The CEO's love web: A sister's deception

/Madison’s POV/ As the last wisp of summer’s warmth dissipated, autumn's gentle breeze rustled the leaves, painting the landscape with vibrant hues of gold, amber and crimson. Golden light spilled through the almost endless line of skyscrapers, casting long shadows along the sidewalks lined with crimson leaves as the crisp cool air danced with the flying dry leaves carrying with it subtle scent of smoke mixed with the sweet fragrance of coffee from the nearest coffee shop. I stood with my head raised in front of the highest skyscraper in the area—the building only accessible to the society elites. The place where my sister resides. I never saw myself coming back to the city again after all this time; after all, my last memory wasn’t the best one. Filling my lungs with the cool crisp air with a sharp inhale, I approached the several storey tall building wondering what my reunion with my sister would be like. While the posters and billboards have more to say about my actress sister, I can hardly remember what she looked like after all; it’s been roughly 13 years since we met. "Um, hello.” I awkwardly approached the lobby attendant, whose blonde hair was in a neatly packed bun. “Yes, how may I help you?” She’s pretty, I thought as her hazel eyes shot up instantly to meet my electric blue ones. “I’m here to meet Miss Allison. She- “You must be Madison, right?” She asked, interrupting me and surprising me a bit. “Yeah…how’d you know that?” I narrowed my eyes at her in suspicion. “Miss Allison informed us of your arrival before hand. I’ll have someone take you up to her apartment. It’s the unit 607.” The woman turned to the buffy man in security uniform, helping an old woman to the elevator. “Sam, could you help Miss Allison’s guest to her unit, please?” The woman asked and the guards instantly walked over to me. Only after hearing the girl’s words did it finally dawn on me that Allison do really stay here. According to people I know, Crown Garden is a classic apartment building housing high-net-worth individuals like celebrities and even politicians or their mistresses and to think my sister lives in here... it’s almost unbelievable. “This way, ma'am.” The guard said, gesturing me towards the elevator. While his thick bass voice almost fit too well with his buffy, intimidating appearance, it contrasted his politeness. "Yeah, sure, I’ll appreciate that.” I flashed him a small smile as I tread behind him. I adjusted the black baseball cap covering my face as the guard’s eyes stalked me through the reflective surface of the gold-plated elevator door. I slipped my hands into the pockets of my black denim jacket, adjusting my posture as I tried my best to keep my head down. I’ve opted to avoiding eye contacts with people ever since a little boy pointed out to me on the bus that I looked like Actress Allison, I mean... we are twins; actually, we used to be triplets but since Addison, our second sister, is dead, I guess that makes us twins now. “Enjoy your stay,” The guard offered after I stepped out the moment the elevator dinged open. "Thanks,” I muttered, turning back to watch the elevator close on him. I walked down the polished porcelain-tiled short but wide hallway until reaching the door with my sister's unit number boldly written on it. I passed by a few units before reaching my sister's, which was at the end of the hallway. It took me a couple of minutes to decide pressing the doorbell and as I waited for it to be answered, I could only hold my breath in anticipation. While I’ve seen multiple pictures of her on the billboards, posters or ads, I wonder what she looks like now—no make-up and stuff. I felt my breath hitched as the door opened up to reveal my carbon copy. My sister Allison. "H...ey,” I stuttered awkwardly as my feelings soared into a whirlpool of anxiety, joy, and guilt while my heart raced in my chest, unable to keep up with my complex emotions. “Maddy?” She breathed my name so softly, it was almost inaudible. For a few seconds, she stood in front of me, staring blankly, probably shocked by my presence or the fact that we still looked so much like each other; she seemed a lot thinner, though. Unlike Allison, my deep, dark brown hair was shorter, packed back into a ponytail, slipping through the hole of my cap while Allison’s hair cascaded down her shoulder in lush, vibrant waves. I never thought our hair could look so healthy; I guess she’s the epitome of perfection for my reflection. I wondered what Addy would have looked like if she was alive? I felt a pang in my heart wondering if our second sister would be even more beautiful than either of us, or maybe average. “Hi Ally, been a while, isn’t it?” I forced her a smile, watching her expression switch up from shock to anxiousness. “Come on in,” she offered, beckoning me in with a gentle tilt of her head before walking me into her super luxurious unit. “Welcome to my home,” she said, her smile hardly hiding the nervousness in her unsettling gaze. “What’d you like? I’ve got tea, coffee, and juice.” She offered after making sure I changed into the home slippers she had on a rack closest to the door. While I was more comfortable in my casual canvas sneakers, I slipped into the supper comfy and quite fluffy home slipper while trailing behind her into her vast sitting room. “Just water…thank you,” I replied after she pointed me to her stylish light brown sofa that fit impeccably in the brown and white themed interior. I’m glad she’s been living a good life, I thought as a gentle smile made it’s way to my lips. “It’s been ages,” Allison voiced from the dining table where she was getting me a glass of water. “Yeah, it has...been,” I replied, still feeling totally out of place in her not-so-cozy but exquisite interior. We couldn’t avoid the awkwardness even if we tried. I thought pulling off my jacket to reveal the white rubbed white tank top I had beneath it would blend remarkably well with my jeans. I laid down my jacket together with my cap and got comfortable before Allison returned from the dining I could see across the room. To my dismay, she brought over a bowl of fruit salad with the water. “Thought you’d like something to go with it,” she grinned after placing down the bowl and settling down opposite me, slightly fidgety as she grabbed and fumbled her phone at one corner of the sofa. “You didn’t have to,” I muttered while reaching for the cup of water to calm my raging nerves as my eyes moved over her lean frame, pronounced by the baby pink short gown she had on that matched her fluffy baby pink home slipper. While her hourglass figure looked a whole lot better than my rugged shape, I feel like she could do with more food. “How have you been... God, I can’t believe it’s been 13 years since we last met.” Her voice was gentle but captivating, almost sultry. “Y’know, same old... nothing’s changed much.” I was not exactly comfortable with getting into the story of my life, but the curious gleam in her gently-lined eyes was pressuring so I couldn’t be more grateful when the doorbell rang. “Oh, that must be Zane.” She beamed, obvious joy spreading to every inch of her face as she excitedly bounced over to the door while I finally raised the cup of water to my lips. I mean, I did come here because she wanted to introduce me to her fiance and resolve our issues since I’m her only family left but I felt like it was rather too soon—the fiance’s visit, I mean. I wish the guy had given us more time to talk out our issues before showing up; this might just get a lot more awkward, I was still thinking when I heard a loud gasp from the door followed by multiple squelch sounds from what I quickly realised was a stabbing attack. "Allison,” I called out in an alarm as I instinctively jumped over the sofa to reach her and possibly nab the fucker but could only catch my sister as her body fell back into my arms while my raging eyes travelled with the fleeing figure of the attacker. It all happened so fast, it left me totally helpless. I couldn’t do anything but try and stop my sister’s bleeding. "Allison,” I called out again as I went down on my knees with her in my arms while critically surveying her wounds. Then I saw him—at least a faint sight of him—a man willing to chase down the assailant; his deep green eyes had passed by over my frame so quickly so I couldn’t maintain contact as he raced past me, leaving behind the rich scent of his male cologne. "Zane,” Allison called out. She must have seen the guy too…so that was her fiance? I thought, fumbling over her wounds in an attempt to stop the bleeding. “You’ll be okay.” Were the only words I could offer my sister as her lips trembled while blood and fluids spilled from her guts. I raised her head up slightly while putting pressure on the wound with one hand and reaching for my phone with the other. "Ma…dy,” my sister struggled to say while I strived hard to keep my searing rage in control. I'm going to kill that guy. I vowed while dialling the 9-1-1 call. “911, what’s your emergency?” the operator's voice boomed from the other end of the phone. “We need an ambulance, 29-year-old female, multiple vertical stab wounds of about 5-7 cm to the thoracic and abdomen, could be life-threatening,” I relayed, feeling my throat tightening as I’m overwhelmed by the urge to cry while looking into the terrified eyes of my sister. Flashes of my parents' bodies as they were wheeled to the hospital during their accident in the past reminded me of the fear I’d longed to be buried, the fear of losing someone again. I can’t lose you too, Allison, please; we’ve only just seen each other again. I internally pleaded as tears unconsciously trailed down my eyes while she kept gasping for air. --------