Stacie ran like a banshee to the hospital and passerby's noticed her crying.
"Where's my brother?"
"He's Cade." Some nurses took her to a cold room where bodies lay.
"Here he is." She stood right in front of a body, with his face covered. Stacie's mouth was open, and her blood felt hot inside of her.
"W...wh..what happened to my...." She couldn't complete the sentence before she blacked out.
~~~~~
Isla's eyes opened slowly and she jolted when she saw Cade's cute demeanor.
"Cade??" She itched her eyes and sat up.
"Isla, you're up."
"I was dreaming..." She said, panting.
"Dreaming? About me?" He winked.
"Actually, yes. Someone told me you were dead, and I saw you at the hospital. Your body was covered with a white cloth." Isla continued.
"Nah. The mistake has been rectified. The man who died was Cade Austin not Cade Hudson. The doctors called Stacie. Her contact popped up on the man's file. I was at the hospital some time ago, and I had Stacie as the relative's contact. Since we had the same name, it was mismatched." Cade explained and Isla's mouth formed an ooh.
"I must have passed out seeing that body."
"I brought you home. Yunno, I'm always there to save you. At that moment, I called Stacie to explain things to her." Isla held his arms.
"I'm so relieved that you're fine, Cade. I...If something happened to you...I'd lose my mind. I'd go insane."
"I know, babe. That's why I'll never leave you. So please, gear up for your newest lipstick gig. I signed you."
"What?! I mean, thank you." Cade pulled her close and kissed her forehead.
~~~~~
"Hello. This is Cade Hudson."
"Mr. Gerard has been arrested for his crime, based on the evidence, statement and effort you put up on the case. We have also seen some traces with him harassing Isla Sinclair even after they were legally divorced. He will be punished."
"Thank you so much sir." Cade hung up.
"Who called?" Isla asked curiously. They were wrapped in each other's arms watching a romantic comedy.
"Um.... One of the policemen. Nigel has been arrested." He replied.
"REALLY??" Isla's eyes widened as she looked at Cade. He nodded. She hugged him tightly.
"Oh God! I..I'm short of words, Cade." She blinked away tears.
"Thank you so much. Thank you." Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"You're always welcome Isla." He stroked her hair and they broke the hug.
"What about Talia? Did you hear anything about her?"
"I'll make sure I get her to therapy, just as you said. Then.....we can talk about marriage." Isla's eyes widened again.
"Woah! I can't wait for that."
"I can't wait to have you as my wife. Officially."
"That would be awesome!!!" She squealed.
~~~~GIRL'S STYLE MAKEUP MAIN BUILDING ~~~~
Isla Sinclair gazed at her phone, scrolling through the thousands of comments on her latest Instagram post. She was posing in front of a giant banner for Girl's Style Makeup lipstick, her lips painted a vibrant shade of red. The comments were overwhelmingly positive, with fans calling her the "great model" and praising her beauty. But one comment caught her eye, making her heart skip a beat.
"I'm proud of you, my sweet daughter," the comment read. Isla's eyes widened as she saw the name attached to the comment: Rhea Sinclair. Her mom. The woman who had never been supportive or affectionate towards her. The woman who had always seemed to criticize her every move.As she read the comment over and over, trying to process her emotions, Isla noticed her mom standing in front of the lift, about to step inside.
Without thinking, Isla ran towards her, calling out "Rhea!" The lift doors began to close, but they slid open again as Rhea stepped out."Isla, dear," Rhea said, a warm smile on her face. "I see you're doing well. I meant what I said in my comment. You're truly thriving, and I'm proud of the woman you've become."
Isla's eyes searched her mom's face, looking for any sign of insincerity, but all she saw was genuine affection. "You...you wrote that on my Instagram post," Isla said, still trying to wrap her head around it.Rhea nodded. "Yes, I did. I've realized I've been wrong about a lot of things, Isla.
I've been too hard on you, and I'm sorry for that. I want you to know that I love you, and I want us to start over. I know it won't be easy, but I'd like to try. Can you...can you accept me, even if it's slowly?"Isla's emotions swirled, a mix of shock, confusion, and a hint of hope.
"Okay," she said softly, the word barely above a whisper.Rhea's face lit up with a warm smile.
"That's all I can ask for, sweetie." Just as Isla was about to turn and leave, Rhea spoke up again.
"Wait, Isla. I heard rumors you're getting married soon. I'm glad you've found a man who makes you happy. I hope the two of you have beautiful kids and a long, happy life together. I wish you the best, dear."Isla's eyes narrowed slightly, unsure of what to make of her mom's sudden interest in her life.
"Thanks," she said, her voice neutral, before turning to step into the lift. As the doors closed, Isla couldn't help but wonder what had brought about this sudden change in her mom's behavior.
~~~~ISLA'S MANSION~~~~
"I saw her comment. Looks like she's really willing to make amends." Cade spoke too and Isla's face brightened.
"Wow. Rhea - Rhea has done so much in my life. She killed Brian, because she didn't want me to have a RiseUp code. That was - that was the end of me. I wanted to die too."
"I know, Isla. But now I'm here. Even if you can't get him out of your heart, I'm sure there's another space in there for me." She nodded.
"Speaking of Brian, it's his death anniversary." Cade sucked his teeth when he noticed tears in her eyes.
"Nothing can ever take away what I have for him. He was my world. But... Rhea took him away. It'll be really hard to forgive her. I can't believe she got away with it."
"I know Isla. But you have to try. She's still your mom, no matter what. And on our wedding, it'll be nice to have her." Cade pulled her close, stroking her hair gently.
Isla wanted to speak but paused. She continued when she noticed Cade's eyes on her.
"I love you!" She said in a trembling outburst and Cade chuckled.
"Sometimes I think, you can't be real. You're everything I see in my dreams. You're everything I ever wanted. I think we're meant to be." Cade smiled.
"I love you so much more." They hugged warmly.
~~~~ JOHANN PANTS COLLECTION ~~~~
"And that's a wrap!!" The team clapped and Isla left the scene, taking off her shoes in the dressing room.
"Isla." She turned around and saw her mom walking towards her.
"You're making your big-screen debut next year. I signed you up for filming to begin in a few days." Isla was confused.
"Big screen debut?"
"Yeah. They needed one of the most beautiful models to play a particular sea witch role for the historical romance movie. So I signed you." Isla couldn't believe it.
"Really?"
"Its finally your opportunity to make those artistic dreams of yours come true." She smiled. Isla was still wrapping her head around it.
"Um...I don't think I can do it, Rhea. I haven't tried acting. And this is a big-screen. What if I mess things up?"
"I believe in you my daughter. You can do anything."
~~~~~
"WHAT??!!!" The four friends chorused their shrieks and express of shock. They were on a video call with Isla.
"Big screen debut?"
"Sea witch?"
"Rhea calling you her sweet daughter?"
"Rhea asking you to forgive her?"
"That's crazy!!" Sasha exclaimed.
"When I saw the comment on Instagram, I went to check if it was a fake account." Julie said.
"It wasn't. It was her."
"Weird."
"Are you going to forgive her so easily? Someone who deprived you of what you wanted in life? Someone who forced you to follow her path? Someone who never wished you well? Someone who wanted you dead just for her to grow? Someone who killed your husband? Someone who signed a deal with your exes, who has treated you badly all the days of your marriages. And you'll forgive her?" Lindsay asked.
"Don't be swept away by her sweet words. This whole big-screen thing she said, might be a set up." Wendy added.
"It's not! I'm among the cast in the movie already."
"Don't believe Rhea Sinclair so easily. She has never been up to no good."
"What if she has decided to change?" A notification popped up on Isla's screen.
"Um...Rhea is live on Instagram."
"Really? Let's go check it out!!" They all hung up at once.
Rhea's praises on the live left Isla speechless. She heard Cade's footsteps.
"Cade! Cade! Rhea is live and she's singing my praises!"
"Huh??"