Ali dragged her feet on the floor as she tiredly made her way into the mansion, her dull eyes drooping slightly as sleepyness settled in.
Today was the worst day of her life, the presentation her team had painstakingly put together was sabotaged and her direct supervisor had lashed out at her for it. And now she has to create a new presentation on her own.
She felt her eyes sting, there were visible dark circles under her eyes, and her makeup had smudged, giving her the appearance of a ghost from a horror film.
When she walked into the house, she discovered her stepmother and father sitting on the sofa, watching a romantic drama. On the table is a bowl of popcorn and a bottle of juice.
Ali averted her gaze, her mood darkening even further. She moved slowly and walked past them, hoping she was invisible enough that no one would notice her, but the woman did.
“Ali is here!" Mary exclaimed, her voice full of excitement. Ali caught her father's brief glance at her before returning his attention to the television.
Mary stood up and approached her, and when she saw her face, she exclaimed, "Ali, what happened to you? Your eyes are swollen with dark circles, and you look terrible," she said, putting her hands over her mouth.
Ali lacked the strength to deal with the cunning woman; she was exhausted from work and did not want Mary to show false concern for her. A person can be misled into thinking she is the sweetest stepmother in the world, when in reality she is a venomous serpent.
Ali turned to leave, but Mary stopped her and tried to grab her jaw, "I told you to quit working and marry Jared, but you will not listen; look what you are doing to your beautiful face. Do you want to end up as ugly as your mother?"
Ali's glare became sharper as she gave Mary a threatening look. She repeatedly warned the woman not to talk about her mother in a disrespectful manner.
When Mary saw her glare, she scoffed and returned to her seat. She picked a strawberry from the table and fed it to her husband, smiling coquettishly at him.
Ali shook her head; it appeared the woman had made it her daily mission to provoke her. She walked away from there, towards her brother's room.
Since her mother's death three years ago, her father has changed dramatically. He unexpectedly returned home one day with Mary and a girl and introduced them as family.
Ali was furious; her mother had just been laid to rest, and her father had taken a second wife. It was almost as if he was waiting for his wife's death before marrying again.
Her mother died as a result of a fire at a party. A portion of her face was burned, which contributed to her ugly appearance. She had no idea what caused the fire because the case had been closed and her spineless father had failed to investigate.
A few months after her death, her brother developed a brain tumor; her father refused to help raise funds for his treatment and instead spent his money on his new wife and daughter.
He went bankrupt last year, and the family has been living off her mother's remaining insurance money, while she has had to use her salary to pay for her brother's medications.
The only reason she has not moved out is that she has a lot of factors to consider, including the high cost of her brother's treatment, as well as the need to pay for rent and a caregiver, food, and bills.
However, she motivates herself to wait a few months until her loan is approved and the properties her mother has listed for sale are sold. She will pay for her brother's surgery and then move out.
She walked into the room, only to find it empty. The bed was scattered, and the life support machine was turned off.
Her heart dropped, and as fear set in, she bolted from the room and returned to the sitting room where her father was.
"Dad,...where..is...Joe?" The urgency in her voice, combined with the way she ran, rendered her speech incoherent.
Lucas, who had been disturbed, frowned at her and shouted, "What is it?"
"I asked, where is..."
"Oh! I forgot to tell you that your aunt took him to the hospital earlier today. I believe he had a seizure; he was trembling like a person who had been electrocuted," Mary said. Her response came out nonchalantly as if the boy having a seizure was a joke.
"Why did not you tell me?" Ali demanded, her body stiffening and her heart clenching. "Do you even know that Ali needs urgent surgery, Dad? Why are you wicked towards your blood?" Ali's voice came out in a whisper as the news drained her last ounce of strength. Her knees buckled and she knelt on the floor, her brown eyes filled with pain and betrayal for her father.
Lucas was offended by her question and roared at her, "You are the one being wicked here, Alice; if only you had married Jared, your brother would have been fine by now, and I would have had my company back."
"You have yourself to blame for your company's predicament; if you had not married this b**ch, none of this would have happened." Ali's voice became louder as if she had regained her lost strength at the mention of her marriage.
SLAP
Ali's face turned to the side when Mary slapped her. Tears welled up in her eyes as she fought the urge to jump on the woman and give her the beating of her life.
She glared at the woman, hatred in her eyes, her fist clenched at her side. The area Mary slapped turned red, leaving a few lines on her fingers.
Her gaze shifted to her father, who was looking at her contemptuously. Her lonely heart grew colder, this is the man she calls father, the man who is supposed to protect her. Every other person has a doting father but heaven gave her a scumbag, spineless, and selfish wastrel as a father. A father who is eager to marry her to someone older than himself, a father who wants to make her someone's mistress. She did not mind her stepmother's constant abusive words, but her father's actions and words pierced her heart like a knife through butter. She clenched and unclenched her fist so many times that it was starting to hurt. After wiping away her tears, she stood up and went upstairs, but Lucas continued to stare at the stairs even though she was no longer present. "Calm down honey, I am sure she understands now, she will marry Jared sooner than you expected. Joe's illness happened at the perfect time," Mary said, convincing him to sit on the sofa so they could continue watching the mov
Ali's eyes widened in horror. Her shoulders slumped and if Wood didn't catch her in time she would have fallen to the ground. His words put a heavy boulder on her heart and she felt suffocated and despair. "Like how long," She asked her voice trembling. "At most 3 days. There is no time left, I'll see what I can do to prepare the necessary. In the meantime get half the amount. I can only help this much, I have a lot to handle right now I am sorry," he sympathized with her before turning and leaving. Ali felt grateful, he was helping her even though he was having a lot on his plate but his words were a like death sentence to not only her brother but herself. Five million, where will she get half of that amount? Her mother's properties were still under investigation as Lucas was dragging it with her. She took out her phone and made a few phone calls. All through the night, she called people to borrow money. But the amount gathered didn't even get to half the amount the doctor
Jared laughed as if he just heard the funniest joke in the world. Give it back! What a joke. He eyed her body again with the same evil fire in his eyes. "Be my woman and everything will be yours again." "Dream on. If you don't give it back I'll make you both pay," She threatened. Jared snorted, "How will you do that? Your brother has very little time to live. Do you value your pride more than his life?" Ali felt like a bone got stuck In Her throat and she couldn't refute it. what would she do now? Be this man's mistress and allow her stepmother and father to use her so heartlessly."I thought you were interested in Cheyenne, how did you switch interests so suddenly? Did Mary put you up to this?" The rage in her eyes which had been doused by his words returned and she glared at him with even more intensity. "Wait until I am done with Joe's operation I'll come back to haunt you". She said and walked away. She hailed a cab and went to look for her father. As she stepped into th
Barry sympathized with her, but he was unable to accept her. Not just any man, but Gerald Laverock is the man he was referring to earlier. Ali is a novice, and judging by the innocent expression on her face, he assumes that she is unaware of the risks. Inexperienced women are not Gerald's thing. Worst of all, the man was rough with his women, and if he were to handle this one, he doubted her walking step would remain as elegant. "Are you a virgin?" he asked. Ali turned red at the question, but she gave a nod. Barry shook his head, ready to send her away, when his phone rang and he realized it was his assistant. "Sir Gerald's face does not look good; he is the only one without service, and I am afraid he will not accept any other woman," the assistant said nervously. Barry cursed and looked at Ali again before saying, "Tell Madam Joan I am bringing a new girl." After hanging up, he asked Ali to follow him. He led her to the top floor, where the big shots were located. Ali was
Ali held her breathe under the man's hostile glare. She began to fidget and had almost stood up to flee if Barry had not interfered and said, "Lilly ran off to god knows where and I thought you could use a change of service. This one is fresh and new." "You should know I have preferences Barry, don't you like your head anymore,'' Gerald threatened the man but his eyes was fixed on the scared kitten that looked like she wanted to bolt from the room. His body kept reacting and by the time he realized it, his member was already turning hard. He cursed, "what is wrong with you?" He asked, closing his eyes. Barry felt sweat trickle down his spine at the tone of his voice. But Gerald wasn't talking to him but was asking himself that. Ali cautiously moved away, wanting to escape however Gerald caught her hand and dragged her back causing her to end up in his arms, "where do you think you are going?" He asked his voice straining. Ali grimaced and tried to breathe out the words "You do
Although the pain from between her legs made it unable for her to think, Ali still heard the man's question. She looked at him helplessly not knowing how to respond. The man already knows that she is a virgin but he still asked her that. Her silence angered Gerald more and he asked again, enunciating each word, "I..asked..are..you ..a.. virgin?" "Yes," Ali whimpered, stifling her cry. "Damn," Gerald cursed. His body trembled slightly causing his member to push into Ali. He felt Ali squeeze him inside her and cursed again. Ali was silently praying that he will pull out and send her out but he did not, instead he looked into her eyes with a fire that threatened to burn her flesh and soul. Like a crazed man Gerald thrust into Ali. For an unknown reason that left him stunned he couldn't control himself with the woman. However seeing the tears that slide down Ali's cheek, he tried to control his strength and movement. Ali huffed and whimpered. Gerald was too into it that all he
"Hello. I know you don't remember me, you must have forgotten about the incident, but I can't since you are my lifesaver," Harriet said, her gaze as she looked at Ali was filled with admiration and love. Ali stared at the woman confused before looking at Dr Wood to hear him say, "Madam Harriet said you saved her a few weeks ago when she collapsed on the way. She came here looking for you." The memory of the accident appeared in Ali's mind as recognition came on her. "O it's you. How are you? Did you get proper treatment?" She posed the questions, one after the other. Harriet laughed, she was correct about the girl. The concern in her eyes was genuine, and it erased every doubt that the younger woman approached her with motives. "I am fine now thanks to you. I heard what happened to you, hence I have been here waiting for your arrival," Harriet had a look of worry on her face as she looked at Ali's eyes. Ali smiled bitterly, she shook her head, not wanting to think about the s
Vivian looked at her niece's face and her heart clenched with sorrow. When her sister was still alive, Ali never had anything to worry about. But after she died and Lucas married Mary, her life changed, and she was forced to cater for her and her brother. Lucas was a bastard, true and through, and she regretted letting her sister marry him. If only her sister had left with the man she loved, then she would still have been alive. She brought her hand forward to caress Ali's cheeks, and said, "You don't have to cry anymore. Everything will get better from here on, Joe will recover, and you will get the promotion you are looking for." "Until that scumbag is fired from his position, I doubt I will be given any sort of compensation for my hardwork. I am not even thinking about a promotion," Ali picked up the bag and began to remove the things inside. "You can't give up. Miracles can happen," Vivian advised. 'Yeah right, miracles that come late' Ali thought, her expression turning