Eva: "Weee!! Leave my mother alone! Guards, arrest him!" (angrily)

Mr. Moses, upon seeing the guards approaching to arrest him, fled. The guards chased him but couldn't catch him; however, they managed to injure him by shooting him in the right shoulder.

Eva: "Mom, are you okay? He hasn't hurt you; I saw him holding a gun." (with fear)

Joyce: "No, he hasn't harmed me. How did you know I'm here?"

Damian: "We tracked you via the GPS system installed in your car."

Joyce: "Oh, I see. Well, thank you for saving me."

Joyce concealed her relationship with Mr. Moses to avoid suspicion. They took Madam Joyce and left together to the car. But Damian and Eva were still outside the car.

Eva: "It seems like you knew and told us to follow Mom. It means he still intends to harm Mom."

Damian: "Now we need to be extremely careful; he could endanger us all. Take this; it will help you defend yourself if he tries to harm you. (he handed her a pistol), but don't tell Mom because she doesn't want you to use this at your age. Also, remember there are only four bullets left, use them wisely and make sure you don't miss."

Damian: "Eva, let me go with your mom first. I see she's not feeling well."

Before leaving, Eva looked at her stepfather and called out to him.

Eva: "Father." (with a loving tone)

Mr. Damian turned.

Eva: "Thank you."

Mr. Damian smiled and then got into the car, and they left. At that moment, the two guards returned and found Eva.

Eva: "Did you miss him?"

Bodyguard-1: "Yes, madam, but we managed to hit him with a shot to the shoulder."

Eva: "That's good; that should be enough for now. Please, be careful next time and make sure you guard both Mom and Dad."

Bodyguard-2: "Understood, boss."

AT MR. MOSES'S HOME

Mr. Moses returned home, limping. His gardener helped him enter the house.

Mr. Moses: "Call Dr. Elia to come and treat me."

Gardener: "Okay, boss, I'll do it as soon as possible."

Dr. Elia, a 60-year-old man, came and treated him, removing the bullet while they conversed.

Dr. Elia: "There's a big problem, Mr. Moses."

Mr. Moses: "I was attacked by robbers; they wanted to rob me..." (he hid the truth)

Dr. Elia: "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that, young man. But you need to ensure your safety more; it might not be robbers but rather your business competitors who want to eliminate you. We heard the false news they spread about you divorcing your wife, Joyce. While we know the truth that you separated amicably, and you're not at fault."

Mr. Moses: "Yeah, true. Only those who live in this house know. Thank you for your concern."

Dr. Elia: "Alright, my boss. Fortunately, the bullet didn't hit a bone. Now, you need to continue using these medications; you'll recover."

Mr. Moses and Dr. Elia parted ways, each attending to their duties. Mr. Moses entered his room, sat down on a chair beside the bed, placed his gun on the table, poured himself a drink, and started drinking slowly, lost in thought as he looked at a picture of his daughter, Eva, on the table.

THE FOLLOWING DAY

At Madam Joyce's company (JOY), employees were busy with their tasks. Damian was at work, inspecting their new clothing line.

Damian: "Wow!! This will be better than Mr. Moses' and his PROUD company."

While he continued inspecting, his phone rang, and he moved aside to answer it.

Damian: "Hello!"

Caller: "Yeah, hello! Are you done yet? I'm tired of waiting."

Damian: "How can you be tired when we're so close to the finish line? Just a little more and I'll have the ownership of this company, and even better, we can take over the other company."

Caller: "How's that?"

Damian: "I've investigated and found out Eva has shares in her father's company."

Caller: "Okay, that's fine. But be careful. I've finished my part, and I'm still waiting for you. I feel like you're neglecting me. But remember, I've put in a lot of effort into this."

Damian: "Alright, don't worry. I'll finish it, my dear, and one company will be mine, and the other yours. Hahaha!!" (nervously)

Caller: "Okay, but I don't quite understand."

While Damian was on the call, Madam Joyce was secretly listening nearby.

Joyce: "Who is he talking to again about taking over the company? (she thought)"

After Damian finished the call, Madam Joyce approached him.

Joyce: "Have you finished inspecting our new line?"

Damian: "Yes, and I believe ours will be better than Mr. Moses'."

Joyce: "Yes! We need to show that we're better than them."

Damian: "Yeah! This will break sales records, my wife."

Joyce: "Okay, sorry, can I borrow your phone to talk to Eva? Mine is acting up."

Damian handed Joyce his phone, but he didn't follow up because reporters had arrived for the launch of the new clothing line. So, Damian got busy with them. Meanwhile, Joyce secretly checked the call history, saved the number, and returned the phone to Damian while he was still talking to the reporters.

Joyce went to her office, took her purse, and gave instructions to her assistant (When Damian finishes talking to the reporters, tell him I've gone to pick up Eva). Then she got into her car while Damian was still busy with the reporters.

When Madam Joyce arrived home, she took her computer, connected to the internet, and started tracking the number through social media until she found the real identity of the owner.

Joyce: "Oh my God! Now I understand you better, you fool!"

Joyce: "Now is the right time to tell Eva the truth, but before I talk to her, I need to meet with Moses and tell him about this. Oh God, forgive me for not knowing this earlier."

The owner of the number turned out to be a woman, and it seemed she was not a stranger to Madam Joyce.

TO BE CONTINUED