登入~Eliza~I had to threaten Atlas.The man was as stubborn as a mule and absolutely refused to let me return to work alone after getting discharged three days ago.He had insisted on having Adam, his bodyguard, follow me to the office. That would have been a sweet, thoughtful gesture, except for two things.One, Adam was huge and almost as wide as a truck. He would draw too much attention to me. The other was that Atlas actually wanted Adam to accompany me everywhere.That was absolutely unacceptable.I understood that he was only trying to keep me safe from the whole fiasco happening at his office. But that didn’t mean I wanted a whole six-foot, hulking mass of man to be on my heels at every turn.“I had meetings to attend, places to be and I needed to do all that without Adam,” I thought, walking down the hallway leading to my office.So, I threatened to kick him out of our bedroom if he pressed me on the issue. Atlas had grudgingly relented, muttering all the way when he dropped me o
~Atlas~I nearly busted my teeth from how hard I was grinding down on them.Earlier, while I was in Eliza’s room, Adam had called. I immediately knew it couldn’t be for a good reason, because recently the burly man kept giving me unwanted news.And of course, I was right.I set my jaw and scowled at the shivering woman sitting on the chair before me. This issue was proving to be more of a headache than I thought and I was sick of it.Hearing Adam tell me that Rachael had tried to sneak into the office and steal some documents had sent a spike of pain straight to my head.It had taken all my calm to force myself not to show any reaction while I was with Eliza. Also, like I had promised Luca, I would keep her safe, far away from the mess going on at work.That didn’t mean I had to enjoy it, though, especially when it took me away from Eliza’s side.For the first time since I yanked off her blindfold, Rachael raised her head to peer at me. My scowl deepened and she let out a whimper, dro
~Eliza~All hints of the peaceful calm that enveloped me only a moment ago disappeared.As the door burst open and Luca stormed in, I felt Atlas go still behind me. His body stiffened as he dropped his hand and straightened.“Stop yelling, Luca,” he said in a bored tone that was at odds with the tension in his frame.Luca stalked further into the room, his eyes fixed on me even as he shot back a terse, “You don’t get to give orders right now, West.”Then he sat on the bed beside me and picked up my hand. “Are you alright now, Eliza?” he asked, peering into my eyes.Tears sprang to my eyes at the sight of the genuine concern on his face. His lips were thin and stretched straight, while his eyes seemed slightly bloodshot.This was one of the few times anyone in my family had ever shown me any true form of kindness. It was… nice, really, really nice.I swallowed down the lump in my throat and nodded just as Luca’s eyes started to narrow in anger. I grasped his shirt sleeve before he coul
~Atlas~It has been forty-eight hours.But my heart still hadn’t stopped its furious thrashing in my chest because I could still see the traumatizing image in my mind’s eye.I must have broken all the available traffic regulations ever made in my haste to get home two days ago. All I could think about was stopping Daniel from carrying out whatever plan he had cooked up.For him to have kicked the door open so violently, he definitely hadn’t gone to merely greet Eliza.I prayed as I had never done before that I wouldn’t be too late. But I almost did. I almost lost Eliza.After dashing out of the car, I raced through the open doorway. My heart nearly stopped as my eyes swept over what was happening in a single glance.Eliza was prone on the ground with Daniel astride her, muttering something in a guttural tone. She was letting out choked, rattled gasps while he seemed to be slamming her head onto the floor.Her arms were stretched out beside her in a limp way that made breathing suddenl
~Eliza~“You heard me, Eliza,” Daniel snarled at me.My head reared back in delayed surprise because this was crazy.Of all the things I expected Daniel to say, that certainly wasn’t it. I mean, sure, I had thought he was here to confront me about the shares.But to say that about Atlas? That was simply the most insane thing I had ever heard him say.“Are you drunk or dumb?” I blurted, cocking my head to look at him properly.“Don’t patronize me,” he snapped in a sudden burst of anger.I jumped back, startled by his unexpected display of vehemence. Maybe I really needed to get the hell out of here before Daniel did…something.I raised my hands and started to speak slowly. “Listen, Daniel, I really don’t understand what you meant by that accusation. It’s not even true.”He let out a short, mocking laugh that sent shivers streaking down my spine. I felt the air on my arms stand in warning and I took another step back from him.“You really expect me to believe that?” he sneered callously
~Atlas~“We have to go over everything all over again,” Adam said gruffly and let out a heavy sigh.I nodded absentmindedly, my gaze still fixed on the other two people in the room, particularly Rachael.The moment Nickie had revealed that information, I noticed Rachael’s slight flinch from the corner of my eye. She had looked calm otherwise, aside from the telltale sign she let slip.Cole, on the other hand, just looked as surprised as the rest of us, as if he had had no idea about that little detail.I struck out his name from the three-person list I had in my head. He had told us everything he knew and involving him further would only put him at greater risk.Until this whole situation is resolved, he should return to the safehouse and take care of his younger sister.“Sir, we should—”I put up a hand to stop Adam from speaking. Then I turned to look at Cole. “Why don’t you go home now?”The words came out a little harsher than I intended, so I continued in a gentle tone. “I mean,
~Atlas~After six long years, she was finally back in my life. Eliza Monroe.I was close enough to touch her, but now, she was unconscious on a hospital bed. And my nephew put her there.My hands curled into fists at my sides and I hated the feeling of helplessness curling through me.“What the hel
~Eliza~“I didn't realize you found the idea of marrying me so distasteful, Eliza,” Atlas bit out, his gaze sharpening on me.“Well, for one, you are Daniel’s uncle,” I stated, widening my eyes at him incredulously. “What—”“Step uncle.”“will everyone think?” I finished determinedly.“Why do you c
~Eliza~Tingles spread from my head to my toes.I kept my eyes closed for a moment longer, trying to keep reality from rushing back in, but it was useless. Slowly, I opened my eyes.The ceiling above me was high and cream-coloured, with a pale light fixture at its centre. I turned my head and notic
~Eliza~“B-baby, what are you doing here?” Daniel asked breathlessly as he scrambled to pull up his trousers.The smile died on my trembling lips as I watched my sister slowly pull down her skintight skirt. She smirked at me.I had just entered Daniel’s office to share the most wonderful news, only







