MoboNovel Lite
Chapter 1
Plates fell and shattered on the floor as Ariel staggered and fell on the slippery floor of the restaurant’s kitchen, blood dripping from her wrist that was cut open as she fell.
SLAP!!!
A harsh slap landed on her cheeks, her face swinging to the side from the force.
“Useless!” A man dressed as a chef stood menacingly above her, looking down at her spitefully.
“It was just a simple task, Ariel, but you couldn’t even succeed in delivering an order to a customer, how useless can you get?” The Chef asked furiously as he stared at the wasted food on the floor.
“No, Chef, it wasn’t my-”
“Quiet!” A blonde girl scolded and landed another hard slap on Ariel’s cheek.
Ariel bit down on her lip to stop herself from letting the tears fall. She raised her face and stared at the culprit who had caused her current condition by purposely pouring water on the polished Tiles when she was about to carry the food out, causing her to trip and fall.
“Get up, and tidy this mess up, immediately! No salary for you this month! Useless!” The Chef condemned and angrily walked away.
“Tsk! What a loser,” The blonde girl flipped her hair behind her and slowly walked around Ariel, a condescending look in her eyes as she stared at her.
“Told you I’d make you suffer, didn’t I? Hmm,” The blonde girl put her chin between her thumb and index finger, pretending to think about something.
“This place is not for you; you don’t fit in; you should be on the streets, waiting for the next man to cum inside you, slut,” The blonde girl giggled at her crude jokes.
Ariel ignored her and gently stood up and started picking up the shredded plates.
“Answer me, you bitch!” The blonde girl pushed Ariel with her two hands, causing her to lose balance and fall to the floor again, the shredded plates cutting her palms.
“Ah!” Ariel cried out in pain.
“Ha-ha-ha! Yes, fool, cry like a baby, you better quit, or else-”
“Or else what, Lin?” A voice asked behind Lin, startling her.
“Oh, hi, Mike, it’s not what you think, I was just trying to help-”
“Leave it, Ariel. I’ll help. Go wash yourself up,” Mike totally bypassed Lin and went to help Ariel up, taking the mop stick from her.
“Thank you, Mike,” Ariel sniffed and quickly ran to the bathroom.
Inside the bathroom, she stared at her pale and tired face in the mirror as she cried quietly.
She put her hand under the tap, and the water automatically rushed out, washing out the blood stains from her wounds.
“Ashh!” She winced as the water stung her fresh and open wound.
She would need to visit the pharmacy on her way back to get some ointments for her wound, so it doesn’t scar.
“You alright, Ariel?” Mike’s voice suddenly sounded from the other side of the door.
Ariel startled a little as she heard her name, “Uh, yes, I’m almost done.”
She quickly rinsed her hands and washed her face to get off the food stains that plastered her cheeks and eye area.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were waiting to use the bathroom,” Ariel apologized as she opened the door.
Mike was leaning against the opposite wall and immediately straightened up as she came out.
“No, I was just checking up on you. You feeling okay now?” Mike asked, putting one hand in the pocket of his brown pants.
Ariel felt moved by the genuine concern she felt for Mike. For the three months she worked there, he was the only one who treated her kindly and always looked out for her.
She was very grateful to him.
“Thank you, Mike, I’m fine now,” Ariel replied, blushing lightly.
“Come on,” Mike outstretched his hand to her and led her out of the bustling restaurant’s kitchen.
They left through the ‘staff only’ area, which was behind the restaurant, and that was where he normally parked his bike.
It was 9 p.m. at night, and everywhere was already dark as the moon had refused to shine that night.
Mike knew it would be dangerous to leave a girl alone at that hour of the night, especially a frail girl like Ariel.
“Let me drive you home?” Mike asked softly as he noticed the reluctance in Ariel’s movement.
Ariel appreciated his kindness, but she didn’t trust him.
The world and family she found herself in destroyed her trust in everything and everyone.
“I don’t want to bother you. I can go home by myself,” Ariel softly rejected his offer.
Mike smiled, already knowing that was the reply he would get. This was the fifth time he’d asked to drive her home, and he always got the same reply. But this time, he would insist.
“You’re not a bother, Ariel. Look,” He pointed out to the dark and empty street, “It’ll be dangerous for you to walk alone tonight. Come on, let me drive you home,” He held her hand and turned her to face him.
“Please,” He begged.
Ariel sighed. He was right, it was already dark, and the restaurant was located in a lonely area; it was dangerous for her to walk the lonely streets alone.
“Okay,” Ariel nodded.
Mike smiled broadly as he fixed the helmet on Ariel’s head.
“Hold tight,” He said as he placed her two arms around his waist.
Ariel never liked bikes; it reminded her of the brutal accident she had with her late mother twelve years ago. She held on tightly as the bike sped through the dark streets.
The night wind blew against her face and ruffled her midnight-dark hair.
“Can you slow down a bit?” Ariel asked as they approached a blind corner.
She really hated bikes; she couldn’t help but remember how their bike had tumbled multiple times on the road, and in the blink of an eye, her mother was lying lifeless on the tarred road.
“What did you say?” Mike asked, turning his head back to look at Ariel, but the panic he saw in her eyes alerted his senses.
“Watch out!” Ariel screamed fearfully as she widened her eyes at the car in front, coming towards them with an unimaginable speed.
“Shit!” Mike cursed loudly.
But he was too late to get out of the way; the car hit them off the road, sending them crashing into a building.
Ariel couldn’t tell what was happening as she lay on the ground, her head feeling extremely light, and her body numb.
She barely made out the faint voices she heard around her; all she knew was that she felt a kind of peace she’d never felt before, and she wished to surrender to the tranquility of the inviting darkness.
She was glad she was dying; at least she got to escape this cruel life of hers. She hoped to meet her mother and be with her in a world where there would be no pain or struggles.
The last voice that registered in her mind was a man’s voice, so chill and unfeeling as he indifferently ordered someone to do something.
Ariel gave in to the darkness; she was happy she didn’t have to face people who were like the owner of that voice; she knew his type: rich, famous, proud, and cold to people.
She was done with his kind and the whole world.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
Ariel distantly heard the beeping sounds in her head.
She slowly opened her eyes and closed them immediately from the bright light above her, then, slowly, she opened her eyes again and was faced with a white ceiling.
She felt a band-aid wrapped around her head, and when she tried moving her arms, she realized she had something sticking to her left arm.
Ariel managed to slowly lift herself with her elbow and looked around the room. She realized that she was lying inside a hospital ward in a blue hospital gown.
‘Didn’t I die?’ Ariel thought as she stared at the cannula that was fixed in her arm.
Her fate must really suck.
“Oh no! Please lie down, you just woke up,” A middle-aged woman in a nurse’s uniform opened the door and rushed towards Ariel’s bed.
“Where am I?” Ariel asked as she slowly lowered herself back onto the bed.
“You’re in a hospital; you’re lucky you were brought in on time, a second later, and you would’ve been dead,” The nurse said as she checked her vital signs.
“They should have waited a second later…” Ariel muttered.
“What did you say?” The nurse asked as she removed the thermometer from Ariel’s armpit.
“Nothing,” Ariel sighed.
So, her journey wasn’t over yet. Did God want her to witness all the hardships in life before he took her?
“Everything seems nice, Miss?” The nurse asked.
“Ariel,” Ariel supplied.
“Ok, dear, I’m sorry if that was unprofessional; I know we’re supposed to check the patient’s name from their folder, but we couldn’t find any identification on you, that’s why I asked,” The nurse explained, writing something down on her chart.
“No, it’s fine,” Ariel replied calmly.
She had always imagined this scene when something happened to her, and people wanted to help her but couldn’t because she didn’t have an identity.
Courtesy of her father and stepmother, who ripped her off of anything that would connect her to them.
“Ok, here are your medications,” The nurse dropped a bag of medications on top of the drawer.
“Thank you,” Ariel replied.
“Mm,” The nurse replied with a nod.
“Um, how long have I been here?” Ariel asked.
“Just a day,” The nurse said without raising her head from the patient’s file in her hand.
“Oh…” Ariel said quietly.
She knew that even if she was to stay here for six months, no one was coming for her.
“You’re quite lucky, your friend is in a more severe condition. You’ll be discharged in the afternoon; your bills have been cleared, too.” The nurse smiled and turned to leave.
“Wait!” Ariel immediately sat up after hearing about her friend.
Did she mean Mike? Was he injured?
“Yes?” The nurse paused and turned to Ariel.
Ariel knew she had some other patients waiting for her, so she didn’t know which question to ask first.
She debated whether to ask about how her bills were paid or ask about Mike.
“Where is he?” She asked, choosing to ask about Mike.
“Your friend? He’s just in the adjacent door,” The nurse informed.
“Oh, can I go see him?” Ariel asked.
“Sure, after resting,” The nurse said and then left.
Ariel nodded and patiently waited for her to leave. When she was sure the nurse was gone, she quickly disconnected the cannula from her arm and slowly climbed down the bed, quietly walking out of the room.
Ariel stood in front of her door, contemplating on which door to enter as there was a series of doors lining the hospital hallway.
She quickly ruled out the doors opposite hers; the nurse had said adjacent, not opposite.
She narrowed it down to the two doors beside her, not knowing whether to enter the one on the left or the one on the right. She wasn’t sure which one Mike would be in.
She sighed and walked toward the door on the right, hoping she would be lucky.
Nope, she wasn’t.
“Ah!” A woman screamed.
“Oh my god! I’m sorry!” Ariel said in shock as she quickly slammed the door shut.
What did she just see? A nurse sucking her male patient’s cock?!
She shook her head to get the image off her head and almost fell from feeling dizzy. She was famished.
She stared hard at the door on the left, praying to God to let it be the right room.
She was lucky this time.
She opened the door to see Mike lying on the bed with his legs wrapped in a cast.
Chapter 2
Guilt washed over her. If she hadn’t agreed to let him drive her home that night, none of these would have happened, and he would’ve still been strong and healthy, using his legs.
But now, he lay alone in a lonely hospital room, his life coming to a pause for as long as he had to recover, and who knew if he’d ever recover fully?
“Quit standing there already and come in here,” Mike’s voice suddenly sounded from inside the room.
Ariel was surprised to hear his voice; she had thought he was fast asleep.
She gently closed the door as she entered the room and walked over to stand beside his bed.
“Hey,” Ariel said quietly, slowly looking Mike from his leg to his face but not daring to look him in the eyes; guilt was eating her up.
“Hey,” Mike gently held Ariel’s hand.
“How are you?” Ariel asked.
“Well,” Mike pointed to his legs.
“Oh gosh, I shouldn’t have asked that…” Ariel rushed to apologize, looking all forlorn.
“Hey, don’t look that way; it wasn’t your fault; if we’re taking the blame, then it’ll definitely be my fault because I was speeding and wasn’t looking,” Mike sighed, but still managed to smile at Ariel.
“I still feel guilty, after all, it was me who caused you to drive that late,” Ariel sounded genuinely guilty from her words.
Mike knew she wouldn’t let it be until she made herself drown in guilt.
“If you want to make it up to me, then visit me here as often as you can. That’ll really make me glad,” Mike suggested.
“I promise, I’ll come see you with gifts as much as I can, Mike, I promise,” Ariel held his hand, gently patting it.
Mike smiled broadly, happy he’d get to see Ariel more often from now on.
Ariel walked down the street that cool evening; at least it was still early, and the hospital wasn’t located in an isolated area like the restaurant where she worked. She could still see cars driving by and people either heading somewhere or casually taking an evening stroll.
She was in a dilemma; she couldn’t believe she was the one walking the earth again. Why didn’t she die? Who was that mysterious person who saved her? And who was the person who cleared her medical bills?
She could swear on her life that it wasn’t anyone from her family; they’d rather unplug her life support if they had the chance to.
She sighed. The hospital didn’t look like one of the roadside ones; it looked like something a Billionaire’s daughter or wife would go to, and that made her wonder how much money that person paid.
“Move! You wanna die!” A bike man honked loudly behind Ariel.
That’s when Ariel realized that she had left the pedestrian and was now almost in the middle of the road.
She quickly moved away, returning to the pedestrian, after apologizing to the bike rider.
She looked around and discovered that she was still far from home, and she had no money on her and couldn’t even hail a cab.
Maybe she could just get a ride by flashing a sweet smile or telling her sob story. She shook the delusional thought out of her head.
Her legs were almost giving out from tiredness and hunger, but she was determined to walk home.
Home…
She stood in front of the yellow two-story building that was supposed to be her home, but as she stared at it, she felt like a stranger to it.
All her years in that house had been spent living like a ghost of herself; there was no beautiful or fond memory attached to it.
It was a beautiful house, no doubt; her father and stepmother made sure to always renovate it to new tech every year; they wanted to feel proud whenever they brought their business partners home for dinner and subtly show off their beautiful home.
She pulled her thoughts together and walked towards the house. The front lawn looked clean and well-kept as always. It seemed like they had visitors because on reaching the door, she could already hear her stepmother’s voice laughing a bit too loudly at what someone said.
She clenched her fist at the sound of the laughter, so fake, like the owner. She would have chosen to go through the pantry, but her stepmother had locked it up since she noticed it was where Ariel came in when she returned from work to escape her.
She quietly pushed the door open and walked inside.
“Oh dear, who’s that, Caroline? Strangers come into your house now?” The lady beside Caroline said in disgust, looking Ariel up and down.
Caroline, who was facing away from the door, quickly turned towards the door, and the moment she set her eyes on Ariel, the smile fell from her face, replacing it with hatred.
Ariel didn’t stand there to wait for them to criticize her; she moved on and climbed the stairs to her room.
“Oh, no, Stella, ignore her, she’s just our housemaid,” Caroline said, shrugging.
“Makes sense now, dear; I thought you were turning your house into a charity organization where the homeless came to get fed,” Stella chuckled, covering her hand over her mouth.
“Ewe, never,” Caroline rolled her eyes.
She stood from the sofa and walked toward the stairs.
“Do you want some expensive champagne?” Caroline asked with a bright smile.
“Ah, sure! You’re the best,” Stella relaxed on the sofa, smiling proudly.
Ariel was staring at herself in her half-broken standing mirror, her green towel wrapped around her body. She raised her hand to her head and gently touched her bandaged hair, wincing as she felt pain from the contact.
She sighed and brought down her hand. She had brought out her change of clothes and placed them on her shabby single bed that looked like it had seen better days.
She was walking into her tiny bathroom when her door was flung open by no one other than her stepmother.
“You little bitch!” Caroline said maliciously, as she angrily walked toward Ariel.
SLAP!
“Ahh!” Areil palmed her cheeks, her head starting to ache from the impact of the slap.
“Look! Look here, you bastard!” Caroline held Ariel roughly behind her neck and forced her to look into her phone.
“Ah! Please, it hurts, let me go!” Ariel cried out painfully.
Her vision had turned blurry from her banging headache; she couldn’t even make out the pictures on Caroline’s phone; she could only manage to see the bold caption.
“An Unknown Lady With Her Boyfriend Tries to Kill Our Most Eligible Bachelor/Billionaire!!!”
“You’re lucky no one could identify you; if not, it’d have been more than a slap you’ll be getting from me, foolish girl.” Caroline pushed Ariel down to the floor, eyeing her maliciously before walking away.
“Oh, and be down there and make us lunch in five minutes,” Caroline said before banging the door loudly as she left the room.
Ariel sat on the floor, crying. She sobbed as she thought about her mother. She wished her mother had never died, and she wished they had never gone for that evening ride, but she knew this wasn’t a fairytale where wishes came through; she knew this was her harsh reality; she could only be there for herself.
She stood up and wiped her tears; she just needed to work harder and complete the course she had secretly bought online. Since her father refused to send her to college after she finished high school, she started working to support herself, and when she got enough money, she purchased an online course; now, she just had to look for a way to get money and purchase the last part. It was the most important part that would fetch her the certificate she’d been vying for.
She slowly entered the bathroom and had a quick shower, then dressed herself in her loose-fitted shirt and pants.
She sighed heavily before she started walking downstairs.
She was quietly moving to the kitchen when she heard Stella’s tipsy voice whispering something to Caroline.
“Wait a minute, I think this girl looks familiar… Don’t you think she looks like-”
“Ah, here, have more champagne, dear friend, a toast to my baby’s arrival!” Caroline said loudly.
Four days after her mother’s death, she was shocked and heartbroken to see her father bring in a new woman and her daughter, only for her to find out that the girl was three years older than her. It went to confirm that her father was never loyal to her mother.
All the while they seemed like a happy family, he was sneaking behind her mother to go see his other family.
The moment she set her eyes on her stepmother and stepsister, she hated her father, and her view of all men changed.
From then on, her life changed for the worse, too. Her father became a stranger to her as he showered all his love and attention on her stepsister, while she was forgotten and turned into a housemaid.
Ariel was busy watching the dishes when she heard Stella greeting her father as she was leaving.
She rolled her eyes. Her father was never home early when her mother was alive, but now, he’s always home before the proper work closing hour.
Well, it was understandable, his real family was now with him, so he didn’t need to sneak around going to see them.
“Oh, honey, you’re back! I missed you so much,” Ariel felt like puking when she heard Caroline’s fake voice from the living room.
“Yes, my love, I couldn’t wait to get back to you, hahaha!” She heard a kissing sound and quickly turned her ear away from the disgusting couple.
Ariel was serving them dinner. She had just finished placing the food on the dining table when she heard Caroline’s excited voice.
“Honey, we have to throw a party tomorrow for our princess; she’ll be here in an hour,” Caroline said excitedly.
“That’s true, I’ve missed my darling baby, what’s it been? Three years?” Jude asked.
“Yes, you see now, you’ve made me tear up,” Caroline sniffed.
“I’m sorry, my love, I didn’t intend it that way,” Jude held Caroline’s hand, petting her.
“What are you standing there doing? Get out!” Caroline barked at Ariel, who was still standing behind them, listening to what they were saying.
Ariel startled and quickly walked into the kitchen, tears slipping down her cheeks.
Hearing them talking about her stepsister with such love and affection hurt her so much, she’s tried getting over the feeling, but each time they praise her in front of her, it leaves her feeling worthless and inferior.
On many occasions, she’s planned to run away from home, but each time she remembered she didn’t have enough money, she stayed back and kept enduring the sufferings she faced at home.
Ariel stood behind the kitchen door, eavesdropping on his father’s and stepmother’s discussion.
“Jude, there’s something we need to discuss,” Caroline said quietly.
“What’s that, my love?” Jude asked, worried by the change in Caroline’s face.
“We can’t let our daughter marry a good-for-nothing just because we owe that family a fortune,” Caroline whispered.
“I know, Caroline, I’m thinking of a way out too,” Her father replied, sighing.
Caroline scoffed, “Thinking, Jude? There’s nothing to think about,” Caroline said in a haughty tone.
“What do you mean?” Jude asked.
“It’s time we put to use that good-for-nothing daughter of yours; she’s the perfect match for a nobody like that man,” Caroline said, hatred lacing every word she said.
Jude thought about it for a while before he slowly nodded.
“Good, I thought you were hesitant,” Caroline scoffed.
“No, darling, just like you said; a useless person should be matched with her kind,” Jude chuckled.
He didn’t care, as long as it was Ariel, he wasn’t losing anything by giving her off to a nonentity.
He was saving his first daughter, hoping he could find a way to introduce her into the socialite world so that she would land herself a rich husband and bring more wealth into the family.
Ariel stood frozen in place as she heard what they were planning about her; the walls were closing in on her.
Chapter 3
Are they planning on sending her into an endless life of suffering by marrying her off to a poor man?!
She felt devastated because she knew that if she ever let that happen, that would be the end of her dream.
No!
She wouldn’t let them dictate how her whole life would be for her. She had to make a move, and she had to make it fast.
First thing tomorrow morning, when everyone has left the house, leaving her with piles of work to do, she will escape. She would gather all the money she had and run away; she didn’t care about the remaining course any longer; she had to save herself first.
“Mom! Dad! I’m home!” Ariel clenched her fists beside her as she heard her stepsister’s voice from the entrance of the living room.
She slowly opened the door, enough to let her eye see what was happening in the living room.
“Oh my goodness! Eva! Look, Jude, my baby is home!” Caroline dashed towards her daughter at the center of the living room, hugging her tightly and placing kisses all over her face.
“Hahaha, Mom, stop it, I’m no longer a child,” Eva laughed softly, hugging her Mother back.
“Come here, Princess,” Jude said as he walked with widened arms towards the mother-daughter duo with a large smile.
“Dad, I missed you so much,” Eva ran into her father’s arms, burying her face in his chest.
“We missed you, too, Princess. Come on, let’s have dinner together,” Jude led his wife and daughter back to the dining table.
“You two go ahead, I’ll bring in my luggage from the car,” Eva said in a gentle voice.
“No way! Where’s that imbecile? Ariel!” Caroline called harshly.
Ariel sighed and moved away from the door; her time as an observer was over; it was time for her to become the center of attraction.
She quietly pushed the door open and walked in slow strides towards them.
“Oh, mummy, she’s still as slow as ever; look, it’s starting to rain; I don’t want my expensive bags damaged by the rain,” Eva complained like a child to her mother.
“Move quickly! You silly child,” Jude barked at Ariel.
Ariel felt her heart shatter; this was the first thing a father had said to his daughter since that day.
She caught a glimpse of Eva’s sinister smile towards her as she was lovingly wrapped in the arms of her mother and father.
Ariel was used to that sight; it wasn’t supposed to hurt anymore, but it still did. It hurt like hell watching someone who was supposed to be your protector and your only family give their affection to someone else while they treated you like trash.
Ariel stepped out of the house and walked straight to the bright pink car; it couldn’t be missed. Pink has always been Eva’s favorite color.
Ariel found it ironic, having a cute exterior with a demonic heart. Well, she guessed Eva was just demonic with just her, but every other person thought her to be a cute soul.
There was a lot of luggage in the trunk, so she only took a few inside, planning to come and get the rest after she dropped them off at the house.
“You bitch!” Eva suddenly placed her leg in front of the approaching Ariel.
“Ugh!” Ariel unceremoniously fell face-first to the floor, the luggage rolling away from her hands and falling in the distance.
Ariel felt her visions blurring again. She had just come back that morning, but the beatings she’d received since she came back left her in more pain than the accident itself.
“Oh, look now, look what you’ve done to my expensive bags, you moron!” Eva kicked Ariel’s hips with the pointy side of her shoe.
“Argh! No, please, it hurts!” Ariel cried out.
“Shut up and go get my bags before I destroy that ugly face of yours with my heels,” Eva threatened.
Ariel quickly struggled to stand up, wanting to get as far away from her step-sister.
“Stupid girl,” Eva said as she saw Ariel limping out of the door.
Ariel roughly wiped the tears off her face as she stood behind the pink car. She stared out of the compound, different thoughts running through her mind.
If she were to escape from home, then where would she go, and who would accept a stranger into their home?
But she didn’t care; she would find a good time to run away; being homeless was way better than her condition in that house, and it was a thousand times better than getting married off to a disfigured man.
Ariel bent over the trunk to get the remaining bags, but she suddenly felt a presence behind her, and before she could turn to see who it was, a hand swiftly moved over her head and placed a white handkerchief over her nose. And before she knew it, she lost consciousness and fell limp into her attacker’s arms.
Inside the house, Eva watched silently through the window as Ariel got kidnapped by some unknown suited men, but she said nothing. She just kept smiling evilly as they put Ariel in an expensive-looking car and drove away with her.
“Eva, where’s Ariel? She needs to clear out the plates,” Caroline called from the dining room.
“Oh, Mummy, I didn’t do anything to her but look,” Eva pointed at the bags that had fallen when she tripped.
“What happened?” Caroline asked, going over to her daughter to hold her hands gently.
She was already thinking of horrible ways to punish Ariel when she saw her.
“Oh, Mummy, I was just trying to help her carry some of the bags, but she suddenly pushed me down and ran out of the house,” Eva sniffed, tears streaming down her face as she hugged her mother’s bosom.
Catherine’s face turned angry; she felt so bitter about what she had just heard, “That stupid girl, she dares to hurt you and run away from the house?” She narrowed her eyes in anger as she gently patted her daughter’s hair.
“My waist hurts, Mummy,” Eva cried, rubbing her lower back.
“Oh my poor baby, come here, Mama will take care of you. Don’t worry, she’ll get what’s waiting for her when she hopelessly returns tomorrow,” Catherine said, carefully leading Eva to sit on the couch.
“Yes, Ma’am, she’s Hudson’s daughter. She was right in front of their house when we took her,” Ariel heard a man’s voice speaking the moment she regained consciousness.
She didn’t rush to open her eyes, wanting to listen in on her new environment before alerting them to her regained consciousness.
From the feeling beneath her, she knew she was lying on a bunk bed. Fear engulfed her as she thought of what they might have done to her while she was still unconscious.
“Hm, she doesn’t look as classy as he claimed, but she’ll do,” She heard an elderly woman’s voice reply.
“Yes, Mrs. Nari, just a moment. Just a little touch-up, and she’d be an angel,” A younger woman’s voice said beside Ariel’s bed.
“Open your eyes, young lady, we have business to discuss,” The elderly woman said in a stern voice.
Ariel’s heart skipped a beat as she heard the words of the elderly woman.
So she’s been playing herself all the while?
Ariel opened her eyes and was shocked to see a lady’s face in front of hers, blocking the light above the ceiling. The strange lady kept staring unblinkingly into Ariel’s eyes, not saying a thing.
“Ahh!!” Ariel screamed and quickly scrambled up on the bed, shifting away from the strange lady.
“Hey, hey, hey, calm down, calm down,” The lady moved back, raising her gloved hands beside her head, her lab coat riding above her knee as she raised her hands.
She looked like a doctor.
In Ariel’s anxious attempt to flee, she felt a sensation in her arm and realized that she’d been brought to a hospital. She looked down her arm to find a cannula fixed into her vein.
She quickly looked around; the room was white with blue curtains and drapes, a drip stand was beside her bed, and an elderly lady with silvery grey hair was sitting at the far corner of the room in a wheelchair, her bright yellow suit complementing her bright skin.
Six security men were standing around the corners of the room, pretending like they didn’t even exist.
Ariel was beyond scared.
“Who are you? Where am I?” Ariel asked, her heart beating rapidly in fear.
Who could these people be? Why have they suddenly kidnapped her?
“Oh, where are my manners? Sorry about that, let’s fix that,” The lady replied.
She went over to the elderly woman and pushed her closer to Ariel’s bed.
Ariel noticed that despite the aging, the old lady was still a beauty to behold, an aura of sophistication surrounding her as she neared Ariel’s bed.
“This is my Grandma, Grandma Nari, and I’m Lin, the owner of this hospital,” Lin said, pointing at Grandma Nari.
“What is your name?” Grandma Nari asked.
Ariel hesitated; this wasn’t what she wanted at that moment. She needed an explanation as to why they’d kidnap her, or, better still, she wanted to leave; she wasn’t interested in whatever they had to say.
“I asked a question, young lady. What is your name?” Grandma Nari asked again, her eyes narrowing at Ariel’s weak figure.
“Ariel,” Ariel replied, sighing.
“Ariel Hudson,” Grandma Nari completed, slowly shaking her head.
Ariel’s eyes widened. How did she know her father’s name? Suddenly, it dawned on her that she’d just been kidnapped by one of her father’s enemies.
How unlucky was she? She even had to pay for her useless father’s sins, too.
“You’re going to do me a favor, Ariel,” Grandma Nari said.
“I’ll do no such thing! If Mr. Hudson owes you a favor, then I suggest you settle it with him. I’m never putting myself up for that evil man,” Ariel said angrily.
She knew it was a risk to challenge her captors, but she couldn’t just accept the fact that they wanted her to atone for her father’s sins, and they looked so classy, like all those higher-up billionaires in the country.
What did that old fool get himself into now?
“Dear, show her this,” Grandma Nari raised her hand behind her, giving her phone to Lin.
“Yes, Grandma,” Lin took it and walked around the wheelchair.
Ariel watched the screen as Lin slid through two slides of pictures, each was a picture of a house.
The first one was a picture of their current house, and the second one was a picture of her mother’s white cottage. Even though both houses belonged to her mother, the white cottage was more precious to her. It was where she had spent most of her time as a child with her mother. It was the same cottage they were heading to when the unfortunate event happened.
But she didn’t understand why they were showing her pictures of these buildings; what was their point?
“Uh, what does this mean?” Ariel asked cautiously.
She was scared, but she tried her best to look and sound confident.
“Your father owes us a lot of money, and when it’s time to pay, he obviously doesn’t have the money,” Grandma Nari said seriously, stretching her hand out to Lin, and Lin put her phone back into her hand.
Ariel’s eyes widened in shock. Her idiot of a father owed such powerful people, and he had the mind to still live lavishly with that witch of a wife.
“What does this have to do with me? Or the houses?” Ariel asked, squeezing the ear of the hospital pillow in anger.
“Everything, dear Ariel…” Grandma Nari replied with a little nod.
“You see, I know these houses originally belonged to your deceased mother, and I know about your unfavorable living conditions.” Grandma Nari tapped her thigh slowly.
Ariel was too shocked to speak, but what did she expect? Rich people were dangerous; they’d find out everything about you in a matter of seconds if they wanted to.
“Now, your father has offered us those houses as collateral, and my husband has happily accepted. Now these buildings belong to us; my husband was just looking for new sites to build a new orphanage and a hotel. Looking at those pictures, their locations are not bad at all,” Grandma Nari said in a quiet but certain tone.
“No!” Ariel suddenly brought her legs down from the bed, placing her free hand on the bed beside her to support her weak body.
“Of course, child…no. I’m a woman, too, that’s why I understand how you must feel learning that your father had given away your memories and assets just to pay off his dubious debts, and I know she willed these houses to you,” Grandma Nari motioned for Lin to push her forward, closer to Ariel.
“You want to keep your mother’s house?” Grandma Nari asked, placing her hands on Ariel’s thigh.
“Yes,” Ariel replied without hesitation.
This time, she was ready to do whatever it took to make sure those evil couples didn’t get what they wanted. She will get those houses back by all means.
Had he lost it? Selling her mother’s property?
She was sure it was that crazy Catherine’s idea.
“Good, that’s the spirit,” Grandma Nari waved one guard over, and he instantly walked over with a file.
“What’s your condition, Mrs. Nari?” Ariel asked.
Grandma Nari shared a meaningful look with Lin before looking up at Ariel’s face and saying, “Marry my Grandson.”