2 - Skylar De Novo

 

Five Years Later...

New York, Manhattan,

LDN Corp.

 

♡ Skylar ♡

 

 

Standing by the glass wall that gave a beautiful view of Manhattan, a smirk formed on my lips.

It was finally the day. The day I had been waiting for and working my ass off for. The day the whole world will see the face behind the fast-rising LDN Corp.

The sound of the door opening made me turn around, and my eyes fell on the little girl running toward me.

A smile broke out on my face as I stooped and scooped her into my arms, earning a giggle from her.

 

"Sweetheart, where's Hannah?" I asked, dropping her to stand back on her own.

She had a mischievous smile on her lips and her blue eyes stared back at the door as if expecting someone to walk in.

"She's on her way."

 

I raised a brow at her.

"What-"

 

"How can a five-year-old run this fast?" A familiar voice cut me off, and I looked towards the door to see Hannah walking in. She shut the door after her.

I immediately understood the mischievous smile she had on earlier, and I glared playfully at her, who just gave a cute pout in return.

 

"Gosh, Skylar, your daughter is a handful," Hannah added, slumping down on the chair in exhaustion.

 

My daughter. My treasure.

Five years ago, I thought I was going to die falling down that cliff, but I was surprised to see I had survived. A man, now my adopted father, had supposedly seen me floating on the water and had rushed me to the hospital.

It was rare—a miracle. No one could ever survive that high fall, but I did. I had pretended to have amnesia, underwent face surgery because of some severe injuries, and changed my last name to my adopted father's and my name to Skylar.

 

I was given a second chance at life, and I swore on it for revenge. I lived for Aurora, my daughter, and revenge.

And now I couldn't wait to ruin every one of them who made my life a disaster. I was going to watch them try to pick up their ruined lives while I had the last laugh. And that started with Alfred, the guy who didn't think twice before turning his back on me and my unborn child—all of them, down to the people who killed my mother and attempted to kill me.

They were all going to pay, that was a vow I had made the second I opened my eyes five years ago.

 

"Neomu saranghaeyo imo (I love you so much, aunt)" Aurora exclaimed with a wide smile as she pulled Hannah into a bear hug.

"Jin-jja (Really?)" Hannah muttered, and I smiled lightly.

I had met Hannah, a South Korean who had moved to NYC for the first time, four years ago when I was starting to pick up my life again. Surprisingly, I trusted her enough to tell her about my past life, and since then, Hannah has been there for me. We were more like best friends, and she was like the sister I never had.

She had long black hair, which complemented her pretty fair face, pinkish heart-shaped lips, perfect nose, and brown eyes.

 

I moved to my table and made to pick up my phone, but a knock on the door made me halt.

 

"Come in!" I said loudly.

The door opened, and Mark, my driver, walked in. I turned to Aurora, who had now pulled away from Hannah.

 

"Okay, Rora, Mark's here, time to go home."

 

Aurora took a step towards me, and I squatted, placing a short kiss on her forehead.

"Mommy will be home soon, okay?" I smiled, tucking some strands of Aurora's hair behind her ears.

Aurora smiled, and I stood straight, passing a small smile at Mark as Aurora walked up to him.

 

"Bye, ma'am," Mark muttered, and they walked out, shutting the door behind them.

"F*ck! I'm wiped out," I groaned, slipping into my seat.

I turned to Hannah and flashed her a smile.

"Thanks for picking her up from school."

 

She lifted an eyebrow, and I knew what was coming next.

"If you thank me again, I'll stop."

 

I laughed loudly, and she joined in. The door opening cut our laughter short as we both turned towards the door to see Lara, my Secretary and personal assistant, walk in.

"Ma'am, the interview is starting in thirty minutes," Lara revealed.

 

"How long does it take till we get there?"

 

"Twenty minutes"

 

I exhaled, grabbed my phone, and fixed on a new pair of nose masks. I got on my feet, as did Hannah, and we headed for the door.

 

"Are you going home now?" I asked Hannah once the elevator doors slid shut.

"No, I'm stopping over at the boutique first," Hannah replied, and I nodded.

 

When we got out of the building, I and Lara headed for my car, while Hannah got into her car. The driver started the car and drove out of the parking garage.

 

★★

 

As expected, as soon as I stepped foot out of the car, I was surrounded by reporters. Blinding lights, and hundreds of questions flying around.

I ignored everyone while Lara cleared the way for me to walk through.

 

Immediately I was behind the walls of the studio. I pulled away the mask and let out a sigh, taking in my surroundings. Before I could turn to Lara, a guy walked up to us, introduced himself as the assistant manager, and led us to the elevator.

We got in, and after a minute in the elevator, the door slid open, and we walked out, heading to a door. He held out the door, and we walked in.

The cameras and lights were already in place, and a long couch was placed on the stage.

 

The host, who was talking on the phone, looked up the instant the door slammed shut, and I took notice of the surprised look plastered on his face.

He said something to the caller and hung up, shoving his phone into his pocket before walking up to me.

"Ms. De Novo?" He held out his hand, and I took it before letting him go almost immediately.

 

"The same"

"How long is this going to take?" I asked as he led me to the couch while Lara waited behind.

"Fifteen minutes or less," he replied with a smile.

 

I nodded and took my seat. I watched as he gave orders to the guy behind the camera before sitting on the chair opposite me.

"And we are live!"