Spring, 2015
The smell of cookies and wine filled the air as maids moved around, preparing the feast for the event of the night. George Scott leaned against a window in his bedroom as he stared at the clouds, taking in the beauty of the sunset as the night drew near.
Today was his twenty-first birthday. The day had finally come when he would take over from his father as the CEO of Imperial Hub Limited, a renowned skincare and beauty company. He was so nervous about his new role.
From this moment, all eyes would be on him. The board of directors, the investors, everybody! They would nitpick every action he takes just to find a reason why he shouldn't be the one filling that role. They all knew his father – Morris Scott preferred his stepbrother to him, and they would do anything to be his father's favorite business associate. The things people do for more power and money.
Turning around to get ready for the event, he came face to face with his mother – Patricia Anne Scott – as she walked into his bedroom with a warm smile on her face. She stretched her two hands wide for a hug.
"Mom" he greeted, stepping forward to receive her show of affection.
"My wonderful son…" She wrapped him in an embrace, rubbed his back gently before she stepped away to look at him."....your father is so proud of you"
"Yes mom" George answered dryly, not wanting this conversation to go on. His father was never satisfied, no matter what he did.
"It's almost time for the event, I'll leave you to get ready" Patricia smiled at him and made her way out of his room.
George got dressed and made his way to the grand hall in the same villa. His mother sat by his father's right side, patiently waiting for him to come over and fill up the empty seat by her side. His stepmother and stepbrother were also present. Judith Scott and her son – James Scott sat by his father's left side. George walked over to where they sat and greeted everyone before he moved to sit beside his mom.
After the main ceremony came to an end, the feast and party began. Tired of receiving countless congratulations from the board members on his new role as the CEO, George tiptoed away from the crowd and stood at a dark corner of the hall. His eyes swept over the crowd, seeking for someone. George spotted her in no time, watching her silently as her lovely smile lit up her beautiful face. Rachel Reeves. She was the daughter of his father's friend and business partner – Arthur Reeves – and George was in love with her. He desired to marry her, he just needed to gain her father's approval.
George stood at his corner, swooning over Rachel, unaware of her father, Arthur Reeves who stood a few steps away from him – watching him stare at his daughter with the eyes of a lover.
"A penny for your thoughts, George" Arthur Reeves whispered, after closing the gap between them.
George jumped in shock, not expecting anyone to notice him here. "Oh, Mr Arthur, it's good to see you sir." He turned a bright red wondering if he had been watching him ogle his daughter. "How…how long have you been standing there, sir ?"
Arthur Reeves laughed, he could see George was embarrassed that he had been caught. "Long enough to see my daughter's lover reveal himself" he replied casually, like he had no problem with what he just discovered.
At that moment, with nothing to hide anymore, George decided to reveal his feelings and gain her father's approval. "Mr Arthur, I um..i would really appreciate it if you give me a chance to win your daughter's heart" his palms were sweaty, his legs trembled, but he continued "I'll be kind to her and do my best to make her smile."
Arthur Reeves chuckled, he could see his sincere heart. "Go on. You have my approval"
George couldn't believe his ears, was he hearing correctly? His lips widened in a genuine smile "I promise I won't fail you, Mr Arthur – in growing this company and making your daughter happy"
"We'll see about that George, time will tell" Arthur replied calmly before he turned to leave.
Standing there with a happy smile on his face, George was sure his future looked very bright and he had everything under control.
~~~~*~~~~
George opened his eyes slowly and scanned around, trying to figure out where he was. Realizing he was lying on a bed, he made an attempt to sit up and let out a sharp cry of pain as he crashed down on the bed in defeat.
What was this place? What happened? He wondered, his tired brain trying hard to recollect his memories.
He raised his hands - wincing as an intense pain shot through his shoulders, only to discover he was covered in blood stained bandages from his head to feet. He began to panic, hot tears of confusion trickling down the sides of his face.
Dr Andrew – the personal doctor for George's family – walked in and moved to check his pulse. "You're finally awake, thank goodness" He smiled in relief.
The door to his medical room opened and his mother and personal assistant - Tony Williams rushed in. Patricia made her way to his bedside, her eyes welling with tears. She held his bandaged hands with her trembling hands as her tears of relief flowed.
"Mom, what's going on?" George whispered in panic, yearning for an answer.
"You've been unconscious for five days…" Patricia tapped his bandaged hand lightly as she spoke "...you were in a car accident five days ago, don't you remember anything about it?"
"Car accident? What are you talking about?" George still couldn't understand "Why…why am I all covered in bandages?"
"Your car caught fire on your way back home, you experienced serious burns as a result of it" Patricia replied, her voice muffled from her tears that wouldn't stop flowing.
"You experienced a second degree burn, people were fast enough to get you out of your car before you were completely burnt" Dr Andrew chipped in as he glanced at George with a pitiful smile. "I'm going to do my best as your doctor to reduce the impact of the burns on your skin, but keep in mind there is no guarantee you will look the same way you did before the accident"
George broke down in tears after Dr Andrew walked out to continue his work. He just became the CEO of Imperial Hub Limited two months ago, why did this have to happen? How would he maintain the public image of this company? Was he supposed to show up at business conferences and board meetings looking like this? What about the media publications…what would they say? He had a splitting headache just thinking about everything. Was he supposed to face Rachel looking like this? Wouldn't she be disgusted?
Exhausted from everything he had heard since the moment he opened his eyes, George decided to talk about something else. "How has everything been at the company these past five days? Is there something I'm supposed to know?"
Patricia and Tony gave each other a weird look like they were hiding something, and it did not go unnoticed to George.
"You can tell him whatever he wants to know later, let him rest for now" His mother replied firmly
"No, tell me now" George insisted, his desire to know getting stronger by the minute. The more they tried to hide it from him, the more he wanted to know.
After a long pause, Tony finally let it out "Arthur Reeves was arrested for drug trafficking five days ago, he is in jail now."
"Wait…what?" George muttered in disbelief, "Arthur Reeves? Drug trafficking?....there's no way!" He laughed, refusing to believe what he just heard.
"He's in jail right now and will remain there for the next ten years, it's really not a joke" Patricia chipped in, her eyes filled with a look of disbelief.
"Ten years?" George yelled in shock. Arthur Reeves would never hurt a fly, not to talk of ruining his reputation for a truckload of money, everybody knew that. "Taking him to jail means they found evidence, right?"
"Yes. The police said an anonymous source sent a digital file claiming it was the evidence of Mr Arthur receiving a huge amount of slush fund linked to a recent drug trafficking case" Tony answered, rubbing the back of his neck in confusion "Strangely, it showed Arthur Reeves name on the transaction receipt which doesn't even make sense. He would never do such a thing"
"Did they give anybody access to the file, to you know…make their own investigation?" George enquired, tears of despair trickling down the sides of his face. His life was falling apart. What was going on?
"Not at all. They just rushed into the villa and arrested him. Besides, it's the police, the bodyguards have to cooperate. If word gets out that the co-owner of Imperial Hub Limited is involved in a drug trafficking case and he refuses to be arrested, that would be a problem for the company."
George closed his eyes, completely overwhelmed. His mind drifted to Rachel Reeves and he wondered how she was doing, he was sure she had lost her beautiful smile by now with all that had happened.
"Everything he owned has been confiscated. They claimed that his wealth came from drug trafficking, Imperial Hub Limited was just a cover-up he used to deceive people – so they took everything away." Patricia, who had been quiet so far answered slowly, knowing this would break George's heart even more. "His wife and daughter have moved out of their villa."
It was truly a dark day for George. He couldn't help but wonder...Where did the anonymous source suddenly come from? Why was the police in a haste to take him to jail instead of carrying out further investigation? It could be a set-up, why were they so fast to sentence him to ten years in prison? Someone had to be behind this, right?
Dr Andrew walked in to monitor George's health, then whirled around to face Patricia and Tony "He is under a lot of emotional stress right now which is very bad for his health. If you can allow him to get some rest without any disturbance, that will be good. I'll do my best to watch over him"
Patricia glanced over at Tony, indicating to him that they had to leave. "We'll come over later to see you. Please be strong, you will get through this." She whispered to George before she turned to leave with Tony by her side.
Listening to her words, a little spark of determination grew inside of him and George made up his mind that he would survive this. He would get through this. Not just that, but he was going to find the person behind the downfall of Rachel's family and clear her father's name.
Even as he became drowsy – his body tired and needing rest, George was sure of one thing. He would never be the same and neither would Rachel.
Summer, 2020Five years laterTwenty three years old Rachel Reeves moved slowly around the tiny kitchen in the small house where she and her mother had lived since her father was jailed. She could tell just by looking at the bright sky, that it was afternoon already. She had to hurry up if she wanted to see her father today, before the jail wardens stopped people from coming in. Rachel carefully packed two plates of delicious food, what she could make with the little money she had.She sighed in exhaustion, replaying the day in her mind. It was just early afternoon, yet she had shuffled two jobs early this morning – rushed to the market to do some shopping for her father's food – now, she had to go spend some time with him and come back for a night shift at a local restaurant. She wasn't complaining about going over to see her father, she would never complain about that. She really missed him.Bringing her hands to wipe away the tears that ran down her face, she couldn't help but thin
Morris Scott fumed in anger, his eyes glazing "What do you mean by that!... Out of all the options you have, you choose her?" Still sitting on his chair, He trembled in rage as he realized George had played him and taken advantage of his desperation. "Why would you want the daughter of a drug trafficker? Have you forgotten we were warned to stay away from them?" "She is not…!!" George yelled, his jaws clenching so hard from his growing irritation "I repeat, she is not the daughter of a drug trafficker!! That was five years ago. Besides, we all know Arthur was innocent." Morris stared in shock, George had never raised his voice at him – not even once. "Did you just yell at me?" "Yes I did, and I will do it again if I have to" "How dare you!!" Morris jumped to his feet, still refusing to believe that George was talking back at him "How dare you open your petty mouth to –" "Oh please…" George interrupted him, a look of disgust settling on his face. "...just stop it already! This is n
"What did I just hear from your father?" Patricia whispered, pacing around the hallway where she stood with her son, George. "Tell me I'm dreaming, I probably didn't hear correctly. Yo…you want to marry who?""It's true, I want to marry Arthur Reeves' daughter, Rachel" George answered firmly, his face showing no sign of remorse. His mind was made up.He had spent the last Twenty-six years listening to everything his parents wanted him to do. They made most of the choices for him, all he had to do was obey. His father especially, knowing that George was ever ready to please his mother would send her to him, so she could change his mind with her soft words and tearful eyes.And for years he had listened, he had obeyed. He had played along to their beat. He had laid down his interests to do what they wanted. But not anymore. Not today. From now on, he was going to do what he wanted for himself and not feel sorry for it."Are you hearing yourself?" Patricia quaked, the pitch of her voice
The voices in his head just wouldn't stay quiet. George sighed heavily as he paced around the open space in his large bedroom, just a few steps away from the gigantic mirror that rested on the wall. Every few minutes, he would sneak a peek at the mirror, staring at himself. He was clearly losing it, his mind wouldn't stop creating negative scenarios of when he and Rachel would meet.Tomorrow….He couldn't believe they were to meet tomorrow. What had he been thinking to pick her in the first place? No woman in her right mind would want to be married to a man that looked like him.He was even more confused, why did she agree to the proposal? Why would Rachel agree to marry into a family she was told to stay away from? It didn't make any sense. She didn't even know him — it had been over five years. Why would she easily agree to marry a stranger? Was that normal?George was frustrated. He thought 'walking around' would help his mind stay focused, but the confusing thoughts flying around
She had heard about his accident five years ago. It had been all over the news, her mother had told her about it too. Rachel could remember that it happened the same day her father got arrested. The day her world came crashing down was the day his life flipped upside down. But even though she knew he would have some scars due to his accident, Rachel didn't expect it would be this bad.She stood there with her mouth open from shock, studying him, taking in his appearance. The scars covered his once beautiful face all the way down to his neck. It looked like it extended all the way down his muscular body that was hidden behind his black fitted suit. Rachel gulped. She couldn't help but wonder, How did he go through all of that….in a place like this?She had witnessed her fair share of ridicule from other elite people within the company, when her father was arrested for drug trafficking. She had suddenly become an outcast, no longer up to their taste and level. She remembered being calle
The days moved by quickly, faster than she wanted it to. Rachel observed as she stood in front of a huge mirror that graced the wall of her personal bedroom. This was going to be the last moment she spent in this room, she was to move over to another room this night.His room…Ah, he must be anticipating it — What a weirdo he was. Rachel laughed out loud in the empty room, as she got ready for her wedding ceremony that was to start in two hours time. George had hired a professional hairstylist and makeup artist to transform her face and hair, and honestly, she couldn't recognise herself as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Not in the bad way actually…She never knew she could look so ethereal, so elegant, so beautiful…It had been a long time since she had rested so well, eaten so well and actually felt like a princess. The hardship she had faced these last five years had thrown her off balance and she had forgotten how to take care of herself. In the last two weeks, George d
The wedding came to an end after an hour and everyone moved along. Patricia walked up to George and Rachel who sat at a table talking to each other. As she approached the table, Rachel quickly stood up and greeted her. Rachel didn't need anyone to tell her who the woman was, the resemblance between the woman and George was strong."Mom…" George muttered before he turned to face Rachel "...this is my mom, Mrs Patricia Anne Scott"Rachel greeted her again. She was so nervous, plus the fact that George had mentioned his mother wasn't in support of her being here or getting married to her son, only made her feel more uncomfortable — especially with the way his mother narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing her from head to toe."It's nice to see you, Rachel," Patricia answered warmly. If there was one thing she didn't want, that'd be making George angry by treating his 'new wife' poorly. She could tell her son was in love with this lady, and she wouldn't want to be one to take his happiness away.
The first streak of the morning sunrise filled the bedroom and everywhere brightened up. Rachel stirred to consciousness as her eyes fluttered open. Her mind still felt foggy from sleep and something about her surroundings looked a bit strange. Where was she?After a few minutes, Rachel's mind started clearing up and she realized where she was and what happened yesterday. She had gotten married and now, she was lying down in his room, on his bed. His room was different from where she had stayed the last two weeks…She tried turning around and in that moment, realized there was something resting on her waist and her back was leaning on something hard. What could that be? Moving her eyes to gaze downward, Rachel saw that George had wrapped his hand around her waist and cuddled close to her — her back touching his rock hard chest. Her eyes widened in realization and her mind was suddenly alert, the fogginess completely gone. Did he forget so fast that she said she didn't want to cuddle w