“Do you know that I was conscious for about ten seconds that night? And how much it pains me to hear what you’ve said to Erica?” Francis asked.
Naomi’s face blanched at the revelation as she drew a sharp breath in horror. He woke up?
“I’m so sorry, Francis. I was wrong. Please give me another chance. Help me out and I’ll do anything as you say to repay you for the rest of my life.” She was willing to do anything just to leave this appalling place.
He shook his head. “I’m not here to get you out. You should atone for your sins.”
“Francis, I’m sorry! I was wrong…” She began wailing from the bottom of her lungs.
Still, Francis was not to be moved as he continued and questioned, “And what
about Erica’s true identity? I bet you had used Anastasia’s blood to replace hers in order to deceive me. You’ve used me to bring up your daughter for over 20 years
and yet, this is how you treat my daughter? You’re heartless, Naomi.”
“To Erica, you’ve always been her father. She’s a good daughter and she loves you.” Naomi tried to put in good words for her daughter.
“If she truly loved me, she wouldn’t have joined hands with you to conspire against me by changing my last will and taking away my company. And for sure, she wouldn’t have murdered someone just to hide the truth of her identity!”
“Erica is still young, that’s why. She doesn’t know anything. Save her, please! She’s your daughter!” pleaded Naomi.
“Anastasia will deal with you and Erica as
she has the right to do so. Everything will
be done according to her call and I won’t interfere in this matter,” Francis uttered, driving the last nail into her coffin. As the realization of her last strand of hope vanishing dawned upon her, her eyes widened in total fear. “What? You’re going to let her handle everything? N-No. Francis, she hates me to death; she’ll kill us! I’m begging you. Please save us!”
“If you had treated her nicely, she wouldn’t have taken things this far. It’s your karma.” A visit at death’s door had cleared the haze in his mind. He had made up his mind to spend the rest of his lifetime with his biological daughter in peace; the others did not bother him in the slightest anymore.
After saying what he intended to say, Francis rose to his feet.
“Francis. Francis! Don’t go! Please, save me!” The desperate woman banged her head onto the transparent barrier continuously in an attempt to make him stay.
Still, he tuned out the noise and left without turning his head.
Meanwhile, Naomi, who was held by the officers, did not feel a smidgen of pain despite the bleeding. Instead, the unprecedented despair was swallowing her little by little inside out.
The jewelry showcase commenced as scheduled at 2.00PM on Friday and it was expected to end at 9.00PM.
Since Anastasia’s jewelry would be displayed in the afternoon, she and Felicia promised to meet up together. They seated themselves at the front row, which was the best spot to watch the show.
Underneath Anastasia’s long coat was a black dress that hugged her figure well. In spite of the unobtrusive color, she exerted elegance that could readily captivate others with one single movement.
The ceremony opening was then followed up by the runway where the models began to take the center stage and present the jewelries, which were imbued with exotic styles from worldwide. Akin to other audiences, Anastasia was having the time of her life while discussing the features of the design with Felicia at times.
Finally, Anastasia’s work ‘Gloryio’ was mentioned alongside her name when the host was introducing the next design.
Her heart palpitated and before long, she saw that very necklace worn around the
model’s neck. The model’s enticing collarbone complemented the jewelry well by drawing all eyes onto the item as it glittered under the illuminating lights.
As soon as the model took the limelight, the crowd plunged into a silent commotion with murmuring voices echoing against the walls.
After a few rounds of catwalks, the models retreated to the backstage, where a number of rich people expressed their liking toward Gloryio. After all, it was a one-of-a-kind jewelry that was worth adding to their collection. “I’m sorry, but this set has been taken.”
“What? I should be the fastest one. Who is it?” the rich lady growled in disapproval.
“It’s President Presgrave of Presgrave Group. It is said that he wishes to give it to his lover,” explained the manager.
