ZAYN She froze for a moment as if contemplating what to say. “I’m listening, Casandra,” I spoke up, impatiently. She scoffed, “That’s a silly question, Zayn, how do you think I knew she was in the hospital?” “How the fuck am I supposed to know that?!” Rolling her eyes, she crossed her arms. “Since you always want to create a scene. I’ll tell you.” She replied, her voice loud and sharp, “I went to the house after finding out what Uncle Andrew did, only for me to hear from the guards that Ava was rushed to the hospital.” I eyed her suspiciously, I had to keep all of them very far away from me—no one was to be trusted again! “How did you think I knew?” She asked again. “That’s not important, Cassandra”. I replied coldly, “She’s fine, you can leave, we don’t need visitors now.” “But the doctor said that—” My eyes narrowed, “How did you know about what the doctor said?” “Why are you asking me these stupid questions, Zayn?
AVA My eyes fluttered open, but I immediately shut it, due to the bright light before opening it slowly once again. The beeping of the machines, the scent of antiseptic and the comforting presence of Zayn beside me, filled the room. I turned to face him—He was still asleep, his face looking worn out. My hands found its way to his face, tracing his features softly. Sometimes I wondered how he felt seeing me in this frail and vulnerable state almost every time. He probably blames himself….. I heaved a deep breath, my hands now on his chest, and just then something pressed against my hand from his shirt pocket. I reached out for it, pulling out a small shiny object. My heart melted—It was a ring. A beautiful one. A warm smile spread across my lips, he had wanted to propose last night…. I could feel my heart swell as I imagined walking down the aisle with him, calling him my husband, raising our kids together. He had managed to sneak into my like and shower
AVA Zayn left. Casandra let out a deep breath, frustration clear on her face. “You know he’s just scared, right?” I said, my voice low and calm. “Scared of what exactly, Ava? That I might kill you or the babies?” She scoffed, “He’s so childish, and it’s so infuriating.” She continued,“The only reason I’m putting up with this attitude is because I wronged him, but for how long will I keep pleading for his acceptance?” I reached out for her hand, squeezing it gently, “Just give him time. He’s still hurting and is finding it difficult to trust anyone after what Sophia and Andrew did.” She exhaled sharply, “Speaking of Sophia, did you see that coming?” I shook my head,“I have always known she didn’t like me for obvious reasons, but, I didn’t think it would reach the extent of wanting my babies dead.” My chest tightened at the thought, “And the worst part, it wasn’t even about love—it was just about the properties. That’s what hurts the most.” “Ava, I’ll ha
AVA My eyes scanned my surroundings, my heart racing in fear, but I refused to show it. It looked like an abandoned hospital. I could see some clinical equipment and even a neatly made bed. Was someone sleeping here? I had a lot of questions to ask, but the most important was—why did he bring me here?! My chest tightened, as a thought came across my mind. No! He wouldn’t. I wasn’t about to speak when he beat me to it, “I can tell you’re curious, so I’ll break it down for you,” he started to say, his voice laced with amusement, “We are about to take out that obstruction.” A shiver ran down my spine, he didn’t mean my babies, did he? “Oh, I mean the triplets you’re carrying.” He added, as if reading my thought. “You’re just bluffing, you wouldn’t dare!” “Oh, I will, Ava. The doctor will be here any moment now.” And almost immediately an elderly man walked in with a suitcase. My heart sank, this couldn’t ha
ZAYN I walked into the hospital with the babies’ bag and a food flask Leaving Ava with Casandra had been tough, but I doubted anyone could harm her in the hospital since there were a lot of cameras. My phone rang, interrupting my thoughts. I stopped, bringing it out to check who it was, Doctor? I placed it on my ears, “I’ll be in your office, now.” I said, not waiting for him to speak before cutting the call. First thing was to drop this for Ava, then see why he was calling me, I approached her room and I couldn’t help but notice the security guards moving around. Did something happen? I pushed open the door,“Babe, I….” I trailed off at the sight of an empty bed. No Ava. No Cassandra. My breath hitched as I dropped the food flask and babies bag on the ground before rushing out. Shit! It was now adding up, the doctor call, the security guards. Something had happened to Ava. I knew I shouldn’t have trusted Casandra. I swiftly ran to the doctor’s office,
AVA. My body…..ached so badly. I opened my eyes slowly, Zayn was seated beside me, a warm smile spread across his lips as I sat up. “How are you feeling?” “Sour, exhausted,” I was still saying when he came closer, holding my hands. “How do you feel?” I asked him. “Complete. Excited for this new beginning.” I smiled, repeating the words, ‘new beginning’ My mind wandered back to Ethan and the doctor, “Zayn?” I called out, and he hummed a reply, “did they die? Ethan and the doctor.” “No. But they would never come close to you, the rest of their lives would be spent in jail with lots of labor.” I heaved a sigh of relief. As much as I hated Ethan, I didn’t wish him death. He needed to suffer for everything he did to me, only recalling it sent shivers down my spine. I had thought all this ended after Cassandra had dealt with him for the blackmailing and stalking. I froze. Casandra, I haven’t seen her since the kidnap. “What of Casandra?” I voiced out, my voice l
AVA MATURE CONTENT (18+) A shiver ran down my spine, the words, ‘looking forward to our reunion’ still lingering in my head. I couldn’t tell if the message was genuine or if he had malicious intent. A reunion with Carter could only mean two things—unfinished business or new threats. And I wasn’t ready for either. Perhaps I should tell Zayn? No…at least not today, the last thing I wanted was to ruin this blissful moment. Zayn must have noticed my silence, and so he spoke up, “Are you okay? You have been in that spot.” I forced a smile on my face. “Yes. I’m still shocked by the whole thing.” I lied, feeling guilty already, “when did you have the time to plan this?” I shifted the topic quickly. “It’s a long story.” He answered, wrapping his hands around my waist as his lips brushed my ear, “it’s been a long time since we had quality time with each other.” I chuckled. “For the record, you haven’t left my sight in the past two months.” He turned me gently so that I
AVA A MONTH LATER Today was finally the day. The day I would be officially called Mrs Beckham. I sat in front of the mirror as the makeup artist worked her magic on my face, sitting next to me was Cassandra—my maid of honor. It had to be her. Over the past four weeks she had taken the preparation seriously that one would think she was the bride. To the extent, Zayn had to compliment her the other day. “You look so beautiful.” her charming voice interrupted my thoughts. A warm smile spread across my face, “Thanks.” The makeup artist finished and I stood up, staring at myself in awe. I looked…. magnificent. If someone had told me a year ago that this would be my life, I would have laughed in disbelief. Tears threatened to spill from my eyes but Cassandra noticing that, immediately pulled me into a warm hug, “Don’t let the tear fall.” She whispered. I bit my lip, trying to hold it in. “Zayn is going to lose his breath when he sees you walking dow
ZAYN I stood at the entrance of the door about to enter when Carter burst out, “Mr. Beckham? Did we disturb your sleep?”My eyes scanned the room in search of someone—Ava.But I couldn’t see anything aside from blonde curls. That was definitely not Ava. She had black hair. Had I been wrong all along? “Mr. Beckham?” Carter's voice interrupted me from my thoughts and I chuckled slightly to cover up, “I heard noise and thought to check if everything was okay.”“Everything is fine. Just arranging a few stuffs.” He replied, and my gaze flickered to his hands, it was bloody. He noticed where my eyes were and quickly hid his hands behind, “Carter, that is blood? Are you sure…”“I said everything is fine, Mr. Beckham. Please leave! Go and rest or something, you’re interfering in my privacy.” He blurted out, making me startle. I was about to speak again when he shut the door in my face. What the hell? I retraced my footsteps back to the room I’d been assigned to. No matter how I tried,
AVAI had just finished breaking down in the restroom. It wasn’t seeing him that made me so emotional, it was the fact that he never gave up. He travelled miles away just to search for me. I made a silent prayer that he would understand that wink. As much as I wanted to run into his arms and hug him tightly, I needed him to tread carefully with Carter.Because the Carter I’ve stayed with these days is a very careful and dangerous man. Currently in the books, he was the good one, my supposed passport shows I am his wife with other documents he had managed to forge. Thankfully, Zayn was able to handle the situation well. Carter stared at him, and I was sure he had already started having doubts about Zayn coming here, “Mr. Beckham…” he began and Zayn interrupted him, “Call me Zayn, no need for formalities anymore.”Carter clenched his fists underneath the chair. He was barely able to hide the hatred and disdain he hadfor Zayn. “Zayn. The thing is that, I enjoy my quiet space, and yo
ZAYN It’s been a week since I arrived in Abu Dhabi. I had made sure that the kids were safe with Cassandra. She hasn’t given me any reason to doubt her and, moreover, she was the only person I could trust with them. Noah had given me the necessary details on their particular location and even went as far as finding out Carter’s Favorite restaurant. But it’s been a week now and no progress. I came here day and night, sometimes I just sat outside. Other times, I pretended to be a guest, ordering black coffee I barely touched, all this just to get a glimpse of Carter. It was exhausting—and fruitless. Until today. I bumped into a lady and had just turned to apologize when the words got caught in my throat. This can’t be. Her eyes, those lips—Ava. It was difficult to see her face because of her clothing choice and just as I was about to speak up, a familiar voice interrupted me. “Mr. Beckham?” I froze once more as I turned. Lo and behold, Carter was standing bef
AVAI’ve lost count of how many days I've stayed here. Escaping proved more difficult than I thought it would. The other day I found out that Carter had changed my name, and even created a new passport.How he was able to do that in my unconscious state still amused me. Everything about the house was creepy, from the colors of the room, to the old maid, to the numerous bodyguards. Who knew Carter, Zayn's supposed bodyguard and trusted servant, could be this rich? I’ve not been allowed to leave the house and anytime I ask why, Carter's excuse was that I am not strong enough to start moving out. And when I persisted, he said I didn’t have the right clothes to go out with. And so today, he decided to get me the ‘RIGHT’ clothes. The sound of his horn broke me away from my thoughts. I didn’t need a soothsayer to tell me he’d arrived. I hurriedly went into the room and laid down on the bed. In no time, the door was open ajar and Carter walked in. This has been the normal routine of com
CASSANDRA I stepped out of the house for the first time in two months. I couldn’t leave the kids for a second with the fear that my mother would strike. Seconds, minutes, days and now two months, I have cried every night and woken up to different nightmares. Her face haunted me—I could still remember how she looked when she found out I had betrayed her. Guilt was killing me slowly, and it only worsened when I looked into Zayn’s eyes. I see him struggling every time, the other day I found him crying in the garden. The last time I’d seen him like this was when he lost his mother, and it hurts that I partook in his pain. I was stupid, wicked and misled. Sometimes I felt like coming clean, but that will make him hate me and distance me from the kids I’d vowed to protect with my life. And now, I was in my car, going to see the mastermind behind all this—Rebecca Beckham. My mother. I was done hiding, it was time to stand up to her. It was a three-hour journey and
ZAYN It’s been 74 fucking days since I last saw her. Papers, files, documents, and lots more were scattered on the table, all contained clues and places I’d already searched. But I wasn’t stopping anytime soon.If I have to, I’ll search the whole world for her. I refused to accept that she died. It seemed too convincing. The shrill of my phone rang loudly, and I didn’t bother checking it, “Any news?” I asked, immediately, my voice hoarse from days without proper rest. It was my agent, Noah. “No sir.” He responded, “But one thing is confirmed, she is not in the waters. In all my years of expertise, if someone dies in the water, the current always returns to the body after a few days, a week, or even a month. But in Ava’s case, there’s nothing to show even after continuous searching.”I heaved a sigh of relief. This was what I wanted to hear—that she didn’t die in the water, that’s why I asked them to search.This was also confirmation that Ava was RESCUED. She had been pulled out,
AVA The door creaked open, and I shut my eyes immediately, pretending to be asleep. I could hear footsteps coming closer to where I laid. And then—strong, sweaty hands roamed around my body and I felt like I was being pricked by a needle. I already knew who it was…his fragrance was choking the hell out of me. His hands reached my chest and I stiffened. What did he want to do? My heart was racing and just as I was about to hit his hands off, the shrill of his phone rang. His hands left my body as he stood up, I heaved a deep breath. “Blackwood speaking.” His irritating voice spoke out, and I peeked my eyes open to see him by the window. “I can’t believe it worked. The universe seems to work in my favor.” I froze, my ears listening attentively, I couldn’t hear what the other person was saying but from Carter's response, I already had an idea. “She doesn’t remember a thing, Noah!” He squealed in delight and I tightened my hands underneath the bed. “I’m not let
AVA What was he saying? Christopher? My husband? Why was Carter telling lies to me? Or were we in any sort of trouble?Every nerve in my body screamed at me to react, to shout, to call out the lie—but I didn’t. Something about the way he was looking at me…the way his words were so carefully chosen… told me this wasn’t just a misunderstanding.This was a setup.My heart was racing beneath the calm facade I put on my face. The last thing I could recall was the sound of the gunshot…falling from the cliff and sinking deep into the river. And then…darkness clouded by vision. But here I was, Alive and Awake with Carter spilling lies to me. My eyes scanned around the room before landing back on Carter, he had a smug expression on his face. “Where are we?” I asked, my voice low.My body ached so bad, especially my legs and I could barely sit upright. “My love, we are home.”Home? This didn’t look like home. The vicinity didn’t even look familiar, and it made me wonder where I was.
CARTER.United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi, Cleveland Clinic, 9am. The sound of the beeping machines was the only thing that could be heard in the room. I walked to where she was laying down…looking so pale but her beauty remained untouched. She was still as beautiful as ever. Infact the most beautiful lady I have ever seen. I heaved a deep breath taking a seat beside her, my eyes fixed on her. I couldn’t stop wondering— what if I didn’t get there in time? When I called that fateful day, and she didn’t pick my calls, I knew something was wrong. My men confirmed it when they spotted her car speeding out of her house. We tracked her location but by the time I got there, it was already too late. The divers began their work and Ava was found deep in the water. It was a miracle that she still had a faint heartbeat. We made sure to clean all our tracks before leaving the vicinity. Treatment commenced immediately in New York but when I discovered Zayn still believed she was alive I had t