The manager got up from his seat, along with his assistant. The assistant stepped forward and said to Jeffrey in a placating tone,“Sir, you have to be authorized.”Jeffrey’s expression showed that he thought those words were actually bullshit. He slid his card out from his pocket and flung it at the assistant’s chest.“Is that enough fucking authorization for you?” He spat. The assistant glanced down at the card and gave the manager a wide eyed stare. The manager swallowed and asked tentatively, “You are Chase Axford’s brother?”That question triggered so much anger in Jeffrey that he has the maddening urge to smash the Manager’s jaw in. There was nothing in this fucking world that gave his ego a devastating blow, as being a brother to Chase Axford. Not just a brother, but a stepbrother. Someone who a lot of people barely even noticed no matter how hard he tried.Chase effortlessly stole the spotlight with every single thing he did. He was the leader of the Axford Conglomerate, desp
“Yes, we do.” The manager responded and turned to the security men, “Check the parking lot footage, of that same date.”Jeffrey stepped back in front of the large screens and watched it carefully. There was a figure on the screen, stepping out into the parking lot and carrying a woman in his arms. “Right there! Wait.” Jeffrey pointed at the screen, something bitter like bile rising in his throat as he recognized who the man was. They did not even need to zoom in for this one. He recognized that fucking infuriating set of broad shoulders, and that tall build, even if the face was hidden under a face cap.It was fucking Chase.His teeth gritted when he looked at the woman in his arms, and saw that it was the same woman walking away from him back at the bar area. The woman with the curly long hair, skimpy dress and high heels.His mind automatically flashed back to the picture the reporter had taken of Chase holding Mackenzie and protecting her from another man. Chase. Mackenzie. Ch
Mrs. Weston moved to sit down on a bench by the hedge of some flowers, while Cameron and Calista looked around. Cameron spotted two people playing a ball a few meters away and he desperately wanted to go watch them, so he looked back at Charlotte’s mom,“Granny, can I go watch those people?”She was hesitant, but Cameron gave her puppy eyes and clasped his hands together, “Please, please, granny?”She let out a sigh, and gave in, “Alright, Cameron. But stay where I can see you, okay? Calista, you can go ahead and look at the flowers too. But don’t go far!”Cameron was already running in the opposite direction, but Calista waited to respond, “Okay, granny.”She turned around and slowly walked by the hedges of flowers, looking at each brightly colored petal and flower arrangements in fascination. Sometimes, she bent close to smell the flowers and see which one had the best smell. She was smiling to herself and having so much fun, that she had no idea she was walking far away from wher
Richard stopped her, and suggested in a gentle tone. “Okay, Calista. Why don’t we just go inside the hospital and your granny will come meet us instead?”Calista nodded, fiddling her fingers around the flower. He asked, “What is your granny’s name?” “I don’t know. But I also came with Aunt Felicity. We came to visit granny, with my brother.”He moved to hold her small hand, leading her out of the garden. “Let’s go look for Aunt Felicity then. Okay?”“Okay.”Richard led her into the hospital building and they took a private elevator to the broadcast room. On entering, the workers in there snapped up in surprise to see Richard Axford in there with a little girl.“Sir?—”“This little girl needs to find her family somewhere in this hospital so make an announcement telling Aunt Felicity to come get Calista at Reception hall C.” He said.“Of course, sir. Right away, sir.” They made the announcement and after, he led her to the reception hall where they would wait for her family to show u
“Have you noticed anything about Calista’s eyesight?” Richard asked Felicity.She frowned slightly, “Sight? Not really.” She took a quick glance back at Calista sitting with Mrs. Weston. “Is there something wrong?”He nodded. “Yes, back in the garden, I noticed that she can’t see far. She does not know when it started, so I believe it has been going on for a while now. If it was sudden, she would definitely have said something.”Felicity’s eyes shifted to rest on Calista again, and for the first time ever, she noticed that she was straining her eyes in a certain way to view the images on the TV screen. She felt a tug in her heart in realization. How did they not realize this sooner.The little girl literally lived with three adult women who were supposed to notice things quickly, yet no one did. But a kind stranger who found her just a while ago had already picked up on the fact that there was something wrong.Richard saw the downcast expression on Felicity’s face, and he quickly trie
Chase watched his father stare down at the gardens below as if he was looking for one last glimpse of the girl. Richard sighed and continued, “Seeing that little girl made me genuinely wish I had a grandchild like her. To keep me company sometimes, you know? Such a sweet and intelligent girl.”He glanced sideways at Chase, “Being in the presence of kids is so therapeutic to an old man like me, don’t you know? Being in the presence of that child made me feel less lonely and happier. But now? That loneliness is starting to weigh down on me again, as she is not my grandchild who can spend as much time with me as she wants.”Chase definitely did not want to have this conversation again, but to his relief, his father was not really looking for a conversation. The old man just wanted someone to listen to him. Chase wondered why his father was putting himself through this when he could just tell his wife the truth and have her come keep him company here in the hospital.But then, Chase knew
Richard shook his head like he was trying the untangle his thoughts. He looked back at Chase with an horrified expression, “This just keeps getting even worse. You mean this has been going on since she was still married? That’s all the more worse! Chase, what are you doing with a woman like that? What are you doing with women who cheat? Is that some kind of twisted preference of yours, son?”Chase ignored his father’s frantic reaction and responded, “Selene cheated on me with Jeffrey and Mackenzie found out about it. She did not even tell me even when she knew all along. She saw them herself…”Richard could not listen to any more. The barrage of information he had received in the past ten minutes alone made him feel dizzy. He slowly moved to sit on a chair, shaking his head slowly. Chase sighed, brushing a hand through his hair.“You should not be hearing all of this right now, dad. Please don’t think about it. Your focus should only be on your treatment and getting better. Besides,
Chase stopped on his tracks and turned to take one last look at Mrs. Weston's door. He was still perplexed, seeing as Mrs. Weston seemed to be doing fine. He pulled his phone out of his side pocket and quickly placed a call across to Nora. He called to ask if Mackenzie had returned to the office, but found out she had not. He thanked her for her time and ended the call. He slipped his phone into his pocket and continued his stroll around the hospital. As he walked, his mind wandered back to Eleanor and his father. Once again, he felt pity for the old man. Just as he was about to walk past the hospital's exit door, his eyes caught a familiar figure standing in the hallway, right in front of the door he knew belonged to eye patients, he had walked the corridors of the hospital long enough to know every nook and cranny. Chase paused, and tilted his neck to take a closer look at the woman. He spotted the wave of curls that poured down her back after she tied them in a low bun. She fol