Chapter-26: A Major Problem
Zaiden Storm
I felt my heart clenching as I was waiting for Aria at the restaurant.
Something felt unusual. Everything was going smoothly, but I could still feel something bad was happening, or something bad was about to happen. The last time I felt like this was when Lance got shot in his shoulder a year ago.
Was Lance okay?
I took my phone and dialed his number. He picked it up on the second ring.
"Bro, is something wrong?" came Lance's worried voice.
"No," I responded, getting confused if he was okay, then why I was feeling this way. "I just called you to ask whether you were okay or not."
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Chapter-27: Tick-TockAria AnastasiaI opened my eyes, feeling the force of someone tying something on me. My eyes felt heavy, yet I had to see the face of the person who kidnapped me.My mouth wasn't closed with a gag, so I could clearly speak. The person who stopped tying something on me, and I couldn't protest since my hands were handcuffed, looked at me straight into my eyes.A gasp escaped my lips seeing the blue eyes. He was the same familiar person I had met in the grocery store—the man who was in his mid-forties. Why did he kidnap me?"Why did you kidnap me?" I couldn't help but ask.This old man who was like a father figure was the last person I hoped to be my kidnapper. He seemed like a nice person when he h
Chapter-28: Apart From Each OtherZaiden Storm"Where is my daughter, Zaiden? Did the kidnapper give you a call or sent you any message?" asked a stressed Amora whose tears were dried up now.She was sitting in front of me. Turned out that when she called me, she was here in California, that too in Aria's apartment. She wanted to surprise Aria today."Not yet, but we already got a clue of the kidnapper, so now we are trying to find more clues which would lead us to Aria," I told her.The kidnapper should be Luke Levi because I was the one who murdered his son. He definitely wanted to take revenge on me.Amora questioned me, "Will my daughter be okay, Zaiden? You will save her, won't you?"
Chapter-29: Truth From PastAria AnastasiaI had lost all the hope now. I was counting the seconds in my head ever since Luke said that I had thirty minutes left. Already twenty minutes was gone, and I had the last ten minutes before my death.This was how my death was written, so I had to face it. If only my hand wasn't handcuffed, I could've managed to get off the ropes. Luck wasn't on my side today.Suddenly, I could feel a familiar presence nearby; as if Zaiden was nearby. I looked around the room, but I couldn't look behind since I was tied, yet I tried to look around as much as I could. My tears had already dried off after too much crying.All of a sudden, my eyes fell on the door of the warehouse where I found Zaiden standing, wearing a dark gr
Chapter-30: Talking HeartAria AnastasiaIt was still hard for me to digest the fact that my father, whom I thought to be dead all my life, was in the Mafia. And here I was judging Zaiden just until recently, what right did I have to accuse him as a murderer when I was the daughter of a murderer?But if I have learned anything after getting to know Zaiden, it is to not judge anyone based on what they do. I thought Zaiden was a ruthless murderer, but as I got to know him better, I realized there was more to him than that.That's why I didn't want to repeat the same mistake by judging Luke too soon. I should give him a chance. Everyone deserves a second chance.“I think I will
Chapter-31: Worth EverythingZaiden Storm“Say that you forgive Luke,” Aria said for the umpteenth time after poking my arm.“Let me concentrate,” I grumbled, trying to keep my eyes on the road. I was driving Aria to her apartment, and God knew how she had that much energy left within her to keep nudging about me after all that happened today. My mind wasn't even functioning properly.“Not until you agree,” she said stubbornly.“Great. We can get into an accident then,” I retorted.“Won't you do this much for me?” She tried flashing her puppy eyes at me.
Chapter-32: Sudden AnxietyZaiden StormI was completely engrossed in my work when I heard someone knocking on the door.“Come in,” I permitted and Aria entered with her cheeks puffed. “What is it?” I stopped typing on my laptop and paid her my undivided attention.“Why haven't you had your lunch yet?” she demanded.“Lunch?” I let out in confusion and checked the time to realize that it was past lunchtime. “Oh, it completely slipped my mind.”“You even said that we were going to have lunch together, but look at you being a workaholic like always,” she fumed, crossing her
Chapter-33: Frantic ShoppingAria Anastasia“Oh, my God. I need to buy a dress. Oh, no, I also need compatible shoes. Zaiden, what am I going to do?” I cried out.I was going to meet Zaiden's family tomorrow, and I had no idea what I was going to wear. I wanted to strangle Zaiden for forgetting to inform me beforehand.By now, the shopping malls and stores were already closed. I would need to choose a nice dress from my closet now.I was tapping my foot out of anxiety when Zaiden pulled over the car near a shopping district, although the lights of most shops were out. He came over to my side and opened the door.I glared at him
Chapter-34: The Storm FamilyAria AnastasiaThe mansion was decorated beautifully, and the homely feeling I got as I stepped in helped me calm my nerves down.As we reached the living room, I saw a black-haired woman in her mid-forties sternly giving instructions to a servant. But as soon as her face landed on Zaiden and me, her lips curved up in a big smile.“You guys are here. Welcome, you two,” the woman exclaimed and rushed to give a hug to Zaiden. “Even though I saw you a month ago, it feels like forever, my son.”“I'm sorry I couldn't call you that often, Mom. How have you been?” Zaiden replied.Th