Chapter 24 is up. Thank you for being patient !

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** Victoria's POV **

Work.

Again .

And again.

If only I could run away from it. But we all need it.

That's why I was so relieved when my phone started ringing on my desk. Then my relief turned to slight confusion when I saw Stella's name appear on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Hi Victoria." I smiled at Stella's voice on the other line. "How are you, sweetheart?"

"Stella. I'm fine. How about you?" I asked almost hesitantly.

If I was away, I would probably panic thinking something happened to my mother.

"I'm fine. I know you must be busy with the company. But I would us to meet for lunch. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes. No problem. Where do you want us to meet?"

"I'll send you the address. Could we meet at one?"

"Yes." I nodded even if she couldn't see me.

"Alright. See you later." She replied before we hung.

I placed my phone black and let out a sigh.

Elena.

That was the first thing that came to my mind after I hung up. She must have told Stella about the other day.

This can't just be a coincidence.

****

"I'm going out for lunch with your mom." I said from Jason's office's doorframe.

"My mom? Why?"

I shrugged crossing my arms. "I don't know. She just called me and asked me to meet."

He sighed rubbing his face. "I'm sure it's Elena and her big mouth. She just had to open it."

"You didn't want your mom to know?"

"Of course I did. I just wanted to tell her myself. And Elena just had to go tell. I'm going to torture her." He said annoyed and I laughed.

"Normal people will say 'kill', not 'torture'."

He smiled. "Why are standing over there?"

"Because we can talk to each other from this distance."

"Barely."

I ignored what he said and continued. "And I'm leaving now. I just wanted to tell you."

He leaned back against his chair. "Am I not getting a goodbye kiss?"

"No. Since I'll be back later." I said and quickly closed the door walking away.

He is fast and I wasn't going to wait for him to get up, or he would have reached me. I don't want to look weird, distracted or anything else when I see Stella.

****

"Victoria!" I heard Stella's voice as soon as I walked in the restaurant.

She was sitting by the table near the glass and was waving at me with a smile. I didn't waste time and went to meet her.

"I'm happy to see you, Vicky." She smiled standing up before wrapping her arms around me.

I hugged her back. "You too, Stella. I'm sorry I'm late."

"No. I was just a little early. You actually came earlier than I thought." She said pulling away. "Take a seat."

I did and grabbed the menu. I'm honestly starving, and didn't realize it until now.

She called the waiter when we were done choosing and he took our orders before grabbing the card and walking away.

Then Stella turned to me smiling.

"Jason told me about you going to Italy, and I don't want you to worry about your mom. I'll make sure everything is fine while you're away."

I smiled lightly nodding. "Thank you. That means a lot."

"We're family. You don't need to thank me for that." She chuckled lightly. "I admire you, Victoria. The way you've been taking of your mom all these years, with no help, and at such a young age is incredible."

I smiled shyly. "Thank you Stella."

"I like your determination. I know that's the reason why you didn't run away during your training. I'm sure another student would have been gone after a few months."

She is just saying all that, and I don't even know how to respond. She never told me anything like that. Nobody has.

Appart from my mom. Before everything happened.

"I know you must have figured out that Elena told me about you and Jason." She said with a smile making me look back at her. "You know how she is."

Of course she did.

"And I'm glad. I thought he was going to die alone because of how he is."

I chuckled. "He can be difficult."

She raised an eyebrow at me. "Difficult?"

"Infuriating?"

"I tried to find words that could exactly describe Hunter and Jason, but found none." She stated. "He always used to get in fights as a kid. It got to a point where I was in first name basis with his teacher."

I laughed looking up at the waiter coming with our drinks.

"It's also difficult to always find him new assistants."

"You spent three years with him without complaining. How did you do it?" She smiled leaning in lightly looking at my face and my heartbeat just increased.

"H... He was just a good friend to me."

"Like you were to him."

I shifted slightly on my seat because of the smile on her face. A smile that people could give you when they know a secret you're hiding.

"I know he can be difficult. And trust me when I'm telling you that it takes a lot of patience and self control not to kill him."

It's really like she's reading my mind. I always try not to kill him. I'm even impressed with how good I can keep being this patient with him.

"I won't be here forever and I only want my children to be okay."

My heart literally jumped as I remembered my mom saying the same words to be when I was younger.

The only difference is that my mom was feeling her mind going away. It's like she always wanted to prepare me for the worst.

"Just please don't give up on him. It doesn't matter if it's in friendship or anything else." She paused blinking quickly when her eyes started watering. "Just don't give up on him. I'll be okay as long as I know that you're by his side."

I looked down briefly. Of course, I never want to leave him. But I don't know about the future, and my mom has always been and will always be my priority.

"I'm not trying to make you promise me anything, Victoria." She smiled and I once again looked at her. "I just know what you mean to him. And I know what he means to you."

"I'll try my best to always be there for him. He has done more for me than anyone, and I can never repay him for everything." I said grabbing her hand and I saw her features relax even more.

"You and your mother are part of us. We'll do anything to keep you both safe."

I nodded slightly.

"I'm really glad Jason met you." She paused before smiling widely. "And I saw a wedding dress that just made me think about you." She said with a laugh and I gasped looking at her with wide eyes.

****

*** Third Person ***

"The plan is in motion." Donovan grinned looking away from his computer. "We can finally start."

"Finally. Your kids could do their jobs properly before." Kevin snapped moving beside his brother. "So tell Florine to do his part correctly this time. And he better not mess it up. We are counting on him."

"He won't. I'll make sure of it."

Kevin grinned in satisfaction leaning back. "Patience always brings good fortune. And I've been patient long enough."