” Reyona asked again as she straightened.“I sent Thomas away from Kayooma. I sent him to rehab far from…actually, it is not that far away from Sydney, but then I had no idea you would be in Sydney anytime.”Sent him right to her.Reyona slowly and rigidly lay back in her seat as she said “And if you had known? Where would you have sent him to?”He was silent for a while before he asked, “Why are you angry?”The hostesses discreetly left where they were.“I guess I just think your declaration that you are not going to keep anything away from me was nothing after all,” Reyona said tonelessly.“Hey, no. Why would you even think that? I thought… I just didn't think it was necessary, and I also did not want to upset you. I know you don't like his name being mentioned. I did not
Reyona opened her eyes when she felt a soft kiss on her cheek.She stared blearily at his mesmerising eyes.They were clouded with worry at that moment, but they still stole her breath away.Why were they fighting again?“You look so beautiful when you sleep.” He murmured to her.She raised her brow in a “really?” gesture as she levelled her gaze at him.As he countered her look with a smile while staring at her like he was memorising her features, she thought “Toss words at me. Accuse me of having feelings for my ex. Then walk out on me only to come back to wake me with a kiss and a half-ass compliment. Sure why not?”As if he was reading her thoughts, he said “I am sorry. I shouldn't have raised my voice at you that way.”What now?He rubbed his hand over his mouth and jaw as he said “You were right. My decision was more because of you than any other thing. I guess I was… I was scared of losing you.”He did it again. He managed to disarm her with a few well-chosen words and those so
The boy was sleeping in Allysyn's bed.Reyona doubted that Jane had been the one who put him there.The tears she had held back stained her eyes as she looked down at the innocent face so peaceful in sleep.Had he suspected anything, despite the attempts of the surrounding adults to fool him?From Reyona's experience, she knew that kids always seemed to know much more than the adults wanted them to know anyway.Jane had told him Allysyn was staying for one more day, but when Allysyn did not come home again in the morning, he would begin to ask questions.“It is over twelve hours already,” she thought in agitation. “Who could carry the girl and why are they not making any calls yet?”When she was tempted to ruffle his hair away from his face, she stepped back.What would be the point in waking him if she couldn't provide the answer to what might be the most prominent question on his mind?She had a call to make anyway.She stepped out of the room and closed it slowly behind her.As she
She knew what he had done.He wanted to show her that he trusted her.For a moment there, she could see how he wanted to tell her to wait until he was done with his call.He hated the idea that she might face her ex-husband alone, yet he decided to trust her as she had asked.Emotions swirled in Reyona as she raised her hand and knocked.It was a bit disturbing that the house was eerily quiet and everywhere was dark too.Reyona knocked harder as the image of Ruth popped into her mind.She almost expected the woman to open the door at that moment and welcome her in the way she had always done, even when she was lying to her face.Reyona shrugged away the uncharitable thought and the niggling feeling that accompanied it.She turned back when she heard his footsteps.“Maybe he is not in there after all? They found something.”Reyona's heart thumped as she came forward. “What? Do they know where she is now?”“No, not that. While they were interviewing the people around the area this morni
Reyona’s blood chilled when she saw that it was Thomas.He was unconscious and sprawled out like someone who had been knocked out by a malevolent force.The surrounding stench was even more than any other around the house.An unfinished bottle of beer was lying close to his hand with some of its contents already drying up close to his soggy pants.Even as Reyona’s eyes narrowed, she quickly leaned forward to put her finger beneath his nose.It was there!Coming in spurts, but the bastard was breathing.For a moment there, he had made her think that… bastard!She automatically picked a bowl off the counter as she turned towards the sink.She filled it mechanically.As she turned this time, she could see the lifting and falling of his chest.How had she missed that at first?She dumped the water on his face.“Reyona”She barely heard Maxwell as she reached down and pulled up the soggy mess who was stirring from the soaking.Methodically, she dealt him two sharp slaps that echoed through
Lance Pratchett's temper was still as short as ever.The moment he heard that Reyona's call had anything to do with Thomas, he sparked like a lighted fuse.“I already told him I don't want anything to do with him again! And now he is asking his wife to call me?! Hey, hey Davies! Switch off the TV now! It is long past your bedtime! This is not your Mama's place!” He said to someone for a while before he continued to talk to Reyona.“Wait, aren't you his ex-wife? What the hell are you calling me for? I have enough problems of my own and I don't have a dime to borrow Tom anymore. You all should leave me alone!”Maxwell collected the phone from Reyona and said “Now, listen here. Thomas said he talked to you about me and his kids. Did you by any chance tell anyone about those things too?”“Who the fuck are you? That asshole told me lots of things that passed right through the right ear, then out the left. I don't have time to prattle to someone else about… hey, Davies! What did I say?!” To
Dawn met them with uncertainties.Reyona woke up as she felt someone covering them up.It was Jane.“Good morning, ma” the nanny greeted her just as Maxwell stirred too.“I can't believe I actually dozed off.” He said tersely.Reyona patted his arm as she said “You needed it.”They started the day with a call to the police station again.Nothing yet.Andrew and Celia arrived that morning with three other men whom the couple called experts in cases like that.While the men discussed in Maxwell's office, Celia urged Reyona to walk with her.“You don't look too well,” she said after they walked in silence for a while, “Have you slept a wink since it happened?”“Actually, I slept for a while,” Reyona said. “Didn't think I would, but then…” she shrugged.“That is nothing to blame yourself for. The two of you have gone through a lot in the past twenty-four hours, and it is understandable how much more your body needs rest.” Celia said as she looked down at Reyona’s rounded stomach.Reyona s
Reyona consciously relaxed her body, as Celia laid her hand on her back on their way to the house.While she kept a pleasant smile plastered on her face, her mind raced terribly in every other way.What was she going to do?How was she going to get the thirty million dollars within one hour?Though she didn’t have all the data in her head at the moment, she knew they did not have up to in the companies’ accounts at the moment.ReyDexter’s account had been drawn down recently to cover the expenses of Summit Edge, so she was sure what they had at the moment could be nowhere near that amount.Summit Edge was also not yielding much yet and what it had yielded so far was still going back into making the company a force to reckon with in all of Australia.The bulk of her personal money had been mostly used in her recent travels too.“What will I do?” she thought as she looked at Celia sideways.She knew the woman could help if she was shameless enough to ask, but how would she explain why s