THE BILLIONAIRE'S OBSESSION: THE REDEMPTION

CHAPTER 4

Yala’s POV

After several hours on the plane, I arrived in the United States of America. Whilst on air, I couldn't sleep a wink, because I was overwhelmed with anxiety, even though I tried to stay calm, by taking deep breath, they didn't help.

It was a long journey, and I was exhausted, but I decided I would go directly to the hospital where my father is, rather than go to his mansion. I believe I will only be at rest when I can see for myself that he is well.

As soon as I exited the arrival terminal, I saw my father's driver, Alexander, waiting for me in front of the airport.

"Good to see you, ma'am," he said as soon as I stopped in front of him.

"I would be happier if it were under different circumstances," I said, sadly.

He sighs.

"As a consolation, your father is fine. The doctor only kept him for further observation," he says.

I shake my head.

"I don't think anything will make me feel more at ease, but I appreciate it," I told him, and he smiled and took my bags from me.

"I will take you to the mansion and then..." Alexander was saying, but I interrupted.

"No, Alexander, please take me to see my father right away," I requested.

He looked at me surprised.

"Ma'am, the journey was long and tiring. After you take a shower and rest, you will feel more at ease..." he said, but

I shook my head in disagreement.

"I'm sorry, Alexander, but I'll only be able to feel at ease when I see my father in person, not before," I declared firmly.

He takes a deep breath, knowing he won't be able to sway me.

"Alright, I'll do as you're asking," then he looks at my hand. "So, this is Penny," he says, referring to my cat who is trying to stick her paw out the transport box that I'm still holding.

‘Yes,’ I replied, with a smile.

He smiles widely and bends his body to be able to look at Penny inside the carrier.

‘So, you are your grandfather's girl?’ he asks.

I can't help but laugh.

"My father really considers her his granddaughter?" I asked him.

‘He says he believes that you won't give him grandchildren, so Penny will serve as consolation,’ He responds and I laughed the more.

“She's really beautiful. Do you know that the percentage of orange cats that are female is only twenty percent?’ he inquired.

I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

“No,” I replied.

“Yes, it's only twenty percent, so you should feel privileged, because not everybody has one,” he said to me.

‘Meow,’ Penny meows impatiently, because of still being inside the carrier.

‘She's anxious, you can take her straight to the mansion, while I call a taxi to take me to the hospital," I said.

Alexander shook his head in refusal.

“I can't leave you...” but I interrupted him.

“Don't worry, Penny needs to rest, and taking her to the hospital before going to the mansion will only stress her out even more, so don't worry about me, at the moment she is your priority.” I said, handing the carrier over to him.

He sighs in resignation.

‘Can't I change your mind?’ he asks, pursing his lips to the side.

I smiled widely, giving him my answer without having to say a word.

“Well, that's Yala, being Yala,” he comments, then enters the car and drives away.

I boarded a taxi and soon arrived at the hospital. I went to the reception desk, and I was directed to my father's room. When he saw me, he was shocked, and you could see the surprise in his eyes.

“Daughter, how did you get here?” he asks.

I walked up to him and gave him a tight hug before saying a word.

"You scared me, sir," I said with a quivering voice.

He runs his hand through my hair, just like he used to do when I was a child.

"Don't worry, Yala, I'm fine," he said.

I looked at him and shook my head in disagreement.

"How can you say that, dad? In a hospital? Did you ever think of telling me you were here?" I asked all at once, knowing his answer would be no.

He pursed his lips and answered.

"No, daughter, I didn't want you to put your life on hold for something trivial," he responded.

I widened my eyes in disbelief.

"Trivial, Dad? You had a heart attack; how can that be trivial?" I said, indignantly.

He took a deep breath. "I'm fine," he said.

I shook my head again. "No, you're not, and you know it. Now tell me everything that's going on, what have you been hiding from me?" I asked with a furrowed brow.

"Daughter, it's not tha..." I raised my hand to silence him. If there's one thing my father is an expert at, it's saying that it's nothing, even though the world is falling apart.

"Dad, I can't help if you don't tell me," I said.

He took a deep breath again, knowing I wouldn't give up until I found out what was happening.

"Alright, Yala, we're bankrupt," he said instantly.

I was surprised by his words.

'How can we be bankrupt?' I asked, still in shock.

"Dad, that's practically impossible!"

But he shook his head.

"Duncan embezzled over seven hundred million dollars from the company's account, he had been stealing for some time and neglecting to pay off our taxes and some vendors.

I put my hand on my chest, unable to believe this information.

"How, father?" I asked with my mouth agape.

"I trusted him, after all the years of friendship, and he took advantage of that," he says sadly.

"Scoundrel!" I said angrily. "We will get through this, daddy, don't worry, because together we will find a way."

He took a deep breath.

"Daughter, I had to close almost all the hotels in our chain. I only have one branch open."

My eyes widened again.

"When did this happen, father?" I asked, still looking stunned.

"It's been a few months, and..."

"Why didn't you tell me at the beginning, father?" I interrupted him abruptly.

"You have your own life, Yala, you're happy teaching your students. I would never take that away from you because of a mistake I made; trusting someone I thought was my friend and that he would never betray me." His words were filled with guilt and self-reproach and, and it shattered me.

"No, father! It's not your fault. Duncan did this, and I would have come to your assistance immediately. He will never go scot free."

He smiles wryly.

"I know that's why I didn't tell you, but now it doesn't matter, Yala. Everything is lost." The sadness in his eyes breaks my heart.

"You have to report him to the authorities, I'm sure they will..." he interrupted me.

"No, daughter, I signed the documents without reading them. According to the law, everything was authorized. Duncan did everything with a plan in mind, and I was stupid for being too trusting." He said, unable to look me in the eye.

I sat next to my father and held his hand to comfort him.

"Don't blame yourself, father. Trusting too much is not a mistake."

He smiles humorlessly.

"It is, when I lose an empire that I loved, the worst part is that I can't even remove his name from the hotel's frontage, because I'm still tied to the partnership we had built!" he says, feeling indignant.

I looked surprised.

"Dad, I understand that you have a great affection for Duncan, but there are bonds that need to be closed in order for us to move on. He made a choice when he stole from you, he didn't think of many years’ worth of friendship. You can't be trapped in resentment or guilt. You'll need to be strong to recover, and regarding the signed documents, you should consult a lawyer to see if there's any way to appeal." I said.

He sighed.

"I've consulted, all the documents are valid. I can only appeal if there's someone who can testify or if I can prove that he acted in bad faith. Unfortunately, there's no one who can do that."

I closed my eyes, trying to stay calm. Right now I feel like killing Duncan.

"Don't worry, Dad, we'll recover your empire, and the first thing we'll do is remove Duncan from the hotel’s name." I stated.

"Daughter..." I didn't let him continue speaking.

"Dad, you were loyal while you were by his side, but now it's over! There's no point in keeping his name there when he doesn't respect your friendship or business partnership. So enough, if you don't have the courage to remove his name from the hotel's title, I do." I said determinedly.

"Daughter, the hotel is beyond repair and..."

"Nothing is beyond repair, everything has a solution, dad." I interrupted him once again.

"Starting a company from scratch is not easy, Yala, especially if it has a tarnished reputation, because everyone thinks I made up the story and just wanted to frame my business partner."

"Hypocritical society" I think, but I prefer not to touch on this subject for now.

“Dad, we don't need them, and we're not starting from scratch, but from experience.” I told him.

‘You don't have any business experience, Yala’ he says, looking at me with a furrowed brow.

I forced a fake smile.

‘Dad, I have a degree in business administration, so it must count for something,”

He raised an eyebrow.

“Running a company is not easy, Yala,”

“I never liked easy things anyway,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.

He took a deep breath.

‘I already informed Ricci Company that I'm selling the hotel,’ he said, taking me by surprise.

“What?!” I exclaimed, and got up from bed.

“Daughter, the amount they're going to pay is great, and I'll be able to live until...”

“Don't come at me with this "the amount they're going to pay is good" dad, you know very well that that hotel has sentimental value for you, no amount of money will change that,” I said, with annoyance.

“Yala, this will ensure my stability and yours,”

“No, dad, this will kill you,” I said seriously, and he looked at me surprised. “You have always loved that hotel. I know you can sign the sale documents, but it will destroy you inside, so I won't allow it to happen, Mr. Smith, at this moment your daughter is taking over your empire, and it will rise again,” I said, with determination, because I wasn't here to help him when everything happened, but I know the love my father has for that hotel, and I would never let him sell it.

My father took a deep breath., then he looked at me.

“I'll talk to Charles Ricci,” he said.

My heart raced as I heard that name. I have known the Ricci family ever since I was a child. Charles is their youngest son and has always been distant from everyone. Even when our families had dinner together, I would try to talk to him, in an attempt to be friends, but it always ends up being a one-sided conversation, because he never liked to talk much.

I remember some times when I even argued with him, but Charles always maintained that I needed to grow up and be a normal girl, because I was different from everyone in our social circle. That's when he wasn't calling me a rebellious porcelain doll, a complete i***t. He doesn’t talk often, but when he opened his mouth, it was to call me a rebellious porcelain doll.

And I hated it!

My father always said that Charles would be a ruthless man, he was being raised to lead an empire, and he would surely do it with great determination, and indeed, the Ricci companies are led by the Ricci brothers, Liam, Thomas, and Charles. And they continue to be a global powerhouse.

I don't believe that Charles would easily give up acquiring an easy company such as ours in its current state, because even when we were children, he never gave up on anything. He has always been decisive, relentless, and gorgeously arrogant.

“Don't worry, dad, I will talk to Charles myself.”

My father raised an eyebrow.

“Yala, both of you have never gotten along,” he said, looking at me suspiciously. I gave him a phony smile.

“Don't worry, father, I'm sure that my issue with that arrogant man won't interfere with the process.”

“My God!” my father says after sighing, but my smile remains.

I continued chatting with my father, while thinking about how I was going to get Charles Ricci out of my way, and I also needed to find ways to solve this embezzlement issue that we suffered. There's no way Duncan can get away with it, absolutely not.