A CONJUGAL PLAN
This secluded Chicago suburb was not just any location; it isAurie'sfavorite quiet spot. A retreat she owned under a carefully layered shell corporation, accessible only via private boat or helicopter. Perfect for someone of her stature, and now, ideal for her secret confinement. Her parents had chosen this serene property, not out of convenience, but because it was truly hidden and sacred to Aurie Fortuna Adler, as the owner.
The specialized medical team was already at work. Thepersonal servants, private nurses, and two personal doctors assigned by the Fortuna parents had carefully placed Aurie in a sun-drenched, seaside bedroom, ensuring her comatose body is undisturbed.
With the security protocols established, Amelia and Carlisle decided to take a calm, calculated lunch. They sat on the back patio of the house, overlooking a beautiful, endless beach scenery. The juxtaposition of their quiet meal against the hidden crisis was jarring.
Amelia:"Time flies so fast huh! Yesterday's the accident, now... huh... now we're here in our Aurie's favorite home."
In Amelia's saddest tone, the grief was thick and palpable. The servants placed their exquisite food, a light and organic meal, in front of them and quietly withdrew, leaving the titans of the Fortuna family in privacy.
Carlisle, sitting beside Amelia, immediately hugged her and kissed her. His gentle touch was the only thing that could anchor her. "Love, always remember that Aurie will wake up. That's for sure!" he declared, his voice firm.
Amelia:"How can you be this so optimistic?!"
Carlisle:"That's the reason why you love me, right Love?"
They allowed themselves a small, fragile laugh. While eating, Amelia's thoughts, even in grief, immediately turned to security and suspicion.
Amelia thought:"No one will know where Aurie is, right?"
Carlisle:"Even Hugh?" He read her mind instantly.
Amelia:"Yes! They are just married, with documents. Hugh is a cheater! Maybe he's the one who plans~"
Carlisle:"Hold on, hold on, hold on... Aurie will be mad at you with that accusation." He put down his fork, his tone now serious.
Amelia:"Hugh could have been~"
Carlisle:"Love, what's the reason? They love each other."
Amelia looked away, staring out at the gentle waves. "You know what I saw before... Hugh already unloved our Aurie many years~"
Carlisle:"Please... Love, let's finish our lunch, okay?!" He tried to steer the conversation back to peace, but Amelia was fixed on her suspicion.
Amelia:"So you don't believe in me?"
Carlisle knew this battle was unwinnable. He sighed, defeated by his wife's powerful conviction. "We talked about that many many times, love. Okay, so... I'm agreeing, no one will know that Aurie is here. Shall we eat?"
Amelia's face softened instantly, a victorious, loving smile replacing her anger. "I knew you'll always agree with me, honey. I love you!"
Carlisle:"I love you too, my love."
The brief, intense couple argument was over. They settled back into a tense calm and ate. Inside, the servants, aware of the importance of privacy, quietly continued their duties, murmuring only to one another as they prepared more food for the powerful Fortuna parents.
GOLD SKY
Aurie is literally comatose... and dreaming.
She is floating, but the sensation was beyond anything she could describe. The surrounding atmosphere is cloudy, yet luminous. She could literally touch the stars surrounding her, a breathtaking sight even though she knew that, in science, they were not small at all. When she lifted her head, she is seeing gold water, sparkling above. When she turned around, the sky is literally a vast, boundless gold water surface.
An impulse seized her: she wanted to touch that gold water. She propelled herself upward, flying so fast she was amazed at the speed she could jump or fly with no effort. She was now so far above, touching the gold water sky, thinking that beyond the shimmering surface was the galaxy.
But as she touched it, she looked down. She could see the clouds she had just passed through, and she murmured, "That's where I was walking awhile ago, right?" It was beautiful.
Then she saw the gaps. In every break between the clouds, she saw lava, flowing like a river from a vast, unseen volcano under the sky.
A paralyzing fear seized her. She couldn't believe it. She realized she was teetering between two impossible extremes. Paradise above, hell below. She was overthinking that if she went back below, she would instantly die.
Aurie asked herself, "Wait, I was in the hospital~" The question jarred her. She began to drop from the sky, plummeting toward the ground full of clouds. Aurie panicked, preventing herself from dropping fully, imagining the lava frying her. She squeezed her eyes shut while praying desperately for rescue.
She gasped for air, shouting, "No wayyyyyyyy!!!"
When she opened her eyes, she was no longer in the celestial place. She was on the back balcony of her Chicago home, right beside her parents, who were eating lunch.
"Wait, mom?! Dad?!"
Aurie's eyes were the widest she'd ever seen. She took in the beautiful beach view, a sight that grounded her. She was crying in happiness, a silent, spectral joy.
Then, she noticed the detail that shattered the relief. "Wait, this is my dress... is this what I'm wearing awhile ago while walking on the ground?! walking on the clouds like..." Her voice trailed off.
She looked down at her feet and saw nothing but air; she is floating. She looked back at the glass window of her house, fully expecting to see a reflection.
She asked herself, "I'm not... I'm not a ghost... I have a reflection... I'm uh... I'm..." She couldn't complete the thought.
Driven by a desperate need for contact, she immediately tried to hug her parents, but her arms phased right through them, leaving only cold air where her mother's shoulder should have been.
Now standing directly in front of them, Aurie desperately waved her right hand. "Mom?! Dad?! It's not a good joke... why I even phase on both of~" She glanced at the window again. She concluded, "See? I'm not transparent!!! I'm not a ghost!!! C'mon mom?! Dad?!" The denial was fierce. Her parents, oblivious, continued to eat and enjoy their food.
She started to scream, a sound that ripped through her spectral throat but made no impact on the physical world. "AMELIA!!! CARLISLE!!! I'M HEEEEEERE!!!"
THE WAVE
It was already 04:12 PM. Up in the master bedroom, Amelia and Carlisle were preparing for their departure.
Amelia:"I love how Aurie designed this room for us!!! Even she owns this room... this house..."
Carlisle:"I'm sad, love. I don't know what to do now." The toll of the last day had finally broken through his optimism.
Carlisle's grief was palpable. Amelia cuddled and comforted him as they sat on their big bed.
Amelia:"She will wake up, Carlisle."
Carlisle:"She needs to be... all medical people here are good, right?"
Amelia:"Of course! Honey, we're Fortuna! You... you are Fortuna!"
Carlisle:"Aurie is old too... she needs to... she needs to~"
Amelia:"Shh... shh... shh... she's strong, honey!"
Meanwhile, Aurie iss phasing a rapid, panicked, vertical journey from the ground floor up to the 4th floor of her expensive vacation house. The reality was setting in. She cried, kneeling in front of her parents who could not see her, utterly heartbroken.
Aurie:"Mom... Dad... I'm always here! Don't be sad."
She stood up, still floating, but trying to walk normally. Tapping her forehead, she desperately tried to think about what she needed to do.
Apparently, Carlisle and Amelia were starting to pack. They needed to leave, sono one would question why they were here if they were caught on the property.
When the Fortuna parents were seated in their expensive car, ready to leave her behind, Aurie phased and immediately sat beside her parents.
Aurie:"Amelia, Carlisle, don't leave me!"
When the engine started, the movement made her panic. Aurie shouted, "Mom!!! Dad!!! I need my phone! I need it!!!"
No one heard Aurie. She screamed, "AMELIA!!! CARLISLE!!! I NEED MY PHONE NOW!!!"
Still, silence from the living. She resorted to an insult born of pure frustration. Aurie shouted even louder: "I NEED MY PHOOOOOOOONE!!!"
Thecar felt warm, noticeably warmer, even though theair conditioning was on the coldestsetting. Amelia and Carlisle exchanged glances, a brief look of confusion and unease passing between them.
Aurie, thinking her parents saw her, cheered internally, "Yes, that's it... my phone. Where is it?"
Carlisle relaxed his body, looking outside the window, dismissing the warmth as a minor electronic glitch.
Amelia, however, reached into her luxurious handbag. Aurie's eyes widened in shock and happiness."Yes mom, that's my phone!!!" She clapped her hands like a relieved child.
Amelia pulled out a familiar phone, frowning at the screen.
Amelia:"How can we open this?"
Carlisle:"What for, love?"
Amelia:"Whatever, I'll open it my way when we get back to our home." The finality in her voice suggested the 'Fortuna way' was likely a highly illegal security bypass.
Aurie, a translucent ghost-like human form, sat between her parents, unseen. Covering her face, crying from a mix of being relieved that her phone was safe over what came next, she whispered to herself: "Oh my... I'm aging... I forgot to do next with my phone! Damn it!"
You readers, what would Amelia do to Aurie's phone?
Will Amelia uncover the true identity of the assassin who attacked her daughter using Aurie's phone? Or to transfer all of Aurie's liquid wealth and secrets into an untouchable Fortuna account, locking Hugh out forever? Or to send a carefully crafted message to the press, or perhaps a cold, final text to Hugh Adler, setting the stage for the corporate war?