Chapter 87 The Little Girl

Chapter 87 The Little Girl
"How did they know she would be discharged today?" Xander asked through gritted teeth.

Jose told him how the reporters created a scene at the hospital. He was furious after learning this. He had come to the old mansion to meet with Ariadne.

"There must be an informer. Either the person works for the media or Crystal Miller." Jose replied.

"Find out... and arrange an interview with that anchor as soon as possible." Xander said.

"Okay, Boss."

They came to a halt in front of a room.

"This's her room, Boss." Jose left after showing him the room.

Xander took a deep breath before knocking on the door.

"Come in." Ariadne's voice came from the other side of the door.

Xander pushed the door open and entered, then closed it behind him.

"Hi." he said, drawing her attention.

She sat on the bed, working on her laptop. 

"Hi." Ariadne replied, raising her head from the laptop. 

"How are you?" Xander approached the bed. 

"Better."

"Good... I heard what happened at the hospital." 

Ariadne didnt reply. She closed the laptop and placed it on the table next to the bed.

"I'll deal with it. You don't have to worry." he added.

"How?" she crossed her arms.

"I don't know. But I'll figure it out."

She shook her head as she climbed down from the bed. 

"You're dealing with a lot. Take care of them first. I'll take care of mine on my own." she said, looking at him.

"No. You have only been discharged from the hospital. You're not completely healed. Stay here and spend time with the children and Grandpa. Leave everything else to me." 

"No, I can't sit here with so much going on."

"Aria... try to understand. The kids need this. I'm unable to spend time with them. You were in the hospital. They might not express it, but they're terrified. They need at least one of us with them." He paused. "Moreover, you're not in the sutuation to do anything right now." 

Ariadne sighed and stared at the floor, deep in thought. He was right. She had already been fired from the Watson Group. Tiara had dealt with the charges filed against her. In Purple City, Lily was managing the jewelry brand. They had suffered a massive loss in their company. So, they were keeping it low and waiting until the chaos subsided. She wasn't completely healed as well. It was best for her to concentrate on the children right now. They needed to stay away from all of this. She nodded finally.

There was a knock on the door, and Xander went to open it. Ariadne tried to see who it was, but Xander's massive form blocked her view. When Xander turned around she saw a flower basket in his hands.

She frowned. "Flowers?"

Xander closed the door and approached the table beside the bed. He placed the basket on it.

"Everyone returned home safely. So I brought these flowers. They're your favourite." he said.

Ariadne was shocked. However, the next moment she frowned, thinking he was attempting to win her over.

"Xander.."

"I'm not doing this to earn your forgiveness, Aria. I want nothing in return." He cut her off, reading her thoughts.

"I saw a boy selling them. They're lovely, so I thought you would like them. I've brought one for everyone." he said, averting his eyes.

Ariadne gave only a nod and said nothing. He wanted to say a lot more things, but he couldn't. An awkward silence fell over the room.

"I should leave now. Take rest." Xander said after a while, breaking the silence. 

Ariadne nodded. She stared at the basket when he left the room. 

..........

"Cheers!"

Crystal and Zidane lifted their glasses into the air.

"One step closer to Xander Blake's downfall." Zidane declared before taking a sip from his glass.

"One step closer to Ariadne Miller's destruction." Crystal grinned as she said and sipped from her glass. 

They both smiled. They were in Zidane's suite at Eden Garden. It was across from the suite where Ariadne and her family had previously lived. They had gathered to celebrate their small victory. Crystal's interview had gone well for them.

When they finished their drinks, Crystal took Zidane's glass and went to the table, placing them on it. Zidane stared at her. She returned with a smile and stood close to him. She moved closer and placed her hands on his shoulders. 

"Let's celebrate this union." she said with a seductive voice.

Zidane smirked and placed his hands on her waist. He lowered his face, capturing her lips with his own. They kissed passionately. 

... 

The next morning, Crystal awoke naked in the bed. Zidane was showering in the bathroom. She climbed out of bed, picked up her dress from the floor, and wore it. Suddenly, the doorbell rang. She got nervous and walked towards the bathroom door.

"Zidane. Someone's at the door."

"Could you please check it? It must be Gloria." Zidane replied.

"Okay." Crystal said with a frown.

She went to the door and opened it. There was a woman.

"Are you Gloria?" Crystal asked.

However, the woman didn't reply and entered the suite. Crystal frowned at the woman.

"Hey, who gave you the permission to enter?" she stated arrogantly.

"I don't need anyone's permission to enter Zidane's place." the woman said, looking around. She paused and turned to face Crystal.

"You slept with him!" she clenched her jaw as she stated after observing Crystal. She moved closer to her.

"You were after Xander Blake up until a few days ago. You didn't take time to go after another man, huh? Other than pursuing other people's men, do you know anything else?"

"Excuse me. Who the hell are you?" Crystal asked, furious. "Oh wait."

She circled the woman. "You must be one of his personal whores." she smirked. 

"You bitch..." the woman glared at her.

"Zidane isn't yours. You're nothing more than a whore to him." Crystal cut her off, pointing a finger at the woman.

"What's going on here?" 

Both women were startled by Zidane's voice. They looked at him as he walked into the living room fully dressed.

"Oh, we're just getting along." Crystal gave him a sweet smile.

However, the woman glared at her, still furious. 

"So you have already met Gloria. She's one of my trusted people." Zidane approached Gloria and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Oh, nice to meet you, Gloria." Crystal smiled at her. Gloria didn't return her smile. "Um..I should leave now." Crystal added.

"Okay."

Zidane didn't deny. Crystal gathered her belongings and immediately left.

"You said you wouldn't cheat me again. You promised me." Gloria yelled at Zidane the moment he closed the door.

Zidane sighed with irritation. "Dont over react, Gloria. To gain power, we must make compromises."

He went to the bar and pour wine in a glass. She followed him.

"You say it every time." her voice broke, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Do you have an idea how painful it's for me? But I'm enduring this for our love... for our daughter. She's growing up without a father. When will you accept her and give her your name? When are we going to marry, Zidane?"

"Soon, Gloria. We will celebrate with our wedding after Xander Blake is destroyed. That day will arrive soon." Zidane replied. 

"I love you, Zidane. Please don't betray me... don't betray your daughter." she moved closer.

"I'll never do that. I, too, love you. I love you both. You know this."

He wiped away her tears and hugged her.

"Has anyone seen you on your way here?" he asked after a while.

"No."

"Good."

He took a sip from his glass. Gloria lifted her head and looked at his face. 

"Why did you ask me to come here?"

Zidane smiled at her. "You and Ariadne are good friends, right?"

Gloria nodded.

"Good. You will be helpful here. I've arranged a place for you to stay. Keep your distance from others. I'll tell you what to do." he said. 

............

"After his mother and ex-fiancee revealed Miss Ariadne Miller's true face to the public, we have Mr. Xander Blake here today. He has something new to say about this matter. We're curious what new information will be revealed." the anchor said, looking at the camera. 

"So... Mr. Blake, is your mother's claim true? Did Miss Ariadne Miller force you to marry her?" she asked, looking at him.

"Yes." Xander replied with a sigh.

"One thing we would like to know." the anchor narrowed her eyes in confusion. "She has also been accused of plotting in the Grace Hospital Project. Then why are you supporting her in this case? Are you doing this simply because she's your children's mother?"

Xander shook his head. "It's so easy for everyone to point fingers at someone without knowing the truth."

"We don't say things without proof..." 

"Let me clarify one thing." Xander cut her off. "Ariadne Miller isn't involved in the Grace Hospital project fraud. I've mentioned before that she's also a victim in this case. Her accident was a murder attempt by a contract killer group. She had discovered the true culprits, so they attempted to kill her. We have submitted sufficient evidence to support this claim, and she has also been granted bail by the court. This's a legal matter, and the investigation is still ongoing. The real culprits will be revealed soon." he paused for a moment.

"As for my cancelled engagement, I don't like to talk about my personal life in public and never have. But many people are making assumptions about my personal life without knowing the whole story." he added sharply.

"Miss Crystal Miller has told us the entire story." the anchor stated.

"No, she has only told her own version of the story."

The anchor frowned. "Are you saying she's lying? You admitted that Ariadne Miller forced you to marry her."

"Yes, I admitted because it was true. However, what Crystal and my mother had said wasn't the entire truth."

"Then we would like to hear the whole truth."

"Given the current situation, it appears that I'll have to tell the real story myself." he sighed again. "I'm doing this for just one person. I don't want her to be wrongfully accused anymore." he added, his expression hardened.

The anchor looked at him with interest.

After a moment of silence, Xander began. "I've only ever loved one woman in my life. And she's still in my heart. No one has been able to replace her."

"Then why did you cancel your engagement?" 

The anchor appeared confused.

"You will know once I tell you everything."

"Twenty two years ago, I met a little girl. It was her birthday party. She was looking like an Angel... I had an instant liking for her." Xander smiled as he recalled that night. "I was too young to understand the concept of love, but as I grew older, I realized that I had fallen for her that day. That day, she became my Angel. We became close friends within a year. We were happy until her mother died in a car accident and her father remarried." he paused and took a deep breath. "It was then that Crystal came into our lives as her step-sister." 

"Wait a minute. It means that little girl wasn't Crystal Miller!"

He shook his head. "No. It was never Crystal that I fell in love with. It was... Ariadne Miller." 

"What?"

The anchor's eyes widened in shock.