Bound by Agreement

Chapter Two

"Your grandfather, wants you home for dinner tonight" Nathaniel Connor's Personal Assistant and bodyguard reported as he placed the land phone in its original position

"What is it about this time? Has there been any crises from the side families lately?" Connor asked, not lifting his head from the files he had been reading.

Nathaniel stood by the side, his hands folded behind him as he explained with a calm and expressionless face mirroring that of his boss, "There haven't been any problems from the side family, but he got a visit from the Hale group for lunch yesterday" Upon hearing the name, Connor raised his head, his eyebrow squared in a silent question

"They are looking to work with the M&S group for a big project with the condition that you marry their first daughter. From what I heard the project is a big one from another International company and your grandfather seems to have been enticed by the idea of you getting married to their daughter, either way he sees it as a win-win situation for M&S" He reported

Knowing that his dinner with his stubborn grandfather would inevitably end the same way it always did, Conner let out an exasperated sigh as he continued working on the files. "Call them back and tell them I have plans for dinner for the rest of the week," he said.

"He said, you should cancel all your dinner plans for tonight and if you don't show up, Andre will resume here tomorrow morning as the Managing Director and he will be taking over the North State project from you" Nathaniel briefed

"f*****g piece of s**t!" Connor swore, his face morphing into anger at the obvious threat from his grandfather and the remainder of the big loss he suffered a few months back.

"Get me all the information regarding the Hale group before dinner, I mean every f*****g bit of information, including what they had for breakfast" he ordered, loosening to his tie as he fished out a pack of cigerret from his drawer.

****

"Oh dear, you look like s**t" Anna commented as she take note of her raggedly dressed friend with massive eye bags and red eye, she opened the door wider and helped her carry her bags in,

"I feel like one too," Melisa replied, stepping into the clean and brightly lit apartment.

"Wassup Melisa" Dan, Anna's boyfriend, greeted as he buttoned his shirt, getting ready to head out "Hey Dan" she waved, forcing out a smile on her tired face.

"I'm sorry about the whole thing, but are you okay?" Dan asked

"Yeah, I am and thanks for letting me stay here" Melisa appreciated looking from Anna to Dan, she didn't dare to ask if she was intruding on their privacy, she had nowhere else to go if she was.

"That's fine, feel comfortable alright? Just relax and don't overthink things, we are both glad you reached out to us" He let out and kissed Anna before exiting the house

Anna pulled Melisa into a hug, patting her back lightly as she gave silent support "You are the strongest woman I know, you are gonna pull through, I know it, you always do," she encouraged

"I don't know anymore" Melisa sobbed as she felt the warmth of the hug around her "I don't know what to do anymore, Anna, I don't have a home and my mom's hospital bill has doubled up and now the loan shark has begun threatening me, I don't know where to get such huge amount of money in a month" She cried into the hug,

"We will figure something out babe, we will"

"I don't want to lose my mum, Anna, she means the world to me, I can't bring myself to sign that paper to remove her from life support but now I can no longer afford to keep her on it. I don't know what to do" Her sobs increased as she buried her face into Anna's shoulder.

Anna held her closely, her heart breaking at the sight of her helpless best friend. She wished she could reach out a hand for help, but she couldn't due to the huge responsibility on her shoulder to take care of her sibling.

"Do you know where I could get help? I don't mind if I have to pay back slowly, I don't want to be sold as a prostitute, please" she begged

"Oh dear, I don't, if I knew I would have helped you out a long time ago" Anna sighed grabbing a box of tissue from the table and handing it to Melisa to wipe her tears

"I'm sure we will figure things out, but don't you think it's better to, you know?"

'remove her from life support' she wanted to ask

"Then what would all my effort for the past five years amount to? Why would I get myself into so much debt only to give up on her right now?" Melisa questioned.

Anna sighed and went into the kitchen to make something for her to eat while urging her to freshen up, she knew her best friend wasn't the easiest to convince about anything and until the last moment, she wouldn't give up hope on saving her mother.

"I know someone who can help" Benita another friend of theirs came in with a bag of dessert "I just don't think it's the best option" she added as she sat beside Elisa bringing her into a hug

"You look worse than s**t" Benita commented and flopped down beside Melissa

"Who is it? Can I meet them?" Elisa asked trying to force herself out of the tight hug

"I mean, I'm not one hundred per cent sure they would help, but a coworker got help from them and I heard his help always comes with a price "she explained

"What price did your friend pay?" Anna asked from the kitchen

"I don't know, she wouldn't tell me no matter how much I asked, signed a non-disclosure agreement or something like that, but it's worth the shot I guess? The worst that could happen is you get rejected "

"Then who is it?"

"Connor Dartine, the CEO of M&S"