Lola’s POVI sat in the living room, my leg crossed upon the other. I poured myself a glass of champagne. What is life without victory? What is life when you cannot take matters into your own hands?The old devil opened the eyes of the fool to see the truth, and you expect that I wouldn’t consult the right pharmacy to give me the best poison and add it to her food? Of course, I would. It was only a matter of time before the truth unraveled, and I had to take action before it destroyed everything I had built.When Tyler asked me why Jasmine’s body tone was different from his, when her eyes were of different colors, I figured it wouldn’t take long before the big cat in the bag revealed itself. And I couldn’t allow that—not after everything I had done.I was a woman who had had to go through hell to get here. I even made sure Tyler ended his marriage with his ex-wife. And you think I would sit back and allow a dying mother to break my marriage?! Never.So, that day, as Tyler left to get
Eunice’s POVI opened my eyes in shock when I heard the news of Diana’s death. My eyes welled up with tears.Did Tyler fail to take care of his mother properly after we ended things, and that has led to her death?Tears streamed down my face immediately. Diana was a good woman—the most loving mother-in-law anyone could ever have.“How did she pass?” I asked Julie slowly, as she brought the news to me.“According to our source, ma’am… she was rushed to the hospital, and she died twenty minutes after arrival,” she explained.I covered my eyes with my hand. I closed my eyes and let the tears fall freely, letting them run down my cheeks as much as they needed to.Diana was the very mother-in-law who never judged me for anything. Even when she didn’t know me before Tyler introduced me as the woman he was going to marry, she embraced me without hesitation.She didn’t judge me when she found out my mother had disowned me and wouldn't be attending our wedding because I disobeyed her by choosi
Tyler’s POVI carried my mother’s dead body into the coffin myself. I didn’t let no one else do this. She was my mother—the one who gave birth to me, breastfed me, raised me into a man. And even now, as she lay cold and lifeless, how could I not adore her? How could I let anyone else touch her now, in her final moments on earth?Today was the day she was going to be buried. Our culture didn’t allow the dead to be left unburied beyond three days. We believed that anyone who wasn’t laid to rest within that time was either a wicked person that their family had abandoned—or someone so lonely, with no one left to care for them, not even in death.In such cases, the government would step in. They would take over the burial process within a week and lay the person to rest along with others who had no one left. It was done appropriately, of course, but without intimacy. Without meaning.I didn’t want that for my mother.After all the motherly love she had shown me? After all she sacrificed to
Eunice POVI watched her as if I watched a toothless dog barking—loud but harmless, just irritating.Purposely, I didn’t take any of my luxurious cars to the burial ceremony. In fact, I had rented this faded-looking sedan because I wanted to keep something far low—lower than low profile. I knew that going to Diana’s burial, Tyler would certainly see me. And when he did, I knew he would start calculating—trying to size me up. Was I doing better after the divorce, or was I doing poorly?I didn’t want him to know my real status after the divorce. Letting him find out that I was now the president of Maison Vivre could trigger some regret within him. And I knew Tyler—he might even try to come back to me.But I don’t want that. I don’t want anything close to that. I wanted him to pay for his actions. Still, at the same time, I needed to pay Diana my last respect. She didn’t deserve to be forgotten because of what her son had done.When you talk of a good and caring mother-in-law, you’d alwa
Lola’s POVI didn’t know Tyler could be that much of a child. A child that crumbles at the loss of his mother. Even after many hours had passed since the burial had been completed, just because the news stations picked up the story and aired it, he broke down crying again?He cradled up to the wall and buried his head into his knees. He cried like a fucking baby who had been abandoned by everyone and couldn’t imagine what his life would turn out to be from now on.But the real truth remained: if he had loved his mother so much—so deeply that her death broke him this way—then why did he continue to let her hate me while she was alive?Why didn’t he ever put her in her place? When she started suspecting that Jasmine had some uniqueness—some traits different from either of us—why didn’t he say something to calm her down or correct her assumptions?Didn’t he know that the instinct of a woman to protect her child, to protect herself, can sometimes spiral into something worse?I said nothin
Tyler’s POVI arrived at the coffee shop, the place Dr. Joel had told me to catch up with him. It was a shop that always dressed their chairs and tables outdoors, and I so much hated going there because anyone could be seen sitting beside the room, having a cup of coffee, completely exposed to the public eye.Still, I went anyway.“Why that place, we could just go to…”“It’s the best place we can use. We will be able to see anyone who was catching up to us without our permission,” Dr. Joel had interrupted me, and well, I understood since he said he was going to tell me a secret. His tone was dead serious. So, I figured he cared deeply about his safety—and maybe mine too.Right from the parking lot where I parked my car, I saw Dr. Joel sitting up front in one of the chairs beside the wall. He was positioned facing the road and looking both to the right and the left with urgency, as if he was being extremely careful not to be followed or seen by someone else.This already felt differen
Tyler’s POVI arrived back at home, and the anger from the nonsense Dr. Joel told me was still sitting hard on my face. The drive hadn’t helped. My mind was a storm.How could he come up with something as ridiculous as that? What kind of doctor even says things like that without proof?As I opened the front door, the weight of my thoughts still dragging behind me, the first person to run with her little legs and open her tiny hands to hug my leg—right at her height level—was my little Jasmine.The moment I carried her up to my chest and played with her nose as I always did, something shifted. I didn’t know what happened, but I knew I was not feeling that level of anger again.Seeing my baby’s face always brought me some kind of solace—even in the midst of tension. It was like a balm I never knew I needed. And then it just hit me. I realized that I had been away from my family emotionally since burying my mother. Not physically, but something inside me had checked out.With that though
Eunice’s POVI laid my hands gently on my stomach. Sometimes, the air carries whispers of the past, doesn’t it? It brushes against your skin, and suddenly, you remember the important things you’ve lost—things that once defined your very existence.I sighed deeply, the memories weighing heavily on my chest. I remembered I used to be pregnant for Tyler. As I continued rubbing my stomach, the ache returned—not just physical, but emotional.If he had not betrayed me—if he hadn’t allowed the unfortunate to happen by letting another woman come between us—I would have birthed that child. I would have been a mother by now, rocking my baby to sleep, singing lullabies, and watching them grow.But life doesn’t come with a manual, does it? I remembered how I lost the pregnancy... and how I had no choice but to move forward after that heartbreaking scenario. It shattered me, but I survived.Now, I sat behind the desk in my office at Velvet Aura. The company was now fully functional, thriving even.
Tyler’s POVI arrived at work, and what I saw made my stomach churn.I stood frozen at the entrance door. It was locked — like no one had been here today.My company opens at 7 a.m. for employees and at 10 a.m. for customers to come and enjoy our best-of-the-best services.But even at 8 a.m., when I got to work today, there was no one around?I already knew my directors and top stylists had stopped working for me. They didn’t even bother to resign properly. No notice. No formal resignation letter. Instead, they simply started working for the beauty company that had just opened down the street.Could it be that my regular stylists and makeup artists had followed the same path?My heart began to race as that horrible thought settled in. Before I knew it, I fumbled into my pocket and brought out my key to unlock the entrance door.When I got inside, my eyes scanned the room — and my heart dropped further. The place was spotless. Sparkling clean from end to end. Not a single stain anywher
Tyler’s POVI slept like a baby right after the beautiful, enjoyable sex I had with my beautiful and lovely wife.They say when a man releases, he releases everything in his body and soul. The weight of his day, the ghost of his past, and the love he doesn’t know how to say aloud.This was exactly how I felt when Lola and I were done with the intimacy. I just wanted to close my eyes and fall into a very deep sleep to wake up the next day, which I did right after Lola finished telling me some important thing.That night felt like a balm to my spirit—a peaceful end to what had been a chaotic day. I drifted off in her arms, reassured by her warmth, her scent, her presence.As the sun rose, I stretched my hands in the air, yawning as I welcomed the new morning. Though yesterday was sad, I woke up today a happy man.But why wouldn’t I be happy?I turned to my right and saw Lola. Her eyes were still closed and her body was still still.I didn’t need anyone to tell before I knew she was stil
Eunice’s POVI sat behind my desk, right in my office, when Julie walked in. Normally, I wouldn’t have lifted my head. I would have continued focusing on my laptop because I was in a virtual meeting with the board of directors of my Maison Vivre. But today was different. Julie wasn’t alone. She walked in with a man right behind her.He was dark, tall, and wore a kind of velvet suit that was as dark as charcoal. I had never seen him before in my life. But seeing him walking in behind Julie, I figured he was someone important.Julie bowed as soon as she reached the side of my desk, showing her usual respect. The man, on the other hand, stood at the front of my desk and bowed evenly, with calculated precision.“Alright, dear directors. Please give me a moment to pause this meeting—I’ll reconnect later so we can continue discussing the matter,” I said to my directors on the virtual meeting. “Alright, madam,” they all responded one after the other, and I watched as they logged off the mee
Lola’s POVWhen he drank it, I leaned upwards in a way that I could see his mouth open and the liquid in the cup flow through his lips. I watched his throat as he swallowed it down, every movement registering in my mind like a silent confirmation.Then I revealed a smirk from the corner of my cheek because I had just confirmed that he really drank the tea—the poison. It was no longer a plan. It had begun.Today, Tuesday, April 29, marked the day Tyler started to die. And every morning, he would keep taking this pill until the moment he took his last breath.I had to stay close—watch every breath, every expression, every shift in his energy. Because when that final moment came, when he gasped for air he couldn’t find, I would be there. I would look him in the eye and reveal everything.At the instant he took his last breath, I would tell him why I started killing him slowly. He would be shocked to know that he was not the real father of Jasmine and that it was I who killed his mother.
Tyler’s POVHas betrayal ever gnawed at you in the face before? Gnawed at you to the extent that you’d suddenly become illogical in your approach to things because you just can’t place what was happening?This was exactly what was happening to me right now. My directors and top stylist were people I paid the highest of salaries and commissions in my company, and now they dared not to come to work?At first, I even thought they were just running late. Maybe traffic held them back, I reasoned. But as the hours passed—hours of me sitting there helplessly, hours of losing customers—and seeing more customers furiously leaving the salon to go elsewhere, reality began to set in.I realized then that they were not coming to work at all. And suddenly, a sickening feeling began to grow inside me. It felt like this was some sort of gang-up, a setup meant to bring me down, and I was caught right in the middle of it.Seeing that many of my customers who stormed out angrily were heading to the new
Eunice’s POVJulie, my smart personal assistant, had found a way to block Tyler’s directors and top stylists from Lustre & Co on their way home from work.One by one, she intercepted them separately, stopping her car in front of theirs and stepping out confidently.At first, they were angry, honking and motioning for her to get out of the way. But Julie didn't flinch. Instead, she walked up to each driver’s side window, dressed to kill, and leaned in with a dazzling smile. In her perfectly manicured hand, she held a blue-bound document — our offer.The transformation was immediate. Their irritation melted into curiosity — and something else. They stared at her as if she were a dessert they couldn’t wait to devour. Only, it wasn’t food they were craving. It was the magnetic, irresistible Julie, who looked at them with an expression that made it seem like she was inviting them to do more than just take a glance.Men.They were controlled by what they saw, right? We understood that weakn
Lola’s POVA week had passed, and I still couldn’t shake off what Tyler told me Dr. Joel had said.Though Tyler didn’t believe it—not yet, anyway—what he didn’t realize was that the seed had already been planted. Whether he liked it or not, sooner or later, it would take root. And once it did, it would grow. Slowly, steadily, he’d start noticing more and more flaws in my Jasmine.I can’t allow that.I can’t stand by and let some prick in a white lab coat unravel everything I’ve worked so hard to build. I’ve come too far. And I sure as hell won’t let a foolish, naive husband like Tyler destroy everything I’ve clawed my way through just to reach this point.This was why I had to act—fast. Because if I didn’t, there would be fire on the mountain. And when that fire came, it wouldn’t just scorch the surface—it would consume me and my daughter, piece by piece, until there was nothing left.So, I made a move.The moment Tyler left for work, I dashed down the street to see Bianca. She had a
Eunice’s POVI laid my hands gently on my stomach. Sometimes, the air carries whispers of the past, doesn’t it? It brushes against your skin, and suddenly, you remember the important things you’ve lost—things that once defined your very existence.I sighed deeply, the memories weighing heavily on my chest. I remembered I used to be pregnant for Tyler. As I continued rubbing my stomach, the ache returned—not just physical, but emotional.If he had not betrayed me—if he hadn’t allowed the unfortunate to happen by letting another woman come between us—I would have birthed that child. I would have been a mother by now, rocking my baby to sleep, singing lullabies, and watching them grow.But life doesn’t come with a manual, does it? I remembered how I lost the pregnancy... and how I had no choice but to move forward after that heartbreaking scenario. It shattered me, but I survived.Now, I sat behind the desk in my office at Velvet Aura. The company was now fully functional, thriving even.
Tyler’s POVI arrived back at home, and the anger from the nonsense Dr. Joel told me was still sitting hard on my face. The drive hadn’t helped. My mind was a storm.How could he come up with something as ridiculous as that? What kind of doctor even says things like that without proof?As I opened the front door, the weight of my thoughts still dragging behind me, the first person to run with her little legs and open her tiny hands to hug my leg—right at her height level—was my little Jasmine.The moment I carried her up to my chest and played with her nose as I always did, something shifted. I didn’t know what happened, but I knew I was not feeling that level of anger again.Seeing my baby’s face always brought me some kind of solace—even in the midst of tension. It was like a balm I never knew I needed. And then it just hit me. I realized that I had been away from my family emotionally since burying my mother. Not physically, but something inside me had checked out.With that though