His Devious Rule

On Thursday,

At the Matthews mansion,

A man in his mid-thirties rushed inside the mansion. He had dark brown hair that was unkempt, the dark circles around his eyes made him look more aged and exhausted. The panic on his face wasn't hard to miss.

"Director Sallow!?" The butler who entered the hallway was shocked and stumbled aside before Gabriel could bump into him.

"Where is my sister!?" Gabriel demanded without pausing on his steps.

The butler responded as he pointed towards the dining hall, "In the patio."

Before the butler could finish, Gabriel reached the dining hall and went ahead to the patio where the breakfast table was arranged.

"Brother-in-law…" He greeted Casper as he grabbed Gianna's arm. "Sister…"

Gianna stood up as she shrugged his hand. Contrary to Gabriel's anxiousness, Gianna was too relaxed.

Casper briefly paused watching the two leave. Just the sight of Gabriel was enough to say, either Gabriel was in deep sh*t or Alvin started his strikes on the Sallow family to teach Gianna.

Nevertheless, Casper was uneasy. Neither Alvin nor Anya considered him worthy enough to bother him. Anya didn't look like one to be afraid of him.

So, 'What are they up to?' He was prepared for the surprise attacks on his company but he couldn't rest easy in the silence before the storm.

'Thud.'

In a guest room, "What is wrong with you?" Gianna asked when Gabriel shut the door in a hurry.

"Why was your mobile off?" He sounded furious as he added, "Dad was detained all night in the police agency." Gabriel revealed the night's events and the reason behind his unkempt look.

Gianna's eyes widened in bewilderment as her expression changed drastically. The lines of worry started gracing her face, without realizing Gabriel was trying to conceal his anger on her. "What!?"

"The cops got video evidence of Dad bribing a government official to pass the new government project tender," Gabriel said through his teeth.

Gianna gasped in shock. Although it was common in the business field to use underhand methods, she disliked how stupidly her father put himself in trouble.

Missing the details, she anxiously asked, trying to leave the room, "How is Dad now? Why didn't you reach out to…"

Gabriel cut her off as he caught her hand, "Sister, that's not important."

Gianna shrugged his hand and raised her voice at him in demand, "Not important? Are you out of your mind? What else could be important right now?" She was losing her cool imagining her father behind the bars.

"That Bastard did this." He impatiently reported, frowning at her.

Just like how Daltons got to know Alvin attacked them, Alvin's men let the Sallow family know that it was Alvin who was playing behind the scenes.

Well, it was just the beginning.

Gianna was staggered. No, this wasn't how she hoped to face Alvin. Why was he targeting her parents' family? He should aim for her and the Matthews family, right?

'I-I should stop him… I can't let him ruin my family…' Gianna's thoughts went all over the place. She always troubled him and faced nothing in return. So it never crossed her mind that he could retaliate.

Gabriel held his sister who was mumbling, "Sister, do something to him. If he keeps doing this, then we will be finished." They somehow managed the media with a lie and brought their father out. If Alvin doesn't stop, then they will lose everything.

Gabriel and the other brothers were holding their cool, trying not to blame Gianna. Because they had received financial support from Matthews industries because of her.

The pressure on Gianna increased. She knew Alvin wasn't going to stop at that. However, she had no way to control Alvin.

She didn't go to the university and visited the Sallow family where everyone was tense and behaved… differently. Gianna could feel none of them were talking to her like before. They were avoiding her, signaling something to each other, yet they said nothing to her.

—–––––

At Coastal City,

Anya pressed her throbbing head. All the team members were relieved from the case and sent back to their original cases except a small team under Captain David. They will be following the court session and cases till the end.

Hence Anya was alone and tired of reading files after files, finalizing the statements, and finding flaws. There were redundant statements that were causing her to skip but end up rereading so that she could be double careful.

Although the first court session was successful, the lawyer of Harper was too strong. A slip out could change the results.

She just sat on the couch to rest a bit but her mobile rang. She furrowed as soon as her eyes fell on the screen. Bernard was calling her.

She wasn't in the mood to speak with him. Anyway, she answered in case it was some kind of emergency.

The line was eerily silent, causing her to speak first, "Hello?"

She heard the man take a long deep breath before his voice came, [I am sorry, Anya for my actions.] He paused before continuing, [I was so lost in my world that I didn't think through and put you, Zane, and your parents in danger.]

Bernard breathed a long sigh. He continued when he heard no word from her, [The laws are truly unfair. I was complaining about seeing people do wrong yet live happily because of their identity. When I was in the same position, I was happy too for being unpunished.]

He chuckled self-mockingly, [I guess I am not as strong-willed as I thought. I wanted to bring changes but I changed without my awareness. I am truly detestable.]

Anya couldn't understand why he was saying all that to her. If he had realized his wrongdoing, well and good for him. It wasn't necessary to let her know.

[Anya, if you decide to be with Alvin, we will probably see each other more often. I hope you could look past my actions and be a family. Alvin has only us, if you avoid us, he would never step here. Please consider it for Alvin.] He sincerely requested.

Anya clutched the mobile tight. Bernard was asking her to forget everything and treat him as a family.

How could she treat him as a family when he put all of them in danger?

This was the first time she was in such a situation. She wasn't sure if could forgive Bernard.

[I am sorry again.] Bernard apologized and hung up the call when there was no response.

Anya left her mobile aside and held her head which throbbed more than before. Forget or Forgive? Probably she couldn't. She will definitely treat Alvin's only family as her own but Bernard.

Thinking of Alvin, she took a breath and leaned back on the couch. Although she keeps herself busy, she couldn't stop herself from remembering him while having food or standing in his beach mansion. She missed him more while watching the waves hit the shore, the chilly hair sweeping her hair on the beach but his fingers weren't there to tidy them back.

She glanced at her mobile, Alvin might return today but she wasn't sure about the time. She dropped him messages but he hadn't responded to her. She will be returning to the capital tomorrow, so he doesn't have to travel back and forth.

Thinking to accompany her son, she grabbed some files and went out. She was passing by the large hall when she noticed a crowd in front of the television.

She was leaving without bothering when Captain David appeared, "Officer Owen, President Collins has resigned. It's all over the news." There was a hint of disbelief in his tone.

Anya's eyes widened in shock. She dashed towards the television and read the bulletins as she heard the anchorwoman speak. There was a live video of Bernard leaving the President's mansion in his car.

The cops and the public around her were giving their opinion on the incident. The majority of them were in shock and disappointment. Some were curious about the reason behind Bernard's actions, while others created their own story.

Anya should have been happy to read the news but she wasn't. There was a sense of loss that made her restless. She fumbled through her handbag for her mobile and dialed Bernard's number. She wasn't sure why she was doing that.

Probably she knew but she wasn't ready to accept it. She wanted to hear from him or just know the situation.

Nevertheless, the number was switched off, further distressing her further.