The funeral was quiet.Too quiet for a man who had lived loudly in the shadows of someone else’s power.John stood a few steps back from the grave, dressed in black, his posture straight, his face unreadable. Around him were people who had come because they were told to come, because it was expected, because respect demanded it. None of them truly knew the man being lowered into the ground.Anna stood closest to the grave.She hadn’t cried since the hospital.Her face was pale, stiff, as though her body had decided tears were no longer useful. Her hands were clasped in front of her, fingers intertwined so tightly that her knuckles had gone white.The priest spoke. Words about life. About loss. About peace.Anna heard none of it.All she could see was the coffin.All she could hear was the echo of promises that would never be kept.John watched her quietly.He had ordered the funeral to be private. No press. No questions. Just the family, a few trusted people, and security stationed

John pinched the wall in his room so hard that Mr. David had to hold him to stop.“John! You need to pull yourself together right now. This won't solve anything.” Mr. David advised.“I knew that woman was evil! I knew it but I underestimated her, I didn't see the potential of her going that far. Why? Why am I asking why??” John slumped again as he cried so hard.“The right person to ask all the questions is your grandmother. Pull yourself together young master.” Mr. David kept on trying to calm him down.“A family was lost! Someone's father, someone's husband and son were killed because of mere jealousy! What if I don't love her? What if I don't marry her?” John cried.“Please, I'll get to the bottom of this please—” Mr. David said but John cut in.“Anna would have lost her life! They both suffered because of me! She would have died because I couldn't protect her. What was I supposed to do? Thank her for protecting me by hurting innocent people? Answer me!!” John barked with tears rol

“Okay grandfather. I'll do as you've said.” John responded, his hand still holding his maternal grandfather's own.“Good boy. Now, you need to go and rest. You have a big day ahead of you tomorrow. Make sure you are resting, that is very important.“I will, grandfather. Get some sleep too.”John nodded, stood up, and quietly walked out of the room. His maternal grandmother was waiting right outside, her arms crossed, a look of impatience on her face.“Five minutes is up. Now leave him alone.” “I'm leaving, Grandmother,” John said, keeping his own voice low and calm. He didn't want to start another argument.She stepped aside, allowing him to walk past. “John.” His maternal grandmother called him, her voice was calm and her look was a mask of worriness.John stopped and turned back to her.“Grandmother, I respect you. But Anna is not a distraction. She’s... she’s my strength.”The grandmother’s eyes narrowed. “Strength? She is a weakness you cannot afford. Five minutes was all it too

“Go ahead to call the police. You all will regret this and I will make sure you never see jobs in your life again.” Mr. David said with a still calm voice that bred danger.“Are you threatening us?” The staff who had been insulting Mr. David questioned him after everyone was dumbfounded with fear.Mr. David smiled, not saying a word.The head of security looked very surprised by the sudden change in Mr. David’s tone, but he was also relieved to see him comply.He quickly gestured to the two guards next to him and gave a stern, final order."Handcuff him right now." He commanded them.The two guards came forward quickly to do as they were told by their boss.One was short while the other was the tall one who had just spoken, and they seemed nervous but followed the order to pull out the shiny silver handcuffs.Mr. David let them grab his wrists gently as he knew he could snap their arms with just a little bit of force.He wanted to see how far their sheer stupidity would go, how long t

The late afternoon sun was a soft, fading gold as Anna found Collins on their usual bench in Central Park. He was already there, nursing a paper cup of coffee, looking more relaxed than she had seen him in months.“Sorry I’m late,” Anna said, dropping onto the bench beside him, her purse thudding onto the wooden slats. The scent of pine and fresh-cut grass was heavy in the air.Collins looked up and smiled, a genuine, easy smile that reached his eyes. “You’re fine. The day’s still got plenty of light left.” He gestured to the cup in his hand. “Want me to grab you something?”“No, I’m good. Thanks.” She took a deep breath, trying to organize the knot of worries in her stomach. “I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”“Lay it on me,” he replied, taking a slow sip of his coffee. “What’s going on? You look like you haven’t slept properly in a week. Is it about John?”Anna picked at a loose thread on her skirt. “It is. It’s always about John, lately.” She hesitated, looking out