Elara Bennett just turned twenty-four years old.
She is beautiful-quietly and naturally so. Elegant in the way she walks, composed in the way she speaks, with intelligent eyes that reveal strength beneath softness. People often notice her beauty first, but it is her mind that truly defines her.
Elara is brilliant.
She graduated with First Class Honours, earned through relentless determination. Living with sickle cell never stopped her from studying, even when her body begged her to rest. Yet this was her fifth job interview.
Not because she lacked intelligence.
Not because she lacked qualifications.
But because she lives with an illness employers fear.
Every employer emphasized her health status, saying they "can't take the risk."
Her father died when she was three years old, leaving her mother to raise her alone. Since then, life had been a quiet struggle-medical bills, unpaid rent, and prayers whispered late into the night.
On her fifth interview, she sat across from the interviewer, answering questions calmly and confidently. He nodded, clearly impressed.
"You're very intelligent," he said. "First Class Honours. Excellent."
Hope rose in her chest.
Then he opened another file.
"But because of your health condition," he continued, "we can't employ you."
Her chest tightened.
"So I'm being rejected again," Elara asked softly, tears gathering, "because I'm sick?"
"Yes," he replied. "That is the reason."
Despite her beauty.
Despite her intelligence.
Despite her education.
She was reduced to an illness.
The man leaned back. "I sympathize with you."
Her heart skipped.
"There is another option," he added.
Hope flared violently. Her heart raced; her hands trembled.
"I can give you the job," he said. "But there is one condition."
You know you are very beautiful?
She nodded, breath caught.
And you can get what you want with what you have?
She gazed looking perplexed."
"Sir what could that be?
There was silence for the moment.
The stood looking frantic and in low tone he said.
"You'll have to sleep with me."
The hope shattered.
"Never!" Elara cried, standing abruptly as tears streamed down her face. "What have I done to deserve this? I only want to work. I only want to take care of my mother."
She ran out, sobbing.
That evening, Elara made a decision.
If the world refused to employ her, she would help her mother.
Her mother ran a small petty business by the roadside-selling household items to survive. Elara joined her, lifting goods, attending to customers, smiling even when her chest ached.
"Mom," Elara whispered one night, resting her head on her mother's shoulder, "we will survive."
Her mother held her tightly. "Please don't let stress worsen your health, my child."
They cried together-two women against a hard world.
Later, her mother held her hands gently and smiled.
"Don't worry about these setbacks in your job search," she said softly. "I know it hurts now, but remember-luck has always found its way to you."
She paused, her eyes distant with memory.
"Do you remember your first year in school? We struggled to pay your fees. There were nights I cried because I didn't know how we would continue or who would sponsor you until graduation."
She squeezed Elara's hands tighter.
"But just when all hope seemed lost, you were awarded the Donalds Foundation Fully Funded Scholarship. That was proof that your life is guided by grace."
Her voice steadied with conviction.
"So be hopeful, my child. This is only another storm you will overcome."
Mr. Donalds, the owner of the scholarship scheme Elara benefited from, is the richest man in the country. He is known for his philanthropic gestures both near and far, having uplifted countless less-privileged lives.
He controls numerous companies-some fully owned, others partially-spanning both private and public sectors. His fleet of luxury cars is a familiar sight; his name a symbol of influence and wealth.
His son, Eric Donalds, returned home after completing his master's degree abroad, stepping back into a life of quiet luxury and unquestioned authority. Disciplined, intelligent, and emotionally reserved, he lived by control and routine, carrying the weight of family expectations and an unspoken past-unaware that his carefully ordered world would soon be disrupted by a love he never planned for.
Calm. Intelligent. Observant.
He was being prepared to take over the empire.
To begin expansion across the country, Mr. Donalds acquired a new company in the city where Elara lived, intending to employ young graduates from the area. He appointed his son as CEO of the newly established Donalds company in the heart of the city.
"You were born and raised here until you were seven," his father reminded him, "before we relocated."
"I appreciate all you do, Dad," Eric replied.
Standing before the building, Eric admired the familiar surroundings, warmth settling in his chest.
The name on the building read:
DONALDS ENTERPRISES
Mr. Donalds stood before the glass walls of the new office, unaware that the city beneath his feet held a truth buried long ago.