ARIANA'S POV Consciousness came slowly, pulling me from the dark abyss in agonizing increments. Kill Margaret, Kill Margaret, played over and over in my head. It was an unending loop that was driving me crazy.My body felt heavy, as if weighed down by invisible chains. Every muscle ached, every breath a laborious task. I blinked, the dim light of the room piercing my vision. The silence was unnerving, a stark contrast to the chaos that had preceded my blacking out. I couldn't even remember what had knocked me out. One minute Reginald and Detective James were in the room with me and the next, I'm waking up to silence. I winced as I tried to move, every movement a source of agonizing pain.Where am I?Panic set in as I realized my situation. My wrists throbbed from the ropes that had cut into them, and I struggled to move, only to find myself still bound to the chair. My heart pounded in my chest as I strained against my restraints, desperate for any sign of life, any hint that this ni
ROBERT'S POV My world suddenly grew quiet. The sirens, the murmuring detectives, all the noise faded into a deathly silence. It was as if someone had turned the volume knob of the universe all the way down. I stood there, staring at the grotesque body on the ground, feeling as if my life had ended. Ariana, my heart whispered, as my mind struggled to accept the horrific scene before me.The silence was oppressive, pressing down on me like a weight. I couldn't hear the frantic conversations of the officers or the distant wail of emergency vehicles. Even the city, usually a cacophony of life, seemed to hold its breath. The only sound was the pounding of my own heartbeat, a relentless reminder of my existence in this nightmare.I wanted to scream, to break the suffocating silence, but no sound came out. My throat was a desert, dry and parched, incapable of producing the noise that roared inside me. The world had stopped, leaving me in this frozen moment of horror and loss.I closed my ey
ARIANA'S POV Reginald’s eyes narrowed with renewed interest at my mention of Sylvia. He signaled Detective James to put away the gun, and the man complied, lowering the weapon from Nate's temple.“Who is this Sylvia?” Reginald demanded.My voice shook as I replied, “She’s the lawyer representing Winters Pharmaceuticals.”Reginald let out an ironic “ahhh” and leaned back, a mocking smile playing on his lips. “Margaret told me the merger looked promising,” he began, his tone dripping with bitterness. “She came to me for help, and now, just like tha
ROBERT'S POV Confusion erupted, filling the room with frantic energy. Margaret's cries escalated into loud, desperate wails, each one a dagger in my already bleeding heart. I could only imagine the agony she was experiencing, losing both Ariana and now, possibly, Nate. My own grief mingled with hers, a suffocating cloud that threatened to drown us all. I fumbled for my cell phone and called Detective Edward. The disbelief in his voice mirrored my own as I relayed the latest grim development.“I’ll do my best to bring the boy home,” Edward assured me, though his tone was laced with uncertainty.
ARIANA'S POVThe room was dark and the air stale. I could tell that the sun was up but the last thing I needed was the sun shining its rays on my loneliness so I kept the curtains drawn. I was seated on a white leather couch in the sitting room cradling my baby bump and sighing for the umpteenth time. Something weighed heavily on my mind. But I did not want to believe it was regret. I did not want to cast my mind back to the events that led to the now: me, pregnant, sitting in a dark room all alone, my husband gone.“I'm gonna be fine”, I whispered to myself. “You hear that baby?” I said, directed at the baby bump. “We're gonna be fine”. Even as I whispered those words, I knew that what I truly wanted was the company of my husband. I wanted him to be sitting right there with me, the curtains open, letting in the sun and the two of us holding hands while whispering sweet nothings and looking forward to the birth of our son.Just so my husband could look at me with approval. With l
ROBERT'S POVI have been an unhappy man since the day I lost her. I lost her in the wedding with Ariana, her sister. It was for business reasons but I’ve never thought about it could make my life become this way. I mumbled a goodnight to my secretary and other staff as I exited the office building. The last thing I wanted was to go home to Ariana, the one who’s my wife, but also the one who always reminds me of her death.Ariana was the workaholic heiress who controlled an entire department of her parents’ conglomerate. She was pretty, tough, and passionate about everything. She’s good. But she’s not Flora.The lady whose smile lit up my world. “How perfect should I do to get your attention? To drag you back from her so that you can face reality? To face me and our baby?” She once shouted to me with tearful eyes.“You are so wrong, Ariana. Flora’s not perfect. She’s just kind, naive, and caring. Compared to you, she’s just a normal person with a normal personality you can see ever
ARIANA'S POV I knew I was panicking and that if I did not calm down, I would not be able to do anything. I did not want to believe Judith, Rob could not still be pining after Flora after all these years! Flora was dead. That much was certain, why should her ghost still haunt our relationship?If Flora’s back, what more could I do to make him love me? If Flora’s back…No, it can’t be true. I saw her dead, with my own eyes. I began to dial my best friend's number. I haven’t called her for a long time from my side. We had a deal. A deal not to contact each other after Flora’s demise, and now, she might just be alive.I shouldn't call her. It could jeopardize the whole thing.But she's the only one who understands…I held my breath as I clicked on Barbara’s number.It rang, and on the second ring, she picked.“Hi Barbara,” I said softly“Ari,” she whispered “I’ve missed you so much,”“Me too. I don't know what to do anymore. There’s a problem, Barbara. ”“What's the matter, Ari? What'
ROBERT'S POVOn the drive down to a hotel, I could not keep my hands off Emily. I was like a starved man finally in front of a banquet and I was eager to start feasting. When we arrived at the hotel, I quickly paid for a room. The moment we were left alone in the room after being shown, I pulled her and we fell into the bed… I sighed now and turned on the bed cuddling Emily. I knew she was not Flora but just for tonight, I pretended she was. Emily stirred in bed and turned to face me, her almond shaped eyes with their hazel color almost bringing me to tears.“I have to go”, she said.“So soon? Thought we would be together all night.”“I've got work tomorrow,” Emily replied, sitting up in bed and beginning to get dressed.I wanted to grab her and pull her back to me, I wanted to savor this moment with Flora's look alike just so I could be catapulted to that far away time when me and Flora had had the best time of our lives but I said nothing and simply began to get dressed too. “I'