When he learned that his mother was on campus, Edward's face turned ashen, and all the colors in his skin faded. Memories from the previous masquerade ball are returning to him. Sweat beads the size of peas are forming on his temples. Edward's heart had almost stopped beating, and he had become immobile. His eyes were wide with shock as he looked at Joaquin.
Joaquin became concerned when he noticed a sudden change in his friend's behavior. He knew Edward's mother, Corazon, would not go to university without a reason, and he believes she is up to no good.
"How come your mother is on campus?" Joaquin exclaimed frantically.
"I may have forgotten to mention that my mother witnessed my interactions with Ella and the masked girl. She warned me to stay away from them," Edward said nervously in a trembling voice.
A quick flash of a frown showed on Joaquin's face as his eyes were left wide open. He took a dee
Edward was frozen and stuck in place. His breathing is shallow and heavy. He had the feeling that his heart was stopping or skipping a beat. As he stared at nothingness, his eye went round with a blank expression. He couldn't believe what Salome had just told him, and he was keen to know whether she was telling the truth or joking. "Gone where?" he asked Salome, looking at her in disbelief. "Where is Ella?" he asked her once more. His eyes welled with tears. "What happened to her?" Edward has placed his trembling hands over Salome's shoulder and is shaking her back and forth while trying to get answers out of her. "She was happy and excited to go to this party when she came into the shop earlier. Then your brother visited her and spoke to her. The next thing we knew, she was preparing to travel abroad," Salome quickly replied. Edward was taken aback by what Salome just told him. He had no idea his brother would be involved in this. "My brother?" His voice was breaking. "Yes, he s
Days passed since the day Edward asked Ella to be his date at the masquerade ball; Ella couldn't get proper sleep, and she couldn't eat normally. She's been stressing so much about the invitation and is still deciding whether to accept it or not. Lucas became worried because he always sees his sister disoriented and spacing out. Ella was sometimes seen pacing back and forth, thinking to herself. But, unlike in the past, Lucas noticed that she was happier than she had ever been. Ella has a more radiant complexion and smiles more frequently. Her mood is upbeat and creative. She is more productive, and he would suspect she is in love if he didn't know her sister.Lucas had just finished making breakfast when he noticed Ella was still in her room. Ella usually wakes up early and waits at the kitchen counter before he finishes making breakfast, so her absence worried him. He went into her room, but when he tried to open the door, it was locked, which Ella never does.
It's been a long, excruciating week for Ella and Edward's family. As the sole heir to Margaux's fortune, Edward became preoccupied with his new duties and responsibilities. He had to go through numerous briefings and corporate meetings before meeting with the board members of the corporations and businesses that his grandmother used to own.On the other hand, Ella was busy with the cases filed against Luis for kidnapping, violence against women and children, physical injury, and attempted murder. Ella's family filed a forgery claim against Enrique Santibanez.When Enrique falsely accused Fernando Cristobal of corruption, he was investigated and his assets were frozen by the government. Enrique filed numerous cases against Fernando, but they were ineffective due to a lack of evidence against him. Enrique was able to tarnish Fernando's reputation due to his strong connections to corrupt officials at the time, which led to his depression. Ferna
Ella's vision was still fuzzy, and she still feels light-headed. She was not able to move on her own, and all she could hear was the sound of the siren coming from the ambulance and police cars. She heard people walking around in a hurry, and some were screaming as they were dragging the suspects to the police vehicles. She could feel the paramedics putting an oxygen mask on her face, carrying her to the stretcher, and placing her inside the ambulance.She was about to get up on the stretcher to see where Edward and Joaquin had gone when she felt a warm hand over her shoulder, gently pushing her back to the stretcher."Don't worry, Ella. You're in good hands." Edward spoke to her in hushed tones."Edward, I thought you'd leave me," Ella said worriedly, her eyes welling up with tears."I'm right here, but there's something I need to do, so I have to go for now," he explained calmly. "Your family is wa
After walking out of the family dinner, Edward locked himself in one of the rooms to prevent a family member from barging in. He knew that some of his family members would try to persuade him to return to the family meeting or persuade him to consider marrying Lydia. Even though he wanted to leave the mansion and go home, his grandmother Margaux wouldn't let him and instead requested a private audience with him after dinner.Edward lay on the bed and rested. He was about to fall asleep when he received a call from an unexpected person."Edward, Ella has been kidnapped!" Lucas said, crying. His voice had a fearful tone to it.Edward felt a twinge of melancholy and perplexity. He tried to process and assess what he had just heard from Lucas, hoping it was a joke."What happened? Who took her?" Edward inquired worriedly."A group of men took her to the hospital, and they are all arm
Ella's eyes widened, and she stared at Joaquin in disbelief. As Ella's anger overpowered her, rage pulsed through her veins and quickened her blood. Ella gave Joaquin a knuckle punch as if her hand had a mind of its own."Ouch! Ella, that hurts." Joaquin cried out."I'm not gay, douchebag!" She said it with gritted teeth and a clenched jaw. "Edward mistook me for a boy!""Thank Goodness!" Joaquin breathed a sigh of relief. "For a brief moment, I thought you were gay. I can't imagine how Edward would react if he found out." Joaquin burst out laughing."I'm not kidding, dumbass! We were young back then, and I was wearing my brother's clothes, plus my hair was too short; that's why I can't blame him for mistaking me for a boy," Ella explained to Joaquin."You were still wearing baggy man's clothes," Joaquin said while looking at her. "But, at the very least, your hair is long, you h