Hope Crawls Through Ruins by Kain Rowan Vale 6

Shepard noticed Briana staring at him and glanced down. He got it right away, and his frown deepened. Without Briana around, life had been pretty rough for him these past few days. 

After finishing an online meeting in his study, Shepard went back to his bedroom, only to find his phone dead. He looked all over for his charger, but he just couldn’t find it. 

For years, he’d always started his day with an iced coffee prepared by adding hot water to espresso. But the coffee the maid served up just wasn’t the same as before. 

Shepard switched up the beans, got a new coffee machine, and even brought in a professional barista, but still, nothing hit the spot. He just couldn’t shake off the fatigue and kept zoning out at work. 

And the same was true of his clothes. Back then, Briana would always pick out his outfit for the next day, iron everything, and hang it right by the closet mirror. She’d have all the accessories–tie, cufflinks, socks, watch, belt–lined up for him. 

Now, Shepard just blindly pulled something off the rack and called it a day. 

Right now, he felt a subtle sense of embarrassment, like he’d just been exposed. 

Getting rid of Briana was exactly what he wanted, and he was sure it was the right call. It was just some trivial stuff. He believed he’d get used to it soon enough, and life would be back to normal. 

He thought, ‘Honestly, anyone could replace Briana. She was basically just a maid.’ 

Before Briana could get a word out, Shepard spoke, “Where are you looking?” 

Briana froze for a moment. 

“Can’t help staring at your ex–husband, huh?” Shepard leaned in, all aggressive. “You said you didn’t love me anymore, but your eyes just gave you away.” 

Briana stepped back, putting some distance between them. “I just think your taste is pretty terrible,” she said. “Not that it’s ever been any good.” 

Shepard’s face darkened. “What?” 

“If Vivian’s your type, your taste is even worse than I thought,” Briana shot back. 

His face was stone cold, but Briana just turned and walked away without another word. 

“Don’t worry. I wouldn’t want Grandma to get all worked up,” Briana said, waving her hand. “Pretending to be a loving couple? Please, I’ve been at it for five years. Just make sure you don’t blow your cover in front of her.” 

Briana was in a great mood. A thought flashed through her mind. Turns out, once you really stop loving someone, it feels this good. I must hold onto this feeling. 

Back in the day, if Shepard had talked to her like that, Briana would’ve spiraled for days, almost fallen apart, and ended up crying herself to sleep. 

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13:05 Thu, 18 Dec TA · 

Chapter 6 

But now, pure bliss was what she really felt. 

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Shepard watched Briana’s figure disappear down the hall, squinting a little. He thought, ‘How many sides of Briana have I never seen before? Sweet and obedient one minute, sharp–tongued the next, and now she’s become someone who can love fiercely and walk away just as fast!‘ 

When Briana was always hanging around him, he never gave her a second glance and just found her annoying. But today, when she came running into the ward, breathless, it hit him: she was actually beautiful. 

She got that effortless, girl–next–door vibe, but her features were striking and defined. Her face was small and delicate, and she had big, bright eyes. 

Shepard vaguely remembered that Briana had been the most popular girl in school. She had clean, innocent beauty, and was many men’s dream girl. The makeup on her face was just unnecessary. 

Once inside the car, Shepard said coolly, “Back to the office.” 

“Yes, sir,” Ben replied. 

Shepard grabbed some files to look over, but suddenly stopped. There was a smell of leather in the car, definitely not the usual jasmine he liked. 

Shepard was a clean freak. His car had to be spotless, and he wouldn’t let anyone he didn’t know set foot in it. 

“Where’s that smell coming from?” Shepard coldly demanded. 

“Uh, Mr. Carter, really? I don’t smell anything,” Ben replied nervously, checking all around. He spotted the issue right away. “Guess the air freshener’s out.” 

“Replace it,” Shepard snapped. 

Ben stuttered, “Uh, Mr. Carter, Mrs. Carter was the one who took care of the air freshener. I–I–I have no idea where she got it.” 

Shepard slammed the files onto the seat and pressed his fingers to his forehead. ‘Briana again. Even when she’s gone, she’s everywhere, he thought, feeling a wave of frustration. 

“Just find the same one. Go to every store if you have to. Is it really that hard?” Shepard said, his voice tight. “Seriously, I can’t even get a damn car air freshener without Briana?” 

“Mr. Carter, I think Mrs. Carter made it herself,” Ben said. 

Shepard was speechless. 

***** 

Visiting Evelyn had taken up over an hour, so by the time Briana finally made it to Liam Smith’s office, it was already noon. 

“Sorry for being late,” Briana said politely at the front desk. “Is Mr. Smith available now?” 

The receptionist looked at her. “You’ve been here five times already, and I’ve told him every single time, 

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but Mr. Smith doesn’t want to see you. Please stop bothering him.” 

“I really need to talk to Mr. Smith about something important. I just hope he’ll give me a chance to discuss a potential partnership,” Briana said. 

“Mr. Smith only works with the big players in Belaris. Your little company? He wouldn’t even give it a second glance,” the receptionist said. 

Briana was about to say something else, but the receptionist started shooing her away. “Do you not get it? I should just have security remember your face and stop you at the door next time. Hurry up and leave.” 

Briana still wouldn’t give up. As she backed away, she held out the file folder to the receptionist. “This is my partnership proposal. Could you please pass it to Mr. Smith? Who knows? Maybe he’ll give it a chance.” 

The receptionist waved her hand dismissively. “Mr. Smith doesn’t have time for this. Go on, get out of here.” 

The file folder slipped from her hands and hit the floor, papers scattering everywhere. Briana had poured all those late nights into this hard work, all for this moment. 

As she bent down to gather them, she caught, out of the corner of her eye, the elevator doors sliding open and Liam stepping out. 

Briana’s eyes lit 

1. up. She snatched up straight for Liam. 

the folder, ducked under the receptionist’s arm, and made a beeline 

“Hello, Mr. Smith,” Briana said, standing right in front of him. “I’m Briana Lane, the one who’s been trying to meet with you these past few days. Here’s my business card, and this is my proposal. Please take a look. I’m sure you’ll like it.” 

Liam was in his forties, on the shorter side and kind of wiry, but he had a sharp, calculating look in his eyes. 

“Where did Edward dig up such a gorgeous employee?” Liam said, giving Briana an obvious once–over. “He’s hopeless at business, but he’s got an eye for talent.” 

Briana felt uneasy with him sizing her up, but she forced a smile and said, “Mr. Lane’s really committed to turning things around. Mr. Smith, please give us a shot.” 

“Sure, I’ll give you a shot,” Liam chuckled. “I’m going for a gathering tonight, and lots of big players will be there. Tag along with me. 

“They’re way bigger than I am, so go pitch your idea to them. Whether you land a deal or not, that’s all on you. Let’s see what you’ve got.” 

Briana grinned. “Alright, thanks a lot, Mr. Smith!” 

Liam gave her a few more leering glances, his eyes practically undressing her. Briana clutched the folder to her chest like a shield and managed a strained smile. 

Briana was determined to prep like crazy for tonight, hoping at least one of those top dogs would give her proposal a shot. ‘Getting started is always the toughest part,‘ she thought, ‘but now that I’ve taken the first step, everything else should be way easier!‘ 

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Just as Briana walked out of Liam’s company, she got a call from the hospital. “Hello, is this Briana?” 

“Yes, hello. Who’s this?” Briana replied. 

“This is the OB–GYN department. Have you signed the consent form for your surgery yet?” the nurse asked. “The sooner we do it, the better. The embryo will keep growing, and that’ll just make things harder on your body.” 

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