Midnight Bride The CEO’s Temptation

Crystal felt very tired. She wanted to hit Eric, but all she could do was nod her head. She promised him her loyalty, but she was reluctant. She was only doing it in exchange for the lives of Carlos and Noah.

When Eric saw how tired she was and that her eyes were red and swollen from crying, he decided to stop pestering her. He smiled at her and said, "Why don't you call the apartment and have a servant send Clark and Noah out. We are almost there."

****

Noah's pain was enormous, and it never let up. He was seldom hungry, and when he did eat, he threw the food up half the time. Thus, he had lost a lot of weight in a short amount of time, and he appeared haggard. He was lethargic and out of shape, and he was so weak that he could not get out of bed to meet Crystal. Not knowing what else to do, he asked one of the servants to contact Vic and ask for help.

The servants thought it was odd that he would choose Vic as the person to call, but they did as they were told. Little did they know that Noah was slightly delirious, and he had meant to ask for them to contact a bodyguard for help - "Anyone but Vic!"

****

Vic was surprised to hear that Noah had called him for help. He glanced at Nathan through the rearview mirror and turned on the car's Bluetooth so that he could hear the conversation.

After Crystal had left, Nathan had doubted his decision to let her go so easily, so he had set after her in his private Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. The Blackbird is the fastest plane in the world. It can go over two thousand miles per hour, whereas the Marine One - the helicopter that Crystal had taken - only went one hundred and fifty miles per hour. Thus, he easily beat her to her destination. He could easily locate her with the clamp around her ankle. At the moment, though, he had just been cruising around and formulating his next move.

Vic felt very puzzled, but he did not dare to ask about his boss's personal affairs as a subordinate.

Nathan was not happy to hear that Crystal was on her way to pick up Clark and Noah. For some reason, it felt like a major betrayal.

"What is this all about?" Vic finally asked. He could no longer contain his curiosity. "I thought she was with you and imprisoned. But now I hear that she has returned and that she is up to her old shenanigans...? Why did you let her go?"

Nathan's frown deepened as his depression turned to despair. But then he had an idea, a homicidal flare flashed across his eyes, and a satirical smile suddenly appeared at the corners of his mouth. The moment the idea appeared, though, he gave it up. "Maybe it's for the best," he muttered. "I don't need to kill her to get my revenge."

"What's that?" Vic asked. "I didn't hear what you said…."

"Never mind," Nathan replied. "I have an idea. I was hoping you could pack up all of the things at the apartment where Crystal and Noah are staying. Do not leave anything. I want them to return to an empty home. And from now on, Crystal Smith's name is never to be spoken in my presence."

Vic was shocked. He remembered all of the things that Nathan had done to prove his love for Crystal, so this seemed completely out of character for him. Of course, he was not privy to the events of the previous 72 hours. "Did the two of you have a falling out?" he asked. He was careful not to mention Crystal by name.

Nathan's expression darkened. "Mind your own business!" he growled.

"I am sorry, I care about you. That's all..."

"Save your fake pity!" Nathan hissed. "And if you mention her again, by name or otherwise, I will shut you up forever!"

Vic closed his mouth, but he was not buying his boss's false bravado. If it ever came down to it, he figured that he would be the one making the killing, not the other way around. Big talk for a little man -Vic thought. He smiled. Although he would never say it to his boss, he secretly believed that real men could take care of themselves and they did not need bodyguards.

When he had a moment alone, Vic called the servant back and said, "An order has been given to clear your house. I cannot say anything more than that. I am giving you this warning so that you can save the child's belongings." And then he ended the call.

This is the first time he had ever gone behind Nathan's back, but Clark was innocent, and he was not even related to Crystal or Nathan. Thus, he did not think it was right that he was getting caught in the middle of all this petty squabbling.

****

Crystal felt a stirring in her stomach as she got out of the car. It became worse as she took her first step, and she vomited all over the lawn. Thankfully, her stomach was mostly empty, and after the initial deluge, she went straight to dry heaving.

The driver hurriedly got out of the car and came over. "Mrs. Bush, are you okay?" Crystal nodded, and once she was standing straight, he said, "Mrs. Bush, hurry up, Master Bush is waiting for you."

"Alright." Crystal sighed and began to walk towards the house.

Clark had been waiting at the window, and when he saw her, he ran outside and met her halfway. He gave her a giant hug and said, "Auntie Crystal! I have missed you so much!"

Crystal returned his hug and kissed his cheek. She held him for slightly longer than necessary, and they were both crying before long. For the first time in over 72 hours, they felt safe. Eventually, she wiped the tears out of his eyes. "Where's Mommy?" she asked. "Has she returned yet?"

Clark shook his head sadly. He said, "I think she's gone forever, and I was worried that you were gone too. What would have happened to me then, Auntie Crystal? I think Noah is going to die…."

"I don't know what's going on with your Mommy," Crystal admitted. "But I will never abandon you, and I brought some medicine that will make Noah well again."

As if on cue, Noah appeared in the doorway. A servant on either side of him supported his weight and several more behind them. They were carrying large and small bags of luggage. Except for some clothes, they were filled with Clark's gifts. When Crystal saw them, she said, "We don't need those. You can take them back inside."

"We were ordered to send them with you," a servant explained. "Whatever is left will be thrown away."

Crystal's body stiffened. She had a feeling that Nathan was behind this, and that scared her. If she was reading the situation correctly, it meant that he was still meddling with her life, and there was no knowing if he would ever stop. "Fine." She muttered. "There is plenty of room in the trunk." Her heart was beating fast, and her chest hurt so badly that she thought that she might be having a heart attack.

Clark seemed to sense that something was wrong, and he asked her if she was okay. She assured him that she was and told him to get into the car. Then she continued walking towards the house so that she could help Noah.

Crystal felt like she was in a trance. Her body was shaking. A million thoughts were spinning around in her head, and she was barely holding herself together. The thought of what would happen to Noah if she broke down gave her the strength to continue. I can break down later -she promised herself.

She took a deep breath, counted backward from ten, released the Carbon Dioxide from her lungs, and continued to put one foot in front of the other.