Novels by dorcasnotes64

The drive back home from the party was rough and full of silence.The moment they stepped out of the car, no one spoke to each other.Maybe it was better that way. How would the conversation even sound? It would be so awful and bitter on their lips.They gathered in the sitting room, everyone ready to disperse.Alex's phone began to ring. At first he ignored it completely, but when it persisted, he reached into his suit pocket and brought it out.He picked it up without looking at the caller ID."Alex! Are you listening to me?"That voice.Lauren's."Yeah, I'm listening." His voice was actually calm compared to the urgency in Lauren's voice.Xavier had stopped walking and was now facing him. Thomas didn't wait. He was closer to Philip, so he was definitely still trying to process the whole thing."Someone, please." Her voice was urgent, like she was struggling to speak.Alex switched the phone to his other ear. What was going on?Why was she calling this late with such panic? Why him?

Thomas gripped his hand before he might fall, and it would cause a disaster."I'm fine," Alex breathed out, but sweat was already soaking through the expensive fabric of his suit, dampening the collar around his neck."Stay calm," Xavier whispered, his voice barely audible above the murmuring crowd. "They cannot...""Mr. Kane, can you give us a speech?" Philip interrupted, his tone deliberately taunting, each word designed to unsettle.Alex took deep, slow breath, forcing his lungs to cooperate, a reaction he refused to let the others see. His hands trembled slightly at his sides.Thomas held his hand too long, his grip firm and unwilling to release, as if letting go would mean watching Alex crumble entirely.He finally released him, and Alex started walking toward the stage. It felt as if every eye in the room were slicing bits of flesh from his legs with each step forward. The distance seemed impossible, stretching endlessly before him.His legs felt heavy, weighted down, as if he h

TWENTY-ONE Alex's car pulled up in front of the venue, and Xavier got out to open the door for him.He stepped out, and camera flashes made him squint.He ignored the paparazzi as they tried to push closer, questions hurled at him from every direction.*"What do you have to say about the rumors—not totally rumors—circulating?"**"Mr. Alexander, are you truly impotent?"*Thomas glared at the reporter who asked that and quickly ushered Alex into the venue.Inside, the space was packed with high-ranking elites from across the country.Alex breathed out in relief as they finally escaped the endless barrage of questions.He'd expected this. Actually, he'd expected worse."Mr. Alexander Kane, welcome." A robust-looking man approached. Alex recognized him from the last board meeting.Thomas gave Alex a look and moved a few meters away.Alex's eyes followed them. Xavier shook his head slightly.*Did they have to leave?*He pressed his lips together and extended a hand to the man, who took it

CHAPTER TWENTY Alex held his breath as he peered into the box.He froze.An envelope.He grabbed it quickly and tore the paper wrapping away."Damn!" Xavier's voice was the only thing that reminded Alex he'd gone pale.Five pictures. Each one showed his father, Richard Kane, with a red mark drawn across the image."They're trying to—" Thomas's breath caught. "It's a warning."Alex didn't need to be told who sent them. He dropped the pictures on the table and slumped into a nearby chair.Thomas moved to the table and spread the pictures out, examining each one carefully.Random photos of Richard Kane. But the marks were deliberate—each one placed directly over his chest.Thomas clenched his fists. "These people should be hunted down. How can they be so cruel?"Xavier had moved to Alex's side, tapping him gently on the shoulder."You're not scared, right?"What kind of question was that? Of course he was damn scared. Anyone would be after receiving pictures of their dead father marked

CHAPTER NINETEEN Alex sat at the head of the dining table, picking at his food. The other seats were empty. Xavier and Thomas had left to prepare for tomorrow's Met Gala.He stabbed the red steak with his fork repeatedly, his other hand gripping a glass of wine. His face was blank, eyes fixed on the steak, but his mind was far away.*The Consortium.*The thought kept circling back, relentless. Emma and Diane were handled now. But in front of him stood a faceless organization. People he didn't know. Threats he couldn't predict. Strikes that could come from anywhere, anytime.He inhaled sharply, trying to refocus. He should be thinking about tomorrow. How to handle his public appearance. How to shift the media narrative after his... His fist tightened around the wine glass.The day he'd found out about his condition. Emma had been there, right beside him. She hadn't flinched. Hadn't offered a single word of comfort.In fact, she was the one who'd dragged him to get tested in the first

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN Emma got inside the house and Diane was already waiting, arm akimbo behind her sofa, her eyes looking stern as ever."Where are you coming from?" She asked, and Emma nearly rolled her eyes, but she knew better than to react rashly. Her and Diane had rather gotten close over the past few days since she came back from when she confronted Alex. In a way two people stuck in a burning building get close, not from love, but from the simple fact that they needed each other to survive.Emma hated it. She'd started to see herself in Diane's way, in the way her mother's mouth twisted when she was scheming. The adage that says people of like minds tend to flow well wasn't a lie.Two days before they had prepared dinner together, the ingredients in the house were getting smaller day by day. Emma can't afford to sell parts of her belongings, same as Diane, their meals would rather suffer.They'd stood side by side at the counter, chopping onions in silence. Diane had handed he