All Chapters of Ripples And Hills: Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Elviira Hills.I’m holding her again.My little Alexa.I never thought I’d see her again, not after that night. Not after everything that happened. Her arrest. Her disappearance.Those final minutes before we jumped from the car that night of the accident, still live inside me, sharp and breathless.‘Mrs. Hills… we have to jump, now!’ Perry’s voice shattered the tense silence in the car.The doors unlocked. Alexa’s face swam in my memory. I jumped.Rolled.I had no idea where I was rolling to, only that I had to move. My blood pounded in my ears. Pain exploded in my body when I hit the ground. My arm, my head. The world spun, my chest heaving, vision dimming. And just before the darkness took me, I saw a face.The one face I wish I could forget.Kristian Koinuven.“I’m so happy I can see you again, Grandma,” Alexa whispers into my neck. Her arms clinging to me like she used to when she was small. “I never thought I would. I thought you didn’t want to see me anymore. That you hadn’t s

Alexa (Prudence) Tuesday, 15th July. Next day. Morning. I sit in the apartment Helia got for Martha and me. One of his, he told me, just like that, another property in his name. Like the one in Corte. I should be grateful, I know. But I can’t ignore the disappointment weighing down on me, cold and constant. Pier hasn’t called. Not a single word. Like I never existed. It’s like that part of my life never existed. I’m at the dining table, breakfast in front of me, untouched. The food may as well be plastic. “You haven’t eaten yet. I bet you’re excited to see your grandma,” Martha says, breaking through the fog in my head. I glance up at her, forcing a smile. Trying to animate this shell I’ve become. Trying to live. “I am, Martha. But I can’t ignore what happened yesterday. Seeing Jon again like that…” My voice trails. I manage another weak smile. “He didn’t trust me. Not for a second. His cousin. I was just another of grandma's poor beneficiaries to him.” Bitterness finds

Hulio. I cuff her ankles with the strappado. Lock her wrists with the handcuffs. My movements are quiet, methodical. Controlled. Unhurried. I know Richo Kendo. A powerful man. A man who lives and dines on rough sex. Sex in the most unconventional of ways. And all this time, I’d been trying to play nice with Ashley. Treated her like a queen. Only to discover this. All that softness I carried for her, gone. What replaces it is the version of me I buried years ago. The one who once ruled the pleasure houses of Monaco. The one I suffocated when I returned to the States, trying to build a name that mirrored my brother’s. Clean and stable. I shoved the dominant side of me deep underground. For her. Ashley. And now, I have to catch her in another man’s arms? No. No more being the good guy. “I’m gonna fuck you until you lose your legs to the sea of my dangerous passion,” I whisper into her ear, grazing the shell with my teeth. She purrs, letting her head fall to the side. Offering me a

Alexa (Prudence) Noon. I’m reading a novel to Grandma. She hates feeling restrained here. Says she wants to return home. But the doctors insist she wait a little longer. She’s improved greatly since yesterday. Her eyes are brighter, her voice steadier. Still, she’s grumbled through half of my visit. The other half, she’s listened as I told her about my life, school, my new job, which I’ve now left. I called Flirt earlier today. Told them I relocated. They sent me the paperwork. I signed and returned it. The regret clings to me like grime. “Tell me,” Grandma says, breaking my thoughts, “Would you be ready to work with Hills Fusion now?” My eyes snap up. My heart leaps at the thought. Hills Fusion, finally. “After I introduce you, I’ll be giving you a position. So… would you be ready to take it?” She asks, carefully. I frown. Why the caution? “Why do you ask that, Grandma? You know I’ve always dreamed of working as a designer at Hills Fusion. Making dresses for your stunning clie

Hulio. Meanwhile. The world fades into the background as I drive, putting distance between myself and the hospital. The same hospital where I just saw that girl again, Prudence. My hands tighten on the wheel, my jaw clenched as I replay the confrontation with my mum moments ago. The slap she gave me, right in front of Elviira. ‘Mum… You slapped me because of that girl?’ My voice had been low, laced with fury. ‘No, Hulio. I slapped you because you’re so stupid. You refuse to see what’s right beneath your nose,’ she snapped, her words slicing deep. ‘Alexa wasn’t responsible for the deaths. For the robbery. Even a fool would have known that.’ Mum fumed. Her words echoed in my head. I’d looked at Elviira then and saw it. The disappointment in her eyes. Disappointment in me. My gaze softened, turned apologetic, but it was too late. I couldn’t fix what I’d said. So I left. Walked out of her room. Out of the hospital. And now I’m driving with a storm inside me. Because the truth i