CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

"Darling"
"Father" Lia ran over to her father and hugged him.
That's how it always went every time she came to see him.
He would always call her "Darling" and she would always say "father" and they will both hug.
They act as if they hadn't seen each other in years each time they meet. Ever since Lia was allowed to come to visit her father she came every day.
Ben kept staring at the door as if he was waiting for someone to come in.
" What are you looking at Mr. Anderson? " Josiah asked.
" That wild tiger didn't come with you today, did he?" Ben said.
" No, he had an important meeting" Lia answered him.
" Call me Ben" he turned to Josiah.
" I couldn't possibly do that"
" I like you, son, you and my Lia would have made a perfect match if it wasn't for that beast"
Josiah chuckled.
" Dad" Lia shouted.
" What?, I'm just speaking my mind"
"Ok father, it's time for your daily walk"
Lia's father's legs were still a bit shaky and unstable. So every day when Lia came she would take him for a walk around the hospital to strengthen his legs.
I wonder how Lia and Mabel haven't bumped into each other yet.
Throughout the walk, Ben was mostly praising Josiah. He also scolded Lia and claimed she married a stone, to which Josiah agreed with him.
All this while, Mabel was waiting impatiently for Josiah to come back to her. How dare he walk out of her. He wasn't even worth her time but she was here and he didn't appreciate that.
Mabel then decided to go out and look for him herself. Almost immediately after she went out she hurried back inside the office.
She saw Josiah but he was not alone, he had company and it looked as if they were heading towards the office.
Mabel panicked and quickly hid under Josiah's desk. She hoped that they wouldn't see her.
Josiah opened the door and looked around his office.
"I guess she left"
"Who left?"
"No one, come in"
"Come sit down dad," Lia said to her father.
"When am I going to be able to get discharged from this place?"
"Dad, you can barely walk and you want to leave"
" You make me sound old and weak" Ben rolled his eyes.
" Well she is right Mr. Anderson"
" I'm a lot stronger than you both think"
" Well, I can tell by your quick recovery you will be discharged soon enough however I won't be around then. I will arrange for someone else to take my place and keep a close eye on you"
" Where are you going?" Lia asked.
" I'm retiring as a doctor"
" Aren't you too young to talk about retirement?" Ben asked confused.
" True, but it's for a better future"
" What better future? You are already a great surgeon. You're future is set"
" I'm more of a business kind of person"
"Not you too. Does everyone around me want to just lock themselves in an office looking at numbers and punching calculators?"
Lia and Josiah laughed at what he said.
"It's more than just the numbers dad"
"Sure" Ben rolled his eyes.
"It looks like I have to start heading back to the office"
"Can't that husband of yours give you a break to stay with me?"
"That's not how it works dad, come on I'll help you up"
Lia and her father went back to the assigned room given to him.
"You can come out now," Josiah said.
Mabel came out from under the desk and adjusted her clothes.
"How did you know that I was there?"
"You're not very good at hiding, plus with your heavy breathing I'm surprised they didn't even notice you behind the desk"
"Very funny"
"I guess this is goodbye" Josiah held the door open for her.
"Do you have any idea who I am?" Mabel yelled at him.
"Hmmm, I don't and I don't think I care"
"I'm soon to be Mrs. Griffon and one of the most popular actresses you will ever know"
"Wait, Griffon?"
Mabel smiled, she was sure she had grabbed his attention after all no one can resist the money.
"Well then, good luck with that"
Mabel frowned.
"You are going to regret what you have done to me today. You will beg me in the future to take you in as my lover"
"I guess you will have to wait till that time comes before you have me in your grasp"
Mabel stumped her feet on the floor and stormed out.
"Have a nice life"
Josiah went to his chair and sat down on it.
" Finally some peace," he said.
Mabel was scared and angry. Angry because she just got rejected for the first time in her life. She was scared because Ben was alive and not dead.
You might be wondering why Mabel hid herself, that's because without a doubt Lia would have already told her father about Mabel's betrayal.
And why is she scared? That's a story for another time.
Mabel rushed home, she looked pale as if she had just seen a ghost. She should have seen it coming, when Lia bought all those clothes at the mall she should have known that she obviously had enough money to pay for her father's treatment.
And not only that but Lia's father mentioned something about her husband. She not only had money but was also married. This angered Mabel.
Lia was enjoying the life of luxury, while she was struggling and managing the amount of money she spends because jack currently couldn't afford much.
So what if Lia got married to a rich man. I'm sure he was just an old ugly and perverted man. Mabel tried to convince herself.
"Mabel, where have you been? I've been searching everywhere for you" Jack said.
"I was out"
"Well then let's go buy your dress, I've already bought my suit"
" Not right now"
" Are you okay? You look pale. Are you not feeling well?"
" I'm fine Jack, just a little bit tired and I will like to have some rest"
" The banquet is tomorrow night, are you sure you don't want to go shopping?"
" Fine let's go, I have nothing better to do anyway"
" Lia"
" Yes Mr. King"
Leo wasn't happy at all, Lia still kept on the facade of the boss and employee relationship.
" Take a look at this"
Leo slid a black card on his desk, over to Lia. Lia picked the card up and read its contents.
"What about it?" Lia asked already not liking where the conversation was going.
"You are going to accompany me as Mrs. King and not just a partner for the banquet"
" But I don't want to attend"
" You don't have a choice, Lia"
" I don't know if you know this but, the young master of Griffon's Group is my ex"
Leo's hands clenched and his gaze became colder as she said that.
" It doesn't matter who the young master or his mistress was to you. You are going with me. There is nothing that will change my mind"
" Ok, but he is going to be there and I don't want to see him"
" Are you affected by his presence?"
" No, of course not"
" Then Mr. Black will take you where ever you need to go to prepare yourself for tomorrow"
" Ok"
" You may go"
Lia left the office. She wasn't happy, all she wanted to do was to avoid Jack and Mabel for the rest of her life and now her husband was forcing her to appear in front of them.
" It looks like someone is still scared of facing her ex," Mr. Black said.
" Look who is eavesdropping now"
" Don't you think it would be better for you if you showed that Jacky boy that you are perfectly fine without him"
" I don't need to prove anything to him"
" You know he won't stop bothering you because he believes he has the upper hand and can control you right?"
" I will just keep pushing him away until eventually, he gets tired"
" Why don't you tell him whose wife you are so that you never have to deal with him again"
" That is just flaunting money and power, that's not the right way to settle things"
"No, you're only showing him who is beneath who"
"Maybe you are right"
"I'm always right. Well then you better do it soon before he loses his mind"
"Why would he lose his mind?"
"There are going to be four things to happen. Loss of power, suicide, breakup, and rejection. I don't think young master Griffon will be able to keep sane after these events"
Lia shivered from the strange vibe Mr. Black was giving off.
" What do you mean by all this?"
" You and the readers will know soon enough"
"Who are the readers?"
"The readers are those people who have read to this chapter and are willing to continue, also they've tapped on the like button at the end of every chapter"