CHAPTER 4

THIRSTY FOR REVENGE

"You're right. There's absolutely nothing I can do ." Flora nodded in affirmation. She raised her eyebrows slowly, blood cursing through her body as her heart slammed against her ribs.

She looked at Debby with utter disgust.

So, all this while, Richard has been sleeping with her best friend and would always use too much office work as an excuse to keep late nights, just to have his way with his mistress?

"So, who was that man, Debby? Who was the bastard that you arranged for me last night?" Flora asked, her voice stern and filled with hatred.

"Oh that?" Debby chuckled.

"Is there still any need for you to know?”

“Well if you insist, the truth is that…we hired a gigolo to devour you that night, but when he returned, he told us that he found another man in the room already, so he couldn't carry out the assignment."

"What?" Flora exclaimed.

"Yeah. So for now, I have no idea of the man that screwed and lick your clit* overnight. Whether he's short, tall, young, old, handsome or ugly, only your imaginations can answer that, little bitch! All we know is that another man successfully pulled your pants down." Debby sniggered, her voice devoid of any remorse.

"That's such a big lie!" Flora argued.

"I know what I'll do. The surveillance cameras of the hotel will definitely give me the detailed history of everything!" Flora said and began to walk away with deliberate steps.

"Bad news." Debby's condescending voice echoed. "The hotel's surveillance cameras happened to develop some serious mechanical fault yesterday. What a terrible coincidence, right?" She smirked.

Flora swallowed painfully.

‘These people are exceptionally smart! They really know how to play their card without flaws.’ She cursed inwardly.

Flora paused after taking some steps away from the garden and turned to glance at the Wilson's mansion for the last time. Her eyes suddenly shifted to meet the gazes of the very people that have betrayed her.

But now, all the tinge of sadness in her heart has completely vanished.

All that is left of her now is how to pick up her pieces and move on for good.

"I regret ever knowing you, Debby! I hate you all!" She cursed and left.

Watching Flora's slender body depart the Wilson's mansion, the three women looked at each other and bursted out into a mocking laughter.

Finally, they have succeeded in evading the obstacle to their dirty games.

***

While staying in Mexico with her aunt, Flora’s world came crumbling when she discovered that a seed was growing in her belly. The realisation of this even felt more hurtful than getting divorce without a penny.

How can she ever overcome the trauma of getting pregnant for a man she has no knowledge of?

She was certain that the little life she was carrying was not Richard's, because since their wedding night, Richard has not failed to use protection before having any intimacy with her.

In spite of all, she still did everything possible to put her past behind and hustle to bring out a better version of herself. Even if not for anything, she has to be strong and give her son a better life.

******

Six years later, at the well lit modern international airport, Flora took a deep breath before opening her eyes and looking at the environment around her.

Finally, this day has arrived, a day she can mingle with people in high society as she always does while growing up.

The atmosphere in the environment was harmonious.

At the airport, two young ladies held a welcome card. It was written, Chief Designer of Deluxe Arts, Flora Blake.

The ladies hung the cards on their neck, rolling their eyes over all the feminine faces as they searched frenzily for the woman they've been asked to welcome.

They keep rolling their eyes between their phones and the faces of young dignified women in the surrounding, hoping to see an exact match of the woman in their gallery.

From the description given to them by the woman's aunt, their expectation was to see an honourable woman appear in a sophisticated dress that would signal her presence in the midst of thousands, but their assumptions were wrong.

Suddenly, they spotted a casually dressed woman approaching.

Her perfect blonde long hair and cute white eyes still complimented her exceptional looks. Beside her, a little boy of approximately five years old was happily pushing a cart containing a small briefcase and a mini side bag.

Among the children in the environment, the boy's figure stood out. He has exquisite facial features and his eyes were cute and white like his mother's.

No one who sighted the little boy would not pause and give a remark after a second look. His cute pink lips and a well shaped nose were just the exact features of those rich kids usually pictured on a magazine cover as models.

"Wow! This boy is overloaded with good looks."

"I guess he took after his father. Because his looks are too good to be compared with his mother's.***" Different comments stem up in whispers from the people around.

Flora took a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut, the moment she heard the whispers of her son taking after his father's looks.

Those words only reminded her of how she ended up birthing a child that she has no clue of who the father is, presenting her with the hurtful past she thought she had forgotten.

If not for her aunt's persuasion for her to return to New York after helping her secure a better job offer at a friend's design company, Flora wouldn't have wanted anything to do with the city until she's completely healed from her past.

She quickly took out her glass case to put on her dark sunglasses to hide the tears that were threatening to fall.

"Mummy. Don't you think those two ladies over there are here to pick us up? They've long been staring at us and whispering to each other. You told me that you're resuming a new job as a chief designer, right?" The little boy noted, pointing at the tags hanging on the ladies' necks with his mother's name boldly written on them.

Flora pursed her lips and smiled enigmatically. One thing she cherishes a lot about her son is his high IQ and the way he reasons smartly like an adult.

Well, just the thought of this reduces her resentment whenever her past comes flashing at her. At least, even though she's a single mother, she's got the cutest little boy in the whole world.

Flora followed the two ladies as they led her towards the chauffeur, who drove them with the moderate speed like she's always done when she was driving in the past, until they alighted a tall, magnificent building with shining silver gate. It looks like an estate with many flats of similar structure.

"Welcome to the Deluxe design estate ma'am. As instructed by the chairman, this will be your apartment for now." One of the ladies said as they walked to the frontage of one of the biggest and newest flats amongst the houses.

Wow! Flora exclaimed, her heart pulsating in awe of the large

apartment she never thought of occupying anytime soon.

In the evening, she decided to go out on a stroll with her little boy to at least get familiar with the environment before she resumes work the next morning.

"Hey mummy, look over there! I love that building. It looks really beautiful." Her little son remarked, pointing at a largely built pyramidal structure. Its exquisite external features were top notch, making it easy to spot among all the large buildings on the street.

Flora raised her brows. "Wow, it actually looks so..." She paused when her eyes shifted to the large sign post at the gate.

It reads, "Welcome to the Wilsons Swift Holdings. (The right place to satisfy your high luxury taste.)"

Her jaws dropped. She took a deep breath to calm her rising heartbeat down.

‘Wait, How did the Wilson's Swift Holdings relocate to this street?’ She couldn't believe her eyes.

Immediately, she swiped her phone and typed the full information about the Wilson's Swift Holdings in her google search.

There, she saw what almost broke her to pieces. The Wilson's Swift Holdings has just recently built this new site and converted it to their permanent site.

She squeezed her eyes and swallowed hard.

Everything reminded her of how she lost her inheritance to the bastards that own this company because of their evil set up.

She didn't expect that her new company would be in close proximity to that of the same people that brought heavy emotional damage to her.

At some point, she thought of resigning and searching for another job in a distant location, but then, a strong voice from deep within her heart cautioned, ‘Why should you resign your job for the same monsters that you've been anxiously waiting for a time to destroy? Shouldn't this be the best opportunity for you to monitor their every move and know how to strike a balance between their strengths and weaknesses?’ She let out a wicked smirk as she took off her glasses to have a glaring view of the building before they returned home.

CHAPTER 5

THE LEAST EXPECTED

"I've once lost everything to you, Richard, I won't let your presence in this town torment my existence anymore." Flora mumbled to herself as the taxi drove past Wilson's building when she headed for work in the morning.

"Isn't Miss Blake aware that she is supposed to be at the company on or before 9:00 am? This is just two minutes to nine o'clock and I haven't seen any trace of her." A woman who just descended began to rant as she approached the reception.

The receptionist was about to answer when Flora identified herself swiftly, moving closer to the woman.

"Hi ma'am. I'm sorry if you got the wrong impression of me. I've..." Flora was trying to explain herself when the woman cut in, her mouth agape as she rolled her widened eyes over Flora.

"Wait, are you Flora Blake?" The woman asked.

"Sure. I don't match up to your expectations, right?" Flora smiled.

It was still unbelievable for many people that a woman could become an executive designer at such a young age.

"Pardon my manners." The woman said with a smile, stretching her hands towards Flora for a shake.

"I'm Bianca Franklin. My superior sent me to check and be sure that you didn't miss your way to the office." The lady explained. She still feels bad within her for ranting at first without confirmation, because she had actually seen Flora some minutes ago at the receptionist before the superior started asking after her.

"Miss Katherine, you can hold on with the documentation for now. She needs to follow me." Bianca instructed the receptionist before gesturing with her eyes for Flora to follow her.

As they began to move towards the elevator, her eyes suddenly fell on the little boy who was tightly clinging himself to Flora.

"He's your little brother, right?" The woman asked casually.

"No, ma'am. I'm not mommy's little brother. I'm her only son! You can as well call me Daniel, or Dan in short." The little boy retorted sharply before his mother could even say a word.

"Wow!" The people at the reception chorused and bursted out with laughter at the boy's confidence.

"He's so intelligent." A lady remarked.

"Awww, I'm in love with the kid already. How I wish, my first child will be as smart as this." Katherine, the chief receptionist added.

Flora looked down and winked at him.

Before they left home, she had already told him to maintain silence no matter what people say, but it seems like that'll be a very difficult task to achieve for the little boy.

If not for the fact that they just moved into the environment, she would have enrolled him in a day care and saved herself the stress of answering too many questions from people.

Bianca rolled her eyes again at Flora. She looks so young to have birth a child of that age and still able to go far in her career.

"Pardon his manners. His name is Daniel Blake. He's actually my son." Flora explained.

Bianca couldn't get her eyes off him as they went into the elevator.

As soon as they approached the superiors office, Flora's mind began to beat, she didn't know how the woman would react if she had also conceived a wrong impression of her as a late comer to work on the first day.

When they entered, a middle aged woman was seated, sipping a cup of coffee as she rolled on the spinning chair.

"You are –Miss Flora Blake?" The woman asked, her voice laced with surprise just like the way others did the moment they saw her.

"Yes ma'am." Flora nodded and proceeded to introduce herself properly.

"Wow. And this is your son, I guess?" The woman asked again, and Flora nodded.

Flora wasn't surprised that the woman already knows much about her because she's aware of the woman's connection to her aunt. And before the woman offered her the job, her aunt had communicated details of Flora's escapade to her already.

Little Dan began to smile. For the first time, someone didn't get his identity mixed up as his mother's brother.

"You may excuse us for now, Bianca." The woman said before shifting her gaze to Flora.

"I'm Elizabeth Briggs. And before you start, I'd love to advise that you put your past behind and focus on giving us a productive result.***" The woman continued.

"If you ever need any help, I'm always here for you." She concluded.

Flora heaved a huge sigh of relief as she walked out of the office. She didn't expect that Elizabeth would be such a calm woman.

But it seems like her past life has also contributed a significant part of her kindness.

Elizabeth is a woman in her late forties that was once in an abusive marriage, and that's why the moment Flora's aunt pleaded with her to give Flora a job, she didn't hesitate to grant her request.

Before Flora returned home, almost all the employees at Davy's Design Hub seemed to like her because of her son.

She used the two weeks break given to her to explore more about the city, the changes that have occurred while she was away and also made research on other design companies and how she can make theirs to be outstanding among others.

Three days before Flora would resume her work fully, she got a call from Ms. Elizabeth.

"Flora, can you be at the office tomorrow? We have a business meeting with a very important client that I can't afford to reschedule."

“Alright.” Flora affirmed without a hesitation.

Besides, she's back to New York to work and earn a decent living for herself and her son.

Flora walked into Elizabeth's office as early as 8:00 am the next morning.

"Miss Blake. Sorry for cutting your break short, but this client is very important, and I don't want us to miss out on striking a deal with her." Elizabeth explained.

"So, how did she want us to serve her?" Flora asked.

"She need a customised ring and a portrait for her husband as an anniversary gift."

"Wow. That sounds lovely. We'll surely give her the best." Flora assured. But immediately, Elizabeth's expression turned gloomy, throwing Flora into a state of confusion.

"Miss Blake, this customer you're going to serve, I've once had a deal with her, and I can tell you, she's very difficult to deal with. In fact, she's the most difficult client we've ever had because her taste is too high. That's why we always charge her five times the amount we charge other clients, and she doesn't hesitate to pay so long as the work is delivered in a way that'll please her." Elizabeth explained.

"That's never going to be a big deal, ma'am. Trust me, once I give a sample, she'll lose her sense of difficulty because it'll be perfect beyond her imagination."

Flora said with an assuring smile.

She was so confident about her designs because she knows that since she started her design career seriously, no client has ever complained of dissatisfaction over her services.

"Thanks for your assurance, Miss Blake. The client is already waiting for you in the room conference" Elizabeth concluded, before Flora began to take her leave.

As soon as she reached the door, she paused and turned to Elizabeth, as if she just remembered something. "Miss Elizabeth , may I know how I should address the client?"

"Oh, that. You can call her Mrs. Wilson." Elizabeth replied.

The name Mrs Wilson caused Flora's mind to skip. Her heart began to pound heavily in her chest. 'Mrs. Wilson? I hope she's not a member of the same Wilson's family that I know?' Flora thought to herself.