I have a thing for hitting things lately

Grace had always wished she had had a normal birthday. But it was never so. Her birthdays were the worst days of her life every year because she had lost two precious people on that same day. 

The first was her mother, who died right after she was born. It hadn't been easy for a young child like her to know that her mother had died after giving birth to her.

Her father didn't waste time before remarrying. According to him, he had remarried because of her. A little girl like her needed more than just a mere maid to take care of her. She needed a mother's love and warmth. Grace's biological mother and father had a mutual friend, Carla Bernie. The three of them were a group. So when his wife, Grace's mother died, her father and Carla married out of convenience. Unlike some families who would hide the fact that their real mother was dead, her father told her all about her mother even before she started to talk. He had loved her mother dearly and kept every one of her belongings, as well as pictures of her, all of which he handed over to Grace. So not once had Grace doubted his love for her mother. Even when he still spoke about her to this day, he always had a sad countenance. 

Even though Grace felt sad on every one of her birthdays, her father and stepmother did their best to cheer her up. They bought her big cakes and gifts when she was still a kid.

Most people do not have much memory of their childhood, but not Grace. She could still remember events that happened when she was 2 years old. She was always bright and intelligent, and had been happy with her family until Vincent was born and things changed. Drastically.

That was when she understood the real meaning of loneliness. 

She began to feel less lonely when she made friends with Michael Stoner at the age of 9. Through Michael, she met an important figure in her life that she adored– Mrs. Hilda Stoner. 

The woman had been in her late twenties when she first met her. She had married early and had also had Michael early. Grace saw her as a role model and a goddess. She was everything Grace wanted to become.

The woman adored Grace as if she was her daughter. It got to the point where Grace didn't want to return home because she wanted to stay with her. It was also because of Hilda that Grace was able to learn boxing since her parents had refused to sign her up for a class. Hilda had helped her learn it alongside Michael, without her parents finding out. 

And just like everyone else, Hilda also left. She died on Grace's 12th birthday. It had been a fatal accident. 

She didn't only mourn her biological mother on the 5th of September now, but also another woman who acted more like a mother than her stepmother. 

These thoughts filled her head as she drove down to Block C. She tried to shake off the sadness in her, but she could not. She wondered how Michael was also feeling. She hadn't been able to have a conversation about his mother's death, or her memorial with him since she usually spent that day sulking. 

Block C came into view. It was a branch of the company, 10 minutes away from ANC's main building. Some industrial work and distribution were being carried out there. Normally, her younger brother, Vincent Anderson, was in charge of this jurisdiction, but since she was the overall head of finance, she sometimes carried out inspections, and she was here for one. 

As her car approached the entrance of the building, she saw the familiar figure of a man coming out of the building. It was Carla's younger brother, Patrick. Her uncle.

He was speaking with a man and had two other men beside him. All of them looked to be in their late thirties or early forties and were dressed in suits. Patrick Bernie was 38 years old. To everyone else, he may have appeared to be a good-looking man, but he was a disgusting pig.

Instead of slowing down, Grace unconsciously stepped on the accelerator pedal, causing the car to go faster. She knew if she continued to drive at that speed, she was going to hit the man. 

Bystanders noticed and began to move away. Patrick turned to look in her direction with wide eyes, and just before it could get to him, she stepped on the brake pedal, bringing the car to a screeching stop. 

Damn it! She should have risked it all and hit him with the car. If only she knew he was going to be here today, she would have asked a professional to mess with her brakes so that after 'accidentally' hitting Patrick, she could put the blame on her brakes and go free. 

Her dark eyes met his through the windscreen before she eventually stepped out of the car, dressed in a trim blue suit with black heels. 

"What was the meaning of that?" Patrick asked with a deep frown. Grace heard the shutters of cameras around them and knew she was going to be making the headlines soon again.

"Didn't see you there." She said dismissively.

He took a few steps and stood in front of her.

"Didn't see me?" He asked in disbelief. His tone was dark. He sounded like he was going to hit her if she dared say the wrong thing. 

She raised her chin and looked squarely into his eyes. "Didn't see you there." She repeated fiercely.

His hands fisted beside him. 

"That is no way to talk to your uncle, you know that?" He lectured and heard her chuckle.

"Don't be stupid, Patrick." She smirked and brushed past him, but stopped walking and turned her head slightly to the side so he could hear her. 

"And watch your back. I have a thing for hitting things lately." She said it lightly, but knew he got the warning from her tone before she strode into the building, ignoring every eye looking at her and all the awful things they were saying about her.