Red Alert

Chapter 4: Agreement

Ella's Pov

I woke up the next day a bit late since I didn't have to take the morning shift today. Aunt Janice and Uncle Jack had already left to do their respective jobs. I had a small quick breakfast and then got dressed. As today I planned on heading somewhere special, I decided to wear a black scalloped neck cocktail dress that had flowers printed on the bodice. It was a dress I had put together while stitching at the mansion I used to work at. Nobody ever realized I had been using the sewing room or the material in the room. I was glad nobody in the mansion found out because if the master knew, I wouldn't have been alive.

I picked up my shoulder purse, let my hair loose and put on my joggers as I headed towards the cemetery mom and dad had been buried at. I had wanted to go see them as soon as I had been released from the mansion but I didn't think it would be very nice if I went to them looking like a beggar. I bought a small bouquet of roses as I made my way towards their gravestone. I arrived at the two gravestones, buried side to side as I placed the flowers in between the graves.

"Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad." I greeted as I sat down and got comfortable on the grass. I already felt the tears come to my eyes as I stared at their graves. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to come and see you guys earlier. I wanted to come when I was ready and I am now. Things are going great. I found a good job that pays more than you ever earned, Dad. I went to meet my siblings, Mom. Lara, Hayden, Jayden, and April...they're all grown up now. It felt really good to be able to see them again and it feels great to be here. I miss you guys, I miss you so much." I said a few tears rolling down my cheeks. 

"I promised myself I wouldn't cry but I still did. I seem to be breaking a lot of promises lately. I'm sorry mom, I wasn't able to look after my siblings like I promised you. I'm sorry dad, I promised you that I would always smile and I do, but sometimes it's hard. I'm most sorry to Lara...I wasn't able to fulfill my promise to her. I miss everyone and I promise you that I will look after my siblings even if it's from a faraway distance." I spoke wiping my tears as I smiled.

"Ella Jamison." A voice said from behind me as I turned around to see April towering over me. I wiped the remaining tears as I got up to my feet.

"April...I-Hi," I said as I stared at her, noticing a flower bouquet in her hands. She ignored my presence as she walked towards the grave and placed the flowers in the middle of the graves, just like I had. "I missed you," I wanted to have a small chat with April if possible, even though I told Lara that I would stay away from them.

"I came to see mom and dad." She simply stated.

"Shouldn't you be in school?" I asked as I realized that it was her school time. She was wearing a white shirt with a red and black flannel shirt on top accustomed by black ripped jeans. She had a backpack on her shoulder and her hair was tied in a ponytail.

"I came by since I had some good news," April said staring straight ahead at our parent's graves. "What are you doing here?" She asked turning to me.

"I came to see them just because," I replied. 

"Lara isn't going to like this but...can we talk?" April asked as she looked at me.

"Sure." I nodded my head too enthusiastically. April started walking out of the cemetery as I followed her to a nearby cafe. We both got seated at a table, April ordering a caramel macchiato and me ordering a strawberry lemonade. For the record, strawberry flavoring is my ultimate bias. "So what do you want to talk about?" I asked her as I looked at her conflicted expression.

"I...I wanted to know more about our father" April said as I froze up. I didn't know what to tell her. I knew that her sister and brothers blamed my father and me for ruining their steady life. I knew that they probably told her the same thing and I believed it but I didn't know what to tell her. Was I supposed to tell her his personality or his bad deeds, what did she want to know?

"I don't think Lara would approve of me telling you. Besides, you must already know." I said as I looked at the glass in my hands, taking a sip.

"All I know is that he was a bad man, a swindler according to Lara. He had three criminal records of fraud, four at the time of his death. I know Lara loves me but she's way too bossy and when I tell her that she replied by saying its all you and your father's fault." April said and all I had to say to myself was: that stings.

"I'm sorry." I apologized.

"It's alright," April said as we both sat in silence for a few minutes or so.

"What was the good news you wanted to tell mom and dad?" I asked as I wanted to make conversation.

"I..um...I don't know if you know this but my dream is to become an actress." She said with a light blush as she played with her fingers. "I wanted to start slowly so I've been going to auditions but not acting auditions. I went to a modeling audition at a fashion company and I thought I would fail as usual...but I passed. It's not exactly my dream but the company that accepted me is very famous so maybe there's a chance I can become an actress from becoming a model." April explained as I gave a small laugh, feeling happy for her.

"This is great news! You could become famous and when you do I can brag to everyone about having a famous sister." I said to give her a small boosting. In reality, I was happy for her and wanted to jump around but we were in a civilized cafe so it would be a bit ill-mannered.

"If I become famous," April said with a nervous smile. "Anyway, do you have a phone?" She asked as I nodded scrunching my eyebrows in confusion of what she was trying to say. "Can I have your number?" She asked as I couldn't help but let my eyes widen with happiness.

"Yes!" I exclaimed standing up a bit too loud as a few people from other tables turned to look our way. I muttered a 'sorry' as I sat back down, April laughing at my foolishness. She grabbed my purse and took out the phone as she added her number before handing my phone back to me. "I will treasure this forever," I told April as I stared at the contact named as 'Little Sister'.

"I hope you do. Getting my number is very hard." April said with a smile.

"I should be going now. My job starts in about an hour." I said with a guilty look. I didn't want to leave now but I had a night shift so I had no choice.

"Can you stay for a bit more?" April questioned as I pondered over it but ended up nodding. How could I leave when my younger sister wanted me to stay with her. This moment was like a dream come true for me.

"How are things at home?" I asked.

"Bad." April sighed as my eyes widened and I leaned forward wondering what she meant. "Lara works as a teacher so she's used to telling children what to do but when she comes home, she's way too bossy towards us. I'm fine with whatever she tells me to do but when I told her about my dream, she told me to forget about it." April said a solemn expression on her face.

"Why?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.

"She didn't tell me why but she keeps telling me to focus on my studies instead of dreaming. I told her that I got accepted into the company but instead of being happy she was angry at me. She went to the company and told them that she didn't want me participating but the CEO of the company liked my audition so he persuaded Lara. In the end, Lara had to accept it but now I have to piece up some money and she said that she wouldn't help me." April said with a frown that didn't suit her. "I asked Hayden and Jayden for help too but Hayden's always avoiding us while Jayden's too busy with work. It feels as if we aren't even a family. Everyone always so busy doing their things." She added looking at me.

"Why would you need money?" I asked her.

"I want to go to an acting school. Only then will I be able to participate in auditions because otherwise, it would be no use. Not everyone can be accepted into acting schools so I wanted Lara to give me some money for a specialty teacher. I want to be able to give it my best and I can't not without a coach or someone to help me, someone professional." April said as I nodded. "It's getting late, we should go now." She quickly said as she got up and headed out. I followed her as we stood in front of the shop.

"Um...April. If you're fine with it I can give you the money for tuition. You will be able to go to acting school which will make me very pleased." I offered. I wanted to help my siblings in any possible way and I was happy that now I will be able to be of some use.

"What? No...I couldn't. I don't want to be a burden to you." April said as he pulled the strap of the bag.

"But you won't be a burden. I wasn't able to help Lara achieve her dreams but I am here now and I want to help you. Please! There is nothing more I want than to be able to see you happy. Let me do this for you. I wasn't there for you before, right? I am now so please let me do something for you, just this once. Just like it's your dream to be an actress, my dream is to see you and your siblings happy." I almost extended my words but decided to keep it short as I waited for April's reply.

"I just don't get it. How come you're so caring of us, yet you abandoned us?" April asked, tears filling her eyes as she looked at me with a straight expression. I sucked in a breath as the words, not ready to tell her. I made a promise to myself that I would never let the truth out because I knew that if my siblings knew, especially Hayden, they would be distraught. "Whatever. I'll call you and tell you when I need the money. Bye now." She added as a huge grin spread across my face. I smiled and waved to her as she walked away and out of view.

I started walking towards the mall and since it was quite a bit far, I decided to wait for the bus by the bus stop. I was still waiting when a black car stopped in front of the stop. At first, I thought the car was waiting for someone else but then the driver came out from the car and turned to me.

"Are you Ms. Ella Jamison?" The strange guy asked as I gave a small nod. He didn't say anything else as he opened the door to the backseat and made a gesture that meant 'get in'. I looked inside seeing an old man sitting in the back seat. He smiled at me and gestured for me to come in as I mentally shrugged and got in. I knew that you should never get into a car with a stranger but being the dense person I am, the thought never occurred to me. 

"Let me start with a mere introduction. My name Matthew Rhodes." The man said as soon as the door closed. This guys surname was the same as my boss's. They might be related but they might also not be. Many people have the names Rhodes nowadays, I think. "You are Ella Jamison, James Jamison's daughter, right?" He asked as my eyes widened.

"How do you know my dad?" I asked turning to the guy. He looked like he was in his forties or fifties though I couldn't be sure. He had a short white beard and a small mustache. His hair was entirely white and he was wearing a fancy suit. He looked like a well off, distinguished man.

"Your father might've have swindled me." The man said with a small smile.

"Oh! But...I'm pretty sure we paid everyone who he swindled from." I said as I now understood. Dad had lied and taken this guy money and by the looks of it, this guy looked quite rich. Just then the car also started to move and this was when I realized that getting into a strangers car isn't a good idea. Who knows where they're taking me.

"Not me." The man said.

"Then...how much did my father take from you?" I asked him.

"1,000,000$ so that would be 1 Million." The man said with a smile as my mouth widened. Why the heck did dad take that much money from this guy and how could this guy just give my dad that much money. They were both in their ways. "Now let me explain. You father didn't exactly swindle me but instead, he borrowed some money. We were old friends and he saved me back in the days so I returned the favor by helping him. Your father though, he promised to pay me back all that he took but I had my doubts. We had a deal. Have a look at this." The man explained as he handed me a file.

I grabbed the file with a wary look as I opened it and started to read. I read the contents, my eyes widening at the last few sentences, getting even wider when I saw the sign that belonged to my dad. I could feel my heart start to palpitate as I let the filed drop my hand.

"This isn't real, right? My dad wouldn't do this." I said turning to face the man.

"I'm truly sorry. I know you might not be ready for this but the time to return my money has long expired. You could give pay me back my money but it will take you a lot of time so there is no other way. And I would like to make this work." The man said.

"I couldn't. I can't. I'm sorry but I can't agree to this!" I exclaimed, my eyes still wide. 

"Well do you have any sisters?" The man asked as I started to feel even more conflicted. I couldn't agree with this but I couldn't let my Lara do this. April was too young but Lara was alright. I could just put this on Lara but I know that doing that would make her hate me and my father even more than she already does.

"If---If I do this then I don't have to pay you the money?" I questioned.

"Not a single penny." The man said as I sucked in a deep breath.

"But I don't even...Fine. I'll do it." I whispered.

"Great! I'm truly sorry Ella and I wish I didn't have to put this on you but it's something I have been meaning to do." This Matthew guy said as the car stopped. The door opened as I stepped out and turned back around. "Have a good day at work." The man added before the door closed. The driver walked back to the driver's seat as I was left watching the car zoom away. I looked at my surroundings, realizing that I was standing in front of the mall.

I walked inside and towards the store as I entered the employee's room. I put my purse in the locker as I stood in the room for a minute, absorbing all the information. This was too much even for me to handle. I was good at handling stuff, I used to handle everything to do with my siblings when I was fourteen but this was different. I wasn't prepared for something like this to happen and I couldn't even imagine this sort of thing happening to me.

I walked out of the employee room, looking for any customers to help. My mind was still wondering about and thoughts were swirling my mind. I wasn't ready for this but I had to do this because if I didn't, Lara would have had to suffer. I noticed a woman searching for a shirt as I walked over to her putting on a smile and started to help her.

Customers kept coming as I continued to help them. Even though I smiled and talked to them in a friendly manner, I just wanted to frown and be alone. I couldn't process the words that kept flashing in front of eyes, the signature. The bold words on the heading that read 'Marriage Agreement'. Why would dad have made a deal like that? Was he fine with me getting married to some random guy? How could he make a deal like that without my consent? 

I didn't have a choice now because it was either marry the guy myself or let my sister marry a stranger. I couldn't get my head wrapped around this weird reality. Who has arranged marriages nowadays and why would dad sign something like that? I still had to go with no matter what. I'm going to have to marry a stranger. A man I know nothing about. A man I don't love, a total stranger. I don't even know who he is or what he looks like. This is a nightmare.