My mother's eyes softened, her voice gentle yet firm. "Anna, we've built our lives around this company. It's the legacy we want to leave for you. We can't afford to let personal matters jeopardize everything we've worked for."
I felt like I had to hit both their heads together to bring back some senses. Jared betrayed me, They should have been telling me to call my lawyer that exact second but they didn't want me to. My parents prioritized their company's success over my shattered heart. I finally got it, they were the ones who got me into a marriage of convenience with Jared three years ago all because of some shares they stand to gain from Jared. I had enough, enough of everyone using me for their gains. I stood up and said with a firm voice.
"I won't be a pawn in your games anymore. I won't stay in a loveless marriage, pretending everything is fine for the sake of your company. I deserve better than that. I deserve happiness."
"I'm leaving this villa and the life you have all made for me, a life that has been built on lies and betrayal. I will never return here, and that's my final decision."
The heavy rain poured relentlessly, soaking me up to my bone as I stood on the desolate bridge. My tears mixed with the cold raindrops as it streamed down my face. It somehow seemed like the heavens felt the whirlwind of emotions swirling within me and were somehow hurt by it too.
"Why... why did it have to come to this?" I whispered, my voice trembling with despair.
As the rain began to subside, my sobs also subsided, and I decided it was enough crying and feeling sorry for myself. "Hahaha" I heard creepy laughter that's when I noticed a group of men approaching. My heart raced, and my survival instincts kicked in.
"Who are they? What do they want?" I thought, my fear growing with each passing moment.
I decided to just try to keep calm and listen.
"Is she the one?"
"Mr. Jared Smith..."
"Asked us to kill?"
My blood immediately turned cold as their words hit me like lightning. Jared Smith? Jared had asked them to kill me? Jared, my husband had sent assassins after me. Panic surged through my veins, urging me to try to find an escape route.
"I have to save myself," I muttered under my breath.
I slowly began walking in the opposite direction, my heart pounding against my chest. They seemed to have realized that I was trying to run away as they picked up their pace and so did I, I turned to run away from the bridge but I only ended up running straight into the arms of more men, cutting off any escape route.
"No, please!" I pleaded, and my voice came out desperate. "I didn't do anything!" I pleaded but they didn't stop in their tracks for even a split second. The men closed in on me, their faces creepy and disgusting. Fear consumed me and I was left trembling in fear and vulnerability.
"Where do you think you're going, sweetheart?" one of them sneered. My mind raced, searching for a way out. They kept coming closer as I stepped backward, suddenly, I stumbled and lost my footing. I felt myself falling as gravity kept pulling me down
"No!" I screamed, flailing my arms in a futile attempt to regain my balance, I was falling into the water but I couldn't swim.
I called out desperately, I really couldn't swim in a pool and now I was falling into a river at a high current. I would surely lose my life.
"Help! Someone, please!" I shouted, my voice choked with fear. I finally got into the water, my body felt light as the coldness of the water made physical contact with my tender skin. I tried my best to stay up and hold in as much air as I could, but then just as I kept struggling, thought pierced through my despair. Everyone I love, everyone I respect had betrayed me. Why am I struggling to live? I have no one to live for. No one wants me, not my parents, not my husband, not my best friend and I don't even have a child.
"Why should I fight to live?" I thought. I decided to stop, stop hesitating, stop struggling, and with that, I surrendered to the water, allowing the water to engulf me. As darkness enveloped my vision, my final breath escaped my lips.
And then, everything went silent.
My eyes flickered open, and I struggled to adjust to the blinding brightness that surrounded me. Slowly, I sat up, feeling the stiffness in my body. It felt like I had been asleep for over a decade. As I surveyed my surroundings, I realized I was in some sort of rundown building, resembling a small hut.
I pushed myself up from the worn-out mat I had been lying on and made my way to the entrance. Stepping outside, I looked around the building I had just awoken in, it was indeed a hut. I looked around me, I was at shore nestled amid an unfamiliar landscape. The air smelled of earth and nature and as I breathed in, I caught a whiff of something else. Something warm like a delicious stew.
I looked towards the direction of the smell and my gaze fell upon a young man, busy assisting an elderly woman in cooking somehow. They seemed startled by my presence, and the young man approached me cautiously.
"Are you okay?" he asked, genuine concern etched on his face. I hesitated for a moment, my mind still foggy from just waking up "Where... where am I? Who am I?" I managed to ask.