[AUSTRALIA… morning]
“What is wrong, Dylan?” Jolene asked Dylan, who had stopped drawing.
“Huh?”
“You’ve been acting strange. You’re not talking like you used to. Is something bothering you?”
Dylan stared at her for a while before asking, “Is Mom coming back?”
“Yes. Yes, of course she is coming back. She promised to return before your birthday; she’ll definitely return.” Jolene smiled, but Dylan didn’t.
“I had a nightmare, and it scared me. Will she be back?”
This time, Jolene’s breath hitched, and she became speechless. She recalled how Tatiana had asked her to console Dylan in such situations.
She smiled and ruffled the boy’s hair. “She’ll definitely come back. She is safe and sound, okay?”
Dylan nodded and continued, “What about Father?”
“You miss him?” Jolene asked, and Dylan nodded.
“Let’s give him a call, alright?”
Dylan grinned and shifted closer to Jolene.
Meanwhile, Aurora was watching from the shadows. She went back to her bedroom and stood by her window, overlooking the city before her.
Tatiana was supposed to reach out to her, but she hadn’t, which meant one thing… She was in trouble.
Her phone rang, and the word ‘My King’ flashed on her screen.
“Hello, son.”
“Hey, Mom. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to accompany you after you got discharged,” Cassius’s voice sounded on the other side.
“It’s fine, sweetie. I’ll always love you,” Aurora said sweetly.
“I love you too, Mom. By the way, I tried to reach my wife, but it isn’t going through. Is she with you?” he asked gently.
Aurora kept quiet for a while before responding, “Your wife is in Spain.”
—
Tatiana’s eyes slowly fluttered open. It took a while before her vision cleared, and she found herself in a not-so-dark large room. Her memories slowly came back to her, and her eyes widened.
“Belle,” she whispered and tried to sit up but groaned at the pain in her stomach, which dragged her back down. A painful groan tore from her lips again; it still hurt like a bitch.
She tried sitting up slower this time. Her wound was covered in bandages; it seemed they had treated it.
Her eyes settled on a familiar figure, just waking up. Her brow furrowed.
“Maya?” Tatiana called, trying to control her breathing.
Maya swept her messy hair back and looked at her.
“Tatie?” she called with a deep frown. “What in the world are we doing here? Holy hell, my head hurts.”
“How did they find you?” Tatiana’s voice sounded frustrated.
“I don’t know. They just came to my farm all of a sudden and threatened me. When I got into their car, they shoved a fucking injection into my neck,” Maya explained.
“Shit,” Tatiana cursed.
“Are you okay?” Maya asked, her eyes observing her worriedly.
“Not really.”
Before Maya could speak again, they both heard a groan behind them.
Tatiana’s eyes settled on the figure, and she breathed out in relief.
However, Maya’s eyes slowly widened. She stayed frozen, trying to process what she was seeing.
Slowly, Issabella looked up at her, and Maya gasped. She shifted back, her breath ragged as she looked at Tatiana.
“Tatie…”
“Issabella is alive. Yeah,” Tatiana whispered, though her mind was still reeling from the shock.
Maya looked back at Issabella. “What in the world…”
“Tatie, they took my baby,” Issabella began to panic.
“Baby?” Maya got another shock. “What in the name… did they… they faked your death? Those motherfuckers!! What the hell happened?”
Tatiana explained everything to Maya, and she lost it.
Maya stood up and headed to the door. She banged on it several times.
“Open the door, Maximus. Open the fucking door, you son of a bitch!!” she yelled and dug her fingers into her hair. “Arghhh!!!”
Maya trembled as she faced Issabella again. Slowly, she walked up to her and crouched.
Issabella looked like a mess, with scars and bruises all over her. Her clothes had been changed; if not, Maya would have seen the bloodstains on them and lost it again.
“Is this really you?” Maya hiccupped as her breath slowly became labored.
Issabella slowly nodded, and Maya immediately hugged her, tears streaming down her face.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I had no idea. God, what have they done to you?” She broke the hug to look at her again.
“You don’t want to know,” Issabella shook her head.
“I’m so, so sorry. Maximus is a monster,” Maya bit her lip. “I can’t believe you were alive the whole time. I fucking hate myself right now.”
“It’s not your fault. It’s none of your fault,” Issabella smiled painfully.
“I’m so sorry, little sis,” Maya kissed her head.
“Tatie,” Issabella called softly, and their attention turned to Tatiana, who remained seated on the floor while holding her stomach.
They both went to sit beside her. Maya checked Tatiana’s wound and groaned in anger.
“Why the heck were we born into this family?” she sobbed.
Tatiana faced Issabella. “Sorry about your baby. I’m sure she is safe somewhere. They won’t hurt her.”
Issabella nodded. “I hope so, ’cause they are all monsters.”
“Yes, they are, and we’ll beat them,” Tatiana said.
“They are scary, Tatie. We can’t beat them. They are too strong. Maximus is too strong. Tristan is a psychopath, and not to forget that Stepmother is there too. They are just too much. Maybe we should just go somewhere far where they can’t see or find us…”
“They will find us no matter where we run. The only way is to stop them,” Tatiana said.
“What about Mr. King? Will he help?” Maya mentioned, and Issabella’s face turned pale.
“Mr. King?”
“Yeah, he’s Dylan’s father,” Maya answered, and Issabella’s face fell into shock.
“What? Really?” She looked at Tatiana for confirmation.
“Hm,” Tatiana nodded her head.
“That’s shocking,” Issabella muttered.
As the three sisters spoke, the door suddenly opened, and a group of men in suits walked in.
The three sisters slowly stood up, their anger evident on their faces. Their eyes blazed.
Light approaching footsteps could be heard; they knew who was coming.
Slowly, his tall figure appeared. Clad in a fine suit, his hair was neatly combed back, his eyes dark and devoid of emotion. A sly smile played on his lips.
He would have looked younger than his age, but the huge burn scar on the side of his face disfigured him.
His aura was cold and menacing.
He stopped and stared at the three of them glaring at him. His sly smile turned into a grin, giving him the look of the devil he is.
Maximus Wallington himself!
He greeted, “Hello, my wonderful daughters. Did you miss me?”