WANTED: Stripper

It’s been a month since the incident with George Lucas. She had not seen Doug since he left Purple Spade, and Maxine was relieved that he did not put his threat into action. Maxine stopped by the road next to Purple Spade and lit a cigarette. It has been her routine since she started working as a stripper. She was about to flick the cigarette butt when a silver Chrysler Pacifica stopped next to her. Before she could react, a burly man jumped out, grabbed her arm, and covered her mouth. She tried to fight back, but the man overpowered Maxine, and she lost consciousness. The man dragged her into the vehicle and drove off. In a little apartment back at Grayson, Lottie received a call from Randy. The man was looking for her sister. Worried sick, Lottie tried calling her, but to no avail. She tried to get in touch with Maxine until dawn, but her phone was still off. Unbeknownst to her, the woman she was trying to call was still asleep. She was sitting on the cold floor and leaning on

“You, whore!” Jim was furious. He was in disbelief that the woman who killed his grandson was standing right before him. Raising a cane, he tried to hit her, but Sean stepped in. He got hit in place of the murderer. “Oops! Grandpa! What are you doing?” “What are you doing, Sean Andrew Hartmann?” the old man growled. “She killed your brother. Why are you protecting her?” Sean raised his hands in surrender. Then he grabbed his grandfather’s cane to put it down. “She may have killed Scott, but she's still my wife. Gramps, we just got married? Can you at least let me spend a few more hours with her before you murder her?” Jim was about to say something when someone else spoke, “Where is my son?” It was Emilie, his stepmother. “You’re stepson!” Sean corrected. “Whether I gave birth to you or not, the moment your father married me, I became your mother!” Emilie scolded. “Enough!” the old Hartmann yelled. “If you want to be considered a mother, make sure you learn how to discipline yo

Sean walked to the stairs, his hands crossed over his chest. He nodded at the door under the stairs, and then he turned to the woman, “You’ll sleep there. I already asked Martha to have it cleaned. Just ignore the books. They won’t bite anyway.”Exhausted and frustrated all at the same time, Maxine just nodded at him. When he headed upstairs, she quickly crawled inside.The walls were bookshelves. Inside was a desk and chair pushed up to the wall to give space for the mattress.The young Hartmann may seem like a monster, but he was kind enough to add a pillow and a blanket. They were already spread on the floor, waiting for her.Maxine crawled to the mattress and pulled the blanket to cover herself from head to toe. She was worried as she had not spoken to her sister or their mother yet.Meanwhile, inside the master’s bedroom, Sean covered his lower body with a towel after showering. He looked at the mirror and smiled, weirded about everything that happened.Everything Maxine said mes

Emilie froze after hearing that awfully familiar voice. She slowly turned around, praying she was wrong, but her soul almost left when she confirmed it was her stepson.She wanted to run away and leave the scene, but it was too late. All the guards at the mall had already surrounded them.“Who gave the two of you the right to make a scene on my property?” the young Hartmann asked in his most authoritative tone.Maxine looked, surprised by what he said. She did not even know the entire mall belonged to the man.Even the salesladies who assisted her earlier were surprised to know that she was Mrs. Hartmann. Both girls were suddenly envious of her.“S-Sean, I-I’m sorry,” Danielle’s voice was shaking. Everyone could tell the man’s presence spelled danger for her.He clenched his fists, not taking his eyes from the woman. Thankfully, Danielle was a woman. If not, he would have punched her. He was fuming mad because he saw how she hit Maxine.Letting go of his wife, he slowly turned to the

After parting with her family, Sean asked Salvo to drive back to Villa Vita. He decided not to return to his office, as his wife looked exhausted.On their way back, Sean couldn’t sit still. He was still thinking about the events at Maxine’s house earlier.He can’t get rid of how the place looked, the mattress, the corners of the walls, and above all else, their father.“Who was that man?” he asked. Maxine turned and creased her forehead at him. The man glanced at her and smirked, “Who was Henry?”“Who was Henry?” she parrotted and sighed. “He’s Stella’s husband.”Sean straightened up and glared at her. “Who is Stella then?” He asked again.“Stella?” she repeated. “She’s our adoptive mother.”The man sighed as he crossed his legs. He was getting annoyed as she kept repeating her questions and her one-line answers.“Maxine, can you please give me a backstory? How was your life in Grayson? How are you in Maryland?”“I thought you had someone investigate me?” she asked.“Not as far as ho