“We’re here,” Salvo announced.
Sean turned to Maxine, but she wasn’t moving. He poked her arm to try to wake her up. But she just let out a soft moan, and he stiffened.
Still unable to wake the woman up, Sean shook her shoulder. Maxine moved but slipped sideward, and her head landed on Sean’s lap.
“Sir?” The driver called again, wondering why Sean was still in the car. But the man just raised a finger to hush him.
The man in the front seat nodded, opened the door, and went out. Sean, on the other hand, stared at the woman’s face.
He tucked a stray hair behind her ear and ran his finger to her nose bridge. Maxine scrunched her nose, and he chuckled.
Maxine was beautiful. There was no doubt about that.
Her eyelashes were long, casting shadows on her cheeks. Her nose was slender with a high nose bridge. She has olive skin, and her cheeks have a natural blush.
When Sean saw her at the asylum, Maxine was a mess.
She wore an oversized tee with holes everywhere, fitted ripped jeans, and worn-out hi-cut sneakers. And her hair was in a messy bun.
‘How can she be a murderer?’
Sean only knew of his brother’s death when he returned from London. It has been months. And his grandfather, Jim Hartmann, didn’t tell him about it.
His widowed stepmother, Emilie, took charge of the investigation and funeral. According to the investigators, Scott Hartmann was stabbed in the neck, chest, and stomach 24 times.
The suspect – a stripper named Sasha.
However, the suspect was still free, and that infuriated him. So, he decided to hire a private investigator, Vito, to continue investigating.
Two weeks before he returned from London, he contacted the investigator again to find the woman. Fortunately, they didn’t have a hard time.
According to Vito, Sasha was a well-known stripper in Maryland. It’s only been a year since she moved to Virginia.
At 20 years old, she finished her studies by working in a club in Clinton. When they moved to Virginia, she continued working as a stripper together with her sister.
Sasha worked at an underground strip club in Springfield. And because of her, the place gained fame in all of Grayson. This fame even extended to Fairfax and other neighboring cities and counties.
Being the club’s star stripper, her managers have been strict in following her rules. No customer was allowed to touch her, and they couldn't take her out.
Even the rich men who visited the club can’t bend Sasha’s rules. Regardless of the amount they were willing to pay.
The star stripper named Sasha turned out to be Maxine Winther. Looking at her, Sean still couldn’t be convinced that she was the person he was trying to find.
Except for her job, she looked decent. She finished her course in jewelry design, and she’s the top student in her class. With that on her resume, she could easily find a corporate job.
‘Then why did she choose to become a stripper? Why would she go for such a job?’
When Maxine finally woke up, Sean asked her to fix herself so they could go into the Marriage License Bureau. The officiant immediately called the clerk when he saw the young Hartmann.
It was the clerk himself who assisted them with the process. Minutes later, he handed the wedding certificate to the couple for them to sign.
Sean picked up the pen and drew his signature. He then passed it to Maxine, but she didn’t budge. She bowed, fiddled with her fingers, and didn’t say anything.
The clerk looked at both of them. Then he approached Maxine, “Are you being forced to do this?”
Sean heard the question, and to not raise any suspicion, he walked close to her and asked, “Should we go to Scottsville after this, honey?”
Maxine was well aware it was a threat. Afraid for the life of her mother and sister, she grabbed the pen and signed the certificate.
The clerk cleared his throat when the woman returned it to him. He was suspicious of what was happening, but since Sean Hartmann was in front of him, he could only swallow the words he wanted to say.
After the Bureau, they headed to West District. It was the nearest police station to the club where the killing of his brother happened.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Hartmann,” Vito greeted him. He was waiting for them outside the police station.
They proceeded to go in, and everyone in uniform greeted the charismatic man as he walked in front of Vito and Maxine. “How can we help you, sir?” one of the officers asked.
The private investigator stepped in and explained the purpose of their visit. Maxine was just quietly listening to them. She had no idea what exactly was going on.
“But sir, we have already finished the investigation for this case,” one of the station’s investigators told Sean.
The man smirked and glared at him. “Didn’t you hear what my private investigator just said? We need all the evidence you’ve gathered from the crime scene. Was he unclear about what we wanted?”
The officer swallowed hard. He knew the young Hartmann and had heard of him. As soon as he arrived from London, he ordered the shutdown of all the strip clubs in Fairfax County.
It caused a rave among indecent rich men, but since he was a Hartmann, they could not contest. They can only try and find another place to have a good time.
When the Station Commander arrived, the officers quickly explained what was happening. “Give Mr. Hartmann everything he needs,” Inspector James instructed.
Maxine looked at the man and then at Sean. She could not believe the man she married was that powerful, and it sent chills down her spine.
All the time she had been quiet, she thought of a way to escape the stranger. However, knowing how powerful he was, it seemed impossible for her to get away from him.
After the police station, their next stop was Hartmann Estate. From the police station, Salvo drove to Great Falls. One of the most expensive neighborhoods in Virginia.
The gate automatically opened to let the car in. When they stepped out, a butler named Paul greeted him.
“Where’s my grandfather?”
“He’s in the living room, sir.”
Sean turned to Maxine and reached out for her hand, “Let’s go,” he stated, and Paul opened the door for them.
They headed straight to the living room, where Maxine saw an old man in a wheelchair. He has a newspaper in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other hand.
“Good afternoon, grandpa.” The man bowed and kissed the old man’s head.
Jim Hartmann snorted, “I thought you were so busy at the company that you didn’t have the time to visit me. But from what I heard, you were at the bureau earlier, getting married.”
Sean smiled, pulled a chair, and sat next to the old man. “Yes, you received the right information. My wife’s with me too, and I want to introduce her to you.”
Jim looked at the woman Sean pointed to. She was no more than 5 feet 6 inches tall. He could tell as she was wearing worn-out sneakers.
The woman had long legs. It was evident in her fitted ripped jeans. Aside from that, she obviously has a gorgeous face, even when there are traces of dirt on her cheek.
Jim glared at his grandson and sneered, “Where did you pick this trash?”
Sean patted his hand and smiled, “She’s the one who killed Scott.”
“You, whore!” Jim was furious. He was in disbelief that the woman who killed his grandson was standing right before him. Raising a cane, he tried to hit her, but Sean stepped in. He got hit in place of the murderer. “Oops! Grandpa! What are you doing?” “What are you doing, Sean Andrew Hartmann?” the old man growled. “She killed your brother. Why are you protecting her?” Sean raised his hands in surrender. Then he grabbed his grandfather’s cane to put it down. “She may have killed Scott, but she's still my wife. Gramps, we just got married? Can you at least let me spend a few more hours with her before you murder her?” Jim was about to say something when someone else spoke, “Where is my son?” It was Emilie, his stepmother. “You’re stepson!” Sean corrected. “Whether I gave birth to you or not, the moment your father married me, I became your mother!” Emilie scolded. “Enough!” the old Hartmann yelled. “If you want to be considered a mother, make sure you learn how to discipline yo
Maxine was mad.She could feel her hands shaking violently and her head throbbing. Looking at the man, she couldn’t identify what type of monster he was.He came to her nicely at the asylum, only to tell her that she was a murderer. He introduced her to his grandfather and stepmother only to let them know that she was the one who killed Scott.Now, they were talking about what was causing all this, yet, he won’t listen to her. ‘How stupid is he?’ she thought to herself.After a moment of silence, Sean let out a heavy sigh. “Fine, continue your story.” Maxine glared at him, and he smiled unknowingly. “I swear I won’t say anything. I’ll just listen.”Convinced by what he said, she sat properly to continue her narration. “As I said, he was friendly to everyone. He’s a regular customer of the club, and he’s known as ‘The Young CEO.’ To be honest, we really thought he owned Mystic.”“That night, he was already drunk when he came. A waitress named Verna welcomed him, and he requested a VIP
Sean walked to the stairs, his hands crossed over his chest. He nodded at the door under the stairs, and then he turned to the woman, “You’ll sleep there. I already asked Martha to have it cleaned. Just ignore the books. They won’t bite anyway.”Exhausted and frustrated all at the same time, Maxine just nodded at him. When he headed upstairs, she quickly crawled inside.The walls were bookshelves. Inside was a desk and chair pushed up to the wall to give space for the mattress.The young Hartmann may seem like a monster, but he was kind enough to add a pillow and a blanket. They were already spread on the floor, waiting for her.Maxine crawled to the mattress and pulled the blanket to cover herself from head to toe. She was worried as she had not spoken to her sister or their mother yet.Meanwhile, inside the master’s bedroom, Sean covered his lower body with a towel after showering. He looked at the mirror and smiled, weirded about everything that happened.Everything Maxine said mes
“Good morning, Mr. Hartmann,” a middle-aged woman greeted Sean, then her eyes landed on Maxine, and the man noticed that.“Let’s talk in the office, Lucile.”Maxine and the woman called Lucile followed Sean. When the door closed, the woman positioned herself next to Sean.“My schedule,” he asked, and Lucile quickly opened the tablet and read everything from there. Sean nodded and pointed at Maxine, “Give her a black card. I need her to buy something for me.”“Yes, sir!” Then Lucile excused herself and headed out of the office.Sean looked at Maxine. She was standing near the door, looking at her feet. With the light shining through the glass wall, she looked like an angel. But a frail one.He first saw her from the pictures shown to him by his private investigator. Maxine looked lovely in them.In one picture, she was wearing hot pink, three-piece booty shorts. She also paired it with hot pink high heels. She’s not wearing any makeup, but her beauty stands out.That was the Sasha embe
Emilie froze after hearing that awfully familiar voice. She slowly turned around, praying she was wrong, but her soul almost left when she confirmed it was her stepson.She wanted to run away and leave the scene, but it was too late. All the guards at the mall had already surrounded them.“Who gave the two of you the right to make a scene on my property?” the young Hartmann asked in his most authoritative tone.Maxine looked, surprised by what he said. She did not even know the entire mall belonged to the man.Even the salesladies who assisted her earlier were surprised to know that she was Mrs. Hartmann. Both girls were suddenly envious of her.“S-Sean, I-I’m sorry,” Danielle’s voice was shaking. Everyone could tell the man’s presence spelled danger for her.He clenched his fists, not taking his eyes from the woman. Thankfully, Danielle was a woman. If not, he would have punched her. He was fuming mad because he saw how she hit Maxine.Letting go of his wife, he slowly turned to the
Maxine sat on the wooden bench near the elevator. After a while, Lucile joined her with a cup of coffee. “How are you feeling?”She sighed before smiling lazily, “I’m okay. I just didn’t like the idea of slapping Danielle because of what they did.”“Young lady, you’re being too nice,” Lucile commented. “Those two were children of the devil. They don’t deserve anyone pitying them.”“Really?” she asked, and Sean’s assistant nodded incessantly. “Have they done something to you before?” She asked out of curiosity.However, before the assistant could respond, the boss emerged from the office. “I’ll tell you some other time,” she whispered before she walked up to the man. “You’re leaving now?”Sean nodded in response and headed for the elevator. Maxine quickly followed, but he raised a hand at her. “Use the stairs. I can still smell you from here.”Embarrassed, she pushed the door to the fire exit. Maxine ensured she washed off the stink from the water earlier. But if Sean could still smell
After parting with her family, Sean asked Salvo to drive back to Villa Vita. He decided not to return to his office, as his wife looked exhausted.On their way back, Sean couldn’t sit still. He was still thinking about the events at Maxine’s house earlier.He can’t get rid of how the place looked, the mattress, the corners of the walls, and above all else, their father.“Who was that man?” he asked. Maxine turned and creased her forehead at him. The man glanced at her and smirked, “Who was Henry?”“Who was Henry?” she parrotted and sighed. “He’s Stella’s husband.”Sean straightened up and glared at her. “Who is Stella then?” He asked again.“Stella?” she repeated. “She’s our adoptive mother.”The man sighed as he crossed his legs. He was getting annoyed as she kept repeating her questions and her one-line answers.“Maxine, can you please give me a backstory? How was your life in Grayson? How are you in Maryland?”“I thought you had someone investigate me?” she asked.“Not as far as ho
The following morning, Maxine woke up early. She quickly took a bath and dressed up. Then she headed to Martha’s room.She called the old lady in a low voice, worried she might wake up the rest of the housekeepers. “Do you need anything, Mrs. Hartmann?”Maxine was startled when the woman suddenly spoke behind her. She clutched her chest and smiled, “Martha, please, just call me Maxine. I’m not qualified for that title.”Martha reached out for her arm and gave it a light squeeze. “Okay, if that’s what you want.”The old lady liked her. In Martha’s heart, she can feel Maxine is innocent. She knew Sean was a little confused about his brother’s murder. But she believed that Maxine was not the culprit.“Can you tell me where I can wash this?” Maxine asked, showing Martha the handkerchief.“Is that Sean’s?” she asked with a teasing smile. Maxine immediately shook her head to dismiss whatever the woman was thinking. “He lent it to me.”Martha nodded, still not convinced that Sean had lent h