Chapter 11
1145 Words
A punch landed squarely on Nate's face.
"How dare you!" Alex shouted, his voice cutting through the noise.
The music stopped, like even it had been waiting for that exact moment.
Gasps echoed across the bar.
Isn't that Alexander Castillo? people whispered.
The richest man in Costa Verena, losing control in public, no one dared breathe too loud.
Nate straightened, blood on his lip, anger now blazing in his eyes.
"How dare what?" he shot back, jabbing a finger into Alex's chest. "Just because you don't like something doesn't mean everyone should despise it. You're not some damn god, Alex, you don't get to dictate how people feel!"
Alex snickered, then delivered another blow.
The crowd scattered as guards rushed to clear the place.
Before anyone could blink, fists were flying.
Alex and Nate were no longer boss and assistant, they were two men fueled by pride, guilt, and something neither wanted to name.
It took several of Alex's personal security men, the kind who lived on silence contracts, to drag them apart.
Breathing heavily, Alex wiped the blood from his mouth.
"You better rethink before you do something stupid, Nate," he warned, his tone cold enough to freeze the air.
He shrugged off the hands restraining him and stormed out of the bar.
Nate stayed behind, his knuckles raw, his jaw tight.
He sat back on the stool, downed the rest of his drink, and pulled out his phone.
A single message to Alex:
"I'm not like you, the kind that runs from feelings."
Alex's car screeched to a halt by the roadside as he read the text.
His grip tightened around the steering wheel, veins bulging.
The anger that once burned now simmered into confusion.
'Did I have a thing for Isabella'? he thought.
He scoffed aloud, shaking his head.
No… I hate her.
That's all it is.
But even as he said it, something in his chest disagreed.
He started the engine, the roar of the car masking the war inside him, and drove home.
Alex stepped out of his car, his expression anything but welcoming,8 not that he ever had one, except when it came to Camila.
His footsteps echoed as he strode toward his father's building. He needed to talk to someone, someone who could still make sense of the chaos inside his head.
Despite Rafael's strictness, his father always understood him… always advised him.
But fate had other plans.
Just as Alex reached the entrance, the door opened, and Isabella walked out.
Her eyes widened.
Her breath hitched.
Then her knees gave way.
She dropped to the ground, clutching his leg before he could move.
"Alex, please… let me see my children," she pleaded, her voice shaking like brittle glass.
Alex froze, then his anger ignited.
'How dare she show her face here again?'
He kicked her hand off, fury burning through his veins.
"It's too late for that now," he said coldly, trying to walk past her.
But Isabella held on, trembling, desperate.
"No, please. I'll do anything. Just let me hold them once… just once. They're my babies, Alex. I just want to know how they're living… how they're doing.”
That broke something in him, not pity, but rage.
"Do you think I'm some kind of beast?" he snapped. "What! you think I've eaten them because you can't see them?"
He stepped closer, his voice sharp enough to cut.
"Let this sink in, they are my children. They don't even care where you are. So get it through your head, you desperate slut."
He kicked her away, harder this time.
Isabella fell back, clutching her stomach, gasping from the pain. Tears streamed freely now, not just from the blow, but from the words that burned deeper than any wound.
He called her a slut.
Her Alex, the man she once knew, was gone.
"Am I making a mistake?" she whispered to herself.
"Is he really not my Alex anymore? What happened to him?"
Her sobs filled the silence as she sat trembling on the floor, the night air cold against her skin.
Alex turned one last time, his voice dripping venom.
"A maid like you, an ordinary lowlife, can't dare call yourself the mother of my children. You're not qualified."
And with that, he stormed inside, leaving her broken on the marble floor.
Alex stormed inside, his jaw tight, rage still bubbling beneath his skin. He threw himself onto the sofa, one hand running through his hair in frustration.
Across from him, Mr. Rafael Castillo stirred his tea calmly, like nothing in the world could rattle him. He handed Alex a cup and poured him tea as if silence alone could fix his son's chaos.
"What is it, son?" Rafael asked, his tone gentle but probing.
Alex sighed, rubbing his temples. He opened his mouth, then shut it. Tried again, nothing. His thoughts were a tangled mess.
After a moment, Rafael broke the silence.
"Alex… why don't you send Isabella to my building? I need someone I trust to help me with a few things."
Alex froze, then scoffed.
'Seriously? Isabella here, Isabella there. Can't I have peace in this house?" He glared into space, voice dripping irritation.
Rafael raised a brow. "Alright then. What is it you wanted to talk about, that doesn't involve her?"
Alex exhaled, his anger softening slightly.
"Dad, I want to get married."
Rafael's face brightened instantly.
"To Isabella?" he asked, eyes lighting up with rare joy.
Alex's head snapped up, his voice rising.
"No, papa! Solo amo a Camila y quiero casarme con ella!"
(I only love Camila and I want to marry her!)
Rafael's expression hardened in an instant. "No."
Alex blinked. "What do you mean no?"
"What do you plan to do with the children if you abandon their mother?" Rafael asked, his calm voice now carrying steel.
"Dad…" Alex's tone dropped. "Just because someone gave me a child doesn't mean I should abandon the one I love, right?"
Rafael's reply came like a slap.
"You are a failure, Alex."
Alex's eyes shot up, disbelief freezing him in place. His father had never said those words to him before.
Rafael stood slowly, setting his teacup aside.
"You failed Camila. You failed Isabella. And worst of all, you failed your children". His voice deepened, heavy with disappointment.
"This is your mess. Fix it. But remember one thing, you can't wash your hands clean of any of them until you know the truth."
With that, Rafael turned and walked out, leaving Alex alone in the echoing silence.
Alex exhaled sharply, sinking deeper into the sofa.
"First time Dad's ever been useless," he muttered bitterly.
His father's words replayed in his mind, loud, unwanted, but impossible to silence.
He told himself it was meaningless. That he didn't care. That he just wanted Isabella gone.
But deep down… he wasn't sure anymore.
- Writer
