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The streetlights cast long, flickering shadows over the pavement as Gabriella and Dona sat on a cold metal bench. The night air was biting, but Gabriella didn't feel the chill.
Gabriella sat perfectly still in her white long-sleeve silk top and pleated skirt, looking like a fallen angel amidst the city's grit. Her eyes were fixed on nothing, her heart a hollow chamber of ice. Beside her, Dona looked soft and elegant in a simple, chic small dress, her face etched with worry.
"Gabriella, please," Dona whispered, reaching out. "We'll find another way. Victor isn't the only lawyer in the world."
Gabriella didn't flinch. She was drowning in the memory of Victor's smirk and the sting of her father's frozen accounts. She was alone. She was penniless. And she was losing.
The silence of the night was shattered by the aggressive roar of an engine. A high-powered sports bike drifted to a halt directly in front of their bench, the tires screaming against the asphalt.
Dona flinched, confused, but Gabriella only slowly raised her head, her face a mask of cold indifference. The rider pulled off his helmet, his hair messy and his breathing heavy.
It was Ajax.
He rushed toward them, his eyes wild with panic. "I've been searching for you everywhere! I went to your house—the guards told me you were at a relative's. Why didn't you pick up? I've called you a hundred times!"
Gabriella pulled her phone from her pocket, her movements robotic. "It was on silent," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "We were at a lawyer's office."
Ajax looked at Dona, who immediately averted her gaze. The air between them was thick with unspoken pain; she still couldn't look him in the eye after he had rejected her love proposal weeks ago.
"Why are you here, Ajax?" Dona asked, her voice trembling. "How did you even find us?"
"My house is on the next street," Ajax replied, running a hand through his hair. "I was heading home after looking for you and saw your silhouettes on the bench." He paused, his expression turning dark. "Wait... don't tell me that lawyer was Victor."
Dona gasped. "How did you know?"
Ajax flipped his hair back, turning slightly to the side as a bitter smirk touched his lips. It wasn't a happy look—it was the look of someone who knew too many secrets.
"Do you guys even know who he really is?" Ajax asked, his voice dropping an octave. "If you knew the truth, you never would have set foot in that mansion."
Gabriella's heart skipped a beat. She looked at Ajax, her cold eyes searching his. "He didn't help us," she admitted.
"Of course he didn't," Ajax snapped. "How could he help the person responsible for his own daughter has gone to jail?"
The world seemed to stop spinning. Gabriella felt the blood drain from her face, and Dona let out a sharp, terrified breath.
"Raina..." Dona whispered, her eyes wide with realization. "Is he... is he Raina's father?"
Ajax didn't answer. He only looked at the mansion in the distance, his silence confirming the nightmare. Gabriella is thinking deeply.
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The streetlights stretched across the empty road, their pale glow trembling as the wind whispered through the silent city. Gabriella sat motionless on the cold metal bench, her white silk top catching the faint light like fallen snow. Her pleated skirt brushed against her knees as the night breeze passed, but she didn't shiver.
She felt nothing.
Beside her, Dona looked delicate in her small dress, her arms wrapped around herself as if trying to hold her breaking heart together.
The truth Ajax had just revealed hung in the air like thunder waiting to strike.
Dona's lips trembled.
"But… Raina is the child of a single mother."
Ajax exhaled slowly. "Yes. Her parents got divorced when she was very young. That's why you don't know him, I think."
Gabriella's brows furrowed. Her voice was barely a whisper.
"How did you know?"
Ajax ran a hand through his messy hair, staring at the road instead of her.
"Of course I know. He is my mother's college friend. They studied together in law school." He paused before adding quietly, "But Raina doesn't know me… the way I know her family."
Gabriella's fingers curled into fists.
"That's why…" she whispered.
Suddenly—
BANG!
Her fist slammed against the metal bench. The sharp sound cut through the night.
Dona flinched.
"What do we do now, Gabriella?" she said, her voice cracking. "I'm sorry… I didn't know this. If I had known earlier, I would never have brought you there."
Gabriella closed her eyes for a moment.
"It's okay… leave it, Dona."
But Dona shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks.
"No… it's all my fault. Because of me…" She swallowed hard. "Your father is such a nice person, Gabby. Do you know that? He cared about you so much… even when you hated him."
Gabriella slowly turned her head.
Her cold eyes softened just a little.
Dona continued, words pouring out without thought.
"He cares a lot about you. He always looks after you… always asks about you. You didn't believe me before. The reason I wanted to be friends with you… was because of him."
Something shifted inside Gabriella.
Suspicion.
Her hand shot out, gripping Dona's wrist tightly.
"What do you mean, Dona?"
Dona froze.
"I… I mean he cares about you. That's what I meant."
Ajax glanced between them, confused by the sudden tension.
But Gabriella didn't blink.
"No. You said you became friends with me because of my father." Her grip tightened. "Don't lie."
Dona's breathing grew uneven. Her voice dropped into a fragile confession.
"Yes… I wanted to be friends with you because of him. Your father knows everything, Gabriella… why you wanted to go to Brighton Wisdom School… and your revenge plan."
The world tilted.
For a moment, Gabriella forgot how to breathe.
"I told him."Dona replied.
Silence.
A single tear slid down Gabriella's cheek — slow, quiet, almost invisible.
Betrayal didn't scream.
It shattered silently.
"But believe me!" Dona cried quickly. "Later I didn't tell him anything. I felt horrible. I couldn't betray my own friend… so I stopped."
Gabriella looked at her.
Her eyes were no longer soft.
They were red.
Cold.
Dangerous.
"What about earlier, Dona?" she asked quietly. "You literally betrayed me."
She let out a hollow scoff.
"Don't act innocent."
Dona stepped back as if struck.
"Gabby…"
Ajax stepped forward nervously. "Guys… just leave it—"
"Go, Dona."
The words were sharp enough to cut.
Dona blinked. "What?"
"I said go. I don't want to talk to you anymore."
The wind howled louder, carrying the echo of Gabriella's voice down the empty street.
Dona grabbed her hand desperately.
But Gabriella yanked it away and turned her back.
Dona stumbled slightly — and before she could fall, Ajax caught her.
"Gabriella, what are you doing? She's your friend!"
Without turning, Gabriella said quietly,
"Please tell her to go."
Dona slowly removed Ajax's hand from her shoulder.
"Fine…" she whispered.
Then she turned and walked away, her small frame shaking with sobs that refused to stay silent.
Ajax hesitated, torn between them.
At that very moment, Gabriella walked toward her car — her posture straight, her steps steady, as if her heart hadn't just been ripped apart.
"Gabriella, wait—"
But the car door slammed shut.
The engine roared.
And she drove away into the darkness.
Ajax stood frozen for a second before running after Dona.
He caught up to her near the corner of the street and gently grabbed her wrist.
Dona turned—
And suddenly threw her arms around him.
Ajax stiffened in shock.
For a moment, he didn't move.
Then slowly… carefully… he let her cry.
His hand rose and rested softly on her head, patting it in quiet comfort.
Dona leaned against his chest, her tears soaking into his shirt.
"I never wanted to hurt her…" she sobbed.
Ajax stared into the distance, his jaw tight.
Because somewhere in the city, a girl with a broken heart was driving alone — drowning in betrayal, anger, and a truth far darker than she had imagined.
And for the first time…
Gabriella wasn't just thinking about revenge on her enemies.
Now—
She was beginning to wonder if her father had been watching her silently every time.
Meanwhile, as her car sped past a traffic signal, her phone lit up on the passenger seat.
Unknown Number.
A message appeared.
"If you want the truth about what your father really did… meet me now."
Gabriella's grip tightened on the steering wheel.
Because deep down…
She already knew.
This storm was only just beginning.
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To be Continued....
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