Chapter 1 001

It was around 7 p.m., and the sun had since disappeared from the sky.

The gala party was underway, and tables and chairs in the large, beautifully decorated hall were arranged in close-fitting semicircles. Merlot wine sparkled in cocktail glasses, and the chandelier light reflected the glitter of jewelry from a blonde woman's neck.

The low-talking voices of the flamboyant-looking attendees persisted in the hall. And once in a while, the laughter of an amused guest would puncture the air in a rising and falling manner.

At various corners of the hall, waiters in black and yellow bore different trays on their hands, with their heads held high.

Lyra Daniel was one of these waiters; however, unlike the others, the smile on her face was forced and plastic. She ambled from seat to seat, nervously serving the guests around her. And sometimes, when they tried calling her attention to something, they would have to repeat themselves more than twice before Lyra would grasp.

"Are you a deaf young woman?" One of the guests even shouted.

"I'm so sorry, sir; pardon me; it's the music. Too loud." She pleaded, even faking a laugh to ease the tension in the air.

"Oh my God, can you see that? Where on earth did Mr. Douglass pick this Lyra woman from? She's so crude." One of the younger waitresses whispered to her colleagues while throwing quick glances at Lyra with muted disdain.

Another one chuckled and said,

"Wait, are you just noticing? The lady acts like she has got some nuts lost upstairs."

"Such a loser. That's why its not good to marry at a young age." The previous waitress muttered under her breath.

Lyra was still battling with her dissatisfied guest and had barely finished one table when a gruff, cheeky voice from behind suddenly yelled her name.

She turned around with a quick agitated swerve because she immediately recognized the voice as that of Kennedy Meyers, her boss at the fashion store where she worked full time as a patter maker.

His red-bloated face was staring at her with surprise and anger.

"So this is your so-called hospital, Hunh?" He barked, drawing the attention of everyone in the room in her direction with his loud voice that even stood above the music. Her colleagues were watching too, chuckling amongst themselves.

Lyra bowed her head in embarrassment, feeling like she was disappearing into thin air. She could feel the eyes of the other startled guests peering into her skin.

"Answer me! So you came to work part-time here, and you lied to me yesterday, claiming that you're not feeling fine? Now tell me, has your husband's sickness affected your brains too? Look, you better come to work tomorrow or you will kiss your job good-bye." Kennedy threatened his voice even louder this time.

Lyra, not knowing what else to do, fidgeted and bowed like a withering flower as she returned to her serving business. She held on firmly to the rising tears burning up her eyelids.

"Hey." Another voice called again from a corner.

Lyra turned once more in the same nervous manner she had before, but this time it was Douglass, the boss of the event center; he must have been around during the humiliation from Kennedy.

"Take a few minutes to rest; I will ask someone else to stand in for you." He waved.

Lyra curtsied to show her thanks before she made to leave slowly, avoiding everyone's eyes.

Shame was not just all she was feeling now, but also fear. She was afraid that she wouldn't get her full payment from Kennedy, not after his unexpected discovery.

And this was not the right time for all that, because she really needed money. It wasn't like getting the full payment was even close to the amount she was trying to raise, but it was so much better than getting half or, worse still, nothing.

She dallied out of the hall and into the balcony, leaning against the wall lazily, before she finally let out the tears that had been building up in her eyes for the past few minutes. Lyra was still weeping with her face against the wall when her phone suddenly vibrated on her palms.

She sniffed and reluctantly checked, only to see that her best friend Aria was calling.

"Hello," she said weakly, sniffing right after she answered weakly.

"Your voice? Have you started shedding those tears of yours again?"

Lyra sniffed for a second time without answering.

"Lyra, I told you before that things were going to be fine. Felix will survive this. Just... Just have some faith."

"I don't know what to do, Aria; Felix is slipping away from me. I'm...I'm helpless." She whispered in despair, breaking into fresh tears.

"Oh my God, stop all these Lyra." Aria's heartbroken voice cooed from the other end of the line.

Then, after a small pause, she said,

"Are you good now?"

Lyra nodded, forgetting that Aria could not see her. "

"I think so." She replied finally.

"Alright, wipe your tears now. I will bring you guys some food to the hospital later tonight." She said.

"Thank you, Aria." Lyra appreciated struggling not to break into another round of tears.

"Thank you for everything." She said again.

"Have faith, my dear friend."

Aria muttered before finally hanging up.

Lyra wiped her face with her palms after the call, feeling a little more encouraged.

She decided to take a little walk around the balcony area, feeding her eyes with the beautiful sights and captivating structures of the outside premises, like the pool and automated walkway.

Lyra was close to the parking lot when she started to hear the fervent voices of two men talking from a distance.

Lyra stopped when she caught a glimpse of the people talking.

It was the popular billionaire heir, Dante Cooper, and someone else she did not know; she instantly dove and hid behind a wall. However, from that position, their conversation was still audible.

"Are you saying she wants more money even after being offered a million dollars just to act as my wife for just two years? You know what? Get me another person; she's too greedy. If not for my grandmother, I wouldn't even be in this mess." Dante's voice was irritated.

"But what about Amara? Your girlfriend, why not propose to her?" The other man's voice suggested.

But Dante's response was a short, dry laugh.

"Does Amara look like a material wife to you? Come on, man, that girl is greedy too. I can't play such games with her. She's too smart, and my grandmother will never accept her." Dante added further.

"So you're saying we need a candidate that fits the earlier description." The man said.

"Exactly." Dante affirmed his voice, rising up a little.

"Just like I said before, A poor lady. At most 24 years of age, and should be someone in desperate need of money." Dante emphasized.

Suddenly Lyra's phone rang out from where she was, making her jolt for a second before she quickly tapped on the silent button, turning around to hurry out of the car park area towards the balcony to answer her call before any of them could see her.

She picked up the call the moment she got there, and the next voice she heard was that of a staff member in the hospital. Felix had been admitted.

"Your attention is needed here urgently, madam. Your husband just went into another shock."

"What? But.. but..." Lyra stammered in agitation, but before the words could come out of her mouth, the call had been put to an end.

She staggered about after dropping the phone and almost stumbled against a stone. Then, in a fresh frenzy, she ran to where she had kept her bag on the balcony, grabbed it, and turned around to dart towards the gate carelessly, not bothering to take off her uniform.

"Lyra! Lyra!"

Her boss suddenly came out to yell her name from behind.

But she wasn't bothered to stop; instead, she increased her pace.

"Is that it? Fine, then just kiss your entire salary. Goodbye!" He shouted again.