Savage's

CHAPTER 25

*Gray*

It was later that night, and Daisy still hadn't come upstairs. I knew she was watching a movie with Alexa, but I thought it would be over by now. It was after eleven at night, when I crept down the stairs and into the living room. I found both Daisy and Alexa asleep on the couch, while their movie played through the credits. I smirked, staring at Daisy while she slept, such a peaceful expression on her normally concerned face.

I carried Alexa to her bed first, and then returned for Daisy. As I carried Daisy up the stairs, I couldn't help but notice how she immediately curled in towards me. I smiled, as I set her down on the bed, and covered her up with the blankets. I don't know what came over me, but I placed a gentle kiss against her forehead, before laying in my own bed on the floor.

I woke up the following morning feeling groggy, and pushed myself into the bathroom for a shower. Afterwards, I quickly got ready, got dressed, and jogged downstairs. Fran had a cup of coffee waiting for me, which I thanked her for, and ran out the door. I hurried off to work, wanting to get it done and out of the way, so I could focus on more important things. The move was going to take a lot of energy, but that's not where it ends. Once we get settled into the new house, then I have to set up the security system, and have camera's installed.

I parked in the parking lot, and headed up to my office. This time I was lucky enough to avoid everyone I wanted to, and made it safely into my office without a hitch. I sighed, shutting the door behind me, and sat down to do some work. Lately work has been difficult with everything that's been on my mind, especially Daisy. Now with this dinner on Sunday, I have even more to stress about.

Instead of thinking about all of that, I set my focus to my job, and performed the tasks I know were required of me. It was like muscle memory, something my body was in the habit of, so my brain could wander. That is, until I noticed something odd in the paperwork. I noticed there were over one hundred thousand crates of sugar being delivered today, and there were only supposed to be fifty thousand. I compared invoices, noticing two different people input them, and called each of them up to my office.

Doug and Barbara walked into my office, both with perplexed expressions. I motioned for them to have a seat on the other side of my desk, as I set down the forms for them to look at. They scanned them over, and remained silent, which told me they're guilty of something.

"Why did you two put in different amounts?" I asked.

"I got confused, sir." Doug shamefully shook his head, "It's no excuse, but I was having a bad day, and must have typed the wrong number. It won't happen again."

"Let me know when the shipment arrives, I'd like to double check it myself." I said, watching both of them tense up.

"Of course." Barbara nodded, and they exchanged concerned expressions with one another.

"You can both leave, now." I muttered, watching them scurry out of my office.

I could tell something was going on, especially with how suspicious they were acting. So, I decided to scan through some older documents from the past, and found the same thing happened on several different occassions. Before I could dive in further, I heard a soft knock at the door, and a shiver ran across my back.

"Come in." I hollered, covering up the old documents.

"Good morning, dear." My mother said, walking in.

"Hello, mother." I grunted, clenching my teeth together.

"I heard there was a discrepincy with some numbers," She acknowledged, "and I wanted to tell you, I'll handle it."

"That's part of my job, mother, I can handle it." I argued.

"Yes, I know, but this is upsetting to your father and I... so I'm dealing with it personally." She grinned, and I knew what that meant for those poor workers.

"It was an accident, mother, they don't deserve to die-" I retorted, until she quickly interrupted.

"Oh sweetie, calm down, I'm just firing them. I don't have time for people who fat finger numbers." She shrugged, still grinning, but she didn't realize that I knew her better then that.

"Nothing more than firing them?" I asked, squinting, watching her eyes become shifty.

"Nothing more, nothing less." She smiled, "So, how about you take the rest of the day off? I know you must have a lot of work to do, with moving to a new house and all."

For a split second I was caught off guard, but I quickly responded. "It was going to be a surprise."

"For who?" She scoffed, "Don't try to be coy, sweet Grayson, I know you better then that."

"Coy? Do you think I'm hiding something?" I countered, "I wanted a bigger house, I have a few friends living with me now, and they enjoy Daisy just as much as I do-- so I thought they could have their own bedrooms... if you must know."

"You've gotten better," She smirked, but shook her head, "Quick on your feet, at least, but not fast enough."

"What are you talking about mother?" I growled, staring her in the eyes.

"Why are you really moving?" She asked, leaning closer.

"I just told you," I shrugged, "it's your choice whether or not to believe me."

"I think I'll prove you wrong, instead." She growled, her eyes penetrating my very soul, and I knew I'd lose this battle.

"Good luck." I smiled, trying to keep composure, but inside I was anxious.

The fact that my mother is already catching onto me isn't good, because she is the worst of them all. My father might control the money, but my mother controls my father, and it's been like that for as long as I can remember. She calls the shots. I need to get this under control, sooner rather than later.

I packed up my paperwork, and locked my desk, before leaving the office. I was going to take the rest of the day off, because there was a lot more s**t to deal with now. I knew my mother was suspicious of me, but I didn't think she was that close to figuring it out. Now I have to determine what she actually knows.

As I drove home, I realized something, it was the start of a new beginning. I knew I was going to choose Daisy over my family, and that meant escaping my family. Something I never thought I'd attempt, especially given the fact that I don't even know Daisy, but I know I'd do anything to protect her. Right now, her biggest enemy, is my mother.

There were two things at the top of my list; one was determining how to keep Daisy safe at this dinner party, and two was how to derail my mother from learning my plans. Both of those are exceptionally difficult tasks, and I have very little time. I knew I was going to need the help of my new guards, and hopefully they could come up with something good.