CHAPTER TWO
1034 Words
It was getting dark out, and there was still no word from her dad. Keira sat at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for him to call or for him to show up; anyone was fine with her. Kenna had gone to bed fifteen minutes ago, unable to keep her eyes open for much longer.
A few minutes later, her dad came in. She was dozing off, so she didn't know when he came in, but at least he was home.
“Dad, what happened?” Keira looked at his face in shock. There was a bruise forming on his cheek; he was hit in the face.
“It's nothing, sweetheart. Is your mom asleep?” He asked, walking towards the coffee table to drop his keys.
“Yeah, she fell asleep an hour ago. Dad, what's going on? You just don't get hit in the face randomly. Please tell me what is wrong?” She pleaded, touching his face.
He kissed her palm and patted her hands. “I'm fine, and yes, people get hit in the face randomly.” He replied, but she didn't believe him one bit. She was going to make him tell her what the hell happened sooner or later.
“I'll let you off the hook today, and I won't tell Mom about this. But you have to stop the swelling, let me bring the first aid kit and help you with it.”
“I got it, and besides, I need you to sign something.” He brought out the contract from his briefcase and handed it to her with a pen.
“Okay, what's this, though?” Keira asked as she signed the papers.
“It's uhh from the office, you know we're selling shares and all that. I needed you to sign off your shares so we could do the necessary.” Her dad replied with the first aid kit in his hand.
Keira looked at her dad with sad eyes. She knew it must be hard for him to let go of something he'd worked so hard for all his life. “I know this isn't easy for you, but I'm here for you. We all are.”
“Ohh Keira, I'll do whatever it takes to make sure I keep you guys safe. No matter what, it's my job as your dad and the head of this household to give this family stability and security.”
“I love you. No matter what.”
“I love you more, my princess. I'll be in my study; I need to take care of a few things, and you should get yourself to bed.” He replied. She picked up her phone and went ahead to her room.
Something felt very wrong to Keira, but she couldn't place her hand on it. Maybe she's being paranoid, but her dad's behavior these past few days has been very sketchy. Plus, didn't she sign off her shares three weeks ago, or maybe there were more formalities to that than she thought?
She tried so hard to calm her nerves and sleep, but it seemed like an impossible feat tonight. After all her tossing and turning it was finally morning, she jumped out of bed immediately after her alarm rang and headed straight to her father's study, he had a habit of sleeping in there and she wouldn't be surprised if he did given his situation the night before, but to her surprise, he wasn't there.
Grayson dropped the file in the mailbox, Arnold had his men watching him, so they knew exactly how to get the papers when they wanted to. He had thought all night about what he should do, and nothing came up other than to escape Florida to an unknown place where Arnold couldn't find him or his family.
He would need to go to far lengths to make that happen, and he knew the right person to meet Antonio Tucci. He was by far the biggest rival to Arnold Giovanni, and he had done business with him, too. He couldn't promise him money because he still owed Antonio some profit from their last business together, so he needed to use the same tactics he used with Arnold. However, this time, it would be more effective because he knew Antonio fancied Keira. All he needed to do was to ask him to help them escape, and he could have her. It would be better for Keira to be with Antonio than that monster.
****
Mark walked into Arnold's study with his usual smirk and sass. He looked like he had just discovered something, and that information would delight Arnold. He took a seat on the sofa at the center of the room and crossed his legs.
“Out with it, Vaughn, what do you have?” Arnold said, not bothering to look away from his laptop screen.
“Well I have the papers, and the girl signed it.” Mark started waiting for Arnold to become more interested. “It seems like our guy is in contact with Tucci, and they're planning a way for him and his family to escape soon. More details will be revealed later.”
Arnold could feel his blood boil with every word Mark said. He hated double crosses more than anything in this world and that was exactly what McCarthy had just done and of all people, it had to be that goddamn Antonio, the f*****g bastards.
“What does he have over Antonio? He can not go to someone like Antonio without having something valuable.” Arnold asked.
Mark let out a small laugh. “You wouldn't believe it if I told you, but my sources say he's willing to give Keira McCarthy in marriage to him if he helps them escape because it turns out that Tucci fancies her.”
“That bloody Keira again?” Arnold said under his breath. Exactly how many men did her father want to sell her off to? Does she not mean anything to her father, or is he just too much of a freaking coward?
“Call Eugene" I need that family brought to me as soon as possible.
- Writer
