CATALINADon't trust him, Catalina. He's just like the rest of them. The voice in my head kept warning me against this person in front of me, but I silenced it immediately. Although he tried to protect his family earlier, it seemed he still had some sense left unlike the rest of his family members. He had been protecting me all this time and taking care of my needs, so that meant I could trust him. Even if it was just for this case. I let him take the gun away from me, tucking it safely in his suit's inner pocket. The way he handled the weapon didn't escape my sharp gaze, suggesting that he had a lot of experience with guns. Just what kind of person was Theodore?At that moment, his mother suddenly appeared in front of me with a harsh scowl. I barely had any time to process her presence before she slapped me hard. The harsh action caused me to lose my balance, spending me sprawled across the white, tiled floor. “Mother!” Theodore’s voice thundered, raw with anger. In an instant,
THEODORE My heart jolted violently against my ribs the moment I saw Catalina pull a gun from her purse. She looked so furious the moment my brother stepped out of the kitchen that I actually feared she would kill him right on the spot. “Catalina,” I called out, eyes wide with alarm. “What are you doing? Put down that gun.”Catalina ignored me. In that state, she obviously didn't like me giving her orders, so she tightened her grip on the gun. The action brought out many frightened gasps from my family members, causing them to stiffen. The tension in the room was thick and oppressive, leaving everyone with strained breaths. Color drained out of my mother's face when she saw my wife with a gun. She immediately her son without any hesitation, arms wide. “Someone call the police!” she shrieked, desperation in her voice. “Your wife has gone mad, Theodore. Do something!”My mother's frightened expression prompted me to take a step towards my wife. The anger and hatred in her eyes almo
CATALINAThe first thought that occured in my mind was a murderous one. The sight before me dragged me back to a memory I had tried for years to bury, one that began when I was only thirteen.My stepmother was the first person I met when I stepped into the house. She was smoking while watching her favorite soap opera. Her eyes left the television for a brief moment when she heard the door close. She glanced at me before she pulled out the cigarette from her lips. “Oh, you're finally back?” she asked nonchalantly. Her long, thin fingers stuffed out the cigarette on the ash tray before she stood up. “I thought you had finally decided to leave home since you took so long to return.”I didn’t answer. My throat was too tight, my body too tired. Instead, my eyes drifted around the house instinctively, searching for the one person I desperately needed to find. At this hour, my father was usually home, his face buried in a newspaper or stretched out while a maid massaged his shoulders. But w
THEODORE After reviewing the last document, I closed my laptop with a soft, decisive thud. The hum of the engine filled the silence inside the car, but outside the car window, the city lights glowed brightly, their reflections shimmering on the wet road.Beside me, Catalina curled up at the other end of the seat. Her lips parted slightly with each quiet breath, sending faint wisps of warmth into the cool air. The thick blue blanket draped over her rose and fell with her breathing, wrapping her with warmth as the car moved. The sight of her peaceful and beautiful face when asleep made my heart a beat. Earlier, she kept asking me why I had changed my mind to escort her back home, but I refused to respond. She later gave up on questioning me, but my mood change seemed to have greatly disturbed her. That was because of the phone call I received from my sister-in-law, Chyna. She hadn't given me any specifics, but the pleading tone in her voice when she asked me to come home made me co
CATALINATheodore and I returned back to our hotel room after we searched Chyna's room for any possible clues to her whereabouts. At the same time, Theodore also decided to call the hotel manager to ask if she had checked out. Instead, the hotel manager rushed to us personally to give us a response. He wiped his forehead with a white handkerchief before reporting to us. “Yes, I just confirmed that she indeed checked out this morning. However, the staff said she was with a man.”I frowned when I heard his words. “A man?”“Yes, Mrs. Knight,” he confirmed, bringing out a phone from his left breast pocket. “The security footages also show that she left with a man this morning. That's why I decided to come and talk to you.”Theodore collected the phone he offered to us. When I saw the picture on the screen, my heart suddenly went cold. The hotel manager must have noticed our expressions because he stopped shifting his weight from one foot to another. “If I may ask, do you two know this p
CATALINAI felt it the moment it happened. The loud tear of dress echoed in the elevator, causing both of us to freeze. When Theodore finally regained his senses, he immediately withdrew, allowing the air to caress my bare back. This sent a warm shiver down my body, so I immediately turned around to hide myself. What the hell?I stared at him with astonishment, mirroring his stunned expression. The only thought running through my mind was how to beat the hell out of him, no, it was better to kill him for the mistake he had caused. Theodore must have sensed it, because he didn't even have the guts to look at me anymore. He shrugged off his jacket while walking towards me. “I'm so sorry, Catalina,” he said, his voice filler with remorse. “I didn't mean to do this, please believe me. I will send someone to bring you new clothes when we return to the hotel room.”I ignored him and started checking the extent of the damage on my dress. The sight of the torn sage green dress made my hea